And in other news…..

…… for the past 4 years I have been retraining to a new career. My former working life required working in London (many hours away from home) and lots of travel and no longer suited the reality of our life. So in the past 4 years I have retrained, and have just started in my new office.

It’s an exciting- but very new phase of my life, and so blogging has been put slightly on the back burner. But hopefully this week I will be returning.  I may well be amusing myself by blogging work-day lunches. (I abandoned supermarket sandwiches day 2). 

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Autumn Walks- Quarr Abbey to Ryde.

What to do on a glorious Autumn afternoon? Pack your woolly hat and woollen mittens and go for a walk of course! I started at Quarr Abbey and walked along the bridle path towards the coast. Quarr Abbey is a must-visit for anyone on the Island.Home to a small group of Benedictine monks it is a peaceful and beautiful place of significant historical and religious importance.

https://www.quarrabbey.org/site.php

These horses came over for a chat and when they realised that I was bereft of treats they sulked away.

The beautiful Binstead Church.

The end of the path. Cold and blustery with Portsmouth in the distance.

The gate at Binstead.

The ruins of the Medieval Quarr Abbey- dating from the 1100s.

Supper of crab pate and cheese and fruit.

Sunday Supper-Bruschetta

Bruschetta with creamy mushrooms; bruschetta with asparagus and lemon and bruschetta with tomato and olives.

Carpet with dog.

Friday Night Supper

A really simple and delicious supper, made all the more simple because half of it was made by someone else. The Food Hamper in Cowes who provide (among other things) homemade frozen meals and sides. I bought some of their artichoke gratin and it was really lovely. Marinated artichokes cooked with onions,loads of garlic, butter and cheese all put into the oven until hot and bubbling. A really unusual flavour but really delicious. We had this with steamed beans and carrots and a roasted chicken thigh that had been marinated in soya sauce and honey.

Followed by cheese and fruit

And because it was Friday, of course there had to be a bottle of wine.

I’m loving this Alcohol-free wine right now. All the taste, without the hangover. A perfect start to the weekend.

http://www.tasteofthewight.co.uk/the-food-hamper/

 

Sausages with grapes

This was taken from an Ina Garten / Food Network recipe. I had sausages, I had grapes. The original recipe uses Marsala wine but I did not have any so I used Alcohol-free red wine. AF wine tends to be quite sweet,so it was a pretty good substitute. The sausages are baked in the oven with the grapes, then the grapes reduced on the hob with a splash of wine and a glug of balsamic vinegar. The sauce was really rather scrumptious and shall definitely be repeated. A nice way to elevate a fairly ordinary mid-week sausage supper.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/roasted-sausages-and-grapes-recipe-1924696

Sunday Supper- Baked eggs and spinach

This was a perfect Sunday supper. The entire meal took about 15 minutes and most of that was spent waiting for the half-baked bread rolls to cook while flicking through magazines and listening to The Archers on Radio 4.

I heated up some oil in a frying pan and tipped in a whole bag of fresh spinach.

Wilted this down on a medium heat. Then added single cream, grated nutmeg and simmered until a nice gloopy mess. Cracked two eggs and cooked through, added a handful of grated cheddar cheese and served with warm rolls.

B-G had eggs with beans as spinach is slightly too strong a flavour for him.

Sunday Breakfast

When the husband is out for the day sailing there is only one thing to do- take yourself off for a delicious Sunday breakfast, at The Coast in Cowes. A definite favourite.

https://thecoastbar.co.uk/

Eggs ‘Popeye’. Toasted English muffins, spinach, smoked salmon, poached eggs and hollandaise sauce. Perfect.

Fried eggs on sour dough toast and baked beans for Baby-G. He ate the lot- even the egg yolks which was a win.