We seem to be in a weekday routine of Muesli, stewed apples and yoghurt for breakfast and soup for lunch (another pot of tomato soup) . Philip zooms all day in meetings and there is more than enough for me to do outside. I did manage to get some miniature blue irises on line at Nichols and planted some between Verbena Bonarensis in wine barrels and more in pots to sit on outside tables ready for the spring.
Simple day and simple dinner. Plain roasted chicken. ( Nothing better) I always butterfly my chicken. It cooks faster and evenly. Use kitchen scissors or a sharp knife and cut down the edge of the backbone – then flatten out. Drizzle with olive oil, season with sea salt and ground black pepper. Bake at 200 deg C for 30 – 40 minutes .
Traditional Caesar Salad
Cos lettuce leaves, 3 hard boiled eggs – cut in half , 5 rashers bacon – sliced in 4 – pan-fried and crisp, 1 cup bread cubes – roasted in a little olive oil, 1/2 cup shaved parmesan cheese. Dressing : 4 anchovy fillets,, 1 clove garlic – crushed, 1 egg yolk, juice 1/2 lemon, 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons grape seed oil, pinch sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Layer the salad ingredients in a bowl, drizzle with dressing and toss very gently . Serves 2
The fruit trees are groaning with wonderful crops of apples all around us and look so colourful, beautiful and wanting to be picked .
Travel Memories
Exciting Istanbul
Istanbul, the city of 20 million inhabitants is a massive culture shock to first time visitors and everyone and they really don’t know what to feast their eyes on first. The big-ticket items are the Sultanahmet, which is the area with the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace and the Basilica Cisterns which once made up almost the entirety of Constantinople and they sit side by side complementing the enormity of each other. No visit to Istanbul would be complete without the use of a good guide and plenty of time to immerse yourself in the history of Sultans, Christianity and the Moslem Faith. Seerdat is our guide once again and he puts everything in chronological order so the complex history of Istanbul can come to life. Shopping in Turkey is always lots of fun and the sensational Grand Bazaar is always a favourite visit. Very high quality cotton is grown here and buying beautiful towels is a must. Jennifer’s Hamam came recommended and we followed the shop assistant like lambs to the slaughter, down narrow streets to the showroom. Eyes agog at the two floors of colourful organic cotton towels we then came under the spell of a charismatic Australian called Greg. Least to say two hours later there was a huge bag ready to be packed off and sent to NZ and some Christmas shopping done. Thank goodness our hotel has a magnificent roof top bar overlooking the Bosphorus to relax in looking at the Golden Horn and in the evenings at many enormous Mosques which line the skyline.
