Daffodils and Ginger

The daffodils are opening their cheerful glowing flowers. Even on a cloudy day they look as though the sun is on them. I brought in a few for a vase so I could feast my eyes on them indoors as well as out.

These are tiny ones, probably Tete-a-tete, although they have only single flowers now instead of twins. I’ve had them in pots for a few years and they always flower.

The garden is waiting for its next flush of colour. The hyacinths are pushing up but not quite there. There are two clumps of Corydalis under the fruit trees which look pretty now and will look even better when the Muscari open their lovely, tiny blue flowers. The perennial wallflower, Erysimum, has one lovely mauve flower and lots of promising buds.

We’ve found holes in some of the borders. I’m hoping it’s not a badger. We had one a few years ago. At first I was thrilled to see it. I sat and watched each night as it turned up and approached the house, completely undaunted by the outside light I’d switched on. The thrill soon wore off as it ripped the garden apart! It dug deep holes in its search for worms and destroyed entire plants.

After a few weeks it stopped, much to my relief, but I think the badger might have been killed on the road. We saw a dead badger nearby and we never had a visit afterwards so we assumed it was the one that had been visiting our garden.

I’m always pleased that I planted some shrubs in the garden. Some are evergreen and give a lovely show at any time of the year. Others have lovely leaves and spring blossom. More pictures of those when the time comes. Some have beautiful berries.

I’ve been sewing together my wreath of knitted leaves. Taking me longer than I expected but I’m getting there. I found I needed three more leaves so I knitted those last night.

I bought a metal ring, then stitched a cover of bias binding over it. I stuffed the bias binding to make a base for attaching the leaves. Not easy! I pushed the stuffing in with the blunt points of my scissors and a knitting needle. Then I marked four points with thread to keep my bearings when stitching. Next I began to stitch on the leaves.

Here are some photos of progress so far.

I bought a set of little reels of thread in assorted colours. So glad I did because I have all the shades I need to invisibly stitch the leaves. I don’t like messy stitching.

After hours of stitching I needed to think about cooking. I had some cooked chicken thighs to use up so I did one of our favourite one-pan meals.

Chicken with Ginger and Rice

Cooked Chicken 
Chicken stock cube
Garlic, crushed
Carrots
Frozen Green Beans
Frozen Rice
Stem Ginger
Soured Cream
Prepare and slice carrots. Crush garlic. Cut
chicken into pieces. Chop ginger.
Put a small amount of water into a lidded frying pan.
Add stock cube. (I used half for two of us but you 
might need more). Add the crushed garlic.
Bring to boil, stir and add sliced carrots,
frozen beans,frozen rice, chicken and ginger.
Bring to boil, then turn down heat and cook
with the lid on for 15 minutes or until vegs
are tender. You need only a small amount
of water but enough not to burn.
Remove from heat and stir in a couple of
spoonfuls of soured cream. Then serve.

I can't be precise about amounts because it
depends on how many you're cooking for. It's
not critical because it works well however you 
put it together.
Quick, easy and delicious.
I use microwave rice but I just tip the frozen
rice into the pan. It's brilliant rice and
makes this type of dish so easy to do. 

I find one-pan meals are not only easy to do, save a lot of washing up and are economical on fuel but they are much tastier because the flavours are enhanced by the cooking process. Plus I’m sure they retain more vitamins because the cooking water is limited and not poured away down the sink.

I’m hoping for some sunny days in the garden again soon but meanwhile I have another project to do. When I covered the dining chairs I liked the fabric so much that I ordered more to cover an armchair which sits in the same room. It has loose cushions so it’s a fairly easy job. I’ve covered these cushions many times over the years. So that will keep me occupied until the sun tempts me out.

Please feel free to comment. I love to hear from you. Keep crafting, gardening and cooking and stay safe and well. With you again in a few days.