I wanted...I bought...I had

Because he is Mr Spratt to my Mrs, I shall ask the man to choose dinner Saturday night. He thinks in a different way to me - his hankerings tend towards things I would not necessarily have thought of. Last week, for example, I was thinking lamb chops and he was thinking fish and pilau rice and so we had scallops with the rice. And he was right. It was delightful. We had mussels with chilli and coriander and black beans with some cheese to finish - lovely! Sunday we are out, might make noodle salad for supper - could not have eaten a thing after such a magnificent lunch but I had marinated some chicken pieces so I cooked them for lunchboxes. Monday I would like to try some catalan meatballs, Tuesday I am out at least for a while so meat pies, seriously yum might be the ready meal of choice, Wednesday will be pasta some more of the balls but served over mash, Thursday some dal which didn't work out so went to bed hungry! and Friday may well be sausages will be the dal resurrected.

We were a wee bit late setting off this week and arrived to find Borough Market busier than usual. Can only imagine what hell it is by noon. At the Ginger Pig I bought some chicken pieces roasted with honey and soy and eaten for lunches for a couple of days with cold rice, radishes and cucumber and some beef mince half into catalan balls and half into freezer- £12.70

Then I ran across the road to Monmouth for coffee as they no longer have a stall inside the market, despite the fact that they have been there since the very beginning, so the queues are longer and slower. Bought some dark roasted Colombian - £10

Couldn't resist some smoked salmon for breakfast- £5

Lardon for balls sauce from Brindisa in a little tub - £2.75

At Booths I wanted cucumber lunches, fresh mushrooms meatball sauce and was then tempted by dried wild mushrooms pantry, a bright bunch of radishes lunches, another of parsley meatballs and some shallots meant for meatballs but I forgot them so they await their fate in the vegetable rack - £11.80

Mussels from shellseekers for the man's desired Saturday supper - £4.50

Eggs into meatballs from a busy Lizzie at Wild Beef - £1.50

Olives for the meatball sauce from Fresh Olive company, thinking of the lovely Marie that I haven't seen for a while now that she's a country lass - £3.50

Perfect cheeses our contribution to lunch Sunday from Gastronomica, who are still running a little stall instead of their shop due to some ongoing fit out problem, a sizeable hunk of truffle cheese and a robiola, firmer than usual as the milk strikes in Italy means they were being made over 21 days rather than 7 - £19 for both

Had a lovely chat with Ian at Mrs Elizabeth King's pie stall about the way his business has grown over the last decade. He was telling me they only bake Wednesday, Thursday and Friday as pies tend to be a weekend treat and they have constructed their business accordingly. I said it must smell wonderful when the ovens are going full blast and he laughed and said he went to the dentist straight from the bakery one day and, as he was lying on the dentist's chair she examined his teeth and he could hear her sniffing appreciatively behind her mask. Loved the idea! Bought a pork pie Saturday lunch and a couple of pies to have hot Tuesday night- £10

Then to Neals Yard, where they were selling huge hunks of caerphilly for £5 so had to have one, obviously, have nibbled on it and am thinking it will make a lovely cheese sauce as well as milk, cream and apples, since there is still no sign of Chegworth or indeed the Turkish olives, spent £12.90

So a big spend this week - £93.65 - and also bought oil to make spiced oil, oranges, onions, coriander, egg noodles and channa dal, so not a cheap week at all.