Sunday 1 April 2018

Easter Sunday 2018

Happy Easter everyone. Hope you are enjoying your EASTER eggs - I read something so ridiculous the other day that a supermarket was advertising them as chocolate eggs because that is what they are made of and it's better for the customers (sic) ..... what poppytosh! I cannot STAND the way we are being forced to bloody well stop what we are doing/saying in case it offends someone. FGS tough sh*t. It's Easter,  we have Easter Eggs because of the fact the UK is a Church of England country at its heart. Yes, we are a global melting pot of all - but then all should be mindful of where they are choosing to be living. If we are accepting -then everyone should be. I could go on but then someone somewhere would accuse me of hate speech no doubt.. and I've other waffle to impart.
**puts soap box away**

I am not going to be enjoying an Easter egg. One reason is I didn't buy any and the other is a cream egg is 9syns - so I actually could if I wanted - but I choose not to! Freedom of choice and all that. Instead I'm going to have my version of hot cross bunnery.


*Aunt Ressie's™ Hot Cross Breakfast 'cake'. 5.5 syns  for the lot
Ingredients
50g all bran - Healthy Extra b choice
2 eggs - free

25g mixed peel -3.5 syns
14g box raisins chopped - 2 syes
2 big spoons of quark- free
Zest of a lemon and an orange- free
Few drops Lemon and orange essence- free
Enough fat free natural yogurt to loosen -free

Method
Put everything in a large bowl and whisk together until combined well.
Pour the batter into what you'd like to bake it in! I used an old ready meal container lined with a loaf tin liner. Sometimes I bake them in muffin cases, others in my enamel dish. It's up to you. It does stick to the sides so you can spray with frylight or cake release spray.

It's nice warm or cold and also huge and is legal portion for one meal! I cannot eat it all in one go so it'll last me the day as breakfast served with fruit and a dollop of yogurt, a nice treat with a cup of tea and then as pudding with ice cream and more fruit for tea! I do not feel deprived or as if I am missing out because the feeling of trying on smaller clothes only to find they are a bit big, beats the two minute joy of shoving a thickly buttered sticky toffee hot cross bun from M&S ( whaaaat??? I'm only human - it is hard to stand at the tills and ignore the siren call of all the good things!) in one's cake-hole!











I tell you what, since starting this SW lark, I have totally got inventive in the kitchen, hence forth
the Aunt Ressie's™ range!










Yum!




I made campfire stew in the slow cooker over night - not one of mine but from a recipe website that writes low calorie recipes, counting syncs for SW and points for WW and it's called pinch of nom.
The campfire stew is one of my absolute favourites. It is so tasty and so cheap and would easily feed a family of ten! With leftovers! Basically you chuck a tin of baked beans, a tin tomatoes and a tin of kidney beans or whatever else you have into a slow cooker. Add chopped carrot and onion -and here I also add in veg Imhave in like courgette and leek. Add sliced peppers and mushrooms. Add paprika, ground cumin, ground coriander and some chilli flakes, some Worcester sauce and Tabasco - I never add the Tabasco on account t of I don't have any. Then take a gammon joint that's been soaking in cold water, remove all the visible fat and plonk it in the slow cooker on top of all the other ingredients. You can push it down into the mix. Lid on and cook on low for minimum of 8 hours.

With two forks shred the gammon joint into chunks and stir to distribute throughout the stew. Turn it to high.
Then add in some more sliced peppers and I add some frozen green beans. Leave the lid off if it's a bit watery, add a bit of water if it's a bit thick. After about 30 minutes, it's done.
Then eat a number of ways!
I have it with chips and peas, in a jacket potato with salad, with pasta, in a dish on its own with bread., as a pie filling ( using a WW wrap  or like here, just on a giant bed of leaves!
It is so so so tasty and totally free on the SW plan.




Here is the link to this amazing website http://pinchofnom.com/recipes/syn-free-campfire-stew/

I've been totally and utterly spoilt by my wonderful HG. He has only gone and bought me a brand new fancy pants sewing and embroidery machine.

So far I've only just started dabbling with bits and bobs with her - as yet unnamed. I've mended my nephew' hoody putting in a new zip for him. I had an hour before we were going to see my little great niece for her birthday so I made a little bag for her out of some old jeans and embroidered her name on it.





I've also made myself a couple of hams and a pin cushion - nipped to pets at home last night for sawdust and shavings to stuff them with. I've loads of projects on the go and in my head! I've also something rather sweet on the needles but I want to wait until it's done for my show and tell! We had a little trip to that massive Swedish warehouse to get some shelving and a little set of drawers on casters that I will have at the side of me when I'm sewing instead of my essentials balancing in a box balancing on my little step stool at the side of me! I'm going to make a small portable ironing/cutting pad to go on these drawers so I don't have to keep getting up and walking AAAAALLLLL the way ( about 4 steps ) to the other table in my room!! The walking is ok - good for prevention of DVT but annoying when you just need a quick press or cut and back to the stitching.

I've been collecting some MORE gorgeous fabric from the North East as we went to see Miss 23 last weekend. We spent the day in a wonderful place called the slightly unglamorous Seaton Sluice!













Seaton Delaval Hall. 





I'm sure I've forgotten the other stuff I was going to waffle on about but I've forgotten. I tell you what though, I was BLOWN AWAY by the supportive and congratulatory comments on my last post. I've had emails and messages thanking me for writing it. Surprisingly, a lot of young uns are already light years ahead of me and are using these products  already! I'm also fair jealous that lots of my lovely bloggy clan is no longer in need of such items! And well done to Philip for making it through to the end!!

So, I'm off to eat my hot cross baked all bran and start enjoying my day. Hope you have a peaceful day and you feel cherished and loved.


Lots of love from

Rachel *Easter Eggs or No eggs* Radiostar xxx

*Aunt Ressie’s™️ Is obviously a joke brand based on that old lady who my dad has a close relationship with his his freezer! She keeps him well fed when he can’t be bothered to make from scratch! It’s just an in joke me and my friends in real life coined when I share some of my frankly ridiculous concoctions usually evolved from the bottom of the fridge manky veg!




25 comments:

  1. Have to be honest, I thought you were going to say the supermarket was calling them "Chocolate Eggs" instead of "Easter Eggs" was so they could get away with selling them year round!

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    1. Well, this is true...BUT they don’t! Apart from the little ones, you’d be hard pressed to go buy a big Easter Egg in September, therefore I rest my case!

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  2. Speaking as one of ten brothers and sisters (I’m number 6) that campfire stew would have gone down very well when I was growing up. I would also like to say happy EASTER to you too. (Not CofE by the way, but RC - hence the ten children).

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    1. Oh Philip, I do love it when you comment! You make me chuckle :-)

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  3. I wonder who these people are who come up with these ideas. I worked in a multicultural school where all the children joined in with Christmas and Easter activities. My neighbours ae Muslims but give us a card and gift at Christmas. The first time, they explained that they don't celebrate Christmas but wanted to give us a gift. We reciprocate at Eid. I suspect that,for the most part, ethnic minorities don't give a flying fig that Easter and Christmas are known as such, and as this is now such a secular country, I would hazard a guess that they have lost religious meaning to the majority. Judging by the amount of booze, chocolate and special Easter items in the shops I think it is just another commercial event and excuse for over indulgence, no matter what it's called.

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    1. Quite rightly put Scarlet. We never had an Easter Bunny going round hiding eggs when we were kids. All commercially thought up!
      We went to church Easter Sunday and weren’t allowed our eggs until the afternoon!

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  4. before commenting here I had to go back and read your previous post! A lot of information there, thank you! :O)

    You are very creative with your cooking. And as for Easter eggs being rebranded 'chocolate eggs' give me strength! I notice that Cadbury have learnt their lesson from last year, when they decided to call their Easter egg hunt the 'chocolate egg hunt'. Pah! Choccy eggs are for Easter, and that's that. Good thing they saw sense this year.

    Happy Easter.
    xx

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    1. Thanks Sadie! My last post is actually one I’m now very proud of! Even if I do discuss ferreting about in one’s undercarriage!!!

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  5. The food all looks YUM. Xx

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  6. I noticed there was very little Easter craft stuff in the shops and other friends commented as well. I always say to people that i am a Christian ( Church f Scotland lapsed) and as such expect to celebrate my festivals just as others celebrate theirs. No chocolate eggs for me either because I’d rather have 2 squares of really dark chocolate any day. My daughter makes the campfire stew often in her slow cooker so that they come home to a hot meal after work. Enjoy your sewing and your break from work.

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    1. Thank you Catriona - I can’t abide dark chocolate! You can have mine x

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  7. I thought your cake pic was a crustless quiche at first! Ooh, the campfire stew sounds gorgeous, thanks for the Nom link, I'm going to bookmark it and will defo make that. Since it's just the 2 of us though, we'll be eating it all week lol (well, obviously I'll freeze the leftovers!).

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    1. You could make it with half a ham? It does freeze really well though- I think it improves with age!

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  8. Your Hot Cross Breakfast Cake looks and sounds really good, I would like to make it,with a few substitutions from me-hate mixed peel-so would use something else. You are soooooo spoil!! The new machine looks gorgeous, actually I'm just jealous,lol. The last few years the Easter bunny has been in the different malls and kids get to have there picture taken with him/her and get a treat-just like visiting Santa. What a joke! We were in the mall yesterday and the lineup was a mile long all at $10.00 a pop!! No Easter eggs bought here although if there are any solid ones on sale tomorrow I will get some to put in the freezer to use for Christmas . I melt them down and use to make decadent popcorn or homemade chocolates-all to be given away, I might add,lol.

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    1. Visiting the Easter Bunny?????? Whaaat? Crazy! I think the half price Easter Eggs are the best type! Mmmm chocolate covered popcorn! Lovely.

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  9. Is that the Brother V5 - if it is, you are indeed a lucky lady - I've got the V2 for sewing and quilting and the Brother 800e embroidery machine so if you need any help, just shout and if I can help, I will xx

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    1. HYa Trudie, I will be bending your ear no doubt soon enough! It's the V7!!! She runs like a rolls Royce! Going to try out the embroidery today for the first time. Excited

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    2. You are a lucky lady - Enjoy it - it's a beautiful sewing machine - I'm onto my 6th quilt on my V2 - absolutely love my machine - it's a pleasure to sit and sew and the best thing about it, is that little button that threads the needle for you 😃😃 - will look forward to seeing the lovely items you'll be making soon xx

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  10. Here in Essex there are villages called High Easter and Good Easter and I understand that the council are going to change these names in case they get sued in the future. Madness!!

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  11. No Easter Eggs here either Rachel....I had two chocolate digestives as my treat. I have just gone under my latest target weight so didn't want to jeopardise that.
    The campfire stew looks delicious and I may have to try that for something different as we are still needing hot and comforting food in this cold weather.

    Oh WOW to your new machine. It looks amazing. I'm just starting to consider that maybe I would like a machine that embroiders so keep showing me your projects to help me make my mind up.

    Hugs-x-

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    1. Well done on new target being met! I'm a ways to go yet but I will get there! I'm going to try the embroidery for the first time today so I will show you on my next post!

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  12. Happy EASTER to you Rachel. The country and the world has gone mad since I was little. Sad thing is that the average folks on the ground probably don't read anything into any of it, it's the bloody do-gooders that cause the most trouble between people.

    I've not had a creme egg this year and now I'm very glad I haven't. 9 syns, whatever they are sounds an awful lot, specially when the campfire stew doesn't have any.

    You OH is always buying you superb gifts, you need to let me in on your secret lol. The little denim bag is just too gorgeous for words. xx

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    1. I tell him off for the way he spends his hard earned cash on me and I actually forbid it! And it's not the case of the woman doth protest too much. I get cross with him but if it makes him happy I should just be grateful! ( Nevermind that I could have had the house re roofed and the hallway done lol lol )

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