How international is this forum??? - Leclerc, Perigeux, Australia, malaria...... love it
It always surprises me that some branded junk-type foods seem to be available the world over yet other things which we regard as store cupboard staples are classed as 'specialist' foods in other countries.
Morning everyone - another one out there - it's 33C in the potting shed already - I hope the toms are loving it!
Doc - we have to be quite organised when we go away too - not because we don't have nice neighbours but because we have none who are proper gardeners. Next door will come in and water some stuff for me - but they either think if it rains that's enough or they drown everything.
I know that sounds ungrateful but I've learned the only way is to try to make everything self sufficient and just leave instructions to just water once in the middle of our break.
Your neighbours would probably water with the weedkiller watering can wouldn't they?
Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
DD and Busy - my favourite local supermarket doesn't stock raisins at all, or candied peel and the one that does is expensive and small packets only. However, I have found a patisserie wholesaler and retailer not too far away so go there for kilo packs of raisins, ground almonds and candied fruits in long, juicy strips of either orange or lemon that I chop myself. I can also get 500g packs of white, milk and dark chocolate chips and all sorts of flour, nuts, etc at reasonable prices.
I use cassonade de Graeffe for soft light brown sugar but I don't think I've seen it in Leclerc on trips to the Charente and the Vendée. I don't bake on hols.
I have to go to weekly markets or a Chinese supermarket in Brussels to get certain spices and chutneys and regularly make lime pickle for OH.
It is muggy here - still. The sun is trying to break through the haze but that will just warm things up enough for more storms in the evening. Lots of flash flooding causing chaos on the roads around Belgium yesterday evening.
Managed to get quite a bit done in the garden - weeding the rain forest!
Hugs to all the poorly, injured and their carers. Happy gardening and baking otherwise.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
...meant to ask Clari - how were the Grand Design creators? Lots of teeth sucking noises at the audacity of your plans? ( OH likes to guess the price quote, based on the number of sharp intakes of breath performed at the initial visit - he believes they have an exponential relationship ???)
Builder one was keen, ready to start, and gave no hint to shoot down any of our ideas (floor levelling compound, special plaster board to sound insulate the adjoining wall) nor any worry about the wall he was going to knock down being structural.
Builder two was pessimistic at best, seems to be keen to put lintel support structures everywhere (swear he must have one under his mug of tea), wrote off our idea of levelling compound (not needed) and plaster board (doesn't work), and was keen for us to do as much of the preparation work as possible (agh more knocking off plaster!!)
Builder three hasn't returned the call to even come round for a quote. Which is a good sign.
I'll let you know prices when they're in. I think you can guess which is going to be the more expensive one!
Good Day All. Started overcast and roasting and is now sunny and roasting. Might do a bit of planting later.
Home baking went out of "style" for a long time and ingredients became harder to source. I have always baked a lot so I noticed... Thankfully now we have the great British Bake Off and it's become fashionable again but I'm afraid that's not much use to you faraway folk. Food parcels from visitors from home would be a possibility. When we visited my sister-in-law in America we were laden down with potato bread, soda bread, proper chocolate.... The empty cases and bags were then filled up with "stuff" and "bargains" and Christmas presents to bring home.
RB the guy at the airport didn't even raise an eyebrow. He said every suitcase going out of Belfast International had soda bread and potato bread in it.
Posts
How international is this forum??? - Leclerc, Perigeux, Australia, malaria...... love it
It always surprises me that some branded junk-type foods seem to be available the world over yet other things which we regard as store cupboard staples are classed as 'specialist' foods in other countries.
Morning everyone - another
one out there - it's 33C in the potting shed already - I hope the toms are loving it!
Doc - we have to be quite organised when we go away too - not because we don't have nice neighbours but because we have none who are proper gardeners. Next door will come in and water some stuff for me - but they either think if it rains that's enough or they drown everything.
I know that sounds ungrateful but I've learned the only way is to try to make everything self sufficient and just leave instructions to just water once in the middle of our break.
Your neighbours would probably water with the weedkiller watering can wouldn't they?
DD and Busy - my favourite local supermarket doesn't stock raisins at all, or candied peel and the one that does is expensive and small packets only. However, I have found a patisserie wholesaler and retailer not too far away so go there for kilo packs of raisins, ground almonds and candied fruits in long, juicy strips of either orange or lemon that I chop myself. I can also get 500g packs of white, milk and dark chocolate chips and all sorts of flour, nuts, etc at reasonable prices.
I use cassonade de Graeffe for soft light brown sugar but I don't think I've seen it in Leclerc on trips to the Charente and the Vendée. I don't bake on hols.
I have to go to weekly markets or a Chinese supermarket in Brussels to get certain spices and chutneys and regularly make lime pickle for OH.
It is muggy here - still. The sun is trying to break through the haze but that will just warm things up enough for more storms in the evening. Lots of flash flooding causing chaos on the roads around Belgium yesterday evening.
Managed to get quite a bit done in the garden - weeding the rain forest!
Hugs to all the poorly, injured and their carers. Happy gardening and baking otherwise.
Builder one was keen, ready to start, and gave no hint to shoot down any of our ideas (floor levelling compound, special plaster board to sound insulate the adjoining wall) nor any worry about the wall he was going to knock down being structural.
Builder two was pessimistic at best, seems to be keen to put lintel support structures everywhere (swear he must have one under his mug of tea), wrote off our idea of levelling compound (not needed) and plaster board (doesn't work), and was keen for us to do as much of the preparation work as possible (agh more knocking off plaster!!)
Builder three hasn't returned the call to even come round for a quote. Which is a good sign.
I'll let you know prices when they're in. I think you can guess which is going to be the more expensive one!
The early cool respite didn't last long
It's scorching again 
and no sign of even a drizzle.
Liri, I think the west coast was all affected with mist/fog this morning. We were and that's a rare occurrence.
RB glad son is ok now
Clari, hope you get a reasonable quote
Good Day All. Started overcast and roasting and is now sunny and roasting. Might do a bit of planting later.
Home baking went out of "style" for a long time and ingredients became harder to source. I have always baked a lot so I noticed... Thankfully now we have the great British Bake Off and it's become fashionable again but I'm afraid that's not much use to you faraway folk.
Food parcels from visitors from home would be a possibility. When we visited my sister-in-law in America we were laden down with potato bread, soda bread, proper chocolate.... The empty cases and bags were then filled up with "stuff" and "bargains" and Christmas presents to bring home.
Fat writing dammit!
Last edited: 08 June 2016 14:14:33
RB the guy at the airport didn't even raise an eyebrow. He said every suitcase going out of Belfast International had soda bread and potato bread in it.
Why? Soda bread is so easy to make. I do it for eating with soups in winter.
Is it Alexanders, RB? Hope not, I hate cigars...
Is it Angelica Runny?
(just thinking as we're on a cake making theme....
)
Is it Mimosa RB