EEK! Where did the week go???

Here we are..Monday ...and its been a week since I last posted and I have no meatless Monday for you!!
I should fire myself from this job :P

Anyway my crimes are due to the very enjoyable few days we have spent entertaining my sister and her husband to be.


I hope I can speak for them when I say that although the trip was too short (!!) I think we had a really good time.
Some of this is definitely down to the bikes and general none use of the car.

After flying in to Edinburgh they hired a car to get to us and arrived at lunch time. After lunch and a bit of dithering I thought what the hell and said we should all cycle up to the art gallery.
So 6 off us on various bike set off down the road.
This was also the first time I had really tried out the tag along as well, and as its a nice straight run I really got into a good rhythm and found it easy enough.
An added advantage of the tag along is the incessant prattle of Alfie behind me (although the conversation tends to be one sided, my contributions running along the lines of "Stop pedaling!" and "Stop wiggling!").
As well as a first for the tag a long it was also the first time I had taken 6 year old Owen out on his bike, he having been out with his Dad before that, so when I wasn't yelling at Alfie I was yelling at Owen( "Keep left!!" and "Stay by the verge!" and "Car coming stay straight!" and "SLOW DOWN!!" and often after breaks have been applied "SPEED UP!!")

**sigh** Stressful times!

Reminds me of going for a walk with toddlers...walking so slow you seem to put weight ON rather than burn calories.

Anyway....

It was lovely to get out with our visitors and slowly wind our way up the country lanes to a waiting bit of culture at the end, so much nicer than driving there!

The next day was another really lovely warm autumnal day and while Kim and my soon to be BIL took the kids for a walk, I unhitched the tag along (FREEDOM!!!) and took my sister down to town to pick up the Sunday papers.
Because the weather was so nice we went home the long and scenic way, a way I haven't been home before.
This longer way has a steeeeeeep hill straight out of town, but this temporary inconvenience is well worth it when you reach the top and realise you have @ 2 miles of beautiful countryside lanes, with views all across Bennachie and the Cairngorns AND that it is now 90% DOWNHILL or flat!! **YAYYYYY!!!*
A really lovely ride for the sake of riding, lots of chatting and just admiring the beautiful leaves and patchwork fields that make autumn so special.

Today we went for a walk, 5 1/2 miles in total, up onto Bennachie and a drop down to the Brindy and across fields back to the village.

Before our adventures in car-less-ness, we would have driven down the road a few miles and taken our walk from one of the visitor car parks dotted around the mountain.
Now though we have made the effort to find routes to these walks directly from out house.
Not only does this save us money in fuel (as well as reducing carbon footprints) but also means we get to walk many routes that are either little used or in some cases forgotten.
A hard slog but worth it when up the top of Towlies we had a 360o vista of Aberdeenshire and could see every major landmark for miles.
From Bennachie, across to the Caingorms, tap'o the North over Rynie way, Dunnydeer towards Insch and the village like a toy town in the valley below.
A view like that makes me wish that more people would get out of their cars and explore the treasures of their locality, the views right under their noses.

So often when we have had visitors we have felt the need to "entertain" them, to take them out and about and show off the area, but this time, by doing everything local, even down to having a meal out in the village pub rather than driving out for a take away, I personally think we had a much better time.

In the three days they stayed with us they took their car out once (BIL to be needed some anti-histamines on a Sunday, although we tried to buy some in the little town they had none, so he had to make a trip into the big town).

Viva La Car-less, Viva La Bike, long may this continue!!

Oh and meatless Monday??
I will get one in for you bloggers one day this week :D xx

Meatless Monday; Bolognaise sauce.

Who doesn't love Bolognaise?
Its comfort food for the soul right?
Also most kids love it, especially if you serve it with wiggly, slippery spaghetti ;)

This weeks Meatless Monday is totally vegan and totally tasty...and totally sneaky as well *heehee*

The great thing about a tomato sauce is the scope for hiding things in there...so you might throw in a little extra veg, but when its whizzed up who's to know right?

S0...for The sauce we need ;

1 lrg onion
@6 fat garlic cloves (less if you don't like garlic, more if you LOVE it!)
3-4 sml handfuls of grated veg (I used carrot, swede, courgette (yellow)and cabbage, but use what you have)
2 400g tins of chopped Italian tomatoes
2-3 fresh tomatoes
1 tbs vinegar (apple cider for pref)
2 tsp sugar
1 mug TVP (Textured Vegetable Protein)
1 mug of just boiled water

Chop the onions and crush the garlic, then fry in a pan in a very little oil until starting to get soft. Add the extra veg and again cook until softening. Next add the tomato's (tinned and fresh) then leave to cook until bubbling, then simmer for @ 10 mins.

Meanwhile, in a bowl tip the TVP then add the hot water and stir in. Leave for @ 5 mins until the water has been absorbed.

When your sauce has simmered remove from the heat and then blitz with a blender until smooth.
(no extra veg here heehee)


Return to the heat and add the vinegar and sugar. If so inclined a good glug of red wine also goes very nicely in the sauce! It adds a real punch to it and as the alcohol is evaporated when cooking is fine for kids as well (although some may not like the taste).
Let the sauce cook briskly until it begins to reduce a little and then add the TVP and leave on a low heat while you cook your pasta.


You can use any pasta (including spaghetti!). I used Doves Farm gluten free pasta this time.

Once cooked, drain the pasta, add to the sauce and mix well, sprinkle with basil and serve.

Nutritional yeast is lovely sprinkled over the top instead of dairy Parmesan or you can source an alternative. Free From do a parmezzano shaker which is suitable for vegans and taste just like the real thing :)

Oh and you can save some of that wine for dinner as well ;)

Poll results; Global warming.

What in your opinion is the most important domestic tool against global warming?


Vegetarianism/veganism 2 (33%)

Re-cycling 1 (16%)

Giving up a car 5 (83%)

Only buying local goods/food 3 (50%)

Re-using plastic bags 1 (16%)

Using domestic green power 1 (16%)

Living off grid 1 (16%)

Not having children 0 (0%)


Another multiple answers poll.
Some interesting answers...certainly NOT what the councils push for you to DO YOUR BIT!

A massive 83% cited giving up a car as the most important tool you have against global warming. I'm way up there with that. Bikes are a win win situation for the car less.
Lower carbon impact in production and shipping, zero emissions when used, easy and cheap to repair yourself and barring a write off, it should last you forever. Compare that with the cars cardon footprint.....up to 50% of a cars impact is from factory to showroom alone. And lets be honest..if you get 5 years out of a car you a a very lucky person.

Hmm...and WHY do the government not send you fliers and pay for advertising for that little gem ?? ;)

50% of you are in favour of buying local goods/food.
This works along the same lines as the carless lifestyle, and obviously complements it. Its a no brainer. Do you buy your veg from a farm shop, where the produce may have travelled less than a mile? Or do you drive into town and buy veg from another country?

No one suggest you can't enjoy the odd banana in winter, but by and large buy local, buy in season. If a food product is in season and local you are getting maximum health benefits for yourself and the planet.

33% are in favour of a vegetarian diet to fight global warming.
Factory farmed animals churn out more emissions than cars globally.
Between the forests that are cleared to grow crops to feed them (crops that could be feeding people), the effluent pumped out of the factories into our waterways, even the fact that factory farmed beef are fed grain instead of grass (un-natural for a cows stomach) causing the cow to ..(ehem)fart, a huge factory corral of beef cows with bad tummies is kicking out the same amount of bad gasses as a dirty factory, and you have a valid reason to stop or at least cut down on your meat. (See also buying local again).

Re-cycling,Re-using plastic bags,Using domestic green power and Living off grid came in joint with 16%.
I find it gratifying that you people realise the tiny impact these heavily subsidised actions have on global warming. When all have e the 3 R's drummed into us and yes the re-using of things is something I do alot, but where does all our recycling go?? Not long ago in the UK there was a public outcry as ships of recycling were sent to China to be processed....dumping OUR rubbish on someone elses doorstep. There are also tales of whole recycling lorries simply emptying their contense into the rubbish dumps.
I for one would like some more information about how, where and what our recycling is doing.
Using domestic green power is an admirable thought but for many people unpractical. Far better to have a central power plant and deliver our electric that way.
And off grid living??

The holy grail??

Again, a dream, and one lived by many people, but not something that can be taken up on such a scale as to make an impact.

The genie is out of the bottle.
We like electricity and white goods, we like to turn on lights and wash our clothes without a stream and a rock.

Far better and very feasible, to find ways to keep it going without leaving a footprint on the earth.

Get ready for the Basfords to hit the road EN MASS!!

Today Kim had to drive a friend into town (in her car) because she has a broken wrist.
Never one to waste a golden opportunity, we decided we should go to our favourite bike dealer and pick up the tag along bike for our youngest, Alfie.

What a piece of equipment!!

Alfie jumped up and down when he saw it and when he realised that it meant we could go out together.

His older brothers have already been out and about at weekends on their bikes, Owen, who is 6, has even been down to town and back a round trip of @8 miles!

Alfie however (being 5) is not ready to be let loose. He still needs help getting going on his bike and dismounts by stepping off the bike and letting it fall over! This will open up a whole new chapter in our cycling and hopefully this weekend we will be able to take a trip out as a family and really feel mobile without a car.

Be warned though parents. Cycling can bring out the competitive edge in your children!

Last weekend Kim blithely bet Ollie that he couldn't cycle all the way up a really steep hill...foolish Daddy...he bet him £5, thinking he would be bound to fail.
Well guess who now owes his son money??
Ollie powered to the top of the hill and stopped with a double punch to the air and a "YEEEEESSSSS!!!!"

Daddy FAIL! lol.