Sunday, 30 November 2008

Delicious elevenses + a recipe for perfect shortbread

You may have spotted yesterday that I had an overwheming urge to bake. One of those said items was shortbread, which turned out perfectly - light, buttery and crumby, but holds together beautifully well. All this and very simple to make. Look at how amazingly restrained I was this morning...

Elevenses

Shortbread
from Tana Ramsay's 'Family Kitchen' available here (I only tweaked recipe very very slightly - I didn't bother seiving anything and found I needed a tiny bit of water to get things going. You'll see).

INGREDIENTS

  • 100g plain flour
  • 50g cornflour
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 100g cold butter

METHOD

  1. Preheat oven to 160ºC/310ºF/gas 2½. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin
  2. Add the flour, cornflour and sugar in the bowl of the electric mixer, chop the butter into small cubes and add that.
  3. Turn the motor onto lowest setting and watch as mixture gradually becomes crumbly and then begins to come together in heavy lumps. At this point turn the motor off and tip the cumbly lumpy mixture into greased cake tin.
  4. Push the shortbread down firmly with back of dessert spoon. Flatten as much as possible and prick all over with a fork.
  5. Bake for 25minutes until cooked but not brown.
  6. As soon as it's out of the oven but still in the tin, but into slices and sprinkle lightly with caster sugar. Leave in tin until cooled.

Will keep for 2-3 days in air-tight container and also freezes well. Apparently.

*Mine wouldn't get lumpy so I added cold water a teaspoon at a time until it did.

Saturday, 29 November 2008

Comfort food

It's a nasty old day out there - rain, fog, cold and blergh. Such weather calls for overloading on carbs and filling the house with the goodly smells of baking bread, quiche and shortbread...

Comfortfood

Friday, 28 November 2008

Photo Friday - Black

Today's Photo Friday challenge is 'Black'. Black like this little piggy's bottom and corkscrew tail...

Blackpiggy

Tuesday, 25 November 2008

Tagged

I have been tagged by the lovely Victoria Bennett Beyer to tell you seven things about myself, some random, some weird, then you have to do the same on your blog and link back to here. It's the law.

1 - Shhh
Whether its the washing machine spinning (I have to be out of the room house), the vacuum cleaner sucking or the coffee grinder grinding I go a bit jellified when things get loud and have to clamp my hands to my ears. Watching TV is always a battle of the remotes, I am on team 'turn it down'. Team 'I can't hear a thing' is always muttering too loudly. A small mouse sneezing two streets away will wake me from the deepest slumber. Maybe I am developing a rather useless and inconvenient super-sense à la 'Heroes'. Maybe I am just finnicky. You'd think I'd be less noisy myself, wouldn't you.

2 - I am rather keen on murders
...but only the fictitious sort, of course. From the classically comforting and everso slightly ridiculous Poirot/Miss Marple to the gritty and hide-behind-a-cushion realism of the more modern-day offerings. My bed-side table and Sky+ box are filled with death and intreige. I am currently halfway through Henning Mankell's Wallender detective books - I hope that Kenneth Branagh can convincingly emulate the entertainingly depressive Swede in his new TV version. If anyone can I guess Ken's the man to do it.

3 - Gordon Bennett!
Every time I hear the names Gordon Bown and/or Gordon Ramsay I have to consciously think which is which. I then chuckle to myself thinking about either one of them doing the others job. I would definitely tune into the PMs question-time if that ever transpired! Hell's Kitchen though would probably be a little dour and efficient - although you never know...

4 - The worst job I ever had
...was when I was 17 and worked in a pet-shop/aquaruim. My duties included picking out all the poorly looking fish and hiding them in "the sick tanks" round the back. That secret room was like an aquatic  version of Dante's circles of hell (something I was pre-occupied with at the time) - from the one-eyed and fin-rotted to the truly mutant and cannibalistic, you've never seen anything like it. I was sacked for encouraging a family of stray kittens onto the premisis by leaving piles of fishy smelling kibble for them by the back door.

5 - I am very good at...
Stopping the fast-forward button on the Sky+ at just the right spot, stacking the dishwasher, keeping calm in a crisis, procrastinating, day-dreamimg, baking maderia cake, multi-tasking (but then I am a woman), getting crushes, burying my head in the sand, guessing how much a trolley full of shopping costs, trying new things.

6 - Hurry up!
I'm a very impatient person. If you're speaking very slowly then that pained look on my face is probably because I'm fighting the urge to draw circles in the air with my finger. Luckily I am very polite as well so haven't been punched yet. One of the reasons I moved over from the traditional world of print-based graphic design to web-design (back in the olden-days of the late 90s) was because I was unbearably impatient and moany about the whole drawn out proofing and printing process. Now though I can make a surruptitious tweak to an unsuspecting stylesheet and see the results right away. Much better!

7 - Did you know?
If someone on TV is told to hold their breath I have to do it too. I mostly don't ever swear (much), but when I do it's very effective! My head is big and my hair is even bigger so I don't do hats and often got stuck in my sweater as a child.

Your go!

Friday, 21 November 2008

Photo Friday - Food

Hooray, it's Photo Friday at last! Today's challenge is 'food', however getting a decent photo of food today would involve tidying the kitchen! So, with the help of my trusty macro lens, here is a photo that's more in the 'condiment' department, but still v. tasty. Having good salt and pepper at hand is a must, don't you think?

Saltpepper

Wednesday, 19 November 2008

Food for thought + a recipe for 'Hippie Banana Muffins'

The morning:
I had a lovely choc-chip muffin for breakfast today (brought from the coffee-shop at work along with a large capuccino + extra shot). I'm not sure if muffins are *supposed* to have a half-inch crunchy crust of sugar like this one did, but I found it rather satisfying coupled with the delicately soft (nicely over-sweet) vanilla middle and occassional studding of chocolate. Not as good as museli and yogurt for breakfast but not as bad as a 'full-english' - a good analogy for how I'm feeling today. Harumph.

The afternoon:
OK, I'm no scientist (I have the inconsequential school reports to prove it) however, I think I may be asking too much of my physiology to cope with the amount of unrefined sugar I'm consuming during these cold, dark days. Any excuse! Headaches. Lethargy. Carpal Tunnel flaring up. If only I could rid myself of this compelling need for baked goods. I'd give up all the other bad stuff (apart from coffee) if I could keep the bread, cakes, cookies, muffins and pastry. Sigh. Time to start googling for low GI recipes - I bet they are mealy and mean and bleurgh.

The evening:
Brainwave! I am sure my recipe for 'Hippie Banana Muffins' must count as being low GI - most of the sweetness comes from bananas - that's FRUIT for chrissakes, the little sugar that's used is brown - surely more virtuous than its naughty white cousin! I can't remember where the recipe came from originally, but it has evolved with every baking to become my very own type of pseudo-muffin that I wheel out to replace proper treats in times of tightening waistbands. Let's face it, Christmas is going to be a food-fest (I have a brand new book of Nigella Christmas recipes to try out), so I think I can manage a few weeks days of hippie food...

Muffin1

Hippie Banana Muffins | Makes 12

Dry ingredients

  • 130g Self-Raising flour (or plain - they always turn out the same)
  • 55g light brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground mixed spice
  • 100g rolled oats (whizzed up in blender if too big and chunky)

Wet ingredients

  • 3 medium very-ripe bananas
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons corn oil
  • 125ml milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Plus

  • 100g trail mix (or raisins or similar)

What to do

  1. Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F) Gas Mark 6
  2. Prepare 12-hole muffin tin with papers (unless you like washing up)
  3. In a big bowl, sift the flour and mix toether all the dry ingredients
  4. In a smaller bowl mash up bananas and mix in all wet ingredients, then add the trail mix
  5. Ad your wet mixture to your dry mixture and combine lazily until not spots of flour show, divide between muffin cases and bake for 20-25 minutes until a skewer come out clean
  6. Cool for 5 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack.
  7. Ignore the intoxicating smell, they won't be at their best until they are very well chilled in the fridge, preferably overnight.
  8. Now you can eat them - enjoy! (Oh, they freeze well too).

Muffin2

Monday, 17 November 2008

Oh, deer

Once I'd got my head around the fact that when a photo pops out if a Polaroid camera it isn't actually wet or chemically I was much happier about finding a warm spot about my person to help along the development (it needs warmth - it says so in the instructions). A note though, that if you pop it in your bra whilst you busy yourself with other things, people will feel the need to react much akin to if they witnessed you doing the trick with the yards-and-yards of coloured silk hankies being whipped from a pocket when you reveal it. Just bow afterwards and pretend that's what you were planning all along!

So, this is a Polaroid of a sparkly deer I picked up in Paperchase - they had them last year but they sold out fast, so I grabbed this one when I saw him. He has a dodgy antler, but I don't think that realism is necessarily its main selling point...

Silverdeer520

Saturday, 15 November 2008

Some more autumness

It's still autumn, and here is a lovely leaf to prove it...

Oneleaf520

...and a bench with some graffiti on, although I think that's there all the time...

Graffitibench

Wednesday, 12 November 2008

Yes, white again

...but with a touch of the softest baby pink. I love marshmallows.

Marshmallows

Monday, 10 November 2008

More white

The rose is dead and the photo is out of focus (clearly) but I am still in love with the magiciness of my polaroid...

Whiterose520_2

Sunday, 09 November 2008

Indoor games

It's raining and windy out, huge gales are a-blowin' so only indoorsy stuff to photgraph today. Firstly my favouritest lampshade ever...

White light

Then there's this little peacock feather that I found in the bottom of my rucksack - I picked it up back in the summertime - so pretty!

Peacock feather

Saturday, 08 November 2008

leaves

Some unexpected sunshine + weekend + new camera + conveniently photogenic forest on doorstep =

Autumn1

+

Autumn2

+

Autumn3

Friday, 07 November 2008

Photo Friday - Sharp

Barbedwire

Wednesday, 05 November 2008

Off with a bang

Well, the day after the night before felt pretty damn good (even if I am very sleepy after staying up till 4am)! It felt very right setting off a few fireworks tonight, and as it's Guy Fawkes night too, that's two birds and one stone.

Fun with firework, camera, lensbaby, star-shaped apeture disk...
Firework sstars

Fun with firework, camera, lensbaby, heart-shaped apeture disk...
Fireworks hearts

Fun with camera. sparkler and willing model (part I)...
Sparkler

Fun with camera. sparkler and willing model (part II)...
Sparkler

Tuesday, 04 November 2008

Fingers crossed

Do you think there's anyone in the world that doesn't know it's the US election (finally) today? If I was allowed a vote, you know I would be Obama through-and-through. As a citizen of the world, he's the man for me. For us all. God bless America!

Usa

Monday, 03 November 2008

Spooky

Now the clocks have gone back an hour and autumn has well and truly settled in, it's frightfully inconvenient to be spending all my daylight hours at the 'day job'. So when the weekend comes around it's all a bit frantic - there's a garden to be pottered around in, brisk walks to be trotted out and of course snap, snap, snapping with my ever-growing collection of cameras and lenses.

Red leaves

Saturday unfortunatey was a COMPLETE washout - severe weather warnings and so much rain. Sunday though, not too bad. By the time the weekend ritual of pots of coffee, dippy eggs and general laziness had transpired though, there was only a couple of hours of light left, so despite the slight misty drizzle we dashed to the nearest photogenic spot I could think of - Southampton's "Old Cemetery" on The Common.

tomb

I think you'll agree that the blurriness that the lensbaby adds to a photo has a very spooky effect when applied to shots of tombs and gravestones.

Grave

I also tried a couple of shots with my new (to me) 'Polaroid Spirit' - also pretty spooky. I'm totally loving this whole new world of Polaroid film, there's something magical and intensly satisfying to someone as impatient as me to see your photo magically appear from your camera's bottom. And look at how ethereal and 'undigital' the effect is. Expect to see lots more soon!

polaroid tree

polaroid weed

Friday, 31 October 2008

Sweet

Happy Halloween! I'm hoping the neighbourhood kids don't take all the sweeties tonight so I can have something nice instead of as well as my dinner - especially as we brought lots of retro sweets that they'll never truly appreciate like I would; like Black Jacks, Fruit Salads and Drumsticks. Oh, and these which are my favorite (I've hidden a few. Shhhh).

Pumpkinhead

Photo Friday - Garden

This week's PhotoFriday Challenge is 'The Garden'. Well, thank goodness, because I have plenty of those piccies to choose from - here's a little tableaux, through the viewfinder of my olde-fashionedy camera (I miss my little marigolds)...

Marigold520

Sunday, 26 October 2008

Lensbaby 3G

At long last I've got hold of a Lensbaby 3G - I've wanted one for ages! I couldn't wait to start using it, even though it was pouring in rain out and there was no light at all. Imaptient. So here's my first rushed shot of the gladioli on my kitchen windowsill. Now the clocks have gone back and what with having to be at work all day (grr) natural daylight is going to be hard to get hold of. I wonder if they have any on ebay?

Gladi1

Sunday, 19 October 2008

Feet

I love the way swan's feet look - like a dragon wearing welly boots - so alien, yet practical looking compared with the refined elegance that goes on above the water...

Swanfeet

Saturday, 18 October 2008

Skeletal

Look up, look at the leaves, they're almost done but oh so beautiful...

Leafies1

...then there's the mysterious stems that look so curly and intersting now (especially if you're a spider)...

Curly

...but I like the seedy skeletons of cow parsley the best...

Seedy

Friday, 17 October 2008

Photo Friday - Freeze Frame

This week's Photo Friday challenge is 'Freeze Frame'. Aren't all photos a freeze frame? Here's one that stops some action in its tracks...

Merry go round

Tuesday, 14 October 2008

Old

Counting up the rings I think this tree is was the same age as me...

Rings

Monday, 13 October 2008

Trees

What a lovely weekend it's been - very autumnal. Yesterday it was all about pumpkins, and today was all about treking through the New Forest, under blue skies that sometimes turned to fire...

Beech

...and the smell of freshly-cut pine was fabulous (and sticky)...

Logs

Saturday, 11 October 2008

'Tis the season to be orange

Today was gorgeous and sunny and a fabulous day to visit the local pumpkin festival...

Royalvic

I bought some lovely samples from the local allotment socirty (a bit too dark to photograph now) but nowhere near as big as some that were there...

Giant1

But everyone had a great time (and lots of pumpkin soup)...

Scarecrow

Friday, 10 October 2008

Photo Friday - Athletic

Today's Photo Friday challenge is 'Athletic' - the thing is, I don't really mix in athletic circles (they're to fast for me - ha ha). The nearest I can get is a gentle punt down the river in Oxford (but that's harder than it looks)...

Punting

Monday, 06 October 2008

These are a few of my favourite things

Over the weekend I 'acquired' the free CD soundtrack to The Sound of Music that was being given away in The Mail on Sunday. I need to explain to you though, in no uncertain terms, that at no time ever did I actually read this 'newspaper'. It sounds like I'm protesting too much, but I really didn't.

Anyhoo - I (and probably half the Tories in the land!!) have been singing away to the SOM and felt inspired to choose some related stylish items to show you - including a little dress made from pillowcases, how very Maria!

autumn   warm woollen mittens Winter in the Alps going on 17 snowflakes that stick doe, a deer, a female deer great coat lonely goat pillowcase dress Edelweiss

Saturday, 04 October 2008

I remember sunshine

Predictably the Indian summer we were enjoying has transformed into a typical British autumn (i.e. it's windy and rainy). I still have photos from last weekend though, back when the sun was beating down onto a pleasantly surprised population.

After our exploration of Weymouth and all its seasidey delights (inlcuding a lunch of hot chips and ice cream, of course)...

Icecream2

We made a trip down the road to the end of the world (Portland) - with great views over Chesil Beach, although all that heat made things a little hazy...

Chesil

Then on to Portland Bill and a very photogenic lighthouse...

Lighthouse2

Lighthouse

Come back sunshine, we love you!

Friday, 03 October 2008

Photo Friday - I'm Feeling...

...autumnal

Autumnal

Vice

Hooray! I made it through another week (including a nasty case of 'the lurgy') and am back on the caffeine again (which probably contributed to the lurgy in the first place, but what can I say? I'm an addict!)...

Costa

Tuesday, 30 September 2008

Beside the seaside

Here are some more photos from the weekend at Weymouth (before I got sick from too much sun, fun and ice-cream). Watching people is fun. Taking their photos without them spotting is tricky, and a bit nerve-wracking, but worth it when you see how they totlly sum up the atmosphere and colour and quintessential englishness of the seaside...

Audience2

Audience

Icecream

Stare