Klaus Nomi - Lightning Strikes

Nomi always reminds me of Oskar Schlemmer's 'Ballet Triadique' designs; which is where I expect he got his inspiration. He doesn't make me think of much else.

Enjoy; if you can. I shall.

Cranberry.

Lady Magnon is very partial to ice cold Cranberry juice; especially at this time of year.

We are told that Cranberry is a 'Superfruit', and this particular Company (Pressade) also claims that their product contains no added sugars (a bonus).

But being an inveterate reader of 'ingredients', I had a butchers at the back of her recent purchase, and found the following...

Apple juice 52.1%

Cranberry juice 16.4%

White grape juice 15.6%

Water and Elderberry juice 1.2%

plus some natural aromas, and Vitamin C.

Now, I don't know about you (or even the EC Trades description folk), but to me that is APPLE JUICE; not Cranberry juice. Surely if a product contains more than 50% of a certain product, then it should be named after that product. Otherwise the law is an ass.

This is APPLE JUICE with a small amount of Cranberry flavouring!

If a sausage contains over 50% Pork, and just 15% Poodle, could you honestly call it a 'Poodle Sausage'?

  

Birthday boy.

                                          

August 5th is my late father's birthday. He would have been 113 today.

He was a good man, and he deserves to be remembered. Many, many, people benefited from his generosity.

So, Happy Birthday Papa. x

Compost Fry-up.

August is not only my bottling month, it's also the month when we return to eating 'Compost Fry-up'.

Last night's (not the above; my last night's photo was rubbish) comprised of Potatoes, Beans, Long Peppers, Aubergines, Peppers, and a few baby Tomatoes.

I cook the Potatoes and Beans beforehand, then the rest is chopped and fried in Olive Oil and Garlic Butter, with the Potatoes and Beans added later. Just before it looks well cooked I add a teaspoon or so of ground Cumin; and that's it.

I'm no saintly Vegetarian, but I could eat this several times a week. It was so good!

Summer Croquet.

We don't play Croquet as much as we used to. Maybe we're not as good at cheating as we were.

Back in the day, we'd have serious Summer competitions with medals, prizes, and championship titles.

Above in 1993, the teams comprised of two boys (The Wimpos), two mothers (The Mumblers), and two fathers (The Grand Cru). The Grand Cru won The Cup; of course.

It's a frustrating game (especially here), with tantrums, outrageous cheating, and losers who do nothing but complain.

The Croquet Lawn is ready, but whether or not it'll get any use this year is still being debated. I don't know how we'd get the hoops in the rock-hard ground anyway.

Trelawnyd Male Voice Choir-Bring Him Home

Someone says he's going to leave all this. I don't believe him.

If you wish to sing along, the lyrics are below. You might also hear JG in the background. Tissues at the ready.

God on high
Hear my prayer
In my need
You have always been there

He is young
He's afraid
Let him rest
Heaven blessed.
Bring him home
Bring him home
Bring him home.

He's like the son I might have known
If God had granted me a son.
The summers die
One by one
How soon they fly
On and on
And I am old
And will be gone.

Bring him peace
Bring him joy
He is young
He is only a boy

You can take
You can give
Let him be
Let him live
If I die, let me die
Let him live
Bring him home
Bring him home
Bring him home.

Rat!

Happy Lammas!

It's that time of year again. There's a surfeit of vegetables at Haddock's, and it all needs attention. The first thing to make is Ratatouille.

Now, this is NOT the classic way of making 'Rat', but let me assure you that you really wouldn't know the difference.

I chop-up all my Toms, Peppers, Aubergines, and Courgettes, into 1-2 cm pieces, season a bit, and cook down until all is softened. 

I fill 500 gm jars, fix the capsules and lids, then sterilise for an hour.

Take out, tighten lids, and leave to cool. The following morning I take off the lids, clean and dry the capsules, and write on them what is inside (checking that the capsules are firmly sealed).

It's a simple process; one that I shall be repeating several times over the next few weeks.

Life without home-bottled 'Rat' in the winter would be unthinkable. These were simply the first six jars; plenty more to do!