Why I have never made a fool before I don't know. Light, tangy, sweet, fruity, creamy, easy, beautiful.
July 3, 2011
As the days are getting warmer and you start to think about a picnic by the river, or even just lunch in the garden, you don’t want to go laden with pots of soggy salad and flaccid sandwiches. What you need is something that makes people go “Ooh, what’s that?” Then makes them smile when […]
June 18, 2011
I am still learning the importance of a sense of order. I don’t mean having everything in its place, although that really helps. It’s about making sure that I do things in the right sequence. Every time I cook something I work out a better way…or rather I realise I have done something ‘arse about […]
June 8, 2011
When I slow roast a shoulder of pork to make pulled pork, there is always enough left for at least two more meals. I am the queen of making the most of leftovers. I have to be because I am greedy so I always prepare enough for 10 people. I had a notion that the […]
June 3, 2011
Just a little ‘Something for the Weekend’. In the days before children, Ed used to often make something like this on a Friday night after work. Something to tide us over until dinner. The truth of the matter was, once we’d had this and a few beers, we rarely got round to bothering with dinner. […]
May 27, 2011
This months Fresh From The Oven challenge was to share our favourite savoury bread recipe. ‘Something for picnics, summer sandwiches or barbecues.’ I must admit, the focaccia I often make for those sort of affairs starts as a packet of ciabatta mix. It gets punched and pounded and doused with herby olive oil and sundried […]
May 19, 2011
I have always, always loved pavlova. I think it stems from my delight at the frozen ones bought from the Cash & Carry back in the 70’s. A raspberry pavlova was the height of chic in those days, even though my Mum used to forget to get it out of the freezer so we ended up […]
May 11, 2011
When spring comes around I promise that we will change our wintery, comfort eating ways. We will eat fresh produce, lots of vegetables and salads and cut down on the carbs. With this in mind I bought some barnsley chops of spring lamb and the first British asparagus of the season. I also replenished our […]
May 7, 2011
We have built a small raised deck at the end of the garden where a wooden gazebo once stood. I wanted it to be a quiet little place where you could go and sit, away from the house. Somewhere to ponder. So we have planted bamboo around it and an almond blossom tree to give […]
April 24, 2011
"24 BUNS! What am I going to do with 24 buns?" I asked myself. I didn't know the answer so I decided to make 8 chunky buns and a huge loaf sized one.
April 13, 2011
Today I feel the need for peanuts, and a peanut butter and jam sandwich just isn’t going to cut it. A while ago I made this very moreish Peanut Sauce within minutes of seeing it on David Lebovitz blog. The darkly roasted peanuts ground up with hot tea have an amazing aroma. It’s even better once you […]
March 28, 2011
I baked these layered rolls, based on a recipe from Richard Bertinet’s ‘Dough’ this morning. We had them for lunch, fresh from the oven, with mozzarella, avocado, tomatoes, pesto and rocket. They are very easy to make as there is no shaping, just some random cutting and stacking. I made two batches of dough to […]
March 25, 2011
Surely not. It can’t be true that I never got around to writing about kale crisps. We’d better fix that. Right here, right now. Kale is the only edible thing valiantly flourishing away in the garden at the moment. I’m a bit of a fan of the stuff. Have you noticed? Ever since enjoying several […]
March 5, 2011
This loaf gives you a light, even textured, superbly flavoured bread with a 'not too crusty' crust that's good for toast or sandwiches and lasts for several days.
February 17, 2011
If I ever ask Ed what cake he wants for his birthday, the answer is a victoria sponge, with buttercream in the middle and icing, sprinkles and a cherry on top. Quite specific really. This year though I had an ulterior motive as I wanted to enter a cake into the #nigellaforever challenge. With a […]
February 3, 2011
This is something that has been on my ‘to blog’ list for a while: Ice Cream Muffins. When I read that you can make muffins by just using Flour and Ice Cream I was intrigued. When you think about it, a good quality dairy ice cream has eggs, sugar and vanilla in it, as well as cream. Add […]
January 28, 2011
January’s Fresh From The Oven Challenge is Khrushchev Dough. Apparently this butter rich dough was the favourite bread recipe of the Russian leader Nikita Khrushchev. It was left up to us to decide how to shape and fill the bread. I rolled and stuffed some like Serbian Kiflice, tiny stuffed cheese rolls. I made one third with […]
January 23, 2011
A food post? By me? Surely some mistake? It’s all true, I did indeed make the sausage rolls in the pictures. They were the product of a happy accident that grew out of the usual christmas fridge surplus, coupled with me having time on my hands. Add to that my closet weakness for savoury […]
January 17, 2011
On 1st December 2010 my very special friend, Katie was 40 years old. A magical masquerade ball was planned at Shottle Hall. Unfortunately due to the massive amount of snow we had in early December the party was postponed. Boo! Not to worry though as it was rescheduled to January and even more people could […]
July 11, 2011
17