All Sorts of things and a Mini Moan!

We'll start with the Mini Moan!  

This radio (Bush DAC90) was in a scene of BBC's two parter Restless, from it you heard an announcement about the bombing of Pearl Harbour (7th December 1941). I have also seen, or rather heard, many years ago in the film All Creatures Great and Small, one of Winston Churchill's famous wartime speeches coming from it.  This radio may look of its time, but it wasn't released until 1946, definitely postwar!  Moan over now back to blog post!

My hyacinths have turned into lowercinths, but still flowering beautifully.

This photograph was taken was taken last Sunday (6th January).  This is a strange phenomenon to Minehead, it happens every year in January, unless this happens in your area too!  Let me know.......

No babies or dolls were harmed in the taking of this photo!

After we tidied up after the grandchildren went after Christmas we put the toys on the stairs ready to take up, we thought this was funny, as after being slung around the floor in amongst other toys the baby-doll has taken to the bottle or rather the decanter!  

Vegetable recipe can be found here, and I have made some more bags which can be found here and here

Tray Bakes.............. #1

My version of tray bakes and you don't wash the mixing bowl inbetween!

Please ignore the butter icing, the icing nozzle was not big enough.

These Giant Fairy Cakes (fairy cakes in UK)/Cupcakes cooked in muffin cases.

Best to prepare everything before starting to mix.

Plain Cakes (front row)

Weigh one egg, then weigh the Sugar, Margerine (or very soft butter - but not melted) Flour the same weight. 

Put the Egg, Sugar, Margerine, and three teaspoons water in to the mixing bowl and beat until very pale.

Sift in the flour and gently fold into the mxture.

Divide between four Muffin Cases

Cherry and Almond (middle row) 

Weigh one egg, then weigh the Sugar, Margerine (or very soft butter - but not melted) Flour and Ground Almonds combined and Glace Cherries - Halved  the same weight.

Half Teaspoon Almond Essence - optoinal 

Cover the cherries with some of the weighed flour and coat them.

Put the Egg, Sugar, Margerine, and three teaspoons water and Almond Essence in to the mixing bowl and beat until very pale.

Sift the Flour.  Gently fold in with the Almonds and Cherries 

Divide between four Muffin Cases

Date and Walnut (Back Row)

Weigh one egg, then weigh the Soft Brown Sugar, Margerine (or very soft butter - but not melted) Flour, chopped Dates and Walnuts combined, Half Teaspoon Mixed Spice.

Put the Egg, Sugar, Margerine, and three teaspoons water in to the mixing bowl and beat until very pale.

Sift Flour and Mixed Spice. Gently fold in with Walnuts and Dates

Divide between four Muffin Cases

Cook for about 20 - 25 minutes 180 degrees or Gas 3

Well its all over!

How was your Christmas?  All the blogs I have read recently you all enjoyed your Christmasses.  Ours was very, very quiet.  We knew it would be as we have already celebrated, so we just took it as an ordinary Bank Holiday.  We didn't even have our Christmas lunch on Christmas Day!  Not sure what happen there!  Think it had something to with the chunky bread and smoked salmon we had about lunch time, we  intended to have the cooked Christmas meal early evening, but the bread and smoked salmon was a bit filling!  We enjoyed it even more the next day.  We just chilled on Christmas Day!



I asked a my friend Thea to paint this picture for my husband



I decided to treat myself to a subscription for a magazine

It was lovely surprise our son Robert rang from Cambodia on Boxing Day, he was going to ring the day before but apparently the Vietnamese turn the international phone line off over night.........

I would like to share with you a line from his email which I read before the surprise phone call

*We watched the sun rise over the ruin temple, Anneka got bit by a monkey and we got engaged*

talk about dropping things into a conversation!

My Christmas Soup!

Heat about quarter pint chicken stock and finely sliced onion, carrots and Brussels Sprouts (they are only fairy cabbages really!)  until soft and herbs of your choice.  Add either tin of Tomatoes or packet of Passata then fill the tomato tin/passata packet up twice with water add to pan, add some frozen peas, I also added two large mushrooms, but you could add pasta instead, at the same time add any left-over cooked chicken.  Make sure all the vegetables are cooked and the chicken is thoroughly heated through and serve. 

Well they say its good for you!

PORAGE OATS

Give this to me as a child and I would turn my nose up at it!  We now have porage more or less every morning during the winter.  Our sons weren't impressed by it, but the younger one liked it occasionally especially if he was desperately hungry!  He even would make it himself when a teenager.  I cook it in the microwave, I burn the bottom of the pan when making it in the saucepan!  Start it the night before, but if not try and soak the porage for a least half and hour in a large bowl/jug in milk.  (I make it with all milk). 

For two people ~

Put one measuring cup of  Porage Oats in a microwavable bowl/jug (about 3ozs).  Cover with two cups milk (3 quarters of a pint)  Either leave overnight in the fridge, or prepare about thirty minutes before cooking.  Microwave for 5 minutes medium high power (I would experiment with your microwave timings because I found each microwave is different).  This amount of time works for us.  Add sugar one rounded tablespoon sugar.  Add sugar to taste.  I know you should have salt - never quite fancied that!!  Do not add sugar before microwaving or the person who cooks it cleans the microwave! 

I like mine with a little grated Nutmeg.

I knew there was a reason.........

As to why I delayed in making my Christmas Cake.

On Friday morning while I was waiting for a friend to go for coffee with.  The charity shop had just opend its door, (the only one which opens early on a Friday for Farmers Market trade).  While I was waiting for Jill I went in and had a look just to see what they had definitely not intending to buy anything but on the shelf were these cake tins for £5 as you see never been used, twenty years ago I had the large ring and tray from an offer from a magazine for twice that which I still have!

 

I fitted in two large round cake cases into the medium size ring

and made my Christmas Cake.  This year I soaked the fruit in the Brandy the day before and everytime I passed the bowl gave the fruit a stir.  I also added a few Cranberrys and Dried Pineapple.  I do not add nuts anymore as my DIL is allergic to them.

My Version

Weight of 4 eggs in
Butter, Muscavado Sugar, Self Raising Flour + one extra ounce of flour

1lb  Mixed fruit (doesn’t have to be accurate near enough will do)

1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1 tsp Mixed Spice

4 oz Glace Cherries
3 Large Tablespoons of Brandy

Cream together the butter and sugar and eggs till very pale in colour.

Mix all of the dry ingredients fruit together and then add to the mixture.

Fold in gently.

Add the Brandy and stir in gently

Bake in a warm oven, 140°C (gas mark 1) for about 3 hours,

Test after about 2hours
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Original Receipt

Weight of 4 eggs in
Butter, Muscavado Sugar, Plain Flour

Plus 1/2 teaspoon of Baking powder
1oz of Ground Almonds

1/2 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Mixed Spice

6 oz Currants

6 oz Sultanas

6 oz Raisins

6 oz Mixed Candied Peel

4 oz Glace Cherries
2oz Blanched Almonds
Brandy, Port or Rum
　
Cream together the butter and sugar and eggs till very pale in colour.

Add the eggs one at a time slowly.

Mix all of the dry ingredients together and then add to the mixture.

Finally add the brandy, rum or port and fold in gently.

Bake in a warm oven for about 3 hours, test after about 2hours

Apples and Tea Cosies!

About three weeks ago my friend Jackie and a her sister popped over for lunch.  We chatted and mooched around the charity shops.  She bought with her a carrier bag of apples.  I wasn't sure if they were cookers or eating apples, I forgot to ask so I treated them as cookers.  So far I have made..........  I now suspect they are eating apples!

 Apple Upside Down Cake

(I'm sure everybody has heard of Pineapple Upside Down Cake)

I used my usual sponge cake recipe but using two eggs.

Put the apples in the bottom of the dish and cover with sugar, then put the cake mix on the top.

About 40 minutes.

Apple Cake

Weigh three Eggs,

weigh the weight of eggs in Butter and Demerera Sugar,

weigh Self Raising Flour to the same weight as eggs and add another 3ozs

half teaspoon of Cinnamon

1 teaspoon of Mixed Spice

2lbs Apples - peeled and chopped (not too large and not too small)

80ml (eighty) Apple Juice

Cream butter and Sugar till pale. 

Beat in the Eggs one at a time (if it looks like this don't worry!)

Sift the Flour, Cinnamon and Mixed Spice and carefully fold into mixture.

Fold in the chopped Apples and Apple Juice

Cook on 160 degrees for about an hour,

put in a skewer or knife and if it comes out clean it is cooked

(I don't have a large cake tin so I divided the mixture between two 8" loose bottom tins)

Eat warm with cream or custard or just have cold with a cuppa!

Which brings us nicely to these Tea Cosies which I have made!

They can be found here!

Hello again..........I'm Back..........Anybody there...........?

Its not true that I have been put away for a couple of weeks! Its been very frustrating not to be able to blog! I got pretty miffed I tell you. You don't actually miss something till you haven't got it anymore! I do hope I still have you very lovely followers, and many many thank yous for all your support.

Well anyway would you like to have afternoon tea and a special cake with me.........?

It isn't quite BANOFFEE PIE and it isn't quite MILLIONAIRES SHORTBREAD it is a cross between both!

Make a biscuit base with Digestive Biscuits

I only had about 200grms of Biscuits - crushed finely

(use liquidiser or rolling pin and poly bag)

melt 100grams Butter and add the biscuit crumb

Push into the bottom of dish

When shopping the other day I saw this, but......if you cannot get this,

(buy a tin of condensed milk and put the tin of condensed milk in a pan of boiling water, (do not open the tin) and allow to boil for 2 hours . Make sure the pan doesn't boil dry. When done, remove the tin and leave to cool. When cool open the tin, the contents will have caramelised. Spoon the toffee onto the biscuit base.)

From here the decision is yours. I didn't put the bananas on top of the toffee because there is only two of us, and this would have lasted three days, don't think the bananas would have kept that long so I just topped the toffee off with melted chocolate (Cadbury's Dairy Milk).

Cut and serve with sliced bananas


**********************************************************

My son text me the last Thursday (18th May)

told us to watch BBC Local News (BBC Points West)

Robert is the Clown Fish!

I didn't need to go shopping!

I really didn't need to go shopping again yesterday, we only needed bananas. As we were going to the to the Garden Centre which is near Tesco, we popped in, to get said bananas! I also bought this packet of chicken pieces.

In the box there was four drumsticks and three thighs..........

Made Chicken Korma.

Started it off in the pan then put it in a casserole dish to

finish off for the evening meal.

Inverted the casserole lid and baked two drumsticks

to have cold with salad for lunch today

Froze the other two for another day!

Served it with Spinach I bought on Tuesday. The Spinach was perfect in colour and texture despite in being three days old.

Wash the Spinach shake the water off, then melt a tablespoonful butter in a saucepan with grated nutmeg and ground pepper. When melted tip in the spinach and put the lid on the pan, turn off heat. After about a minute take the lid off the pan and the spinach should have collapsed into the butter, stir into the butter and serve.

Sorry eat my tea before I took the photos!

While we were in Tescos I saw these!

Aren't they bright and cheerful!

Simnel Cake

I'll to thee a Simnell bring'Gainst thou go'st a mothering, So that, when she blesseth thee, Half that blessing thou'lt give to meI'll to thee a Simnell bring 'Gainst thou go'st a mothering, So that, when she blesseth thee, Half that blessing thou'lt give to me circ17thCentury

Tomorrow is Mothering Sunday. Originally the Simnel Cake was made for Mother's Day by girls in service who were given the day off to visit their mothers. The name is believed to come from a brother (Simon) and sister (Nell) who wanted to make a cake for their mother. During the Middle Ages the custom developed of allowing people who had moved away to visit their home churches, and their mothers, on the fourth Sunday of the Christian festival of Lent. The Simnel Cake signifies the end of Lent which is a period of fasting and repentance culminating in a feast of seasonal and symbolic foods. This cake is now made for Easter. On the top of the cake, around the edge, are eleven marzipan balls to represent the true disciples of Jesus; Judas is omitted. Marzipan Weight of 3 eggs in their shells Butter, Caster Sugar and Flour 1 lb dried mixed fruit 1 tsp ground cinnamon. 1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg. Apricot jam (or any jam that happens to be open!) Line a 7 inch cake tin with parchment or greaseproof paper (like you would a Christmas cake). Divide the almond paste into three and take one portion and roll it to a round the size of the cake tin. Cream together the butter and sugar and eggs till very pale in colour. Mix all of the dry ingredients together and then add to the mixture. Fold in gently. Put half of the cake mixture into the tin, smooth and cover with the round of almond paste. Put the remaining cake mixture on the top of the marzipan smooth the surface carefully. Bake in a warm oven, 140°C (gas mark 1) for about 3 hours,test after about 2hours Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. When cold roll another third of almond paste, again to the size of the tin. Make the remaining almond paste equally into eleven balls. Once the cake is completely cold, remove from the tin and brush the top of the cake with jam and cover with the disc of almond paste. Place the eleven balls of paste onto a heat proof dish and grill till brown. Place the marzipan balls evenly around the edge of the cake.

I don't have a sweet tooth - honest!

I made this, this morning

Egg Custard Tart

because I had eggs left in the fridge

at this point I would normally put leftover

pastry in the freezer.

I don't know what came over me
because..............

I also made a Treacle Tart.

I buy a French Stick just to make breadcrumbs

my son thinks that is
sacrilege and says it should

only be used for *bacon and baked bean rolls* - don't ask!

But this bread makes decent breadcrumbs and made

a nice centre to soak up the treacle.

and with the leftover pastry I made a dozen Jan Tarts.

*Bacon and Bean Rolls cut the end off of the French Stick enough that you think you are going to eat. Pull out the soft white bread and eat while bacon is cooking and the baked beans are warming through being careful not to put your fingers through the crust, this must be hole free. Fill the cavity with the beans and the bacon. Eat and enjoy*

I understand you can only feed two people with this because you need the ends, apparantly it doesn't work with the bit in the middle! But this bit can be used for breadcrumbs!

My son Robert invented this while being a student. I have never tried this recipe so I really don't know what it is like but I understand it is very nice

Caraway Seed Cake

There are many recipes for Caraway Cake or Seedy Cake. Caraway Seeds are very good for the digestive system, but do not put too many the recipes as they will leave a nasty medicinal musty taste. Caraway is a type of seed common to both cake and biscuit recipes of the Medieval and Tudor periods.

Caraway Seed Cake is another Victorian cake, but it is actually older. In the older recipes it is more of a ‘bread’ type recipe which goes back hundreds of years, with a variety of seeds as their main ingredient, and using suet, lard or other fats, they did not use butter. Some seed cake recipes call for ground almonds to be added, and there is no harm in adding them if you wish, but ground Almonds can be a bit over powering. Ground Almonds have also played an important part in British recipes from the Medieval period.

Here are my two recipes plain and simple::
Recipe One::
Follow the Victoria Sandwich recipe and adding one and half teaspoons of Caraway Seeds (or add to your taste, but remember not too much)

Recipe Two::
Follow the above recipe but take out two ounces of flour and add two ounces of ground almonds. (I only work in imperial measurements for cooking)

****************************************************************

Here is a recipe from 1861 From Mrs. Beeton’s ‘Household Management’

A Very Good Seed-Cake: INGREDIENTS – 1 lb. of butter, 6 eggs, 3/4 lb. of sifted sugar, pounded mace and grated nutmeg to taste, 1 lb. of flour, 3/4 oz. of caraway seeds, 1 wineglassful of brandy.
Mode.—Beat the butter to a cream; dredge in the flour; add the sugar, mace, nutmeg, and caraway seeds, and mix these ingredients well together. Whisk the eggs, stir to them the brandy, and beat the cake again for 10 minutes. Put it into a tin lined with buttered paper, and bake it from 1–1/2 to 2 hours. This cake would be equally nice made with currants, and omitting the caraway seeds.
Time.—1–1/2 to 2 hours.

Think I would like to retire............

and play house again. Following on from the last post, I went to work on Thursday and again Janet asked how I was and I said nothing changed the cold and cough were still with me, and then thought in for a penny in for a pound quickly asked if I could have Friday off.......? Janet thought a bit and said I could - well I felt like a child, you know when you say I don't feel well, that's OK you can stay at home today, and all of a sudden as if by magic you are well again and by midday I had a skip in my step, as I went home. We didn't set the alarm for Friday morning, we don't need it as we automatically wake up before the alarm at 6am these days, but this Friday morning I looked at the clock it said 7am, I must have been tired and unwell, we both overslept by an hour! That is not 'normal' for us! Alex said the car was booked in for its MOT, so he said he would pop into work as well. I had the morning to myself.

I thought I would make Butternut Squash Soup and Homemade Bread!

Butternut Squash, Carrots, Potatoes, Leek, one pint of liquid,

water or stock, a few Italian herbs and pepper, and salt to taste

Leave to cook slowly until all the vegetables are cooked.

When cooked just turn off heat leave till needed.

When needed liquidize, reheat till hot and serve.

The cream is optional!

I though at the same time I would resurrect my bread maker, I haven't used it in a while!

8 fl oz warm water
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoons caster sugar
7 oz White bread flour

7 oz Wholemeal bread flour
1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon quick yeast

Follow your Bread maker instructions

mine tells me to put the ingredients in in this order.

On Saturday I made a cake, the first in ages

Remembered to take photo after half was eaten!

I mentioned in my last post I am doing a craft fair at the end of November, so I thought I would make a start.

I made this Stocking.......................

Interesting weather for August!

Outside my back door

Outside the front door

The rain brings out all sorts of creatures
Can you see the tiny snail just about to fall off the leaf.
The caterpiller was less than two inches long!

This snail I think wanted to come inside!
He was climbing up the front window.


The reuslts of watering the hanging basket everyday
I eat two between gathering them and photographing them!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Quick Chicken Pie


can Condensed Mushroom Soup
Just Rol puff pastry (I always buy puff pastry!)
Cooked Chicken
Mushrooms thinly sliced or quatered

Roll out enough pastry for base and top
Line a dish/tin with pastry
(I use the lids to my casseroles to make pies)
Put in chicken, mushroom and soup
Put the top pastry on

cook until golden brown at 180 degrees centigrade

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last Saturday we went here there was a craft fair on and we also went to the museum

Whilst there purchased these

EGGS, Eggs & eggs!

Last Saturday I entered the local Flower and Produce show. I was quite miffed no-one looked at my Lemon Curd. I couldn't understand it, everyone to whom I have given my Lemon Curd to always said it was perfect - perhaps they were being polite................

The recipe comes from this book. My grandmother used to make it, my mum used to make it and mun introduced this recipe to me when I was about ten. I've been making it for years without a failure........

Well that is till now!

Lemon Meringue Pie................

..................with a soggy bottom!

I know what happened I think I mis-read the recipe and didn't put enough cornflour in, all these years of making it and this happens at the crucial moment! Oh well there is always next year! I will do better! I will do better! Imagine I have written it a hundred times!!!!

You must be asking by now where do the eggs come in to all of this? Well first of all I made an Egg Custard Tart, but instead of using two large eggs I used three egg yolks, and saved the three whites for the meringue. It became a cross between Lemon Meringue and Eaton Mess with lemons, but it tasted very good!