And this week...I bought

We have a quiet week next week - so far no plans to go out at all. We also have some potatoes to harvest this weekend so I'm planning simple but fabulous for Saturday night - omelette, buttered new potatoes and fresh herb salad had steak instead of omelette. Possibly strawberries and cream for dessert sadly not, the man didn't fancy it unless it was eton mess. Sunday I want to make a spiced roast pork as I have some veg left over from last week and want to use them to make chick pea and roast veg salad for lunchboxes. Monday I think duck salad in the french style - have some duck bits in the fridge that will go nicelyit was indeed but not till Thursday night, we had fresh pasta and salad instead. Tuesday I'm wondering about pasta e fagioli - eat some, freeze some no again (so much for planning!) we had a spiced mutton stew with dill rice - I wanted to use the dill with plenty left for the freezer and Friday night. Wednesday chinese perhaps - red cooked beef from the freezer and some stir fry veg and rice went out to Wright Bros for beef and oyster pie, Thursday pasta perhaps salad, Friday another salad spiced mutton with cous cous - it is summer after all!

Though it is summer according to the calendar it is a very long way from warm. Saturday, in fact, was blowy and cold and the market, at about 9am was pretty empty. We went to Ginger Pig where they had a big sign out the front saying 45 day aged rump £14.95 per kilo. That was the end of the plan to have omelette for supper! Halved it, one lot in the freezer, the other grilled and served with little potatoes and rocket from the garden. Bought a very very big slice, also some pork shoulder spiced and roasted Sunday night and then into lunches for the week and a little diced mutton for an African stew Tuesday night, again on Friday and one serving into the freezer and in no time at all I had spent £39.90. So much for frugality.

Then to Booths for sweet potatoes mash with spiced pork and into african stew where they collapsed and thickened it nicely, fresh courgettes steamed Sunday night, bananas intended for lunches but they had turned black by Monday so I made a banana and walnut loaf because I can't throw away a whole bunch of bananas, garlic, lettuce, cucumber salads, dill spiced pork Sunday, dill rice Tuesday and some still left, oranges zest with the pork and juiced by the man for breakfast Sunday and carrots mutton stew and grated with salad Thursday night - £8.90

Then to Gianni for cheese - we sampled three very different ones and chose the one in the middle - a hard, crumbly toma style cheese snacking and still plenty left, then had to have a burrata Sunday with bread and salami for lunch which is a variation of mozzarella cheese with slightly elastic skin that breaks open with a spoon to reveal soft curds and cream. The flavor is creamy soft with a gentle tang that lingers on the palate and the texture is both meltingly liquid and lightly chewy. There's no other cheese like it. It is easily one of the man's favourite things - £10.50

Olives snacking from taste of Turkey - rich, crinkly dried black ones - £2.60

Fresh pasta Monday night and as good as it was last week from Gastronomica because it was sensational last week and I wanted to revisit the experience - even if you can never go back - and some fennel salami Saturday sandwich and Sunday with burrata to go with the mozzarella - £7.20

Then to my delight I discovered Marie was working the Good Olive Company stall - haven't seen her for weeks - so had a lovely chat to her for half an hour or so - and suddenly the market was very busy, don't know where they all came from!

Went to Tony's for peppers and aubergine - roasted with tomatoes and courgettes and onions left from last week for chick pea salad for lunches £2.70

Then to Neals Yard for milk and yoghurt had some cooked rhubarb in the freezer so breakfast this week with the yoghurt, very summery -£7.80

Then to Flour Power for a cottage loaf toast! - but no brownie - so only £1

And lastly bought a ciabatta fresh weekend bread, and not too many holes from the Italian cheese stall that has inhabited Maria's café site since she moved into the market proper - £3

So not a cheap week - £83.60

Didn't buy a lot extra - butter and flour to make my banana cake, and some bread to go with salad Thursday, and a packet of borlotti beans for soup that's yet to materialise. Ended up being out Wednesday night for a splendid dinner at Wright Bros.

This time last year we were mostly eating spiced rice rather than dill rice and herbed crumb aubergine