how much you crave simple foods after the Christmas mayhem? I certainly do. A few days away and time at the office and with my SIL meant we've eaten out far too much, and although it has been good food (in most cases, not all) it means that when I'm cooking at home we end up with some very unusual combinations. DH and I got back our enthusiasm for caesar salad while we were away but I think that much salad in the depths of winter was too much of a shock to my system really.

Tuesday - we got home after 3 days and I threw together the gammon I'd cooked on Christmas Eve, cheeses, olives, cheese biscuits, a caesar salad and various other odds and ends and everyone had as much or as little as they wanted.

Wednesday - my SIL's last night with us and she wanted to treat my parents to dinner so we went out again.

Thursday - very strange. All I could think of consuming was chicken noodle soup. DS suggested scrambled eggs on toast to follow since the chicken noodle soup is just chicken stock and vermicelli noodles. The soup evolved a little with some cocunut milk and Thai flavourings but that's exactly what we had for dinner for just DH and myself and DS. DD is staying with my parents for a couple of nights but DS chose not to.

I've got a couple of large lumps of broccoli which I bought specifically to turn into soup, and I'm hoping the Shropshire Blue cheese I bought will work as well in that as the more common Stilton usually does. I can't quite see any of us eating anything normal for a few days yet, at least not until the kids go back to school on Monday.

Kerri.