Time to change

My Sunday cycling route is becoming a bit of a drag.  I am now finding the 17 miles a lot less effort, and last weekends nearly 23 almost too much to go straight to (I tell you what, this is a very gradual build up and I am extremely slow!).

So decided to go another way on Sunday and take in a different village on my loop:

• Kings Norton
• Illston on the Hill
• Three Gates
• Tur Langton
• Carlton Curleiu
• Kings Norton
• Gaulby
• Home

Total mileage 19.1 miles, burning off 600 calories and it took me ages but stopped to take some photos of St Andrews church in Tur Langton.  This church was built in 1865-1866 by Joseph Goddard.  Also to have a nibble on my Nutrigrain bar which sucked most of the moisture out of my body.

The houses in Tur Langton are so pretty, I particularly like this one (think it was built in 1669?) with its jutting out windows.
 

It's that time of year again...

...to make Marmalade

Well I had a failure last year, so this year gave all my jam jars away to someone else.  On Friday he returned some unused ones and a full one!  So thought I would make a small amount on Sunday.  Under the guidance of my mother, the Queen of Pressure Cooker use, and her 1970's splattered pressure cooker book safely in my hands, we made some marmalade with only a pound of Sevilles and one lemon, and 2 lbs of sugar (please note, using ancient books = no metric measurements).

Method:

1. I cut the Sevilles in quarters, removed pips and put pips into muslin (now I didn't have one, but found a clean muslin in my daughter's drawer left over from when when she was a baby and still likes to take them to bed now and again if a little under the weather!)
2. Cut one lemon and put pips into muslin and 3/4's in with the oranges (don't ask me why I didn't use the whole lemon but I was following my mother's instructions and she rarely keeps to the recipe)
3. Put oranges and lemons into pressure cooker with half pint of water, bought up to pressure (which takes 8 minutes, the Queen knew that!). Left on low heat at pressure for 10 minutes and left to cool for a further ten.
4. Sliced peel and squeezed muslin.  Slicing the peel was so easy after using the pressure cooker.
5. Added 2lbs of granulated sugar, stirred on low heat until it was completely dissolved.
6. Bought up to a rolling boil and continued to boil until one drip was left dangling off the spoon, shade of marmalade looked just "right" and when putting a tiny bit on a plate I had in the freezer it wrinkled up when I pushed my finger through it.
7. I poured the marmalade into two hot jars and sealed tops with waxed paper.  Just enough for me and the Queen.
8. The jars I used were larger than normal jam jars.

If you want more cookery stuff, please see my channel on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/lucyskitchen

nom nom nom

It did set, and the peel didn't float to the top!

Waiting for Jimmy

The Thursday Club - one of the few nights there isn't another commitment going on in my busy home.  Although the "Thursday Club" has only met twice, this week was a particularly good meeting as my friend and co-founder of the "Thursday Club" purchased tickets to go and see Jimmy Carr at the De Montfort Hall as part of the Leicester Comedy Festival.

He was very funny indeed, very rude, very shocking.  I was amazed that anyone can stand up and do a full two hours of comedy like that - he was extremely professional and fantastic at "cutting down" the stupid hecklers who could barely string a sentence together let alone say something intelligent.  It made me almost embarrassed to be part of the audience!

I can't remember jokes, they don't seem to store in my head for some reason.  But as I rolled over in bed on Friday morning and pressed "snooze" on my alarm clock and started to giggle, remembering one he had said..."who likes the snooze button? It's just what you need after an 8 hour sleep isn't it...a nap"!

A brilliant night had by all, as long as you were not from Scotland, Liverpool, Manchester, Sunderland, or Madonna, or sad when Princess Diana died....his list of "close to the bone" humour could probably go on, but I think it's best to stop there!

Back in the saddle - attempt number two

The ice has finally gone, punctures repaired, wheels reinstated on bike frame and I was off - for a very slow 23 miles in the freezing cold on Sunday morning (it took me about 2 hours and then was informed by my brother in law he had done 47 miles in the same time frame!).  I did manage to lengthen my usual 17 mile bike ride to take in Baggrave Park - only I didn't make it that far...I whimped out and took the earlier turning off towards Quenby Hall - avoiding the hills that are Hungarton village (next week I promise!).  I can't remember what my Garmin gadget said now and still need to upload the data to Garmin Connect but think I burnt off somewhere in the region of 800 calories (that was the pain au chocolat, two lattes and orange juice I had for breakfast burnt off then but not the 5 chocolates I ate the night before).  Couldn't help thinking though about the amount of effort required on my part to burn off minutes of pleasure I have from eating delicious food!

I did hear about a girl who was so particular about the men she went out with, that the length of their driveway was of importance to her...seriously and its not a type!!!  Cycling down the drive way to Quenby it crossed my mind that if there was a young man there perhaps she should consider pursuing him?  One mile later and I reached the Hall and spent a few moments taking in the view, having a drink and replenshing my energy before the return home.  I love the Leicestershire country side, cycling is such a brilliant way of enjoying the areas you would not generally go through....a bit off the beaten track.

 

Who lives in a house like this?