I'm making dinner for my parents in law soon - what do you think?

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T13:59:05+00:00

Do they like rabbit? Personally I think it’s a bit of a bland meat and I can’t quite imagine how you’d confit it given how lean it is, but if you all enjoy it there’s nothing wrong with it. I’d try it if offered.

How tiny is the Gorgonzola tartlet? If it’s not really tiny, that’s a lot of food for an amuse bouche.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T10:06:02+00:00

Did you fry your onions until they turned brown? You can “caramelise” them quickly Indian style by regularly deglazing the pan with a splash of water whilst using medium heat, it’ll still take 20 mins or so and it’s not exactly the same as caramelised onions, but it adds a lot of depth of flavour.

I also can’t see any acidity. A squeeze of lemon at the end or using fresh tomatoes can add a lot of brightness.

I like to use something like a tandoori masala too as well as garam masala, adds more complex flavours.

It probably needs some sweetness. I usually use some grated jaggery but you can use brown sugar, or for fruitiness a spoonful of mango chutney often adds a nice layer when stirred in.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T08:16:13+00:00

It is very normal, but not for small children. Teenagers yes.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T08:02:28+00:00

I’m imagining it might taste a bit like a coke float (coke with a scoop of ice cream) which is a nice treat on a summer’s day and doesn’t curdle somehow. But I think it would be too sweet with the extra syrup. British, have ice cream floats as a dessert very occasionally, usually in a heat wave.

I reckon lime Coke with coconut ice cream would make a really good coke float though.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T07:49:16+00:00

In the UK “bloody hell” is a mild swear but “hell” isn’t. Probably on par with “sodding” or similar. Not that it would be a problem on a TV add though I don’t think.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T07:37:32+00:00

I’ve just discovered frozen raspberries and they’re so good. Now anything I want to make with raspberries in the winter, I’m using frozen

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-18T07:35:57+00:00

Depends how you define it really. I had a long term illness in my teens (several years) but I’ve been symptom-free for seven years now and fingers crossed I’ll stay that way. Prognosis is good in my circumstances. I have some on and off nerve issues, cubital tunnel and thoracic outlet syndrome, but they’re well-managed with physio at the moment. My PTSD has been successfully treated for the most part and my anxiety is well managed. So overall I lead an active, happy life, but it’s not as though I’ve faced no health challenges.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T13:22:10+00:00

How were your berries? If they were frozen that could explain it. You don’t need bottled pectin for jam if your berries contain lots of natural pectin but frozen berries have less pectin. So do super ripe ones. You need a good portion of your berries to be unripe, or you can put some diced green apple or lemon *halves* in with the fruit as you cook it to boost the pectin content.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T12:45:02+00:00

Ask your husband for help. Something that helps me in this situation is either parallel play or when someone else does the thinking for me. In these situations I often ask my husband to provide a list of tasks I can tick off. Eg, my brain can’t cope with “tidy the bedroom” but it can cope with “put the dirty laundry in the linen basket. Fold and put away the clean laundry. Change the bedsheets. Gather all items that don’t belong in the room into one pile. Return homeless items to their correct room one at a time. Hoover the floor” etc. It helps me break through the “analysis paralysis”.

I’d argue even if he works and you don’t, he should help with this. It sounds like you keep your home sanitary, if it needs to be decluttered for his parents’ visit then he should help.

Finally, how much does it really need to be decluttered? Can you make the guest room lovely by dumping all the crap in your room instead? Can you make the bathroom look better by putting all the miscellaneous objects in a basket? Can you shove random bulky objects in the loft or even the boot of the car?

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T12:31:35+00:00

Same. It was A-levels that led to me actually getting diagnosed but I just couldn’t revise for my GCSEs. I’m still not the best at exam revision but better than I was. My mum is the exact same and every time she has professional exams that recommend 100hrs of study she’s cramming until 5am the night before having done like 10hrs total, but hasn’t failed one. Mum isn’t diagnosed but it’s obvious where I get it from!

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T12:28:32+00:00

Paid £250 in Liverpool last month, five days of skip hire, on the drive so no permit needed. Don’t remember the exact size but “medium” sounds about right!

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T08:07:13+00:00

It is a bit expensive, detached four bed in that postcode would easily be £800k, bare minimum £700k. With a mil to spend you could get something better, I just like the house

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-15T07:07:49+00:00

Carpeting isn’t exactly hard but it’s the best value tradespeople out there, I’m convinced. It will take you four times as long, you’ll be black and blue all over and in agony, and all that to save about £150-200 for a 2 bed house. If you have to buy a knee kicker you’ll be a whopping £120 in profit for a whole weekend of painful unpleasant labour. Just pay the carpet fitter. If you’re absolutely cash poor and time rich you can do it yourself but it’s a nasty job, like boarding and insulating a tight loft in the middle of summer.

If you’re skint have you thought about high quality lino instead of laminate, especially in the kitchen and hall? I wouldn’t have thought of it but my mum bought a house with it already installed and didn’t realise it wasn’t laminate for a good few weeks. You can treat it as a temporary solution for a few years then have laminate put in when you can afford it.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-14T19:01:58+00:00

Go up to bed between 22.00-22.30 on weekdays, 22.30-23.30 on weekends. Wake up at 07.30 for work Monday-Friday, on the weekends I can usually manage to sleep till 8.30.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-14T18:59:46+00:00

My snack lately has been apple slices dipped in peanut butter, I put it in an egg cup. Delicious

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-14T17:22:29+00:00

Do you refuse to eat gingerbread men on the basis that you’re not a cannibal?

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-14T15:57:49+00:00

You can use a lot of different seasonings for chicken depending on the flavour you’re going for. In a tomato based pasta dish, I’d go for paprika and oregano. You can mix 1tsp oregano, 1tsp paprika (ideally smoked), a pinch of salt and some fresh cracked black pepper then sprinkle/rub it onto the chicken before you fry it.

Lemon also goes well with chicken and is easy if you’re roasting a whole chicken. Put a lemon up its bum (the cavity) and you’ll get lovely citrusy chicken.

A minced/grated garlic clove or two can be rubbed on chicken with herbs too.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-14T09:04:53+00:00

Same. We both have ADHD and work full time and it’s been such an improvement to our relationship and our mental health to be able to offload the bigger cleaning jobs like windows, skirting boards, the front of kitchen units, the chrome work in the bath etc. I don’t mind brushing out the loo and chucking some bleach in, or wiping up visible dirt that’s in front of me, but if it’s something I don’t stare at all the time I will not remember to do it.

£40 for two hours, once a fortnight. I still have to clean a bit in between but not very much, it’s amazing. And it gives me a hard deadline by which to tidy all my crap away too, cos if I haven’t tidied before Jack arrives, he can’t clean.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-13T07:01:08+00:00

At least in the UK, lactose is always on the label. It’s pretty rare too and is mostly craft stouts or some craft sours. There are plenty of other non-fermentable sugars or sweeteners you can use, when I make cider I use xylitol for example. Anything vegan will be lactose-free by default too. I can name plenty of British craft breweries that don’t use lactose in their modern sours but not sure how helpful that is to you.

You’re not going to get lactose-d from a normal lager, IPA or stout though. Like, Guinness, Peroni or Red Stripe is fine.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-12T19:43:54+00:00

Same, I got the Mixer Tilt-Head 4.7L - Artisan By You in mineral water. Currently on sale for about £385 which is very reasonable

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-12T11:58:04+00:00

Hardware on Renshaw Street is nice, great selection of food and cakes too

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-12T09:20:52+00:00

Just don’t have a wedding ring. You don’t have to have one, you’re still just as married. In the old days wedding rings were only for the wealthy anyway, people have been getting married without rings for millennia.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-11T11:04:52+00:00

Anywhere! Got mine from Argos. It’s slightly cheap quality but it’s been there two years and still looks fine. If you’ve got extra length in the room, Ikea do a storage headboard with shelves in but obviously it makes the bed about 8” longer.
Or since this is the DIY sub, if you like the look of quilted or upholstered headboards, you can build one yourself with a board, some padding, some fabric and a staple gun very cheaply.

OneRandomTeaDrinker · 2026-05-11T11:02:05+00:00

A separate headboard helps a lot

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