Frugal pasties to celebrate a first!

I'm very excited tonight. My son and his girl friend are coming home to stay this weekend. I 'lost' my son for a while to drugs and alcohol, but he came back. By the time he got to 19 years old, this man emerged. He picked himself up, got himself an apprenticeship, trained to be a carpenter and is now in demand.

He left home at 16 and came back three years later and stayed at home until he was 24. I miss him dreadfully. He was only only child until he was six and whilst he was little, I was a single mum and he and I were an invincible team. We were so skint once, that all I had left to feed him before I got my benefits on a Monday morning was an ice pole! He's turned into the most incredible young man. He worked day and night to support his girl friend through her university course. She graduated this week with a first from Plymouth Uni in Fine Art Degree!!!! We love her just as much. Shelley! Beautiful, clever and adored by us. He loves my pasties. I made enough for supper and a couple for him to take with him.

You can see from the picture above, that you need: spuds, onions, swede and beef skirt. I make six pasties from half a kilo of skirt, two onions, a swede and four large potatoes. You need a liberal sprinkling of salt and pepper on the contents. I use far more swede and onions than potatoes as it makes them moister than usual.

Plenty of beef please! Pasties need plenty of egg glaze and baking at 190 degrees for one hour. Then leave them for twenty minutes before eating. We opened the homemade tomato ketchup tonight, which is more akin to tomato relish but still very tasty.

These have cost 58p each. Beef skirt is cheap, only £2.50 for half a kilo. In minutes, dear boy will have eaten them. Welcome home son and congratulations Shelley xxxxx