After a morning and afternoon of televisual homicides I made a nice Farmhouse loaf.


And, as I type, mother is watching Joan Crawford in a mid 1950's film called 'Autumn Leaves' where Crawford's character Millicent Wetherby (lonely middle aged woman) falls for Cliff Robertson's character, Burt Hansen ,a brooding handsome youngman with severe emotional problems
I know all this because I've seen the blasted film ten times, anyway Milly falls in love of course only to realize that Burt's a deranged maniac.
Blah blah blah, and her being decent and in love does the only thing possible...gets him sectioned.
I won't blow the ending for you incase you watch it one day. I'm plagued by it on account of having the soppy film on VHS and a mother who just lurves  Joanie.
Oh God.

I have a lovely piece of gammon braising in veg stock, it's sitting on a wet bed of swede, celery, leek and apple highly seasoned with  fresh ground black pepper and six grains of sea salt. I felt spiritual when I did the veg and sliced away the fat from the bacon. I don't know what happened suffice to say my transportation to another plane helped. And I need all the help I can get.

For pudding an Apricot trifle. Trifle sponges split and sandwiched with passion fruit curd (shop bought). Covered generously with canned apricots, dampened with the juice, then lost in an ocean of sweet custard then carefully crowned with Nestles cream. At the last minute I'll decorate with toasted almonds.
 Mother has already denounced the trifle as a pudding too far for a Diabetic and won't eat any of it...


I watched Midsomer Murders. A man in the village obsessed by a Russian ballerina murders other men on account of these men also loving the dancer. She was thin and bendy but rather lacking in warmth I thought.
I will be watching another over costumed over perfect mystery this tea time, soon infact...Poirot this time, It's the one where someone gets killed at a bridge party. 
I have NOT informed mother of the other Poirot on ITV tonight...  I don't think  Mr Horsehound and I could stand it. We're not being cruel we're just fighting for our lives.

I decanted a tin of Drinking Chocolate into a pretty glass jar... I wonder if I could tempt Mother with a cup..............................