Cooking during Lockdown

Since the 23rd of March 2020 we have been told to not go out except for shopping or work, if you cannot work from home. I have never liked to go to the supermarket and load a trolley full of food to last a fortnight or even a month. I like to shop locally for things as I need them and consequently do not waste food. We are now being told to go out as little as possible even for shopping. Buying necessities has become a nightmare as you often have to queue outside and then when you do get into a shop many of the shelves are bare.

It has meant we have had to adapt and change many of the things we eat and the way we shop. It became difficult to buy bread and if we did manage to find some there was very little choice. I am not a bread maker but luckily for me it was something I had intended to do one day. I had a tin of dried yeast in the cupboard and some bread flour that was only three months out of date. Looking on the internet for a recipe, I was very pleased to find that you could make bread in a slow cooker and it worked. Here is the recipe Slow Cooker LoafThis has worked well now four times and I will continue even when bread becomes easier to buy. I have also made these bread rolls which do not need yeast. They do not look like the photo on the actual recipe but they do taste good and  seem to last up to three days. Roll Recipe.Buying fruit and vegetables has become more difficult as the local green grocers is a small shop where social distancing was not really possible. The shop decided to close and offer home delivery. We have been able to have them deliver fruit and vegetable boxes. The downside of this is you cannot choose all the items in the box. My first vegetable box contained both parsnips and a swede. Items my other half refused to eat under any circumstances. The challenge was to change his mind. I started with the parsnips and discovered a recipe for Parsnip Cake. I didn’t have all the ingredients but the cake still worked with a few changes and has now become our favourite cake. I used almonds instead of pecans, honey instead of maple syrup and lemon instead of orange.I thought the swede would be more difficult as at least parsnips are sweet and therefore lend themselves to cake. Having asked on Facebook, what to do with a swede? The recipe Spiced Swede Cakes, was suggested and once made it became another favourite. We were disappointed this week not to receive another swede.I have been foraging locally for ingredients to add to recipes and wild garlic is one of my favourite. This year for the first time I made wild garlic pesto which was added to pasta and also spread on bread. I will write more about this in my next blog.

Fashion Revolution Week

Belper’s first Fashion Revolution event took place during Fashion Revolution Week 2019. The action happened in St Peter’s Church on Friday April 26th,  it was very well supported by people from Belper and beyond.The idea for the Fashion Revolution movement came from Carry Somers after the tragedy of the Rana Plaza disaster. On 24 April 2013, a factory building in Bangladesh collapsed killing 1,134 people and injuring 2500 more. Carry (who has a Fair Trade shop in Ashbourne) felt this was a tipping point and something needed to be done. She phoned Orsola de Castro, founder of up-cycling fashion label ‘From Somewhere‘. Orsola immediately said, ‘Yes we have got to do this.” The first fashion Revolution Day took place in 2014. Fashion Revolution Day has now become Fashion Revolution Week and this year took place from April 22 – 28. Continue reading Fashion Revolution Week

Fashion Revolution Belper

Do you wear clothes? In that case please read the rest of this article. Our Member’s of Parliament say the Fashion Industry is a major source of the greenhouse gases that are overheating our planet. Discarded clothes are piling up in landfill sites and fibre fragments are flowing into the sea when clothes are washed. Find out more HERE.

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Up-Cycling and Mending

In 2016 I made two shopping bags and a garden cushion from some coffee sacks. They were made from old jute sacks that coffee beans are imported in. I had used the sacks originally to collect garden clippings but didn’t find them very useful as twigs got caught in the weave. The instructions for making these were written up and posted on the Angel Eden Blog. Because the original sacks had been used in the garden they had to be washed but this is not always necessary. Continue reading Up-Cycling and Mending

Belper Goes Green Fun Palace

Belper Goes Green 2017 happened during the first week of June. This year the dates were June 2 – 4th. The Friday evening as always was filled with beer and music. During the day on Saturday and Sunday there was an amazing amount on offer, plenty of food, drink, children’s activities, adult information stalls, handmade retail sales, talks including Talking Books, a variety of performances, numerous workshops and places to be quiet and meditate. Saturday evening was once again full of musical entertainment. Belper Goes Green is a local Eco Festival which is part of Belper Transition Group. Next year 2018 will be the sixth event and will take place once again on the first week of June, June 1st – 3rd.  Continue reading Belper Goes Green Fun Palace

Sustainable Luxury, Social Entrepreneurship

I have just finished reading an interesting book, ‘Sustainable Luxury and Social Entrepreneurship, stories from the pioneers’.

It is a book written by entrepreneurs who have started businesses making beautiful things while at the same time thinking about their effect on our planet and the lives of the people who produce the items.book Continue reading Sustainable Luxury, Social Entrepreneurship

Visit to Hathersage, Derbyshire

Saturday  was a lovely sunny but cold day, the perfect time for a relaxing day out and a visit to the Peak District. The plan was to visit Hathersage for coffee and then visit David Mellor Cutlery for lunch. However things did change along the way. Driving through Chatsworth Park we decided to stop at the farm shop and have our coffee in their restaurant. The farm shop is being extended and it was very busy.  You can see why an extension is needed. There is so much amazing food to buy its difficult to choose. I bought some English apples and a loaf of Pumpernickel bread. The bread felt heavy but I have just eaten some for tea and it was delicious spread with honey.

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A Nice Cup of Tea

There is one drink I can’t live without and that is, a nice cup of tea. I enjoy tea of all varieties and as I write this I am enjoying a cup of red bush or rooibos tea. This variety of tea is naturally caffeine free so is good to drink in the evening . The  underground health website details ten reasons that this tea is good for you. I have recently purchased a glass teapot which is perfect for brewing more unusual teas.

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Harley Gallery and Welbeck Village

Last weekend I visited the Harley Gallery and  Welbeck village. The village is owned by the Duke of Portland. He is responsible for continuing the Welbeck Project started by his Aunt, Ivy the Duchess of Portland. The village is not usually open for the public to walk around so it was lovely to be able to visit it.Welbeck

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