Happy Good Friday…it seems I cannot keep it simple :)

A strange day…not a particular festival day for us, but always grateful for a day off…..BBQ time I think.

I am full of cold (and grumpy..ask my boyfriend lol )..but the sun is shining and it is family dinner day.
I suggested BBQ..we will keep it simple I said….but oohhhh I cannot do simple!!!

It will just be burgers and sausages.. (no steak, chicken, prawns.) but whilst My Love is at the Big Shop..I am secretly boiling Bantam eggs (it is Easter after all). There will probably be a potato salad….Hummus….cous cous??? Brownies…maybe millionaires shortbread…hey I am not going mad I am ill ..it will be a lovely distraction..unobligated cooking makes me happy.

I can’t do simple…It is a feast for the people I love…there is no better celebration than that..I shall cherish every moment

Whatever you celebrate….have a happy one

Love and Hugs
Sky @ http://www.skybendelow.com

Get Yourself Some Balls!

Get yourself some balls!

I will eat most things. But I do like to know what it is that I am putting into my mouth. I am not a lover of mystery meats or processed foods. However I do love meatballs, burgers and sausages.
They can be wonderful delights. Ultimate comfort foods.
A well-constructed sausage in a soft roll topped with fried onions and a splosh of ketchup, is a simple feast that is guaranteed to please everyone in our household.
A moist burger made from rump steak or chicken thighs, or pork or lamb for that matter, is such a simple thing to prepare if you are lucky enough to own a food processor. (If not ask a friendly butcher to mince it for you.) Simply mixed with seasonings, possibly an egg and some breadcrumbs to make our mixture go even further. Cooked in a hot pan or under the grill and served on a toasted bun.maybe with melted cheese or good quality mayo is another favourite tea. And if we make these things ourselves they are actually massively healthier than the pre made often frozen offerings.
And Meatballs…a dish of succulent meaty balls, drowning in a delicious sauce or gravy then nestled on a bed of pasta or mashed potato…if that is not foodie heaven. I don’t know what is.

Check out the new recipe, which is hopefully on the recipe page. (I’m still getting to grips with all this technology :S )

Happy Munching

Love Sky @ http://www.thesideplate.com

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Breakfast Week

Breakfast week…

So how many of us actually have breakfast? I am ashamed to say, I am a two cups of coffee for breakfast kind of girl. Yet I wouldn’t dream of letting my kids leave the house with rumbling tummies.

Breakfast isn’t always conventional in our house, but then we are not generally a conventional household. I don’t really mind what they have. They would have chocolate croissants every single morning if I let them, but I try to add a little variety. Sometimes it is eggs on toast or a sausage sandwich. Pancakes if we get up early enough or it’s a weekend. Maybe a big slice of homemade flapjack if they are claiming not to be hungry.

To be honest the decider for what we have for breakfast is, it has to be something I can face making and eating early on a morning. (When I was in my teens and had the luxury of sleeping in till noon, my breakfast was often a full Sunday roast.
I would rather my kids eat a cheese and ham toastie or fruit crumble and custard, than consume a dish of sugar coated cereal. Something they enjoy, but that will fuel them for their morning in class. This morning they had eggy bread, and although it was eaten in a hurry, whilst trying to track down swimming kits and book bags, I feel they had a good start to the day.

It has been proven by many a committee that we are more productive, and less likely to snack on junk food mid morning if we take the time to consume breakfast. So it seems a ridiculous meal to miss.

I probably shouldn’t tell you I skipped breakfast this morning 😦 …but I promise to try harder tomorrow. Who knows when I realise it makes me less grumpy and more productive, I may start each day half an hour earlier. It would seem it’s a good idea to make time for what maybe the most essential meal of the day.

Happy eating, and as always thanks for reading

Sky @ http://www.thesideplate.com

Everything breakfast

http://www.shakeupyourwakeup.com

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The perfect destination for my incredible journey

I have to say the best days @ thesideplate.com involve consuming the food that other people have made. I absolutely adore cooking, and some people may even agree I’m pretty good at it. However, this does make me ever so picky when I eat out. Be it a breakfast, lunch or Dinner. I need it to be at least as good as I can make at home.

I think we would all agree that we have had to tighten our belts a little recently (money wise I mean, jeez definitely not waist wise…that’s more of an expansion thing) So when we do part with our hard earned cash I think we need to get something worthy in its return. And I can happily say one of the first things I noticed on my first visit to the Bolster Moor farm shop was how reasonably priced it was.
http://www.bolstermoorfarmshop.co.uk

I will be honest, when my partner heard I was going to take a road trip that would end in the consuming bacon and sausage butties, he offered to drive. I am glad he did. My ability to follow directions and not actually reaching my destination are a great source of amusement to my family and friends. And I have to say it wasn’t the easiest place to locate, but Wow, it was worth it. And judging by the amount of folk up there on said Moor, I am not the only person to think so.

There was a queue to be seated, but we didn’t wait long, and I have to say the staff were incredibly welcoming and polite. Once we were settled we had a tough choice to make. We had arrived very late morning, so I almost wavered in my menu choice…it ALL sounded so good. However I had come on a mission…to try their award winning bacon sandwich (BBC Olive magazine 2013).

We decided to truly put them to the test and adored a sausage bap too (you can now see what I mean about the waistline…although for the record it wasn’t me that also had a Florentine!!) We also sampled their Café Ology coffee.

It is possibly wrong how thrilled I was by the coffee arriving not only bearing a complimentary fairy sized shortbread, but also a jug of cream. You would not believe how many outlets only provide milk. The coffee was divine…possibly the best I have been served in the UK. The shortbread was a perfect mixture of buttery, crumbly excellence. And then the sandwiches arrived….

So many places make rubbish bacon sandwiches…Bolster Moor is not one of them.

The bread was a soft, but not too soft, a white bap (breadcake, barm, roll, call it what you will.) The bacon was moist and tender, with a perfectly crispy edge. The sausage had texture and the most fantastic savoury taste. Seasoned to perfection. The fillings actually filled the bread, which to be honest is not always the case at other eateries I have visited. And they were big 😀 . I am sure you will agree at £3.25 for the bacon sandwich and £3.50 for the sausage, they were also great value.

I would love to tell you about the Florentine…. All I can say is I was told it was delicious.

Bolster Moor Farm & Coffee Shop…
Fantastic food, Well priced, Delightful staff.
I shall return.
It was well worth making the trip.

Another tea time…

Another teatime…pppfttt

I was going to say I always seem to be cooking, but I guess that would be stating the obvious. What I mean to say is I always seem to be cooking what I call “children’s tea”. This week we have already had the homemade nuggets. (A small sample of which are in the freezer…to see if they work as a future ready meal). We have sampled my new cottage pie recipe, (also in the freezer for a quick dinner next week.) So I think today I shall declare it sausage, egg and chip Wednesday. YAY. Sometimes the simplest things are the best. Good quality butchers sausage, eggs contributed by Peckish, Dora and Mrs Grey, and some quick homemade oven chips. I shall throw in a tin of our favourite baked beans (the one with the turquoise label..Yes turquoise not green…don’t get me started 😀 ) as one of our 5 a day and I think we will feast like kings, all be it low budget kings.

You never know, there maybe bananas and custard as a pudding…I’ve got to get my five a day somehow.

Happy Eating
Sky @ thesideplate.com

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