Monday, January 11, 2016

Owl Selfie, Saturday Supper,

Funny, a Snowy Owl has been caught several times in a Montreal traffic camera. They suggest it is taking selfies. In fact the theory is that it is looking for a suitably high spot to nest as being in this area there are lots of open fields in which it can hunt.


Saturday night we finished up the mincemeat tart with a dollop of the frozen cream. The cream was fine and hadn't changed one little bit. I also made Oven Barbecued Pork Chops with sautéed cabbage - Matt had a baked potato - for supper. Not bad for someone who is hobbling around. Hopefully on Monday I will find out about my X-ray results. I have linked to the blog where I first gave the pork chop recipe. Do try them, we enjoy them and they are so very easy to make.


So nobody won the Powerball on Saturday and now it is going up to $1 billion. That is actually a ridiculous prize. What they should do is separate it into several large prizes to give more people a chance to win something. This week I will have a ticket, friend is buying one for me, I have told him if it wins I only want $5 million, he can keep the rest. I really wouldn't want that much money - I firmly believe it would destroy your life. One thing if you have earned ever penny, but to win that much money, no, not a good thing.

A friend posted on Facebook that she had made these fritters for supper last Friday. I thought it looked very good. My only problem is, I can't figure out how many servings this is for, I would guess 2. It is certainly a different way of serving couscous. I have never heard of SunBlush tomatoes, I don't know if they are an English item or not. I have converted the metric measurements as near as I can get to ounces and cups. Although I live in a country with metric, I still haven't learnt to think in those measurements and of course in the US they don't use metric at all.

Couscous fritters with feta

BBC Good Food

Ingredients

175g (6 1/4 oz.)couscous
200ml (3/4 cup)  hot vegetable stock
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp natural yogurt
85g (3 oz) feta cheese, cut into 1cm (small) cubes
50g (1.75 oz) SunBlush tomato, finely chopped
3 spring onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp sunflower oil or vegetable oil

Method

Measure the couscous into a large heatproof bowl, pour over the hot stock, then cover with cling film. Leave to stand for 5 mins or until the couscous has absorbed the stock and is soft. Add the egg and yogurt and mix well. Season, then fold through the cheese, tomatoes and spring onions.
Divide the mixture into 4 and shape into burgers. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan, then cook the fritters over a medium heat for 3 mins on each side until golden. Serve with a green salad and a spoonful of your favourite chutney.

 Tip
Making the fritters
Wet your hands before shaping the fritters to stop the mixture sticking to your hands. SunBlush tomatoes are softer than sundried. If you only have sundried, stir them into the couscous before adding the stock.
Have a great day
 

20 comments:

  1. Hi Jo - good old owl .. how funny and lovely to see. Good luck today with the hip. I like the idea of the couscous fritters ... cheers Hilary

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    1. I love that owl. Hope I hear from the doc today. Thanks Hilary.

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  2. I rarely buy lottery tickets, but I did win $4 Saturday. Guess I'll reinvest it in more tickets. I agree that at some point they need to split the pot into smaller pots. Maybe those smaller prizes could increase as the pot grows and I'd win $40 instead of just 4.

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    1. Me either Denise, but a friend bought me one as a kind of joke I guess. But yes, the billion dollars needs splitting.

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  3. I've never heard of Sunblush tomatoes either but the idea of cousous fritters does sound appealing.
    Fingers crossed you get your x-ray results soon and that there's a less invasive solution than a joint replacement.

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    1. I think they must be and English thing Helen. I have got to try these fritters though.

      I'm going to start ringing the doctor asap.

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  4. That owl pic is sooooo awesome. I would love to win Powerball. Oh the good things I could do with that money!

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    1. It is an awesome picture JoJo. Trouble is you would be inundated with people trying to part you from your money for one good cause or another.

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  5. That is such a great picture of that owl :) I do agree with you about the money concept. If I was to win the Powerball, I would keep what our annual salaries are for the next 20 years (doubt we'll be alive that long) and put that into savings and then set up some type of foundation to help others with the rest of the money or just give the rest of the money to the various churches I've attended over the years. Definitely would be content with 1/100th or less of the winnings.

    betty

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    1. It is Betty. Who knew traffic cameras could be so useful? I think the idea of a foundation is a good one. It's too much money for anyone to win. I still think they should split it into more smaller prizes. Gives more chance to people.

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  6. That's an incredible shot of the owl!
    Most people who win the lottery have never really had much money, so they certainly don't know how to handle a lot of it. And they wind up broke again in just seven years. Sad.

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    1. It is incredible isn't it Alex?

      Yes, that is what one hears and why I would personally hate to win so much. One can do a lot with it of course in the way of charity work, but I couldn't deal with all the people begging.

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  7. I love that shot of the owl. I've watched the vid a few times. and that is a lot of money. Even with my large family, I wouldn't need that much to make them all rich.

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    1. It is a great picture Susan. It is a lot of money. I wouldn't want to have to deal with it.

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  8. Beautiful photo.
    We keep forgetting to buy tickets. Want to win, but know there's no chance! Definitely can't be if you don't have a ticket. :)
    Good luck learning the results!

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    1. I agree Yolanda, beautiful.

      You sure can't win if you don't have a ticket.

      It will be nice when I do so

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  9. Scotto and I often have long arguments about how we will spend our lottery winnings. Luckily we've never won anything so our relationship hasn't been tested. It would be nice to be able to be philanthropist though. How gorgeous is the owl!

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    1. I guess if you won a big lottery like this one Pinky, you could both do what you wanted.

      It is a lovely owl

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  10. I have seen the Owl on Facebook-it is really neat. That is a high amount and most people who have won big, lose it all because they don't know how to handle the money.

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    1. It is a great pic Birgit, and the road looks so very Canadian doesn't it? You are so right, I have heard recommendations that winners should find money managers first before they collect their winnings. But then if you don't know anything about money, how do you know you have someone honest?

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