Friday 5 December 2014

Friday Skywatch

After days of dull, murky weather it is a real pleasure when the sky clears and the light level lifts, in company with my spirits. I couldn't stay inside, I had to pull on my boots, coat and hat and walk over to the lake  to capture the setting sun for Friday Skywatch.

But it's cold out and muddy underfoot. Walks are short and there are plenty of excuses for staying inside. Yesterday I made a supply of mincemeat for Christmas. It's a fat-free recipe that uses our stored apples and home-made juice. (I won't mention the butter that's in the pastry for the mince pies!)  The recipe below makes about five jars.

Ingredients.

8oz soft dark sugar melted with
200ml apple or orange juice. When sugar is dissolved add
2lbs finely chopped apple
1 teaspoon spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
8oz raisins
8oz currants
2oz chopped glace cherries
2oz slivered or flaked almonds
grated rind and juice of one lemon.  
Bring to the boil and then simmer for about half an hour until you have a a soft mash. Put into sterilised jars while it's still hot. It will keep in a cool place for a couple of months, although if previous Christmases are anything to go by my supply will have disappeared before the family leave at the end of the holiday!
Friends were round this morning so we ate a few to check if they were up to scratch.
The days are short. Tonight the full moon was in the sky by 4 o'clock.
Good, it leaves a pleasantly long evening to read by the fire.
I've not long finished,  'At Mrs Lippincote's'. What a joy! It stayed in my head for days while I reassessed the story in the light of information given at the end of the book. The characters projected forward beyond the book and I worried for them and wished them well. I am a great admirer of Elizabeth Taylor's writing, both her novels and her short stories. Her work doesn't seem to get much attention and some may think them period pieces in which nothing much happens. True, nothing much happens, but devastatingly well!
 I've since read a much publicised and praised book, 'The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry'. What a leaden and predictable piece of writing that was by comparison and yet it has been on everyone's lips. So often a much hyped book fails to live up to it's reputation. Never mind, I've still got a few more Taylor books that I've yet to read!



15 comments:

  1. Love the reflections of the beautiful sky!

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    1. Hello Bethany, I just happened to glance out of the window and saw the sky lit up. A quick dash across the road with my camera before the colour disappeared!

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  2. purple sky...my favorite! Always love to see the nature's magic at that hour :)..happy Friday..

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    1. Hello Indah, I'm a big fan of purple - skies and clothes! This sunset was special after days of mist and gloom.

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  3. Oh your night sky is lovely. Love perusing you stack of books. How wonderful to have a nice collection to pick from on a cold evening. Have a wonderful weekend. Bonnie

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    1. I've always got a selection of books waiting to be read but I'm saving, 'In a Summer Season' for warmer weather! Hopefully there will be a new book to unwrap on Christmas Day. (I've dropped hints!)

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  4. Beautiful !
    You put your mince meat in sterilized jars. did you do a water bath with the special lids ?
    I am trying to figure out how everyone who is posting these yummy recipes keep the mincemeat safe till you eat it.

    cheers, parsnip

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    1. Forgot to write that I add a slurp of brandy to the mix! I sterilise the jars in the bottom of the Aga but don't do anything with the lids. I put a circle of greaseproof paper between the mix and the lid. Because there's no fat it doesn't keep for ages like other recipes but is fine for a couple of months. My supply will be gone before January!

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  5. Beautiful colors and a lovely reflection. Gorgeous sky captures, have a happy weekend!

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    1. Thank you, Eileen, the weekend has just ended and it has been a happy one, as I hope it was for you!

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  6. Hi Rosemary. Thank you for visiting my bird blog and your comments. And yes, there is a lot of humour in the apparently anoraky pursuit of birding as well as lots of reasons to be outdoors.

    Those first photographs of yours are extremely good in capturing the purple of the evening sky and the reflections in the water.

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    1. Anything that gets you out of doors must be good! fascinating to learn about the importing of stoats - we had/have the same problem with rabbits!

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  7. I have read quite a few that you have in your pile but none of Elizabeth Taylor - I will look them up and see if they are my cup of tea. I seem to spend most of my time photographing sunrises and sunsets at the moment, there have been some spectacular ones just lately. Yours are no exception.

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    1. I'll be interested to hear what your opinion is as I think she is just about my favourite author.

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  8. Frome looks like my kind of place!! Really fun, and I love your sky shots.

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