Hey Everyone! I Made Some Biscuits.

Not a world shattering event in itself you may think but it’s inspired me to post something up here after a long silence, which makes me feel all warm and goo-ey (a bit like these amazing bics). These are great for using up leftover marzipan and also dare I say, for anyone not massively into that neat marzipan thing (the chocolate helps!)

CHOCOLATE MARZIPAN COOKIES

Originally from Chef MariaJane at www.recipezaar.com but modified by me!

Ingredients

• 175g sugar
• 125g brown sugar
• 200g marzipan, cut into small chunks
• 175gl unsalted butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarb
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 large egg
• 450g plain flour
• 100g cocoa powder or 60g plus a few chunks of your fave choc bashed into pieces.

This makes enough for2 batches of 20+ biscuits, so you could freeze half or erm, be greedy!

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F / 180 C Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a food processor, combine both sugars and marzipan. Process until they resemble a fine sand, about 1 minute. Or cut into v small chunks and whisk up when other ingredients added.
3. Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add butter, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, salt and egg.
4. Use an electric mixer to beat until smooth, scraping down the bowl, once during mixing, about 2 minutes.
5. Add flour and cocoa powder / choc pieces and mix until incorporated, scraping down once during mixing, about 1 minute. The dough should be very stiff. If too stiff add water tbsps at a time until mixture is workable.
6. Baking in batches, drop 1 tablespoons balls of dough on prepared sheet, leaving about 2-inches around all sides. bake on the oven’s lower rack until cookies are flat and have a crackled surface, about 10 minutes.
7. The cookies will be very soft. Let them cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

 

I Love Paint Days!

 

Twiggy Pics

 

All Dressed Up…

When R was a baby, we used to go to a toddler group. One week in the school hols, one of the other mums turned up with both her baby and her older child (probably about 6). The older child had a big furry rabbit costume on. If I’m honest, I thought “WTF??? Why is she dressed in that silly costume?” More to the point, I wondered why on earth the mum had let her leave the house like that.

Forward wind a few years… R is now 4. Yesterday while I was watching R have her swimming lesson, a mum wandered in with her little girl dressed in full father christmas costume. Yes, it’s March. Did I frown? Did I disapprove? Well, I actually found myself smiling. “How lovely”, I thought to myself. “That little girl was probably so passionate about dressing up that maybe just for once, her mum put aside her own vanity and cares about what other people might think and surprised her daughter by saying ‘yes, darling of course you can wear your santa outfit’.” What a lovely nurturing mum and what a lucky girl I thought as I sat smiling to myself.

Then the little girl proceeded to have a tantrum and throw down the packet of crisps she’d just been bought from the vending machine and stamp on them. She didn’t stop screeching for ages. “Mmmm” I wondered. “more likely her mum just let her wear the santa outfit because she was shouting blue murder when they left the house.” Perhaps not such a rosey image of parenting as the one I’d conjured up before. But ooops! There I go judging again…

 

Live N Let Dye

I was dye-ing my corduroy jacket a blue denim colour today. Put the dye and the salt in the machine and then the clothes. Turned the machine on. Nothing. Faffed about on and off for a few hours leaning on, slamming and waggling the door. Nothing. So, while I figure out what to do next, thought I’d share some amusing things said recently by Miss R (just turned 4 this week):

There’s a baby crocodile in my cup. His name is Burt Elburt. I named him that. That’s his surname. His real name is lemon squash. And his middle name is cup. He and the spider were playing a racing game and he won. He fell over and got mud on his knee and then I washed it with the water in my pink cup. Look he’s all dry now.

There were friendly monsters in my bedroom. They were blue yellow and red. Like sonic. Sonic was blue, yellow was yellow and red was red. They were on my wall when I opened my eyes and then on my pillow. I saw them twice. No. I saw them 3 times because I saw them once on my wall and 2 times on my pillow.

Mummy, why have you got hairs on your lip like Daddy?

Mummy, why have you got hairs in your nose? You’ve got a haunted nose.

You know that big room at the sports centre? That’s where they do the jam-nistics.

 

A Day In The Life

I woke up most concerned that I was late for my 10am rendez-vous at the Post Office with Noel Gallagher. We’ve all got colds so sneezed and tissued our way through breakfast still half asleep. Not Noel, that was a dream. The night before’s dream was about my house being knocked down and replaced by a bungalow which turned out to be a tourist attraction with people buying nick nacks from the shop in my front room. Ahem… anyway, spent almost the whole day trying to make some sloe and apple jelly. Did it set? Did it heck. Tastes nice though.

Mr. P called me outside to look at our catastrophically blocked drains. I won’t go into details. There’s a brave man coming to sort it in the morning. He did say “not sure what time it’ll be as I’m going out tonight.” What a job, never mind with a hangover.

 

Going Round The U-bend

4am: “mummy, I had a horrid dream, a blue beetle was crawling on my leg”.

I foolishly allowed R into our bed and endured the next 3 hours being kicked, poked, coughed and farted at instead of sleeping . When it apparently became morning, the loo got blocked and nearly overflowed, so despite my eyes being barely open, I had marigolds and bog water right up to my elbows.

Later on while R was occupied doing some painting, I resolved I must do something about the stray sheep that’s wandered into the field at the back of us. The farmer who owns the field told me yesterday it wasn’t his or the farmer to the right of us. So I went about tracking down the numbers of the farmers to the left and straight ahead. Farmer to the left said it wasn’t his and gave me the number for the other farmer. I jotted it down on a piece of paper on the table.

 

Pies In The Sky

This recipe is dedicated to Chris who would no doubt have left a funny comment about wanting to scoff the lot. I’m willing these over to you, fella …x

Mini Tarte Tatins

Actually it’s a cobbling together of two other recipes. My lovely friend allotment girl introduced me to Gordon Ramsey’s caramelised apples over xmas.

Just cover the bottom of your frying pan with caster sugar and put it on a fairly high heat to caramelise. Once it starts browing and bubbling, add about a fifth of a block of butter. If it starts separating out and going like toffee, like mine did just keep it moving and add more butter. Add a generous  amount of whole spices: star anise, cinamon sticks, cloves and add your fruit. Gordon used apples and pears but I just used apples – about 5 peeled and cut into mouthful size chunks. leave to simmer in the treacly goo until tender. This is heavenly served as is (fish out the spices first), with ice cream. Gordon puts booze in his, brandy I think.

However, I had some buttery sweet shortcrust left over from my mince pies that was defrosting so I thought I’d be completely decadent and make the apples into lovely shortbready pies. I discovered the pastry recipe this year and it was so delicious, I’m gonna stick with it for forever. I did add some water to mine to get it moving and rolled out and cut the shapes rather than mould them. I promise you will get lots of compliments about next year’s mince pies if you use this!

 

Remembering Chris

I’m so sad to have to say goodbye to my blogging friend Chris / Kopstoot

I was shocked to hear today that Chris passed away a few days ago.  I only met him once in real life many years ago, through an old friend but we recently became blogging buddies. Chris could always be relied upon for a silly comment or a generous compliment – he seemed a very giving person. 

Before he died Chris worked in the library and taught English to refugees and asylum seekers. Many years before that he was a war photographer. I think this left him with quite a scar.

I liked looking at his blog pictures as they always captured something different – one day a quirky pavement sticker, the next a tulip with fresh rain, the next his fave bar in Amsterdam. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind me showing you some here. Chris was always very encouraging about “making” pictures and was kind enough to make nice comments about my photos. He also gave good technical advice ie. “for a steady shot, lean your elbows on the top of R’s head” – that sort of thing.

You will be dearly missed Chris. Here’s a lovely welshy sunset especially for you xx

 

New Beginnings

Well things have been a bit quiet round here of late so I think a bit of a round up is in order. Plus some random pics from the last few months. My mum is fond of the phrase “you need your head examined!”. Well Mum, I can say at last that I HAVE had my head examined, fairly extensively over the last few months. It’s been an intense period of self development for me. I am studying for a certificate in counselling skills and have also been undergoing my own personal counselling. So, when I say my head has been examined I actually mean my thoughts, feelings, hopes, hurts, fears, needs, loves and the whole value system that they frequent. Heavyyyyyy ! Quite difficult to take it all in when you are both examiner and examinee! And it’s not over yet. This is the start of an interesting journey. If I’m to make it as a qualified counsellor I should be aiming to arrive at a place where I have no baggage. What will I do for clean pants? Mr P and I have also had various bodily bits and pieces scrutinized of late. Turns out I have very wonky innerds and we will need some help in our quest to make another baby plum. We are hoping that this is our year (fingers crossed icon).

I was proud of all the lovely home-made Christmas presents I made – sloe gin, sloe vodka, boozy sloe and nut chocolates, jams, chutneys, cards etc. Although such is my way I left everything right til the last minute that it took away some of the joy of doing it. I am vouching to start making my cards in summer this year!

I was flattered when a nice lady from a PR agency asked if I’d like to review some products and services aimed at children and parents. Thought it was only my 3 friends that read my blog. Ok, so now it’s 3 friends and Kerry. Thanks Kerry. Road safety is what she’s working on at the moment and this new website has got some much better ideas than my former approach which was to screech to R “STOP! TRACTOR COMING! HIT THE VERGE! NOW!!” Some new sheep arrived today. I think they’re in the barn next door but maybe will be let out into the field at the back soon. Be nice to have some neighbourly creatures to look at again. Trouble is they may be able to escape into our garden since we cut through the hedge. Must see to that…