Cooking up a storm!

Day 10

The weather today has been atrocious, with non-stop rain and wind... all day! It was horrible! I didn't wake up until just before 9am, and felt like I'd wasted half the day. I much prefer to be up by 7.30am at the latest so I can have an early coffee and ease into the morning!

Sophie and I went to Farndon Fields at lunchtime and I drove my Dad's car to give it a run. On the way, the roads were wet and muddy, and the leaves were flying about like mad things. There was a queue at the farm shop, and we huddled outside in the wind waiting to be let in. I did worry that we wouldn't be allowed in together, but my fears were allayed by couples in front of us going in to shop.

We wanted a bag of porridge oats, and also some treats to cheer us up! I bought a bottle of Christmas beer each for Keith and Mike, but we were alarmed by some of the prices being charged. I know they have to try and make up for the losses this year, but almost £5 for a small cake was a bit much, in my opinion!

We had a look at the Christmas decorations and chose a little grey star to go onto our white tree. Both of us have agreed that some of the older decorations might have to be retired this year to make way for the new ones, otherwise we'll run out of space!

Alas, there was no afternoon tea this afternoon, so after paying, we made our wet way home. We decided to tackle this evening's meal straight away - a tomato and orecchiette soup. I had bought two packs of sugardrop tomatoes in Tesco, and they're known for their sweetness, which is what we wanted. Sophie peeled and chopped two large onions, while I de-stalked the tomatoes. We then gently cooked the onions for almost half an hour until they were golden and soft, taking half out to sprinkle onto the soup later. We cooked the tomatoes and the rest of the onions, along with a handful of basil leaves, until they had softened up, and while this was going on, Sophie made a bread and butter pudding for dessert.

We then left the soup to cool and the bread and butter pudding to chill in the fridge and soak up the milk. I had promised my Mum I would go and "see" her this afternoon, so we drove over and parked outside her window. Standing there in the wind and rain wasn't pleasant, but I think it cheered her up and we had a good chat on the phone.

Back home we relaxed and played cards in the conservatory, all four of us, which made a pleasant change. Sophie and I did the last-minute preparations for the soup - blending it so it was smooth, cooking the pasta and heating the garlic bread. We all agreed the soup was delicious and very spicy!

It was perfect for a day like today! The bread and butter pudding was rather good, too!