Happy Sort Of Chinese New Year

We can all feel a bit on Saturday where we rather be cocooned up in our duvet ..

"Life's a noodle dish just waiting to be created "

Claire quote February 7th 2016 

This was a dish created about using up left overs I had a  1 .kg roasting joined which I has slow cooked till it was easy to pull apart , we had some for tea with chips ( bit naughty ) Then some was designated into sandwiches the next day but there was still a little bit let over and no one could face face any more in sandwiches. So whilst my son was at another party ( swear I had a social life once ) I decided to stir fry the rest with some Udon noodles . I had never used used Udon noodles before and I was pleasantly surprised at the change , I shall be using them again for sure.

Chewy and soft, these thick wheat noodles are best when you can find them fresh. Dried Udon is still good, but the texture is more dense. Udon has a neutral flavor, so they make a good choice for strongly-flavoured dishes and I used a splash of stock I had left over from the slow cooked beef. I added in some plum sauce and some stir fry vegetables as well . It really is a quick dish.

Now I have a proper wok life is so much easier .... 


I know udon noodles are Japanese before anyone corrects me ..

Cheer Up It Might Not Happen

Depression doesn't leave you well it doesn't for you , and it's jolly not helpful for people to say

" Cheer up it might not happen "

Well it blooming well just has with you saying that .


But to have a little lift of something in times of adversity can for me make all the difference to my mental health and well being  I choose to be tablet free and that is my choice and my choice alone and I really will not explain my reasonings to anyone anymore or indeed have them tell me

"The tablets will help you'll be on the road to recovery "


I am a gentle person I will apologise for my coat being on a chair and people sitting either side of it ... ( for example in my staff room )


I no longer expect everyone to like me ~ though secretly it would be nice but I realise I am better of with the natural holistic people who don't have hair that looks like it is permanently styled. ( but fair play to you if you do have the ultimate hair ) 


I love people who can switch my mood ~ that is very important to me and again a life saver. You see words really are a saviour but can also be a curse ( so please use your words for good , words are a gift that shouldn't be misused they are a treasure for all to behold and marvel at )

Self care is very important ~ giving myself something nice to focus on mostly likely to be tea ( I am trying to avoid the cake ) 

I'm adding Rocky Road to this list as from last Friday ! very welcome after the week from hell, many folks had it worse than I ( which I dislike ) .

Always tea , I love my tea and it does calm me and I'm always refilling my tea levels .

So quite simply depression isn't a one size fits all condition , it's unseen yet seen in my demeanour or my body language ~ a mixed bag. Depression isn't a competitive sport to see who is worse or who can do it with more flair , not all us with depression get on would you believe and that can add to the social nightmare .

I'm an over thinker .... 

I can't judge humour very well and will open ask " you are joking ?"  and reading faces is hard too ! 

I dislike too much noise ~ but the clinking of a tea spoon in a cup soothes me .

I find it very difficult to follow a thread of a conversation and I usually jump about the place.

If I like you , you'll know it ... 

I am not a hugger.

But I'll hug in my mind a kind kind soul.

Apple Crumble Mocktail

I popped in my local Co- op to get the ingredients for my Apple Crumbke Cocktail and then placed them in my bicycle basket and cycled back down the lane so I could could prepare my #mycooptreats . This cocktail is ideal for Valentines day and I'll be getting my ingredients for my valentine meal from the Co-op as well .

Ingredients 

Apple Juice

Digestives to crush ( 1 should do it per drink )

Apple sauce

Allspice

You could add a sprinkle of cinnamon to the crushed biscuit.

Method

1. Place all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker ( or in my case an oh glamorous travel mug )with a handful of ice and shake hard. 
   
   
   

   
   
   Crush a biscuit in a bowl and gently put some Apple sauce around the rim , dip the glass into the biscuit so the rim is covered in biscuit .
   
   
   
   
   

   
   
2. Strain the cocktail into a cocktail glass or a tumbler  filled with crushed ice and garnish with a teaspoon of apple sauce and a sprinkling of the biscuit around the rim . Complete with a cinnamon stick to decadently twirl your cocktail whilst you wait for Charades to begin.
   
   
   
   
   

   
   

   
   

   You could leave the spice out if you wish. Or add alcohol ! then it wouldn't be a mocktail any more.
   

   
   

   Disclosure : I was kindly sent some vouchers so I could purchase the ingredients I needed.

Signs That Cats Have Overtaken Your Life

There are subtle and not so subtle signs that cats have indeed taken over your life, and many a day I sit there and wonder what lies behind those "Love me " "Feed me "  gorgeous eyes . We have been fooled into thinking they are our pets when instead they have us convinced they are the most import creature on the planet. For example when the cat sits on my husband legs wanting


 "Sweeties "

 I call the cat a creep and immediately my husband refers to me in the third person:

 "She doesn't understand does she she is just jealous "

The cats know you are trying to read a book or complete that deadline assignment , they immedaietky infiltrate your work space causing you to be late . So no more "The dog ate my homework sir "

It's more a case of " The cat sat in my homework Sir so I couldn't complete it "

Cats don't care you want to go to bed , they know you should be doing something else anyway , so you might as well go and do it as

"The bed isn't up to temperature yet "

You buy shoe boxes to feet your cats shoe box habit as it really loves its

"Box Box "

You are pretty sure that the cute soft toy cat has morphed into a carbon copy your evil ninjacat .



Cats will take over the world.

Sweet Potato Chips

A very British problem is time.

It has indeed been January for 5 years now.


So with the purse clamped shut I am on a cost saving slide to the end of the month and today it was sweet potato fries , which I though would be difficult but actually it wasn't that difficult.



Ingredients

3 Potatoes will be enough for 4 depending on size of the sweet potato


1 Tea spoon of sweet paprika


salt and pepper seasonings( I used Maldon smoked salt which I adore )


1 Table spoon of Olive oil.


Method

Preheat the oven to 200 c

Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes

Leaving the skin on

Dry them lovingly


Place on chopping board and cut in half length ways

Now you could do the same again but I cheated and then sliced diagonally after splitting length ways.




Place in a bowl add the tea spoon of smoked Paprika and the table spoon of oil oil and toss gently , adding your seasonings.


Next put the sweet potato chips onto a baking tray and cook for 40 -45 minutes allowing for your own oven.