Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread Part 2

[RainbowZebraWarrior]

Hello, all and welcome to this lovely space for our continued chats.

A bit of background for anyone not familiar with this topic:

The Nigel Slater Christmas Chronicles readalong usually takes place here between November and February each year (the Christmas Chronicles being a book written by Nigel Slater full of winter recipes and anecdotes) It's been running for a few years, and the contributors have collectively decided it would be nice to have it running all year round.

So here it is. It is a place to appreciate all things Nigel-esque. Think seasonal food and recipes, enjoyment of nature, gardening, appreciation of the weather, and sharing of news and small moments of joy. It's a calm, cosy space for gentle chat and merriment so pull up a deckchair, grab a drink and relax.

A very hearty welcome to friends new and old!

So sorry to hear about your beehives @RainbowZebraWarrior - I hope your bees are ok. It’s properly cold here today - DS just came in and told me he could “smell the cold” when he left the bar with his friends last night: “You know when you breath in and your nostrils prickle”. He assures me he hasn’t been reading Nigel, but I have my doubts! He’s in the doghouse after losing his front door key which the locksmith informed us would cost €241 euros to replace - currently making do with the spare we usually leave with the concierge in the hope that his will turn up!

Crikey, when you're nostrils prickle then that's really cold!

Long day here. Still not completely sure on the full extent of the damage to our hives. Obviously we are still in full-on honey harvest season, and it has put us back from seeing to our bees on the four other farms they are on. Shorter daylight hours are really hampering us right now. Also, it's one thing getting the crops in and driving a high tech combine in the dark in August with full lights on, but it's quite another moving bales of hay in the dead of night on your own in a tractor fork lift when its almost October. I'm rather worried about our farmer friend. We've already been to a funeral of another of our farmers this week. Working 18 hour days is a killer. Jeremy Clarkson has done a lot to highlight the difficulties of farming these days, but the actual reality is nigh on unimaginable.

Picked up a few bits in TK Maxx, but they are still in the car. Will hopefully get time to admire - and actually remember - what I bought tomorrow.

Omg @LillianGish you really are my twin. Ds2 lost a door key on holiday last month, which I’ve taken up with the rental company as why not have a spare key for a house you’re renting out?!!! This was not the front door but another door on the property. He took umbrage at me giving him a thorough pat down like a reception child, saying he had checked all his pockets. We had to unload the car again and check the luggage. Nada.

I spoke to the rental company and they got the locksmith in (which we’ve paid for). Ds has found the key this week, caught in the lining of a trouser pocket.

photo of autumnal loveliness at Chatsworth today for balance!

Just got round to unpacking my TK Maxx purchases. No St Eval that I could find (just miles and miles of generic pumpkin fragranced candles) Was excited to find some Pecksniffs candles then was disappointed at the scents. Finally settled on this one which I absolutely love. The notes are sugar cane, candied vanilla bean, Amber and blonde wood. DD thinks it's disgusting. I am fairly sure Nigel would agree with her. It is definitely NVN.

I’m so sorry about the beehives @RainbowZebraWarrior . I follow a few farmers on IG and yes, it is incredibly hard, I don’t know ho they do it. I was up your way earlier in the week visiting relatives, I did think of you as the train pulled into Newcastle.

I have been out all morning, had to go to nearest big town for some banking stuff which it seems you have to travel further and further for now. Then had a mooch round the big M&S and Boots. Then home on the train and had to walk through our much smaller town but I wasn’t in a rush and had a nice mooch round charity and gift shops it is lovely seeing all the autumn window dressings. I am about to go to the loft for my autumn wreath and Hobbycraft pumpkins.

It’s very mild here, I went out with a hoody and tee shirt on but was too hot walking around and am now sitting in the garden in just the teeshirt. Yesterday was glorious, really warm and sunny. But the heating is clicking on in the mornings now.

Rainbow I was on last year's thread albeit with a different username. Hope you don't mind if I hop back again.

I was in Newcastle for a holiday earlier this year - lovely city. I'm in Northern Scotland and savouring the last days of autumn before it gets very dark up here.

🐝 I'm very sorry to hear about your hives and your bees x

We've had some lovely Autumn weather here this past week (a little late, but very welcome nonetheless) and it brought to mind this thread. Glad to see you are all still here. I love all of the Autumn colour, but I'm also getting a little excited thinking ahead to the Christmas season.

I see that @Bimblesalong and @LillianGish have met up in person. I don't know either of you, but for some reason that has really made me happy. Two kindred spirits sharing cake and a chat.

@RainbowZebraWarrior I'm so sorry to hear about your hives.

Lovely autumn weather here today, but I’m jealous of those who still have warm weather. It’s a bit chilly here today (I’m also near Newcastle) and I drove past three greyhounds wearing coats on their morning walks.

I’m researching winter flowering plants to get for my garden and think Nigel mentions daphne odora in CC or another of his books which is top of my shopping list. One of my neighbours has one and it’s marvellous.

I’m currently enjoying the end of a St Eval sweet pea candle, which will soon be over and can give way to something more seasonal - though it’s too early for Christmas scents so I’ll need to decide what’s most appropriate of my stash to light next!

DP is home for the weekend 😁😁😁😁 so making the most of it going to our usual haunts and having a fancy dinner tomorrow night.

@RainbowZebraWarrior any news on your hives / bees? 🤞🏼

@RainbowZebraWarrior so sorry to hear about your hives.

We spent the past week in the Yorkshire Dales and had a wonderful time. It's an area we know well and we enjoyed going back to old haunts. Bit gutted to find that our favourite pub that we frequented in the 1980s had closed.

We spotted a lovely shop building up for sale on Skipton High Street and had lots of daydreams of having our own antiques shop (I rent space in other people's shops at the moment). The rent is astronomical though!!

Waterfalls seemed to be the theme of the week, so here are some pictures of a few.

I hope the hives are salvageable and that the dear bees are ok. Poor little friends.

Lovely pictures @Confusedmeanderings What a beautiful part of the country.

It feels like the first Saturday evening in months that we’ve been able to relax at home. There has been a cheesy lentil pie, followed by Strictly and a bit of crochet. Embers candle on the go - must get the kindling sorted!

Hello all.

Little bit of a bee update. All of our girls are safely home from their summer holidays at Derwent Valley, and all escaped unscathed from the farming accident the other day. The bales fell on some empty hives and smashed them. Thankfully, our inhabited hives were further out of the way. There were a few frames of honey spoiled, but they have been left on the ground for the bees to feed on.

Hope everyone is well and enjoyed a good weekend. The weather has been mostly brilliant here.

@AccessSaver welcome back!

@CrushingOnRubies hope you enjoyed your fancy dinner with your DH.

@Confusedmeanderings lovely waterfall pics. I do love a waterfall!

@Bimblesalong cheesy Lentil pie sounds lush. Your dahlia arrangement and candles look gorgeous 😍

Thanks for all the love and well wishes to our bees 🐝 ❤️

This was the sunshine over Tynemouth Priory this morming.

That’s great news @RainbowZebraWarrior I’ve been concerned about your bees this weekend 🥰
it’s been a lovely autumn day here. I cleared away sweet peas and nasturtiums and dug up my experimental sweet potatoes - they are smaller than i probably hoped, and a bit deformed, but I am still very proud of them. Roast lamb in the oven for later (Nigella-style slow roast, not Nige’s timings. I find he likes his lamb really rare bordering on raw so we don’t take his instructions).

So pleased to hear your bees are ok @RainbowZebraWarrior, you must be so relieved. Thanks to everyone who posts photos and updates - I haven’t posted recently but look forward to keeping up to date with all your news.

Thank you RainbowZebraWarrior. I've just realised we are only a month away from the start of the Christmas Chronicles diary entries 😊

@RainbowZebraWarriorglad the bees are safe and well.

the posh restaurant was amazing Nigel would approve. It was a tasting menu so 3 courses then other little bits in between. The photos are of starter: scallops, ham, sweetcorn and parsnip purée amuse bouche of chicken curry, the main which was beef with a fondant potato. A palette cleanser of a mousse and tea was poured around it produce a rosemary steam. And pudding was a chocolate and salted caramel mousses. I wish I had the menu because the waiters diction wasn’t the best in a loud restaurant and I had had a couple of glasses of wine. More photos to come

This is the pudding and the petite fours were served on a cards box (there was a board game theme to the restaurant) and was a fudge and a chocolate brownie fudge

Gosh @RainbowZebraWarrior that is the best news re the bees being safe.

What a lovely meal @CrushingOnRubies . It’s lovely to indulge and let someone else cook too.

Ds2 is cooking the main tonight, a lentil and veg curry. Smells good! The neighbour had put out a bucket of apples free for all, so I’ve made a couple of apple puddings. I’d intended to do crumble but we only had enough gf flour to make a scone topping. It’s an adventure in cooking. DH’s contribution will be custard. Truly a mixture of cultures this evening (curry and custard club!)

Bimblesalong; If you had any, you could have mixed the flour with ground almonds for the crumble.

Thank you @sueelleker a good idea for another time. I also searched the cupboards for gf oats, which give crumble topping a good taste. (We’re trying to run the cupboards down before we have a new kitchen 😬)

@CrushingOnRubies Wow. The food looks amazing, and reminds me a bit of Kenny Atkinson's menu at House of Tides. My mouth is watering at the chicken curry (I'm currently impatiently wishing along a slow cooker chicken curry that I really should have put on much earlier than 6pm!) Also the beef with fondant potato reminds me of my catering college days. I attended as an evening class pupil when I was 30 and the chef there was the one who encouraged me to apply for Masterchef.

I see Nigel has a slot at Cheltenham Literary Festival on 13th October discussing ATF. Wish I was a bit closer.

Picked up this book at my local Sainsbury's charity book table for £1. When I got home I decided to have a clear out of some random cook books and went back to donate a dozen or so. I've now rearranged my shelves in order of Delia, James Martin, Jamie Oliver, Nigel and Nigella. I've also dedicated a shelf to Christmas cook books. A very satisfying exercise.

Plum and cinnamon crumble tonight in a Nigel approved round dish - I’m only posting a picture (after all the other beautiful food illustrations) to show how the crumble split “to allow the fruit to bubble up in dark-crimson puddles” as described in ATF which has no less than two entries on crumble! This was accidental rather than intentional. So happy your bees are unscathed @RainbowZebraWarrior.