Books and Food

Yesterday, Friday, I had a welcome knock on the door, it was my post woman with a parcel. Two books of many that I have been desperate to get copies of had arrived. Anyone that knows the New Naturalist series will know just how expensive these books have become. These are second hand copies, and far from being first editions, as the first editions can change hands at over a thousand pounds a time. Even so these two still cost more than a weeks rent. I will not tell you whose grandmother I sold to get these. But what I find frustrating is that many of the collectors of these books never read them, nor are the illustrated with exceptional images, well they are from a scientific perspective and not as collectors items. This means that for anyone wanting to study the aspects of natural history covered in each volume it becomes extremely expensive. I would not mind that they have become collectable if the knowledge contained within was being used by the collectors but it is not, and it makes it much more difficult for us folks who want to learn and put that knowledge to practical use.

Okay that rant over, but it really is silly what is happening. Another aspect of life that has had me warm under the collar has been the supermarket. How can I afford food after spending the rent on books? I don't know but I will think of something! But being serious, I knew there was another major supermarket in Consett but I did not know where. Around the town centre there are the budget stores that sell the highly processed rubbish that would fit into any chemistry lab, but I needed to find somewhere where I could get real food.

There were two factors that drove me on. The first was not being able to get Passata in the two village shops. Now to me sieved tomatoes is a basic, but I was even told in one shop that Passata is a posh ingredient. The other occurrence was that I had bought a tub of Fair Trade organic chocolate Ice Cream, I can see you all drooling at that but there's more. It was the supermarkets own brand and from their finest range, and was crap. It reminded me of the worst of the cheap stuff that my mother used to buy, and put me off eating ice cream for years. At the same supermarket I bought some locally produced quality Ice cream and that was brilliant, so I have no hesitation in recommending Bill and Geoff Lanchester Dairy Ice Cream. Psst you can pay me now.

Anyway, I went in search of this other supermarket. The main consideration for me has to be can I carry the shopping from the store to the bus? As Consett was a Steel town the new retail development went on the sites where the industrial activity was, but as there was no longer a need for buses to take the workers to these locations, there are not the buses any more. I found the store and it is not to far to carry the shopping ether.

Now no one can really get excited about supermarket shopping, but I was genuinely pleased by the selection and prices. Now I know that I have raged about the supermarkets low pricing policy, but equally I have railed about the over charging too, and like everyone else I have to live on a budget too. However, what pleased me was items like the organic muesli being only pennies dearer than the non organic. Or that the fresh herbs were only fifty pence per pack and not sixty four of the one I normally use. The biggest saving was the Passata, thirty two pence where I had been paying sixty five pence.

Further I was pleased to see that many of the items were “Fair Trade”. While I have not yet tried them I got some Fair Trade Coffee and some Organic Fair Trade Tea, and if they are decent I will return.

The one product that kept me going to the original supermarket was the cat food as my cat preferred that over all the posh brands. So it was with trepidation that I tried her on the other supermarkets brand. Well a clean bowl latter and she is demanding to be fed again, this looks like a success. Even with having to pay the fares, rather than get the free bus, I still saved on what I would have paid. With what looks like a wider choice too, the real deciding factor will be quality. Perhaps I should have got some Chocolate Ice Cream? The first person to say yes wins a prize of some rubbish ice cream. I never said that I was generous!

Keeping on the topic of food, today was the day that the Farmers Market was happening at Gibside this month. I had intended to get there early, but the best laid plans of mice... Thanks Roberts Burns, all those years latter you are right. As I had reasons to go out checking on the Badgers, so I did not return till well after four in the morning. So I ended up falling asleep, the lazy mouse that I am.

But it amazing what coffee can do, and I went off to the farmers market. I had two primary objectives, as I wanted some sausages from the local rare breed farmer that I know and also helps with some of the conservation work in the local woods. I like to buy her sausages not because of the work she does in the wood, but because they are a very good product. The ones I bought last time were from Berkshire Pigs these were from Welsh Pigs, and tasty they are too.

The other item that I was hoping to buy was some game. I wanted to get either some Grey Squirrel or Wood Pigeon. I realise that this will upset some people, but both are pest species and I personally follow the Native American philosophy where you respect the life you consume. Further, I have had that view long before I learnt about first nations cultures. Therefore I hope that talking about this does not generate more “hate mail”. I fully respect people who chose not to eat meat, I made that choice myself for twenty five years, but as situations changed, I felt that for me, the best way of supporting farmers and game keepers that were respecting the environment was to buy the products that support their livelihood. So I bought some pigeons. I have eaten them before, but never cooked them. Well I have now, and I enjoyed it too. The carcase is also allowing me to make some stock too.

I also got some Gooseberries, I had already got some from my favourite Green Grocers in Consett yesterday, but I can cook and freeze something with them. My mind is already buzzing with ideas. Also I got some neck of lamb from the same farm that I bought lamb from last month. That was excellent and I knew that for one of my planned videos I needed a neck for that. At the very least I can put it in the freezer until I am ready to cook that.

I know that people think that I have been teasing folks regarding the cooking videos, I promise that I am not, it is just that getting them right is important to me. While I have limited equipment and resources, I still want to ensure that I make them the best I can. And this takes time. So please bare with me I will bore you with them soon. Also it has to be said that I have seen the rubbish I turn out when I work to quickly, perhaps you folks are now hoping I will read my Blog Posts, sorry I have not got time for that. In fact on that topic, I read a friends blog, she is an animator, a real one, and in a posting today on film making I realise that I am in fact working quite quickly.

After getting the ferry back home, yes it was pouring with rain, again! I cooked my very late lunch
and started filming the stuff I needed for more of the cooking films and the bits I am missing to complete some of them. Not easy when you have a cat that is demanding attention. As I also wanted to show how to make your own stock, I set a pan on to simmer. While I worked on the ruff cut of the next video, I know that the last one looked like I had posted the ruff cut, but it was finished, honest. I noticed something that I have never seen described in the natural history literature. My resident Blackbird often comes and sings, and as the rain had eased there he was singing. But what I have started to realise is he is calling his mate when there is food in my yard.

The sparrows that are the dominant visitor can be quite messy and drop a lot of seed and Meal worms, and as a ground feeder the Blackbirds take advantage of this. But the male will sing to call the female to the food when its in abundance. He only sings in the afternoon or late afternoon when the food is there. Now I have never read of birds singing to call their mate to a good food source, so am I seeing something previously unrecognised?

Also as I was simmering the stock pot I opened the kitchen window to stop the house getting all steamed up, and I heard a Cuckoo calling. I am sorry but bad weather or not, days don't get much better than this.