My daily bread

 

Don't be afraid of the biscuits.

 

I really fancied lavender biscuits, so the ones over at Milk and Cookies seemed to fit the bill. I'd been convinced that the recipe contained lemon but I think I must have seen that somewhere else, so after a bit of trawling about I ended up following this recipe and added some vanilla and lemon rind.

My biscuits are much thinner than the ones in the original recipe - they spread out a lot. I was really put off by the lavender smell - it seemed so strong as to be inedible. But, nothing ventured and all that.... I hesitantly took a little nibble and.....they are delicious ;0) Clearly, the scent is stronger than the taste. We've got four people up for the weekend to play Dungeons and Dragons* with Number guy, so these'll be on the menu. I'll also be making Oaty Vanilla Cookies from Yarnstorm's blog, and sundry other edible goodies to boot

* Yep, I know lots of folk think that D&D is for nerds...but then, that's what a lot of folk think about knitting! D&D is Number Guy's way of keeping in touch with friends he made years ago. He doesn't drink, doesn't follow sport (YAY!), so this is his version of a knit'n'knatter. (And forget crumby/crappy commercial books, videos, films etc - their version is, well, sophisticated. Some of their worlds have been going for years - don' knock it if you haven't tried it. And they don't dress up;0) So no chance of getting to weave Number Guy an Elven Cloak, then.....)

of soda bread and yoghurt

 

St Valentine must be playing on my mind , as I tried to loggin as X at hotmaul.com ;0) Mr India will be pleased.

Don't anyone say that we don't discuss some darn hot topics at our knitting meets - soda bread and yoghurt were but two. Be y'all wished you'd been there!.

Anyway, as promised to Lilith here is the recipe for the soda bread, which as I mentioned in the previous post, is courtesy of The Podchef . This is a half recipe, which was plenty for me two.

Herby Soda Bread

8oz plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2tsp baking powder
tall container of buttermilk - about a cup
Enough herbs of your choice to speckle the bread the way you like it (this is my measure, The Podchef gives a better idea)

Sieve flour, salt baking powder into bowl, mix in herbs.
Make a well in the centre of flour, add about 3/4 of the buttermilk.
Mix with fingers until it forms a sticky mess, oops, mass
This is a mattter of judgement - the mix needs to be holding together, but not sloppy. But very sticky is fine.

Now, The Pochef gives a little tip here - wash your hands. I tried with/without washing 'em (at this stage, 'course they were washed before I started....). Anyway, it makes a difference. Clean, hand makes the shaping much lessof a paon.
So, to return, flour a surface and your hands, and gently 'knead' the bread - as in the way one kneads sconces, not standard bread.
Once the dough is more or less in a round shape, place it onto a greased baking sheet - I reuse a piece of silicone baking parchment again and again, which works just fine.
Into an oven at 400 degrees farenheit/gas mark 8 for 10 minutes. Then, reduce heat to 400 degrees farenheit/gas mark 6 for about 20 - 30 minutes.
Like all other bread, it is ready when it sounds hollow when you tap it's bottome - oo-er!

Enjoy!

So fast, so easy

 

Whoa there, Lawyer Guy! I said 'SO' fast, not 'Sew'....

Now that I've established that, here's what I'm, talking about: Butternut Squash and Apple soup (from a New Covent Garden cookbook mentioned previously, and Herby Soda Bread from the Podchef's Gastrocast

Anyone wary of making bread would do worse than to start with soda bread. All it takes is plain flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and buttermilk. It takes minutes to weigh and mix the ingredients and then it is straight into the oven, no waiting for it to rise. If my knowledge of chemistry serves me correctly, the acid in the buttermilk reacts with the sodium bicarb, producing carbon dioxide, thus rmaking the bread rise when it is baked. I think, therefore, that if one had a severe lack of buttermilk (which is 34p for about 200ml from local supermarkets) that baking powder would do the job (or the sodium bicarb with a little vinegar). Ordinary milk could then be added to mix the dough. Now, I haven't tried thia, since I have easy access to buttermilk, but remember that there would be a slight change of taste .

Anyhow, as you can see, this made a very quick and very tasty lunch. I don't think soda bread keeps very well, but as we always gobble it up, that's not a problem....

PS I know the dried parsley looks fairly unappealing, but I've run out of fresh and tried some dried in sheer desperation. OK, slight exageration, but I wanted a bit of contrast on top of my soup.

PPS - if I've made an a*** out of myself with the chemistry ,try not to be too harsh

Deeeeelicious

 

I'd like to show you a pic, honest I would, but these babies were soooo good they were snaffled right up.

Ricotta Pancakes
enough for ME! ok, ok, makes 8 - enough to share - if you have to...
100g ricotta
2 eggs, separated - go that extra half inch - make 'em organic free range or don't bother making this!
100ml milk
75g SR flour

Optional extra: extra large helping of willpower, but only if you really must share.
Method Beat the ricotta with the 2 egg yolks and milk. Try to get it smooth but don't worry too much if there are some small lumps
Gently mix in the flour
Beat egg whites until stiff
Gently fold said whites into ricotta mixture.

Heat heavy based frying pan, melt small nob of butter. Cook dollops of mix until the bases are golden and the mix has set a bit. Turn over.
Turn onto plate, add maple syrup & black pepper.

Enjoy!

This was a half measure of the ricotta pancakes found in the Rose bakery book. Highly recommended. By me. And my tummy.

having my cake and not eating it

 

Tried out Lemoncello Cupcakes and was so disappointed. The batter was so luscious and lemony but it didn't come through in the finished cake. Full disclosure, however - not having any of the 'defrosted lemonade concentrate' I tried substituting with ordinary lemon juice - I think that might be the problem. Next time ( because I think they are probably worth a next time) I am going to put in some Roack's Organic Lemon .

There was more 'candy' though - my Secret Pal packages. I said in the previous post, Rae really came up with the goods, and then some. There's some amazing fibres here - including Bison down - I'm really excited about trying that. There are various silk mixes and some pencil roving to boot - a shed load of the roving let me tell you. I've had to pack them away due to too much interest of the feline variety, but I'm going to post a full list in the next day or two. If 'A gift honours the giver', then Rae is right up there.

In fact, the two Secret Pals I've had for SP8 & SP9 have more than fullfilled there comittment, and not 'only' in monetary terms. The thought and care which went into all the packages I received was overwhelming. Ok. I'll stop gushing now, this is turning into an Oscar acceptance speech, but I think you guys understand the sentiment.

Away to peruse the cookery books - I'm off work for 4 days, and ther will be no studying, only complete indulgence.

Eat that!

 

As if! It's already gone, Baby! This delectable little morsel is the 'Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cupcake with Coconut Buttercream Frosting ' From the Cupcake Bake Shop blog.

But what I really like (apart from the taste, obviously) is the neat frosting on top. As in 'not messy'. Amazing what a piping bag and a big nozzle can do - and mever mind sniggering at the back there. Dolloping frosting on with a knife just wasn't doing it for me anymore, so I had to visit Brenda's idea of heaven, good ol' Lakeland. And when I say 'had to', I really mean it. I couldn't sleep for thinking about row upon row of perfectly frosted cupcakes.

(Weird thing about me number 5 - I can't sleep for thinking about row upon row of perfectly forsted cupcakes)

Ask me how I know this?

 

Thae even when I am trying to be frugal and cut out food waste, using sweetened soya milk in a cheese sauce is not a good idea...

Moving swiftly along, the present production line is working away. Mr India gets the supplies, I make the goodies and package them. Mr India then packs the boxes and does the posting. I made two lots of tablet last night and there is a gingerbread cooking in the oven as we speak. After my knitting meet up this afternoon I will make gingerbread number two. This gives me enough for 3 lots of presents for the in-laws. I don't kow how they will react, but my friend from school was delighted. In fact, she was having a hard time not eating all the gingerbread before the kids came home from school Now that's what I like to hear. I will take a pic of the gingerbread and post it later. The recipe is from one of Nigella Lawson's books. It is the chocolate gingerbread recipe. I don't put the choc chips in, but I do add the 40g of cocoa. If you love gingerbread, then this recipe is a must.

This morning we could not find the special food bags that I had bought to put the tablet and gingerbread in. We hunted everywhere (erm, well nearly everywhere). I finally gave up and got in the car to drive to Glasgow. Believe me, the thought of driving through the lashing rain, struggling to get a parking space and then fighting may way through the crowds was not appealling. When I was able to pull over in to a parking space to listen to my voice mail on the 'phone, I was delighted to discover that the bags had been found. Especially as I was very close to home still.

So, where were the bags? In the one place I told Mr I not to look, because I KNEW they weren't there. Well, where else would they be?

Not tablet.

 

I don't know what it is, but non-Scots seem to have a problem with tablet. Well, with describing it, anyway. As I screeched gently reminded Mr India when he was on the 'phone to his mum, tablet is most definitely NOT fudge.

If I say so myself, I make great tablet - all thanks to my mum, of course. We only ever use butter - non of that margarine nonsense, thank you very much. And grainy, sugary tablet? Not here. We make sure every single grain of sugar has disolved before it is brought to a rolling boil. And do I need a fancy sugar thermometer? Course not - I just boil it until it has reached the the soft ball stage . Neat, huh?

And here it is, ready to be eaten once it has properly cooled. Going to take some into work tomorrow for my colleagues - hope they like it (or rather, hope they don't and then I'll just have to bring it all back...)

Rose and vanilla cupcakes.....part 2

 

Yum. In the end I did a bit of experimenting and settled for rose essence in the batter and vanilla essence in the icing, and then as you can see I decorated with the petals.

Two points for improvement. I used dried egg powder and you can tell.. Last winter Mr India and I purchased some dried free range egg. We decided that we could never knowingly eat battery egg and wondered what would happen to organic free range should there be an outbreak of bird flu. This seeems to us to be a reasonable compromise. There is a definite difference in texture when the powder is used. It is drier and more reminiscent of the texture of shop bought cake .I added more liquid to make up the difference but next time I am going to make it extra-sloppy and see what difference it makes.

Point two - my buttercream sucks. Well, at least in terms of texture. It's too hard. I want soft, buttery clouds - not something that I need to attack with a pick axe. Any suggestions?

Rose and vanilla cupcakes.....

 

... I can taste them now. There I was, wondering around Grassroots when this little pot caught my eye. Course, they may only be decorative, I may need to add some rose essence.But boy oh boy, I love the idea of vanilla buttercream and the elusive hint of something floral in the cake. If when I get the assignment done, this is going to be a culinary treat.

I have an auditory treat lined up, although I am sure my mum wouldn't see it that way - Meatloaf. Yeehah! Performing in Glasgow in MAy - how will I wait that long....?