Meat, Two Veg & Tea

Despite having left home over 20 years ago, I still have bits and pieces in my mum and dad's loft!! Slowly but surely everything is making its way here - mum asks if I'd like to look through a box when we visit, or brings things with her when she comes up to Yorkshire! Whilst having a sort out here yesterday, I came across a couple of those things...

my school cookery apron (that mum made for me!) and my school cookery book, which makes entertaining reading - I sound like a 1950s housewife throughout most of it, despite writing it in the 80s!

I had to write a little piece about a local food shop and I chose the local butchers, which, rather confusingly, was called 'Bakers'. Goodness, meat prices have certainly shot up - leg of lamb for £1.54 per pound anybody?

My neighbour (on the other side of us from the lovely B) brought round some lovely looking beetroot this morning, along with a not so perfect looking courgette! It certainly wouldn't make the supermarket shelves! But, I'm looking forward to it as part of roasted veg with some ham from the joint I roasted yesterday. Why do vegetables have to look a certain way? Is it us that want it that way, or are we being dictated to by supermarkets?

Mmm...a nice refreshing cup of tea ! I've gone back to using loose leaf tea - well, it happened out of necessity last week when we had run out of tea bags (disaster!!) and I've decided to stick with it because I think it tastes better! It doesn't really take too much longer to make a small pot and there's something slightly comforting about warming the pot and covering it with a lovely vintage embroidered tea cosy while the tea brews!

Back soon,

Rebecca

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Nancy's Hankies

I came across this little bag a couple of months ago and fell in love with it straight away...

I say 'little' - it's about 8" square! It's falling apart a bit at the seams and the embroidery is not the neatest I've ever seen but I love it! I love its little handmade button, the traces of blue embroidery transfer that can be seen between the flowers and that there can be no doubt of its purpose: "Nancy's Hankies". Inside there is a small, white embroidered name tape that confirms Nancy's surname - it is here that my imagination runs away with itself...did Nancy go to boarding school, I wonder? Were Nancy's hankies as pretty as the little bag in which she kept them? I could never part with it!

Well...I guess I need to head back to the kitchen now to tidy up a bit more, make a bit of lunch and then mop the floor!! Boring stuff...but it has to be done! Anyway, I have a nice day to look forward to tomorrow as I shall be teaching one of my workshops, where we shall be making some of these:

and having a natter over tea and cake! Oh, yes...I always take pretty tea cups, saucers and homemade cake!!

Have a lovely weekend!

Rebecca
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