A chip off the old block (a Sunday special).

This detailed rear-view anatomical drawing was produced by my 8 year old grandson, G H G, in Oz.

The boy certainly has talent, and were the artwork 10ft tall by 8ft wide, he would no doubt be in line for the Turner Prize or another such worthy acclamation.

Keep it up G H G (and don't take that the wrong way; dirty boy). I wonder who he used as his model? I hope it wasn't his little brother.

© G H G Australia.

Only the Cake to make, and the Turkey to buy.

It's been Mincemeat Week chez the Magnons. Lady M has been stirring (clockwise), wishing, tasting, adding Armagnac, and bottling.

And here it is, Lady M's 2014 Mincemeat..... Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without Mince Pies, and Lady M's are some of the BEST (Well, I would say that, wouldn't I).

Teetotalers are advised to stay well clear. 

Black Peter.

                               

I hear that there have been riots in the Netherlands as a number of the PC brigade have taken exception to the Christmas figure Black Peter, calling him 'racist'.

I'm getting pretty pissed off with all these claims of racism. Black Peter is no more racist than I am. He is simply a black faced traditional figure that, in certain countries, is associated with St Nicholas.

Personally I think it's 'racist' to claim that people who put black make-up on their faces are 'racists'.

It is common amongst black women to lighten their skin colour (rather like Michael Jackson) in order to make themselves look more like white folks; are they racist? Indian mystics who cover their faces in white ash; are they racist too?

Can't we all just live and let live, and accept that there are countless variations of skin colour. Simply because someone dresses-up with their face painted black, brown, or multi coloured, doesn't make them a bloody racist.

Nor is a panto dame 'sexist'; they're just having fun.

The loony PC brigade really make me puke.

Peanut Butter.

Certain culinary exploits continue to amaze me.

About 6 months ago I bought a cheap 250gm pack of dry roasted and salted Peanuts, specifically with the aim of one day making Peanut Butter. Yesterday that day arrived.

I suppose it's pretty obvious how one makes Peanut Butter, but it had never previously crossed my mind to actually do so.

It's a strange process. For quite a while it looks as if it's just going to remain as a sand-like pile at the bottom of the whizzing machine, then after about 4 minutes it suddenly turns into a smooth paste. 

Nothing was added; just plain old Peanuts. Tastes very good too. I shall buy another pack of the same Peanuts for the winter store cupboard. 

All I have to do now is to discourage Lady Magnon from putting jam on the top of it..... She picked up some awful habits whilst living in Washington DC.

Tyre trouble (US Tire trouble).

The compact Royce was recently taken for its biannual test of 'roadworthiness'.

It passed OK, but with a recommendation that I change the front tyres on account of uneven wear.

I'd already noticed that if left to its own devices, the car would pull to the right, and I'd wondered if the tyre baldness had anything to do with it.

With new tyres fitted, the car now drives in a perfectly straight line, so the answer to my question was resolved; it was definitely the tyre.

All four tyres had been replaced about 2 years ago, so they were all of the same age, and same type. Why just one should wear so badly I don't know. Maybe the culprit was just badly made. I notice that it was worn on both the inside and outside.

I usually change my tyres every 2 or 3 years, whether they need it or not. I don't do a great milage so it's enough.

Above are the two actual tyres in question; one can clearly see the difference.

Green Pasta?

Sunday Times readers may possibly have seen this a couple of weeks ago.

When you encounter a recipe with a title such as 'World's Most Elegant Winter Pasta', you simply HAVE to give it a go. I have reasonable faith in Mr Oliver's work, so I threw caution to the winds.

If you enlarge (US embiggen) the pic, you might be able to read Jamie's ingredients. However, for my own version (I always muck about with recipes) I omitted the Leek, used just Cavolo Nero, Garlic, Olive Oil, S & P, and Parmesan. I chose Spaghetti rather than either Penne or Linguine.

This is what my version looked like...

Verdict: We were in two minds about it; we thought it 'pleasant', but maybe just a tiny bit uninteresting.

Would I eat it again? Possibly/Probably, but I would have to inject a little more flavour; not too much, but it needs a 'certain something' to bring it up to standard. I give Jamie 7/10.

It's a good veggie pasta standby; try it and see what YOU think.

Trugs, ancient and modern.

                                

Being a Sussex/Surrey border lad, I was brought up with these beautiful Herstmonceux 'trugs'. They were always a part of normal everyday garden life; a staple, as common as the garden gloves and secateurs that they usually contained. 

Traditional Sussex trugs are made from Chestnut for the handle and rim, and 'cricket bat' willow for the body. For those who own them, they are very well loved objects.

                            

Here in France, however, our trugs are more mundane. They are green or brown plastic, and are considered almost as throwaway objects. They soon develop plastic fatigue and fall apart, although I've had the one above for over 20 years (they must have forgotten to add fatigue powder to the plastic mix).

This does not mean that they are not useful. They are used for grape picking, chestnut/walnut gathering, and mushroom hunting. They are to France what the Herstmonceux version is to Sussex. Mine above has a small ring of tape on the handle, to differentiate it from those of others at collective harvesting times.

It's been years since I've owned a pukka Sussex trug; maybe one day I'll treat myself. Ones like the above (top) are true works of art; often copied, never equalled (and also very expensive).