Innholdsfortegnelse for 29-Nov-22 i Woman's Weekly

In the bleak midwinter These days, I live in a rural farming community, and that’s one of those jobs, like emergency services or health professionals, where work can’t just stop for high days and holidays. In fact, one of my farming friends has never had a proper birthday celebration as an adult because he was born in March, right in the middle of lambing. However, Christmas has always seemed a time when we connect most with the natural world, as we bring holly, ivy and mistletoe into the house, and so in spite of the difficulties, farmers love to celebrate it just as much as the rest of us. See page 10 to find out how they do it.…

RICH BEEF RENDANG This classic slow-cooked Indonesian curry is full of flavour, with its rich, melt-in-the-mouth beef. SERVES 6 PREP 20 MINS COOK 2 HRS 40 MINS For the curry paste: ✣ 80g toasted desiccated coconut ✣ 1tbsp coriander seeds ✣10 dried bird’s eye chillies, soaked in hot water ✣3 shallots, chopped ✣ 4 garlic cloves, peeled ✣ 1tbsp galangal paste ✣ Thumb-size piece ginger, peeled and chopped ✣ 1tsp ground turmeric ✣ 2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, sliced ✣ 6 kaffir lime leaves, stalks removed ✣ 1tbsp dark brown sugar ✣ 2tbsp vegetable oil For the curry: ✣ 1tbsp vegetable oil ✣ 1 cinnamon stick ✣ 3-4 cardamom pods, crushed ✣ 2 cloves ✣ 3tbsp tamarind paste ✣ 30g dark brown sugar ✣ 1.5kg stewing beef, cubed ✣…

The anal sphincter is the ring of muscles that open and close the anus. Anal fissures are tears of the lining covering the sphincter. They are common, affecting one in 10 people. Both sexes and people of all ages can get them, but they are found most commonly in children and those aged 15 to 40. They are commonest in people who are constipated, when a particularly hard or large poo tears the lining of the anal canal. Other causes include persistent diarrhoea, which can irritate the anal lining, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), such as Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis, or in pregnancy and childbirth. Occasionally, sexually transmitted infections, including syphilis or herpes, infect and damage the anal canal, causing persistent fissures. If you have unusually tight anal sphincter muscles, increasing…

Artistic licence Planting tulips is a chance to get creative in your garden – you can let your imagination run riot with a rainbow of colours and shades. It may be grey outside, but your head will be buzzing with exciting combinations of shades and shapes that will erupt in pots and flower beds from March to May. Get them in the ground now, planted between perennials or as a stand-alone display. Mix them with other spring bulbs or underplant with forget-me-nots and wallflowers. One-hit wonders Plan where your tulips will go, when they will flower and what will follow on from them. You can test colour arrangements by cutting out pictures from bulb catalogues and swapping them around to find a blend that makes your heart sing. Most tulips…

ARIES 21 Mar – 20 Apr Don’t allow your fears to dominate your thinking. You’re courageous and you can accomplish anything you set out to do! TAURUS 21 Apr – 21 May It’s a great time for meeting new people, or even a ‘special’ person. Put yourself out there with confidence. GEMINI 22 May – 21 Jun Anything involving communications is under positive stars this week. Do your best to always be kind. CANCER 22 Jun – 23 Jul T his is a good time to volunteer or do small acts of kindness for others. You’ll feel uplifted as a result. LEO 24 Jul – 23 Aug Remember to take some time out for yourself. Life can get quite intense and you really need to recharge your batteries. VIRGO 24…

Forgive me if I’ve mentioned this before, but life is full of surprises. Take one Thursday afternoon not so long ago. One moment I was talking about the Shake ’n’ Vac lady and the next thing I was plunged into the middle of an unlikely romantic comedy. My colleague Grace and I were idling away a moment at the charity shop, and talking about old TV adverts. Two mugs of cocoa may have been involved, possibly with swirly cream on the top. It’s that time of year. It all started when, for reasons that now escape me, I started singing, 1,001! 1,001! Cleans a big, big carpet for less than half a crown. Readers of a certain age will know the tune, which was very catchy. And that reference to…

‘It’s so peaceful on the farm’ Laura Corbett, 43, has a livestock and arable farm in Avebury, Wiltshire, with her husband and two young children. They have more than 250 goats and 55 cattle, and run their family business, The Gourmet Goat Farmer; thegourmetgoatfarmer.co.uk Christmastime is always peaceful. The bustle pauses for a precious few days, as we have the farm all to ourselves. With it being midwinter, the days are short, so daylight is precious and we have limited time to work outdoors before the night falls. A crisp, frosty morning with bright blue skies makes for the perfect Christmas morning. The children are up early to open their stockings, and within moments they are spoilt for choice with what to play with first. This allows me to make…

1 Buy your bird from t he freezer Serve up a frozen turkey rather than a fresh one. A big bird can cost three figures when fresh, while a frozen version might only cost £15 to £30. Load plates with all the trimmings and your guests are unlikely to taste the difference. 2 Use introductory offers on drink Take advantage of new customer discounts from wine clubs, such as Laithwaites, Virgin Wines and the Sunday Times Wine Club, which can cut the cost of a case of 12 bottles to around £60 with free delivery. 3 Switch to e-cards With first-class stamps at 95p each, and 68p for second class, try cheaper, greener e-cards instead. Stylish examples include Paperless Post and Ojolie. Some charities also offer personalised e-cards for a…

Is it discrimination? Q I’ve been in a job for two years. I started at the same time as two colleagues. Since then, they have both been promoted and I haven’t. I work really hard and I’m as good, if not better, than them. I asked my boss and he said they were a better fit. They’re both men and a bit younger than me. I do think it’s discrimination, and my friends agree and tell me to raise it with HR. I’m not sure it’s worth it. But I do want to move up if I can, so maybe I should? Neena, Doncaster A Of course you should raise it. I can’t guarantee it will make any difference to the outcome but it’s important that this type of thing…

The Champagne region of France is an inspired short-break destination, combining history, nature, and wonderful food and fizz. It’s also easy (and affordable) to get there – with Reims and Épernay reachable by rail from the UK. Royal links Kick off your break in the charming town of Reims, where most of the region’s champagne houses have headquarters. The town is dominated by Notre-Dame de Reims, a 13th-century gothic cathedral where French kings were once crowned. Damaged in World War One, it has been restored and has luminous stained-glass windows designed by the artist Marc Chagall. After their coronation, kings would celebrate next door at Palais du Tau, now a museum of sculpture and tapestries. Other sight-worthy stops include the Roman Porte de Mars archway and the serene Saint-Remi Basilica,…

Wordwise You have 15 minutes to find as many words as possible using the letters in the grid. Each word must contain four or more letters, one of which must be the central square. No proper nouns, plurals or foreign words are allowed. There is one nine-letter word in the grid, for which the clue is: Carpentry table. Average = 15 More than 25 = well done SUDOKU To solve this puzzle, fill in the grid so that each 3 x 3 box, each row and each column contains the numbers 1-9. YOU CAN WORK IT OUT... LINKWORDS Fit 10 words into the grid so that each links with the end of the word on its left and the beginning of the one on the right. Then unscramble the letters…

HANDING IT ON I pass my Woman’s Weekly on to my friend Patricia, who then gives it to her daughter Sarah. Afterwards, she passes it on to her friend Helen, who then hands it on to Chris, her mother, who gives it to her youngest daughter, who then hands it on to her friend Shirley, who passes it on again, by which time I expect the magazine is well worn. Great value for money! Pam Knipe, Peterborough It’s a small world I was recently reading one of your issues and I happened to see that your address is Westbourne Terrace, Paddington. I used to live at No.101 in the basement with my mum, and my great-aunt lived next door at No.99. I loved Paddington, and I miss the beautiful terraces…

It’s my hormones! Insomnia during menopause is common, due to decreasing levels of progesterone and oestrogen, both sleep-promoting hormones. Night sweats and emotional issues can make things worse. ✣ Establish a relaxing wind-down routine where you ban screens. You might not have had to think about your sleep before so this may be new to you. Setting a regular bedtime and get-up time that you stick to can also help improve your sleep. ✣ Go easy on the booze. ‘Alcohol can impair the restorative part of sleep known as REM, when we dream. It can also interfere with the flow of calcium into nerve cells affecting the part of the brain that controls sleep,’ explains nutritionist Rob Hobson. ✣ Try a flatter pillow. ‘The best sleep position, when lying on…

It is possible to have GREAT SEX AFTER MENOPAUSE I started finding sex uncomfortable about four years ago, after the menopause. I sailed through the main event with the odd hot flush, but then I started feeling really sore and dry down there. I was weeing more, so wiping myself frequently, and I thought it was that drying me out, and making me sore and itchy. I changed toilet paper but that didn’t help. I chatted to my friends about it and one opened up and said, ‘Actually, I’ve been to our doctor and she’s given me cream and pessaries, and it’s solved the problem.’ So I contacted my GP, who prescribed me oestrogen cream and pessaries to use twice a week. It’s been brilliant. There’s no itchiness now or…

STAINED-GLASS BISCUIT DECORATIONS A tasty way to adorn the Christmas tree! These are easy to make and great for keeping little ones busy too. MAKES 12-14 PREP 25 MINS, PLUS CHILLING COOK 12-15 MINS ✣ 120g unsalted butter, softened ✣ 120g caster sugar ✣ 1tsp cinnamon ✣ 1 medium egg ✣ Zest 1 grapefruit ✣ 250g plain flour ✣ 12-14 boiled sweets You will need: ✣ Round or bauble-shaped cookie cutter, plus smaller festive cutters ✣ Baking tray lined with greaseproof paper 1 Cream the butter, sugar and cinnamon together. Mix in the egg and grapefruit zest, then fold in the flour. Chill the dough for 30 mins. 2 Heat the oven to 160C Fan/Gas 4. Roll out the dough to a 4mm thickness. Cut out your biscuit shapes, then…

Difficulty level YOU WILL NEED ✣ White aida scrap (measuring approximately 15cm square) ✣ Embroidery threads (listed in the key) ✣ Cross-stitch needle ✣ Matching thread ✣ Tracing paper and pencil ✣ Patterned fabric scrap ✣ Hand-sewing needle ✣ Red felt scraps ✣ Fabric glue ✣ Mini button ✣ Thin grosgrain ribbon ✣ Baker’s twine ✣ Stuffing 1 Stitch the dove motif in the middle of your aida, following the cross-stitch chart. Trim the aida to measure 9 x 12cm, with the top of the motif starting about 3cm from the top edge of your aida. 2 Trace the roof template onto your fabric back and cut out 1cm beyond the traced shape. With right sides facing, stitch the bottom of the roof to the top of the aida. Cut…

Difficulty level MEASUREMENTS After blocking Snowflake 1 approx 12cm/4in across; snowflake 2 approx 13cm/5in across; snowflake 3 approx 13cm/5in across. Completed bunting Approx 2.5m/98½in long. MATERIALS 1 x 100g (208m) ball of Emu Cotton DK (100% cotton) in White (001)*. Size 3.25mm crochet hook; tin of spray starch. Yarn is available from theknittingnetwork.co.uk TENSION Tension is not critical for this project, which uses a smaller hook than recommended for your yarn, so that a firm fabric is created. ABBREVIATIONS Ch(s), chain(s); ch-sp, chain space(s); dc, double crochet; dtr, double treble crochet; htr, half treble crochet; st(s), stitch(es); slst, slip stitch; sp(s), space(s); tr, treble crochet. NOTE Yarn amounts are based on average requirements and are approximate. Instructions in square brackets are worked as stated after 2nd bracket. Snowflake 1 (MAKE…

Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan (£16.99, HB, Hodder) Calling fans of Jodi Picoult or Jennifer Finney Boylan – the celebrated authors have collaborated to pen this unique novel together. Now free from an abusive relationship, beekeeper Olivia is living peacefully with her teenage son Asher in New Hampshire – that is, until he is accused of murdering his girlfriend. Is he innocent, or following in his father’s violent footsteps? What follows is an emotional, enlightening and contemporary read that won’t fail to surprise, right up to its final pages. Dying of Politeness: A Memoir by Geena Davis (£20, HB, Harper Collins) Geena Davis may be best known for her role in Thelma & Louise but the two-time Academy Award-winner’s rise to stardom is packed with fantastic…