Today it is Jane's birthday and I have invited her and John along with Mum up for a meal which will be a bit special. I have had occasion to cook for her birthday in the past and it was somewhat challenging to produce a four course meal in a yurt but I managed it!!! Today cooking at home in my own kitchen was hopefully going to be a doddle!!
We had been hoping for a nice day but looking back to the celebration in the Yurt the weather was very wet and miserable then three years ago so I suppose I should have known better. Anyway when Mum text in the morning they were enjoying sunshine in Paphos and we were enjoying monsoon conditions with heavy rain 😕😕😕. I sent documentary evidence to our guests so that they could dress accordingly but it put my plan to go across the road to search for asparagus out of the window because after that rain even if it dried up it would be sodden underfoot.
Can you believe that shortly after I took that video the sun came out and things looked much better - this was good because it meant it would be nice and warm in the conservatory for pre-dinner drinkies but it was too little too late in terms of the asparagus hunt!!!
John had shot down to sort out Lakis' tyre in Polis and to go and get some Zinfandel because this is Jane, the Birthday Girl's, favourite tipple and we had a nice rose in the fridge but it wasn't Zinfandel which tends to be slightly sweeter than general rose wines.
So with John away I cracked on doing some early preparation to ensure that the meal was going to be as easy as possible to produce and so I didn't have to be chained to the oven when people were here! The stifado gets cooked over several days so today it was just a question of heating and adjusting the seasoning. The carrots were going to be roasted which meant I could partially do that and then finish them off when the potatoes were in and the cabbage was going to be braised in white wine so again this could be done in advance and then warmed in the oven.
John came back in time to lay the table. I love to cook and entertain so I get a huge kick out of getting everything out and making the table look a bit special and using all the cutlery and crockery and glasses that otherwise just sit in the cupboard gathering dust.
Our guests arrived safe and sound. I had thought Mum was driving so was a bit worried when we hadn't received a text to say she was leaving but as it happens John drove.
We started out in the warmth of the conservatory and Jane got her eclectic mix of gifts from me - I do hope she likes the soaps because I very nearly kept them for myself if only to put in my clothes drawers for the scent alone!
I have to say that the starter was a triumph. It was grilled halloumi wrapped in very thinly sliced bacon, which was then fried and when cold served on a pea salad (with rocket and orange) with a lime, honey and white wine sauce. It was easy to produce, looked lovely and fresh and tasted fabulous.
Stifado is my go-to dish so providing the meat is tender it always goes down well. The roasted carrots and braised cabbage were lovely too and I shall definitely be doing that again and I had hasselback roasted some new Cypriot potatoes and they were delicious. The orange cake hit the mark and then we rounded it all off with some cheese and biscuits and coffee and chocolates for anyone that wanted them. Big thanks to the two John's for doing the washing up so I had nothing left to clear away afterwards.
It was still light and sunny when our guests left and so I decided to walk down to the cemetery to check out on Dad's grave as I would normally have gone this morning before going to art. I wanted to make sure the lovely plant that Di and Rob had left was still ok as it was likely to have been rather battered by the awful weather we have had of late. Actually it wasn't too bad and I had taken a bag and knife with me so that I could remove the bottom of the flower pot and then secure it into the soil with a spike - this has worked really well with all the other plants we have put there.
We have now finalised the headstone and surround and Mum has been and paid the deposit so we are hopeful that work will begin on it soon although we know that it is going to take a while.
It started to get quite chilly in the cemetery so it was time to return home. Rob was coming up to watch the football with John. It is the Steel City Derby which had originally been scheduled to be played at the weekend which would have been more more convenient but then it was moved to today (Monday) and John had paid for the privilege of watching!!! It ended up a 0-0 draw - I am glad I had retired to bed - I had a banging headache anyway so that was the best place for me to be.
We had been hoping for a nice day but looking back to the celebration in the Yurt the weather was very wet and miserable then three years ago so I suppose I should have known better. Anyway when Mum text in the morning they were enjoying sunshine in Paphos and we were enjoying monsoon conditions with heavy rain 😕😕😕. I sent documentary evidence to our guests so that they could dress accordingly but it put my plan to go across the road to search for asparagus out of the window because after that rain even if it dried up it would be sodden underfoot.
Can you believe that shortly after I took that video the sun came out and things looked much better - this was good because it meant it would be nice and warm in the conservatory for pre-dinner drinkies but it was too little too late in terms of the asparagus hunt!!!John had shot down to sort out Lakis' tyre in Polis and to go and get some Zinfandel because this is Jane, the Birthday Girl's, favourite tipple and we had a nice rose in the fridge but it wasn't Zinfandel which tends to be slightly sweeter than general rose wines.
So with John away I cracked on doing some early preparation to ensure that the meal was going to be as easy as possible to produce and so I didn't have to be chained to the oven when people were here! The stifado gets cooked over several days so today it was just a question of heating and adjusting the seasoning. The carrots were going to be roasted which meant I could partially do that and then finish them off when the potatoes were in and the cabbage was going to be braised in white wine so again this could be done in advance and then warmed in the oven.
John came back in time to lay the table. I love to cook and entertain so I get a huge kick out of getting everything out and making the table look a bit special and using all the cutlery and crockery and glasses that otherwise just sit in the cupboard gathering dust.
Our guests arrived safe and sound. I had thought Mum was driving so was a bit worried when we hadn't received a text to say she was leaving but as it happens John drove.We started out in the warmth of the conservatory and Jane got her eclectic mix of gifts from me - I do hope she likes the soaps because I very nearly kept them for myself if only to put in my clothes drawers for the scent alone!
I have to say that the starter was a triumph. It was grilled halloumi wrapped in very thinly sliced bacon, which was then fried and when cold served on a pea salad (with rocket and orange) with a lime, honey and white wine sauce. It was easy to produce, looked lovely and fresh and tasted fabulous.
Stifado is my go-to dish so providing the meat is tender it always goes down well. The roasted carrots and braised cabbage were lovely too and I shall definitely be doing that again and I had hasselback roasted some new Cypriot potatoes and they were delicious. The orange cake hit the mark and then we rounded it all off with some cheese and biscuits and coffee and chocolates for anyone that wanted them. Big thanks to the two John's for doing the washing up so I had nothing left to clear away afterwards.
It was still light and sunny when our guests left and so I decided to walk down to the cemetery to check out on Dad's grave as I would normally have gone this morning before going to art. I wanted to make sure the lovely plant that Di and Rob had left was still ok as it was likely to have been rather battered by the awful weather we have had of late. Actually it wasn't too bad and I had taken a bag and knife with me so that I could remove the bottom of the flower pot and then secure it into the soil with a spike - this has worked really well with all the other plants we have put there.We have now finalised the headstone and surround and Mum has been and paid the deposit so we are hopeful that work will begin on it soon although we know that it is going to take a while.
It started to get quite chilly in the cemetery so it was time to return home. Rob was coming up to watch the football with John. It is the Steel City Derby which had originally been scheduled to be played at the weekend which would have been more more convenient but then it was moved to today (Monday) and John had paid for the privilege of watching!!! It ended up a 0-0 draw - I am glad I had retired to bed - I had a banging headache anyway so that was the best place for me to be.
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