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Go Melissa it really is a beautiful place. We went there frequently as children my brother and I. We 'd always go to see the police horses stabled there, rolly poly down the slopes and finally in the stream for a paddle and a photo taken on the big rock there. I wonder what happened to all the photos my dad took of us? Probably mum threw them all out. They had so many and when he died mum downgraded house and had no room for a lot of things maybe including photos. She's not very sentimental not like me , I save everything from my children and grandchildren. ( also a first baby tooth and a lock

This happens quite frequently when the tin opener wont turn. I was fed up with it but could I buy a new one ! I eventually found one at the local chinese shop and as I dont very often open tins I put it in the drawer. Came to open a tin and that didnt work either or rather it was one of those old fashioned cut and move types and I threw it away.

I love salad nicoise and I add shavings of parmesan too. Tonight I cooked 3 fillet of gallinella ( think its called Gurnard) in a rich fresh tomato and anchovy sauce and served simply with potatoes which are neither fried nor boiled. A drizzle of oil in a frying pan add sliced potatoes and cook until just taking on colour. Quickly add a glass of water, put the lid on and cook until tender being careful not to let them go dry. Fish, did sauce first by sauteing a garlic clove along with 3 anchovy fillets and chopped pomodorini ( cherry tomatoes) a squeeze of tomato puree , splash of wh

I wanted to bring a Bramly here but I was told the temperature was too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. I thought trees would adapt to the climates. We do have a cooking apple here but its not got the same taste or texture when cooked. Shame , cant beat the Bramley. When talking about apples in general I tend to boast about the glorious Bramley apple

Congratulations Denshaw all the best for a long and happy life together

Right Lizzie and it was apleasure to meet you both and again on my recent trip to Nottm. Thankyou for the compliment I 'll pass it on to Alex Yes that night was really awful I never expected you to have travelled through it but we were glad to see you.

Thankyou Phil much appreciated

Phil I dont think so. Alex cheffed for Deborah when we came back here and she opened her restaurant, he was quite happy just doing his hours and leaving the rest to them. When James opened 3 years ago he said he would help him to get on his feet " but only 1 year" He doesn't understand the word retirement. He loves the work and although he is very tired he wont give in. He has found the work gives him a lot of satisfaction. The resaurant deals with a lot of tourists from all over the world. Usa, Hong Kong, all Europe, you can see on trip advisor where they come from. It made his day when i

Artichokes with a sauce of gorgonzola. Endives wrapped in cooked ham and oven baked with bechemel and parmesan( even cheddar) topped with a white sauce and oven baked. Piadini ( wraps) warmed in a frying pan topped with slices of brie and smoked ham or any sort of sliced meat. Courgette fritters. Grate courgettes and leave a couple of hours to drain ( salt them first ) when completely dry mix with bread crumbs , parmesan , mint leaves and eggs add some chopped hazlenuts or almonds previously toasted. Drop spoonfuls into lightly oil frying pan eat hot or cold either as main or side di

Commercial mayo surely is pasturised but there are also other things like lemon juice or vinegar who some say will cook the raw egg Making your own is a different matter. Just make sure you know where your eggs are coming from.

Carne cruda ( raw meat) its called here and I agree it has to be chopped with a knife. We also serve it very very thinly sliced sprinkled with EVO and topped with parmesan shavings, celery sometimes and truffles. It does give you an impression but it really is nice. I was years before I could eat it . Dont think I could face the egg though. Being married to an Italian and living here Ive learnt to eat a lot of things and love them but there are some things I will not touch. Today we are ( my daughter and I) eating melanzane parmigiana. Sliced aubergines topped with tomato sau

I was born in Barrow in Furness so spent my first few years learning how to appreciate seafood. My grandfather used to go crabbing, winkling and treading for cockles. The crabs he would put into a sack and when he brought them back home he would tip them all out on the kitchen floor. Mum said they then had to run around catching them. My trips with Nana would never end in giving me sweets it was always shrimps and to this day I love them but have now progressed to king prawns. Oh what I would give to go back to those days on Walney beach looking in rock pools and watching for the tid

Not really dinner ideas but for a dessert yes. Just made some Blondies. Rich and gooey. Got some batter ready for some pikelets tomorrow morning for a change.

Went to the local supermarket this morning and almost had an accident. The front of the SM is on a slope and coming out with a trolly of shopping heavy with a couple of cases of water, it decided to go its own way and I couldnt control it. The cause?? Wheels bunged up with hair and bits of paper. Why dont SM clean them up every so often? A friend of ours was made redundant many years ago so not to be unemployed he did the rounds and asked if they had any trolleys to service, mainly clearing the gunge from the wheels. It turned into a well paid business. Here there are a lot of young

Fed up of meat in general. I find it more refreshing to eat vegetables and fruit. I'm not vegetarian but theres so much more you can eat. Theres a lovely display of veg in supermarkets and with a bit of imagination you can cook up a lovely meal. The other night desparate with little in the fridge I sauted some sliced potatoes and courgettes beat up a couple of eggs and made an omelette then just before it set I added a couple of spoons of grated parmesan. I ate half and the next day ate the other half. It was even better cold. I started to do practically the same thing with potatoes and

Lovely day again with high temperature. Got a beast of a headache. This morning its all go go go. Pool men said yesterday that they were coming at 6 am They came at 8 am. Then our builders came and laid all the gravel then on top of that the man came to finish all the doors and windows. They were fitted a while ago but one window wasnt delivered and the internal doors weren't ready. He came yesterday to fit the doors and adjust the tight handles. When it came to close the doors they had keys in but they wouldnt close or latch. This morning he came to seal all the windows 18 of them with s

No Lizzie she gets out of the way quick. Shes just learnt to climb the stairs then cries to come down because shes afraid ,but this morning it dawned on her how to come down. Shes so funny, if shes in her bed and we start to talk to her she rolls over to tickle her tummy. Shes only one week older than the other one but in many ways shes the boss. She let Lily know when SHE wants to play and if Lily doesnt play along, bite, push, nip,and attack until they roll over each other. Its a courgette albeit a large one.

didn't you have a tester? at times we had problems so we always asked the experts. we only ever had one big problem after we filled the pool and the weather turned really hot and the pump conked out. A few days before we could get another one so the water went very hazy but it soon regained its clarity- ''

Our little Lulu in comparison to a courgette. Don't look at the mess in background . We had just come in from shopping and were starving so had some ham and cold meats straight from packets.

We were thinking of doing the same thing RR but we haven't got a Tesco, wonder if Gigante have one. Our pool is supposed to below maintenance. I always had to maintain the above ground one as no one was ever available to do it and I quite enjoyed it especially when we got the robot to clean the bottom. today it really looks like things are moving. We can see a difference. Jonab, thats the reason we decided to do this pool. I have back problems and have been advised to swim. Our above ground was ok but I had to climb up steps to get into it and I was finding it more and more difficult

Reading some of these memories has clicked something into place and I can remember snatches of happenings. Will concentrate later

My first day at school, teacher Mrs Reynolds always wore a flowered smock. Another vague memory which mum confirmed. My mums aunt sent me a beautiful dress from south Africa. The road had just been freshly tarmacked. I sat on the kerb as you used to when small, I picked up a stick and started poking at the tarmac and wiping it on my dress. Needless to say mum was,,,sorry I can't remember. Another vague memory of when I wanted a desk. Mum was lucky enough to find a second hand one in the next street. So while a neighbour looked after me she went to collect it. I saw her bring it

No we're not swimming yet. Everyone who comes to do a bit more to the pool says somethings not right and blames the previous person. So far...hole dug for pool then it rained and wall collasped. Days of rain so that delayed everything. Put base cement down then cemented the walls, youve guessed it ...rained again. Water pumped out and they put the iso blocks around, came next day and filled in gaps ,laid tubes etc.More rain. The pozzo containing all the workings was going to be put directly at the top of the steps! No way we said so it had to be moved to a different position. Meanwhile ou

Thank goodness my dentist is my BIL. hes the only dentist that I frequented that can fill and drill a tooth without an anasthetic ( spelling) Hes so good , goes for refresher and updates all the time. He also has the most uptodate equipment. He now specialises in cosmetic dentistry. A few years ago at a his wedding , a neice tripped on the long tablecloth at her table and smashed her two front teeth. He went to the rescue straightaway and by evening he had given her two front teeth crowns. Yes dentists are also very expensive here too but tell me what isnt. After various discussions the c

Living in the middle of vineyards in summer especially before or during the vendemmia we are very cautious and aware of hornets. A lot of farmers have died before they could get help, so everyone is extra careful. My grandchildren shout "calabrone" Every time they see a large wasp or cockroach in flight.