Events for This Week Beginning 22nd & 29th August 2016 

Here are some that I have visited once or several times since 2007:-

CROMFORD MILLS
SatNav: DE4 3RQ
Tel 01629 825995

Once upon a time, I lived very close to the Mills namely Tansley and Matlock Bath and it was a stone's throw away from me back then. These days, it's only a 20 mins journey and I still love it there. If you've come up to Peaky, Cromford Mills a must and as you can discover the story, try dressing up as a mill worker, check out how it looked in Arkwright's era and gain an insight as to how the waterwheels work. Promise, you will have some much to do for the whole family and there won't be a dull moment!

Why not try the Guided Tour which starts at 11am for £5 and the Canal Boat Ride and these are on everyday! All the rest of the Bank Holiday fun finished on Monday 29th August.

Finally, for those of you that are looking for a unique office, why not take a peep at Cromford Creative which is a new managed workspace scheme for the creative industries within the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site in Cromford. It's EEC funded, hhmm, Brexit might have changed all that but hey let's keep going there to show our support and who needs the EEC anyway, eh?

OUR VERY OWN QUALITY BUTCHERS RIGHT HERE in PEAKY!
My Very First Neighbourhood BBQ in Biggin
SatNav: SK17 0DT
Tel 01298 84811

I decided on the spur moment to just have a BBQ on Friday 26th August 2016, invite my closest friends and a few of my neighbours. I went to town in buying stuff , bought party hats, bunting, cocktail shaker, and loads and loads of food and drink. I just cooked as I went along as I wasn't sure who was gonna turn up. My all star food was Stanedge Farm's burgers and sausages that people had and instantly noticed how tasty their food was, and I didn't have to do a thing to them. No seasoning, no razz ma tazz, just quality top class meat. It's not the first time I had a BBQ in Biggin, as I am constantly outside when the sun's shining, either gardening, chilling or bbq-ing after finishing work.

They haven't updated their website but I am certain they've won more awards since 2013 and here are just a few of them for eg at the almighty Bakewell Show 2013, they won the Best Pork Pie and Best Product in the Show. They were also winners of 5 classes in the categories of Pork Sausage, Black Pudding, Pork Pie, Haslet and their Speciality Pie. I absolutely insist that you pay them a visit but the only snag is that they are open only from Thursday to Sunday.

My BBQ started in the early afternoon and went right up to past midnight, really enjoyed it. Isn't England the best place to be in the whole wide world when the sun comes out and warms us all up?


OUR VERY OWN SK17 HARTINGTON BREWERY
Charles Cotton Hotel & Pub, Hartington
SatNav: SK17 0AL
Tel 01298 84229

The Royal Oak Pub, Hurdlow
SatNav: SK17 9QJ
Tel 01298 83288

Our Very Own Waterloo Inn Pub, Biggin*
SatNav: SK17 0DH
Tel 01298 84284
*Note: Waterloo does not always serve it but if you keep asking, they may just do it!

I once had the immense pleasure of tasting some beers at a festival in Hartington and I was really taken aback how tasty they all were, so much so I saved the menu list of beers. I've just called the brewery and sadly they are not kitted out to do mini tours for the public, such a crying shame. So, I did the next best thing and got the names of a 3 pubs that serve their beer, so please go there and come back and tell me all about it by leaving a comment on here! Here's that list of beers in elegant alphabetical fashion:-

Arbour Light
Boondoggle
Butts Pale Ale

Chained Oak

Fortyniner
Hartington IPA
Hartington Bitter
Littlemoor Citra

Long Hop

Oat Mill Stout

Poets Pippin Cider

Sir Phillip

Strawberry Sweet

White Nancy

Wincle Waller


DERBYSHIRE WALK for LIFE GROUP at GREAT LONGSTONE
MapMyWalk App Stats: 3.8 Miles > 1H:48M:41S > 28:53 minutes per mile
Time & Date: 10am, Thursday 1st September
Break: tba 
SatNav: DE45 (Park Opposite the White Lion Pub)

This is my all time favourite walk with the Bakewell Group as it's both a challenging and stunning walk with a cinsistent change in the scenery. We also walk past a farm that sells horse meat to France, I am unable to confirm this as it's just a rumuor amongst us walkers. I am concerened about this farm as the horses do look rather poorly and unkempt.

NEXT TISSINGTON's VILLAGE CRAFT FAIR
Village Hall, Tissington
SatNav: DE6 1RA
Tel 01335 352200

Oh, I absolutely insist you check out the Tissington Village Craft Fairs as they show off our very talented artisans. Go along and chat to them and after you are done, check out the hall or have a lovely cup of coffee or tea at the cafe. The next one is the weekend of 10th to 11th of September 16.
You may just see me there too!

How to Cook a Malaysian Curry using an Old Indian Kerala Recipe that I Tweaked ...

Preheat oven. 

Heat a saucepan, make sure it’s hot, then insert half a cup of oil.

Ensure the oil is really hot.

1. Then, throw in a 8 cloves and 4 cardamoms, close the lid and wait for it to pop.

2. Then, insert 4 cloves of garlic and wait for it to go golden brown. 

3. As soon as the garlic is golden brown, remove all the cloves and cardamoms with a spoon and be extremely careful as it’s very hot. I normally take the saucepan away from the stove, wait for it to cool for a bit and slowly remove the spices, try using a spoon or ladle with a long handle. 

Most people leave it in but I prefer it out as it can ruin your meal when you crunch into these strong tasting spices. It doesn’t need to stay in as the oil has extracted all of its goodness, thus the reason for the oil to be hot.

4. Then just get this ready on the side, mix 2 large tablespoon of any "Malaysian" blended curry powder in a mug of hot water with 1 stock cube. (see below for weblink)

5. Slice a red onion and throw this into the saucepan and wait for it to go golden brown. Then, as soon as the onions are golden brown, pour in the mug of curry powder.

6. Then, insert 2 mugs of boiling water into the mix.




7. Boil it on low heat, insert either your meat, fish or any vegetables. For example if you have opted for say breast chicken, use 2 or 3 slices for this mix.

8. Then, transfer the dish onto a baking tray and leave it in the oven on low heat for 1 hour 10 minutes.

9. Then, after 30 mins, pour in a tin of coconut milk and sprinkle with any herbs of your choice.
Note: Chefs proclaim that certain herbs give off a particular taste and this I found to be utter nonsense. I've experimented with them all meticulously over 3.5 decades and trust me it does not affect the taste one little bit, personally I think it's a fallacy and myth! It's the curry powder blend and the quality of the ingredient that affects the taste!

10. Sprinkle the dish with fresh coriander or finely chopped parsley. Leave it to cool for 4 hours, then keep it in your refrigerator for 24 hours.

11. Then, serve it with rice, chapati or roti and cucumber raita. This is the secret of serving up a quality curry as for some unknown reason, a curry needs to permeate into the ingredients overnight. Enjoy!




http://theasiancookshop.co.uk/adabi-malaysian-curry-powder-kari-ayam-dan-daging-6734-p.asp  

I love painting now and again and here's some of my works ...

Biggin-eers Guide to High Altitude Gardening
I am nervous about my beloved sweet corn (Zea Mays L. var. Rugosa or Saccharata)

As you know from my previous post on my beloved Zea Mays L, I was extremely nervous about taking them out into the wild. When I mean wild, things are pretty wild up here as the winds are strong, the weather can turn in an instant. One day whilst working on my computer, I saw right before my very eyes four seasons in an hour, sleet, snow, rain and pure glorious sunshine. So, I have every right to be nervous.

As I absolutely love gardening, I keep a manual diary of all my tasks since 2014 when I moved to Biggin. Perhaps, I ought to quote my gardening diary for my sweet corn adventure. Here's how it went:-

"Oh, it's a special entry into my diary today the 23rd July 16 as I finally took out all my sweetcorn. They have been indoors for nearly 4 months! At least half the plot was already dug, so I just had to dig the other half and I cut it to the length of my lounge window. I was so excited that I actually got up very early to make a head start as I had to go to 2 or 3 events this afternoon.

My split and segmented compost heap was thrown in as good measure, mixed it in with the newly turned soil. I saved all the grass patches and placed them on my window sill to dry out completely. Then, I slowly planted my sweetcorn one by one, also carefully placed my bamboo stick beside it so as to keep it nice and sturdy as a support.

Then, I sprinkled the soil with that magic phosphate which it absolutely loves and is probably addicted to as it appears to be some kind of a drug to plants? Then, I lovingly watered each one. Then, I had to sprinkle it with slug pellets to give it some hope of prospering and I am not fond of doing that as everything in nature is there for a purpose. My window now looks lonely and empty as it's cleared off all plants. Despite my anxiety about taking them outside, it's also very gratifying to finally see them out in the wild.

They must love the extra room and I cannot wait to see them grow rapidly. I couldn't have chosen a more perfect day to plant them too as the sun was so hot today too. Hooray!" That was the end of my special diary entry, my first trial with sweet corn 1,000 feet above sea level. My last height measure was 36" from soil to the tip end of the longest leave, must do just a stork measure next time.

As I am being an over protective parent and want to give me little hunnies the best chance to survive, I made my own plastic cover to keep em nice, snug and warm. At the moment, I am not sure how long to shield them as I've never done gardening at this altitude before, let's wait and see.

I do intensely hate that word "Weed" as it conjures up negative thoughts ...
If it's produced by nature, it's perfect in every sense of the word and a plant is a plant!

The Common Teasel (Dipsacus Fullonum)

I am reluctant to call this a weed, it is a gorgeous and majestic plant which I adore and it's thriving at 1,000 feet above sea level. It's known as the "Wild Teasel", "Fuller's Teasel" or "Venuscup Teasel".

The prickly flower head will give others joy throughout the entire year if they are at ground level, but not up here as I am only going to enjoy it's beauty for just 3-4 months, but hey I am not complaining. I am just thrilled that it's flourishing here, so high up.

This magic little biennial reproduces by seed that will germinate in the late summer and early fall and in winter it presents itself as a basal rosette. As we are so high here, we only saw the flowering in August and the bees have gone mad for them. Check out my photos.

By the way, it was gorgeous today in Biggin and I had a BBQ and made paella! Here's my evidence:-

Bloggers that Talk the Talk and Never Walk the Walk

I've often come across blogs and websites that simply write about various topics but have neither experienced the task or undertake the role. Well, not here on Biggin SK17 as I do go out a lot and check out these events myself. So, no need for comparison sites dot coms which has all got a little over the top. I've also been walking in the Peak District 2007, so I literally walk the walk too. So, what's up next? This week's a treat:-

Introducing Feature of the Week: The Ashbourne Village
The Lamplight Restaurant
Address: 4 Victoria Square, Ashbourne DE6 1GG
Phone: 01335 342279

I've selected the Lamplight as it is an excellent restaurant and I insist you go. You are made extremely welcome and comfortable by the chef/owner and staff. It stands in a 1493 building with exposed beams, gorgeous fireplace and it's experimental Anglo-French cuisine. I've been there a few times and even mentioned that their food is priced too low for what it is, as it stands high above all its neighbouring competitors. Not a huge wine list but sufficient.

4th Thursday (SatNav DE45 1PH)
No Derbyshire Walk for Life due to the Bakewell Show, but it commences back to normal at Edensor next Thursday 11th at 10am


6th Saturday Longnor Flower Festival (SatNav SK17 0PA)
St Bartholomew Church and it's open from 10:30am to 5:30pm

7th Sunday Biggin Village Hall (SatNav SK17 0DL) 
Car Boot & Table Top Sale


12th Friday Alstonefield & District Friendship Club (SatNav DE6 2FY)
Visit to Moorlands at Owler Bar for a carvery lunch, then onto Castleton for a little wander round, a coach will pick up from neighbouring villages. Call Lorraine on 01335 310353 or Ann 01298 84394


Anytime During the Week: Garden Farm, Riber, Matlock (SatNav DE6 2FY)
I have been meaning to visit this farm which is only 20 mins away from me as it has a unique concept, called "Farm Share". It is an innovative way of supplying you with top class organic and free range food at very reasonable prices. Farm Share is a community thing that is supported by an agricultural scheme, basically we the customers support the farm to ensure that it stays a farm. So, we are their direct customers instead of being supplied by supermarkets or grocery shops. It's the next best thing to having our local trade back instead of all our funds filtering off to some almighty monstrous head office in London. Let's keep it in Derbyshire!

Treat Share: £20 per month
Meat Share: £60 per month
Poultry Share: £20 per month
Vegetable & Fruit Share: £30 per month
Tel 01629 530708
Mobile 07711 580252