Much ado about Nothiing

The spring had arrived in full heated glory and for a moment there I was convinced that the time had come to entertain again. Cocktails in the garden by the stream, gazing lovingly at my fine and blossoming weeds and undergrowth. Lists were  made of  friends around the country who might be lucky enough to enjoy the bucolic moment, emails were sent, menus devised, seating plans puzzled over, wines and prosecco purchased in large quantities when................whooooosh, Bang, Crash and darkness!............The biggest storm here for 13 years and the farm power box is hit by lightening. No phones, no broadband for 10 days. We will gloss over the "no electricity for 48 hours", that is just not news worthy in these parts.
Then comes the rain, albeit very welcome, but it doesn't stop and then the sun goes behind dark and doom-laden clouds for 2 weeks. If I had been hit by lightening this might have been more useful as it would have undoubtedly given me a bit of a buzz and in fact may well have energized me for the next 40 years but, no, just my entire communication system! My mobile being a sensitive object only works half way up the hill and as you can imagine this was not entirely tempting in cold, damp, wet and windy days and impossible in the evening. So my glorious soirées were much ado about nothing and evaporated in a puff of smoke!
However, fate is a divine thing and having had a month of rain, summer is here, my garden is indeed looking rather cute. Not a weed in sight, the bank of the stream now has large clumps of blooming yellow flag iris and all the roses are having to be secured once again due to the enormous and heavy blooms. Enthusiasm is swift but brief and therefore a new list of dinner dates speed through the ether to my friends from near and far.
Now the fun starts, practising some new dishes for these culinary feasts over the next 6 weeks. Looking around I spy lofty branches swaying in the wind and huge elderflower blossoms heavy with rain but still smelling wonderful. So I searched for an elderflower ice cream recipe and have made it for dinner no.1.. I used the 6 egg whites to make a huge pavlova in which to put the ice cream and then will decorate it with fresh berries and mint leaves. I came across a recipe for Chocolate and Chilli Ice Cream and as all these ingredients were technically free ( woman's logic as I had them in the pantry and anything paid for with the previous month's housekeeping is free!); I proceeded to make pudding for dinner no.2...
The Pink Lovely aged 7 3/4 was hauled into taste them both to give her seal of approval but much to my surprise spat out the elderflower ice cream and gobbled up the chocolate and chilli which was a little confusing as she loves elderflower spritzer and hates chilli! I adored them both and so I shall give you the recipes ASAP.
The Pink Lovely by now totally suspicious at the number of dinner parties being planned became alert and interrogated me in a truly professional way. What do they teach them at school? Under duress, I finally admitted to FOUR. Are you MAD Darling? is her retort, you barely have time to bake cakes for the school summer fete the next day, have you forgotten my birthday party for 7 girls sleep-over the day after the next one? You cannot have forgotten that we are going to London that weekend ..no.3 and last but not least no. 4, you are already going to a party that weekend MUM. Do I need a diary, NO. My daughter is my diary, what an extraordinary brain she has.. I wonder why it has such marvellous recall for social activities and absolutely no recall on homework!
So, not entirely thought through, I would admit this is one of my most frequent moments of scattiness but why not juggle life a bit and create so much fun and amusement for your friends...............
How can life get any more exciting, it can and it does. Whizzing around Ludlow, I am accosted by a dear friend who tells me that a baby grand upright piano is lurking in the back of the auction house at that very moment. I have been searching (not very hard it would have to be said) for such a desirable object for going on 2 years. Off I speed forthwith and see this huge but first class piano that is actually in tune and in good condition. I fill in the forms, I find some friends already there and so sit down next to them. Butterflies abound, panic is near, actually total panic is here! bidding is not my thing at all. My neighbour kindly thumps me when the number comes up and my moment of triumph is near. Some joke is made as to how popular these antiquated monsters are, (missed that one!) and the first bid goes in at the highest price I had scribbled on my list. O.M.G. panic or what, so up goes the hand and Yes I did get it at the highest price because... no one else bid...........OOOOOOOOOOps. Oh well, that is the first and only time I will ever bid in an auction. The auctioneer was trying not to laugh unlike my friends who were spluttering into their brochures. Feeling rather aghast at the speed of everything my neighbour consoled me with the fact that she had actually bid against herself in her first auction until the kind auctioneer had informed her that he really was going to let her have the chest of drawers!
Four days later three burly men delivered the piano on the night that The Pink Lovely boards at school and I decorated it with balloons and left it for her return. The headmistress entered into the spirit of things and arranged for a surprise piano lesson that day much to the Pink Lovely's confusion.  "Your birthday present has arrived, it is in the office". The Pink Lovely bursts into the room and stands there absolutely dumbfounded. She cannot believe her eyes!  Mild panic as I translate this into disappointment that it wasn't actually an Ipod but then I see the smile spread across her face as she takes it in. I have recently invested in ear plugs but it is coming on nicely!

Simmel Cake and Fish Pie but not together!

I have not made a simnel cake for about 20 years, so it was very exciting to be baking one this morning. It had a slightly unfamiliar look about it and I couldn't think what was wrong. 13 balls for the apostles and the naughty J.
In the end I had to google the recipe and see what I had forgotten. No wonder it looked strange... I hadn't grilled it! As you see from the photo, it came up a treat and was utterly delicious. We had afternoon tea in the garden, which I had been wrestling with all afternoon (the garden-not the tea!) and it looked rather good.. all be it temporally!
Having spent 1 1/2 hrs making a fish pie, it dawned on my why I had not made one since last August! Never mind, everyone loved it and even The Pink Lovely ate it which was a miracle..... Which reminds me that I must endeavour to get to church on Easter Sunday, in the village this year. 09.30am is a trifle early for me as this prevents a lingering breakfast but a serious attempt will be made. When I was telephoned last week to ask if we would like to attend, I answered in my sweetest voice, that if their service was going to be a thoroughly depressing and chilly affair, then frankly No!...As I can guarantee to have both  in my catholic church. The lady was not sure if I was joking or not.........but after some consideration, laughed and assured me that it would be a light-hearted and warm service.............................................
Today, I have planted my peas, sweet peas and beetroot. My veggie garden looks like an Indian Reserve with all the can wigwams! Sadly, I have managed to massacre my French beans which have died an early death in their little egg boxes, actually I not sure they were ever alive having been given to my by The Pink Lovely who had them in her school home work bag for some weeks before explaining what they were! I seemed to have deprived all the lettuces of life too.... Oh.. Well.. Hope over adversity or is it "hope over triumph"? Not sure................

It's the Silly season for Chocolate!

How many more Easter eggs do I need to buy? The Easter Bunny has to have a large bagful of eggs to hide when he arrives at Fox Barn on Easter Sunday! The entire length of the Lunch table has to have brilliant chocolate and fresh flower decorations. I have little bird nests with birds and eggs in them (from the garden centre in Sydney Street, London in about 2000!)...We were given a spectacular arrangement of wiggly pear branches which we have arranged in a huge vase and made lots of Easter chick, egg and flower decorations to hang on the wobbly branches, with guess what, hidden chocolate eggs in! Every drawer I open I seem to have hidden another packet of mini eggs or cute bunnies! My two extremely dead bay trees on either side of the front door, have now been pruned into need stick-balls, devoid of all the frazzled, brown bay leaves. They look rather cool and minimalist, so I am going to hang Easter eggs all over them for my guests on Sunday...rather fun!
As usual we will be thoroughly over-egged, so on 7th day of Easter week, ready for the Royal Wedding Day, we will be having my annual "Easter chocolate sauce" with vanilla ice cream. Simply gather up all the unwanted remnants of chocolate eggs, include if you have any, some small eggs that are too sweet, caramel or fudge style chocolates, pralines or even bits of those astonishing, excessively large bars of chocolate. Break the chocolate into small pieces and chuck them all into a  bowl ready for action. Judge how much chocolate you have, then in a suitable sized saucepan, over the lowest possible heat melt a few knobs of unsalted butter, a good sprinkling of dark brown soft sugar, vanilla extract and a good sprinkling of Brandy and black, fresh, warm coffee. Always, be cautious with liquids and chocolate, you can add more when you can see that the sauce is too thick. When the mixture starts to simmer, remove from the heat and gently stir in the chocolate. Best to use a spatula. Stir occasionally as it melts and return the pan to the heat to help it along if you are making a large quantity. When all the chocolate has melted then give it a brief simmer and bubble on the low heat, stirring in a good dash of double cream to get it to a thick pouring but smooth and glossy consistency and then serve warm with the ice cream. As I have no idea what sort of chocolate you will be using, I cannot predict what sort of sauce you will have but generally it will be either quite fudgy or soft and silky!
Now I must go and make our Easter chocolate cake and Nigel Slater's chocolate cookies although I am not sure that they will last to Easter, rather a blessing really considering how much chocolate is located around the house! Then I shall attempt an olive oil and chocolate mousse which sounds rather interesting for a birthday dinner at the weekend.
Lastly, our fresh eggs all get painted with patterns in fun colours for breakfast on Good Friday,  so I must walk up the Goggin and see if my friends have a spare half dozen for us. That is it for our Easter celebrations, unless of course you count the roasting of spring lamb with our garden herbs and wild garlic from the woods and the baking of hot cross buns dusted in cinnamon sugar!

Fox on the wall and Victorian shortbread

Sitting at the kitchen window on the 3rd floor of a London flat yesterday I observed with astonishment the capers of a dog and a fox in the garden below.Feeling slightly dazed which of course had nothing to do with the bottle of wine the night before......I thought I must be hallucinating. But no,the dog was running up and down the garden,barking madly all the time in the excitement of heading off this urban fox from his patch. The fox,obviously totally oblivious to the concept of a chase decided after about 10 minutes that this was rather tiresome and gracefully leapt up onto the top of the very high garden wall and proceeded to run daintily along it for 5 minutes until he got bored of bating the dog and leapt into the adjacent garden and disappeared. The dog looked rather disappointed and retreated for breakfast and so did I.
Back in Herefordshire today and it is the much longed for Red Nose Day. Not by me I hasten to add but by the Pink Lovely aged 7, who had, I am told, carefully laid out all her clothes, red nose and £1.00 coin for school today at least 3 days ago! She had been on count-down ever since! Apparently, the excitement of not wearing school uniform was almost more than she can bear! Sweet!  When we arrived at school this morning you will not be surprised to hear that nearly the entire year 3 was in......yes..... PINK.  Rather a shock to the system at that time of the morning.
Sunday morning,a day of rest............Well not exactly! Having watched the Royal Upstairs Downstairs last night on iplayer the Pink Lovely had decided that we should make the exact shortbread that was made in this Scone Palace episode for Queen Victoria's visit. She dutifully copied down nearly all the recipe while watching a repeat and this morning on entering the kitchen I was haled by the entire set of ingredients and utensils all carefully laid out ready for immediate action! This is not easy before breakfast but when you have to translate ounces into grams and guess the amount of butter to use,it is quite nerve racking! My 1936 copy of Mrs Beeton was ceremoniously brought down off the shelf and the recipe located for Scottish shortbread to give me a clue as to how much butter to use. Rather surprisingly, we have a huge tray of gorgeous shortbread but unfortunately I cannot remember how much butter I lobbed in! So it can never be repeated! A Royal Treat indeed!........................

Drop Scones or Scotch Pancakes & National Pie Week

Drop Scones are by far the easiest of pancake to make so we often have them for breakfast or tea with butter and honey or maple syrup. They are rather good with poached fruit with liqueur and crème fraiche as a pudding too. I use very alcoholic black cherries or brandied pears.
RECIPE
115g self raising flour or Doves Farm gluten free self raising flour mix
30ml caster sugar
1 large egg, beaten
150ml milk (goats or cow, fresh soya or Arla lactofree)

Lightly grease a frying pan. In a bowl mix the flour and sugar, make a well in the centre and stir in the egg with enough milk to make the bater the consistency of thick cream. Fold the mixture as quickly and lightly as possible. Heat the pan over medium high heat and drop a spoonful of the mixture into the pan. They should be small and neat, no bigger than the size of a slice of lemon!  Cook until bubbles rise to the surface (couple of minutes) and then flip over and cook until golden. Serve immediately or keep warm in a pile on a warm plate,under a clean cotton cloth until they are all made. The devour them with great pleasure!

National Pie week this week and my all time favourite pie is home-made steak and kidney pie with plenty of rather good sherry and mustard in it. A wiff of puff pastry that is as light as air! Well definitely not my puff pastry then...............I have tried out half a dozen frozen and chilled puff pastries from various supermarkets and I have to say that without doubt that even on this occasion you definitely get what you pay for. So,double the price, All Butter Puff Pastry really is gorgeous, it literally melts in the mouth. The Pink Lovely, aged 7, supreme judge of puff pastry awarded it 5* and had seconds. Quite an achievement as she hates pastry.

The filling I was taught, one hung-over teenage morning by Madame Russell, our Diploma Cookery Course Teacher in a minuscule kitchen in Pimlico in the 1970s. Madame Russell was, let it be said, the second most terrifying women that I have ever met in my entire life. This could be due to the fact that she knew my French Grandmother, who was, indeed, the most terrifying lady that I have ever met.  Madame Russell's husband had been captured in Germany in the second world war and my Grandmother and her team had rescued him and then looked after him in her special hospital wing of her house in Surrey for a year until he was well enough to leave. Stern words about being as amazing as my Grandmother was not really the most encouraging thing for a 17 year old and I spent the entire 3 months in dire trepidation of being ask to make anything in front of the class!  Amazing, that I survived it and went on the cook all around the world and write 14 cookbooks!
For your filling, cook plenty of sliced onions in a half-half mixture of butter and olive oil and then when they are soft add plenty of crushed garlic, seasoning, grated nutmeg, a couple of cloves, Dijon mustard, very nice sherry, mixed herbs and toss it all around in the pan for a few minutes. Toss your steak and kidney, in any balance of mix that you prefer in flour and then chuck it into a very hot frying pan with some hot oil and seal it and toss it until evenly browned. Add the your onion mixture to the steak mixture in a casserole dish, stir in a bit of tomato puree and stock and cook in a medium oven until tender. Transfer the steak and kidney mixture to your pie dish and cover with the puff pastry. Brush with beaten egg and decorate if you enjoy it. Bake for about 35 minutes until the pastry is golden and puffy.

Not an excuse to be late for School & Blueberry Pancakes

Saturday morning, not quite sure why I promised to make Fresh Blueberry American Pancakes before school this morning. The Pink Lovely, aged 7 1/2, briefly looked pristine in her school uniform but then turned her hand to beating the mixture. Some of it stayed in the bowl, most of it went down her, but being A Domestic Goddess is never easy and best she learns this early on.  We made enormously thick pancakes which puffed up joyfully but then would not cook in the middle. Darn, I thought, this is tricky.. too little heat and they don't cook and too high and they burn. Never mind, we will eat them in the car, not my best idea as they are drizzled with maple syrup and the blueberries are oozing very hot and sticky, purple juice. Revert to kitchen table. Clock now says 08.20. Ooops! due in at 08.15am
Can one actually sneak into a full class room, with teacher in full flow, without being noticed? Not really. As I am bestowing my most winning and apologetic smile, I notice to my horror that I had forgotten to wipe The Pink Lovely's angelic little face. Now, I love the colour purple, don't get me wrong, but possibly not all round my daughter's mouth. Hands much the same colour. My brief moment of Domestic Goddess-dom evaporates and I retreat to ponder if I really am cut out to do Saturday School.
This is a SUPER EASY RECIPE, ideal for breakfast or afternoon tea.
Fresh Blueberry American Pancakes
Serve with Maple Syrup or Golden Syrup
Makes 12
150g plain flour or gluten-free Doves Farm plain flour mix
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1teaspoon baking powder
Large pinch fine sea salt
250ml buttermilk or 110ml St. Helen's Farm goats yoghurt with 110ml goats milk
1 large free range egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
200g fresh blueberries
sunflower oil for greasing

Put the first 5 ingredients in a mixing bowl and add half the buttermilk, the egg and the vanilla. Whisk everything together, add the remaining buttermilk and whisk until smooth. Add the blueberries and fold in. Lightly oil a frying pan and drop 2 tablespoons of the mixture per pancake. Cook each one until dark golden underneath and bubbling on top. Flip over and cook on the other side. Serve immediately.

I have to cook lunch and we are, as you know, busy saving the oceans at the moment! So, we are having Whitebait for the first time in 20 years.  Pubs in Shropshire and Herefordshire in 1970s, I recall, usually had a choice of 4 starters. These never seemed to vary which was part of the charm. Rather less exhausting than wading through a page of Pacific fusion or retro French or confused Italian starters that are so often listed nowadays on every pub menu.  Prawn cocktail (in various forms), Avocado vinaigrette on a sad piece of Iceberg lettuce, Melon and Parma ham and last but not least, Fried Whitebait with a wedge of lemon. So, reassuring, no big decisions.  I think we have too much choice nowadays not just in menus but in every shop and store. Things we didn't even know we wanted.
Whitebait was an old English term for tiny fish. They are transparent fishes that migrate into our rivers during spring and summer. They drift out to sea and feed on algae and other fish eggs.  The pinkish-white flesh is low in fat and has a fine texture with a mild and sweet flavour and edible skin. This is fast food at its best.  Choose fish that are pristine and smell fresh. Fish should not have bellies torn open. This is due to enzymes within breaking down the flesh-yuk!

Here is my recipe for Kathy who requested one yesterday
Chilli Fried Whitebait with Aioli
Serves 2 main course of 4 starter
Make Aioli first: either cheat or make the real thing! Cheat: Mix Helmans Mayonnaise with one egg yolk, plenty of crushed garlic(4-7cloves), a pinch of freshly chopped oregano leaves and season to taste. For the real thing: make mayonnaise and beat in the garlic and herbs. Transfer to a serving bowl.
In a polythene bag combine 1/2 cup flour with salt and pepper and a good sprinkling of chilli powder. Add the fish and shake the bag around so that the fish are evenly coated. Deep fry in oil until golden and crispy (about 5 minutes) and drain on some absorbent kitchen paper towels. Serve immediately with wedges of lemon, the Aioli and a big bowl of mixed salad.

The Pink Lovely's pink bicycle has been collected from the repair shop on a rather circuitous return trip from school this morning. To celebrate, we are going to Croft Castle to bike the length of the fish pools along the valley, up into the fields and down to the castle tea rooms where rewards will justly be given. Scones and tea have been requested! The word "we" is the royal "we" of course.... due to the fact that I have never successfully ridden a bicycle. Actually, never ridden a bicycle would be more accurate. I have of course ridden an elephant in Sri Lanka, a camel in Morocco, my childhood ponies and even a donkey in Greece but I have never managed to stay on a bicycle. So, when we go for a bike ride, I walk the dogs and inevitably end up pushing the bike up the near vertical path through Mortimer Forest to the gate at the top. This in itself is worthy of scones and tea and I have absolutely no guilty conscience what so ever!

Eating Small Fry and a Few Recipes

Save the Seas: Eat small fry like sardines, herrings and anchovies instead of tuna, shark and other predatory fish such as cod. According to a new report from scientists, the sea's ecosystem has been turned upside down by us guzzling down vast quantities of these fish. This I would have thought, could fairly easily have been deduced, but no, it has taken piles of money and a large team of super brains to work this out. Call me old fashioned but surely it is blindingly obvious that if you kill all the big fish that there will be an explosion of little fish. The resulting imbalance will as sure as eggs are eggs, endanger the precarious balance in our oceans. The claims of total decimation of our oceans by 2050 is pretty awful, not due to the fact that we will no longer be able to indulge in our passions for eating fish and seafood but because we will loose everything that is beautiful under the waves. Presumably, all our gorgeous coral reefs will die and the oceans will be taken over by a dreary green soup of plankton.
For this reason I am now trying out lots of new recipes using sardines, herrings and anchovies and I enclose the easiest of the recipes so far.  The Pink Lovely (aged 7) is not amused. Brain food, she calls it. Not very popular and she is hoping that this interest in small fry is only temporary! So for brief relief to her already brainy brain we are having Macaroni Cheese and Sticky Toffee Pudding for dinner tonight. Or maybe I could sneak a few anchovies and sliced tomatoes along the top of the Macaroni Cheese!
Deep-Fried Stuffed Sardines
24 fresh sardines, gutted
1/2 tablespoon butter or dairy-free spread
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs or gluten free bread
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped very finely
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup plain or gluten free flour
2 cups vegetable or sunflower oil
Lemon wedges, to serve

Clean the sardines, rinse well and pat dry.
Melt the butter, combine with the breadcrumbs, parsley and garlic. Season.
Stuff the sardines with the mixture and close the opening by pinching it firmly. Roll the fish in a plate of  seasoned flour and deep-fry in hot oil for about 3 minutes. Serve immediately with the lemons and a delicious mixed salad.

Norwegian Sardine Pate
225g cream cheese, mashed with juice of 1/2 lemon, fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. 2 cans of sardines, drained and then mashed in a shallow bowl with a dash of hot chilli sauce and 1 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley.
Combine the ingredients until fairly smooth. Make toast and cut into fingers, spread with plenty of pate and serve them dotted with capers and sprinkled with more parsley and a dusting of cayenne pepper. Great with a mixed salad for lunch.

Both these dishes are super cheap and highly nutritious, what more could we want for a healthy and easy lunch!


Warm Fresh Anchovy and Asparagus Salad
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat and warm through a tablespoonful of olive oil per person. To this add one finely chopped clove of garlic per person and a sprinkling of dried chilli flakes. Heat for about 1 minute. Add plenty of very short asparagus tips and tender stems along with as many anchovies as you fancy. Season with fine salt and  freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle with the zest of 1/2 lemon.  Shake the pan around until all the asparagus is coated and glossy. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the asparagus is just tender but still slightly crispy. Serve warm with hot pita breads (gluten-free available in supermarkets) and a green salad.

Tapenade
1 large clove garlic, chopped
1 3/4 cups whole, pitted kalamata olives
1 can anchovy fillets, rinsed
2 tablespoons capers
1 teaspoon of both fresh thyme and chopped rosemary,
3 tablespoons lemon juice
4 tablespoons olive oil

Combine all the ingredients except the oil in a food processor and as you blend the mixture, drizzle in the oil. Blend until a smooth paste. Transfer to a bowl and serve with hot pita bread (gluten free available in super markets) and a mixed salad. Alternatively, spread the tapenade over lamb chops or over sustainably caught salmon or mackerel fillets and grill.  Serve hot with a bowl of cooked French  green beans which have been tossed in olive oil and crushed garlic and fried for a couple of minutes. Delicious.

A few verses with original spelling!

Half-term at last. Major lie-ins required after 5 weeks of early rising and the daily unfathomable miscalculations of timings that arise between 8am-8.14am, when we never quite get out of the door at the required moment. This is a total mystery to me. What happens to space and time in these 14 minutes? Slow motion? Is this part of the theory of Quantum Physics? Is there a parallel universe where we are actually on time for school and even quite possibly in the relevant classroom but we just think that we are late? I must consult a scientist!
This week we have a project afoot. The school frequently endeavours to raise large amounts of money for charity and one of our regular charities is: "The Clock Tower Fund". This charity helps families of soldiers who have been severely injured or lost their lives while serving their country. Living in Herefordshire, we do have plenty of army families at our school and so it is a charity close to our heart.  A sponsored spell has been organized and the children have to learn 40 spellings in order to achieve their sponsorship goals. Luckily, we had an influx of generous Godmothers and friends last weekend and so we have a worthy goal for which to aim. A bulletin will be released on 21st February as to her success.  Nail biting stuff... (if I did, which I don't!)
To celebrate the onset of half-term The Pink Lovely had a sleep over here with a friend. They have set up a "pop group" at school and they wanted to compose some songs for the next meeting. I left them to it.  A sheet of A4 paper was duly produced at the end of the evening and The Pink Lovely, aged 7, stood up on a chair with her Pink microphone and sang her first ever lyrics in soft and gentle Folk Music style. This was somewhat surprising as I was expecting something more akin to Lady Gaga who is currently deemed the queen of pop and worthy of imitation. This is what my little angel had written and sang..... with original spellings!

To Women and Men in the Surfis (Services)

I know ther are lots of  you in the surfis,(services)
You risk your lives helping the country,
Thanc you, Oh thank you for helping the world,
You may not see your kids very often,
and we are sorry to hear that,
The mony we rase will go to you,
to help you and care for you,
and maybe even see your children more,
Thank you, Oh thank you for helping the world.

by a little girl aged 7

It struck me right in the heart and tears trickled down for her sweetness and the joy of her generous spirit. I am indeed a lucky mother.

Moments later, composure resumed, I am madly calculating the possibilities of untold wealth in my retirement from millions of copies of my teenage daughter's first NO.1 in the "pop charts". Rock on!....

An easy menu for a relaxed St.Valentine's Day

The Pink Lovely, aged 7 is already in a state of high excitement that she will undoubtedly receive at least two St. Valentine's Cards. I saw in the post office yesterday, two for the price of one....this astonished me as I presumed that most people only send one card to their dearly beloved or  possibly to the most recent hot-date! I wondered who takes up this offer and now I know............ I have seen little envelopes with hearts on, hidden around our house and so I presume that these will be offered on a tray with a delicious, if unspeakably early breakfast! But maybe, they are for a sweetheart class mate? We shall see....
Gorgeous flowers abound and romantic dinners are enjoyed all over the world but it is not always possible to go out if you have children, so here is an easy menu to enjoy making at home.  Once the little treasures are safely asleep then you can enjoy the rest of the evening in the sure knowledge that the food is prepared and ready for a few last minute attentions with a glass of something you enjoy in your glass.  Tweeting away the other day, I was delighted to receive a request from THE FOOD BEAT to conjure up a St. Valentine's Day main course.  So I have decided on something quick and easy but slightly fun and different. An inexpensive starter and pudding to make up for an expensive main course. The menu is not too rich but it can either be prepared earlier in the day or when you get back from work. So, The Food Beat, I hope you enjoy your dinner and have a lovely evening.


Smoked Mackerel and Tomato Pots
Serves 4 (keep two for the next day!)
2 fillets (about 200g) skinned smoked mackerel in crushed peppercorns
(for a milder taste use plain smoked mackerel and season with your own quantity of  freshly ground black pepper)
12 mini vine tomatoes, halved
125ml organic or local double cream or thick Jersey cream
(you can use Elmlea light for those who prefer less fat or St. Helen's Farm goats' double cream/ soya dream for those who cannot take dairy)
A sprinkling of cayenne pepper
2 oven-proof china pots (very large ramekins or mini-gratin/pie dishes, failing this use 4 little ramekins)
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/Gas6
Break up the mackerel into bite-size pieces and arrange haphazardly with the tomato halves in each  china dish. Pour the cream over the mixture and sprinkle with a dusting of cayenne. Chill until needed.
Bake the mackerel for about 20 minutes or until hot and bubbling and serve with warm breads.

Steak with Parmesan and Mushrooms
Serves 2-4
680g middle cut fillet beef
crushed black peppercorns
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
255g mixed mushrooms (wild and cultivated), sliced
2 tablespoons sherry or Madeira
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon full fat crème fraiche or dairy-free Tofutti Sour Supreme
1 free range egg yolk
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan or dairy-free Parmesan substitute
Trim the fillet and roll in the fresh peppercorns. Warm one tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and sauté the meat until it is browned on all sides.  This might take about 10 minutes if you like it medium rare.  Leave it to cool on a wire rack over a plate.  Add the remaining oil to the pan, add the onion and cook gently until soft. Stir in the garlic and mushrooms. Increase the heat and cook for a couple of minutes before adding the sherry.  Cook for about 5 minutes until the mushrooms are soft and the liquid has been absorbed.  Transfer the mixture to a bowl, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and leave to cool. Stir the crème fraiche or Sour Supreme into the cold mixture with the egg and parsley, cover and keep chilled until needed. Wrap the meat tightly in clingfilm and chill until 15 minutes before eating.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/Gas6
Unwrap the beef and cut into 4 even-sized pieces. Place them on a lightly greased baking tray or oven-proof dish. Spoon the mushroom mixture over the top of each one, flatten slightly and sprinkle with the grated cheese.  Cook for about 8 minutes until the tops are golden and bubbling and serve.
Any leftovers can be eaten the next day in a sandwich! Yum......

Passion Cakes with Passion Sauce
Serves 2-4
4x Heart-shaped tins/baking moulds are available from good cook shops or department stores. Line them with non-stick paper
60g ground almonds
30g Doves Farm gluten free plain flour or organic plain flour, sifted
2 large free range eggs, separated
75g caster sugar
1 teaspoon bitter almond extract
Flesh and fruit of 6 ripe passion fruit (the more wrinkled they are the riper)
Sprinkling of sifted icing sugar
Juice of 1/2 small lemon
4 tablespoons Archers Peach Schnapps or other similar liqueur
Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan/350F/Gas4
Mix the ground almonds with the flour in a bowl. In the food processor, beat the egg yolks and sugar with the almond extract until pale and thick. Scrape the mixture out of the food processor and stir into the flour.        Quickly slice open 2 of the passion fruits, scoop the filling out and into the flour mixture. Beat the egg whites into soft peaks and fold into the passion fruit mixture.  Divide between the prepared heart moulds and bake for about 15 minutes until golden and springy to touch.  Leave them to cool slightly before turning out onto a wire rack. (Store in air-tight container until needed later in the day).


Wishing absolutely everyone who reads this blog a peaceful day and a contented evening, wherever they are and what ever they are doing.

Shrewsbury hits the spot and a Tipsy Duck

I am undergoing a conversion, not of the religious kind, you will be glad to hear! but to shopping in Shrewsbury! I discovered an Aladdin's cave of sugarcraft goodies and cake decorations and could be heard squeaking with delight at the sight of a tube of edible fuchsia coloured gel, a glistening edible gold dust, sparkling edible cobalt blue glitter, all for my cakes. The Pink Lovely aged 7.5 yrs will expire with delight and excitement when they are produced for our next batch of cup cakes at half-term. So, if you love fun cake toppings then do go and find "The Icing Tip" in Shrewsbury's covered market on the top floor. However, if you don't like baking or don't have time to bake then there is nothing better that "Cake Angels" in Hereford.  They make up the most exquisite gift boxes of cup cakes, brownies and tray bakes that I have ever seen and they are all gluten, wheat and dairy free. Fabulous gifts to be delivered to your friends or family to celebrate anything or just as a big "Thank You". £1.00 from each standard order goes to The Haven Trust in Hereford which helps ladies recover from breast cancer by giving them lots of advice and therapies. There is also a Haven in Leeds and in London and they do a magnificent job in guiding so many women. This reminds me of a very funny email that the Chief Executive of the Haven sent me last week, asking me to go around my area collecting old bras from all my friends and acquaintances. These bras will be recycled and the money raised will help towards the £1000.00 cost per person to be treated by the Haven.  So, with hundreds of bras in my bag tomorrow, I set off to Hereford to deliver these aged and wondrous delights!  Friday night dawns, actually, that cannot be right, it must drawing-in or something...must be loosing my concentration and needing a large Vodka and Tonic and ice and lemon.....................(quick exit!).................Ahhhhh....OOps it is only 6pm - Oh well it is 7pm somewhere in the world.  Gorgeous Godmothers descending on Fox Barn later this evening and have not yet decided on what I should create for dinner tonight.  I have been lusting after duck for the past week, cannot get enough of it! Could this be a lack of iron and the need for red meat or could this be that I never usually buy duck and my culinary senses are starved of this sublime game bird? Having said this: I have already had duck three times this week! Duck and Pomegranate stir-fry: exceptionally good! Duck Soup and Duck and Roquefort Salad. Weird or What...but this makes up for not eating duck for 11 months, mainly due to The Big Issue, which is of course: Does one buy ready-to-cook duck from some unspeakable supermarket chiller cabinet, wrapped in layers of plastic and un-recyclable packaging for under a tenner? OR does one go to the gasp-making game counter in the local butcher, down a windy lane half-way to Leominster? I shudder as I bring out my credit card (think of the extra point rewards!) but I am sure it is better to eat a happy duck and make a yummy stock afterwards and prepare a Chinese duck and rice noodle soup with lots of coriander, chilli, lime and spring onions for the next meal.  As it happens we made some rather good damson vodka in the autumn and as I have already enjoyed a sip or two of this spirited companion, I think that I will use this liquid gold to make a sauce for the roast duck.
Recipe for Tipsy Duck
1 very large and fat duck, rubbed with olive oil so that chopped sage, thyme and bits of bay leaf , sea salt and freshly ground black pepper stick to the skin
A few peeled onion quarters and bits of carrots and chopped garlic
1 large wine glass chicken stock
Damson Vodka
Some left-over stewed plums or damson from out of the freezer

Scatter the onions and carrots over the bottom of a deep roasting dish and plonk the duck on top. Pour the stock around it and roast in a hot oven until the skin looks crispy and golden. Top up with more stock if necessary. Remove from the heat and remove excess fat, add some splashes of damson vodka and the plums or damsons. Return to the oven and cook the meat until it is just how you like it. It should really be pink so that it doesn't dry out. Remove bird and leave to sit for 15 minutes before carving. Meanwhile, boil up the goodies in the pan over a medium flame and stir in some more vodka.  Sieve the mixture into a jug, adjust the seasoning to taste and then transfer it to a gravy boat or whatever you fancy serving it in. Carve the duck and before you  have any gravy, make sure that you are not driving home that night!