|
A bit of a sticky night… no need for that top blanket at the moment with this heat during the day. Even if the outside temperature is dropping overnight the house is remaining warmer.
A busy day… as usual. Richard working… me working… me going to the plot to water and check on a few things… I’d bought some plant-based F*sh Fingers from Lidl as they had been greatly discounted, so we had those with chips, some salad and a Richard Parsley Sauce, which made our supper! Weather: From the off it’s sunny and warm. Breakfast: Bran Sticks, yogurt and sultanas Lunch: Egg Mayonnaise, crackers, cucumber, radish and celery Supper: Lidl F*sh Fingers, Richard’s Parsley Sauce, Homemade Chips, allotment lettuce, radish, lightly pickled beetroot and cucumber
2 Comments
 29 April 2025 (Tuesday) I'm not quite sure where today went… A morning at my desk was mainly work work, including talking to Vanessa and going through the drinks that we need for the evening show on Friday at the Great Green Barn, which is Can't Stop Carrying On. There's wine and soft drinks and also beers and some cider and then a few bags of snacks as well Two Farmers crisps. There's another event at the Great Green Barn, not our own, on Saturday and the producer's already told us the drinks that they require so we were working out what we had, what they needed, and the extra that we needed to order for Friday evening. I was expecting a Morrisons delivery which was scheduled to come somewhere between two and six this afternoon, and had also received an email that it was going to arrive between 3:33pm. and 4.33pm. Richard also took Fenella in for a full service and MOT the morning, and is also waiting for a delivery himself… so while all this waiting was going on and I was answering emails and doing stuff on my tablet, I also got on with preparing some tofu for a meal tomorrow - it was going to be today though with a cauli to use it will be tomorrow. First world problems - a well stocked fridge and multiple choices of meals! With all deliveries received and Fenella back on our driveway from her little jaunt and slap and tickle up the road, I popped down to the plot to do some watering, and just briefly check on things. All down there was fine and I hope to get down there to do some filming tomorrow as I haven't filmed a single frame this week! As I mentioned, in the fridge we had a cauliflower to use up, so I decided to use it in a Vegetable & Feta Bake. Recipe: Vegetable & Feta Bake I started by heating the oven up to 200°C, and then got one of our stainless steel oven baking trays for the cupboard. In went a largeish red onion cut into wedges, three sweet potato chopped into chunks a little bigger than an inch (I’d thoroughly cleaned and scrubbed them in the sink before chopping up as I find they can be a bit gritty), and the cauliflower was cut up into florets and those florets that were a bit larger got cut in half. I also had a yellow pepper that needed using up so that went in too, sliced into thick strips. I then put in a few teaspoons of Marigold vegetable bouillon (use salt and some fresh or dried herbs if you prefer), half a glass of white wine, and a chopped up can of tomatoes. It was then time to get my clean hands dirty by rubbing everything together, and then laying it out ready to pop in the preheated oven. It baked for about 25 minutes at which time I took it out (with oven gloves!) and gave everything a really good stir. I then added chunks of feta on top from a 200 gram block, and put it back into the oven for about 20 minutes. Richard really enjoyed it - tomatoey veggie salty cheesy does it for him! He particularly liked the cauliflower.
Weather: Sunny and warm from very early, hitting a high of 24°. Breakfast: Bran Sticks, yogurt and sultanas Lunch: Lidl baguette with Quorn ham and homemade white cabbage coleslaw Supper: Vegetable & Feta Bake Tea, desk, work work, breakfast, desk, work work…
At the plot by mid-afternoon to water, which was certainly needed in the greenhouse and poly. The broad beans had a good water yesterday so I’ll do them tomorrow rather than today. I’d taken a veggie Bolognese out of the freezer earlier on today, and with some cucumber slices it would do for supper… then a bit of TV, which turned out to be a Sally Lindsay special 70’s quiz thing on Channel 5, then bed… and picking up a book I’d put to one side in order to read my Louise Penny one I finished last night. It’s a series of murder mystery books set in the Dordogne… and will do as a filler! Weather: Sunny and warm from very early, hitting a high of 24°. Breakfast: Bran Sticks, yogurt and sultanas Lunch: Homemade Hummus, carrot batons, cucumber slices, crackers Supper: Veggie Bolognese with wholewheat spaghetti, grated cheese and cucumber slices  27 April 2025 (Sunday)
A cup of tea and to my desk - early… I needed to edit in the segments of A Week at the Plot I recorded yesterday. As the week always seems to fly by, when editing often I find myself saying “Did I only do that this week?”. And on editing, as we’re occasionally asked… We use Premiere Pro for editing our footage into finished videos to upload, whether to socials or YouTube; it comes as a package with a few other useful apps. It does cost money each month, though we’re both used to it from years of editing and also from our jobs; my case current, Richard’s case prior. Over the years we’ve tried other software, though always seem to stick with Premiere Pro… maybe that’s why it’s premiere! After editing, and a breakfast of toast, ProActiv spread and yeast extract, it read a chapter of my book and then went off to the plot - after several hours there of chatting, working, tidying, lending, gifting and receiving, it was time for home and lunch. Earlier in the week Vanessa had given me a SØDT seeded loaf that hadn’t sold at the weekend; usually if one does not sell it goes in the freezer though this one didn’t, and I was pleased to have it! As soon as I was home on Wednesday I put it in our freezer, taking it out last night to have today… toast for breakfast and something on toast for lunch, which Richard ended up doing, so it was cheese. Yum!! We also had a small bowl of Spiced Carrot & Lentil Soup, which is our Instant Pot Carrot & Lentil Soup recipe with some mild Madras curry powder and a frozen block of ginger added alongside the bouillon - delish! Back to the plot after lunch for an hour, whilst Richard took a nap… and then home to read a few more chapters of my book before making supper, some screen time and then bed. But… Just as I was getting to the main gate and about to leave the allotment a fellow plotter came in and we got chatting, as one does. He mentioned he had some asparagus to pick for his supper… and then I remembered there’s one magnificent stalk to take home and split between us. Just one, though at a good, firm twelve inches it wouldn’t quite be a mouthful, though undoubtedly still a joy! I’d already had one a few weeks ago, though I ate it myself at the plot - it had been slightly nibbled by a slug, or a snail, so I was sure Richard wouldn’t want a bite! Anyways… back home, supper to make, and a few more chapters to read… though I left the last couple for bed. I really savoured those last two chapters of The Beautiful Mystery, and happy with the ending whilst looking forward to the next in the series, it was soon time for lights out and sleep! Weather: Sunny from the off. Hitting around 18° mid afternoon. Overnight we’re still dropping to around 7° though. Breakfast: SØDT seeded loaf, Flora ProActiv and yeast extract Lunch: Cheese on SØDT seeded loaf, and a small bowl of Spiced Carrot & Lentil Soup Supper: Spinach Microwave Omelette, Homemade Potato Salad, lettuce, lightly vinegared beetroot, cucumber and a few bits of allotment grown asparagus  26 April 2025 (Saturday)
We were both up early; me at my desk very early to edit together yesterday's A Week at the Plot footage and upload to Planet Vegetaria. Sunday Chat filming day, and whilst Richard started editing it together I made lunch of homemade hummus - a staple in our house which freezes REALLY well! I’ve popped my recipe below. It’s also so easy, and you can use your own cooked chickpeas instead of a tin, just ensure if they’ve been frozen they are well defrosted. After lunch, I was at the plot doing the usual watering, checking on germination, tidying and weeding… at the end of my work there, sitting on my wooden chair outside the shed and mulling wending my way home, I checked the time on my phone… 5:03pm. My eye wandered to my left, spying the overgrown flower border bed… Into the shed I went, and grabbing my kneeler, putting my gloves back on, and laying my hands on a big 30l tub, I got to work. Half an hour later the bed looked very much better - at least I can now see the plants for the weeds! LOTS of weeds still to pull, and especially sturdy roots of tufted grasses and that pernicious Cinquefoil, though I can take my time doing some each week. It will never be perfect, though in reality very, very few things ever are! Whilst cooking supper I read another chapter or two of The Beautiful Mystery. I’m now at that stage where I’m keen to finish it, though don’t want to as I’ve enjoyed reading it so much - a bit like when you meet a friend irregularly and after hours of chat you know you need to leave and make your way home, though at the same time you want to stay and chat for just that little bit longer. If youi don't know the Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series, I highly recommend them! Supper was followed by some TV, and we stayed up late, both fully engaged watching a fab series called 40 Hidden Music Treasures at the BBC… we watched volume two and there's volume three too, so two others to watch! Happy Days!! My Hummus Recipe I drained two cans of chickpeas very well, and added them to our food processor (keep a few tablespoons of the liquid - aquafaba - for if you want to use any later) and four cloves of garlic, roughly chopped. I actually used a block of garlic from the freezer - I heated it through in the microwave to bring it to a steam, just because I don’t like eating vegetables from the freezer without cooking them. In next, one tablespoon of Marigold bouillon powder (use a teaspoon of salt if you prefer) and five tablespoons of lemon juice (love fresh lemons, though I always have a large bottle of bought lemon juice in the fridge, which I use for this). If you like your hummus less lemony use only four, and if you like it extra lemony use six! Blitz this all up in the processor, or mash with a fork if you are doing by hand - doing this by hand you can keep this as chunky as you wish, or not, though it will never be smooth like you get in the shops. I’ve not used a stick blender for this, though I would be interested to know how it works so please let me know, or I’ll give it a go myself at some point. The fridge always has a large tub of tahini, which is sesame paste, and four generous tablespoons goes in, and I blitz again (or carry on mixing and mashing if doing by hand). Scrape down the sides of the processor bowl to ensure all is incorporated, and blitz till smooth, or until you have the texture you wish. If you like your hummus thinner, add some more lemon juice or a tablespoon or two of the drained aquafaba from the can. I portion this up into plastic Tupperware or similar and freeze; I do 150g servings for two. It will keep in the fridge happily for several days, and in the freezer for several months. In the summer if I take out a tub at breakfast it's defrosted by lunch, and I give it a good stir. In the winter it might need a quick wizz on Defrost in a microwave, or bring it out the day before and pop in the fridge to fully defrost. I don't have a photo - though when I find one or make the next batch I will add! Weather: Overcast start to the day, and remained so much of the day with the afternoon being bright and much warmer. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt and sultanas Lunch: Homemade Hummus, Pitta, carrot batons, cucumber slices and a little leftover coleslaw Supper: Lidl Vegan Cumberland Sausage, roasted carrot, parsnips, onion and potato wedges with an instant onion gravy  25 April 2025 (Friday) Richard was up VERY early, opening window slats by 5.30am, making me awake enough I knew I’d not get back to sleep! Then he had a shave… with his electric razor… which buzzed me wide awake from the dressing room, ensuring I was well ready to get up and start the day… though I’ll pay for such an early rise later! At my desk VERY early, going through For Earth’s Sake deliveries from two suppliers, adding the quantity of each to stock and checking on what had and what had not been delivered… no organic brazil nuts, which have really rocketed in price since we last bought them, six months ago - maybe up 40%!!! Once this was done I got on with updating this blog… it seems ages that I’ve not updated it. I generally write it daily, dictating or typing it up into a Google document on my phone, and then when at my desk I read, make changes, spell check, then copy it from the document to my website savident.com. I guess it’s been a busy week one way and another, and of course the beginning of the week was Easter Monday, which seems SO long ago now… Anyway, as I type this Friday section of my blog, which will likely be up tomorrow, I’ve just done the above and uploaded Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday… so plenty to read! A quick chat with Vanessa post breakfast; she called as I was editing yesterday's segment of A Week at the Plot. It couldn't be a long call as we’d decided that we’d get off to Aston Rowant Nature Reserve again today, as we did two weeks ago. We were hoping that the bluebells would be out, as last time we felt they were about two weeks away from opening. To be honest, I wasn't really in the mood to drive out of London and I'd have been quite happy to have curled myself up for the day with my book, though sometimes we need to push through what we feel we don't want to do to actually experience all the benefits of a day. This was one of those days. It was really worth the drive out there. Unfortunately, as we got on to the A40 it clouded over a little bit, so by the time we got to Aston Rowant the sun wasn't as bright as it had been when we left home. We parked at the entrance to the wood, rather than in the usual car park and did our walk through the wood, with the skies clouded over and the secretive sun peeping out every now and again, teasing us at various points. Sitting on our bench eating our snack and tea, a big bumblebee buzzed around us for about five minutes. It was buzzing over the leaf litter, either to find a den, shelter or something else… it was certainly rather tenacious in whatever it was doing. As I ate the last finger of my dark Kit-Kat, Rchard got up to take some photos, and at that point the sun came out… so we decided to retrace our steps right back along the top path so that Richard could take the swathes of fresh, bright bluebells in the sunlight. It was well worth it. The drive home was uneventful, and when we got home as I’d driven back Richard said that he’d make lunch. He suggested baked beans on pitta with the leftover hot dogs from last night, which I was fine with; it made a lot of sense in many ways as I was already wearing an orange T-shirt. After lunch, and a little bit of time at my desk, I was down at the plot just pottering. A few things needed watering in the poly and the greenhouse, and outside I decided it was time to sort out the blueberries. There's one that we inherited when we took over the lower half of the plot that had died over the winter. I don't know why. I guess it just either got too cold or it got to the age that it was time for it to stop doing anything. I'm sure it didn't get too cold, as our winter was much milder than previous winters where it’s survived really well. The sad thing is, it's always been the first to bloom and the first to bear fruit, and also it’s been the most prolific fruiter of the blueberries that we have. Another one, which sits in the tub with its pairing of the same variety, has also died so I decided with two large tubs it was mostly best to reuse them. I turned out the compost, weeded it, and planted spare seed potatoes that have been hanging around for some weeks. Another job done, and another one I've been putting off for another day. Sitting down, I looked at my phone and saw that it was three minutes past five. I was sort of just having a rest and thinking about going home when I looked to my left at the rather unkempt flower border bed, overgrown with weeds of which most are grasses. Into the shed I went, picking up a kneeling pad, and I set to work on pulling the grasses and weeds that are in that bed. I've spent the time over the last few months making sure that all the growing areas are up to scratch. Then, over the last few weeks I've spent quite some time working on general areas, tidying them to make it easier for me to move around the plot or weeding them to reduce the amount of weeds that grow in certain areas; embedded bindweed growing in the path behind the shed and another patch invading the space beneath the ceanothus bring two examples. After half an hour, I was done in and though the bed didn't look spectacular by any stretch of my imagination, it looked a lot better than it did with all the grass blades shooting towards the sky and covering flowering plants. I didn't finish the bed, though I’ll likely have another go tomorrow. Over the coming months I'll go in with my hand fork and weed out as much of the grass weed root as I possibly can, and there's also Cinque Foil in there and some Bindweed so that will have to come out too.  And on Cinquefoil, I know I shared the top left photo yesterday, though here's a montage of photos of that deep tap-rooted one I took out yesterday, with a close up of the stone that it grew through; it must have found a hole or a fissure of some kind and just grown right through it, and then carried on growing, developing its long taproot for another fourteen or more inches deep into that front bed… an extraordinary plant in many ways!!
Anyway, I got home in time for making a cordial before Richard's Live, and then after that we had a quick pasta dish, one I often do on this day when Richard's done a live. It's wholewheat pasta (tonight it was Fusilli), with cooked frozen broad beans, jar pesto, garlic and grated cheese. We had radish with it too. Quick, easy and tasty. A bit of TV, and a film on Prime called Dark Encounter which turned out to be a completely different film than I’d expected it to be; though also the film that I sort of expected it to be as within half an hour I thought that a certain thing had happened, and it turned out that it had, though they needed external help to work it out. Richard fell asleep halfway through, so when we got to bed I explained to him what the premise of the whole story was… I think he was asleep by the time I finished. Finishing off a half-read chapter of The Beautiful Mystery and reading another, it was soon time to put off the light and go to sleep. Weather: Bright start to the day, though certainly chilly overnight. Feeling warmer for sure. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt and banana Snack: Rice cakes, Flora ProActiv (keeps them crisp), yeast extract and thinly sliced cheese… and a dark Kit-Kat Lunch: Bake Beans (tinned) on toasted pitta with leftover Fry’s vegan hot dogs Supper: Wholewheat Fusilli with broad beans, garlic, olive oil, pesto and grated cheese, and radish  24 April 2025 (Thursday)
Again, up early, and downstairs to make a pot of tea. There was already one cup in the teapot, so I heated that up first and had that as my morning treat. Then up to my desk, typing up the notes that I’d made yesterday with Vanessa about potential shows that could come to the Great Green Barn. With some bread remaining over from a loaf I bought at Lidl on Tuesday, Richard did toast for breakfast which was a real treat. I must say, toast has got to be one of my favourite ever foods. I tend to prefer something savoury on toast, though the occasional bit of jam is always welcome. The morning was full of work work, and the afternoon saw me getting down to the allotment just to potter, water and water inside the poly and greenhouse - there was certainly no reason to water outside, and in fact I had to empty some of the gravel trays without holes in as so much water had accumulated. The rain that we had yesterday and overnight on Tuesday will certainly have washed in the nematodes that I put down on Monday, which I go through in next week's upload of A Week at the Plot, which of course covers the work I do this week at the plot. I often wonder whether A Week at the Plot should change, but you know what, it suits me so we'll just go with it as it is at the moment. And as I type this I realised that I’m now into my fifth year of A Week at the Plot. Quite extraordinary! I carried on some work at the front of the plot, on the new bed by the rose that will be a squash bed… digging up a single plant of Cinque Foil bigger than my trowel that had a huge root that had literally grown through a stone! Talk about pernicious!!! For supper I decided to have some Fry’s Vegan Hotdogs which were in the freezer, as you buy them as a frozen item and cook from frozen… nice texture, though I think I prefer Ye Olde Oak veggie ones… I just wish I could find proper hotdog rolls rather than the brioche ones that I find rather dull… We watched the original black and white film, Invasion of the Body Snatchers… watching again it is quite an allegory for our times! Weather: much brighter than yesterday, and quite a bit warmer though still with that chilly bite in the air, particularly in the house. It's bright and sunny in the afternoon, though a little breezy. Breakfast: Toast with Pro-active spread and yeast extract Lunch: Softened red lentils with a tin of Carrot & Coriander Soup, and a few ends of bread and a pitta Supper: Fry’s Veggie Hotdogs (cooked from frozen), rolls and homemade coleslaw Up early before the alarm went off at 6am; it was to be a Vanessa day as she had eye surgery yesterday to correct vision, so I said I’d go down today, basically just to be a helping hand and a bit of support.
As I was driving, I decided to take the M25 towards the A3 and come off at Wisely junction…I hadn't bargained on the schools being back and the traffic being quite so terrible, so for the first time for a while it took me over two hours to get to the Great Green Barn and For Earth's Sake... I did various jobs in the shop in the morning, and some ordering trying to get ahead for next week as Vanessa has another appointment somewhere on Monday. As often happens at For Earth's Sake, two people came into the shop and we got chatting. It turned out that they have a small theatrical company called Lynchpin Theatre. We got chatting about the shows they do and also we were talking about the Can’t Stop Carrying On which we have coming up next week… and another person who was in the shop at the same time then chirped up that one of her friends was in a Carry On film at some point and she does one man shows too, though in her case one woman shows. What a small world! I suggested the Lynchpin couple went off to see the Great Green Barn and also meet Vanessa who was already showing two people around the venue - they were from a quintet called Quintessentially Wind (clever name!). We’d been in touch with them late last year about doing some type of concert with us, and due to various reasons it'd taken some time for them to come back to us. However, we're now planning either an afternoon tea with classical music or another event, possibly a concert of music from the movies. Both Lynchpin and Quintessentially Wind are going to be coming back to us with thoughts on what type of program they could do for us. In the afternoon, Vanessa and I went to a local garden centre to have a bite to eat… and her sister and brother-in-law were there, so we sat with them and had a nice time. Then it was off into Cranleigh to pay money into the Post Office, and then Vanessa needed to go to the chemist, then to the dentist, then back to the chemist and then by the time we got back to her home Vanessa needed to get back on to her computer to do some ordering, and I went to the shop to put all the satellite orders through. At about half past five, we were finally able to start thinking about the autumn and spring programme, and tomorrow I'll have some work to do at my desk just typing up thoughts. Surprisingly, despite leaving just after 6pm the drive home was quite chaotic in terms of other drivers, and it took longer than usual… BUT it was wonderful to get home to find that Richard was cooking a veggie sauce with peppers and using Linda McCartney meatballs to have with pasta. Delish!! After eating, and various bits of TV, Richard was asleep and I finished off Bosch Legacy on Prime, which I really enjoyed. I think they're definitely ending it at the right time, though I have to say it is one of my favourite series, and I particularly like Honey Chandler. Off to bed, with a chapter or two of The Beautiful Mystery, which I'm really enjoying. Weather: Wet start, with rain overnight. The rain cleared around midday, though the day remained grey and slightly chilly. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt and banana Lunch: Cheese and Spring Onion Coleslaw sandwich with a few chips Supper: Linda McCartney meatballs in a delicious homemade pasta sauce with spaghetti and grated cheese Up early, but Richard was up first so I was brought a cuppa in bed though took it to my desk and was at work by 6.30am… initially work work with my usual Tuesday routine.
The rest of the day was work and work work… Weather: Bright start, feeling slightly less chilly first thing. Sunny by 8.30am. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt and banana Lunch: Scrambled Egg on Toast with baked beans Supper: Halloumi Wraps with lettuce, yellow pepper and some white cabbage Up early, both of us, so no tea in bed for me and no need for Richard to make tea as I did it.
I was at my desk early for work work, which took a couple of hours, and then finished and posted Easter Sunday’s blog post which has two recipes, the main one being the Puglian inspired one pot pasta recipe. I’d posted an ‘in process’ photo on Planet Vegetaria to see if anyone might guess, though as at the time of typing no one had. I just posted an early access post of yesterday's blog to Ko-fi for Ko-fi members, and scheduled a post to our Richard & Paul Facebook page and Planet Vegetaria for this afternoon. With damp weather, I put down the NemaKnights slug nematodes between our broad beans - they are the main things to protect at the moment. I gave them a watering, to help them break down. I did this on camera for A Week at the Plot as despite not expecting to do filming today it made sense to, so… Hart to Hart over lunch, one about a rally in Greece - the storylines are getting a little bit stretched now, and you can sort of see it’s the last series as they are travelling a lot outside of the US, and the costume budget seems higher too! A bit of reading, supper, a bit of TV, bed, a bit of reading, then off to sleepy byes. Weather: Damp start, with drizzle. Feeling chillier than of late. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt, sultanas and banana Lunch: Softened red lentils added to a tin of Minestrone soup, crackers, cottage cheese, radish and cucumber Supper: Lidl Balsamic Red Onion Tart, lettuce, radish, cucumber and avocado |
Paul SavidentFollowing on from A Guernsey Gardener in London, I've decided to try and write a regular blog, and we'll see how it AND 2025 go! Archives
May 2025
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed