March '26 Roundup
Seeds and slow cookers
Hello dear reader!
This roundup is a little delayed, but here we are. I’m currently sat on a log in the stick shed, with the two babes asleep in the buggy, sheltering from a hailstorm outside. Happy April to you all!
March was the month of seed planting and the start of weaning for the littlest. It was also Lent, which meant a much smaller intake of sugar (and therefore less baking). I also stopped listening to any music that wasn’t a hymn or classical, which proved a positive change, and will shape at least some of my listening habits post-Lent. Let’s just say I don’t think my two year old benefits from listening to “Shake it Off” every other drive.
We are rejoicing in the resurrection by eating lots of chocolate, and enjoying an early sample of our homemade cider. Life is good!
What I’ve been cooking lately
Increasingly, my slow cooker is the secret to getting dinner on the table without too much drama. For about a year now, we’ve been doing larger roasts on a Sunday, and unless I’m roasting chicken, the slow cooker makes an appearance for Sundays, as well as multiple other times a week. Usually, this entails cooking a gammon (5.5hrs on medium, if you’re wondering, with a litre or so of water, a halved orange, halved onion, and a bay leaf). But this month I tried short ribs and beef brisket, with varying degrees of success. Short ribs were too fatty for our tastes, but the brisket for pulled beef worked well. I plan to write a post with my go-to midweek slow cooker meals sometime soon, but in the meantime I’d recommend reading this and this, for thoughtful slow cooker metaphors and recipes.
What I’ve been writing lately
I wrote for the Catholic Herald about the prospects and perils of pursuing traditional gender roles, particularly when detached from a Christian understanding of the sexes. Do give it a read!
What I’ve been reading lately
I’m making my way through Paul Kingsnorth’s Against the Machine, which I’d highly recommend. It’s prompting me to question my relationship with technology, which is no bad thing. I keep coming back to the fact that iPhones and instant messaging are such recent inventions, and yet profoundly shape how we interact. Admittedly, I can’t see myself giving up WhatsApp any time soon, but I am spending more time thinking about how WhatsApp can be used more effectively and how I might model better habits in usage. As I wait out this hailstorm, I’m glad I had my phone in my pocket, but a book in the bottom of the buggy might have been a smarter move.
What I’ve been growing lately
Every afternoon the tots and I go to the greenhouse to water the seeds and perhaps plant some more. March brought several moments of real delight at discovering a sudden emergence of new seedlings, after several days spent thinking we’d bought duff seeds. I’m finding time in the greenhouse brings out childlike wonder - and lots of day dreaming about recipes I’ll make with the bumper crop I hope we grow… The toddler enjoys pootling about and playing with watering cans, but does sometimes get restless. Any “greenhouse games” ideas gratefully received.
That’s it for last month.
As ever,
Portia