Hi folks, BBC2 here, hope you had a good weekend and I hope you are coping with the build up to Christmas! Everywhere I look someone or something is telling me it’s that time of year when I should spend my money (leaves me cold) when I’ve done my best to hang onto it all year.

I know I’m not doing myself any favours here by telling you about Max’s pilchard treats and how I came by the ingredients for these treats, as it will only add to my reputation as tight and a skin flint, but here goes nothing…BBC1 suggested I should make Max some treats, and as he has been looking in the cupboards and had seen a tin of pilchards he suggested I use them for Max’s treats.

BBC1 does not like pilchards – they are mine. I like them on toast as a snack and a 425g tin would be too much for Max’s snack, so I took 155g (the size as a small tin) out of the tin for Max and intend to eat the rest myself!

The pilchards combined with leftover plain boiled rice meant the treats cost next to nothing. You can cut them into any size or shape you like, I made one a heart shape in the hope Max would not see me as being so mean…

Ingredients
155g/5½oz tin of pilchards in tomato sauce
400g/14oz plain flour
370g/13oz cold boiled rice

Method
Put the flour and the cold rice in a food processor and pulse until the rice and the flour resemble fine breadcrumbs. Then add the pilchards and pulse until the mixture comes together in a ball. Put the mixture onto a lightly floured surface and knead the dough for a second or two to bring it together, you may need to add a little flour if the dough is sticky, but this will depend on the liquid in your pilchards. Now roll out the dough to about ½ to ¼ inch thickness and cut off strips of about 1 inch wide, then cut each strip into small pieces about 1 inch. Place on a lightly oil baking sheet and place in a preheated oven 160c fan for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown and dried out completely. Leave to cool on the baking sheet and when cold send them to our dog Max because he loves them! I hope your dog likes them as much.

BBC1: Following BBC2’s theme re Strictly Come Dancing in his delicious Banana & Walnut Cake post… I am sure that Max and all his friends would give this a 10 out of 10 for flavour and execution, but a 9 out of 10 for generosity!

Also, I may have alluded to BBC2’s propensity for ‘careful accounting’ or ‘budget-control’ in previous posts, (too many to list here😉) but, I have also said I have learnt from this and in these days of economic turmoil across the globe it is essential. I don’t mean to sound ‘preachy’, but surely we need to learn from our forebears and turn away from the ‘throw-away and ready-meal culture’ we seem to live in?

Just a thought…your comments are always welcome…

…Just a couple of pics a couple of our local beaches where Max goes for his walk everyday…

Just time for a little sit down in our favourite rock pool…