Silidh

Jam making was the order of the day - specifically rhubarb (rùbrad) and ginger (dinnseir) with a touch of rhubarb and ginger gin (sine) for good measure. 

It was a bit of a faff as, (in the absence of a working hob), I used our jam maker which meant two batches, each of which I finished off with some extra cooking in our multi-cooker.   The jam maker makes the jam at a lower temperature than I would if making it on the hob. As a consequence,  it  recommends using added a specific  pectin which I prefer to avoid. Trial and error suggests that 5 to 10 minutes extra cooking helps.  However  can't do this in the jam maker as it has a maximum cooking time of 30 mins and you have to wait 30 mins until you can use it again. 

We didn't realise all this when we bought it :-).   Having said that it is actually straightforward and  in some respects easier than doing it on the hob. It does all the stirring for you so you can put it on a leave it.  It also means that we can still make jam :-) 

The lack of hob is linked to the planning blight associated with proposed extension.  Some progress has been made - the architect reckons that they should be able to submit the warrants shortly and also suggest a negotiated  tender rather than an open one. 

An in today's other news we lasted until the end at March into Pitlochry which was after midnight.  Lots of good music but the final band (The Tumbling Souls) were  the highlight for me. Great fun and lots of dancing was done.