Tuesday 15 October 2013

Slow Cooker Fish Curry, delicious for the kids :)

I know this recipe could probably take about 5 minutes if you fried the fish, but I find it easier to prep around lunchtime, when little ones sleep, and then put in the slow cooker a few hours before the school run.
Chris and I had this for our dinner and the kids ate most of it, so the next night I did it for them, and again they devoured it!

For 2 - easily doubled!
250g firm white fish, cut into strips
3 tbs natural yoghurt (I use fat free Greek)
1/2 tbs Tandoori Masala Powder (found in the ethnic section in Sainsburys)

Combine the yoghurt and the Masala powder.  Coat the fish and chill for 20-30mins.
Put into the slow cooker and cook on low for around 3 hrs.

Served with rice for the kids, to ours I added mushrooms to the fish, and accompanied with sliced red onion, tomato and coriander (as per pic).

Delicious!
Annie x

Friday 11 October 2013

A collection of the guest posts/ramblings I've been asked to write..........

I have now been privileged to be invited to guest write a number of posts, newspaper articles etc. so thought I'd put them all together in one place for prosperity my mum.

Q&A with Bolton ahead of our game 28/1/14

QPR Fans Weird and Wonderful Superstitions in the Brent and Kilburn Times Jan 2014

Stonewall Post in the Brent and Kilburn Times

My all time QPR XI for the QPR InsideR Online Magazine

Bolton vs QPR August 2013

The Highs and Lows of Being a QPR Fan

there are a couple more floating around somewhere which I'll add when I remember where I sent them, oh dear..........

Annie x

Sunday 6 October 2013

Record Breakers QPR v Barnsley 5-10-13

I reckon there may be some sore heads amongst our hoopers this morning, and for good reason!

Saturday 5th October 2013, at home to Barnsley, and a club record breaking moment on the cards for @Robert1Green
Back in 1967 (the year of my birth), the late Peter Springett was the last QPR goalkeeper, before Rob, to keep 7 clean sheets in a row.  

The pressure was on Rob today, to make it a record-breaking 8, but you wouldn't have known it as he was his usual calm between the sticks.  

During the second half, particularly at 2-0 up (more about that in a bit), a lot of us fans were chanting "Greeno" but smiling he simply gestured for us all to calm down haha!




Before I go back to the match itself, take a little looksee at how the table ended that year, makes interesting reading indeed.

Our very own @RodneyMarsh10 played that season too, and he was at the game to watch, and was very excited about Rob getting the record.  Just brilliant.




The game itself was fairly boring in the first half, we didn't look too troubled, though there was nearly a scrambled Barnsley goal, and we went in 0-0 at half-time.  The second half was much livelier, and a 66th min strike by Charlie Austin saw us off the mark.   He also performed his trademark #slidingmoves for our @elmodedude - you need to watch the fans forum (minute 22) featuring our Emily for this to make sense, even @OfficialQPR tweeted about it during the game.   Loving the #QPRTwitFam before, during and after!  By the way 'Arry this is our Emily, Queen of the Park Rangers Blog :)

The second goal was a penalty on 87 minutes, again calmly taken by "our" Charlie Austin.   What a fantastic day.   We are now second to Burnley (Charlie's previous club of course) on Goal Difference, with a game in hand.

Next game we are away to Millwall, never an easy fixture, but come on you Super Hoopersssssssssssssssss.

This was also the 60th anniversary of Floodlights being installed at Loftus Road by the way.  We played Arsenal that day back in 1953, let's hope we get to play them again some time soon (shhhhhhhhhhhh don't jinx it)!

Annie x

Friday 4 October 2013

Slow Cooker Nepalese Lamb Curry

Kauli Matar Ra Masu
(Lamb Curry with Cauliflower and Peas)

In 2001 Chris and I travelled to Nepal.  It was a fantastic place, we did some great trekking, and throughly enjoyed their local fayre.   Unfortunately our holiday was cut shot by the killing of the Nepalese Royal family.   As the news spread, all the men shaved their heads and we even saw the funeral pyre, as it is custom to burn the bodies immediately.   We basically got the last flight out of the country!   I feel for them as tourism has been majorly effected, but I would definitely be back in a heartbeat!
Whilst there I picked up a Nepalese cookbook.   I hadn't looked at it in years, but decided to have a thumb through recently.  I thought I'd have a go at converting one for the slow cooker, and this is the result :)

Ingredients
Tbsp Oil                                                                                           4 garlic cloves chopped
1 cinnamon stick                                                                               Pinch of black pepper
2 bay leaves                                                                                     150g peas, fresh if possible
4 cardamom pods, bruised                                                                1 tbsp ground coriander
1kg lamb                                                                                         1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp fresh ginger sliced                                                                  1 tsp garam masala
Salt to taste                                                                                     2 red chillies (to taste)
1 tsp turmeric                                                                                  Fresh chopped coriander to garnish
1 small cauliflower

Preheat the slow cooker to low.  Heat oil in a large frying pan, add all the ingredients - APART FROM CAULIFLOWER AND PEAS - and ensure lamb is sealed and coated well in all the other ingredients.   Add to the slow cooker and cook for 6-8 hours.   As you can see from my pic I added the cauliflower from the start too, but although it tasted lovely, it was mush having cooked too long, so I would now add the cauliflower and peas after the 6-8 hrs, stir well to coat, and then cook for a further 45 mins to an hour.

I will also add a further chilli next time - but then I do have a cold so it might have affected my taste buds :)

Enjoy!
Annie x

Wednesday 2 October 2013

A Right to Reply following Homophobic Backlash

I was privileged to be asked to write a guest article on the Brent and Kilburn times recently.  I chose to write about the recent Stonewall campaign, and how proud I was that QPR and, in particular, Joey Barton were #RBGF (right behind gay footballers).  You can see the article here!

You can see from some of the comments that this drew out some of those homophobes, and when I mentioned the campaign on twitter a few weeks ago I had the same crap!   Whilst I was proud my club were behind the campaign, I am disgusted at some of the fans we have, who display exactly that behaviour.

My lovely friend @AndyBasildon sent me the following, which I think is brilliant!

"You are at an away match, it’s the last few minutes of the game. The one goal is all you need to make it to the final, a break! He makes a run for it, the goalie is off his mark this is the chance.....GOAL!! On the pitch your top man runs to the terrace, his shirt above his head, all the others players have lifted him up, hugged him. But you don’t notice any of this! The elation from the terrace, the noise to your left, a total stranger to your right.........  A woman, you can`t hug a woman in case her husband flattens your nose, even though she has the same team shirt on as you, and have just experienced the same joy and elation. Instinctively you turn to the man next to you and hug, shout, bounce up and down, your pint is flying in all directions, the joy!

Press pause for a moment: Homophobia – What the hell just happened there? “Homo” is short for Homosapien or Man, to use its other shortened word.  “Phobia” is fear of something like spiders etc. So you have a fear of another man?  In elation you have just hugged a complete stranger, and on the pitch witnessed grown men show an act of what could be classed as homoerotic, hugging another man... So what if a player is a homosexual? What do you think he is going to do on the pitch when a goal is scored, give goal scorer a BJ in front of the crowd?

Comments online have said things like “next Stonewall will be bringing on the Village People at half time”. So is it acceptable to the ladies in the crowd to bring on a couple of lesbians in a paddling pool full of jelly? 

Football isn’t about sex it’s about the great game!

Stats claim 6.1% of heterosexual man have had or thought about a homo or Bi sexual experience. Count the men on the pitch, now look around the terrace. Do you think a gay man is going to buy an expensive ticket to a match in the hope the team will score a goal just so he can hug you? Get Real.


It’s not about which side of the team a player bats for off the pitch, it’s about the team he plays for ON the pitch. Homophobia in football – Man up!."

Cheers Andy, for the record they don't want us birds there either, thank the Lord these idiots are in the minority!