Soop's comfortable and convivial kitchen.

So glad things are look up panache. Can you get online shopping delivered?

Hello the kitcheners. I have caught a bug - who is to blame? Probably picked it up from a “lovely” person coughing all over me in the supermarket queue. DH is away this week so I am snuggled up on the sofa enjoying the view of wonderful skies and the small birds guzzling the seed on the feeders suspended from our trees. I tottered out to the bin and there is a carpet of green shoots heralding the arrival of the snowdrops, early here due to the mild weather.
ann do take your book/knitting/kindle to the care home when you visit your husband. Even if he is snoozing I am sure he will have a sense of your companionable presence. As far as food goes, my husband is away a lot and when he is I eat very simply, fish or eggs are the staples with some veg. I do not make potatoes or rice. Toasted sandwiches in the silicon bag are a must. You could slip Molly a little of your fish for being so entertaining.
dragonfly. As I am sure you know, accepting a little help for your husband to dress and maybe shower will actually help you both and make the rest of the day easier.
soop your husband sounds unique apart from the doctor business. Now I think about it there are always more ladies than men in the doctor’s waiting room.
Going to lounge in a quiet corner and not share my germs. Very, very upset to have missed the lemon cake - any chance of seconds? Look after yourselves everyone.

Cooking for one is new to me too , I tried the batch cook and freeze so why do I open the freezer browse the shelves , sigh and end up with bread (homemade ) and cheese ?

OMG Mamissimo- custard with a thick skin? Are you trying to make me sick?!

soop I do hope that MacSporran gets a visit from his GP. this lurgy he has picked up sounds horrendous.

Galen and ann I also have been on my own for more years than I care to think about and I get around this cooking for one by cooking for 4. I will prepare the food tonight, eat the first meal this evening, reheat tomorrow and freeze the other two portions. It saves time and money when I bother to do it properly. I am not a fan of ready meals.

Mamissimo, we're pals for life. Why? B&B pudding with real custard plus skin...that's why. My mouth is watering as I speak...

The phone rang. MacSporran answered it. I knew that it would be the GP. I heard MacS say...tomorrow...an appointment...but there's no need. I gave him my fiercest look. He agreed to visit the surgery. Result! No need for either of us to mention the subject from hereon.

I shall be ironing tomorrow morning. I have every intention of calling into catch up with you lovely lot. ?

Soop you have my heartfelt sympathy with the coughing! My DH and I have been wracked for almost ten days now and have coughed ourselves inside out. Our GP says it’s viral and we have to live through it. I’ve moved into another bedroom so that we at least don’t wake each other. It’s tiring and chilly on your own so tonight I’ll take Fergal the cat in with me ?

It’s the darned MOT today and we’re sweating the small stuff while we wait for the all clear. We have always driven Saabs and now that they’re no longer in production we are cosseting this one extensively. It’s a beautiful yellow convertible like the one in Howard’s Way all those years ago.

My son is a supermarket manager and persuaded his bakery manager to make me a loaf from hot cross bun dough. It’s the stickiest thing but utterly yummy. I’m going to make a B & B pudding from the last of it. I’ll leave some later with a jug of custard with a nice thick skin on it ?

Thank you for your spirited post, Panache

N&G Why not create your personal T-shirts on which you can list your slimming success. In the meantime, bravo!

Welcome back to Swanny. Bless you for taking the time to catch up with us lot. I come in evry day, yet I can never truthfully claim to have "caught up". Please do not lurk. Come on in and keep us company.

Chewbacca good to have your company, too. I see that our norty Marydoll hasn't had a darstadly influence on you. Well done!

There are some uplifting posts to kick-start my afternoon.
I've been to the care home and now, back home feeling totally zapped of energy. The reason for that being MacSporran's seemingly non-stop cough throughout the night. It was just after three am when he finally fell asleep. Two hours later, he was coughing until breakfast time. I called into the GP's surgery on my way back home. Leaft a message for MacS's kindly doctor. We shall wait to see if there is a call. I'm betting there will be. Haven't forwarned himself. He would go on about being fine, not needing help, blah blah.

Afternoon all !!

Welcome back Swanny - did you bring cake ;-)

Lovely to hear such positive happenings Mr and Mrs Panache. I have to say the service we get from our GP and hospital here is far superior to that in our old home. We love them to bits but can totally see how rural living complicates matters.

Enjoyed the panetonne discussion - it can only be virtual for us at the moment. We are both feeling a little pleased with ourselves. In total over the 15 days of Christmas we have only put on just over a pound each !! Which , whilst still a gain is bloody marvellous as we enjoyed ourselves with lovely food and the odd beverage .

Grampy also got a belated certificate for Slimmer of the Week ( all down to me of course ;-) ). So you would think he won an Olympic gold !!!

Its a blue sky day here so we are off to enjoy a wild and windy but sunny walk with Sam !

Happy days all !!

Annesixty I’ve been a widow now for 14 years and I still haven’t worked out how to cook for one!
My answer is to live very unhealthily on ready meals and tinned food.
Anyone remember how to open a tin of Fray Bentos steak and kidney?

Happy New Year to all in soop's kitchen! I haven't posted for over a year but sat up till 2.30 this morning catching up on the most recent events, so what a joy when I opened the door just now and saw the cheery positive message from Panache I am so pleased to hear some action is happening there for you both. hopefully delivered in a vase so you don't have to find the one that is always at the back of the cupboard!

Too many names to mention but pleased to see so many old friends here, as well as new ones. I am gradually getting back into the swing of things and may just lurk for a while enjoying the cosy comfort and conviviality. Cheers

Ah, dear Panache what an uplifting post, and may you enjoy your daffs for many a week. You are always so positive no matter what life throws at you. I do admire your resolve.

We too have beautiful blue skies and sunshine this morning and I shall pop out for a short walk later. Bugs are abating here at Chez Izabella but CH is still far from well. His chest is being listened too later (good to have a GP in the house) and we shall take things from there.

Interesting about the state of the Welsh NHS as I have friends on Anglesey who sing its praises vs. their experiences of living in London. I seriously wonder if it is an ageist thing panache?

The sun is showing up the dust so I shall stop looking at it and do something more positive on this unexpectedly beautiful day which has been sent to remind me how lucky I am. We even have two herons in statuesque pose today. Perhaps lurve is in the air.

Good Morning to our Kitchen lovers and what a treat it is to see blue skies and sunshine making its first appearance here in West Wales this New Year.

As always have just managed to read through .....all be it more hastily than I would normally do!...........and what a joy hearing about all the delightful foodstuffs,lovely pictures, amid of course the many carrying troubling burdens .....please know you are all in my thoughts, even if rather jumbled up at the moment!

Delighted to add my dear man is making slow but steady progress and those Hospital appointments are rolling in thick and fast.It would seem that although many heels were badly dragging before and over Christmas, they have now decided they have a job to do to get my beloved back into good shape......and I say Amen to that!!

However having always enjoyed our own transport we are finding living without the car is not that easy when stuck in the countryside with no bus service.
To access a Hospital car to take us to the Hospital,it took 3 attempts yesterday and on the third ..........after a 45 minute wait,hanging onto the phone for dear life,I got through and was successfully set up.
What a palaver....after all I really need the time to be spent in a dozen other ways rather than holding onto a phone!!

It has taken our Surgery/ Pharmacy 8 days between Doctor visiting and prescribing to the medication being delivered................although I have always loudly beaten every drum in praise of our beautiful Wales, I am beginning to see its darker side, and believe me...........I am NOT impressed.
Our Labour government have ruined our NHS service here for sure.

As for myself,sadly apart from all my main debilitating problems, my spinal issue has well and truly reared its ugly head and I am hobbling worse than ever leaning on two canes.............looking and feeling every day of my age.

But hey! hopes are high that eventually the dark skies that hovered low over Christmas are already showing glimpses of blue, and with the sunshine adding to the scene ..........perhaps both ourselves and each one of you struggling through, will find bliss as the Spring and new life appears.
Our daffodils are already well up and that is always a good sign.Many have snowdrops blooming too and these little harbingers of Spring truly do uplift our hearts.

May peace,love and blessings be with each one of my dear friends here.......with better health to all.

Maddyone, I love sitting next to someone who`s never been before when it`s time for the 1812 overture!

I got mine in a hamper too Ann.
I should think you could easily use a lemon panettone in a bread and butter pudding Chewbacca, in fact I have a recipe for a lemon bread and butter pudding, but it includes lemon zest and a bit of the juice. It’s delicious. I think the lemon panettone would do very well in bread and butter pudding.

Just don’t try to toast it in a pop up toaster or you may, like me, be picking panettone crumbs out of your toaster with the tongs before you can use it again.

Toast it like you would a fruit loaf, with lashings of butter and a cup of tea.

Just scoff it with cool drink

That's an idea GrannyGravy and it sounds good but I'm teetotal so don't have any limoncello in the house. The thought of trifle is good though!

Chewbacca, if you have any Limoncello soak panettone with it and make a trifle.

Excuse me, I don't often visit but when I poked my head around the door, I could hear you discussing panetone bread and butter pudding and I wondered if you'd mind if I stepped in to ask for a bit of advice?

I was given a Sicilian Lemon Panetone that a friend brought back from Sorrento. I haven't opened it yet but don't want it to go to waste. Would one of you seasoned bakers/cooks happen to know if I could turn that into a bread and butter pudding? It doesn't say on the wrapper that it has any fruit apart, from Sicilian Lemons in it. Do you think it would still work? Or should I just scoff it as it is?

Mine was in a hamper I was given at Christmas.
It is a mini chocolate one, not traditional I realise, but it was a gift.
I also will make myself a small B&B pudding.
Oh how I wish I could get used to cooking for one?

Where did you all get the Pantone ? from a real Italian deli it is delicious , and I have produced a delightful sample in my Bread machine .I agree it makes exceptional B+B pud

Oh no, the lemon cake has all gone! I have a Pannatone, but I agree with Ann and Mamissimo, it’s not very nice. However I could try making a bread and butter pudding with it at the weekend.
Soop, your little great granddaughter is one year old today, how wonderful. I hope she has a lovely birthday, though I don’t suppose she has any idea what it’s all about this year, certainly our little grandson didn’t when he turned one in the autumn. His little face when our daughter brought him down from his nap, and he saw all his doting relations waiting for him, it was a picture.
Callgirl, I have been to the Classical Spectacular at The Albert Hall and I loved it. In fact we’ve been twice, once I bought tickets for myself and Mr M for his Christmas present, that was a few years ago, and then another year our daughter gave us the tickets for our Christmas gift. Both times I loved it, but my problem is Mr M, he’s a proper musician, I’m not at all, I just like it. Mr M is a bit of a purist, and likes to listen to complete pieces of music, whereas I’m happy so long as it’s tuneful, although I do have favourites. Of course he knows far more about music than I ever will, but because of this, he says he’s not so fond of the Classical Spectacular. But I’m with you Callgirl, I love it.

soop I cannot believe that Mila is one year old already.
Do you not think that MacSporran needs to see a GP, especially with his other problems?

I did not rush to the kitchen because thankfully I am not a fan of cake, other than carrot cake.