How to be more like me. (What I did this week).

A word to hormonal and "under-achieving" women.
Sir Henry Royce claimed, "Whatever is rightly done, however humble, is noble."
Well, he obviously knew nothing about the split-infinitive but I think he makes a good point about life. We are all our own harshest critics. Its easy and dangerous to compare ourselves to others and be disappointed about where we are. But. Lets look around. Realise that we are loved and pretty fantastic to a handful of very important people. Lets also just get on with it. Life is precious.
If that doesn't help, will this hotpot make you feel better? Probably.
And it is definitely noble.

Lamb Hotpot.

1lb lamb neck fillets. Sliced.
1 large onion, finely sliced.
1 clove of garlic, finely diced.
5 or 6 large, waxy potatoes (The pink ones are good for this).
4 leaves from a savoy cabbage. Shredded.
Dried thyme
1 large des. spoon redcurrant jelly
1 measure dry sherry.
2 pints lamb stock
Black pepper.

In a heavy bottomed casserole dish, gently fry the onion and garlic in olive oil. Don't rush this stage, if it burns, its ruined. Add a teaspoon of dried thyme and a good grinding of black pepper. Now toss the lamb in flour - I'm not convinced that this protects the meat but it definitely thickens the gravy. Fry the lamb, allowing the base of the casserole to colour but not burn. Now add the stock, a little at a time so that the gravy thickens as you go. Next the redcurrant jelly and the sherry go in. Stir until the jelly melts.
Slice the potatoes to about 3 or 4 mm thickness and add to the hotpot. Simmer on a low heat with the lid on until the potatoes are tender - about an hour. Don't stir your hotpot too often during this time or you will end up with lamb in watery mash.

Finally, add the shredded cabbage and cook for a further 10 minutes.
Serve with bread and butter to dip in the gravy. Perfect.

Around the grounds.

At this time of year, every bright, dry day is a gift. It also gets dark early so there is every excuse for coming indoors to cosy up on the sofa. Its the perfect time of year for getting out and doing a bit of sweeping and weeding and then returning inside for some guilt-free lounging.

I rescued this little fella from the drain. I think he might be so yellow because he'd been down there a while.
We get a lot of frogs in the garden even though we don't have a pond. They are brilliant for slug-control.

Whats in your soup today?
I'm glad you asked:

1 onion
2 celery sticks
2 carrots
1 courgette
1 sweet potato
3 savoy cabbage leaves
All chopped and softened in olive oil and butter before adding;
2 pints of ham stock (from a cube)
2 handfuls of red lentils.
Black pepper and mixed herbs.
Simmered until everything is cooked and then blitzed with a soup wand.
Served with cheese and onion pasties.

A Walk for the Weekend.
Loch Katrine.

Start at Trossachs Pier, Loch Katrine, by Callander.
The route takes you along the edge of the loch along a private road so there is very little traffic. This makes it ideal for family cycling. You can hire bikes from Katrine Wheelz at the beginning of the route. If you get your timings right, you can cycle all the way to the other side of the loch and hop on the steam ship for a lift back to the cafe.

Its a lovely gentle walk or cycle with stunning scenery all the way.