Castle Howard

We had been meaning to go to Castle Howard the same way we went to Harewood, ie going in "for free" when they host Great British Food Fair. We had not managed to do that in the last 3 years. So we finally pay the fare to go in. I pushed it back twice due to the weather. So at the start of the way, cold and dry was a good start.

It took us 2 hours to do 80% of the offerings, I am not convinced it was "1000 acres".

The suspension bridge to Skelf Island is fun. 

 

The Sun came out in the afternoon, which was a bonus.

Tancred Ham Hock

I got a ham hock from Tancred.  It definitely wasn't smoked, and it looked barely cured.

It turned out to be okay, less pale than the one I got from Marr Grange.  It tastes very porky.  It costs twice as much as the one from Marr Grange, let's hope the money go into making happier pigs. 

Gochujang Ribs

Sarah and I were talking about how to use down the gochujang and I thought marinating chicken.  When I saw these ribs in Tancred, I thought this is perfect for the spicy marinate.

They turned out, as expected, fine.

Cache Problem

 So after reloading Windows, I am still experience browser freezing.  Waiting for Cache problem.  Apparently Firefox doesn't have the same Cache problem as both Edge and Chrome.  Let's hope it stays that way.

Fox and Hound New Website

So the local pub Fox and Hound has been selling groceries, and we found their collection to be good, and the baked product excellent.  We shopped there a few times, and now they got a new website and new prices.  I always think I am a small buyer, but Sarah assured me any little help. 

Toshiba Wipe

I finally had enough of the Toshiba's freezing.  I followed the instruction to wipe it.  These days we don't have boot discs, I just follow the prompt to download the image online and reload.  Let's hope it behave better.

Oakwood Farmers Market in Lockdown

Oakwood Farmers Market is still on in the lockdown 2.0.  I thought I can have a quick walk around,  but how wrong was I.

It is a reasonably sized open space,  but I spotted a queue,  a slow moving queue,  and what appears to be high-vis wearing stewards. 

Crisps in a Tub

First there was fried chicken in a bucket, now crisps also come in tubs.  I saw a tub of Tyrells in a tub, and I didn't quite believe my eyes.  I supposed the bucket is more recyclable, but you have to commit to 600g of the same stuff in a short period of time.

Fewston Reservior

After our Swinsty trip, was meant to go back to talk Fewston.  I thought Fewston would be equally easy as Swinsty, but it is a little longer, and it didn't help we had a walk earlier in the morning.  But I think we both like Fewston more, I like it for it being quieter, Sarah likes it for it being more tree cover and wild lives.

Swinsty Reservior

We had a walk at Swinsty Reservior in the Summer.  We actually was there twice, one on the bike for a recce, and the second time in the rain.  When it was sunny, it was very busy.  We chose to talk in the rain, so it would be fewer people.  It was all relatively easy.  With the temptation of MacKenzies, it was a good excuse to go all the way to Harrogate for a walk.

Oven Door Sourdough

I picked up a loaf of "sourdough" from the Oven Door.  It looked suspiciously like a white cob.  They could tell the sourdough from other, as it was proved in a basket.  The holes were suspiciously even, with a soft crust, the bread smells of a bakery from the outside and lack of commercial yeast smell.  Anyway, it is very nice.

Inaccurate Weather Forecast

I have pushed back some weekend plans 2 weeks in the row, and regretting it because the weather wasn't as bad as it was forecasted.  The forecast has been very poor lately, I must just ignore it and soldier on.

TeqBall

I was clicking around on a video sharing website and I came across a new sport called Teqball.  Apparently it was new since 2014, and I only just come across it.  I watched it for a few minutes.  I find it as boring as watching ping pong...

Lockdown Mochi

We hadn't had much Little Moons for a long while.  And in the lockdown(s), this is almost like our go-to luxury.  Since our movement is much more restrictive, I can easily recall how much of each we bought.

In the past 8 months, we bought at least 4 packets of mochi and 4 boxes of Little Moons!  

In additional to the Green Tea and Vanilla, we tried pistachio, coconut and chocolate.  By the end of this pandemic, maybe we would have worked thorough the whole range.

Spitting Image

I have heard a lot about the old Spitting Image, and I also know it was coming back.  I only just got around watching the highlights online.  Super funny, it didn't disappoint.

Transition Lenses

Ever since I learnt about this "modern technology" a decade ago, I have been wanting a pair of these.  So I took the opportunity of the voucher to get a pair of basic glasses with transition lenses.  The few times I tried it, it wasn't sunny enough to turn it.  And yesterday, under full sun, it finally turned, completely.  It does the job.

Door Lubrication

The door lock is playing again. At the last ditch attempt, before I have to splash out for a gearbox, I stripped it down and applied carbon everywhere.  It works, very well, I wish I had done it last time I adjusted it.  Let see how much longer it will last. 

Silicone Mat

I first used silicone mat when I was working at a hotel.  It came back into my radar when Martin started using it as a table mat to roll and knead.  That would save me a lot of scrubbing the counter since I have been making more bread.  I bought some for "Christmas".  Cannot wait!

Dodgy Wiring in Car

My fuel gauge needle just went to the bottom for no reason.  I was sure it was a quarter full earlier.  I worried someone tapped my tank and I had a vandalised tank to patch and wishing I have enough fuel to creep to a garage.  I drove on a little longer, and the needle creeped back up.  Steve reckoned there is a dodgy joint, causing high resistance.  Anyway, I need to keep resetting the odometer to double check my actual fuel level.

Hong Kong Pride Parade

Hong Kong Pride isn't the biggest of the Pride, but any Pride is better than no Pride.  And this year, in the name of pandemic, the government has stopped most gatherings, and Hong Kong Pride is now going "online".  Let's hope for the best.

Internet Crashing Seminar

Sarah had Skype on and I had Zoom on.  Suddenly, the router was blinking unhappily orange.  Both Skype and Zoom crashed out.  Lucky it reconnected within a minute, maybe just a Internet hiccup, unrelated to our heavy use?

Club Lloyds

I don't usually mention about banking.  Unlike Sarah's experience with Lloyds / TSB, mine has so far been positive.  Switch was straight forward, incentive was paid promptly, I am looking forward to my magazine!

Maud Foster Granary Bread II

So I tried with Maud Foster again, this time with honey and 100% Maud Foster.  But since it is 100% whole grain + granary, it is a little too heavy to lift, and I was too impatient to let it rise longer. 

The bread was okay, it was a bread, a bit heavy.  The honey does bring out the wheatiness.  Let's hope third time lucky.

Sainsbury's San Francisco Style Sourdough Taste the Difference

Nectar has been trying to encourage us to shop, and I took up the challenge to go into Sainsbury's. I saw these this sourdough and it looked nice, so I picked it up to try.

They are better than the M&S sourdough (and cheaper), that compliment probably stops there.

Libertarian Jo Stole the Show

The past 4 years of propaganda has aroused the Libertarians, and this time they voted for the true libertarian.  We must thanks Jo for taking the phony idiot's vote.  At the same time, we have these rising libertarianism.

Cat Shits

 The cat(s) is back!  I saw one pile of shit, put when I come to rake it out, there was 3 pile of shits!

Maud Foster Granary Bread

We finally get around to try to Maud Foster granary flour we picked up about a month ago.

When I slashed it, the tray spinned, so the slashes were not very pretty. But proof is in the pudding.

I made this with 50% M&S Strong white, and 50% Maud.  It is a nice bread,  but inadequately granarily.   Maybe I will do 80% Maud next time. 

Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

Ever since we tried Chicago deep dish pizza in Chicago, we had been meaning to try making it.  We were going to make it last time we got some corn meal, but we didn't.

It is not the best look.

 But it tasted great!  Cheesy, meaty, bready with the sauce cutting it thorough, good stuff.

M&S Handcrafted Sourdough

I picked up a sourdough from M&S and confident it would be acceptable, it was everything but.

For a start, when I scan to check out, the barcode showed a wrong price, they had to manually changed the price.  I would have paid extra if I didn't pay attention.

Then you wouldn't be able to tell this M&S handcrafted sourdough is a sourdough due to its non-descriptive taste, lastly, it dried up to quick in the next few days. 

Spurn Point in Aiden

Last time we attempted Spurn Point,  we were inadequately equipped,  I was exhausted from exposure so quickly that we didn't even cross the eroded section.

This time,  we were equipped,  but we had Storm Aiden to contend with.   The umbrella that worked so well in Norfolk coastal 30mph wind was no match with Aiden's 50mph winds.   One rib buckled within the first mile of walk.  By the end,  three ribs buckled.

With the added bonus,  the new visitor centre is now operational,  and it is 0.25miles nearer to the path. 

We made it to the Point!   Mission accomplished! 

Hull Pattie

I have heard about the Hull pattie,  and I had been meaning to try.  Fried mashed potato,  a chunky hash brown.   It is interesting,  it is nice to have something tastes different from the chippy.