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Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3

1000 replies

RainbowZebraWarrior · 18/11/2025 18:35

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 chair to the fireplace, grab a drink and relax.

A very hearty welcome to friends new and old!

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RainbowZebraWarrior · 04/03/2026 18:47

piscofrisco · 04/03/2026 15:50

I LOVE that tattoo! I’m going to show it to my dd as she is wanting to get one but doesn’t know what!
freezing here today as the cloud hasn’t lifted. Still no heating and no hot water so I’ve got DSS’s oodie on.
DH managed to leave his paracetamol out and one of the dogs has eaten one. We don’t know which of the three, (money on the sausage) , so they are all currently in the vets having their stomachs pumped as a prescription as it’s so toxic to Dogs . Brilliant. 😡😡

Oh crikey. Poor wee doggies and poor you. Hope DH's GP appt went well and you / he came away with some possible answers and a way ahead. Sounds like you are juggling a lot so sending you a gentle hug my lovely.

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RainbowZebraWarrior · 04/03/2026 18:55

martha79 · 04/03/2026 16:28

Ohh no, poor dogs @piscofrisco - hope they're all OK.

Thanks for the nice comments on the tattoo - it's an extension of an older one, so there's a crescent moon in the middle then hawthorn branches going up and down from it. I have various others - a couple of hares sitting in moons, a hummingbird at a crocosmia flower, the sun, a butterfly and a whole host of sea-related creatures - all black/ grey in the same sort of style.

Oh wow. I love the sound of all of your tattoo's. I love hares and also love the moon and Crocosmia. It reminds me of my Nanna's garden, as her borders were full of it, therefore it was one of the first things I planted in my current garden. It has recently become rather overtaken with red valerian though, which is a bugger to keep under control.

That's a lot of loves, haha!

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martha79 · 04/03/2026 19:11

RainbowZebraWarrior · 04/03/2026 18:55

Oh wow. I love the sound of all of your tattoo's. I love hares and also love the moon and Crocosmia. It reminds me of my Nanna's garden, as her borders were full of it, therefore it was one of the first things I planted in my current garden. It has recently become rather overtaken with red valerian though, which is a bugger to keep under control.

That's a lot of loves, haha!

Aww - I got the crocosmia because hummingbirds love it apparently, but also because my grandparents' garden had lots of it. And the hummingbird because of this article - https://www.mamamia.com.au/elizabeth-gilbert-hummingbird-theory/ - which made me go "oh yes, that's me!" (I also used it in the interview for my current job, to explain how my 'varied' career is actually a good thing - thankfully they enjoyed the metaphor).

Tiring day of meetings here, but cheered up by some nice parcels arriving - my new wax melts, which seem good. And a vintage tank top.

Just realised I haven't brought my washing in so need to venture into the garden in the dark...

Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
Confusedmeanderings · 04/03/2026 22:35

Love the tattoos @martha79 ! Once I had decided not to have a reconstruction after my mastectomy, my plan was to get a tattoo on the flat part of my chest. I wanted something nature themed, but whilst I was trying to fix on a design, I started radiotherapy. The radiotherapy machine has to centre on the exact same place each session and to enable that to happen, you get tattooed with three tiny black dots. They are honestly so tiny they are no bigger than a small freckle. Well, it hurt so much when they did it that I thought "sod that" and all plans for tattoos went out of the window! My chest remains flat and unadorned!

LillianGish · 04/03/2026 22:58

All this talk of hawthorn is making me think of the house I grew up in in Yorkshire which had a hawthorn hedge running the whole length from front to back. I remember the scent of the may blossom - giving rise to the saying n’er cast a clout til may is out (so frankly beginning of March seems a little early!), but mainly I remember not being able to go in the garden with bare feet for fear of being spiked with thorns though we did do anyway and then had to have them teased out with a needle.

piscofrisco · 05/03/2026 06:42

Morning all
I have a tattoo of a lizard (why?) on my back that I got when I was 18 in Ibiza. Unfortunately subsequent weight gain and loss, and pregnancies stretched it so now it looks more like an incoherent alligator than a gecko. I can’t see it as it’s on my lower back so it doesn’t bother me much really.
Thr dogs are fine if a bit sorry for themselves. Not least because £300 later 😳we found said paracetamol buried in the daschunds basket last night (where dh had ‘looked’ already). Of course.
His appointment wasn’t that helpful-she reluctantly ordered bloods but declared his sore throat etc viral. He has barely been able to speak for over a week with temperature up and down and awful headaches. He has a full medical at work in a fortnight however so they will investigate him fully then and probably do a better job.
I have a days external training today which I’m fed up about as it’s a long way away and hard to get to and it’s something I’ve trained in as a practitioner myself (but mandatory) so won’t be super interesting. Also it’s set to be a lovely day and I don’t like being indoors anymore really. I’ll be messed up if I ever have to go back to working in an office!
have a lovely Thursday all

martha79 · 05/03/2026 07:45

Aargh @piscofrisco - glad the dogs are ok but sorry it was all unnecessary and expensive! Hope DH gets some answers soon.

@Confusedmeanderings I don't blame you re the tattoo. Mine are arms, legs and top of back - absolutely no way I'd be going on my chest or stomach!

It's meant to be a lovely day here today - sunny and getting up to 15C. I haven't got out of bed yet so cannot confirm, and I've got lots of meetings again so won't see very much of it.

SheherazadesSeasonalNonsense · 05/03/2026 09:21

Foggy cold and damp here this morning but the sun through the fog was spectacular (not as spectacular as the moon last night, all huge and orange from the Saharan dust, did you see it? DD3 tried really hard to photograph it but it never works)
im sitting in the hospital waiting room, waiting for a follow-up after having my shoulder poked with a needle at the end of last year. It’s not really any better so I don’t know what he’s going to say. I have brought my book.

LillianGish · 05/03/2026 09:49

Up and about early this morning for a blood test so nipped to the Palais Royale to check out the magnolias which are magnificent. A perfect spring morning - you have all inspired me to seek out some nature (albeit very manicured nature!) in the city. This really is one of my favourite spots - if only I were a better photographer (or had a better camera on my phone).

Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
PricklyBob · 05/03/2026 14:47

I haven't posted here for ages - issues with work and also with mum's health have kept me busy (not in a good way).

I wanted to pop in though to say that I've just been for a walk along the river - not only are the snowdrops absolutely spectacular but the wild garlic has just burst into life and the scent was intoxicating. I've never actually picked it but maybe this should be the year? The weather has also been beautiful this week and I hung washing out on the line for the first time in 2026 today. Spring is here!

Also loving the tattoo pictures. I often think I'd like to get one - and a lot of people are surprised to find out I don't. It's definitely part of my aesthetic. I'm such a wuss around needles and pain though, I don't think I'd cope.

Bimblesalong · 05/03/2026 14:50

So lovely to see the photos of blue skies and flowers. What a lovely pink colour, @LillianGish .

I love your tattoo @martha79 Like @Confusedmeanderings I intend to get some ink to mark my "experiences" with cancer. I would like line drawn pink cherry blossom - a tiny one - over one of my node scars. I've seen a lovely artist who works out in Dublin but need to do more research before I go ahead.

It's been gorgeous here in Chester today but is now bucketing down. Fortunately, my regular catch up in a coffee shop with a chum was this morning, so I was able to enjoy the city in the sunlight, just like @SheherazadesSeasonalNonsense 's photo.

It is a joy to read about DD's excitement about school and your meeting her teachers, @RainbowZebraWarrior Bloomin well done.

Eurgh @piscofrisco at hassle, wasted money, sausage adventures and DH. We love them but oh my, at times (that refers to pets and DHs!).

Beautiful moon @EphemeraleEudemonia - why is it called the worm moon? Thank you also, spoons seem in better order since I worked through the tatty list that I've been meaning to put to bed for a few days. Mixing metaphors, I have closed a few tabs on my browser and so am less mentally taxed.

martha79 · 05/03/2026 19:00

Absolutely love the magnolias @LillianGish - I'm not sure if my local ones are out yet, will try to wander that way tomorrow.

Love your tattoo idea @Bimblesalong

@PricklyBob I put off getting tattoos for years because I didn't think I'd handle the pain - got a tiny one first (just after my 40th birthday!) and the rest have followed over the last few years. Not saying it doesn't hurt, and you do feel rough for a few days after the bigger ones. I still have some other ideas and some gaps to fill, but I'd need to feel a lot healthier than I do now!

Work has been - insert screaming/ banging head against desk picture here - but I'm done for the weekend now. I am getting extremely cheesy pasta and tiramisu delivered from Zizzi, because that's what I really fancied 😄

Not really sure what the weekend holds - the city farm has its first baby goats of the year so I'd like to pop round there.

I thought Nigel was announcing a new book on Instagram today but turns out it's just one he's done the foreword for - the tease!

piscofrisco · 06/03/2026 06:38

Magnolias with fat buds here. Not long!
Hope you enjoyed your Zizi @martha79
Lovely use of the word ‘chum’ @Bimblesalong it’s due a come back that one :)
yesterdays training was very poor, not helped by other people on the course chatting amongst themselves throughout. So rude. When I was a trainer I used to send people that did this home. So distracting for everyone. Took over two hours to get home and I was very fed up.
That said I’m off to a dear friends house this evening (where we used to live) with some other friends for a sleep over. I’m aware this will make me very homesick but I’m so looking forward to seeing them. I’ve got a few hours to kill between finishing work and her getting home from work so I intend to go direct to Homesense for a candle
bonanza and for a good browse around the huge M and S next door (as we have neither of those near us now). Ideal way to spend an hour or two!
Hopefully when I get home tomorrow the boiler will be fixed and I can stop existing in DSS’s oodie.
Murky weather this morning it seems-back to a thermal legging possibly for work. Never know what to wear in spring so I have a boot full of options for work.
Have a lovely Friday all :)

piscofrisco · 06/03/2026 06:39

Sorry to hear about your Mum @PricklyBob

frozendaisy · 06/03/2026 15:28

Afternoon all

Who else wants to be in Paris? @LillianGish

And lambs have a much stronger suck than they look like they have (as we discovered one “farm” visit and nearly lost the toddler into the feeding pen!)

The teenagers are nonstop at the moment so haven’t had a chance to be at all Nigel with his perfectly displayed ceramics, think almost the opposite and add a couple more teens that don’t belong to you and that’s much closer to us.

After much trial and error I have come to the conclusion that the (cheaper) incense cones I was given by a lovely friend make me wheezy so whilst I have tried to use them they need to go - or burn outside, might revert back to essential oils to create inspiring scents

Eldest has year 12 mocks week after next, so as Sunday is taken over with a new additional teen, tomorrow is a kitchen work and cooking day. First in a while.

And still haven’t even started on seeds yet.
Time whizzes by.

Hope everyone has the weekend they need. If that’s even possible.

RainbowZebraWarrior · 06/03/2026 16:58

Good afternoon and a very happy Friday to you all.

It's been a veey busy week here. Thanks @Bimblesalong for the acknowledgement re: DD. Options evening was a revelation! More about that later. Pleased to hear you've 'caught up' with stuff / closed some tabs, and hope you enjoy your forthcoming break.

Sorry to hear about your Mum @PricklyBob but good to hear from you. Sending gentle hugs. I actually don't like the smell or tate of wild garlic. We have a wood near here that is filled with it each April and plenty of folk pick it and cook with it. My Dad often walks in with a handful.

Pleased the doggos were all OK in the end @piscofrisco but sorry to hear that the GP wasn't especially proactive. Hopefully any bloods done for DH don't show anything untoward. It would be good if he could get to the bottom of things though. Fingers crossed and onwards and upwards, eh? Also sorry to hear about the annoying course. I also used to run training and would not have been impressed at all at folk chatting!

Good to hear from you too @frozendaisy it all sounds rather full on for you. I also crave a bit of Nigel's peace and calmness, as well as his clean and tidy space. I was just looking at the book @martha79 mentioned and no wonder he was asked to do the foreward. It looks like a gorgeous coffee table book, but does not represent my lifestyle (or most people's, I'd guess) Oh, and yes, I'd love to be in Paris right now.

Loving reading the memories of plants and gardens past. This thread could and should be made into a book, eh? (Nigel, if you're reading, we are happy to partake in a collaboration!) I have also toyed with the idea of a nature memories style podcast for far too long.

I didn't see the moon that night with the saharan sand dust @SheherazadesSeasonalNonsense even though I was out in the back garden a lot, looking at the stars. I'm guessing the moon foxed me by being at the front of the house.

@Confusedmeanderings I wonder if your senses were heightened during treatment and if, in fact, a tattoo wouldn't actually be as painful as your radiotherapy dots were (says the woman who doesn't have any tattoo's!)

Gorgeous photo's @LillianGish Magnolia Susan, I believe. My favourite. Sadly, I've neglected the two I bought over the years due to delaying getting them in the ground. They do not like being in pots. At least, not when you forget to water them!

Just a quick note about Moons, as I'm always fascinated by them, the worm moon is so called because that's when the smaller creatures start to appear from beneath the earth. Here's an image I keep on my phone of the general moon types throughout the year. Some names are more obvious than others.

Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
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martha79 · 06/03/2026 17:16

Evening all. Hope you had a good browse @piscofrisco - any nice candle purchases?

Zizzi takeaway was good, even if my tiramisu was in a fairly terrible state when it arrived - it still tasted good.

Thanks for the moon diagram @RainbowZebraWarrior. This thread would make an interesting book with all it's diversions into.. all sorts!

I like the smell of wild garlic in the wild, but less keen on the taste, it's just so strong.

I have done nothing today - apart from getting up for meals I've been in bed. I think it's just been a really busy week, lots of work stress, and yesterday we had to make a sort of 'announcement' about my health to colleagues as I'm not travelling to a big work event later this month (it's usually my job to supervise the whole thing on site so it's quite a big change not to be there). They've all been lovely, but then that made me cry (for the first time since I've been ill, weirdly) and I've been quite emotional since. All part of the process, I guess.

Up again now for a grocery delivery, going to eat some of it and get back to bed.

RainbowZebraWarrior · 06/03/2026 19:00

Oh. I forgot all about @piscofrisco and her browse. Hope you found some lovely things and enjoy your sleepover weekend my lovely.

I'm well behind with preparing for my Easter craft fair at the end of the month. Largely due to faffing around at the beach most days, which leaves no spoons for anything else. No candles have been made in weeks, and no slides have been made for the honeybee / beekeeping talks as of yet.

It's due to go down to minus 1 here tonight, so we have properly hunkered down for the evening and have the stove on.

I hope you continue to be supported by Primary care @martha79 as it sounds like you're still really struggling. Do you have or have you been referred to any specialists? I have been looking at Dr Tina Peers. She is a specialist in Long Covid, Menopause and MCAS among other things and is highly recommended. May be worth a search. So much of these things are interlinked. For example, my EDS and MCAS became more pronounced when I reached my mid 40's. EDS presents with chronic fatigue and pain among other things. A bit like Long Covid / ME / CFS / Fibromyalgia. We were promised there would be more support after Covid appareared as more folk were struggling. It seems that that help hasn't materialised (or was a short lived promise) as, naturally, the resources just didn't magically appear. If anything, the opposite has happened; people are largely left to get on with it. More women seem to struggle than men due to various factors. I've spent years researching and getting to grips with pacing etc. It's so frustrating.

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EphemeraleEudemonia · 06/03/2026 20:58

Struggling to keep up with the thread!
It's been continuously raining here.

@RainbowZebraWarrior thank you for the courgette idea. Can now say it definitely doesn't thicken pepper hummus (in fact the opposite) but tastes very nice, and I can it would gorgeous cooled in summer. Pepper hummus was still not quite as I'd like but turned out letting it settle overnight helped, and @HannahDefoesSpringFling thank you for that recipe, I can see that coming out for the great pumpkin and squash glut.

@martha79 So impressed that hawthorn comes up and you produce an actual hawthorn tattoo!
We use it traditionally to manage specific heart issues and as an anticoagulant as well as a jelly for cheese and roasts, with star anise and apple for a jam, apple for fruit leather, and brandy for liqueur. (minus seeds, they're poisonous - though a couple's usually fine)
The rest of your tattoo's sound fun too. I also have lots of Crocosmia. I want to get the taller red cultivated version version to plant with the wild orange as think it would be beautiful together.
Sorry for your troubles, and coming to terms with our limitations is a very hard ongoing journey especially when it happens early, and yes dealing with other people's reactions is also part of the process of adapting.

@piscofrisco What a painfully expensive palaver with the poor dogs! Sounds like very trying times especially with husband, but your description of an "incoherent alligator" gecko was deeply appreciated!

@SheherazadesSeasonalNonsense I did indeed see the blood moon and dust filtering misty fog.

I hope it's alright to bring this here, it's bittersweet but as humans we read so much into the moon.
On the 3rd we had a bright rising worm moon. But on the 4th the strangest dystopian but beautiful, blood moon rose, filtered through misty grey mauve tinged fog, appearing above the Westway (elevated motorway through London) as I drove home from someone's Ramadan Iftar, which is what I was also doing the night Grenfell tower and my friends home along with everyone else's, went up, under an also waning gibbous moon, and I suspect both images will stay with me forever.

The remains is finally being taken down layer by layer at the moment, currently with beams of light emitting into the sky in the evenings. * The tower and covering is no longer at its original height - my *friends flat was dismantled and removed last year. Even though it is gone, it's exact position in the skyline is etched in my mind.

A huge orange red blood moon was sitting parallel with the space where my friends flat had been.
You could have drawn a straight line to it. It was diffused with a layer of fog, as where the lights pointing up to the sky from the floors still being removed beneath.

I want to remember and retrieve the awe the panoramic views of moon cycles the home in the skies brought to them, their friends, and neighbors, if I may, and try to share that memory, even though it's now a sad subject. The moon is a strangely uniting thing.

@Bimblesalong as per RZW, the worm moon is named because it's when the worms start to come to the surface because they can feel the transmission of the spring warmth, often carried through the earth by rhizomes, and moisture allows them to travel, but most of all it's when they develop their reproductive band and seek to mate (and fill up my wormery with tiny little hardworking hatchlings.)

Sage, rosemary, lavender and bay bush off cuts, attempts at non chick pea based courgette, and red pepper hummus and chestnut veggie wraps, and salad, the ubiquitous chestnut bread pudding, and last years cabbage cooked up with pomegranate syrup.

Year round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 3
LillianGish · 06/03/2026 21:56

Thank you for sharing that memory @EphemeraleEudemonia - beautifully expressed as usual and very moving. I love the idea that the moon unites us. When my dd was very small and didn’t want to say goodbye to my mum to return to France or Germany, mum used to tell her to go outside and look at the moon and said she would be looking up at it too from her garden in the UK. DD says that to this day watching the moon makes her feel close to granny. We don’t really have any big skies here, but DD always knows where to look and where to catch a glimpse of the moon between the buildings.

piscofrisco · 07/03/2026 00:50

I used to say to then h (when he was abroad and we were not ), that we were all under the same moon.
dd has been outlining her plans for the Easter break, very few of which involve her being home. I’m pleased she will be having lots of adventures but sad, on the quiet , that she won’t be much home. Such is life, and I’m happy she is happy, on balance.
a lovely night with my friends and I will be sad to leave tomorrow:(

sueelleker · 07/03/2026 08:28

EphemeraleEudemonia Since you have a wormery, can I ask you a question? On Freecycle, someone in my area is offering a bottle of 'worm wee'. Is this a thing, and how do you collect it? I didn't dare ask the person posting it.

martha79 · 07/03/2026 08:59

Such a beautiful observation @EphemeraleEudemonia, thank you for sharing that.

There's a lovely episode of Sandi Toksvig's 'Hygge' where she talks about phoning her kids when they were in different countries and they all used to just say "moon" to each other. It inspired my first moon tattoo - in the first break between lockdowns in 2020 when I'd not seen many friends or family for months, but we reminded each other we could still see the same moon.

@RainbowZebraWarrior I've got a GP phone appointment on Monday to discuss referral to the Long COVID clinic (although I think she's doing Saturday morning admin too, as I've just had my renewed fit note sent through). It's interesting you mention MCAS as one of the things she's got me trying - as it can help, apparently - is an antihistamine. My hypermobile symptoms feel worse, but I'm not sure if that's partly because I can't currently do the exercise that helps - I had got quite strong in recent years and that really helped support my joints. But yes, probably age too.

My main goal for today is to actually eat some fruit and veg as my diet has been rubbish this week. I got some fresh tuna yesterday so planning a stir fry sort of thing with that.

RainbowZebraWarrior · 07/03/2026 09:15

Thanks for sharing that @EphemeraleEudemonia I think the moon is so meaningful in so many ways. I too, used to say 'look at the sky and we will both be seeing the same moon" This was to my Mum after I left for my gap year (aged 35)

Good luck with the appointment on Monday @martha79 I've been on high dose antihistamines for 30+ years - up to 8 a day. My body is becoming rapidly immune, which is why I have to resort to biological injections every so often.

So cold and frosty here. Beautifully bright, though. Much as the beach draws me, I need to rest, stay warm, cuddle the cat and spend time with DD. Sunday is our busy day, so Saturday tends to be more laid back. I'm back in bed, heafing on, cuppa by my side. The blinds are open and Mr D is on the windowsill and we are both watching the birds. I've put some (unlit) gingerbread tealights on the radiator to use them up. We have an alarm set for 11am to watch a film. I'll have to grab some felting or something, too as I can't sit for that long without having something to stop me fidgeting.

Enjoy your day, all!

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