Truffle's Troupe

Truffle, though one of the more spoilt dogs in the universe, loves her toys unconditionally. Here we decided to pile them all back into her box (this is minus the random 'fluffy things', and tennis balls of her collection) - where they won't stay for long. To Truffle, toys don't belong in a box, they need to be thrown around the house as much as possible.

So here is a rare occasion on which you may be introduced to Truffle's troupe. From the left we have the Dulux dog, who actually forms part of her doggy day bed next to mum's computer, large enough for Truffle to sleep on, chew a bit, and fling around occasionally if she's really bored. To the right of Dulux, we have brown bear and above him the mini-Truffle who are on a par currently in Truffle popularity terms. Finally, on the far right, we have the latest addition - Doggleberry. Doggleberry is currently Truffle's pride as he used to belong to me and she had had her eye on him for a while. And, rather hilariously, his head is about the same size as Truffle's, but she still loves to lug him around and present him to you several times a day.

In fact, by now I think the box is now empty again.

Horseradish Relish

Living as we do -  in the countryside, we are lucky to have access to many 'fruits of the fields'. Last week on a walk with friends I gathered enough wild plums to make 4lbs of yummy jam - all for the cost of a few bags of sugar!

This week I spotted some wild horseradish (it looks a bit like Dock but without the red veins) and with a bit of help from Henry managed to dig up enough tubers to take home and make into a relish.

It's pretty easy to make - but a good idea to wear goggles/sunglasses when grating as the juices are pretty powerful!

Here is the method:

Ingredients:

• One tuber of horseradish
• Creme Fraiche
• White wine vinegar

Method:

1. Clean, peel and finely grate the horseradish (this is when you might like to wear goggles)
2. Mix in 2 tablespoons of Creme Fraiche
3. Add 2 teaspoons of white wine vinegar

That's it! Serve as a dip, an accompanyment to beef dishes or add to mashed potatoe to give it a bit of zing!

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Feeling inspired?

Well I'm not, and Charlotte's stolen her graphics tablet back... things will be so much better when I have an ipad
...So here's a picture of Truffle as a seal, though she does look an awful lot like a cow-seal