Thanksgiving UK-Style!

So here it is...and a hearty HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all of you celebrating today! Here, of course it's just a regular...grey & blustery...Thursday in November. But I've always thought that it's the sunniest & cheeriest of holidays so we decided to have a Thanksgiving-themed Sunday lunch for friends recently...

I used my Stars & Stripes salt and pepper shakers...

 

 

and the napkins that we picked up on our trip to Martha's Vineyard last year...

 

I made a centrepiece from pomegranates, persimmons & used apples as candle holders, together with glossy green ivy & some rosehips that I picked on our walk that day...

I made cranberry relish, with red wine & port...we roasted two chickens instead of a turkey, but I made Susan Branch's Grandma's famous stuffing, plus nutmeg-scented bread sauce and brussels sprouts tossed with garlic butter, rosemary roasted potatoes....and to finish off, another Sue Branch spectacular...

Pumpkin Cheesecake with a Gingersnap Crust...which I served with home-made caramel sauce & toasted pecan nuts...

Gosh, it was good!! To go with coffee, we had a selection of US chocolate bars...

It was a wonderful meal!

 

The results of the last post mean that next time I shall give you the recipes for Cheese Scones & Parkin....but until then, have a wonderful time wherever you are....eat, drink, relax, be VERY merry and whatever you do...

make very sure that you get some help with the washing up!

Sending love and very many thanks for reading! xoxo

Cold weather cooking...& which one?

The last full moon had that late Autumn feeling...a harder, brighter look that comes with the onset of the colder seasons...time for some cosy dinners!

But first I wanted to show you the beautiful cake that my youngest sister baked for my birthday...and my youngest nephew (4 year old Will) decorated! Gorgeous marbled spongecake...buttercream icing...and you may be able to spot at the centre back amongst all the candles (ahem!) a plastic tyrannosaurus rex!! A must for any cake. The peanut M&Ms were, apparently, his eggs! So not only delicious, but a useful dinosaur incubator too....

The last Farmer's Market was cold & damp...perfect weather for this sticky oat & syrup parkin (the Yorkshire version of gingerbread) It's becoming a bestseller...and it keeps so incredibly well (in fact, you really need to make it at least 6 days before eating, so that it has a chance to mature and really get sticky!) Yum!

New to the stall were these Butterscotch Blondies...perfect for those who don't like too much chocolate (those poor, mad people.....!) and they sold out quickly too...but not as fast as...

my cheese scones. This time I added the last of the chives from our garden to the mixture. Each month I bake more...but it's never enough!

We've been eating more warming, comforting suppers too...making the most of the vegetable bounty around right now...

This baked mushroom rice was fabulous...I added some dried porcini to the rice for extra shroom-i-ness...really a baked risotto, but much easier & so good!

Butternut squash is another favourite...this one was scored and roasted with roquefort cheese & pine nuts...

the leftovers went into a lasagne later in the week....too good to waste!

Sometimes I cheat & buy ready-rolled puff pastry...if I've been baking all day, it can be hard to summon up the enthusiasm to put lots of hard rolling into dinner! But puff pastry has the magical ability to give the illusion of effort, without actually using much at all!

This open tart was full of tomatoes, fennel, courgettes, red onions, feta cheese...all those wonderful mediterranean ingredients that taste so good together!

Indian food is something we love...vegetable curries are infinite in their variety, but I wanted to make one containing okra, which can be gluey in texture...

thankfully,  this one wasn't! Fresh, green, hot enough to squeeze the tongue but not to paralyse it...beautiful!

And the last of this treasury of vegetarian dinners was the aubergine, tomato & black-eyed bean stew that still makes my mouth water to think of it! I cooked the beans from scratch...not always necessary (tinned are so much easier!) but I think that black-eyes especially benefit from soaking & cooking at home as the tinned ones can be too mushy for my taste...

Served over brown basmati rice, this was just delightful and so hearty and warming!

 

I am currently cooking for a special lunch, which I'll tell you more about soon...but I have a question for you before I go!

I can't write them all here, but is there a recipe for one of the dishes in this post that you'd particularly like to have? If so, please leave me a comment and tell me which and I'll post the two most popular very soon!

I hope that you are enjoying some delicious food too, this November....there's so much that's good around this month!

Happy weekend xoxo

Beautiful bakewell & some things we've been eating...

So long since my last foodie post! I think that since I stopped supplying The Coffee Tree with daily treats, I seem to have been struggling to find a focus for this blog. But I think I've found the answer! It will now be subtitled: What we're eating now...and feature more of the food I cook everyday, as well as the baked treats I create for customers. I hope you approve!

First is one of the top favourites on my monthly Farmer's market stall...Bakewell Shortbread. Bakewell Tart (or pudding, depending on your origins) is a wonderful traditional dessert originating from Derbyshire. I've adapted it to make a slice that can be sold by the piece...it keeps beautifully and can be gluten-free as well, if required (I just substitute polenta/cornmeal or gluten-free flour for wheatflour in the shortbread and frangipane layers) First I make an all-butter shortbread base and bake for around 10 minutes until lightly coloured...then spread with plenty of jam. In this case it was raspberry - but any flavour will do....next is a frangipane layer, made from butter, sugar, ground almonds, eggs and a little self-raising flour together with some pure almond extract....

this is spread over the jam layer.....

and sprinkled with flaked almonds before returning to the oven for around 30 minutes until risen, set & golden brown...

it's important not to overbake, though....it needs to be lovely and squidgy! Serve warm (best, I think!) or cold with plenty of hot tea...

Delicious, absolutely. Recipe will be in my book...(aren't I a tease?!) It's coming, it's coming!

Yesterday was dark, blustery and rainy...I had a spare 20 minutes so I thought I'd make a quick batch of...

Double Chocolate Chip & Pecan Cookies. My Dad is currently in hospital, so a little box of these will find their way to him this weekend! Nothing like some good home baked treats to lift the spirits, I always think...and tell someone how much you love them.

Talking of love....there are two new cook books that I absolutely adore! There has been much publicity about them already...but in my view it is all deserved! The first is the second volume of the adorable Nigel Slater's Kitchen Diaries...

Nigel isn't a chef...he's a self-confessed "home cook who writes about food"...and how beautifully he writes! His books are the kind that people who love food and eating take to bed with them! I rarely use recipes any more...but his, I do. I have cooked so many meals already from this gorgeous book but a stand-out was...

this broad bean, feta and spinach pie. The original recipe used filo pastry...always having to tweak something, I used puff! But it was absolutely gorgeous...incredibly comforting, with big and generous flavours. Just as good cold for breakfast the next morning (a habit of mine!) as was...

this fabulous Parsley & Barley Salad with marinated feta from my other new acquisition...

I am very lucky to count Yotam as a dear friend, so this book is doubly special to me...but it is a truly wonderful addition to anyone's cookery library, I promise! Sami is Palestinian & Yotam Jewish, but both grew up in Jerusalem and this book is a joyous celebration of the differences and (many) similarities that result from the diverse cultural mix of the city. It contains many beautiful stories and memories, in addition to the inspirational recipes. As well as the salad, I made...

Chicken with caramelized onion and cardamom rice...it looks fairly similar in this picture (I blame the herbs!!) but I'm assured that the flavours were quite different!

The beauty and sunshine in these two books is lending much inspiration to my cooking, now that the nights are drawing in and it's such a pleasure to be in the warmth and light of the kitchen again! Highly recommended.

Have a brilliant weekend xo

A special austeri-tea....

On Sunday I hosted a small celebration tea for 2 close girlfriends....

We had originally been going to a local country house hotel...but they called me during the week to say that they had accidentally overbooked. I thought about it, and decided that at such short notice the best thing would be to serve it here at home...much better value & it meant we could take as long as we wanted too without being chivvied out to make way for the next sitting!

The keyword was miniature. I  started the day before with these tiny, sparkly vanilla meringues...

and then on Sunday morning I baked a batch of little Buttermilk Scones...

which I warmed up before we ate them with creme fraiche and a choice of...

lemon curd, raspberry jam or fresh blueberry compote (or all three!)

I made heart-shaped sandwiches...smoked salmon pate, cream cheese & cucumber....

and baked some crisp strawberry tarts, filled with vanilla pastry cream

I did succumb and bought these beautiful burnished gold, bronze & silver macarons from Marks & Spencer to go with the fingers of brownie & caramel shortbread on the pressed glass cakestand...

So pretty! I tied the cutlery with grosgrain ribbon & used my spring flower napkins from Emma Bridgewater

The prosecco was chilling in the fridge & it was time to put the kettle on! The girls arrived at 3...and we started with a glass of sparkly bubbles before being sensible & moving on to Lapsang Souchong or English Breakfast tea!

Outside the rain & wind battered against the windows...but inside, we were warm and cosy...Alice lay under the table as we talked & laughed & ate for a glorious few hours. Friends are the best, aren't they?

A perfect way to spend the last Sunday afternoon in April. And today, suddenly it's May! Where is the year going?

I hope you have a fabulous week...make sure you indulge yourself in some small way...it doesn't have to be too extravagant but it makes all the difference!

xoxo

Many meals...

I've been meaning to write this post all week! So much to do...so many brownies to bake. I was musing on the fact that I still get quite excited by making tray after tray of them after 8 years...I decided that it was a good sign to keep doing what I'm doing!
The ones above were baked especially for my parents Golden Wedding celebrations last weekend...toasted pecan with lots of gold glitter!
On Good Friday, I traditionally bake something for our neighbours as an Easter gift. Last year it was hot cross buns. This time, I made loaves of the Colomba Pasqualina mixture that I described in my last post. I left them to rise slowly overnight and baked them first thing on Friday morning...then wrapped and delivered them to 6 houses while still warm...

It was a surprise...and everyone was very pleased & delighted! I have had some beautiful 'thank-you' cards this week. We have two sets of next door neighbours...the wonderful gentleman to our right is in his '90's, dapper & sprightly. He answered the door in his floor length, satin edged dressing gown & elegant velvet slippers....perfect!

Mum & Dad's party went so well, too, on Easter Saturday. 18 of their closest friends & family gathered for lunch cooked by moi. Of course, I was too busy to take pictures....& I confess that I actually forgot until it was too late - except for dessert!

I planned a middle-eastern inspired feast...as it is our family's favourite region for food. Nigella Lawson's Sephardi Roast Lamb, Sticky Garlic Potatoes & Involtini (all taken from her fabulous book 'Feast') & Ottolenghi's French Bean & Mange Touts with Hazelnuts & Orange plus (slightly adapted) Fennel & Pomegranate Salad with Sumac...I made an extra side dish of the jewelled rice stuffing from the lamb, so that everyone could have more. It looked and tasted absolutely gorgeous!

Puddings...

Fresh raspberry almond tart with creme fraiche...

those brownies....

and, of course,

a special cake! I am the first to admit that the decorations here are not the most sophisticated I have produced...but my almost-4-year-old nephew was very eager to help...& I know that it meant all the more to my parents for that haphazard sprinkling of the glitter by their youngest grandson!

The flavour was lemon - a special request from my Mum - filled with home-made lemon curd. Light & delicious and the perfect end to a memorable celebration!

Last night we had a couple of close friends over for dinner - my favourite kind of evening. Easy & relaxed & fun - and I wanted the food to reflect that. So I cooked some 'real Mexican' from Thomasina Miers' lovely book 'Mexican Food made simple'. Lamb Barbecoa (a slow-cooked dish with the complex flavours of smoky ancho chilis, very dark chocolate & red wine amongst others) Green Rice (a revelation...a paste of onion, garlic, fresh coriander & flat leaf parsley is used to add a beautiful jade colour and fresh taste to simple rice - I will be using this a lot) & a pickled 'slaw' accompaniment made from white cabbage, radishes & red onion sliced paper-thin and dressed with olive oil, sherry vinegar, more coriander & my own addition of pomegranate molasses...which cut through the rich, strong flavours of the lamb beautifully.

Afterwards, Ottolenghi's Chocolate Fudge Cake which is a deep, dark yet mousse-y flourless confection that sparked many compliments (from the first book, Ottolenghi The Cookbook) Highly recommended & very simple to make. I added some pecans crumbled on top before the final baking, for a little crunch (I can never resist tweaking recipes, as you'll have noticed!)

So, I collected my new supply of brownie chocolate on Friday...100kg, in large, white sacks of 25kg each. They will last me about 4 weeks at this busy time of year...so I'd better get on with it!

Wishing you a wonderful week xo

A day's work...or two!

On Tuesday, I had my stall on the monthly Farmer's Market here in town...and for a change it was a wonderful day! We worked out that the last 6 have all been wet...which makes a huge difference both to trade and to a stallholder's morale!
I am incredibly busy at the moment all around...Charlie the Coffeeman's wonderful 'real' coffee trailer is now being seen at all the top horse eventing trials...Gatcombe last weekend, Somerley Park at the beginning of this week...and where Charlie & his coffee go, my brownies & other delights go along too! Trays & trays of them...

Although I make so many, I still enjoy the process...perhaps because I make them entirely by hand, so I feel very connected to them - does that make sense?
I make several different kinds...the ones above are my Walnut Fudge...

Double Chocolate - my bestseller. They should really be called Triple Chocolate, as they contain dark, milk & white...but they've been known as 'Double Chocs' for so long that I think it would confuse everyone!

Caramel Chocolate are fairly new...they have a rich caramel sauce swirled through them...

And for the Farmer's Market, I always have a 'Brownie of the Month' to tempt regular customers...

March's offering was...

Easter Egg! I know it's a little early (& the wrong month) but this was the nearest market to the holiday. There was a thick, shiny layer of chocolate ganache on top of these and they contained milk chocolate 'mini eggs' as well as the one on top!

I wanted to carry the Easter theme through the market offerings, so I tried a new recipe (to me) for Colomba Pasquale. For those not familiar with it, it's a rich,sweet & citrussy yeasted cake that's traditional in Italy...formed in the shape of a dove (la colomba!) Very like Panettone, but with no raisins/sultanas and with a crisp, almondy sugary crusted glaze. Delicious!

It took all day to make. Not because it's particularly difficult...but there are 3 stages to the dough...and lots of rising time needed (10 hours in total!) It was worth it though...

Lovely smooth buttery dough...

The finished article - it was baked in a traditional italian 'colomba' paper mould. I have to say that the 'dove' shape has become a little simplified through the ages...but that's the idea anyway!

The middle (I made several including one to test!) was soft, beautifully textured and studded with candied peel...

The outside was crusty & with a lovely crunch from the almonds & nibbed sugar...

The recipe is too long to reproduce...but if you are interested, I found it on the blog of the wonderful company that produces the paper moulds (and many other wonderful hard to find baking products) Bakery Bits

Also for the market, I baked some Lemon Drizzle Loaf Cakes (always a big seller)

and some trays of fresh Plum & Almond Shortbread

So, when I had set up and arranged the stall on Tuesday morning, it all looked beautiful I think...

I 'dressed up' the Colombas in cellophane & ribbons in case they were bought as a gift...

and the selling began. The day went very well...by 2 o'clock, the tables looked quite sad & almost bare...

Still brownies left...but I always make plenty and these platters had been replenished about 5 times!

Let's hope the great weather continues (but some night rain would be good...we are going into drought conditions, with a hosepipe ban coming into force on April 5th)

I wanted to show you  the little Mother's Day cake I made for my darling Mum too...it was a zingy lemon & lime with homemade lemon curd in the middle. Not a huge spectacular one, because we are a small family and no one likes rich, creamy cakes...

but it was perfect for Mum - and that's what counts after all!

I hope your week is busy and filled with sunshine too...now, I'd better get back to the kitchen!

xoxo