10 things I will not do when I am old.

I sat on my terrace yesterday and watched the world go by. I live in a small village, so the world going by was mainly old folk (therefore the world was going by was going rather slowly!) I am always amazed at all the different sizes,shapes and colours of people there are in the world; yesterday I concentrated on "The Elders" of the tribe. Here are 10 things I will not do when I am old:-

1) I will not walk around the streets in my slippers- even if bending down to get my shoes on is hard work.
2) I will not sit on park benches tut tutting at the young people that go by. I will not criticise their clothes, hair, make up etc (gosh, actually I think I do that already-must stop!)
3) I will not live my life round meal times. I will use a watch, rather than breakfast, lunch and dinner, to organise my day.
4) I will not have my hair permed and dyed white or pale blue.
5) I will not wear an apron in public (blimey, it only takes a second to whip one of those off!)
6) I will not walk round muttering to myself (Oh no, yet another thing I already do)
7) I will not take up knitting and sewing- I have never done either of these past times, so why do I have to do it when I am old?
8) I will not use the phrases "when I was young....." or "in my day...."
9) I will let my daughters make their own decisions and mistakes and I will let them fly the nest and I won't criticise and I won't be a pain in the butt burden to them (yeah-right!!!)
10)I will not tell anyone willing to listen about my various ailments.

One thing I will do when I am old is get a really groovy shoping trolley on wheels!

It is Saturday, and I don't like cooking on a Saturday so try this simple to make but delicious salad (will also help you with "Operation Bikini")

Crispy Parama Ham and Mozarella Salad.

Create your usual salad with all the things you like from the following:- salad leaves, tomatoes, avocado, sweetcorn, cucmber, radishes, carrot etc. tear up a large mozarella ball and add it to the salad. Put 6 or 7 thin slices of Parma Ham on a plate and microwave for 2 minutes on full power. Dress your salad with oil, vinegar and freshly ground black pepper (you don't need to add salt as the Parma ham is fairly salty) Place the divinely, crispy Parama ham on top of the salad and ....voila! Enjoy.

I am a Goddess!

I have just realised I control the weather. I had no idea that I had such powers. What do you mean you don't believe me? Ok, doubting Thomas, need proof? Well, here you are:-
I wash my car or windows and it rains.
I have a mountain of laundry to dry and the weather turns damp, without a breath of a breeze.
I buy suntan lotion and the sun disappears.
I just think about digging my shorts out from the back of the wardrobe and the temperatures drop by ten degrees.
I plan a barbecue and a violent storm erupts.
See? If you are planning an event that requires good weather you had better get in touch with me first so that I do none of the above!

Whatever the weather I am having a barbecue tonight- check out the recipe below for a scrummy starter!

Baked Camembert with Calvados and Walnuts.(serves 2)

Ingredients.

1 camembert cheese (discard the paper wrapping, but keep the box)
2-3 tablespoons of clavados
A couple of sprigs of fresh rosemary
50 grams of walnuts (roughly chopped)
A drizzle of olive or walnut oil.

Method

With a fork, prick the top of the cheese all over and place in a dish. Drizzle the calvados all over the top and leave to marinade for at least an hour (overnight is even better). Put the rosemary sprigs in the bottom of the cheese box and place the cheese on top. Cover the top of the cheese with the walnuts and a drizzle of oil. Put the top back on the box and cover it all with foil. Now you can put the whole package on the BBQ grill or in the oven for 15-20 minutes at 180 degrees C. Place the box on a serving plate and cut a cross in the top of the cheese, to allow you to get to the divinely runny cheese interior.
I like to serve this with boiled baby potatoes, raw vegetables or crusty bread toasted and rubbed over with a garlic clove. Divine!

As I am planning a BBQ-don't forget to take your umbrella out with you tonight!

I am back!

Watch out! I am back! Finished my manuscript- and  as you can see from my photo, I am soooo happy to have time to blogg again! How are you all? Watch this space!!!! Kisses from Kate