Two more sleeps.........

...and we'll be heading up to the Far North for a weeks holiday here. We're really looking forward to relaxing on the beach with a good book and getting a bit of sightseeing in too, not too much though.

Of course before going away there's always plenty of preparation to be done. When we took the Landrover to Tauranga and The Mount last Monday it was a bit of a test run to see if would make the journey over the Kaimais without incident, it did good, so we're taking on holiday! 

However it didn't have a radio or CD player and as the journey takes a few hours I said I needed music on the way. 

On top of that  a load more veg needed picking and pickling!

So new radio/cd player bought and installed...just like that! 

Of course there's always help!

Gawd don't he look happy!

In the mail this week.....yay!

Checking it out..

 Just in time to process this little lot! The beans in the round basket were fed to the goats.

Vacuum packing

All this picked, sliced, vacuum packed and in the freezer within an hour of picking

Chomp chomp...

Another new gadget! Herb scissors! How cool are they??

Basket case!

More bread and butter pickles

and today's efforts (below)...we decided to take up some ready made meals and I also did baking, not really recommended on such a stinking hot and humid day!

Using 2 packs of mince I first made up a savoury mince ( bolognese sauce). Took one meals worth out and divided the rest. Adding to one half chilli and kidney beans for chilli con carne. With the rest I added curry powder and mixed frozen veg for samosas, 3 containers are now in the freezer

Boiled sultana cake, easiest cake in the world!

and a big batch of cookies

Cookies

500gms butter

1 can condensed milk

1 cup sugar

5 cups SR flour or plain, just add 1 tsp baking powder per 1 cup flour

Toppings, use anything you like

I used brown sugar, cinnamon sugar, castor sugar & sultanas(mixed in dough)

Cream butter and sugar together, Add everything else. Form dough. Take a small amount and roll into little balls, press flat, add toppings if desired

Bake in oven at 180°C for 10 mins

And here it all is! 

 I even vacuum packed the cookies.

That's me for today, not sure if I'll get back on now, before I go. Not sure if I'll have internet access either, so if I can't get back on, I'll see you all in just over a week!

Somehow I do need to do a Garden Share Collective post for March. Where there's a will....

see ya ♥