Year Round Nigel Slater discussion thread - Part 4

[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 has been running for a few years, and the contributors 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, grab a drink and relax.

A very hearty welcome to friends new and old!

@RainbowZebraWarrior
Sending you lots of positivity re your Dad. Very difficult time for you.

@Celiathebanshee
That recipe looks good. I’ve just cancelled HelloFresh. Our box didn’t materialise on Tuesday and this has happened before. Luckily, I could cobble something together from the freezer.

Next week it will be just me and DH as DD is off interrailing and we won’t be collecting DS2 from Uni until the following weekend.
We haven’t been child-free for nearly 20 years so it will be strange but also a glimpse into the retired years.

That salad sounds delicious @Bimblesalong - I make a similar one with watermelon, cucumber, feta, olives and mint with a lemon dressing. Perfect for hot days like these.

A quick hello from me. We are on the train! My heart is still in my mouth a bit, but it's really really quiet and hardly anyone on. I'm just so proud that she's done it.

Will catch up properly later, but lovely pool, salad, cow and strawberry photos. Also recipes. I love Greek lemon chicken with potatoes, so will check out that recipe. I also love watermelon and cucumber / tomatoes and feta. I have most of the ingredients in, and watermelon arriving via my Mum's food order today so that's a great shout to go along with the chicken I cooked, thinking ahead last night.

I love trains, I do. It's been way too long. Watching the countryside fly by, and getting a whizzy sneak peek into peoples gardens.

Love to all, and speak later!

Snap, @RainbowZebraWarrior, I am also on the train with autistic dd1 who has been known to panic so severely on one journey that we ended up in A&E getting checked out for palpitations! But much calmer now, 3 years down the track (no pun intended). Good luck for your trip and fingers crossed for your dad.

We are off to shop till we drop. I ordered my dream top earlier in the week but I have no suitable well-fitting trousers to match with it so a try on session is required.

Ooh, just as I was typing dd2 messaged me with her dissertation mark and it's good - a big PHEW!! ⭐🥳

Congrats to DD on the mark @leporello and well done you and @RainbowZebraWarrior on the train journeys!

I think I need to borrow some of you to help me get back into travelling by train 😂Last time I tried it felt awful, and I think partly it's because I pushed myself through a few train trips to London and back when I didn't realise I really wasn't well. I used to really love a train journey too.

Quiet day here recovering from socialising/ heat/ eating too much bread, cheese and ice cream yesterday. The temperature has dropped, thank goodness, and I have plenty of leftover picnic food (but trying not to eat too much more bread, cheese and ice cream).

Great news about DD's dissertation @leporello.

Congrats to @leporello ’s dd on the mark and to @RainbowZebraWarrior and DD on the train journey.

I’m taking the term “lunchtime sandwich” loosely, @martha79 with a biscoff icecream sandwich :)

Yeah, well done to @leporello 's DD2 and both @RainbowZebraWarrior and @leporello 's DD1s for train travel! All the excellent daughters (and including @piscofrisco 's for going away and leaving her in peace! I love my family dearly of course but having the house to myself is such a treat)
I thought we were in for a cooler dat but I was in the garden potting on some seedlings and have had to come in to change into shorts and find a cool drink. It's lovely though, I promise I am not complaining. DH is sound asleep in the summerhouse 😂but no doubt will claim he is wide awake (eyes shut, snoring)

Have had a wonderful day in Norwich. If you ever get the opportunity to go. It is a great city. Really enjoyed the museum and castle. With a spot of shopping this afternoon

Hope you had a great day and wishing safe travels to @RainbowZebraWarrior&@leporello

Best of luck with the interviews @petitpasta especially the Cathederal one as I know you were excited about that.

Pleased you had a lovely day in Norwich @CrushingOnRubies It's not a place I have ever been to, but always wanted to do the Norfolk broads.

Well done to both your DDs @leporello and how funny that we were both on trains at the same time.

Oh bless you @martha79 I hope your energy levels return to something near your previous normal and you can get back to doing the things you want to do x

I cannot ever imagine being able to do London again. I've made my peace with that, but I feel sad for 14 year old DD who was exhausted today after a 28 minute train journey. She has so many health issues, bless her. We both have a max activity level of around three hours, and have to plan with military precision around that. That said, we did enjoy our morning yesterday. We got the 9.41 train to Seaham and the 12.45 train back. Totally exhausted and got excited when we arrived back 'home' as we went over the Tyne and saw all the bridges. You'd think we had travelled half way around the world!

Been awake since before 3am for a variety of reasons so have just been listening to the dawn chorus and watching a lovely Hedgehog in my front garden.

I enjoyed the day I spent in Norwich many moons ago, seemed like a small city that punched above its weight in character and charm. I can understand Alan Partridge's enthusiasm for it 😄.

Our shopping day was partially successful - dd1 got her new hoodie and jeans (she's not a hot weather dresser...) plus a copy of Lord of the Rings. I got some lovely stuff but not the smart lightweight pale-coloured trousers I was after... Then realised I had thrown my return tickets away along with an empty coffee cup and pile of last week's work tickets, argh! So that was an expensive mistake, but a good day overall. Dd had some food court based anxiety so we left before ordering and sheltered in the relatively soothing M&S cafe.

I'm sharing the coffee shop with morris dancers and folk singers today. Wish I could stick around and watch some of the festival but I have to bake a cake and take it to the church fete. I'm not much of a baker but quite excited to try this recipe - it's a fresh raspberry and coconut traybake. Happy Saturdays to all!

hurrah for successful train Journeys, shopping and dissertations!
well done DD’s and mums :)
we somehow ended up in Norwich for a few days when we were refugees after our house fire. We loved it!
ice cream sandwiches are not far from arctic rolls really I suppose! Hope you have had a good rest @martha79and are feeling a touch better today.

It’s a lovely day here-far nicer than was given on the forecast. I’ve been into town for my nail
apppoinent and got on the peony train with two bunches from the market. Also got two surprisingly large Acers in pots for £15 then struggled to carry them home. Just waiting for my friends to arrive and decid what they want tondo for the afternoon. I’m actually a touch hungover having been out last night with the newbie women which was quite fun-then coming home and having a little solo kitchen disco til 1am-will I never learn?!

Lovely Saturdays to all

LOLing at the Alan Partridge / Norwich connection (Ahaaaa!!) @leporello but not the train ticket situation. I always get e tickets and also WhatsApp them to DD as I am inclined to do similar. I tidy and throe things away daily and spend hours looking for stuff! My DD also had a bit of anxiety during the return train journey yesterday as it was just too busy with loud folk. Mostly people heading to Newcastle for a p-up. It's still got quite the reputation as a party city, and we get besieged every summer with the ubiquitous stag and hen parties.

How are you feeling today @martha79 ?

Ah @piscofrisco a kitchen disco at 1am sounds like a great thing and sometimes a blow out is needed. Also nice that you had a good time with new pals. Appreciate that the hangover in warm weather is a difficult one though. Hope you have fun with your friends whatever you decide to do

I've just picked my Dad up from hospital as he's been discharged. He has high dose steroids to comabt the (?) viral meningitis, but because his inflammation levels continue to rise, he's also had a brain scan and CT scan, along with another lung xray. Thankfully, all are clear, but I have to take him back on Monday for a testicular ultrasound and then he is booked in for a prostate MRI. They are thorough, I'll give them that! He has also been referred to Rheumatology, as if all else comes back clear, then that's usually the speciality required. A department I've been involved with myself for years, having EDS and chronic inflammation.

Got some food ready to put out for Mr or Mrs Hedgehog tonight, as I was grateful for their company last night and would like to continue encouraging them back to my garden.

Hope everyone else is well and had an enjoyable Saturday. Feels like a Sunday to me for some reason, but that's likely due to the week having been rather chaotic with emergency ambulances etc.

Hope the cake making went well @leporello. I have made a strawberry pavlova as we’ve been invited out for dinner and were asked to bring pudding. Easy enough to make, but it’s still 32 degrees here and I have a ten minute walk down the hill dodging the PSG fans who are all out and about for tonight’s Champions League final. Not sure how portable it will be. I have been googling Seaham @RainbowZebraWarrior which must surely have featured in a few episodes of Vera. Hard to believe it used to be a mining town looking at it today. I also see it’s known for its seaglass (did you already mention that?) something I knew nothing at all about before this thread, but now feel like something of an expert in. Hope your dad is OK - good to know he is being fully checked and tested. Love your hedgehog.

Afternoon all. Your traybake sounds lovely @leporello and your pavlova looks great @LillianGish

Kitchen disco sounds excellent @piscofrisco

My goodness, your dad has been well scanned @RainbowZebraWarrior - I hope things all settle down soon.

Thanks for asking, I'm a bit better today, but a similar pattern to yesterday where I woke up feeling rough and didn't really come round until after an afternoon nap. My stomach isn't very happy so there's no Nigelling going on - have only eaten rice, oatcakes and bananas today.

Have just finished reading the thesis I was reviewing and my brain is quite frazzled now, although it was enjoyable. Have renewed my TV licence after quite a few years - I eventually gained a long list of BBC things I actually wanted to watch - so am binge watching the series I haven't seen of Death in Paradise. Also started Small Prophets which I'm really liking, and watched some Chelsea highlights.

One more day left on 'holiday' before I go back to work!

That's a gorgeous looking pavlova @LillianGish

I really enjoyed Small Prophets @martha79 but then, I love anything Mackenzie Crook does.

Rainbow anecdotes incoming:

People come from all over the world to visit Seaham for the sea glass @LillianGish My silversmith has a piece that her US customers are offering her £500 for. It's a beautiful rainbow piece, created from the glassworks there which closed down over 100 years ago. They used to tip the different colours of leftover glass into the sea at the end of each day, which fused together creating what we call "multi's" It is still being washed up to this day. You can't find anything like it anywhere else in the world.

Most of Vera was filmed on my doorstep. They largely filmed in and around Whitley Bay and other areas of North Tyneside and Northumberland. I've watched them film loads here over the years, and passed 'Vera's' land rover more times than I can say.

Most of the villages around here were old mining towns (including mine) and have a very interesting history. Alan Carr did a documentary recently about the village his Dad, Grandfather and Great Grandfather were brought up in. The same village my Dad was born in. Alan came a few years ago to commemorate those that lost their lives there. We have many other memorials here too. Our village had a huge pit disaster in 1862 with 204 deaths. DD and I often go to our churchyard pay our respects. It is sobering to see that a lot of the poor souls that lost their lives were as young as 10 or 11 years old. I also have a newspaper cutting featuring my great grandfather on my wall from the same pit as Alan Carr's ancestors. I'll post a photo at some point soon. As you can probably tell, I love researching our local history. You'd be hard pushed to find anyone round these parts who's family weren't involved / affected by the mining disasters. A lot of the slag heaps are still visible, too, although some have been turned into biodiversity parks more recently. I was just driving through the villages today after going to a local art exhibition and remarked to DD that so much is still in ruin / untouched. Things like crumbling old cottages etc. They mostly haven't been demolished or developed because of the risk of mine shafts below.

Back when I was a young copper, we had a report latebone night from a dog walker on a local field that a huge hole had appeared in a local field. It was a mine shaft that had colapsed. I was dispatched by my Inspector to 'guard' said hole until the coal board were alerted. As I stood there in the pitch black, all I could here around me were other shafts collapsing. It was quite terrifying as I wondered if the ground beneath me would also just give way at some point.

Photo of a sea glass rainbow multi.

@RainbowZebraWarrior
Are you still willing to talk to my friend re fibromyalgia?
Not sure if I’m being thick or it’s a phone thing but I haven’t got your DM.

Yes, absolutely. I sent the PM a week ago, but I've just resent my number. Hope that pushes the message through.

Just to add, I've heard you cant see PMs via the app. I dont know if you use that. I just use the Web page and it seems fine PM wise

@RainbowZebraWarrior
Thank you.
I will try to log in on my ancient iPad!

Great anecdotes @RainbowZebraWarrior. Thanks for sharing. Hope you are feeling on better form for your last day before the return work @martha79. It’s Mothers Day here in France and the kids have bought me these lovely peonies. The temperature has dropped a full ten degrees overnight so now much more bearable and hopefully better for my blooms.

Evening all,

I’ve been quietly lurking. Not a lot has been going on other than work and baking in the heat we have been having.

My DF came over yesterday and bought me the David Austin rose across. It smells BEAUTIFUL. I have attached a picture, I hope it works? Excuse the sorry state of the garden!

A slow evening planned and I’ve just started to rewatch the split again, has anyone else watched this?

@RainbowZebraWarriorthat rainbow sea glass is beautiful. Oh blimey that night of the collapsing mine shafts sounds so scary.

back to work tomorrow. 8 week full on weeks till the summer holidays. Counting down already 🙈

I finished reading “ A Thousand Feasts” yesterday. Bought it during the Christmas read along but then the reading pile was a bit out of control!

I kind of missed the recipes, not going to lie. Feel like he lives on rather a different plane altogether, with a lot less Teams calls, fish fingers and teenager tantrums than I am dealing with!

I didn’t realise you used to be a police officer @RainbowZebraWarrior that incident with mine shafts sounds intense!

Good morning all

just having a brief catch up. Whoever’s that pavlova was can please kindly send me a large wedge of it!
A busy few days here-our friends came and we had a lovely time with them. It was again baking hot and we went and sat outside our local cheese shop which has cunningly started to also sell wine by the glass so a very pleasant afternoon was spent.
yesterday dd and I went to see The Sheep Detectives. We both cried Buckets. Loved it.

Ive been awake since 03.40 and now about to get up and go to work. Knackered. Elderflower cordial making this week so I’m laden with citric acid, sugar and sterilised bottles. I don’t have a muslin for straining so we may have to improvise something-not sure what.

Have a lovely Monday all

Back to work this morning aka having approx five minutes to myself on an average day 😕. But it's the home straight, summer hols are around the corner, and other such motivational thoughts.

Verry threatening clouds on the horizon, think I was well advised to dig out the raincoat.

Love all the peonies, wish their season wasn't so brief.

I was addicted to The Split @MrsJLevinson, it was like a grown up This Life (which I absolutely loved). There were lots of threads about here which would probably make an entertaining 'read as you watch' exercise. I'm always a bit behindhand with my viewing so didn't join in but I imagine there is a ton of style and fashion commentary 😄. Enjoy your rewatch.