Easy Rissotto

This is one of the cheapest and easy meals I make

I chop up lots of fresh veggies (whatever is in the fridge or garden)

Throw it into the wok with a tiny drop of oil on a high heat.

Stir fry for a few minutes about 5

Toss in a couple of handfuls of Aborio rice

stir fry for a few more minutes until well mixed 

Pour in a few spoonsful of chicken stock and stir until absorbed

Pour in about 2 more cupfuls of stock and stir

Simmer until hot

Put the lid on and turn heat right down low and leave

Check after about 10 mins and stir

until the liquid has almost gone but still quite moist

Check the grains of rice to make sure they are soft then toss in a knob of butter

and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste

Serve with some shaved pecorino cheese

Enjoy

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xx jeanetteann

Bargain find for my new collection

I went searching for something nice today at my favourite Vinnies shop
I had nothing in particular in my mind,but had seen lots of Pyrex dishes around blogland that caught my eye,especially the pretty patterned ones. 
I loved the Amish ones I'd seen and had a look on Ebay. There were some lovely ones at such good prices,but the postage to Australia is far too high.  Sooooo, low and behold look what I found for $4.  
It's not the lovely Amish pattern,but for this price,I couldn't pass it up. I have one nice pyrex cornish blue casserole which I picked up in an auction lot for peanuts,so now I think you could say I have me the start of another obsession,I mean collection.



     I'm not sure what the pattern is, but I'm sure someone will tell me.
Shelia from Note Songs will certainly know,as she is an avid collector of Pyrex                                                      

This is the one I already had from the auction lot

I love the fact it's blue which is my favourite colour for my dishes

I am not going to restrict myself to one colour though,as I think all Pyrex is pretty 

I can't wait to check out some more places to really get this collection going

I am so in love with it. I know,I'm always in love with new collections but it keeps me

busy looking

Join me this week at some of my favourite linky parties

The links are on my side bar.

Have a nice day

xx jeanetteann

Roses and petals

We paid a visit to our son and his family at the weekend

Only the two older children were home

Kelly made us a cup of tea

and her older brother Keelan picked us a huge pumpkin

from his veggie patch and on the way out asked if I would like

a bunch of roses from their front garden

They are renting the house while their new one is being built

It was once owned by an Italian family.

Well you know how the older generation of  Italian families love their gardening

As well as vegetables they usually grow roses out front,

You would have to see the roses in this garden to believe it

There are about 2 dozen bushes,all different colours.

The 90 yr old man next door has the same. He is Italian too.

They sure know how to garden.

I wish I had my camera with me, but didn't 

This is the bunch I picked. The scent fills the house

As they started to wilt the petals were dropping. Well I couldn't 

throw them away,the scent was intoxicating.

I filled lots of bowls around the house to enjoy them longer.

I refreshed some dried ones I already had from my garden

These are the ones from our garden

I tend to go for the paler pinks and golds

but I'm enjoying the brighter colours too that I brought home

I wish you could smell them from where you are

I'll be enjoying them for many more days, I think

Have a happy week 

and join me at the linky parties.

The links are on my side bar.

xx jeanetteann 

Cooking economically

It isn't that difficult to make a little go a long way

I love to test myself when cooking to see how much

I can make with little

I roasted a chicken the other day 

and we had a meal for 2 with the legs and wings

We then had a sandwich for lunch the next day

with some chicken breast and salad

Today,I took all the left over meat off the bones and chopped it

Placed it into a bowl with 2 diced carrots,1 chopped onion

1 small cooked (in the skin then peeled) sweet potato,

corn stripped off 1 cooked cob and mixed together

I made a short pastry with 2 cups plain flour,125grms margarine pinch salt,1 egg

and a little iced water (I doubled this recipe to make what you see in the photo's)

I made all these pasties with the ingredients and egg washed them

With the little amount of filling (about 3/4 cup) 

 I had left over after making the pasties,I mixed in 

the left over egg wash and 2 more beaten eggs with a dollop of yogurt

Poured it into a small fry pan and made an omelette for lunch

This  was enough for 2 of us on buttered roll

Pasties hot out of the oven. I made large ones to have with salad as a meal

and small ones to put in the freezer for buffet lunches when the family come over 

With all the bones,skin and bits off the chicken left

I simmered with 2 bay leaves,1 onion with the skin on quartered

and salt and pepper and just covered with water

I strained it after about 1 hour,discarded the bones etc

Placed the stock into the fridge.

When the fat sets on the top, I take this off and keep the rest

to start my next pot of soup.

I feel good about my efforts today

What are you making  with little today. I love to get others ideas 

Join me at my usual linky parties I'm visiting today

The links are on my side bar.

Have a nice day 

xx jeanetteann

For the love of lace

Who wouldn't love this beautiful 100yrs old gown

It was given to me by someone who knows how much

I love Christening Gowns and the history behind each one 

This one was hand stitched from lots of oddments of lace with 

an underskirt of very fine cotton

I made the bonnet to match as closely as I could

My Kader doll looks so nice dressed for her Christening

Look at this old cotton lace,layers of it and even though each

piece doesn't match,somehow that's what gives it it's charm

Just look at those hand stitched pin tucks,lots of them

Even on the sleeve.

Join me on a tour of a few lovely linky parties

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xx jeanetteann

Love my new bunny

Look at the eyes on my new bunny and she is glittered all over

I found her this week at Neds and just had to bring her home

to be the mother of my other babies.

The little birdies just had to join in too to show off their oversize

eggs 

All of the other bunnies came hopping out of the cupboard

when they saw all the excitement.

They couldn't believe the fuss over the new arrival

Mrs Bunnykins was so bright eyed and bushy tailed 

to see such

curiosity

She gathered her new brood around her and became such an 

attentive mother

I could just kiss her pretty face

she is so sweet and when the light shines on her fur she 

glistens

I collected these sea urchin shells when on holiday at 

Cabowie on the Peninsula a few years ago

 I thought they looked all Eastery too. 

Have you started decorating for Easter yet?

Join me on my visit to the linky parties 

Links on my side bar 

xx Jeanetteann