The Elms, Suffolk

 Today was probably our last chance of a summer lunch in the garden.  The weather has now turned a lot wetter and cooler, and is forecast like this for the coming days. Apologies for posting this a little after the event, especially to our guests Andrew & Alison, Steve & Marion.   Appetiser: Seared Scallops and Squid, Chilli & Garlic Salt, Citrus Salt, Squid Ink Salt, Baby Leaves and Watermelon Radish We repeated the dish served the previous week previously as it seemed to go down so well. See here for the details of the salt . We found the watermelon radish in Waitrose, an interesting peppery taste and an addition of colour Amuse Bouche: Horseradish Beetroot, Porcini Duxelle and Fried 'Caviar' Maggie took me to Norwich for my birthday and we had dinner at Benedict's . The chef abd owner here is Richard Bainbridge and this dish is an attempted copy of his serving.  He served his with Exmoor Caviar, so we tried to achieve the saltiness that added with Deep...

Breakfast: Sausage Sandwiches Lunch: Scotch Egg & Coleslaw Appetiser: Seared Scallops, Grilled Prawns, Wild Garlic & Rosemary Bread Dinner: Hot Smoked Salmon, Samphire, Fennel Salad, Beetroot & Horseradish, New Potatoes Dessert: Buttered Toffee Popcorn 99's Breakfast: Leftover sausage sandwiches made an easy start to the day Lunch: As we had guests we liked to make the garden look neat and tidy, so mowing the lawn and weeding, a quick scotch egg from the coop Garden Dinner with Amber & Michelle Dinner: Michelle & Amber came for dinner in the garden.  We have known them for some while now and it was lovely to be able to get to spend some real time with them and the weather was perfect for a summer dinner.  They are collecting their puppy rescue dog on Saturday morning, so Hobo has Archie for the weekend to play. They are really good friends and it is heartwarming to see them tumble around the garden together Seared Scallops & Prawns ...

Breakfast: Cheese Scones & Coffee Lunch: Ham & Cheese Sandwiches Appetiser: Hot Smoked Salmon, Beetroot & Horseradish Relish, Lemon Mayonaisse Dinner: Cold Meats (Leftovers), New Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, Fried Vegetables Breakfast: We visited Bedfield Playing fields for the pop-up (Tuesday morning) post office, and had breakfast at the pop-up cafe which is organised by Alison & Andrew.  Nice to socialise and have breakfast in the sunshine Hot Smoked Salmon Cold Meats & Corn Appetiser & Dinner: This was a use up of the leftovers from last nights dinner party (Hot Smoked Salmon & Beetroot / Lamb) and BBQ chicken and pork from Saturday evening. A bottle of Pecorino (Terre di Chieti) from Waitrose Colour in the Garden It was nice and relaxing in the evening sunshine again. And finally, we seem to have some colour in the garden, all due to Maggie's continual hard work and planning

Breakfast: Egg & Bacon Sandwich Lunch: Ham & Coleslaw Aperitivo:  Jerusalem Artichoke Crisps. Aperol Spritz Appetiser: Hot Smoked Salmon, Salad Leaves, Beetroot & Horseradish Relish, Lemon Mayonaisse Dinner: Butterflied Leg of Lamb, Balsamic, Garlic & Rosemary, Dauphinoise Potatoes, Baked Fennel with Cheeses, Grilled Asparagus Dessert:  Toffee Popcorn Ice Cream Cornets 99 / Orange & Lemon Cake with Creme Fraiche Dinner Guests We had a 'proper' garden dinner party.  Socially distanced with our maximum gathering of 6 people.  Georgina & Ron, Rachail, Ingrid and ourselves.  Lovely evening weather-wise. We sat and chatted, ate and drank until late in the night.  I only have a couple of photographs of the food and the event, it just seems too rude to take pictures like we normally do, when you have guests. Just a little planning, serving the social groups with individual bowls and spoons etc Jerusalem Artichoke Crisps Ap...