New Year Cocktails, Mocktails and Christmas Leftovers Sugar Plum Fairy Cocktail Hello! I have been absent for a few days, as some of you might have noticed, enjoying Christmas and the ensuing festive period, with family and friends. I’m back today to share some of my festive moments, as well as a pretty delectable cocktail, that…
Gourmet
It’s Party Time! A Fabulous Collection of Canapés & Party Food Recipes
Thrifty & Organic December: It’s Party Time! A Fabulous Collection of Canapés & Party Food Recipes Core Ingredients for December: Ham or Gammon; Stilton Cheese; Red Cabbage; Salmon; Brussels Sprouts; Oranges Menu Plan and Recipes for DECEMBER: Verrines of Brussels Sprout Velouté (Creamy Brussels Sprouts Soup) Mini Yorkshire Puddings with Spiced Red Cabbage and Ham…
Edible Gifts for Giving: Spiced Brandy Soused Clementines
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“Smorgastarta” (Swedish Savoury Sandwich Gateau) for National Sandwich Day
“Smorgastarta” (Swedish Savoury Sandwich Gateau) for National Sandwich Day November seems a funny time of the year to be celebrating National Sandwich Day, but as an avid sandwich lover I am keen to participate in this day of crusty bread and enticing fillings! We, in the UK, have already marked British Sandwich Week in May,…
British Egg Week & Egg-Cellent Recipes: 5:2 Diet Egg, Artichoke and Salmon Salad
British Egg Week & Egg-Cellent Recipes: 5:2 Diet Egg, Artichoke and Salmon Salad This weeks marks British Egg Week, and as a “chicken mother”, I am a bit of an egg addict! I have three hens, Mavis who is a Black Rock, Gertie is a Bluebell and Blanche is a Sussex Light; they lay three eggs…
Cheese, Chillies & Wine: Baked Camembert in a Box with Chilli Pepper Jelly (Recipe)
Cheese, Chillies & Wine: Baked Camembert in a Box with Chilli Pepper Jelly Autumn is nipping at my heels as I write this……I can smell it in the air and the mornings and evenings are definitely cooler with gentle mists creeping into the village. There’s the perfumed scent of apple wood fires, from my immediate neighbour…
The Great British Bake Off: My Mary Berry Inspired Florentines Recipe with Stem Ginger
The Great British Bake Off: My Mary Berry Inspired Florentines Recipe with Stem Ginger This week on The Great British Bake Off it was “Biscuit” week…….as in cookies, for my North American readers, and not scone type quick breads! The programme opened with a challenge to make one of my favourite types of biscuit, savoury biscuits,…
It’s always Pimm’s O’Clock! Raspberry & Elderflower Pimm’s Cocktail
It’s always Pimm’s O’Clock! Raspberry & Elderflower Pimm’s Cocktail Let’s just set the scene……..a hot English summer’s day, leather on willow, floral tea “frocks”, stripy deck chairs, lazy days in the garden, the chink of ice on glass, full-blown roses and scented lavender, the buzz of bees, Wimbledon, strawberries and cream, old straw hats and…
June Thrifty & Organic Meal Planner: Salmon, Watercress & Strawberry Delights!
June Thrifty & Organic Meal Planner: Salmon, Watercress & Strawberry Delights! Welcome to June’s Thrifty and Organic Meal Planner; this month I have created three simple recipes that won’t break the bank or take up too much time in the kitchen; and, one of the component parts of the salmon recipe, the watercress and spring…
The Little Black Dress of Salads! New Potato & Radish Salad in a Creamy Truffle Oil Dressing
The Little Black Dress of Salads! New Potato & Radish Salad in a Creamy Truffle Oil Dressing Sometimes in recipe development, a recipe is created that seems so simple and yet is “the little black dress” of the culinary scene; it’s easy to make, has simple ingredients, BUT with one special “string of pearls” ingredient…
Pan-fried Smoked Cheese & Ham Stuffed Chicken Breasts in a Creamy Herb Sauce
Pan-fried Smoked Cheese & Ham Stuffed Chicken Breasts in a Creamy Herb Sauce Next Monday, on the 19th of May 2014, marks the start of Yogurt Week, the UK’s first celebration of all things yogurt! Whether it’s for breakfast on the go, a delicious snack or to use in your favourite recipes, yogurt contains a…
St George’s Day & A Spring Salad Recipe: English Apple and Walnut Salad
St George’s Day & A Spring Salad Recipe: English Apple and Walnut Salad Salad days…….hot, balmy days with fluffy white clouds and the drowsy distant buzz of bees……the early morning translucent light that awakes me along with birdsong and the pale warmth of early sun beams that dance along the old oak beams and form…
A Good Friday Pie: Wild Garlic and Blue Wensleydale Tart
A Good Friday Pie: Wild Garlic and Blue Wensleydale Tart Tomorrow, the 18th April, is Good Friday; or, Hot Cross Bun day as I used to call it when I was little! Although many Christians observe a “no meat Friday” every week of the year, it’s probably true to say that most people regardless of their religion also adopt a…
Saturday Breakfast and Brunch Memories: Smoked Salmon “Egg in a Basket” (Egg in a Hole)
Saturday Breakfast and Brunch Memories: Smoked Salmon “Egg in a Basket” (Egg in a Hole) Saturday and Sunday mornings used to be a treat for me when I was little; when we lived in Shatin (Hong Kong), every weekend, if my dad wasn’t working, we would get up late and have breakfast together. Sitting at…
Floral and Flavoured Butter: Rosemary Flower Butter with Grana Padano Cheese
Floral and Flavoured Butter: Rosemary Flower Butter with Grana Padano Cheese Sometimes an idea comes to me in the middle of the night, when I am tossing and turning, reflecting on events that have happened, or worrying about things that may not happen……..the night is still and my thoughts seem to hang in the darkness…
