習慣叫番梘，也不知道原由，學識做番梘後，覺得叫肥皂才真的名正言順。
番梘，真的用油脂做成，是油脂混和強梘水的化學作用成品，每次做肥皂，用一公斤油脂，加上約百多克氫氧化鈉和三百多克水而成，油脂是主角。
近年每年向農夫買一只羊仔，自家屠宰分份，定有大堆脂肪，會慢火化作一大瓶雪白羊油。這羊油可以煮餸用，但更理想是用來做肥皂，因為用動物油脂做的肥皂，泡沫特別多，遠較以前用橄欖油做的好用。
也不是要用足一公斤羊油，這個配方，用了羊油、芝麻油、蜜蠟、椰子油和橄欖油，對皮膚有各種不同好處。
自家做的肥皂，配方傳統，沒有各式各類化學物，且油脂和梘的化學作用比例，是前者用多0.5%，以保證肥皂不會殘留梘性，會傷皮膚，市場上的一定不會如此，免加高成本，也是一直做肥皂自用的原因，用後皮膚不會有繃緊感覺。
Visited Toryhill House organic farm shop for eggs, milk, cream, butter and steaks, love the farm and their animal welfare and care of environment.
Bought also a pact of beef liver to try, normally I have calf or lamb's liver, first time I find beef liver. The smell is stronger and after rinsing with water a few rounds to remove blood, I soak them in milk to tenderise and reduce odour (according to traditional method) for half a day.
Seared them with sweated onion, garlic, scallion, before serving, add marmalade, tomato paste, soy sauce and 5 spices powder as sauce. Even though well cooked, surprisingly tender and not grainy, delicious.
Found Spanish Padron pepper in a supermarket, can’t help to bring a few bags home. Great memory of this dish in Spain, when they are quickly deep fried in oil, served with a sprinkle of salt.
The easiest way to do that at home is to air fryer them, after shaking with a thin coat of olive oil. 4 minutes one side and 4 the other, sprinkle with salt before serving, exactly like the dish in Spain.
Nice big piece of still juicy haddock in a very thin batter and freshly made potato chips. The seared John Dory is fresh and has crispy skin. Sounds straight forward but so hard to find in Ireland.
I love my air fryer, a rack cooked to crispy outside and still pink inside ready in just 20 minutes, beat the traditional oven.
I seasoned the rack for a day with 5 spices, basil salt and rosemary salt made last year and black pepper.
At the bottom of the air fryer, I place some blanched frozen green bean from last year’s harvest, it will warm up and catch all the dripping from venison. Next to the rack I have onion halves brushed with oil, a meal all in one pot.
順序：
-有艷紅花朶的桃樹，果子味道清淡，樹下種了津菜、士多啤梨；
-光禿禿的是無花果，細看果子葉芽已經現身，七月有甜美果子可吃，樹下是菜芯，第一次種菜芯，非最喜歡的青菜；
-長有白花的是車厘子樹，種了三年，仍然未吃到果子，永遠懷希望；角落是株每年都翻生的physalis 燈籠果，橙黃果子又甜又酸好滋味，八月收成，最遲收成的莓果；樹下種了唐生菜；
-這個raisebed 種了芥蘭苗，棚架旁已經埋下青豆，等待發芽；
-最後一個種了白蘿蔔苗，在台灣買的種子，看看生長如何，上回用香港的種子很快就抽苔，沒有收成；兩旁空間，已經混合撒下紅蘿蔔、紅色黃色甜薯、通菜和芫荽種子，誰先長大就先收成。
天氣仍然冷，十度以下，春天尚未到來，然而，是年種植大計，已經在二月中開始了。
取出金莎小溫室，一輪輪地發種子，第一批以抵得冷的十字花科為主，芥蘭、芥蘭頭、菜芯、白蘿蔔、椰菜仔、津菜、唐生菜等。第二輪是番茄、茄子、甜椒、西瓜、蜜瓜和香草等，種子較細少，又喜歡在較暖的地方發芽。
第三批是大粒的種子，例如甜粟米、青豆、豆角、毛豆、蠶豆、苦瓜等，可以直接種在小盆泥中，放在溫室內的propagator 內，日間有十幾廿度，有望順利發芽。
種植，是每年初要好好計劃的項目，才有望四月底開始，有源源不絕各種蔬菜可以收成，在餐桌上出現。
Saw this recipe on internet and thought what a wonderful idea, I like mayonnaise but really don’t want to eat so much oil. This is an oil free high protein eggy-naise sauce, very smooth texture, a lot of possibilities to add other flavouring, like chop up fresh herbs.
愛爾蘭的樹林覆蓋率，在歐盟是數一數二的低，所以政府受壓要增加樹林比率。其中一個方法，是鼓勵人民植林，付錢，是一個見效快的方法。
今早就參加如此一個講座，講者不是投資銀行職員、不在華麗辦公室進行，而是到一個植林區，參觀樹林，由投資人介紹程序，遇到的問題，和政府的各種資助。
基本上有片合用土地後，政府會付款購買合適樹苗和植樹的所有費用，且每年每一畝植林地，有一筆定量金錢作為投資植林的回報，為期十五至廿年。
視乎土地價錢，一般估計是足夠收回土地價錢有餘。且可申請數項資助，作管理樹林的花費。
往後收採木材，有專門公司負責，以賣出木材的部份價錢作收費，其餘是自己的收益。
這項投資，其中一個賣點是那十幾廿年的資助和木林收入都不用付稅，之後若賣出樹林土地，亦不用付利得稅。
有點似買屋作收租用，從租金慢慢收回樓價後，持續有收入，最後賣樓取回本金，兼賺升值差價。投資樹林，少些人事問題、少受社會經濟影響，可以考慮。
自然最理想的投資者，是有祖家留下的大量土地，零投資，光賺政府每年的付款，和往後賣木材收益。
After butchering the Sika deer recently, the first to cook is one of the lap. I seasoned with mountain spices from Georgia, black pepper and lots of rosemary, all rubbed on with some lard. Rest for a few hours and bake at 140˚C for 2 hours.
Unlike lamb lap that I cook often, venison lap’s ligaments do not soften, even though the meat is already juicy soft. Nice flavour dark red meat, no gamey flavour.
Our yearly enjoyment, a whole organic ham, a portion a week starting in Spring and finish by Autumn. Beautiful deep red meat with pinkish fat, sweet nutty flavour and not too salty.
Nearby hunter informed that he has shot Sika deer and have been aged for 3 weeks, ready to purchase, we bought the whole 20kg animal, for 60 Euro. Very cheap if you buy it whole, when butchered, it will be around Euro 15 per kilo.
Spent an hour to cut up into portions we like, 38 portions for 2, with bones and though tendons for soup, really good value.
In the same oven, bake halved Brussel sprouts, seasoned with salt, pepper and 5 spices powders for a few hours (to soften).
Daffodils are in full bloom here and there in the land, March blooming cherry trees are having a great show, wild sloe trees in the hedge are having load of delicate white flowers. Spring is beautiful and invigorating.
So nice to come back to see the first lot of veg seeds growing well in propagators in the green house.
Cherry tree and pear trees are bearing lots of beautiful flowers, so are peach trees inside green house.
After adding a transparent lid on the asparagus bed to keep soil warmer, the first spear is already up for harvest!
