All of a sudden it's Friday again. We've not been very far from home this week. In fact we hardly left the house between Saturday lunch time and Wednesday morning whilst the storm and then the snow took over.
On Wednesday morning we drove the few miles up to the town of Leek to take some books and CDs to the Staffordshire Wildlife Charity shop
We also wandered around the covered market and bought sunflower hearts for the birds and also some plants which have now been placed in a larger pot. I also noticed a lovely stall selling hand made soaps so will probably go back and chose some later as we've gone back to using hand soap to avoid using plastic bottles.
We also bought red berry loose leaf tea from Cafe Apollonia where we stopped for a coffee and toasted tea cake.
We usually have loose leaf fruit teas from Lee Rosy's by post as they don't have a retail outlet now but we prefer to buy locally where possible. We've found one variety of fruit tea at Sainsburys which is also very good.
Towards the end of last year we planted spinach seeds in a pot in the conservatory and this week the leaves were ready to be cut and eaten.
We have a recipe for cheese pie which asks for 'a handful of Spinach leaves' and that was more or less what we had.
The pastry caught a little in the oven but the pie was delicious with salad.
This morning we walked around the lake at Trentham. It was very bleak and cold.
The runner ducks were rather hoping that we'd have seed in our pockets.
I did spot one of the first Wood Anemones of the year under the trees. This seems slightly early as they usually flower March to May.
Now it's time to make sure everything in the garden is safe once again before the next storm appears this weekend.
N.B. For those who asked I've added the recipe for the cheese pie below.
N.B. For those who asked I've added the recipe for the cheese pie below.
Cheese
Pie
500gm
puff pastry
Milk
or beaten egg for brushing
1
free range egg (2 if additional fillings are added)
110gm
strong cheddar cheese
2
handfulls of washed spinach leaves
pinch
English mustard
ground
black pepper
100g
feta cheese (optional)
Pre-heat
oven to 220c *. Roll pastry into
two oblongs** Lay
one half of the pastry on baking parchment on a baking tin and brush edges with the egg or milk. Mix the egg and grated cheese in a bowl, stir
in spinach and mustard. Season with
black pepper. Spread onto pastry base
and crumble in the feta (if required). Cover
with second oblong, sealing well, turn over edges and crimp with fingers. Brush with egg or milk and mark the top in a
lattice design. Bake for 15 – 20 mins
and then, if needed, reduce the temp to 190 degrees and cook for a further 10
minutes until top is puffed and golden brown.
Serve warm.
* in our oven we heat to 200 c then reduce to 180c after 10 mins as it gets very warm and can burn the pastry quite quickly.
** we buy the ready rolled sheet and just cut it in half.
Flowers blooming... And spinach... So different from our weather.
ReplyDeleteLoose leaf fruit teas... I'll bet they are delicious. There is a small restaurant, in an adjoining town, which specializes in teas. When winter leaves, we really should go over there, and try some *real* tea! -smile-
💕 💕 💕Happy Valentine Day💕 💕 💕
Thank you WoW, we're trying to use loose tea rather than tea bags because they don't decompose in the compost very well and also lots of them are sealed with plastic. My husband drinks the fruit teas, I like breakfast tea or Earl Grey in the afternoons:)
DeleteI hope you warmed up with a nice cup of 'Rosie-Lee' after your walk. I don't believe I have ever come across any Wood Anemones, I must keep a look out in future. Stay warm and safe.
ReplyDeleteThank you Elaine. Yes,its always nice to warm up with a mug of tea after a walk. Wood Anemones are so pretty when they carpet the woodland floor, I love to see them. Hope you too stay safe and warm this weekend:)
DeleteYour meal looks tasty although I can't get up any enthusiasm for salad at this time of year
ReplyDeleteThank you Sue, I know what you mean about salad at this time of year. I think we'd had warming comfort food for a few days, vegetable caserole with dumplings, fish pie etc that we wanted something a little lighter when the sun came out on Wednesday, the pie was served warm though:)
DeleteGlad you managed to get out a few times the weather has not been good and this weekend looks as though it is going to be pretty horrible too! Your pie looks really tasty. It does seem early for Wood Anemones there again there haven't been that many frosts and perhaps they are in a really sheltered location? Have a lovely weekend and stay safe with yet another storm on the way!
ReplyDeleteThank you RR, the anemones were against the path by the lake, under a few trees there were helebores and primroses along side them. The pie is lovely it's a good recipe to throw together quickly if you have a roll of the frozen puff pastry that is. We keep one in the freezer. Weather is horible this weekend so we haven't been out of the house except to the local Co-op round the corner for milk and a newspaper:)
DeleteYour lunch looks very tasty.
ReplyDeleteLots of things seem to be so early sprouting in the garden this year.
The runner ducks pic made me smile.
Have a lovely weekend, hope the storm isn't as bad as they say it will be.
Thank you Julie, I love to see runner dicks they always make me smile. The cheese pie was very tasty. Hope the storm hasn't been too bad your way:)
DeleteWhat a good idea to grow spinach ready to be eaten now, making your cheese pie even more tasty. I like the sound of the fruit teas and hand made soaps. I quite enjoy the lemon and ginger and spicey ginger teas as well. I hope the storm isn't too bad where you are this weekend. 😊
ReplyDeleteThank you Karen. Paul drinks the fruit teas and I like 'ordinary' teas except I used to love Taylor's Sweet Rhubarb, even though it was in bags, but sadly they don't make it any more. Storm not too bad - well fences are still upright at the moment, doesn't so far seem as bad as laast week's storm here:)
DeleteA lovely selection Rosie. I don’t drink loose tea enough; I have plenty of teapots! Clever to grow spinach in a pot. I’m in the seed selecting stage. Won’t be long before there are seedlings coming up 😀. Have a cosy weekend. B x
ReplyDeleteThank you Barbara, it was great to have the spinach and just enough for us if we buy a bag there is always a bit too much and then you have the bag too. I think some of the plants will grow again to give us more leaves. We've been sorting out seeds too and seeing what we have left from last year:)
DeleteBeing more mindful of the environment is something I need to think about when shopping for goods.
ReplyDeleteYou've touched on some good ideas here such as soap and loose leaf tea. I like my special bars of soap, but also have refillable soap dispensers as an alternative. Your spinach and cheese pie looks delicious. It's lovely to see the woodland wild flowers and your walk around Trentham. I hope you both have a good weekend.
Thank you Linda, the hand soaps do seem to last longer too, we are finding out which ones break up and which stay firm to the end. Loose leaf tea does seem to have a better flavour and leaves are better in compost. It was lovely to see the wood anemome, hope the storm wasn't too bad where you are:)
DeleteWednesday was such a lovely day between all the wet and windy weather!
ReplyDeleteThank you Louise, it was a much better day and nice to have a short break from all the wind and rain:)
DeleteLovely post in between your storms & glad you could get out for a bit. That tart looks yummy & I've loads of silver beet (I think you call it chard?), which we've had a few times & two tomato plants which falling over with all the wind we've been having. They aren't ripening either, as it's been very overcast for most of February, but the sun is out at the moment, so maybe a little closer to getting a red tinge. Hope your next storm has passed by the time I've written this. I'm way behind as my old laptop won't pick up WI-FI anymore & it was what I always used to check my blogpals posts of a morning. Take care.
ReplyDeleteThank you Susan, storm was really bad last night it kept me awake, I really don't like wind, we have a medical appointment this morning so hoping no tres are down along the way to Stafford. Hope your chard develops it is so pretty with its red stems and your tomatoes too, we have been buying tomato seed ready to plant. Take care:)
DeleteLooks like you had a good outing. No doubt had cabin fever after all you in time due to the storms. Hope that's the end of it for you. Your cheese pie looks yummy, could you share the recipe? We use hand soap in the shower and at the bathroom sink, but for some reason have switched yet in the kitchen. Thanks for the nudge, think it's a good idea. Sandy's Space
ReplyDeleteThank you Sandy, it was one of those meandering outings wandering around the market stalls and charity shops. I will try and share the recipe and edit this post with it later this week, I do have it typed out somewhere. I quite like hand soaps again now and there are some lovely ones:)
DeleteThe weather isn't great for going out is it, I don't blame you for staying in but you need the fresh air after a while! The pie looks lovely and quite easy to make?
ReplyDeleteThank you Pam. We got out a little today after a weekend in yet again. Yes, the pie is very easy to make, I'm going to add the recipe here when I find it as I'm sure I've typed it out somewhere:)
DeleteI've never thought of growing spinach indoors before - I will now. And I will definitely be making the cheese pie, it's just my kind of thing. Thank you for the recipe.
ReplyDeleteHow far is the walk around the lake? I will be in Trentham in May and it would be lovely to do while I'm there. X
Thank you Jules, the cheese pie is delicious. The Lakeside Walk at Trentham is about two miles but there are other walks off it and also the gardens too. There is a cafe at either end of the lake plus many in the shopping village and garden centre. We have a yearly pass so we can go in any time except where there are special events:)
DeleteI’ve heard about the storms, so I hope you’ve managed to stay safe and dry. Such a lovely sight - spring flowers. It must have been nice to get out for some fresh air and exercise after being stuck indoors all week....wish it was mild enough here for a walk. Have a good weekend, Marie x
ReplyDeleteHello Marie, lovely to see you here. The constant rain is very draining but it is the wind I dislike the most and even though the sun is shining today, the wind is still gusting quite badly. Not been very far this last week either, I'm really ready for better weather now:)
DeleteThat pie looks wonderful. I wonder when one storm after another will cease? I hope you continue to stay safe.
ReplyDeleteThank you Jayne, I hope you stay safe too. Gales again yesterday but seems to have died down this morning although still raining. The pie is delicious warm or cold:)
DeleteThe ducks look like good company.
ReplyDeleteThey were very funny, William, they always make me smile:)
DeleteOh those lovely ducks! I once heard Indian runners being described as, 'hock bottles on legs' The one on the left in your photo is so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to pinch your idea of growing some spinach indoors. Mine is outside and looking a bit tough, so small, fresh leaves to pick at this time of year is a great idea.
Thank you for leaving a comment. The runner ducks are such characters aren't they? I love to see them. When we cropped the first lot of spinach we left some leaves on and now more have grown so we can take another crop soon, we've done the same with rocket and that came out well too but the lettuce didn't grow very well indoors for some reason:)
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