Vicki's Vapours

Categories

  • Cochlear Implants
  • Diving
  • Food
  • Horses
  • Life
  • Scooters
  • Vapour

Powered by Genesis

Our (Non) Christmas

28 December, 2015 by Vicki Leave a Comment

Plate of Christmas cookies and a glass of milk, with an envelope on which is written

It seems we were bad. :-(

Christmas Eve

The dread of the preceding weeks had finally built its way up to a crescendo. On Thursday morning, Christmas Eve, we braced our shoulders and flung ourselves head first (no, not really) into the madding Christmas crowds at the local shops.

I hate crowds. *glower*

Shopping (eventually) complete, we arrived home, ate brekkie and I set to work prepping food for Christmas Day. We had to bring food to two separate family gatherings. I mostly had to make salads and dips, plus crudités and zucchini chips and spiced nuts — basically the finger food.

The potato salad was to take the most time. Boil the spuds, steam the eggs, make the mayonnaise, fry the bacon, chop the spuds, chop the eggs, chop the bacon, chop the chives and spring onions. It was a bit of a marathon and my back was giving me some grief (a day of babysitting the heffalump grandson does that to me, and we’d had him the day before) and it took me a few hours to get done everything I needed to get done that day.

Well, nearly everything. I still had to make one of the dips, and then the next day assemble the potato salad and other salads. But all was pretty much under control. Whew.

Then, with cunning and stealth, it attacked — slow but invincible.

“Uh-oh,” I said to Dohn. “I’m feeling uncomfortable. Maybe it’s heartburn?” After about half an hour or so of discomfort, I headed to the kitchen to get some apple cider vinegar in case it was heartburn, though I wasn’t convinced as it was lower down than heartburn tended to be. Then, before I even had a chance to pour the ACV, I knew for sure it was not. I made my way quick smart to the bathroom.

The Bug had made its move — and move it did.

That was that as far as the day’s prep was concerned. The final dip would just have to be crammed into the next morning’s prep. It couldn’t be helped. I felt, in a word, bleugh.

I lay on the bed, not wanting my computer(!), not wanting food(!!), not wanting bubbles(!!!) but wanting to feel better more than a little, as day drifted into evening and evening drifted into night. It was all the same to me.

And then it was Christmas

At some point in the night, The Bug had felled Dohn too. So by morning there we were, two sad souls, feeling crook together. At this point it was The Bug: 2, Us: 0.

“Merry Christmas,” we greeted each other, with somewhat more irony than joy.

After some discussion, but not much as it was really a no-brainer, we decided we must stay home that day and not subject other family members to The Bug that had laid us low. And it did lay us low! We spent Christmas Day in bed feeling quite pitiful. Still no computer, no food and no bubbles. On Christmas Day! So many firsts. Always trying something new, that’s me. Hah.

In the evening, I thought of my family celebrating at my daughter’s house but felt too ill to wish I was there, although I hoped they were all having a good time. I did, however, have fleeting thoughts for my Mum’s pavlova. I don’t have much of a sweet tooth but I do adore my Mum’s pav. I have been known to “order” it as a birthday cake in the past. It’s sooooooo good. And therefore it was sooooooo tragic! *sniffle*

But the food…!

So, that was our Christmas. Dohn was better by yesterday, evening the score a little, and I am also better today. Such a relief! (Take THAT, The Bug! You lose!) But now we have to face all the food. Oh, my. So much wasted food. We couldn’t give it away (in case it was contaminated with The Bug) and haven’t been up to eating it ourselves. And oh, how I love my potato salad! I don’t get to eat it normally, as hubby isn’t fond of it. Such a waste — of both money and the food itself. When I think of all the better uses both could have been put to, I could weep. And all that stress and prep for nothing!

But that’s life.

(Belated) Christmas wishes!

I truly hope your Christmas was better than ours. Despite the tardiness of the message, I sincerely wish you all the blessings of the season. Merry Christmas everyone!

Filed Under: Food, Life Tagged With: Christmas, food

Mmmm pie

22 September, 2007 by Vicki 2 Comments

I made Beef and Guinness pie yesterday. It was based on a recipe from Taste.com.au (as so many of my favourites are) but I did tweak it a little, then cooked it in the slow cooker before topping with pastry and finishing off in the oven.

Beef and Guinness Pie

Here’s how I did it.

Ingredients

  • 2kg chuck steak, diced. If it’s really fatty, and if you are an anti-fat freak like me, get extra to allow for your personal trimming. But chuck steak — which is meat from the neck of the beast — cooked slowly is yummmmmmy.)
  • oil as required if you don’t have a non-stick fry pan
  • 3 onions, sliced
  • 4 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 can (440ml) Guinness
  • ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
  • 1½ cup beef stock
  • ½ cup beef stock (extra)
  • ½ cup flour (YMMV)
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • puff pastry (I tried Coles brand. My advice to you is: don’t try Coles brand. It flakes but barely puffs.)
  • 1 egg, beaten. (Why does this make me feel like a beaten egg? But I digress.)

Method

  1. Heat the oil (or just a non-stick pan) and brown the diced steak (in batches if necessary), then set the browned meat aside in the slow cooker pot. Be careful not to put too much in the pan at a time, and drain juices as required so the diced steak doesn’t stew instead of browning. But don’t worry too much if it does.
  2. Fry onion and garlic until golden.
  3. Add Guinness, 1 1/2 cup beef stock, and Worcestershire sauce to pan with onion and garlic. Heat.
  4. Add onion, garlic, Guinness, stock and Worcestershire sauce to slow cooker pot. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. Cook on Low for 6-8 hours. (Again, YMMV)
  6. Half an hour before the meat mixture is ready (or perhaps when you are ready for the meat mixture!) mix the flour with the remaining 1/2 cup beef stock bit by bit until the consistency is smooth but not runny. Add to the slow cooker pot.
  7. Preheat oven to 200°C
  8. Spoon mixture into 250ml-350ml individual oven-proof dishes. Top with pastry and brush with beaten egg.
  9. Cook in oven for 25 mins or until pastry is crisp and golden.

Serve with mashed potato and (if, unlike me, you like peas) mushy peas.

Reading up, it seems like there are a lot of steps but it was actually very simple to prepare and everyone who partook of this meal apparently did so with enjoyment. ;-)

Filed Under: Food Tagged With: beef, food, pie, recipe

Recent Posts

  • 2020 and New Beginnings
  • The Griffith Award for Academic Excellence
  • An excellent start to 2019
  • Ants in my pants
  • Back to nature
  • Black is the new… black
  • Our (Non) Christmas
  • Birthdays

Pages

  • About

Subscribe

  • RSS
  • Email