Or should that be “esoteric” reference. I’ll let you be the judge.

After a raft of insane battles, we have reached the epilogue of Clair Obscur. This has been one of my favourite games of recent times, and I’m not generally into Final Fantasy-style turn-based combat. That is a testament to just how compelling the story is, and how satisfying combat can be. Don’t get me wrong, it can be (and often is) punishingly difficult, but stick with it and you’ll be rewarded with a rich world, fleshed out characters, and beautiful music.

I shall not go into spoilers as I think it is a game best experienced for yourself. Don’t assume dropping the difficulty down to easy will completely eliminate the challenge, though. You still have to get pretty good at combat including the parry system. There are plenty of enemies who can only be stopped with counterattacks gained through parrying. This isn’t Elden Ring level difficulty, but be prepared if you do decide to embark upon this journey. Some of the battles can leave you in a jam, speaking of which…

Jam

A forced freezer defrosting session led to a need to process 1.6kg of frozen raspberries and 1kg of strawberries. When life gives you fruit, make jam.

Thanks to my new Thermapen Classic it was (kind of) easier. It always amazes me how long it takes to go from 104 to 105 degrees Celsius. Surely it can’t be that hard, can it? There’s a reason you make jam in big pots. I was limited by the time I had to make it and access to tall-sided saucepans. The pasta pot was perfect, but with the other saucepan I had to titrate the temperature to get it so the jam would boil level with the top of the pot but not pour over the side. I managed it, just about. It did make it harder to hit the target temperature, but I got there in the end.

Cheese

The other food highlights include using the immense amount of cheese we were given over the holidays into a delicious four cheese macaroni cheese, and fondue. You name it, we’ve made it…with cheese. I lost count of how many different ones made it into the fondue. They worked surprisingly well together, with the addition of some citric acid to assist a smooth emulsion.

I also dabbled in a little vegan cookery with a cauliflower and potato curry that worked out nicely, served with freshly made oat-yoghurt flatbreads and dal. The new year has brought a bit more creativity back into my cooking.