Peas and Milady

I planted up my peas, which were rapidly outgrowing their damp newspaper -- one pot sown very thickly, for cutting as pea-shoots, and one with just half a dozen peas in it for growing on. I also tucked two or three of the 'spares' into the large pot with an overwintered corn-marigold in it (I think it was probably the Roma tomato pot last summer...)

No sign of germination yet among the tomato and chilli seeds, although it was warmer outside than inside today so I put them out for the afternoon.

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Sous le Signe des Mousquetaires, Episode 32... well, that's certainly an unusual take on "The Man in the Iron Mask" :-D

In this version he is apparently a sinister supervillain who arrives to terrorise Paris... with the possible aid of Milady, whom d'Artagnan spared in a child-friendly and entirely uncanonical fashion at the end of the episode in which she should have been executed. I did wonder if she would really disappear and become a reformed character, as she had promised, or whether d'Artagnan's act of mercy would come back to bite him later.

And of course now he can't admit his concern that she appears to be involved in the misdeeds of the Iron Mask, because he would have to admit that he was tricked by her sob-story into letting her get away, despite his assurances to the others. He has already been obliged to lie outright to Athos (who in this version has no personal connection to Milady), who is beginning to wonder...

Rhubarb and Tapioca mould

It's the time of year for the first (very expensive) rhubarb, and I tried out another of the rhubarb recipes from the Cold Sweets section of the 1920s cookery leaflet: Rhubarb and Tapioca Mould. Since I haven't seen any tapioca for years I used semolina instead, on the grounds that "We'll Eat Again" contains a recipe for 'fruit semolina' which is very similar -- presumably in order to save on the [wartime rationed] milk one would normally require for a semolina pudding.

You simply cook up your rhubarb with half its weight in sugar, a quarter of its weight in tapioca (or semolina), a little knob of butter, a little ginger, fresh or grated, and sufficient water to produce a thick pudding. ( Read more... )