Getting colder and colder

Goodafternoon everybody!

Yes, it definately is getting colder here. Today temperature isn;t much more as around 6-7C, and later this week it will drop even more to just 4C and and at night here and there there already is some frost at the ground. Brrrrr, I don'tlike it, the more because we have an Eastern wind blowing, which makes it feel even colder. To have a positive note on this weather report, we still have some sunshine, so it looks somewhat friendly. But...... we may have some snowfall around the middle of the week. Perhaps it will be only wet snow, but still..... the white stuff is trying to make some kind of invasion LOL!

Yesterday a lot of children were all excited because Sinterklaas was coming to the Netherlands on his boat from Spain, with a lot of presents for all the good children!

It is tradition that during his stay here the children are allowed to put their shoe in front of the chimney( or near a door, because not many people have a real fire place anymore, and normally the Black Peters came through the chimney) and the next morning they might find some sweets in it.
I remember it well from my childhood and it is a wonderful time.
A bit the same as Santa Claus in a lot of countries.

In our life it is rather quiet at the moment. We do our daily things, it fills the time always more than you think.
I wrapped up the Christmas presents I need to send away in a box, and I am proud of myself, hahaha. The box is standing near to me and I will bring it to the post this week. I know, it is rather early, but I really want it to arrive on time, last year it took such a long time, it only arrived after Christmas! Now that isn;t what we want, is it?
And you will see, that it will arrive within may be two weeks, so much too early, but better this than the alternative!

Today I already prepared our meal for this evening, well, I did cut up all the things needed for it. I will make a stew with onion and carrot. I don;t know if you have ever eaten it or even heard of it. It is a very known winter meal here in Holland, and best is it with a piece of smoked sausace(it is a raw one that you have to warm up(not boil) in hot water for around 20-30 minutes.

I have the recipe for you(one of the many variations LOL), if you might want to try it . It is for 4 persons, so easy to make more or less.
Ingredients
1 kg of winter carrots
1 kg of potatoes
500 grams of onions
1 block of beef broth
Smoked sausage(but you also can have a meat ball, or beef stew with it, or whatever is to your liking)
pepper
salt

 Preparation

     Cook the potatoes for 15 - 20 minutes, cut the onions into pieces and the winter carrots into strips.
     Boil the carrots and onions together with the block of beef broth for about 20 minutes.
     Drain the potatoes and vegetables together in a pan and coarsely mash. Then make the smoked sausage warm.
     Then season the stew with salt and pepper. The smoked sausage can be served separately or in small pieces through the mash.
Also very nice with it are small smoked bacon strips(we can buy them raw here and then we fry them ourselves in a frying pan for some minutes). Then you have to be careful with the salt, because the bacon already is really salty!
Have a bit of nice thick gravy with it and ..... enjoy your meal.

That was it for this week.  I think I will sit down on the couch and watch a bit of sport. May be I will be brave enough this week to start on a Christmas kit. I should start early on it, because I am rather slow in designing at the moment.For today I have a fresh finished kit(just finished and uploaded it yesterday!), named Just Imagine that.......


Wishing you a lovely week, stay safe and healthy!

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