cacti chicken paprika rice

so tonight i made an awesome meal.
if i do say so myself.

im not one for measurements so i will put down what went in and you can go from there!

firstly i used a big flat bottomed with medium sides pan thing with a lid. its usually good for cooking soups in, its really heavy.

in went RAPESEED OIL, not much. then some AGAVE SYRUP, to replace honey i would have used, but the hubster is diabetic. then then went in some SKINLESS AND BONELESS CHOPPED UP CHICKEN THIGHS, and i put the heat on low under it. some more AGAVE on top and a pinch of sea salt flakes and then some SMOKED PAPRIKA called la chinata i think and then some Schwartz regular PAPRIKA. gave it a stir and on went the lid. alot of water comes off chicken so this is good for almost steaming it cooked. i threw in some SESAME SEEDS and about a heaped teaspoon of GARLIC PUREE and left it on low and went to watch tv for a few. i was nipping in and out a bit while i was making this as hubby put Castle on tv. i microwaved a peeled SWEET POTATO till it was softened and cubed it and threw it in the mix with a little added heat. the agave and chicken water was still quite plentiful and the chicken cooking, i turned the heat up a little and prepped the salad on our plates (bistro mix from M&S and sweet pickled gherkins, avocado and those cute mini oval tomatoes for me, and tomatoes and pickled beets for the hubster) and put some UNCLE BENS 2 min WHOLEGRAIN RICE in the microwave for... 2 mins!!! Lid off the chicken mix, starting to loose its liquid now and the sesame and agave mix are starting to go sticky, pour in the rice and stir till its all covered and lovely and mixed and NOM!!!

next time i make this im going to have to make a little more because we could have eaten this twice we loved it so much!!
i basically just threw it together, knowing i wanted paprika and honey chicken, but wanting to do it a little different as i had thighs to use and not breasts, that i would have usually coated and then fried or roasted. but this ones going in the recipe book!
gluten and dairy free!

i have invented a special sandwich. it rocks

tescos finest caramalised onion relish
sainsburys taste the difference garlic mayonnaise
sainsburys be good to yourself turkey pastrami
pitta breads, toasted
chopped up dill pickles

smother one pitta in mayo, smother the other in relish, sprinkle the pickles on the mayo, make a layer of pastrami on each pitta, add lettuce and join into a sandwich and eat.


its messy but its GOOOOOOD

Center Parcs holiday!

these were in Penrith

me on and riding a bike! (theres a first for everything, and yes, it had 3 wheels, and yknow? i want one, i didnt fall off once!)

we were in a 'safe zone' for the reds!

the 'center' and lake from the pub

me after our photoshoot! (avec une starbucks iced tea...)

and the boyf with his latte

me, the boyf and Bob the Harris Hawk (not native to our country, he was a teen and very rebellious and he let me, and only me, out of the group stroke him, the owner thought it could be the fact that my hair and his body were the same colour, so he felt comfortable!)

quack

the view from where we were doing archery!

and some shots of the lake at sundown!

snapshots of august

do you like my lovely vile floral curtains that came with the house? this is my completely gorgeous lambs leather skirt and beaded top from kookai. i LOVE them!

dad has been picking these sweetpeas for mum every day when theyve been in bloom!

two very different sky shots and the same view :)

izzy and matt helping with the garden and some of the things we found...

this little biddy baby caterpillar had 'ugly bug ball' in my head from Summer Magic!

the return of... fatbag!

i got fatbag out of the attic, fatbag is actually 2 plastic crates and a bag some pillows came in... packed full of stuff! i keep all underwear, swimwear and delicates in the bad, and jeans, shirts etc all in the crates. seasonal stuff gets put in as well as the stuff thats too big or too small, so i got lots of summer stuff out for this weekend, and.... shock freaking horror, i did something i never do... i had a clearout- i threw out oh-so-many pairs of knickers ive never even worn cos theyre a stupid size, shape or material- i tried them all on... i mean, why do i want underwear that fits me so oddly i get camel toe? or knickers that are really low on the ass that i have to pull up all day...? i also gave probably 15-20 bras of variying sizes to the charity bag! speaking of charity, i have a massive bag going now! woop! tho we also have a sizable stack of books in the basement- should i sell them? does anyone want any of them that reads this?


another thing, i went to The Gap just after xmas and bought loads of sale knickers- they have now become me faves and i cant stop wearing them, today i went back to a pair i used to wear pre-gap and i spent the day fiddling with them cos they dont feel comfy anymore... i have LOADS of Floozie knickers- i cant just bin them!

love

i love my amazing friends, new and old, i love shopping, i love my fiance, and the ways he looks after me, i love my house more i do things to it, and i love how it is currently clean! i love my parents and my dogs, i miss my girls! i love sunshine, taking photos and yankee candles, and, oh so many things, im happy and warm today :)

yay

for starters, my friend from dayoldnews has given me some wonderful wedding starting support/advice and im today off to buy some big card for moodboards so i can pin/stick all my loves to it, as i need to come up with some sort of theme...

yesterday i got a rocket up my ass following mondays cleaning and tidying, and when i got up (stupidly early if you ask me) at half eight (im on holiday grr) and started sorting the attic, which i have to say is now clear! theres Sylvainia in one corner, my art supplies in another, boardgames in a third and a few boxes of toys in a forth, but its clear! yay! first time since we've moved in, and i did all in the sliding storage cupboard up there too, as thats where most of the detritus went!

then, i started on the little room, which has wardrobes with all my clothes in, and up til now, stored all my shoes, boots and books and bags and all other kinds of flotsum and jetsam thats somehow worked its way in... anyway, i started on it, then lisa came over and helped me finish it (infact, she moved most of the stuff before i realised) so now all my books and, ahem, crap are in the room im still sleeping in due to the boyfs shoulder and his sudden horrific snoring... and all my shoes?? theyre lining the stairs to the attic, i have loads, im going to get rid of some... as i have (including sandals/boots etc) over 40 pairs. all my sandals are in drawers in my wardrobe, my boots are sat infront of them... just so many! and 85% i cant wear in this weather, which sucks... too cold damnit!

after that we went to my dentist, lisa signed up and i had my teeth cleaned, then talking to my hygenist, she said she'd just add us on herself this aft and jump the queue for us! whoop! so lisa and the boyf will soon have ace dentists!

then... lisa and i headed off shopping to THE TRAFFORD CENTRE, which rocks, and we did a 'bit' of shopping, i ate sushi first, then i bought a keyring, 4 amazing keepsake photo boxes, theyre like, a thick photoframe that you can pin things inside, like scraps of material, or like, a lock of hair, or a starfish or something, yknow, for holidays or babies or whatever, im well excited, and i got money off! then lisa bought a Denon stereo- well chuffed with that (i love my Denon stereo), she amusingly made the guy play Roots Radicals off my iPod really loud to try out a soundsystem! haha, he looked so uncomfortable!

i bought american magazines, a book on Canada (to go with my USA and New Zealand guides so we can choose a bloody honeymoon!) i bought 2 sweaters in French Connection (cos i dont have enough 'nice' clothes) and many many pairs of socks (6 in The Gap and i think 12 in Topshop) and i also got another 'nice' top in topshop and... in Selfridges at the Cath Kitson consession i got a new hangbag, which is green and spotty and marvelous and some earrings with butterflys on and some tote bags (as if i dont actually have enough), then i came home and had lemon marmalade on bread which is my fave snack atm... mmm

oooh, i didnt tell you did i? there was also candy floss, a bag of- from the popcorn vendor outside french connection... lisa and i fair devoured that... mmm

i love it

when americans and canadians say 'today i ran some errands', 'i'll see you in an hour, im just off to run some errands', 'don't you have some errands to run?'


love it love it love it

its in the books, my friends say it. i love it.

im gonna try work it into my brain so i say it.

tho i'll sound like an idiot to all the other english people.

but i don't care :D