Good grief it’s hot this week. This is not a complaint (I can’t complain about blazing sunshine), it’s a fact. In case you hadn’t noticed, we’ve topped 30 degrees every day for the past week or so. Having spent the best part of the weekend in the sea, it actually feels less like summer in blighty and more than summer’s alrighty (groan….!).

So, I chose to work from home today which does afford me some time to cook in between calls. I managed to hide a fridge full of veg in a bolognaise for later this week. Even I am having trouble identifying the foreign veg in this! No doubt the kids will find each and every last piece of undesired veg! 

But the star of today’s cooking was tonight’s risotto! The girls and I have taken to watching His Holiness’s ‘Keep Cooking and Carry On’ and they seem to have eaten all the things we’ve tried so far. This risotto was wolfed down and declared ‘amazing’ by ACOD

Roasted Tomato Risotto

I mostly followed the recipe although adjusted it to make for 4 and used white wine instead of vermouth (who even has vermouth at home?). The kids obviously wont touch actual tomato so I offered each of them a vegetable topping choice and their choices were as follows:

LOD – peas (and she got roast carrots)

EEROD – roast carrots

ACOD – peas and sweetcorn

COD and I loved every delicious moment of our roast tomato and garlic topping. I also did a roast pattipan because, well, yum!

Here’s the recipe: https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/rice-recipes/roasted-tomato-risotto/

In other news:

• It’s very hot. Did I say that already? The water bills will be staggering with the amount of watering I am doing to keep a few veggies alive
• LOD, EEROD and ACOD are enjoying summer holidays. LOD has taken to sewing and has a product already lined up for this year’s Christmas show. 
• I am back in the office at work which is lovely. I have missed 3D humans.
• If you want to add a great twist to a Spanish omelette, add sweet potato and serve with lashings of garlic farm sweet chilli sauce!
• There is finally a sushi-serving restaurant on the Island and in Ryde! Woohoo! Cadet Beach Club is excellent!
• EEROD’s 8th birthday is coming up and she wants a box of scarves and a full length mirror for dressing up in! And a rainbow cake – watch this space!
• Oh, and ACOD turned 5. We had a beach cake.