Sweaty Rattattouille

WHAT A STICKY, SWEATY AFTERNOON it has been! And still we've no hot water at home. They kindly turned the radiators on for us. But the water remains dysfunctional. So I turned in despair to babywipes this morning. (Used to use them when I was homeless.) Can't complain. At least I'm cleaner now than I was when I woke up ...

I HAVE A WONDERFUL RATTATTOUILLE bubbling in the slow cooker. The slow cooker that I found discarded at the end of my road about two years ago and, 'cept for a plate to go over the top, was in totally working condition. The rattattouille is my standard pasta topping: one medium-large red onion (chopped), four cloves of garlic (sliced), about seven small field mushrooms (sliced and cubed variously), a huge courgette (zucchini) (diced and cut into french fry shapes variously) and one red pepper (the monster chili-shaped kind that's tastier) (chopped). All briefly fried then thrown in slow cooker atop a can of chopped tomatoes. That's all that was in there until I recognized I was in seasoning crisis. Went out and purchased "extra hot" chili powder -- and it is!! Added a pea-sized amount of this which was enough to chilify the entire potload as much as I wanted it. (This is meant to be Italianesque; not Indian or Mexican ...) All was left to hubble for about two hours last night and not touched. My additions today have been one flat teaspoon rocket pesto (the rocket makes it really strong!) And I collected from Mother Hubbard's herb garden this morning a few sprigs of fresh rosemary and sage. Added one of each, roughly chopped (the sage) and barely chopped at all (the rosemary - to be more easily picky-outable.) It's all come along charmingly. Is having another hubble as we speak. There's actually enough for two or three portions. So I'll let you know how it gets along ...

IT'S QUITE RARE FOR ME to do proper cookery as I've been in such a pit of despair (over the previous months and so on)- you get lazy, you get used to eating rubbish. Actually chopping up ingredients and cooking for yourself becomes an insurmountably not-doable deed. So like all else, it just goes out the window...

(Went flying out the window into Mother H's herb garden. From whence I'm trying to drag it in ...)

You'll notice my version is minus the aubergine (eggplant) of the traditional recipe. Aubergine means nothing to me. Add another courgette if you want the missing sloppiness. This is merely my humble opinion but eggplants are for the egg-brained-!!

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Ratatouille: click for a "Provencale" recipe I discovered ...

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Ruth gave me this link. It's for an American guy's "back yard blog" - this week he's photographing the baby robbins who were born in a nest nearby ...


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FREE HEATER. I found a free plug-in halogen room heater this evening. Just when the weather's really calling for it - I know - but that's why they get chucked out. And that's why I'm keeping it. Because I have a long memory. And winter here gets cold ...

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STOP PRESS 22:51 hrs :- rattattouille was hooblygroobly deliciamundo! Seriously. Those 24 hours mulling-time made all the difference. Not to mention my pesto (which is a bazil-in-olive-oil sauce only mine was brimming with rocket bc I bought a funny odd version). And Mother Hubbard's living garden sprigs. And; I forgot to mention: 18 drops of Maggi Liquid Seasoning (nonchili version). Plus, as I said, a pea-sized clump of extra-hot chili powder...

And I think that was it as far as extras goes... strange... because... to warp a silly saying round it, it is the extras what maketh the man ...