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hi. the sun was out this morning and so was my motivation to get a few things done around the place. one chair out of four aint bad, considering it has been raining since my four day weekend started on friday. as soon as they are all finished i’ll post a picture. we are a divided household about the look, but i think it will work once all four are painted. i am hoping it will bring more lightness to our living space, something i seem to crave even more during the cooler months.

:: in between painting i popped open a few cans of condensed milk in order to make some dulce de leche. that delicious concoction good on ice cream, in brownies, on toast or eaten on its own. the plan is to use them in some biscuits next weekend. so in the oven, in a pie dish to avoid exploding pans and sticky mess on the kitchen or worse; on my face! it worked, in a 200 C oven, and soon i added some roasted almonds for texture.

:: i bottled them up; one jar to be used next weekend for baked goods and another for a hostess gift.

:: a day at home, painting, reading and cleaning up after it all means a quick lunch. i was at a loose end with not much in the fridge or the pantry. it has been raining all weekend, and the prospect of ducking outside to the shops just wasn’t appealing. my solution to lunch was a jar of pickled baby beets. just perfect with iceberg lettuce and cheddar cheese. yum!

:: the same could be said for dinner. luckily i had a pot of chickpeas soaking from breakfast in anticipation for dinner. channa masala and a simple curd curry. no, it was pelting down and we needed the warmth in a bowl. the rose bakery cookbook was inspiration i needed. a spicy garbanzo bean soup with lemon. such delicious flavours, and full of the protein and nourishment.