Sunday 1 July 2018

In My Kitchen - July 2018

July, mmm, July - I didn't see that one coming :=)  She just snuck up and whacked me on the back of the head.  My big birthday has come and gone, just like that.  And how fabulous it was!  It lasted for weeks - lucky me.  I took a cooking class on the actual day.  It was superb, even though my friend who came with me, sliced a big flap of skin off my finger.  And let me tell you, friends - I am a bleeder and a fainter:=)  So I did the first, but luckily not the second.

So, here in my birthday kitchen:




who doesn't need a lobster ice cube tray?  We all do, you sillies:)  

Love my new ice cube tray.  Thanks, Princess Pia.  Many lobster-shaped ice cubes to come in our summer drinks at Christmas.



cooooookies...as the cookie monster would say 

Gotta love these delish biscuits - or cookies, as they insist on calling them.  Maybe 'cos cookies sounds like such a cute word.



a batch of my home made chutney 


We have a couple of English friends who adore my mango chutney, and now that I have discovered frozen mango chunks at the store, I can now make it for them any time of year!  Which I did, to their joy - she says modestly.



yes, another little jug

Well guys, you know I'm a wee bit obsessed with little jugs, so here we have another one I bought recently at an antique centre.  It says Woods Burslem 'Brier' on the bottom.  This was an English pottery company, which finally ceased trading in 1995.  I love its cute roundness - a bit like me, perhaps? :=) 



yay, I managed to get a bottle of this

Every year, I buy a bottle of this amazing oil, but I was put off this year due to the doubling of the postage to Queensland.  What the?!  Anyway, I waited and yes, finally they had a deal for free postage.  Yippee!  And yep that's my shoe in the foreground.



the Gromberry

Oh yes, I had to get the Gromberry to oversee my kitchen, along with his mate the Gruffalo Gromit already doing his thing on my kitchen shelf.  You can never have too many Gromits.



my birthday gift from our potter friend 

Brooke from Red Door Studio made me this gorgeous cake platter with a whale and the lighthouse representing my fave part of the world - Northern Rivers.  Thanks Miss B.!



bought this at the cooking class


At the end of the cooking class with Belinda Jeffery, (my fave cook/chef person) I bought this, her latest book.  Can't wait to try out some of the recipes.  Thanks for signing it, Belinda.



another cute gift


This is actually just what I was looking for.  I had been trying to find one of those Sid the Lid saucepan lifters, but hadn't got around to tracking it down.  My friend (the one who sliced my finger) brought up this gift from her folks for my birthday.  Yay!


So all up, June was a fabulous birthday month.  I have felt very loved, and looked after.  Someone said to me: 'Oh, you've been spoiled," but I don't like that expression.  I feel like it has been a wonderful showing of love and caring.  Lucky me indeed!



So folks, here are your options for adding your IMK posts.  In order for me to add your posts (i.e. if you prefer that I do it), I must have your email address.  Inlinkz now demands one!  I used to be able to leave it blank, but no more.  I am happy to do this for you, but just let me know and leave your email address too.


1. Adding via the link button at the bottom of this post.  Instructions can be found on the sidebar of this page, under Add your IMK link


2. Comment on this post, providing a link to your post so I can add it to the linky list below


3. Email me: sherrym1au@gmail.com, with your link or any queries about the link process
 


   
    An InLinkz Link-up
   



                      
Sherrys Pickings

36 comments:

  1. Happy Birthday! Your gifts and other new items are very amusing -- especially the pot lid lifter. I thought the little things that came with my latest pot were to protect it when storing it, but now I think they are lid lifters. As usual, I do a wrap-up of the month in the kitchen on the last day of the month, which means I'm ready for you!

    best...mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. fabulous Mae. thanks once again for being the stalwart of the IMK posts. I love my pot lifters, and am using them already. so handy. have a great july. cheers sherry

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  2. I can attest to the fabulousness of the mango chutney. It was amazing even after just one day.

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  3. Happy birthday - belated! I am trying to think how your friend cut your finger! That seems some achievement. And sounds like you will remember that cooking class well. I love the lid lifters - never heard of them but I could do with some. I love the gromberry and the new platter. And I am so impressed with how professional your mango chutney labels are. I've done my IMK in the linky.

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    1. hi johanna
      yes it was a clever move on both our parts. we were chopping things up and putting it into a large bowl. i put up my hand at the same time she waved her knife about and voila - blood fest!:) thanks for joining in IMK this month. great to have you. and thanks re the labels. hubby does them for me. cheers S

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  4. Lobster ice cubes? Ice lobsters? I've died and gone to heaven!!! Do you sell your products or just have cute labels?

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    1. hi mimi
      thanks re the cute labels.:) Hubby makes them for me. I do sell my stuff but only to family and friends so it's not a commercial enterprise. i do like making big pots of food. thanks for dropping by. cheers sherry

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  5. Happiest of birthdays Sherry! Love the multi week long celebration. Is your finger ok?

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    1. hi lorraine
      yes the finger is getting much better now. still a bit bloody and sore tho. thanks for the birthday wishes. it has been a good (and memorable) one. cheers S x

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  6. happy birthday Sherry. A wonderful selection of goodies as always, love dear Gromit. I seem to have lost my blogging mojo so it will be a miracle if I post on IMK this month...

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    1. thanks sandra for the birthday wishes. sorry to hear about your mojo. happens to me quite often too. hoping to see you here. cheers sherry

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  7. I have the same pot lifters and they are so useful! Enjoy your olive oil :)

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  8. Happy Birthday! I have a June birthday, too. :-) Love that ice cube tray -- really neat. You have loads of good stuff in your kitchen this month -- thanks for sharing.

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    1. thanks KR. and happy birthday to you too aren't those lobsters cute? cheers S

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  9. My comment seems to have got lost! Happy birthday :) And hope your finger heals up properly. I have the same pot lid lifters and they work really well. I even use them to prop open my oven :)

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    1. thanks re the finger. and thanks for joining in this month. it is coming along nicely now. i just wish i could get over this virus and terrible mouth ulcers that are making my life a misery atm.:( cheers S x

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  10. Happy belated birthday! I love your pottery gift cake plate! How thoughtful and sweet and personal. I am in love with frozen mango chunks as well---for smoothies, cakes, jams. Haven't made chutney though. Love the labels!

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    1. thanks very much debra. i had a great birthday and was very lucky giftwise. Hubby makes great labels for me. such a clever lad:) cheers sherry

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  11. Great to see you scored a bottle of teh good oil without having to pay postage Sherry. I've been having blind olive oil tastings with that one in a line up of three- some people adore its grassy taste and others find it acrid. I love it. Your jam labels are pretty flash Sherry.

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    1. thanks francesca. hubby does make me some great labels. i really like a strong tasting oil, so i don't mind a grassy taste. I loooove buttery oils as well, but aussies don't seem to make them. Italian oils are so good, but i always buy local so sadly i have to forego the foreign ones:) cheers sherry

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  12. Happy birthday and thanks for hosting the linkup once again! Sounds like you had a good time celebrating and that you had a very fun day cooking (except the cut of course). How cute are those mango chutney labels!?! And those no boil over lid lifters seem so practical - while I've nailed down how high you can fill a saucepan with water to keep it from boiling over, there are a couple other cooks in my house that could certainly use those!

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    1. hi Jen
      i tried again to put up a comment on your post but no go! still Forbidden. sad face:( thanks re the labels; he is a clever one my hubby. those lid lifters are great for when you want to gently simmer something on the stove for a while. have a great month. cheers S

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  13. Happy belated birthday Sherry! I hope you had a good one, you got some lovely gifts anyway. I would love to taste your chutneys, and that strawberry Gromit is another nice addition to your kitchen collection. Enjoy July! I've also added my link above.

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    1. hi veg hog
      thanks for joining us. my friends and hubby are a bit partial to my mango chutney so it's great that i can make it all year round with the frozen chunks. yes i do love my Gromits:) you too - have a fab month. cheers S

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  14. I didn't realise you did the cooking class on the day of your birthday. Amazingly, another friend did a class with Belinda last weekend. Coincidence! Sorry to hear about that finger Sherry but at present you are suffering with a far worse affliction. (I had to Google it of course). Get well soon my friend.

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    1. thank you very much my dear. i'm feeling like crap but i guess that too will pass:) cheers sherry

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  15. Hi Sherry, I am to late to join in IMK, but below is my blog link just in case.

    I am loving so much in your kitchen, mostly the Gromberry and the animal lifters.

    Also belated Birthday wishes and hope your finger is healing.

    https://allotment2kitchen.blogspot.com/2018/07/plastic-free-july-in-my-kitchen.html

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    1. thanks so much shaheen. my finger is all better now. my birthday was great! yes isn't Gromberry the cutest? i will add your link up soon. cheers sherry

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  16. (Belated) Happy birthday! So jealous of your Belinda Jeffrey cooking class!

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    1. thanks! it was a fab class. well worth the trip down. cheers S

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  17. I love how the reflections from the cloth showed on the jug. Hope August is a better month for you! Just to let you know, I am hosting International Scone Week and it would be great if you could take part: http://tandysinclair.com/international-scone-week-2018/

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    1. yep you did put this comment on the wrong month. never mind, i've got them both:=)

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  18. Hi Sherry, it has been a busy summer and will continue to be until the end of September (we will be in Italy most of the month). But I will be back in October. Great post here and wonderful things in your kitchen. Miss you all.

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    1. hi liz
      have fun in italy. how wonderful! looks like our winter is just about over already. It's 29C today! cheers S x

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