Weekend walks every day during lock down

Each daily walk is different for my two terriers Boo and Eric. Some times I walk them, at others, my husband does.

If it's a normal working day for me, it can be a shorter walk, especially if it's raining or icy. It can be a very fast romp down the lane and through the village if I'm running late for work, and there's definitely not time for dawdling. Oh no.

Weekend walks are completely different of course. There's time  for them to stop and sniff and track.  For me there's time stop and stare...at the horizon, at the fields, at the sheep sheltering under the trees, to stop and talk to friends, both human and canine.

Now though, during lock down, every walk is like a weekend walk. When I would normally have been driving to work, a 45 minute trip each way,  now I can be taking my time, and my cue from Boo and Eric.

Sometimes they like to turn left out of our gate, sometimes right. I don't mind as there are beautiful views and things to delight any which way we all choose.

On a hot day, it's important to have some shade....the cool air along the track by the church is pleasing...

Further on, the small lane lane invites us upwards

to what my youngest used to call "the top of the world"

Not quite, but it is a wonderful view, which never fails to please me. There's something different to see here every day...it may be a buzzard, different animals in different fields, or new crops in the fields.

Sometimes  my wellies squelch through the mud, but this weekend the land is dry, the sort of  bone dryness which cracks the earth. I turn my face to the sun, inhale the fresh warm air and listen to birdsong.

Sometimes we press on, this time not....but there's still plenty of room for the dogs to scamper off , to run, to chase a stick or two or to investigate the hedgerow.

As we come down from the hill I see my friend's field, with its newly laid hedging,which frames a timeless scene....

In a few minutes I'm back in the village, where there's a traffic jam, or what passes for one, in our village.

Farmer Phil and Jane are walking her sheep to another field....and there's also time to stop for a chat.

Our world may have changed forever this year, but this conservation village that I love, doesn't change all that much. Farmers still walk their animals through the village, there's community, greenery, space to be and plenty of it. and now during lock down, I have so much more time to appreciate it.

As for Eric and Boo, they don't know what's happening in the world, all they know is that I'm working from home, am spending far more time with them, and there's time for weekend walks every day......

Foodie Friday - cooking a courgette kuku

For an easy lunch or perhaps a light meal in the early evening, sometimes my thoughts turn to a tortilla or even better, a frittata. I've always liked Nigel Slater's broad bean frittata recipe, but the other night, I fancied something different. I still wanted eggs though, and luckily there's no shortage of eggs in our village. Willie and Kate's hens at the end of our lane don't know it's lockdown, and haven't been put on furlough.

I sat at the kitchen table, with a glass of wine, having a leisurely look through some of my cookbooks and I found the recipe I wanted in this book., which I got last year when I began ordering a weekly box of organic vegetables ....

 I soon found a recipe for a courgette kuku. I'm all for a bit of alliteration in a title, so was intrigued and not knowing what a kuku was, I read on eagerly.

It's a Persian version of an omelette, cooked in a pan on top of the stove, with lots of herbs and flavourings. Sounded good, but  did I have all the ingredients?

I quickly scanned the fridge and my spice cupboards.Garlic yes, turmeric, yes, nutmeg, ground ginger, ground coriander and cumin all present and accounted for. I knew there were plenty of chives and mint (the herb that just gives giving)  in the garden  and a huge jug of flat-leaved parsley . I didn't have any dill but pressed on regardless...

I set to work.....

And hey presto, within minutes, there was a lovely dish served with a side salad, yoghurt and some turkish bread to mop of up the tangy lemon and mustard salad dressing.

And that's it...the recipe advises to wait at least five minutes  before serving ...and yes, fritattas and kukus are usually best served when they are slightly cooler.

 I was very hungry though, so ignored the advice , slapped the kuku on our plates and started eating! Delicious......

 This kuku was full of flavour yet not over spicy. My husband and I both loved it, and I will definitely make this easy recipe again and again, adding other vegetables possibly. Who knew I would love a kuku?

How to cook a kuku

You can find the recipe here on the Riverford website

https://www.riverford.co.uk/recipes/courgette-kuku

Meanwhile, there's lots of other recipes, perfect for this time of year, in the  Riverford Organic Farmers Spring and Summer Cooking with a veg box, written by Guy Watson with Kirsty Hale , Anna Colquhoun, Rob Andrew and other Riverford cooks. 

One of my favourite recipes from this book is fish, fennel and tomatoes in a bag which I cooked last week, and a  rosemary and chard gratin. Another few weeks and the silver chard  growing in my garden will be just perfect for that recipe again -  meanwhile I reckon it won't be long until I cook another courgette kuku......

Remembering VE Day

Yesterday was a special day here in the UK. There were celebrations as we remembered the events which took place seventy five years ago to mark the end of World War II in Europe.

Here in our teeny, tiny village there was no formal occasion in these COVID 19 times, but the bunting came out, as for all special events. We put up bunting on our very old garage which is too small to hold one of today's cars ..

and on our front door too.

A bit of bunting though was only a small gesture.  I can only imagine the joy, the relief , the giddy excitement of those celebrating the end of war after nearly six years of  families being torn apart , rationing, hardship and above all, loss on such a huge scale.

But I can't forget the stories of some living locally in 1945. They will forever be etched in my mind.

Five years ago, I was asked to make a series of stories commemorating VE Day for BBC Radio, stories of people's reminisces the end of the war. Yes, there were stories of street parties from those who were children at the time, but as I found out, some of the  adults had very mixed reactions to VE Day and how it affected their future.

People like Betty and Hans. A couple who were on different continents on VE Day, whose families had fought in opposing armies, and Hans had even been one of Hitler's bodyguards. Hans is now dead, but when I met them they were in their late eighties, a lovely couple,who were willing to take part in a recorded radio interview, but didnt' want  their photograph taken. Luckily I persuaded them and they posed outside by their shed - I love this photo...

 Terry Harrison and I both had tears in our eyes  as he  told me the story of his parents. They lived in a village in Leicestershire, and had five children. As the end of the war approached though, his mother was terrified of her husband coming home he didn't know there were two extra children in the family house. They were twins, and it was plain to see that he couldn't have been the father.

Ken Harrison was a widower when we met. He had been fighting in Germany but had been on leave as the war ended.Instead of being able to celebrate VE Day, he was on a train back to Germany ...but  managed to celebrate in a very different location.
















And I can't forget dear Ruth Tucker, a lovely lady in her eighties when we met. On VE Day she was a fifteen year German girl who had escaped war torn Berlin and was on the run to evade the advancing Russian forces when the end of the war came.


Below is the link to their stories, which have been saved for future generations. I would love you to hear them....

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02qt7nz