Tortillas

It's that time of the year to harvest our vegetables.  John grows all our vegetables from seed and with some simple ingredients we cook some tasty snacks for supper.  The eggs in this recipe are not homegrown but we will soon.  There may be much discussion amongst my family members about how I make my omelettes but that is life!

I made two omelettes a small thin one for sofia because that how she likes them and a big  fat one for us.  I like my tortillas (omelettes) with the egg a little runny. The ingredients were 2lbs of potatoes, 4 extra large eggs, 1 large onion and I used olive oil.

I made my life easy by slicing the potatoes and onions using a small food processor.  When the oil was hot I poured it all in the pan and after a few second I turned the heat down a little so let the potatoes and onions "stew" not fry crisp.  When cooked I carefully removed the potatoes and onions from the oil and poured them in the bowl of beaten egg.  I mixed everything well and I added some salt.  Using a smaller non stick pan I poured some of the mixture onto the oiled pan.  I only greased the pan with oil at this point.  When the bottom side was cooked I removed the pan from the heat and placed a plate that was larger than the pan over it.  With my hand firmly placed on the plate and the other on the frying pan handle I flipped the whole thing over leaving the tortilla cooked side up on the plate.  The frying pan went  back onto the heat and I eased/slid the omelette back onto the pan ucooked side down.

                                                                                                          

I finished cooking our tortillas and we sat down to a lovely supper.

Tip:  If like us you try and grow your own veg.  then you know that courgettes and marrows grow in large quantities.  I try to use these in many different ways just to eat them up.  I have used these in our tortillas instead of potatoes.  They worked well.  Just remember to use the dry fleshy bits or it will be too soggy. They make great Tortillas.  I peeled the marrows or courgettes and fried them using a non stick pan which was only greased with oil so this is great if you want a low calorie tortilla.  

Blissfully Soft Lambpaca Socks

 

I have finally finished my socks.  I used one of the 100gram skeins of 50-50 Lambswool and Alpaca DK and hand painted the yarn.   You can find this yarn on my Yarn Page.  Dyeing is always a very exciting process  for me as I never know what I am going to get.  I loved the outcome and was surprised to see how the colour pooled according to the stitch I used. A wonderful designer Cat Bordhi shared her methods on You Tube.  I have used some of her methods and have her links below.  I wanted them snug on my feet for warmth and will thus make the sock wear evenly. I used Patty Joy's magic loop  toe up two at a time cast on method which can also be found on You Tube.  I only increased at the toes until I reached the top of my little toe and I then continued knitting until I reached the top of  my leg. 

 

I decreased a certain amount of stitches so that they fitted well around my ankles.  I used 1 x rib for the leg until the yarn was nearly finished. I used Jeny Staiman's surprisingly stretchy bind off which can also be found on You Tube and finished the sock.  Let me know what you think and if you want me to demonstrate the methods I used and you are local and I can arrange a demo.  You can also purchase a single pattern from Cat Bordhi on Ravelry for $6.

 



This weight of yarn makes a good 'proper'  boot sock.  Very cushionie, soft and very warm.  I didn't want to take them off.  I promise you that the softness of the yarn always surprises everyone that tries them on.  The leg 1x rib makes a good thickness and protects the ankle from boot rubs and keeps you warm on those very chilly days.  When using walking boots the top of the socks fit nicely with them.  It is super easy and quick   Just keep trying it on as you knit it and it and they will be perfect. Let me know what you think.

 

I used Cat Bordhi's 'sweet tomatoe heel'.  There is a tutorial for this heel on you tube.  To view this video click on the following link .http://tinyurl.com/4x4xmp2.    http://tinyurl.com/3dayxlt I highly recommend her fantastic book and if you wish to purchase it click on the following link http://catbordhi.com/books/cats-sweet-tomato-heel-socks-3/

The Black Wensleydale on the High Weald

Meet the new members of our flock.  They have arrived and am happy to say that they are not only beautiful but come from amazing stock. This is not achieved easily and without hard work.  I am very lucky to own this rare breed and colour. 

They have settled in very nicely and already know what to do to get what they want!

Our handsome ram is strong, healthy and, as they all do, has  a luxurious fleece.  I aim to breed from them and perhaps cross breed a few to see what benefits this can bring.  All the ewes are of pedigree standard and are registered with the Wensleydale Longwool Sheep Breeders Association.  I intend to shear them twice a year because of the benefits this brings to their health, welfare and the advantanges it has during lambing time. 

I want to thank all the Wensleydale owners that I have met; who have encouraged me, and readily offered their help and advice.  For me, their experience is invaluable and the generosity with which Wensleydale owners and breeders have shared their knowledge and expertise has to be acknowledged and is the reason we still have this breed today.   The Wensleydales have been on the brink and they are here with us because of them

Enjoy the pictures of some of these wonderful sheep and their fleeces.

The Wealden Woollyholic

At last I have received some of my wool back from the mill.  I spent all morning dyeing these DK skeins.  I used food colouring which is a good use for the stuff.  My daughter, who is now 7 years old, helped me name the different skeins and some examples of the names are Sunset Dance to Lollypop World.  Great!  Of course I must mention a big thank you to my friends behind the scene who do all the work who made this wool from grass!

THANK YOU

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We are in the full swing of lambing and so far we have had a lots of healthy lambs including some lovely triplets.  I shall be taking some pictures in the next few days and posting them for you to see.

Some of the fleeces from last years lambs are at a specialist mill and are yarn from these will be ready, by next week, for sale.   This yarn will be 50% Lleyns lambswool and 50% alpaca.  Beautifully soft and white in DK and Bulky.  I can't wait to see it and will be posting photographs as soon as it is available for you. 

I am busy with spinning fleeces from someone else.  I am working hard to complete all seven fleeces.  These are white, grey and brown.  The yarns I am spinning for them are all bulky will either be all grey, grey and white, brown and brown and white.  This is the sort of projects I really enjoy.