Would a camel cape be entirely wise? Or a pair of houlihans a bit too avid?? Who cares!

[notyummy]

Please join me ladies. Don't want to be too sad and lonely on a Friday night.......

Hi ladies, sorry I've been missing in action for a while.

Notyummy you never cease to amaze me, so organised, healthy, fit and super bright

We had a couple of DH's friends around for afternoon tea today. I had a mega bake-a-thon in preparation yesterday, and it went really well. Cake I made Lamingtons - which are AMAZING and also Anzac biscuits and the fairy bread - my Australian guest was suitably impressed! it was my DH's predecessor who came over - fantastic company. I wore my recently purchaced coral coloured dress from Comptoir - really beautiful and felt great in it.

Also Cake I constantly feel like I need to raise my game in ALL aspects of life! Meal planning is no exception. I do it to a degree but am also a bit 'creative' and spontaneous at times

Bloss hope you have a great holiday!

Notyummy forgot to add stylish to my little list!

Tracey you paid how much for your threading -I could have FIVE sessions for that!

Cake love that TIBI dress, quite fancy the black one for myself, but seems to be sold out. Also totally LOVE your See by Chloe floral top (as seen on FB photo) - I want one. We hardly eat any meat here either - have loads of pules to compensate - you should try red kidney bean curry - delicious with rice and salad. Agree with NY the Good Food website is really good.

Am loving the sound of chorizo tagine - what recipe is that NY? And red kidney bean curry too - is that in a book at all?

I have good intentions re. menu planning but often get sidetracked.

I find I spend way more on food when pregnant or in early days of baby as brain just doesn't engage properly and so tired.

However am hoping to make my shop that gets delivered tomorrow last most of the week. As LTEC says less wastage on food - more money for clothes

Zembo - I knew you'd be shocked

Zembo - don't forget, I have seen your baking. You should never feel inadequate when you can make things that look like that!

My stuff nearly always tastes good, but sometimes looks...passable.

Tracey I have that Ocado on demand thing, so could order frequently enough to never have to visit a supermarket - BUT that requires a lot of organisation, so I only manage every couple of weeks. Also, to be honest, Ocado is a bit expensive for some things and can't get everything there - so I combine with the ad-hoc tesco delivery.

I'll see if I can find a recipe for the red kidney beans for you - it's a traditional kashmiri dish.

If I didn't know exactly what we were going to eat I'd be down the local co-op, buying a large baguette, smothering it in butter and scoffing the entire lot!

Dh gets me a subscription to BBC Good Food magazine every year. It's great and easy. Want to go round to notyummy's and zembo's for dinner now though!
Last time I was in London I got my eyebrows and upper lip threaded in John Lewis zembo! I'm sure you'd faint at the price! Stylish (or otherwise) Asian women being thin on the ground round here.

...And actually, tonight DH is in the kitchen cooking up a storm with my patented fish and prawn 10 minute stew:

For 2:

one can of tinned chopped toms
2 good sized pieces of any white fish
whole load of peeled raw prawns
glug of wine vinegar
some mixed herbs
some garlic
salt/pepper to taste

Put it all in one dish. Microwave for 4 mins. Stir and taste flavour. Adjust seasoning to taste. Microwave for another 4 mins.

Serve with bread and a salad. Sometimes a little grating of mozeralla on top.

Will dig out the chorizo thing - takes a bit of prep initially whilst you chop a whole load of things up, but once you have done that you just leave it for a couple of hours to cook. Tastes fab, and can be done the night before if people are coming over.

Talking of food have just done an Ocado shop. Which is probably a bit more expensive but cuts down on supermarket trips. I usually see someone I know from ds' school, which is ok but not all the time.

Love cooking most nights, but don't really use recipes. Much help learning to cook well in childhood (French stuff). I don't menu plan (hadn't heard of this term until mn!). But cook same favourites often.

And there you go

Thanks NY and Zembo. I love chorizo and am trying to eat more pulses but always buy them and then they stare at me reproachfully every time I open the cupboard.

DS1 starts cricket tomorrow - he is very excited. We went to some woods earlier where the boys went on their bikes. Arthur trundled round on his likeabike saying 'me mountain biker' - very sweet considering a couple of months ago he said nothing at all and I was very worried.

Need to go and get Bea some shoes this week as she'd doing quite a lot of steps now - will it be very busy though with mad back to school people.

mmmm that sounds great ny

Dc1 came off his stabilisers today! So proud!

Tracey my red kidney bean recipe is similar to this one. I use tinned chopped tomatoes and 2 or 3 tins of drained beans. You can vary the spices according to taste.

NY like the sound of your recipe, will give it a go sometime.

Cute re Arther and well done Blossoming's DC1 - always a special moment when they cycle on their own! Have taken the bull by the horns and put DS2 in pants for the last 3 days to get him toilet trained - was dragging his heels somewhat so DH and I decided to give it a go whilst school hols were on etc. Doing really well (if you dont count the wee under the bed and pants full of poo - sorry - incidents yesterday). I made a sticker chart (race track design) and put a few gold stars along it as extra incentive (gold star = hot wheels car) - with the end prize being a lorry thing he has been asking for since Christmas. But, noticed tonight he has taken the gold stars off of the chart - asked him why and he just looked at me and said that he already had lots of presents and toys and things and didnt need anymore until he got to the lorry! Bless, bless, bless him! Such a mature thing to say from a 3 year old! DS1 jumped right in with "I'll have them instead then" - he could learn a thing or two from his younger brother!

Fish stew sounds nice notyummy.

Well done DC1 bloss!

Another meal planner here - we have a teeny housekeeping budget so we have more spending money. I quite enjoy the challenge of getting everything for the money and making it healthy with plenty of variety. I do two weeks at a time with a big shop coming with all meat, tins, pet food, nappies, cleaning stuff, loo roll etc then a smaller fresh shop the weeks in between. Funnily enough, popped some chorizo in my basket for this week's shop as we all love it for lunches.

We frequently have chicken - roast first day, casserole second day, pasta bake third day and risotto with stock on the fourth. Bulk it up with veg and a handful of pulses and you can eke it out that long. Jackets also a favourite here and super cheap and filling. With beans/tuna/cheese/mushrooms/mix of them! We also do sauce with leftovers or cook extra and freeze.

Checked my credit card today and it's not looking brill so must be good this month. Will still splurge on a nice coat if I find one too bargainous to resist and am still looking for a leather pencil skirt for winter but apart from that, promise to be good!

For the meet-up, I can't do 9th but can do 16th.

This is the prawn & pea (with basil and mint) risotto recipe I had the other night if anyone is interested - bit of a faff but great results:
here

Ok, chorizo/chilli thing. This has only 270 cals per portion, and 6g sat fat- so yes it has red meat, but is a well balanced meal when served with veg and spoon full if rice or cous cous. Serves 8.

900g stewing steak cubes
one chopped onion
1 large mild chilli or equiavent chilli sauce
2 tbsp chilli powder
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp oregano
2 cans of chopped toms
2 red pepper chopped and deseeded
600ml beef stock ( I just use cubes!)
I can kidney beans
350g chorizo ( thick sausage type)

Dry fry steak and add onion to brown. Add both types of chill, cumin and chopped chorizo and cook for 2 mins. Then add oregano, tons, peppers and stock. Bring to boil and simmer for 2 hours. Add drained kidney beans near the end of cooking time.

Dead easy. Just a bit of chopping at the beginning.

Zembo am really pleased it went well. Lamingtons are gorgeous, hard to come by a good one in London. Huge delicious ones at Borough Market. Back in the day..

sorry tracey forgot to answer your question - Italy 29th august.

Lovely recipes - thanks ladies!

Waitrose last year did some lovely meat in their 'forgotten cuts' range like shin of beef which was sooo cheap and delicious. Am hoping they do it again for autumn as was fab for casserole/stew type stuff which I do a lot of in the slow cooker.

This was the leather jacket I liked in KM but didn't try on. May try it on at Cribbs this week when we go to get Bea's shoes.

Bloss - well done to DS. I love they're little faces when riding their bikes

Another vote for BBC Food recipes and Ocado here. We heartily recommend this BBC vegetarian curry although I generally leave out the capsicum. I often use frozen spinach (in winter) and soak dried chickpeas the night before; the texture is better and yes it is more economical.

Ocado is good because it forces helps me plan ahead. We usually have a roast chicken once a week, then use it in salad next day, then freeze the bones for stock . . . make big batch of stock, freeze stock, make this soup and on it goes . . . oh dear now I'm hungry.

Tracey Tamara boots now in at ASOS

Cake the lamingtons look really good too, so can see them becoming a staple in my repetoire

Ooh I'm sure that jacket would look great on you traceybath.

Like those boots Zembo

Just finished watching Californication. Sigh. I lurvvve David Duchovny. I know, he is a bit dodgy, but I can't resist him as bad boy Hank Moody......

It is his birthday today, notyummy. I know because I just saw a picture of him wearing a teacup and nothing else. (I used to have a thing for him too but the dodginess put me off.)

PS Needless to say that pic is NSFW and NSFDCs!