The Last Queen Victoria Material Gets Listed and Really Tasty Mac and Cheese

Today I hope to complete the very last listings of Queen Victoria material for Canada. Steph and I have a wedding to attend on the weekend and tomorrow, I was hoping to spend the day getting various administrative matters addressed before I start the next major section of my listings, the Queen Elizabeth II definitives. In the past few days, my internet was slow so I couldn't do much listing. The issue I am finishing the era with are the tobacco stamps. These issues are not listed in the standard revenue catalogues, so I had to do quite a bit of research to find out anything about them. But my research did pay off:I found a manuscript for a 2013 catalogue compiled by a Christopher Ryan. So now, I am able to list them with precise descriptions.

Here are a few of the larger, more beautiful and interesting ones:

I tried a recipe for macaroni and cheese that may just have me swearing off Kraft Dinner for life! This mac and cheese is made in a large skillet, instead of being prepared in a pot and drained. The cooking liquid also becomes the sauce. You will need, for 2 large servings:

3 cups of elbow macaroni

2 cups of chicken stock

2.5 cups water

1 cup diced ham

1 bunch spinach, finely chopped. 

2.5 cups of grated extra old cheddar - one full 400g package.

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Combine the chicken stock and the water into the large skillet and bring to a boil over high heat. Add in the macaroni and cook for 3 minutes less than directed on the package. Add in the ham and cheese and stir until dissolved. The resulting sauce will be thin and will look a lot like what you see when you make those packaged pasta meals where you add water to a sauce paste. To thicken it, add the cornstarch to a small bowl and wisk with a small amount of cold water to make a slurry. Add this to the sauce and stir. It should thicken to the point where it is halfway between soup and gloopy. Taste for salt level and add pepper and additional salt (only if needed). You should find the salt level to be adequate - it will all depend on the salt content of the broth, ham and cheese you are using. I found that with the ingredients, it was a pleasant, tasty saltiness. Then stir in the spinach. Cook for an additional 3 minutes until the pasta is Al-dente and the sauce is thick. Serve and enjoy. 

Today's meal will be French onion soup from scratch. Stay tuned for the recipe tomorrow.