The Year Round Nigel Slater discussion thread part 6

[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 on Mumsnet 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

N.B. The Christmas Chronicles thread proper will start in late October, ready for the book beginning on 1st November (seems a long way off, but will be here before we know it!)

@petitpasta your day sounds lovely, as does the thought of mushroom risotto.

I went swimming at my local lake earlier today, and it was so lovely being outside on a soft, rainy morning. It feels hard to believe that 2 weeks ago the grass was parched and brown and now everything is lush and green again - almost like spring, apart from the berries.

It rained all day here yesterday but soft gentle rain which meant I could still have the French windows open all day, I had a lot of paperwork to do so it was a good day to sit at the laptop. The tomato candle behaved itself all day so perhaps i was a bit hasty they have offered a free refill which i will take up (I originally asked for a total refund because the pot is no use if the candle is no use but they said no to that). if the second one is similarly tricky and they don’t refund it’s time for me to write a review.

Dry so far today but cool, I have been for an early lido swim, probably the last of the year. Everywhere is still completely parched looking here but I think the green will start to reappear now we’ve had some rain.

Oh look...

Ha, posted that in the wrong thread - my other regular haunt has an ongoing chat about which Ocado van arrives (it's always Plum!). Anyway, my shopping is here and I'm having some lovely M&S taboulleh, olive hummus and blue corn chips for lunch.

Oh I have massive FOMO. There's a thread on here atm saying Ocado have the M&S Christmas stock listed online. I feel like Ocado are never going to make it to my area. I do love the design of the vans mind. I'd probably get overly excited if I actually saw one irl.

Oh, all I get if I search for M&S Christmas is this... 🤣

Apparently it's under 'New products'

Someone on the same thread were saying the mince pies and stollen are on the shelves in M&S too. Not in mine though. Ours is always about a week behind everywhere else.

Someone I know works for Tesco (in store) and said the first mince pies go out this week.

I write in my diary each year when they first appear. It was 4th Sept last year. Very exciting!

Can’t believe mince pies are entering shops imminently

Very strange weekend here. Dp going back to work has sped up the end of summer going back to work feeling. And the weather hasn’t helped. Very soggy walk around the local national trust place today.

I hated the heatwaves. Never liked hot weather but now can't tolerate it very well.

The last few days I've become aware of a big advantage of the hot weather, being able to dry the washing whenever I want. I'm now back to scanning the forecast for the week 😒 🤔

Guys this thread inspired me and I made a Christmas cake today - so excited

Brilliant! Mine has not long come out of the oven.

I was going to say move to the NE of England. No heatwaves had here. However, drying weather has been hit and miss for weeks. It definitely lulls you into a false sense of security when you get a dry spell, then Bam! You're back to having damp washing for days on end on the radiators again.

Ahh sitting by the stove with a cup of tea, just taking the chill off the house this morning.

There's something glorious about the first fire of the season. Watching those pine cones burning brightly! 🔥

Waving!

Hello candle supremos, I wonder if I can ask a question please? We keep the left over candle stubs especially from the biggest candles that always seem to hollow out. Mainly white, a few red ones, we have tons now. Can I melt these down and turn them into new candles (eg in a little glass / ceramic pot)?

If so, do I need a special pan to melt the wax? Presumably I should cut out all the old wicks and burnt bits?

Sort of feeling like I might be hoarding old rubbish but maybe there is hope…?

I’m not too fussed about colour or scent just hoping to avoid chucking stuff away that might have a useful 2nd go round.

RZW is the expert, but I have done this - I bought a candle making kit to have a specific pot to melt wax in. I sort of fished the unwanted bits out as it melted but that may not be recommended! Some were more successful than others, I suspect it depends on which different waxes you mix together.

Pretty quiet day here - walk, counselling appointment, read a bit. Nice combination of dim sum, M&S super green salad and assorted pickles this evening.

As I make my own candles, I can answer this. Yes, you can. You need a double boiler essentially. I use a metal jug (the type used to froth milk in cafés) inside an old saucepan and sit it on a low heat to melt all the wax. You could use a Pyrex jug instead if you have one. Fairly easy to clean out with a couple of bits of kitchen roll. It's then just a case of pouring the wax into a new vessel with a wick already attached. Obviously you do need to clean the burned bits and remove any old wicks from the existing remnants. This is easily done if you place the existing candles in their vessels within a bowl containing an inch or two of boiled water which will loosen them enough from the sides for you to prise out. Sounds like a faff, but definitely worth it and doesn't take too long. As you say, it avoids wastage too.

I have loads of wicks and also the glue dots required to hold them in place. I also have a lot of wick holders (these hold the wicks central whilst the candle is cooling / setting) More than happy to send you the bits you would need in the post to save you having to buy them, as you tend to have to buy in bulk. Just give me a PM 😊

Guessing this is Cornwall? Hope you're having a lovely time. If this is the family holiday you were talkng about, then hope you also enjoy making the lego botanicals 😊

Sorry, I meant to post this last night but ran out of spoons.

Ooh. I must add super green salad to my M&S shopping list! I can highly recommend their Japanese milk bread if you haven't tried it.

Anyway, happy meteorological Autumn, everyone! 🍂

I put my new Autumn duvet cover on last night so have woken up in an Autumn Cocoon this morning. I also fashioned a cushion cover out of an orange cashmere jumper.

I wonder if we will be hearing something soon from Nigel regarding any forthcoming book releases <manifests book announcement>

Right. Make a cup of tea, go to the beach and put Autumn wreath on door whilst leaving.

Good morning and a Happy First of September to you all :) we got back late on Sunday and it was back to work for me yesterday. I can’t believe how the grass has recovered in the week and a half I’ve been off! It was lovely to see and work in normal temperatures for the first time in months, though still shorts weather. Feels chilly this morning so I’m going to chance a long trouser.
Will try and have a catch up now - hope all are
well

I do have a lot of Orange and pink in my lounge @RainbowZebraWarriorand @petitpasta.In fact after people and dogs I think I would attempt to save my big orange velevt armchair next if there
was another house fire. It was the only good thing to come out of the last house fire as I got it with some of the Insurance monies otherwise DH would probably have vetoed it!

Oooh Christmas cakes! Lots of Christmas things in our Morrisons yesterday…
are you in Port Isaac @Bimblesalong?