In my kitchen

Well, the big news from my kitchen is that I have bought a mixer. That may seem rather ho-hum for most of you. However, I have never owned one before, content (sort of 😉 ) to mix and whip using forks and whisk. I received some birthday money from a very generous friend and decided to lash out. Couldn’t resist a blue one!

My new mixture

I made a cake, which everyone complimented, and a Breton Tart for dessert at my sister’s. No photos, I am afraid. 😦 You will have to take my word for it that they were quite tasty. And yes, I do intend to make a cake for the friend who gave me the money.

At the moment my favourite part of the machine is the big mixing bowl, with a handle! For some reason it makes me feel quite professional to pour the mixture into the pan using the bowl. Ahh, the simple things….

One of the reasons I haven’t had a mixer before was the space it would take up. So I have reorganised my pantry. The bottom shelf had become one of those areas that was filled with things that I never used, and really, I had stopped noticing. So now I have a space for my mixer AND the baking trays. They had lived in the oven, which meant that every time I used the oven I had to take them out and put them on the floor.

Have you had that experience, of realising, after many years, that there are better places to put things? That there is junk taking up the space that you could use more effectively?

Next step is to sort out the shelves where the packages and packets are kept.

I am so impressed with my bottom shelf organisation!

My Christmas present to my Mum was to take her to see “As you like it”, a production of the Shakespeare play performed in the Botanic Gardens. We had a picnic before the performance. I included:

The lentil salad is really easy to make — lentils (I use tinned), feta cheese, cooked sweet potato and mint leaves. The dressing is mint sauce. The recipe originally came from a cook book to promote healthy bones, so great to help fight osteoporosis.

It was such a pleasant evening, despite the chill breeze blowing from the west.

Other picnickers

Lastly, some oven roasted tomatoes. I had a good crop of Roma tomatoes this year. They weren’t very big, but quite tasty. I slow roasted some in a very low oven, covering them with oil, thyme and oregano.

In my Kitchen is hosted by the delightful Celia at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial. If you pop over to her post you can see the month blog roll of bloggers who take part. You can visit kitchens from all over the world. And you have to read her post about her birthday celebrations. That is one amazing way to have a birthday!!