Saturday 1 May 2021

In My Kitchen - May 2021

Well, so much for best-laid plans; I had lots of things to tick off my to-do list this week, but you know - mice and men ...  So this is a super quick IMK post from me.  I'm as sick as a dog at the moment, with an out of the blue flu thingy.  Mr P. has bought me many boxes of tissues, and tins of soup!  And made me tasty dinners to whet my appetite - grilled salmon and salad, roast chicken (from the shop) and salad and so on.  He does have a large repertoire of dishes in his cooking arsenal, but my flu-ridden body just ain't up to it.

So, let's talk - as someone (Joan Rivers?) used to say.  Here are a few things from my kitchen.  Looking forward to seeing yours.


In My Kitchen:



a (shop-bought) painted white chocolate koala for Easter

I bought this from a swish patisserie/baker for Easter.  We loved this chocolate koala, but their Easter buns were a bit suss.  Expensive too!, but I ended up throwing half of them out.  Darn!  Back to the el cheapo versions next year.


yep true to label!

I buy a bottle of this every year.  Somewhat shamefacedly I have to admit that last year's bottle sits unopened in my pantry, along with several different varieties of EVOO.  For my American readers, you can buy Cobram Estate Evoo too, as they have an olive grove in California.  (At a different time of year to Australia obvs. for the first harvest oil.)


chocolate!

On our way down the coast to an art exhibition (and my sister's birthday dinner) last weekend, we stopped in at Poppy's chocolate shop.  Those freeze-dried lychees are the bomb!  And I adore chocolate freckles, so they didn't last long.


goodies from the Brisbane Pickle Co.

As it was Mr P.'s birthday this month, he received a lovely food hamper from friends, including these interesting specimens.  Our mate Lucy who owns a wonderful providore shop called Mumbleberry down the local village, packed these up for him.  She knows our tastes, as we head there once a week usually.


my teenage granddad heading off to war in 1915

And here's my curveball, which I love to put up every April for Anzac Day.  This is Bertie, my granddad, who clearly lied about his age!  He went to Gallipoli, was blown up in a Turkish bombardment and then sent to England to recover.  He lived with the pain for the rest of his life, and was in and out of the Repat Hospital many times over the years.  Thank goodness he survived; otherwise you wouldn't be reading this from me :-)

That's it for this month.  Join in please, all you beautiful lovelies, as the wonderful Emmy from her Youtube channel EmmyMade calls her faithful viewers.  I love Emmy - those teeth, that hair, that smile ...

 

And here's my usual reminder; sorry to the regulars who know it off by heart.  IMK posts are about your kitchen (and kitchen garden) happenings over the past month.  Dishes you've cooked, preserves you've made, herbs and veg in your garden, kitchen gadgets, and goings-on.  You get the picture.  And don't forget your curveball!  Throw in whatever you fancy.  The link is open from the first to the thirteenth of the month.  Let me know if you need help with adding your post, or if you would like it added manually by me after the 13th (if you're running late). Here's how to join in:


Options for adding your post to IMK:

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

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

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



You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

60 comments:

  1. Get well soon!

    Why not eat the Easter buns? Why not open the EVOO? Just wondering.

    be better... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. greetings Mae. see below re the buns - like baby vomit!! the evoo - well i am like a magpie and keep buying all the shiny things and then i use them, and the older shiny things keep getting pushed further back on the shelf and so on...:) I go thru mega litres of EVOO in a year so i will get to them eventually.

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  2. Oh no! What were wrong with the hot cross buns? Were they stale? That's no good at all. Those koala is cute though!

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    1. and he tasted good! but the buns ... oh my! they smelled and tasted like baby vomit. maybe they were sourdough?? but i love sourdough bread so it's a mystery.

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  3. Get well immediately lovely and rest up, sending you love and healing vibes xx

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    1. thank you my dear. i am starting to feel better but i am so tired all the time. can't believe i got my IMK post up! xx

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  4. The Koala is just wonderful. I would have a hard time eating him__but of course I would because__chocolate!

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    1. he was lovely! and cute. shame about the buns:(

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  5. Hope you get better soon! And glad Bertie survived, so we can read You. :-)

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    1. thanks KR. i am slowly getting better. yep excellent that bertie survived. otherwise who knows whose Pickings you would be reading? :-)

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  6. So sorry to hear you are sick,blame the southern trip away I reckon, always the way. Love seeing the photo of your Grandad, so many sad stories but great for you and us he survived. Those chocolates look amazing Sherry, so many wonderful treats to be had in Brisbane, missing it so much now our daughter doesn't live there.I can imagine those lychees are indeed the bomb, are freckles still called freckles,I think I heard there had been a name change.Loved your post,and admire your spirit to get it done. Hope you are feeling even a lot better by now.:)

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    1. thanks pauline. i am very glad he survived too:) Oh where does your daughter live now? Back up your way? I wonder what freckles are called now then? But i like 'em as freckles... Thanks for the support. I do feel somewhat better but i've got a way to go...

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  7. Get well soon, Sherry. Nothing is more important than being healthy. Mr P. is sweet :-) I need to get some quality olive oil for my salads too. Those chocolate treats are so tempting...can't have them in the house :-//

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    1. thanks angie. very true. health is so important. and yes hubby is sweet. i can't live without lots of different sorts of EVOO. we use it for everything including frying! i know what you mean about having chocs in the house... but i love freckles!

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  8. Oh goodness. Get well fast!!!

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  9. Take care Sherry. Stay in bed and keep up the liquids. And open up last year's gorgeous olive oils. F, xx

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    1. thanks francesca. i am slowly getting better. oh yes definitely will get to those oils.

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  10. Sorry you're feeling poorly - hope the TLC is just what the doctor ordered. Drooling over those pickles and all the other yums. I'm also a fan of freckles - nom nom! Look at your grandad! That's what I call a curveball. What a legend to survive all that - I bet he had some stories to tell. Hope there's lots of yay in your May!

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    1. thanks sammie. yes i am looking forward to a busy and fulfilling May. keep well!

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  11. Wow, that photo of your Granddad is crazy! I hope you start feeling better soon - it's no fun to be laid up with the flu. In other news, those freeze dried lychees do indeed sound like a lot of fun!

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    1. thanks david. i'm getting better but slowly. yep lychees are fab.

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  12. Sorry to read that your poorly, here's wishing you warmth and a speedy recovery. Thank you for taking time to host IMK as always. Appreciated. Fermented blueberry and tarragon sounds unusual, i can only imagine what it tastes like and look forward to hearing from you further about it. I do love B&W photographs and the history/stories behind them, thank you for sharing.

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    1. thanks shaheen. at least the weather is great - sunny and blue. yes i like B&W photos; they are really evocative of earlier times aren't they?

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  13. That photo of your grand dad looks awesome, I wish I had photos of my granddad too preserved that way. All I remember is his war stories when he served during those times

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    1. yes isn't it a great photo? he was so young. i know nothing of his war stories tho. he never mentioned them, but then again we were very young when he died.

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  14. Anything chocolate works for me! I hope the flu is just that and that you get better soon. And amazing that your grandfather chose to go and fight in the war, so very far away from home.

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    1. i think young men thought it would be exciting to go to war. they would get to travel and see the world. the thought of all the horror and killing just wasn't part of the plan.

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  15. Love Bertie's photo! Those pickles look delicious. The koala is sooooo cute.

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  16. You always have such fun stuff in your kitchen! Hope you feel better soon!

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    1. thank you abbe. i am very slowly on the mend.

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  17. Sorry to hear that the flu bug got to you in a bad way. Hopefully you will be able to enjoy all the goodies you have in your kitchen soon.

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  18. Sorry to hear that the flu bug got to you in a bad way. Hopefully you will be able to enjoy all the goodies you have in your kitchen soon.

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  19. Sorry to hear that the flu bug got to you in a bad way. Hopefully you will be able to enjoy all the goodies you have in your kitchen soon.

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  20. The koala is hilarious! Love all of the items, but especially loves the chocolate. YUM! I hope you are feeling better. Sounds like Mr. P is a really good guy - a keeper. Take care of yourself and hope you are back in the kitchen soon.

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    1. it is indeed and it tasted good. shame about the buns:) Oh yes he is a keeper, and i've been keeping him for a very long time. cheers! S

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  21. I hope you're feeling better! Love the look of those chocolate freckles.
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. hi amalia
      yes starting to feel better but it's been a long haul. I adore choc freckles:)

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  22. So sorry you were sick! Hope you feel better soon… In the meantime, feel free to pass me the olive oil and some freckles! Love the photo of your grandfather…

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    1. thanks david. feeling better slowly. yes isn't it a wonderful photo?

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  23. In the U.S., we use "blue flu" to describe cops who pretend to be sick, so they stay home from work. It's a form of going on strike. (The cop union doesn't allow cops to strike.)

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    1. hi jeff
      i'd never heard that expression - blue flu. how interesting. and clever of them:)

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  24. I am so sorry to hear about your flu and hope you are feeling better. Because of all the masking flu and cold season was very slight here this year. The picture of your grandfather is wonderful, he did clearly lie about his age. I am so glad he survived to bring you into the world.

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    1. thanks liz. slowly slowly getting better. yes we've had a very slight season here too. and thanks for the kind words.

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  25. Hope that your flu is not serious and you get well soon. I loved seeing the photo of your grandfather despite that he was so young going off to war. It sounds like he was lucky to survive even though he was seriously injured.

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    1. thanks judee. it's taking ages to get better but i'm getting there. yes my poor granddad was very badly injured. so sad for him.

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  26. Hope you are doing a bit better. This makes me glad I had my flu shot - I had it last year and lockdown meant very little flu but I am seeing more sick people about this year. That koala is so cute and I would make my way through that stack of freckles quickly. The pickles look very interesting and the cobram evoo is one of those bottles so lovely it cries out to be displayed! Your grandad looks so young to go through being blown up in a war. I imagine there was some mental scarring as well as physical pain.

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    1. thanks johanna. still a bit sick and very tired. it is taking ages to get rid of this virus. yep granddad was very young. how on earth they let him go off to war beats me! Take care.

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  27. By now I hope you are all recovered! I've just linked up at the last minute :-) Love the photo of your grandfather, I have an old one of my granddad in uniform from 1915 as well. But he was older.

    Yes, yes, yes to that olive oil!

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    1. hi tina
      still sick and very tired. Grrrr! I looooove EVOO, and we go thru heaps. maybe it's keeping me young - tee hee!

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  28. Thanks for the peek into your kitchen. Love the koala egg. Your grandfather was very brave to go off to war at such a young age. Hope you are feeling better now.

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    1. my granddad was brave for sure; so sad he got blown up. the wounds were there his whole life, mentally and physically. I'm still a bit sick! Eek!

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  29. Hope you are feeling better, and thanks for soldiering on to host this month's IMK! I am so guilty of the same collecting the shiny things and not getting a chance to use them, I think I have like 6 different bottles of vinegar and there's only so much vinegar one person can take!!

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    1. thanks yes just starting to feel better after 3.5 weeks! a bad virus indeed. i really must stop buying all the shiny things ... :-)

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