peterms

I've been lurking for a bit.

Preying, Mantis?

How do you use 'chicken tonight'?

Well, you don't, basically. Not on this thread, I would suggest.

Have you changed your mind about food so drastically in a week, or has some cheeky scamp logged in with your username?

I thought the 3,000+ Villa fans were superb yesterday. Even before the goals there was hardly a moment where a song wasn't being blasted out. The Fulham home support was the worst I have ever seen, I don't think they sang one song at all throughout the whole game!

I definitely heard strains of "Come on, Fulham" at least once, possibly twice.

What a strange song. It sounds like something from the days when dads and uncles would take their nippers on their shoulders, swinging a rattle. Is it a local tradition, or is their support mainly the pre-war generation?

As a response, I thought "sing when you're offside..." was brilliant.

Frozen lobster?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I realize that we're talking about Lidl/Aldi here (sidenote: Aldi is opening a store a couple miles down the road from me), but any pretense of civilization that exists in the British Isles is null and void.

Nah, they're German. It's a problem of the spread of global capitalism.

Questioner: Did it make any difference to you that Mr Straw was a qualified lawyer.

Elizabeth Wilmshurst: He is not an international lawyer.

Followed by much chortling in the audience and amongst members of the inquiry panel.

I heard that bit on R5 this evening. Immediately before, they quoted a bit from the other adviser (or maybe it was her as well), saying that Straw would reject legal advice he didn't like, saying he would fight it in court.

Well, advice is just that, advice, and not something you are required to follow.

But if the owner of a firm had taken legal advice on something, ignored it, and chosen a course of action which led to the death of an employee or a member of the public, he would be, to use a technical legal term, well and truly ****.

Now, when you ignore advice which is not politically convenient, and choose a course of action which lead to thousands, tens of thousands of deaths, what then?

An excellent summary of where the inquiry is up to regarding the illegality of the war, and quite how far up to his neck in this that clearing in the woods Jack Straw is.

Link to pinko woolly liberal journal of the yoghurt-knitters

Really, Jon, I wonder about your recent reading habits. :shock:

But seriously, it's a decent summary of what happened. What hasn't attracted much comment up to now, at least as far as I've noticed, is the contemptuous way the cabinet was treated.

This article mentions this. It was commented on at the time, as a further step in the trend to marginalise and disempower cabinet which has been under way for some time, especially under Blair's term of office.

But it's frightening to think that we were taken to war, and very large numbers of people killed, on the basis of less evidence than a local council would consider when siting a new pelican crossing.

I should save a few quid here and there also as I dont drink. (Or eat anchovies.)

I was wondering about the anchovies as I sent it, they are a "love or hate" taste. I would suggest leaving the anchovies out of the salsa, or else do a red salsa instead (eg red pepper, chili, tomato, chopped onion, lemon/lime). For the chicken dish, try Pollo al Ajillo instead. Saute about 10 whole cloves of garlic in olive oil (take off the papery outer skin, but don't peel), saute chicken until brown, add about 6 bay leaves, chuck in a glass of sherry or wine so it emulsifies with the oil, season, turn down to a gentle heat, put lid on and simmer for 30-40 mins.

If you don't drink, you can still coook with wine, just make sure you cook it enough so the alcohol burns off, which doesn't take long. Get a bottle with a screw cap, and it should be ok for cooking for a while, if you can keep your flatmates off it.

I've got no problems with preparing everything, maybe what I need to do is get some good, cheap recipes and do a day by day meal plan creating a shopping list.

OK, working on £3 for dinner, £2 for lunch, here's some suggestions. Not everything is costed, because some things will last over a long period, like olive oil and mayo, so it's hard to break down. However, it's based on good quality ingredients, including free range chicken and wine. You could eat cheaper than this, for example today I had pasta with olive oil, garlic, chili and parsley, with parmesan. Pretty cheap, probably cheaper than any recipe below.

It's geared towards finding a couple of key ingredients (in this case chicken, with a subsidiary flavour of anchovy) and working around that. You can do all this without using a freezer or a microwave, though freezing stock is always a good idea.

You do of course get to drink all the wine you don't use for cooking. You could leave the wine out of the risotto, but the chicken and anchovy dish works much better with wine.

It's a bit long. :cry:

Buying:

Free range chicken £6

Bottle of white wine £4

Fish £4

Tin anchovies £1

2 tins chopped tomatoes £1

Feta cheese £2

Avocado £1

Refried beans £1

Leeks £1

Head of celery

Onions

Carrots

Garlic

Lemons

Cooking chorizo £2 (will last you more than a week)

Potatoes £1

Pack of 8 wraps £1.50

Tomatoes £1

Cucumber 50p

and any stock items you don't already have.

Priced items = £27. Say another tenner for various veg and herbs, and contribution to cost of things which are spread over a longer period like rice, pasta, capers, mayonnaise, olive oil. If you start without those stock items, initial cost will be higher while you build up a stock.

Haven't tried to allow for things like coffee, butter etc which you will doubtless also be buying, so don't expect a total food bill of £35 - that cost is for the dinners and lunches. You can do it cheaper by not using wine, not buying free range chicken and so on, but it's better like this. The fish is probably the dearest single meal. If you buy anything organic, potatoes are the best thing to get, and work in other veg as budget allows, starting with root veg.

Longer term, growing your own herbs in a pot and salad in a box is easy and cheap.

Cooking:

Do a couple of things at the weekend to get ahead for the week.

Take the legs off the chicken and save in the fridge. Put the rest of the chicken in the biggest pan you have (a good stock pot costs around £20), with an onion, carrot, stick of celery, bay leaf if you have one, but no salt. Fill pot with water, bring to boil, skim, and cook on the lowest simmer you can manage, not bubbles, water just barely moving, for about an hour. Take the breasts off, save one for lunches, the other is for the first recipe.

When you cook the potatoes for the first recipe, do enough for whatever saute potatoes you will want in a couple of days time, and any you might want for a potato salad as part of a lunch box. Saves a bit of time later.

Strip the chicken carcass of all the little scraps of meat (using hands while it's warm but not hot is easiest), save for the risotto. The stock is for soup, risotto, and any left over can be frozen for other soups.

Make tomato sauce: soften onions, garlic in oil. Add chili. Add 2 tins chopped tomatoes, simmer gently for 45 mins or so, adding a little more water if it gets too thick. Check it's not sticking. Season. Save for the enchiladas and pasta. Any left over can be used for eg nachos.

Make salad dressing. Olive oil, a little lemon juice or wine vinegar, touch of mustard, salt and pepper, in a jam jar. Shake before using. Take to work if you have salad for lunch, because once you dress the sald, the acid will start eating into the salad leaves.

Poached chicken with salsa verde

Anchovies, capers, garlic, parsley (other soft green herbs like tarragon or basil if available) - blend with a little lemon juice. Add olive oil at end, breadcrumbs optional.

Serve with the poached chicken breast, boiled potatoes, maybe broccoli.

Penne piccante

Soften chopped onion and small cubes of chorizo in oil. Add spicy tomato sauce. Mix with pasta.

Risotto

Soften chopped onion, carrot, celery, garlic, touch of chili, maybe small amount of chopped bacon or chorizo, in olive oil. Add rice (arborio or carnarole), turn over until coated in oil. Add glass of white wine, wait until absorbed, add chicken stock in small quantities, stirring all the time, adding more when needed, salt and pepper, add chicken and anything else available like bits of chopped peppers, mushrooms.

When rice is cooked, turn off heat, add a little butter and grated cheese, mix in. Add chopped parsley and mix in.

Use leftovers for a microwaved lunch, or shape into flat rice cakes and fry gently in butter or oil, or else make arancini - shape into a ball, add small piece of mozzarella in the middle, close up the rice ball, roll in breadcrumbs and deep fry, serve with salsa and salad

Sea bream with potatoes and thyme (serves 2)

Slice waxy potatoes as thick as £1 coin, fry gently in wide shallow pan, turning frequently, add chopped garlic and 1 sliced onion per person, 2 bay leaves, plenty of fresh thyme, lemon juice, glass of wine, salt and pepper, bit of chili if you like it. Put lid on pan, cook gently for half hour. Add whole fish (sea bream, sea bass work well here), replace lid, cook for further 2 mins, test fish by cutting in to it to see if it's done, serve by lifting to half of fish off the bone with a knife and a spatula, then lifting the whole set of bones off the bottom half of the fish. Doesn't really need an accompaniment.

Chicken with anchovies and capers

Fry chicken legs in butter and olive oil in saute pan until lightly browned, take out of pan. Soften chopped onions in pan, add chopped anchovies, stir until they start to dissolve, add lemon juice and glass of white wine, black pepper (probably no salt, having used anchovies), stir well. Return chicken to pan, put lid on tight, simmer gently for 40 mins. Check occasionally to see it's not sticking, add a little water if needed. Serve with rice, veg if you like.

Enchiladas

Take 2 wraps per person, lay flat. Soften small amount of chopped onion in oil, add small tin of refried beans per person, fry until warmed through, place in centre of wraps. Add some grated cheese, maybe a little chopped lettuce or finely shredded cabbage, maybe chopped fresh tomatoes if available, squeeze of lemon or lime juice. Roll up the wraps (tucking the sides under while rolling) and place in baking dish just big enough to hold them (lightly oil the dish first so they don't stick), cover in plenty of spicy tomato sauce, maybe add a few thin slices of cheese and some fresh coriander on top, cover with tinfoil, bake in medium oven (160o) for half hour or so. Leftovers work cold, or microwaved.

Grilled chicken with mustard

Mix mustard with crushed garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, coat chicken

Grill under moderate grill, not too close, turning often

Serve with baked or saute potatoes, salad.

Lunches

Greek salad (2 lunches)

Half pack of feta cheese, cubed

Cherry tomatoes, halved

Cucumber, diced

Black olives

Parsley

French dressing - olive oil, mustard, lemon juice, black pepper

Leek and potato soup (2 lunches)

Soften chopped onions and leeks in oil (chopped garlic and chili optional)

Add potatoes, cut into small cubes

Add chicken stock, salt, pepper, simmer for 20-30 mins, liquidise

Chicken and avocado wrap

Chop cooked chicken, chopped avocado, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper, roll in wrap. 1 breast and 1 avocado should do 2 lunches.

Mixed salad box

Leftover boiled potatoes

Leftover penne piccante

Cucumber, tomato, salad leaves, maybe some grated cheese

Add mayo, or else french dressing just before eating

Ok, that's what is frustrating me slightly in this search, what you just posted even if I went to Lidl, would cost more than I would ever like to pay for a lunch. It sounds amazing, don't get me wrong, but it's not practically affordable for food for 1 on a budget, surely?

I'd like to stick to a budget of 2.50 pounds, 3.00 max really for an evening meal and even less for a lunch. Is that an impossible task to eat well?

But of the things in your list above, some are maybe quite expensive for what they are. Chicken fillets - a dear way to buy chicken, which also prevents you making the stock which would keep you in soup for a week. Tinned veg and sauces in jars are for people who need the convenience and don't mind paying more. Pre-packed stir-fry - also dearer than doing it yourself, and the veg will have started to degrade from when they were first cut up. Garlic kievs sound like the ingredient list may have things you don't really want, and anything from Bernard Matthews is 100% guaranteed to contain shite and involve animal cruelty.

If you buy some things from supermarkets like big bags of rice and pasta, tinned tomatoes when they're half price (they often are), make sure you always have onions, garlic, carrots, celery in the house, have some basic spices like dried chilli and if possible grow a couple of herbs in pots, then you can manage quite well with buying a bit of meat and some fresh veg as you need it.

I'll make some more specific suggestions in a couple of days.

Shooting pics in the Snow - lots of differing advice out there re best settings etc

VT advice?

Well, I'm sure there's a lot more expert advice out there than what I can offer, but in the absence of other answers:

Beware your camera's auto-exposures. The camera will expose for the snow, in many cases. Sometimes, that will work for your shot. Often, it won't. For example, if you are taking a shot of something darker against a background of snow, the camera may expose correctly for the snow but underexpose for your subject, leaving it a bit dark.

So, you might want to use whatever settings you have to control the exposure, and over-expose by one or two stops.

My advice is go for fully manual settings, usually over-expose by two stops compared to what the exposure meter tells you, and if in doubt, bracket one stop either way.

However, I accept no responsibility if my suggestions result in a totally screwed up photo-session. Sorry about that.

Anyone got a 7D yet? I think im gonna buy one when my student loan comes through! heard that 18mp is too much for an aps-c sensor...from what i've seen thats not true!

Student loan? Oh my god.

Thanks Bicks, sadly, the kids weren't allowed on the slopes - no doubt someone fearing someone would slip into the icy water and there'd be all sorts of forms to fill in.

Brigga - couple of suggestions.

First one is potentially quite interesting, as a clash of colours, textures etc. But all the twigs in the background make it a bit confusing. Maybe find a standpoint where there is less background, to make the main subject stand out more?

Trees shot is something which can be quite dramatic. The angle you have has started to make them look quite overbearing and threatening. Going in a little closer to the base of a tree would make it more so - and black and white for that sort of shot can work well.

The duck is in the centre of the frame, which is where most people place it, and most photography teachers say not to, because it makes the shot quite static, like a mugshot. (I know one of mine above has the subject in the centre, my excuse is that it's because it looks like he's taking a photo). Placing the duck off-centre gives a different effect, worth experimenting with.

The plant with snow on is potentially really interesting, in terms of the contrast between the natural shape and texture of the plant, and how it finds itself at the moment, with an alien weight on it. Again, the background doesn't help it, and perhaps confuses the eye by giving lots of extra information which doesn't add to the quality of the image. Try finding a place to stand (or more probably, lie) where you can shoot it against a clear sky, and see if you think it looks better one way or the other. I think that against a clear sky, all the viewer's attention would be drawn to the outline of the plant and the snow. It would be stark, but it would say a lot about the season.

Some seasonal ones:

Snowmelt down a window

Shapes in the snow

Cold river

Incognito

Stalking

"I heard Harry Redknapp speaking the other day about how fickle it all can be. He said you can win two consecutive games and you're unbeatable and you lose a couple of games and you're useless. I think the same applies to us."

Wrong thread, mate.

The simple facts are thus:

We aren't as good as the top four teams - nor do we have world class players that can score from nothing, like Tevez, Torres, Rooney, etc. We knew that before tonight - it's not news.

We have an excellent team spirit, some good attacking talent and a defence who have been flawless for about 15 games and have made one mistake tonight in an otherwise excellent defensive showing. We're a good solid team and give anyone a game, as this season has shown.

We have played the 'top four' teams 5 times this season, beating Liverpool away, Man United away and Chelsea at home, losing to Liverpool in the 94th minute thanks to an unfortunate ricochet and being outclassed by a terrific Arsenal on their own patch - and even that only when they brought on their matchwinner in Fabregas. On another day, we'd have scored at the other end and been 4th tonight. We didn't play very well, but it was snowy, draining and Liverpool were no better than us tonight, as most people would agree.

Our teams does have limitations in creativity and we don't pass it like some other teams. But we're effective enough to have lost the last 2 games and still be two points off 4th position. We need to continue to improve, but there's no need for all this '**** waste of space' nonsense.

The season hasn't ended, there is no cause for panic and this is purely the disappointment from losing two games against two good teams, both of whom would be expected to finish above us. No drama, no overreactions - yes, we're not the finished article and could do with buying another striker to support Gabby. But again, we knew that before tonight, it's not news.

Yes, quite a measured assessment.

FFS we were shit. Poor performance against arsenal, now this. We are a hit and hoof team and don't deserve 4th spot with performances like this.

This was a SIGNIFICANT improvement on the Arsenal performance.

In horrendous conditions, there was no shortage of skill, passion and desire to win. MON got the tactics spot on and made, I believe, the correct substitutions. He went to win the match and for the last 20 mins we had Liverpool petrified.

Spot on. It's not hard to not be better than the Arsenal game (that match lacked the endeavor we expect of this side), but we weren't bad in this game. We weren't fantastic either, but it was good enough and we deserved something. The difference between us and them was 1 class strike from a world class player, born of a lucky break. Speaks volumes.

Onwards and upwards.

You honestly thought that was good enough? If you do then I'm envious of you because life must always be good for you. You have some pretty low **** standards my friend.

Liverpool were poor and we were worse.

What a silly, patronising post.

It was a poor game. Not surprising, in the conditions. Both sides struggled to play good football.

We showed effort and commitment, and were unlucky to lose a close game.

Gazton and Chindie have made good points, and don't deserve your sneering.

Well, yet another viewpoint. Let's start with the unpopular bit.

The ref was fine. There is no part of our defeat which was remotely his fault. He tried to keep the game flowing, and largely succeeded. Not booking Song was highly debatable, but was defensible if you want a game to flow and have eleven players each at the end. Booking Delph was entirely down to Delph. He fouled, then got lippy. Part of his growing up is to avoid bookings like that, and you can bet your life that will be made clear to him on Monday. In general, the ref had a good game, and us losing doesn't make it otherwise.

Downing was poor. Was he injured? He kept turning inside, like he wanted more time for every move. Young made some good space, as usual, and didn't make much use of it, as usual. Milner was good in parts, but unusually poor in parts as well. And it's in midfield that we lost it, like you do with Arse.

The attacking formation worked well first half, but looked tired and stretched second half. Looking back, I would have welcomed NRC coming on to escort Fabregas around the pitch.

Wasn't expecting 3 goals against your defence.

Probably would've stayed 0-0 if it wasn't for a bit of Cescual Healing.

I thought it was quite good, if it was original. But truth be told, I suspect it's not. Maybe he'll 'fess up?

I'm told that some aspects of this blog post may be unclear. Let me summarise

1. It is my belief and opinion that of the seven clubs I mention as competitors in this article, our squad is the weakest in most aspects. it is close in some cases, but overall that is my evaluation. This is clearly a matter of subjective opinion based upon nothing other than my watching these teams play this season. If you disagree with this premise, as you are clearly entitled to, then clearly you arent going to agree with the article, fair enough, but leave out the abuse pls

2. Our squad is considerably weaker than either Manchester United or Chelsea, to the point that it is ridiculous to even consider us as competitors to them. If you disagree with that, then of course that is clearly your prerogative. For me its very clear. So that leaves 4.

3. These four clubs, specifically Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City, should, given their squads, finish above us over a 38 game campaign. It isnt nailed on by any means, but that would be my expectation especially given that we are likely to be the only one of these to keep our chequebook shut next month. Therefore, if we can finish sixth, and therefore finish above one of them, we will have done really pretty well (especially if we add to that some silverware). I'd be pleased with that as a season and would consider it, all things considered, as a step up from last season. Finishing fifth, and therefore beating two of them, well, that would really be a significant achievement. I'd be really delighted with that.

4. My personal belief is that beating three of these, and finishing fourth, is too much to ask of this group of players. It is possible, there are sixty points left to play for, and we will need something like 40 of those, possibly a little less, but I think its too much. Again, this is my subjective opinion and you are free to disagree. This would be truly a magnificent achievement, almost unbelievably so. I dont think we have the ability, the experience or the leadership, but hope to be proven wrong.

5. Enjoy it, we are up here competing with the big boys, but look fellas, dont get all Billy big bollox. The attitude that comes over from some is one of extreme hubris. I suggest winding it in, we have done nothing yet, nothing at all, and the team can probably do without that pressure.

Thats all, apologies for any misunderstandings. I'm going to now edge towards the door and wish you all a merry Christmas and a Happy New year. I hope 2010 brings us what we deserve.

PB

(and jon, no the reason I havent been around of late has nothing to do with our resurgence, you will note I havent been around since September which is when the OU starts. Something has to give way to studying, and for me its Villa Talk. if I was as you imply worried by our resurgence then this would be a pretty daft time to post again wouldnt it? Furthermore, at no point have I ever wanted MON gone. I have never said that, or indeed implied that, I challenge you to find a post that says different. No need to make things up to support your argument, thanks.)

Well, merry xmas to you, and good luck with the OU.

Couple of points on your posts.

First, you make great play of squads. Rightly so, I suppose - we won't get anywhere with a weak squad. But ours is quite a bit stronger than last year, and I think most would agree with that. At the same time, some other clubs are getting weaker. Liverpool, for example, having to sell to buy (yes, a press story, but the known financial facts bear it out) and Manyoo, unable to put together a defence, but not spending the Ronaldo money. In both cases, club forced into debt by speculating profit-seeking new owners. Are their squads adequate? Probably less so than ours, but maybe they can't continue their previous policy of covering the cracks with cheques.

Second, and leading on from that, you seem to give too much respect to the other six you mention, and too little to us. I respect Arsenal as a club (but that might all go to shit in the next year as well, with the latest vulture hovering), but the others are either playboys with a new toy, or speculators trying to make a few million quid. Whether the team is up for it is another question, and I think both Liverpool and Man Citeh may have issues in that department. The full season will be a test for us, as you say, but I don't expect all of these to take it easily in their stride either.

Third, presenting a different and arguably more balanced view of our club than you is not "getting all Billy Big Bollox". Some people may suffer from hubris as you suggest. Others may just be looking at things as they develop, and drawing different conclusions than you about what may happen over the course of a season, without being arrogant about it. Blandy's posts, for example.

if he is building for the future, why aren't albrighton and co getting a look in ?

They are.

Playing in Europe, getting loaned out to lower league clubs, training with the first team squad, sometimes getting on the bench...would you make them first team regulars?

I think he'll stay.

If he stays here ten years, that will be until the standard retirement age.

In his position, having had a relatively good managerial career, wanting one more big job before you retire, thinking you could do something like Wenger has done with Arse, then joining us was a good move. And right now, looking at what's happening with other clubs, if you're trying to build something rather than get a few quid in the pension fund and slope off to a beach somewhere, well, where would you rather be than right here? I don't see too many clubs offering long-term support and stability to someone who wants to build. They don't have the patience.

On the same note it makes me laugh when players leave to join an already successful club citing that they want to win things, when in reality they just want to be handed things.

Me too. A bit like people on £10m a year regardless of performance claiming they've "earned" it.

Moscow.

Purely just because I'm against giving up on games of football.

And the gamble didn't pay off.

This year, Everton and Fulham have taken the Europa League seriously, and are progressing through the rounds - Fulham are in the last 32 now.

This will take its toll on players, and may start to have an effect on Premiership performances. Perhaps it has already done so - who knows?

Would you rather be in our position or theirs, right now?

Of course being committed to the Europa League doesn't mean you can't do well elsewhere, and as we saw last year, having an early exit doesn't guarantee success in the Prem. It would also be good to do well in a competition, and I suppose if Fulham get through another three rounds of competition, they will be at the same stage in Europa as we are in the League Cup (as I still call it; sorry, sponsors).

But you can't do everything, and every club prioritises.

Personally, I would go for a strategy of having the fewest games to win an achievable trophy, conserving resources for the Prem, and having reserve strength sufficient to make opposition managers comment on the strength of our bench. We didn't manage that last year, but this year, I think it looks very promising in terms of where we are positioned, what is still to come, and what resources we have to drawn on in the second half of the season.

Last year, should he have gambled on putting out a stronger team to win a difficult fixture in unpromising circumstances in order to face several more rounds, or taken a step back to concentrate on the main thing? I'd say the latter, every time. And if we failed in the big aim, does that make the strategy wrong? Absolutely not.

Oh annd sorrry foor douuble-tappping a keey, itt wonn't happpen agggain siiiiirrrr....

I was actually referring to the incorrect usage of the word, but crack on.

You have intrigued me, I thought I had used it correctly?

He just means "privy to" means to be included in knowledge. You can be privy to information, not to spending time somewhere. So spending time in the dressing room could make you privy to information. As could hiding in the dressing room toilets and eavesdropping. In other words, spending time in the privy could make you privy to information.

But I don't think Risso is claiming to have hidden in that particular khasi, so the point you were making is probably undisputed.

... he decided to prioritise on the League, hoping to get that 4th spot. We didn't get 4th, but not all gambles pay off. At the time right decision...

I agree. Right decision at the time, and events turning out as they did doesn't make it otherwise. You can only decide on what you know at the time, not what later turns out to happen.