Good times aren't hard to find

You know the annoying credit card ad on TV which shows you someone spending a fortune to 'bond' with a family member before declaring the whole thing 'priceless', well they got one bit right. Time with people you care for is totally priceless. The crucial point the ad misses is that because time with such people is invaluable then you don't need to spend a king's ransom to enjoy a few hours with them. Some aspects of life are not for buying. I will now climb down from my soap box in a ladylike way.

It came to mind because we've just had a lovely weekend spent with friends and family and while it didn't come for free we certainly didn't need to crack into the credit cards to make it happen. All it cost really was a bit of organisation and commitment. First we had family round for dinner; there's only one set close enough to 'pop round' for dinner. You can't really call a 300 mile or 800 mile round trip 'popping' can you? But with work, kids and DIY those of us down south find it hard to pop anywhere in synch despite living 10 miles away from each other. So dinner was an event. We've had a few of these events this year. It's the plan; socialise at home, cook lavish 4/5 course dinners and go the whole hog with menu's and place names. I keep a menu from each and they'll be going into my scrap book (the year we ate - I'll call this section in the ongoing saga of life.) Maybe I'm hoping that one day I'll be a famous author and these scrapbooks will be lovingly held in a museum. More likely I'll be scrutinizing them in the old people's home wondering what it's all about; but hey I prefer option one.

Despite spending a day and a half cooking  like a loon it was worth the effort; we valiantly stayed up till midnight before confessing en-mass to being shattered and good for nothing; certainly not Pictionary which had been the plan post dinner. We even abandoned the rum - imagine! Another perk of the lavish dinner party is left overs. I say lavish but it is more about the scrumptiousness of the food than expensive ingredients; so tonight we're having steak chili in tortillas and chocolate mole tart for pud; not fancy but tasty. I love leftovers.

Chocolate, spices and sweet temptation on a plate...

There were no leftovers from our catch up with friends the day after though; the downside of not being the cook. Many moons ago we lived in London and were lucky enough to find the most amazing group of locals who we gelled with; for many years we socialised with each other several times a week. This was BC of course when nipping to the pub didn't involve UN levels of negotiation. And Gipsy Hill is an area awash with good pubs and restaurants for DINKIES to wallow in; it would have been rude not to. These days few of us remain DINKIES but we do remain friends. For the first time our new child-focused life collided with our old footloose and fancy free life as we took the small ones along for the reunion. So weird to hold my small boy's hand while wandering past pubs I'd staggered out of almost a decade before. But our old favourite restaurant Lorenzo's (http://www.lorenzo.uk.com/)did not let us down; all the children were catered for and all the adults ordered wine and old faves from the menu. Lunch lasted three hours but it felt like minutes and when the bill came we all smiled. Yup, Lorenzo's is still great value for money and our friends are still great friends. In some cases thousands of miles usually separate us but you wouldn't have guessed from the banter round the table.

The wonderful Lorenzo's for tasty Italian food that won't break the bank

With so much going on in the world that is sad, grim or plain horrible at the moment I wanted to offer up a post that celebrated the simple pleasures of spending time with good people. It need not cost the earth but it is most certainly priceless. 

Finger licking good

No, no, no, we're not going to be talking about the delights of fried chicken in a secret recipe coating (hormonally tempting though it can sometimes be) that if they are to be believed is the sole creation of a nice old Southern gentleman. Really? A colonel you say? Well I never. We're talking chicken plain and simple. This is one bird that deserves a place in every kitchen. Let's list the good points:

• Healthy (well it is when grilled or boiled but even fried or roasted it's better than other meats)
• Versatile (you can cook it and eat it in so many ways it's like this bird wants to be eaten I swear - it has wings and yet it doesn't fly much? Hmmm)
• Economical (there ain't much waste with these birds, right down to the bones)
• Darn tasty (most especially when fried but let's not dwell on that point as we're still attempting 'the healthy eating regime')

As a family food staple you can't go far wrong with our feathered clucking friend. Unless you don't go in for the flesh of animals of course and then you'd be so far wrong that you may as well enjoy the trespass into the dark side. A good bit of chicken, like a top slice of bacon, has been known to topple more than a few veggies in its time; all hail the conquering hero. It is a taste temptation.

Moist, tasty and great value; the bird with the mostest.

Regulars of this blog will know that the aim here is to have much fun or indulgence as possible on the least amount of cash; and in this increasingly recession-heavy climate who doesn't what that? So how does chicken fit in? Especially if you've been Jamie O guilted into purchasing the flesh of birds that have skipped and danced in neverland before landing on your plate - blimey their lifestyle costs more than mine it would seem. Still, they do taste better for it. The key to maximum chicken value is a full on roast. 

A large roast chicken can provide three dishes for four folks which is both nifty and thrifty. So, we start with a roast and all the trimmings (left over veg can either go into bubble or as I did here, into the soup). There are three meals which scream Great Britain and a big old roast is top (followed by a full fry up and fish & chips) whether it be beef, lamb, pork or bird. It's gotta have a Yorkshire pud, stuffing and some bacon wrapped sausages no matter what; no purist plates here thanks. Roast the bird french style with a lemon up its bottom and basted in butter and garlic - leaves you with super moist meat gently flavoured. Just rub a bit of butter all over it every 20 mins until it's been in the oven an hour, then add 6 cloves of garlic (don't peel them just shove them between the breast and legs) and a last bit of butter and let it cook till its done. Delicious. There is something so calming about the tradition of a proper roast dinner; Sunday ain't Sunday without it.

Once the roast is finished strip the bird of all the flesh you can find (we're experimenting with portion control so it helps with the leftovers) and take half for the soup. Shove the bones into a pan of water with a couple of bay leaves and a few sprigs of rosemary & thyme (or put in some dried herbs) and boil for at least an hour. Then here's a recipe for a nice soup...

• 2 large carrots chopped small
• 2 sticks celery thinly sliced
• 1 leek sliced
• 1 onion sliced
• 1 courgette chopped small
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 can canelli beans
• all the left over veg including the roasties all chopped up chunky - if there isn't much left on the veggie front then add 1 medium potato chopped and a big handful of either fresh or frozen greenbeans.

Once the bones have boiled take out the carcass and fresh herbs and give it a once over for any escaped morsels of chicken, set these aside if you find them. Then add all the veggies and boil for about 45 mins.  Add the tinned veg and let cook for another 10 mins. You can add a bit of tomato puree if you want it to look a bit more orangey but it'll be fine without. Once all your veggies are cooked throw in the reserved cooked chicken and you're ready to serve. Because of the small ones I don't add salt to the main pot but sprinkle to taste in the bowl. This soup is great anytime of year, you can just use spring veg to make it lighter as the sun gets warmer - although as we're talking British summers we're straying into wishful thinking.

Two down and one to go... spoilt for choice with the last bits of chicken really. In summer I like to chop it small with the left over sausages in bacon and stuffing, mix it with a bit of mayo and enjoy some luscious sandwiches. But there are so many other uses...with broccoli in a fritata, mixed with spinach in a creamy white wine sauce with pasta, combined with chorizo and peppers with rice to make a cheats paella...on and on it goes and where the list stops nobody knows...

Three times the taste for the cost of one simple bird - now that is So Good.

Getting crafty

I blame Blue Peter. All those letter holders and Easter bunnies from toilet roll tubes and cotton wool got to me at an early and impressionable age. When it comes to make and do I'm your gal. If it involves a bit of sticking and painting all the better. Crafts have always been my bag; sometimes I actually make bags (see www.folksy.com/shops/cockahoopcreations) but I'll turn my hand to many things, collage, cork-boards, knitting, sewing and papermache-ing. Yup I'm the annoying woman in the shops who stands and declares "£20 for that? But I could make it myself." There are times when this is true but there are also those things that I really shouldn't bother trying; it'll only end in tears.

Cork-boards made from old corks and old picture frames look fantastic and make a lovely present.

Lately I've found that attempting crafty activities with the wee ones is also likely to end in tears. Usually when toddler girl has upended the glitter over wee boy's masterpiece thus rendering it useless and bin-bound, until I can convince him that a glittery dinosaur train driver (abstractly rendered as a greeny/purple splodge with yellow highlights) is actually quite brilliant and deserves as spot in 'the gallery'. I blame another childhood TV show for the creation of 'the gallery', Hart Beat (I think) the one with Morph anyways. Don't be misguided, the aforementioned gallery is actually just the wall by their beds but they like it and it saves on wallpaper.

Clearly despite watching too much TV in my youth I've come away with a creative ethic so it isn't all bad. With that in mind I do let the wee ones enjoy a bit of Mister Maker on cbeebies and quietly catch a bit of it for my own viewing pleasure.  Although these days I'm a tad more advanced in my handmade output there is something compelling about all that water based paint and pipe-cleaners.

It does save a fortune, making your own stuff. Take birthday cards; I've saved masses of images from magazines, fliers etc and I collage cards for friends and family. Sometimes it takes ages to find just the right thing but that's cool; I like that the card they get has been properly thought about and is utterly unique. And the wee ones like to experiment with card making too; we get out the card, glue and cut-outs and have some family fun. Okay I confess sometimes mummy does get a wee bit cross when small hands try and sabotage her work but on balance it is all good. Whether or not the cards recipients like it as much as we do is another thing! But they seem well received; then we do have very polite friends.

So it was a real treat to find this ladies blog (http://annwood.net/blog/) with the free templates for some of her wonderful creations. Thanks to a lovely friend for passing this on as Ann Wood is a talented woman and I fully intend to have a go at those tea-cups. They'll make perfect containers for sweet treats. How glorious is that - combining two passions, cooking and crafts to produce individual gifts that will (hopefully) look amazing while costing a fraction of a shop bought version. Yup arts and crafts are sure way to beat the recession blues and have fun trying too.

If you've got a creative talent tucked away then bring it out, dust it off and share a photo in the comments box below...