Spiced Apple and Plum Cabbage - Bakemas Day 13

Roasted Plum & Ginger Fluffy Oatmeal/Porridge - Bakemas Day 8

It’s not quite freezing here but warm breakfasts are always nice this time of year especially if you wake up to a cold house. I’m still battling that cold so a healthy warm breakfast is exactly what I need.
This porridge is made by toasting the oats and boiling the water and letting the oats absorb the liquids so that it’s nice and fluffy and not starchy and slimy like most porridges. I love making porridge like this, it gives the oats a slightly nutty flavour and having soft juicy sweet roasted plums on top is a nice way to have your fruit in the morning and makes you feel all cosy inside, even if there is a little sugar on them.
I finally found time last night after dinner to cosy up with pj’s on and watch a Christmas film, I suppose that's the only slight sliver lining to being ill but I still have the same amount of things to get done and less time to do them in.

Toasted Wensleydale, Grilled Vegetable & Plum and Apple Chutney Sandwich

Okay, I couldn't wait any longer, I had to open one of these bad boys, it's not quite as enjoyable as opening an airtight jar with the satisfying pop, although the chutney is better. Three weeks I think it's been, I just had to and we already managed finished a jar, I think that took two days; that's a new record. The chutney tasted perfectly fine to me, I guess it just goes to show you don't have to wait a month although if you're sensitive to vinegar I guess it's better to be safe and wait it out, I'm a little bias and actually quite like vinegary chutney, but it wasn't noticeable at all.

I met a friend in the morning for coffee and after walking the 3 miles home I sat in the kitchen kind of wanting a nap, I've been so tired recently, and decided to make this sandwich, I usually just stick to wensleydale and chutney but figured I'd crank up the nutrition a little, even thought it's a toasted sandwich I kept the cheese solid, which is completely preference I much prefer my wensleydale fresh from the fridge as I think the texture goes better with the chutney.

I ended up making these sandwiches again the next day with a friend, we watched a weird Kristen Wiig film with chutney dripping out our sandwiches.

Spicy Plum and Apple Chutney

Apple season is upon us and boy do I have a treat for you! My mum made this chutney a few years ago because we had apples coming out of our ears, sadly one of our apple trees died this summer, moment of silence please. I know that sounds odd, it was a combination of a great wind storm, it being covered in ivy, being planted next to a brick wall, although we think the brick wall was built after the tree was planted and the roots only having room to grow on one side of the wall. These apples were so addictive, I don't know what type they were and we mostly used them for cooking but apple crumble tasted 10 times better with those apples, I even ate a whole crumble in one sitting because they were so delicious.

I'm not sure where this recipe came from so I can't give credit, it probably came out of some old cook book or magazine. I used the apples off our other less appetising tree, no offense to the tree or the apples they just don't do it for me as much and sadly the plums were bought, but they were British. I did see some plum trees on the side of the road but we didn't have time to get out and pick them. When my mum made this I'm not sure if she doubled or tripled the recipe but it felt like we had jars of chutney everywhere, not that I'm complaining. It's good for BBQ's especially with sausages but one of my favourite ways to eat this is wensleydale and chutney sandwiches, I'm already mentally drooling about the idea of this sandwich and I still have to wait a few weeks till I can eat it.