Before I knew it, January 2024 was here and I was back at work. Business started off with a trickle, followed by a few intense days, before things went back to normal. We had friends pop in for a drink and stay for dinner, and then we met them for lunch and an olive oil tasting. Summer is making her mark with extremely hot weather and a lot of wind. Typical for this time of the year, and I am so grateful for our swimming pool. Other than meeting friends for dinner, we also had Burns Night at our house as is traditional. And we had house guests which is always a blessing.
Cooking up a storm
As I work full time, baking and blog cooking only happens on the weekends. I did a recipe a day during the December holidays, so a lot of what I share for the next while will be from then. I baked pistachio cantuccini and cherry chocolate clafoutis. And as Dave fell in love with sour cherry juice on Turkish Airlines, I made sour cherry jam. To make my lamb ribs, I had to make a braai marinade, as well as mint labneh for serving. Corn hummus was a spur of the moment creation for our afternoon crudités and a no knead sourdough loaf of bread was baked when I revived my sourdough starter for the summer.
The poor state of my scullery in January 2024
In December I noticed that one side of the dishwasher unit was damaged. Dave thinks that the outlet pipe must have had a blockage and that water came back out of it. In order for the panel to be replaced, the dishwasher had to come out! Luckily for us, we have a gap it can go into, that has been set up for a tumble dryer. Something we don’t need, but future owners of the house might want. I confess that I do not know how anyone copes with having their dishwasher on the floor. Mine is lifted so that I don’t have to bend over, and the cutlery tray, which is on top, is just under shoulder height. I cannot wait for the new one to arrive, and for Dave to put everything back where it belongs! In the meantime, I am sharing a photo of the rearranged unit.
This is my February submission to the #IMK series hosted by Sherry. Each month bloggers around the world gather to share what is new in their kitchens.
See the links below for blog posts I published on February 1:
- 2023: January 2023 Showcasing In My Kitchen
- 2021: Butterscotch Soft Serve
- 2019: Vegan Ice Cream
- 2017: January 2017 Showcasing In My Kitchen
- 2016: Mandy’s Salad Dressing
- 2013: January and February 2013 In My Kitchen
- 2012: February 2012 Showcasing In My Kitchen
- 2011: Scallop Pizza
Sounds like you cooked up a storm this month
I did indeed 🙂
Hi Tandy, it already feels like the holiday period was months ago 🙃. My dishwasher is on the floor. I only use it for glasses and mugs.
I never put glasses in mine, but mostly because the stems are too high 🙂
Your lamb and cherry dishes sound inviting, Tandy. If I lived near you, I’d be a VERY good friend… Lamb is quite expensive now in the UK and Spain. xx
Lamb is also expensive here so I only buy it when on special 🙂
our dishwasher is on the floor so yep a bit of bending goes on. ‘Twould be nice to have one a bit higher. Lots of good baking and cooking going on there Tandy. We are having a stinking hot and humid and windy summer. Looks like the ex-cyclone might be turning back for another round up north. Weird stuff! thanks for joining in this month. have a great Feb.
I am not enjoying the heat wave! Have a great February as well xx
WouldlovetowritebutevenyTelcoworkingonthesystetwohoursthisorningyouseetheresult!seeyaEha
I don’t know how you are coping with the lack of a space bar!
What a delicious selection! Hope you aren’t working too hard and that order can be restored in your scullery soon. For a minute there, I thought you were going to be left sans dishwasher! That would have been a real disaster. Here’s to a fab February!
I wish I was working harder as we really need to be busier. And order is nearly restored. Luckily for me we could still use the dishwasher. Otherwise I would have impressed hubby to get it done sooner 🙂
Always good to see everyone’s kitchens each month! Your cooking and baking looks delicious.
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Thank you Mae 🙂
A lot of wonderful cooking (no matter when it was done) the mint lebnah looks really interesting as does the cherry jam. Hope everything goes well with the dishwasher. Have a great week.
Luckily for me, the dishwasher was put back in place last night 🙂
OMG, for only cooking on the weekends, you have quite a lineup of delicious food! I love the idea of a raised dishwasher, actually a dishwasher even! We have elected to make a Tiny Home with a 40ft RV on our shared property. Quite comfortable really, but dishes are washed at least twice daily…Have a great week ahead.
Thank you for the compliment! I don’t mind washing dishes, but twice a day might put me off cooking 🙂
Corn hummus! What an interesting flavour combination, I never would have thought of it, but it seems to make so much sense. The sour cherry jam also catches my eye 🙂
The jam is a must make!