Green beer and other stories.

Check out my Alien Veg: Part II. A celeriac bulb the size of my head. Like a swirly, celery-scented Saturn.

My parents came to stay this weekend just gone and treated us to a big bit of Hampshire pork. So I roasted it. I wanted crackling.

Turn the oven to 240°C. Dry and score the skin then rub generously with salt. Cook at the high heat for about 25 mins and this will get the skin bubbling. Turn the oven down to 200°C then cook for 25 mins per pound. Always make sure that pork is cooked all the way through.

The roast pork was served with celeriac and potato boulangère, red cabbage, parsley carrots and stuffing balls cooked around the pork. I choose Paxo. There is delicious, freshly made stuffing out there but this is savoury, comforting and ever so slightly doughy. Oh, and butter your veg. It's Sunday.

For the gravy, if you have a metal roasting pan remove the meat and place the pan on the hob. To the juices from the roasting pan, add the water from the carrots, a good stock cube and cider then sprinkle a little bit of plain flour and whisk over the heat until it looks and tastes like you want it to.

On Saturday night Dr W had drunk a green pint. After the pub he came home looking slightly concerned and was rather relieved after some Internet searching that the beer was in fact meant to be green. Not just a pub with algae affected lines. Phew. He did still drink the green beer even though he wasn't sure it was meant to be green... Hm.

So we took the parents back for a pint of Stonehenge Ales Sign of Spring. Nothing to do with St Patrick's Day. It was lovely. And it was green. Why? We don't know.

A. Food colouring
B. Seaweed
C. Magic

Answer on a postcard please.