Slow Sunday

A quiet Sunday morning. Husband was off helping with errands for his Nan and Uncle, so I set the day to spring cleaning, and bread making.

Today is May Day. And this weekend has long been celebrated as a highlight of Spring. In ‘celtic’/pagan calendars this is Beltane, a time of celebration of the vibrant new growth, the fertility of the earth, and the promise of the summer that is growing all around in nature. Celebratory fires were lit, and used to relight the hearths of country homes to bring the blessings of the season into the heart of each household. Perhaps this is why I had a burning desire (pun intended!) to light the log burner for perhaps the last time this spring and say a few words of intention as the flames took. It also proved (again pun intended haha!) handy for creating a warm spot to activate my yeast and rise my dough (and keep the tea pot hot of course!)

The front window of our little cottage flat sat wide open, letting in all the sounds of a spring Sunday; bird song and the rookery, playing children, the pitterpatter of a belated April shower. it ahs been dry for weeks, and the soft rain was most welcome, to gardeners and nature alike.

Whilst the dough had its couple of hours rest, I got on with some much needed housework, starting with the front doorstep/porch, which needed a good clean and tidy: as I did so, sweeping away the old season and any lingering negativity, and ushering in a bright and blessed new turn of the year.

The bread dough was made using that National Loaf recipe, as a second attempt, this time with the right amount of yeast. (Our Daily Bread [The National Loaf, and the value of stale bread in the rationed kitchen]). We have just tried a slice, to mop up the gravy from dinner, and although my husband quite liked it, I found it very salty. the recipe calls for 1 &1/2 tablespoons of salt, in theory to make the bread last longer, but it definitely has and effect on the flavour. Texture wise, the bread is heavy, but quite soft in the middle; it will be interesting to see how long it keeps before going stale.

We have stuck to our meal plan so far this week, with a breakfast today of black pudding, 1 streaky rasher, and mushrooms. Lunch was more snacky: I had a wedge of the apple scone made on Friday (it is keeping well in an airtight cake tin). We were fortunate this week, in that the butcher was cutting and measuring on the generous side, and we were able to stretch our ration to a small piece of roasting beef. I accompanied this with roasted veg, including potatoes, celeriac, and carrots, plus some raw watercress as the peppery flavour pairs well with beef. I really fancied a thick slab of some kind of stodgy pudding afterwards such as a steamed jam sponge (even though I went back for seconds of veg!), but made do with some dark chocolate gingers from my months sweet ration, and a mug of Ovaltine (with a tsp of cocoa powder) mid-evening. Enough leftovers from the roast were saved to make tomorrows dinner.

In return for his help today, my husbands Nan gave him some cooked roast lamb to bring home, so we will use this in lunch boxes tomorrow with bread and salad.