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Showing posts with label baking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baking. Show all posts
Thursday, January 3, 2013
French Breakfast - Epiphany Style
As I've mentioned every January, just as the rest of the western world is dieting, the French launch into a fantastic range of cakes to celebrate Epiphany - the coming of the Three Kings!
This year, as terms doesn't start again until January 7th, I realised that I'd have time to try out at least one recipe - the Couronne des Rois, which is the southern French equivalent of the Galette des Rois that I made last year. The Couronne is based on a brioche recipe, which I've never tried before. I was stunned at how much butter there is in brioche dough! I used this recipe, and it worked OK, although my fierce oven rather over-cooked the crust. It was nice enough, but my food processor (advised to beat the dough) isn't really up to the job. I think I'll look for a bread machine recipe next year! I also have the puff pasty kit to make a Galette des Rois in the fridge, although I've noticed that they've somehow left out the promised crown and fève - not sure if I can be bothered to go back to complain or not... Son 2 has a great collection from previous years, and I usually 'borrow' his!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Blueberry and Vanilla Buns
These are a doddle! And I think I like them (whisper it) more than blueberry muffins...
You will need:
100g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing,
100g caster sugar,
1tsp vanilla extract,
2 medium eggs,
150g self raising flour,
half teaspoon baking powder,
100g blueberries
Preheat the oven to 180°C, 350°F, Gas 4. Grease 10 sections of a muffin tray, perferably non-stick. Or use paper muffin cases to line the sections. (Could I find my silicon cases after the kitchen re-organisation? No, I couldn't!)
Put the butter, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, flour and baking powder into a bowl and whisk until smooth and creamy. Stir in 75g of the blueberries.
Divide the mixture among the tin sections (there's no need to spread it level) and scatter with the remaining berries. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until well risen and pale golden. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes then loosen gently and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Once again, the recipe is from a really fantastic feature by Joanna Farrow which I tore out of a back copy of Country Homes and Interiors. They are good for breakfast and tea time. And any other time..?
100g butter, softened, plus extra for greasing,
100g caster sugar,
1tsp vanilla extract,
2 medium eggs,
150g self raising flour,
half teaspoon baking powder,
100g blueberries
Preheat the oven to 180°C, 350°F, Gas 4. Grease 10 sections of a muffin tray, perferably non-stick. Or use paper muffin cases to line the sections. (Could I find my silicon cases after the kitchen re-organisation? No, I couldn't!)
Put the butter, sugar, vanilla extract, eggs, flour and baking powder into a bowl and whisk until smooth and creamy. Stir in 75g of the blueberries.
Divide the mixture among the tin sections (there's no need to spread it level) and scatter with the remaining berries. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until well risen and pale golden. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes then loosen gently and transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Once again, the recipe is from a really fantastic feature by Joanna Farrow which I tore out of a back copy of Country Homes and Interiors. They are good for breakfast and tea time. And any other time..?
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Blueberry baking
After the thrills of fresh blueberries on Thursday evening and Friday morning, I got down to some baking and produced:
Blueberry Vanilla Buns, Blueberry Superfood Flapjacks and Blueberry and Feta Tart.
Wow, they were good! In fact, although the tart disappeared between three of us yesterday evening (Son 2 was at a friend's), the other goodies are still with us, in steadily decreasing numbers. I'm about to pack up the last two buns and a few flapjacks to take round to the friend's family, when I pick up a tired Son 2.
All the recipes were adapted (you know me) from an excellent series in Country Homes and Interiors Magazine (2010 or 2011, not sure which). If you'd like any of the recipes, let me know and I'll share them.
Wow, they were good! In fact, although the tart disappeared between three of us yesterday evening (Son 2 was at a friend's), the other goodies are still with us, in steadily decreasing numbers. I'm about to pack up the last two buns and a few flapjacks to take round to the friend's family, when I pick up a tired Son 2.
All the recipes were adapted (you know me) from an excellent series in Country Homes and Interiors Magazine (2010 or 2011, not sure which). If you'd like any of the recipes, let me know and I'll share them.
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
DIY Galette des Rois
Thanks for your thoughts yesterday, and for your ongoing comments on my Coming to France post. Having discharged my maternal duties for now (long wait at doctor's for Son 1's sore foot, and research for vocabulary for Son 2's Spanish homework *a love letter!!!*) I can now take the time to tell you about our homemade Galette des Rois.
Firstly, my search for rolls of puff pastry scored a real result - our supermarket's own brand does a special Epiphany pack - fève and crown included! I snapped it up. If you're looking for the history and tradition of this cake, I talked about it here two years ago.
The pack also includes a recipe. I did find an internet recipe and I gave it to you last Friday, but this one is just that much easier, and, given a very, very sore bottom and reduced bendability (40-something women should not ice-skate unless very good at it) I decided that easy was desirable, this weekend!
Relieved to be standing upright, I put the first puff pastry roll and its baking parchment into the case. I pricked the base with a fork, to stop it bubbling up, and then I put the filling ingredients into a bowl - I did put in half ground almonds and half ground hazelnuts, as my internet recipe suggested.
I mixed it up (half-heartedly, as the butter was rather less soft that ideal) and put it into the base.
Firstly, my search for rolls of puff pastry scored a real result - our supermarket's own brand does a special Epiphany pack - fève and crown included! I snapped it up. If you're looking for the history and tradition of this cake, I talked about it here two years ago.
The pack also includes a recipe. I did find an internet recipe and I gave it to you last Friday, but this one is just that much easier, and, given a very, very sore bottom and reduced bendability (40-something women should not ice-skate unless very good at it) I decided that easy was desirable, this weekend!
Relieved to be standing upright, I put the first puff pastry roll and its baking parchment into the case. I pricked the base with a fork, to stop it bubbling up, and then I put the filling ingredients into a bowl - I did put in half ground almonds and half ground hazelnuts, as my internet recipe suggested.
I mixed it up (half-heartedly, as the butter was rather less soft that ideal) and put it into the base.
Then I put the second puff pastry circle on top and turned over/crimped down the edges - all very simple but fun.
In the baker's near the ice rink I'd been stiffly studying the patterns cut into the tops of their galettes. My pack suggested these ideas:
I felt it was wise to start with something simple, so I went for straight lines
but made the pattern diamond-shaped rather than square. I think it worked well!
In the baker's near the ice rink I'd been stiffly studying the patterns cut into the tops of their galettes. My pack suggested these ideas:
I felt it was wise to start with something simple, so I went for straight lines
but made the pattern diamond-shaped rather than square. I think it worked well!
Spot the deliberate mistake?
I left out the fève! I bet that happens quite often. I found a bit near the edge where I thought I could shove it in without being too obvious, and glazed the cake with egg yolk.
I left out the fève! I bet that happens quite often. I found a bit near the edge where I thought I could shove it in without being too obvious, and glazed the cake with egg yolk.
Part way through the baking, the egg yolk was darkening much quicker than I liked, so I hauled it out and gave it a baking paper cover before putting it in for the rest of the time.
And here it is! With bought pastry, it really only took about 15 minutes to make. I'm not sure about the cost difference - it probably does cost less to make it yourself, even with the expensive ground hazelnuts, but only just. The key question is: did it taste better? Well, I think it did. I didn't get photos of it cut, as I'd intended, because it disappeared so fast! We ate it, warmed, with ice cream or cream. And guess who found the féve? 
Me! Here are this year's fèves on our mantelpiece - Ben got the santon (traditional Provençal nativity figure) with the water jar, Son 2 found the flamingo (see map of France on the back showing were you find flamingoes in our country) and I got the little circus elephant. Hmm, very French that, still having circus animals...
Tomorrow, I'm going to launch The Thrill of What You Already Have. We discussed this last year and decided that a fun, and free, blog project for the year would be to do a monthly display of rediscovered treasures, or things we already own, seen in a new light. If you're interested in enjoying the good things you already own, instead of going out and buying more, then please do pop in tomorrow and find out what's going on!
And here it is! With bought pastry, it really only took about 15 minutes to make. I'm not sure about the cost difference - it probably does cost less to make it yourself, even with the expensive ground hazelnuts, but only just. The key question is: did it taste better? Well, I think it did. I didn't get photos of it cut, as I'd intended, because it disappeared so fast! We ate it, warmed, with ice cream or cream. And guess who found the féve? 
Me! Here are this year's fèves on our mantelpiece - Ben got the santon (traditional Provençal nativity figure) with the water jar, Son 2 found the flamingo (see map of France on the back showing were you find flamingoes in our country) and I got the little circus elephant. Hmm, very French that, still having circus animals...
Tomorrow, I'm going to launch The Thrill of What You Already Have. We discussed this last year and decided that a fun, and free, blog project for the year would be to do a monthly display of rediscovered treasures, or things we already own, seen in a new light. If you're interested in enjoying the good things you already own, instead of going out and buying more, then please do pop in tomorrow and find out what's going on!Friday, January 6, 2012
Celebrate!
Oh yes, the celebrations haven't finished here in France! In our family we link the Epiphany King Cakes to our own celebrations - the anniversary of our arrival in this country. Thank you for all your comments on my 'heart-felt' post below - I feel very privileged that I have friends in blogging who will read what I have to say and take the time to respond.
So, if you've read the post below, you know that our arrival in France was not without incident, and that, although the good things (like these gateaux des rois) started straight away, there were plenty of hard things to deal with for a number of years. As you clearly understood, looking at your comments, I don't regret our move here one little bit, even though it was difficult. And the uncomfortable process of 'breaking' has proved to be rewarded one-hundred times over, so much so that I'm not so scared of difficult times any more. And yes, I can speak French now - we had a meal with two of Ben's colleagues last night and through it I was thinking: "I am chatting in French, I wish my blogging friends could see me!" French is a language of beauty and perfection, and my French is neither beautiful nor perfect, but it does work.
So tonight is Twelfth Night ('or what you will') and we'll be taking down our fairly low-key Christmas decorations. Then I'm going to celebrate Epiphany this weekend by baking my very-first galette des rois. I've found a recipe here in English (American cups or metric measurements) if you'd like to join me! And for those of you who read French or are good at code-breaking (I know there are a few readers in both categories!), here is a recipe for our more local couronne des rois, which is a bread-based delight, as pictured at the top of my post. I'll let you know how we get on - please tell me if you have a go too!
So, if you've read the post below, you know that our arrival in France was not without incident, and that, although the good things (like these gateaux des rois) started straight away, there were plenty of hard things to deal with for a number of years. As you clearly understood, looking at your comments, I don't regret our move here one little bit, even though it was difficult. And the uncomfortable process of 'breaking' has proved to be rewarded one-hundred times over, so much so that I'm not so scared of difficult times any more. And yes, I can speak French now - we had a meal with two of Ben's colleagues last night and through it I was thinking: "I am chatting in French, I wish my blogging friends could see me!" French is a language of beauty and perfection, and my French is neither beautiful nor perfect, but it does work.
So tonight is Twelfth Night ('or what you will') and we'll be taking down our fairly low-key Christmas decorations. Then I'm going to celebrate Epiphany this weekend by baking my very-first galette des rois. I've found a recipe here in English (American cups or metric measurements) if you'd like to join me! And for those of you who read French or are good at code-breaking (I know there are a few readers in both categories!), here is a recipe for our more local couronne des rois, which is a bread-based delight, as pictured at the top of my post. I'll let you know how we get on - please tell me if you have a go too!
Sunday, November 27, 2011
A First Pause in Advent 2011
It's Advent! The countdown to Christmas has begun.
I'm really looking forward to reading the posts of all those who are taking part in the Pause - we're taking a weekly break from the flurry of preparations to rest for a while and share something -anything - about what Christmas is really about for us. You'll find the list of those taking part in the sidebar to your left. Feel free to join in - mention it in your comment here! We could be talking about traditions, family, food, beliefs, ponderings, children... whatever. 
My first contribution for you is certainly about traditions, food and family!
I decided to bake all my Christmas goodies while I was in Edinburgh with my dad at the end of October. We're going to spend Christmas with him, arriving early on Christmas Eve, so preparing while I was there made a lot more sense than transporting food on the aeroplane or having a last-minute panic when I arrive! Cooking in my mum's kitchen, using my grandma's 150-year old recipe and equipment (she was the baker in our family - she taught me) was quite an experience. And as I have a terrible memory and don't keep a hold on these experiences in any meaningful way, I wrote a poem as a 'snapshot' of what was going on in the kitchen that afternoon.
Cooking in the kitchen of my ancestresses
The third-biggest bowl is too small to stir the overflowing contents:
Nothing for it but to plunge in the hands!
Still-warm mashed potato cushions my questing fingers,
Chill-damp grated carrot a shocking contrast.
Clouds of nutmeg and cinnamon rise from the disturbed mass:
Preparing for Christmas in the kitchen of my ancestresses.
A recipe in my grandmother’s hand-
Remember Grandma, with her white curls full of flour?
Battered bronze scales of Grandma’s force a return to pounds and ounces
For my finally metric soul.
Breadcrumbs whizz in my mother’s food processor –
Remember when the first blade was accidentally thrown out with the rubbish?
One angry mother -
Though she saw the funny side later.
A hunt for a satisfactory pudding bowl.
Eighties Tupperware won’t do.
In the back of the corner cupboard, a metal bowl dated 1975...
I'm really looking forward to reading the posts of all those who are taking part in the Pause - we're taking a weekly break from the flurry of preparations to rest for a while and share something -anything - about what Christmas is really about for us. You'll find the list of those taking part in the sidebar to your left. Feel free to join in - mention it in your comment here! We could be talking about traditions, family, food, beliefs, ponderings, children... whatever. My first contribution for you is certainly about traditions, food and family!
I decided to bake all my Christmas goodies while I was in Edinburgh with my dad at the end of October. We're going to spend Christmas with him, arriving early on Christmas Eve, so preparing while I was there made a lot more sense than transporting food on the aeroplane or having a last-minute panic when I arrive! Cooking in my mum's kitchen, using my grandma's 150-year old recipe and equipment (she was the baker in our family - she taught me) was quite an experience. And as I have a terrible memory and don't keep a hold on these experiences in any meaningful way, I wrote a poem as a 'snapshot' of what was going on in the kitchen that afternoon.
Cooking in the kitchen of my ancestresses
The third-biggest bowl is too small to stir the overflowing contents:
Nothing for it but to plunge in the hands!
Still-warm mashed potato cushions my questing fingers,
Chill-damp grated carrot a shocking contrast.
Clouds of nutmeg and cinnamon rise from the disturbed mass:
Preparing for Christmas in the kitchen of my ancestresses.
A recipe in my grandmother’s hand-
Remember Grandma, with her white curls full of flour?
Battered bronze scales of Grandma’s force a return to pounds and ounces
For my finally metric soul.
Breadcrumbs whizz in my mother’s food processor –
Remember when the first blade was accidentally thrown out with the rubbish?
One angry mother -
Though she saw the funny side later.
A hunt for a satisfactory pudding bowl.
Eighties Tupperware won’t do.
In the back of the corner cupboard, a metal bowl dated 1975...
Cooking in the kitchen of my ancestresses,
Preparing Christmas for those who remain.
Preparing Christmas for those who remain.
Friday, September 30, 2011
In love with...
... my shady spot next to the Cosmos, the Black-Eyed Susans and (Lululiz's) Morning Glories...
... this year's charity shop blanket - a volunteer knits a few every year, and I pick up another one for the collection each autumn!..
... the bag I customised this weekend. CK? What CK?..
... and a certain birthday-man who turned 44 on Wednesday.
The boys made him a cake each!
... this year's charity shop blanket - a volunteer knits a few every year, and I pick up another one for the collection each autumn!..
... the bag I customised this weekend. CK? What CK?..
... and a certain birthday-man who turned 44 on Wednesday.The boys made him a cake each!Monday, June 6, 2011
A Bank Holiday Weekend in France
True to our imported British bank holiday tradition, it was quite rainy!
Thursday was Ascension Day, which is a bank holiday in France - much appreciated this year, as most of our bank holidays have fallen at the weekend and therefore been lost. I popped out to a little Vide Grenier in the moated village I blogged about two years ago. Here are my finds this time:
An excellent Ancient Egypt 'fan' of information - Son 1 loves it. A bag of cherries (yum). A hydrangea. A sweet jug with some clogg-wearing children playing tug-of-war in front of a water mill - strange that it's a water mill not a windmill...
Friday was the 'Pont d'Ascension' - the 'bridge' between the bank holiday and the weekend. I worked a little bit, Ben took that day off instead of the Thursday (a common practice) and the boys had both days off school - how nice to be young! Their friends, three brothers, came over to stay the night and I fed them as you see above - with a 'raclette' where they grill their own veg, cured meats and cheese, all draped over boiled potatoes. They had a lovely time. Shame Son 1 now has Slap Face and is off school - I hope none of the rest of them caught it!
On the Friday, while I was picking up our visitors, I drove past the banner above, being put up in rather difficult weather conditions. So on Saturday I cycled off with a rucksack of empty containers, to our local blueberry farm.
I parked my bike by the greenhouses and was given a good welcome and picking instructions by the farmer.
The rows of blueberry bushes had the farmhouse at one end...
... and a field of horses at the other.
The farmer told me that the berries were only just ripening, and that I'd have to pick carefully, only the ones that were 'bien violette'.
I found enough!
So this weekend we ate peaches with blueberries and raspberries from the garden (with a little touch of Orange Flower Water - thanks Nigella), blueberry muffins, and blueberry and apple flapjack crumble.
If you look closely at the recipe above you'll see that this is not what I was trying to make. The aim was to make crumble bars for picnics, but something is wrong with the recipe quantities and the 'bars' were incoherent yet deliciously squidgy. I squashed them into a bowl and served them with icecream, to the delight of our second set of visitors. Our friend Matthew borrowed my recipe and said he's not going to change the quantities at all, just serve it as a pudding!
Thursday was Ascension Day, which is a bank holiday in France - much appreciated this year, as most of our bank holidays have fallen at the weekend and therefore been lost. I popped out to a little Vide Grenier in the moated village I blogged about two years ago. Here are my finds this time:
An excellent Ancient Egypt 'fan' of information - Son 1 loves it. A bag of cherries (yum). A hydrangea. A sweet jug with some clogg-wearing children playing tug-of-war in front of a water mill - strange that it's a water mill not a windmill...
Friday was the 'Pont d'Ascension' - the 'bridge' between the bank holiday and the weekend. I worked a little bit, Ben took that day off instead of the Thursday (a common practice) and the boys had both days off school - how nice to be young! Their friends, three brothers, came over to stay the night and I fed them as you see above - with a 'raclette' where they grill their own veg, cured meats and cheese, all draped over boiled potatoes. They had a lovely time. Shame Son 1 now has Slap Face and is off school - I hope none of the rest of them caught it!
On the Friday, while I was picking up our visitors, I drove past the banner above, being put up in rather difficult weather conditions. So on Saturday I cycled off with a rucksack of empty containers, to our local blueberry farm.
I parked my bike by the greenhouses and was given a good welcome and picking instructions by the farmer.
The rows of blueberry bushes had the farmhouse at one end...
... and a field of horses at the other.The farmer told me that the berries were only just ripening, and that I'd have to pick carefully, only the ones that were 'bien violette'.
I found enough!
So this weekend we ate peaches with blueberries and raspberries from the garden (with a little touch of Orange Flower Water - thanks Nigella), blueberry muffins, and blueberry and apple flapjack crumble.
If you look closely at the recipe above you'll see that this is not what I was trying to make. The aim was to make crumble bars for picnics, but something is wrong with the recipe quantities and the 'bars' were incoherent yet deliciously squidgy. I squashed them into a bowl and served them with icecream, to the delight of our second set of visitors. Our friend Matthew borrowed my recipe and said he's not going to change the quantities at all, just serve it as a pudding!j
Yesterday I cycled off to the final Vide Grenier of the weekend - always risky, cycling to a VG! I'll tell you all about that in my next post...
Monday, May 2, 2011
A little corner of France...
... became Britain last Friday!
We sat on a patriotic sofa,
and ate a union flag cake decorated by Son 1,
with 'red, white and blue' layers - the boys made one colour each (I did the 'white' one).
We continue to have a great time with Ben's best of British mum, and are hoping to go to an animal park tomorrow, if the weather doesn't break! Thanks for all your lovely comments and I'll be around, if not very much just yet...
We sat on a patriotic sofa,
and ate a union flag cake decorated by Son 1,
with 'red, white and blue' layers - the boys made one colour each (I did the 'white' one).
We continue to have a great time with Ben's best of British mum, and are hoping to go to an animal park tomorrow, if the weather doesn't break! Thanks for all your lovely comments and I'll be around, if not very much just yet...Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Thrifty Week - Baking
One of the things that you notice when you try to price up home made cakes for a cake stall (been there, done it...) is that home baking is actually not a very thrifty activity. If you really charged what that hand-iced coffee and walnut cake was worth, in terms of ingredients and time, unfortunately, most buyers would refuse to stump up. I gather it's the same for hand-crafted goods, and all this is rather a shame.
However, of course that doesn't stop us baking, because both the process and the results are well worth it - things may cost a bit more than mass-processed versions in the shops, but they were fun and satisfying to make, and way better to eat!
Last week I cleared space in my freezer and used an unusually empty afternoon to bake for Holy Week and Easter. First I made hot cross buns for Good Friday...
I got to thinking about how I shop thriftily for home baking. My first rule seems to be: buy the cheapest ingredients, and if they turn out to be good, stay with them, but if they turn out to be rubbish, upgrade next time.
This means that I buy budget flour, sugar, raisin and butter, but pay more for better quality spices and eggs - with eggs it's an ethical choice as well as a quality one, of course. I bake with cocoa powder but not too much real chocolate, as I don't like to buy rubbish chocolate and the good quality Fair Trade stuff I buy is really only for special occasion baking at the price! So I suppose that's my second thrifty baking tip - choose your recipes according to what you can afford, and what is easily available in the country you're living in. Brits bemoan the cost of imported Golden Syrup in France, and Americans mourn the lack of Hershey's Kisses! So, find recipes that don't use them...
Next thrifty tip, which I stole wholeheartedly from Cath Kidston - cover battered recipe books in offcuts of oilcloth! Oh, I did enjoy doing this, and have enjoyed using the books ever since! They're easier to find on the shelves now, too.
Here's the Simnel cake, minus its marzipan topping, which I'm going to put on when it comes out of the freezer before Easter. The last trick I use is to decide which ingredients are essential and which ones I can replace with cheaper alternatives. Self-raising flour is available in France but just as expensive as the British version. I seive in the appropriate amount of baking powder with my budget flour. Currants are really expensive here (quick lesson in etymology: they are called Raisins de Corinth, pronounced 'corrant' which shows you where we get the English word currant). Therefore I usually substitute cheap raisins/sultanas for the mixed fruit or currants in any recipe. It's not quite the same but this way I can afford to bake.
j
However, of course that doesn't stop us baking, because both the process and the results are well worth it - things may cost a bit more than mass-processed versions in the shops, but they were fun and satisfying to make, and way better to eat!
Last week I cleared space in my freezer and used an unusually empty afternoon to bake for Holy Week and Easter. First I made hot cross buns for Good Friday...
I got to thinking about how I shop thriftily for home baking. My first rule seems to be: buy the cheapest ingredients, and if they turn out to be good, stay with them, but if they turn out to be rubbish, upgrade next time.
This means that I buy budget flour, sugar, raisin and butter, but pay more for better quality spices and eggs - with eggs it's an ethical choice as well as a quality one, of course. I bake with cocoa powder but not too much real chocolate, as I don't like to buy rubbish chocolate and the good quality Fair Trade stuff I buy is really only for special occasion baking at the price! So I suppose that's my second thrifty baking tip - choose your recipes according to what you can afford, and what is easily available in the country you're living in. Brits bemoan the cost of imported Golden Syrup in France, and Americans mourn the lack of Hershey's Kisses! So, find recipes that don't use them...
Next thrifty tip, which I stole wholeheartedly from Cath Kidston - cover battered recipe books in offcuts of oilcloth! Oh, I did enjoy doing this, and have enjoyed using the books ever since! They're easier to find on the shelves now, too.
Here's the Simnel cake, minus its marzipan topping, which I'm going to put on when it comes out of the freezer before Easter. The last trick I use is to decide which ingredients are essential and which ones I can replace with cheaper alternatives. Self-raising flour is available in France but just as expensive as the British version. I seive in the appropriate amount of baking powder with my budget flour. Currants are really expensive here (quick lesson in etymology: they are called Raisins de Corinth, pronounced 'corrant' which shows you where we get the English word currant). Therefore I usually substitute cheap raisins/sultanas for the mixed fruit or currants in any recipe. It's not quite the same but this way I can afford to bake.j
Do pop over to see Mrs Yappy Dog for her advice and links to all the other Thrifty Week posts, and please also feel free to have a look at my daily prayer for our children, below...
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Easter bonnets, Easter scents
This month I was slightly stumped when I looked at Niki's fantastic Nostalgia calendar.
She has a beautiful collection of vintage floral hats, and I don't. On reflection, I decided that I don't even wish I had a collection of vintage floral hats (something about the squashed flowers, I think...)
So I just decided to put some blossom branches from garden bushes into a pretty jug I bought in Edinburgh last year. I think it works! But at the end of this month I've decided to go a little bit red, white and blue, in celebration of all things British, royal and matrimonial. So you may get a second post about this space under the stairs this month...
The little branch in the jug is lilac-scented honeysuckle. It really does smell of lilac! But the Easter scent in the house right now is a Simnel cake, baking in the oven, and the dough for some hot cross buns, rising in the heat of the baking cake. I know I'm a week in advance - I just had some time this afternoon and have cleared some space in my freezer to hold everything over for a week! What do you bake for Easter?
She has a beautiful collection of vintage floral hats, and I don't. On reflection, I decided that I don't even wish I had a collection of vintage floral hats (something about the squashed flowers, I think...) 
So I just decided to put some blossom branches from garden bushes into a pretty jug I bought in Edinburgh last year. I think it works! But at the end of this month I've decided to go a little bit red, white and blue, in celebration of all things British, royal and matrimonial. So you may get a second post about this space under the stairs this month...
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