What is it with the weather - climate change?

Oh my, I have an energetic and crazy toddler.  'Is she always like this' the health visitor said at her 2.5 year review.  Yes. No stopping her.  Busy busy busy.  At the moment she is excited by trying to make a 'capapino' with hot milk and chocolate bits and is most distressed when you don't join in! Then there is the mini-bites tray I recently purchased, to make mini banoffi pies and other such lovely things....Isobel uses it to make cakes and then decorate with pink peppa pig icing (all pretend of course...I haven't got the energy to have baked 24 by 7.10am!).

Heard some shocking things yesterday - firstly that apparently there are people who blend/puree up cheeseburgers and chips and give it to their babies as part of the weaning process (hoping I'm not alone in being shocked by this!) and then that someone in France apparently has been jailed for putting their 3 year old in the washing machine on a cold rinse cycle because they had been naughty at nursery.  What happy news.  That and the state of the economy had me feeling really chirpy yesterday (.!?).

Had a poorly Arthur today.  A lot of crying and vomit which is most unlike him. He's in bed now.  And it's given me time to ponder the wonder of nature which is going on outside in the garden.  I planted some bulbs in October in the hope that we would have some lovely new colour in the spring (can't afford to get the drive redone so bulb planting is the way to go to make it look nicer!).  Anyway, there they are - little daffodils trying to grow.  I couldn't believe it - definately green shoots from daffodils. 

We need a good hard frost to stop them (and to kill the weeds which appear to be growing from the manure in the new vegetable patch).  The weather has been too warm I think and so the poor bulbs are confused.  It's perhaps a more local illustration of le changement climatique which they (they being officials and NGO reps and consultants and researchers etc) are all talking about in Durban at the moment as part of the latest Climate Change negotiations.  You can read all about it here:

http://www.cop17-cmp7durban.com/

as well as getting updates from various NGO organisations including WWF and Oxfam:

http://www.wwf.org.uk/news_feed.cfm?5467/Durban-climate-talks-a-chance-to-end-political-posturing

http://www.oxfam.org/en/grow/climate

Help end violence against women and girls

There are a number of campaigns running at the moment to mark 16 days of activism against gender based violence.  The UN reckons that gender based violence is experienced by approximately 70% of women across the world. 

The campaign, called 'The 16 Days Campaign' began on November 25, the International Day Against Violence Against Women, and ends on December 10, International Human Rights Day. 

General info on violence against women can be found on a number of sites, including the WHO which highlights not only the % of women who experience physical assault but also some of the risk factors and the role of conflict. .

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs239/en/

Make A Difference!

You can read more about the campaign and the work of one organisation, International Medical Corps, on the following link.   IMC work in some of the poorest countries in the world, and in particular in countries in the midst of or recovering from conflict and other humanitarian crises. If you are moved to give a donation, please do.  Your contribution will help IMC make a difference to the lives of women and girls around the world:

http://www.internationalmedicalcorps.org.uk/__GBV/content.asp?pid=321

Oh and another - danish pastries

Yummy yummy, I'm pleased with these

 
OK, another blog-a-thon seems to be happening (although I'm about to be called for dinner - am multitasking whilst attempting to sell stuff for Peter on ebay!).

I'm feeling very happy as I did more baking yesterday.  I was going to make a pumpkin pie but got sidetracked by the idea of making danish pastries.  I've never made them before and I have to say, the result was good, not perfect but good. And I got another chance to use my Lakeland baking tray which is great!

So, I used a recipe from the Good Housekeeping but I only made half quantities (I'd love to say for health reasons, but mainly because I wanted to try it out and didn't want to waste a lot in this age of austerity!).  I now realise quite how much butter there is in a danish pastry!  Oh, and the first attempt at dough had to be binned as I forgot to add the sugar!

Once I was a bit more organised this is basically what I did:

(a) Take 150g of unsalted butter out of fridge and let it warm up until it's soft.  Meanwhile, put 225g, 1/2 tsp salt in a bow and mix together.  Then rub in 25g lard (I presume you could also use vegetable marg) and add 3/4 tsp dried yeast and 1 tablespoon of caster sugar.

(b) add 75ml of handhot water and one beaten egg and mix together, then kneed for about 5 mins or until you have a smooth, elastic dough

(c) Cover and put in fridge for 10 minutes.  Then, and there is where I tried to guess the details of the recipe as there was a really long description with no pictures to clarify, mould the soft butter into an oblong and roll the dough out on a floured surface until it is 3x as wide.

(d) Fold the sides over the butter until it's covered and then roll it out so it's length is 3x it's width. 

(e) Then fold the top 1/3 down and the bottom 1/3 down.  Cover and rest for 10 minutes.  Then turn the dough round and repeat steps d and e two more times (so I think you end up rolling it out 3 times)

(f) Cover the dough with cinnamon butter which you make by creaming together 25g caster sugar with 25g butter and 1tsp or so of cinnamon (I didn't used enough cinnamon - I love cinnamon and would add more next time).  Sprinkle over some sultanas.

(g) Roll it up like a swiss roll and then cut into rounds about 1inch (2.5cm) thick.  Put on the baking tray and leave for about 30 minutes in a warm place and covered up.  Preheat the oven to 220 deg C.

(h) Brush with beaten egg then bake for about 15 minutes.

(i) Remove from oven and let cool a bit before eating!  You can also cover with thin glace icing apparently (according to les instructions in the book).  Yummy yummy.

I know, I've used this pic before!

Starting to think about 'back to work'

I've got to start thinking about going back to work.  Boo hiss.  The year seems to have flown by.  I can't believe that it's been 6 months since they diagnosed the PND and that Arthur is now 8 months old.  Despite the ups and downs, I've really enjoyed it.  I think that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now with the PND and I think that going back to work will help.  However, it also means a new set of stresses and strains.

I didn't really want to think about it, but my job share is going back in January so we had to go into the office to talk about it with our new boss.  Yeeks, seeing all those stressed out people made me feel stressed! But at the same time, I know that when I go back, I have to be strict on my hours as if I'm on duty to pick the children up, then I have to leave by a certain time to get them.  No messing or it's £15 per every 10 minutes you are late!!!!! Now I understand why all those people used to rush off and say 'sorry, I can't do it now, I have to go' before I had children!

Still, when you get into the office way before everyone else and then leave slightly earlier than everyone else it's amazing how many people frown at you and think you're shirking.  Maybe some people do.  I think my memories of the job and being up at midnight trying to get some of the work done before getting in early the next day makes me feel happy that my jobshare and I certainly weren't shirking.

Anyway, back to work in the new year.  Perhaps next year will have a set of challenges (eg. going back to work) which will also be real steps forward in getting my mental state sorted out for certain!

Storage Box is finished!

Here we go - pretty pleased with that really for a first attempt.

Oh some sewing at last

So, I found that focusing on some lovely new sewing goals has helped recently.  It's also avoided the baking (though I am still hoping to make some biscotti and stollen before the week is out - partly cos I love stollen).

So, Isobel has now another new hairband - I was quite excited by it!  I followed the same instructions from this great site Nina Makes - http://ninimakes.typepad.com/nini_makes/2007/08/very-easy-headb.html.  This time I slightly changed it though and added some lining to the top piece, just some light weight iron in lining.  Keeps the shape better now I think.  Isobel loved it and has worn it to be every night since!

Then I started work on some fabric storage boxes.  I have wanted to make some for ages and now they have a set of instructions in this months 'Making' magazine.  So, here is the box as it currently stands - just need to make the lining now:

This is the smallest one and is random yellow as my mum gave me some old fabric, including this yellow and some 1970s brown stuff which has yellow and orange in it:

Just looking for one more fabric to go with it and complete the theme!!  Any ideas welcome.

This morning Isobel decided to re-enact 'Guess How much I love you in the Autumn' and ran round the house as a box monster with the yellow box on her head!  Multipurpose sewing. That's what I like.

What happens when PND causes a wobble?

I had a bit of a wobble on Sunday.  Everything is OK now.  But I thought maybe I should share what a wobble feels like when it happens in case it helps anyone else.  Basically, I just feel overwhelmed by everything.  I am really irritable and everything Peter does is wrong.  I just want Isobel and Arthur to go to bed and be quiet.  I feel that my life has become a relentless set of chores where I can see no end in sight.  I sat on the floor holding Arthur to help calm him down, with tears flowing down my cheeks and just thinking - is this really it?  I just wanted to walk out of the house.

Now its funny as I don't think feelings like this are that extreme.  Before I took the pills, this would happen a lot and last a lot longer.  And the tears would stay all day.  And I know I have it quite lightly really.  I feel almost guilty for sharing this as I feel that people will judge me and think I'm a bad mother or something for feeling like this.  Perhaps that's why it's not really talked about?  How many people (men can have it too apparently) are out there not really talking about how they are feeling?

I'm so glad I'm getting better.  Most days my children are a joy.  Peter is great - and he is great with the children.  I am very lucky and I can't wait to get myself off these pills and back to my old self - it feels like it's more likely every day now.

Run run run...

I'm clearly having a blog-a-thon.

I've been running a lot over the past few days - ok, so not necessarily a huge distance but I've been out on a route I've been doing which includes some lovely hills and...happy oh happy, I can now run up them without stopping!  I'm so pleased with myself.

The running is great.  I am almost tempted by running the marathon again next year.....mmmh, but maybe one step at a time (phew I can hear my friends say - it would be the 4th London one which I still reckon I've got in me.....but maybe when things are a bit calmer).

I was thinking about it last night when out running, how difficult it is to find the time to go for a run now.  I used to be able to put my trainers on and go.  Now I have to wait until there is someone to look after the little ones.  And as it's winter it's also dark and damp which isn't the most enticing weather.  But, I'm trying to keep it up and it is making me feel like a new woman.  I really must buy some new trainers - another thing I don't know how I'll fit in.  Why can't they have someone come to your house and measure you up, watch you run and sell you trainers?????  I would love that.  My trainers are knackered - I'm sure it would make me run twice as fast to have new ones!

One thing I like about running in the winter is the fact that so many people leave their curtains open and their lights on - great for nosey parkers like me!  I ran past one house which had all it's christmas lights up - outside and in, including a christmas tree in the window! Maybe I've got the month wrong....

What on earth is a bat tower?

OK, so as Arthur is feeling a little better we went to Toys Hill in Kent.  It was very misty but also very lovely - great with kids as you get to places early enough that there is hardly anyone else there!

It was so lovely - apparently the views are meant to be great......clearly too misty for that.  It made me think of that poem by John Keats:

To Autumn, 1820:

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.

And it made me feel much better - it's good for the soul being out in the great outdoors with all those lovely colours.  I've had a few PND wobbles recently - think it's maybe tiredness (after the chinese takeaway? - MSG?) and those thoughts about how relentless it is keep creeping in, so being able to run around outside made a real difference.  I hate being stuck inside.

Anyway, whilst at Toys Hill we came across a bat tower - which excited Isobel a lot as she thought it was a castle with a gruffalo inside!

So, the good old National Trusty has turned this old water tower into a bat tower to provide a place for them to hibernate.  We had a peep in but nothing....then again, according to the rubrick it's only now that they start coming to hibernate there.  Think it was for pipistrelle and some other bats....

Yet more bagels!

Mmh, cinnamon and raisin, my favourite.  Having had a poorly Arthur for a few days, Isobel and I made bagels on Friday whilst Arthur was in bed!  It was fun - though you have to be in the right mood to cook with a toddler I think.

We decided that we didn't have any bagels left in the freezer so action was needed and a change of bagel was also needed.  Found a few recipes, and mixed and matched a bit.  We ended up doing one which you left in the fridge overnight and cooked first thing so you have lovely freshly baked bagels for breakfast - lovely (though not so lovely for the waistline!).  We only made 6 as we were testing out the whole leave in the fridge thing.

So here, goes:

(a) Sift 1lb of bread flour into a bowl with 2.5 tsp of cinnamon and about 3/4 tsp of salt.  Mix together then make a well in the centre.

(b) Measure out 280ml of hand hot water and add to that about 3g dried active yeast (we used about half a sachet of the Allinsons yeast which is 7g in total but I wasn't being hugely accurate!) and 3g sugar.  One recipe we saw asked for Malt Extract instead of sugar but as we didn't have any and the previous recipe we used only used sugar, we plumped for sugar.  Seemed OK!

(c) Add this warm water to the flour and mix it in, then kneed for about 8 - 10 minutes until you have a smooth dough.

Toddler kneeding - not sure how effective it is!

(d) Add about 135g raisins (or mix of raisins and sultanas - we had to use sultanas as the raisins were no more!) and kneed those in.

(e) Then make the bagels - divide the dough into 6 balls.  We used a more prescriptive technique this time - after the random shapes last time (which were quite fun though!).  Found some instructions on an American blog which I'll try to find the link to.  Flatten each ball with your hand.  Then fold over one side into the centre and press down.  Do the same with the other side - so you get a seam in the middle where the two sides have come together.

(f) fold this in half and press down again and then roll into a sausage about 20 cm long and tapering at one end.

OK, so this isn't 20cm long but this is a sausage shape - roughly....

(g) Open up the seam at one end and then put the tapered end into it to make a bagel shape.  Pinch them closed.  Put the finished bagels on a floured towel on a baking tray.

There is a little Isobel one in there somewhere.....

(h) Cover with cling film and leave in fridge overnight.  Now, ours didn't rise that much overnight which we were a little concerned about but decided to keep going anyway!

(i) Preheat the oven to 250 deg centigrade (or max temperature) and put pan of water on to boil.  When it's boiling add 2 tbs sugar and then, using a slotted spoon, pop in about 3 bagels.  Turn them over after about 45 seconds and leave them to poach until they float.  Take them out and put them, seam side down, on a baking tray.

(j) Bake in the oven for about 14 minutes or until brown and lovely looking.

'I want my bagel'

(K) Cut open, add some butter and eat! Yummy yummy.

Twitter witter ...what?

So I have signed up to Twitter. I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. If only I was 8 I would probably be an expert! Anyway, apparently you can follow me at @waxy1474. If I can ever work out out what on earth to do!

Crochet - any left handers?

I'm wondering if there are any left handed crochet-ers out there who can advise me on learning to crochet?  I looked at a book the other day and it was OK but all right handed which my backwards mind didn't cope well with!

Would love to hear from anyone!

Pastry, pies and potty training

Have had a fun few days (apart from my grumpiness yesterday!).  Isobel is really getting on with the whole potty training thing.  It's funny, friends who had older children all kept saying 'you'll know when she is ready' and we went through the 'mummy I don't want a nappy, I want Peppa Pig pants' phase and the accidents which followed and then almost a month a go, she decided 'no nappy' and that was it.  She's loving it - especially when she gets to sit and wait for us to make up yet another story about Peppa Pig (yesterday she went to the moon with Lucy locket to rescue the man and the rabbit in the moon and bring them back to play with a giant pink dinosaur!).  Anyway, yesterday I went into the local wilkinsons and purchased a couple of their own brand toilet training seats - bargain as they were only just over £1 and fit on the toilet really well.  Would love to put a link here but can't find one online.  So, Isobel is now even more excited.

Then, I had another go at making pastry. I've not made pastry for ages as the stuff from the shop seems so good.  But, with all the random vegetables we've been storing up I found a recipe for a pie which used some celeriac (anyone with good celeriac recipes - please do let me know!).  It's a Delia dish and it was very nice.  The pastry had parmesan in it and the whole thing seemed to have loads of nutmeg in it which is always great.  I must say I was really pleased with the result.

This was after it had been in the fridge overnight

So, if you have lots of random vegetables at this time of year, give it a go - loads left as well for weaning Arthur as I didn't add any salt.

Basically this is what you do:

• This pie needs cooking at 220 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes or until golden on top and bubbling.  Put a baking tray under the pie to catch the drips!
• For the pastry - rub 25g of cold butter and 25g lard (or vegetable fat) into 110g sifted plain flour and a little salt.  Then mix in 25g parmesan.  Slowly add cold water, by the teaspoon, and mix together until you have a smooth dough which leaves the bowl sides clean.  Wrap in clingfilm and put in fridge for at least 30 mins
• For the vegetables - I used 225g of steamed butternut sqash, celeriac and leek as well as 110g steamed carrot.  I steamed them for about 10 min with some nutmeg.  You could also use parsnips and swede and things if you have them.  Then add 225g sweet potato and steam for another 10 minutes.  Leave to cool.
• For the sauce - Melt 40g butter and then add one medium onion (finely chopped) and cook over a gentle heat for 15 - 20 minutes until the onion is soft.  Add 40g plain flour and then slowly mix in 1 pint of milk.  Keep stirring and heating until it thickens.  Then add some rosemary and thyme (I used pinch of dried stuff for both), some mustard (Delia says 1 tablespoon but perhaps up to you - we forgot to add it so just had some on the side), 25g parmesan and 50g grated cheese (I used Emmental) with some nutmeg and pepper.
• To put it together - mix the vegetables with the sauce and then put half of it into a pie dish.  Then scatter over about 60g of grated cheese.  Put the remaining veg mix in and put more cheese (60g or so) on the top.  Roll out your pastry.  Make a little rim by taking spare pastry and rolling into a sausage shape and then pressing along the side of the pie dish.  Put a bit of water on that to dampen it and put you pastry lid on top - bringing the lid together with the rim in small pinches.  Put some holes in the lid, brush with beaten egg and cook.

 It was really yummy and Arthur liked it too.

Close up of the pastry which I was really excited by (I need to get out more!)

Oh that really annoys me....

I got really annoyed this morning - by the neverending queues of people parking in the parent and child bays in Tesco....not a child in sight!  And then I saw a person parking in the disabled one!  On confronting one woman (I just politely pointed out that it was a parent and child space), she basically gave me the evils and told me to 'f-off'. Mmmh. Saw her shopping later, still with no children.  What is the point of Tesco's having disabled and other bays if anyone can park in them and nothing is done.

Rant rant.

Then I got annoyed listening to someone on the radio talking about youth unemployment.  Yes, the figures are high and it's a challenge.  But they were interviewing someone who basically said 'I didn't go to university to work in a call centre'.  Oh it made me think about the situation when I and all my friends left university in the 90s and there were no jobs.  We worked in call centres, data entry centres, anything really to earn some money!  I just felt that the person they interviewed basically didn't want to do it because it seemed to me that they thought it was below them. Mmmh.

Maybe it's the weather making me grumpy!

Or the lack of baking - something I think I will have to address!

Finally some sewing & spiced apple chutney

Spiced apple chutney - cost about £0.50 a jar

I've had a lovely few runs since Peter got home.  I'm really trying to get to the top of a hill near our house without stopping.  I'm getting there though I'm almost sick when I get to the top!  Running really does lift my mood.  I noticed today that there is a running club in Sevenoaks specifically for women with depression - good idea I think, especially if people can start off running with others.  The club is called 'up and running' - http://www.upandrunninginsevenoaks.org.uk/Upandrunninginsevenoaks/Welcome.html

Much to Peter's concern, I've changed the morning radio station from Radio 4 to some music - whichever channel has the most uplifting music!  I love Radio 4 it must be said, the Today Programme, Just a Minute, The Politics Show, I've Never Seen Star Wars....oh and Woman's Hour.  However, I realised that happy music is making for a happier person - a bit of disco dancing to Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer just works it's magic and makes both little ones laugh and join in (I know someone who would be so happy with this - bringing back memories of that classy joint Infernos on Clapham High Street!). So, apart from first thing in the morning (gentle wake up), it's no more Radio 4!  Having said that, I did listen to Woman's Hour the other day where there was quite an interesting interview with a host of ladies about how to stay married.  Apparently Louise Mench has made some remark about women not letting themselves go or making sure they look glam for their husband.  And Jilly Cooper has reissued her book from 1969.  Programme is on Iplayer or through this link (10th November) - http://tunein.com/radio/Womans-Hour-p657/

Anyway, I have finally done a bit more sewing.  Isobel's hair is beginning to go a bit nuts so I made her a hairband!  It took slightly longer than I thought it would but I think the finished item is ok really - especially considering it's (a) pink and (b) made from fabric my mum had when I was little!

Great link to some hairband tutorials here - http://www.sewchicandunique.com/tag/headbandhairband/

I love those curly blond locks!

 Finally, I thought I would share another apple activity - as you know, we seem to have had a lot of apples (mainly through Peter foraging!) and I've slowly been turning them into things to make them last longer.  Last week I made a spiced apple cake (when testing out the cake release) and over the weekend we had a joint effort at some spiced apple chutney! 

We used this lovely book to instruct us (it's a great book - soooo many recipes and easy for people without a lot of jam making skill!) Jams, Preserves and Chutneys by Marguerite Patten.  Basically you need about 2lb apples (when peeled and cored), 1lb onions, some mixed spice (1 tsp), vinegar, raisins/sultanas and 350g soft brown sugar [will post details later - children just woken up!].  To sterilise the jars I always use the same method - wash the jars then put in a cool-ish oven at 140 deg until you need them.

Disco Divas.....made from gingerbread!

So, Peter is home.  Hoorah.  He was a little jetlagged but that didn't stop Isobel waking him up every few minutes such was the excitement!  There I was, entertaining her with trips to climbing frames and doing craft and baking....but no - she just wanted her daddy - I mean, all he does is take her to Tool Station or the Car Wash! (ok, I jest, he is very good really).

Anyway, after Mrs WP gave birth to the lovely Daniel on Thursday, Isobel and I decided to have a go at testing out a few more lovely Lakeland purchases.  In addition to the cake release (see previous blog), I had also purchased a baking genius tray and some russian doll cutters.  

I was quite excited by my new baking tray - my old ones are knackered due to putting them in the dishwasher (I didn't read the instructions properly) so this new one promised to be non stick and dishwasher proof!  As for the dollies, everyone loves a Russian Doll and I have thought about all the various benefits of these cutters which I thought were great!  More on that below.  In the meantime, Isobel and I decided to make gingerbread Russian Dolls.  We used Delia's gingerbread recipe which I won't repeat here as it's all on her site - http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/type-of-dish/sweet/gingerbread-men.html

We rolled out the dough with our lovely Joseph Joseph rolling pin and one of the first exciting things about the cutters was that because they nest inside each other, you can make a lot of cookies as they fit well together and the small ones can easily be squeezed in those difficult bits of dough you sometimes have left:

Then it was into the oven for 13 minutes to cook them.  The big test came when we took the biscuits off - they literally slid off the baking tray and left only little oily marks where they had been:

So, all in all I was quite pleased with my baking tray and will be testing it out again soon!

What did I think of the cutters?  Well, apart from the fact that they nest and therefore you can make lots of biscuits, I liked the fact that toddlers can make their own dollies and you end up with some smaller ones which are good for small people (and people on a diet) and larger ones that are good for adults.  Making gingerbread ones means that you don't need to add butter so they can be eaten by people with lactose intolerance and also they are good for christmas.  I also think that you could probably use them for a host of other cookies - perhaps father christmas, a snowman, penguins, etc etc.  But probably not Peppa Pig.

Busy, Busy, Busy....not just eating too many biscuits

Upside down biscuits!

I don't know what's come over me - I've been doing all sorts of random cooking and sewing!  I think it's having the evenings to myself but not being able to run as there is no one to look after the little ones if they wake up!  Arty has a cold so I've been smearing him with vicks, including on his feet which I remember reading somewhere was meant to help.....lets see.

So last night, I set about learning something new - quilting.  I had this great idea to make coasters for Xmas presents.....mmmh.  To help me out I opened a box of waitrose biscuits (on special - £2.75 a box) and they were so yummy I ate a few too many....it was Mrs WP's fault - texting me that her waters had broken whilst sitting on the sofa!  Mine broke with Arthur (not really with Isobel) and it was quite a hollywood moment - gutted that I wasn't in John Lewis or Marks and Sparks with potential for a trolley dash (is that an urban myth???).

Anyway, I think the biscuits addled my brain.  My first attempt at quilting was not that successful.  I was trying to make these bound edge coasters which required 3 layers of batting sandwiched in two layers of fabric and then really tight quilting....and clearly with a steady hand so you can make it vaguely straight...something I don't have.  So if you look at the pictures on the link and then look at the picture below, you'll see why I decided that frankly Arthur could just have an unfinished one as a toy!

Completely not straight

Much better as toy!

But I perservered - and tried a slightly less tricky one which only had one layer of batting....not great but better than the previous one.  Don't think coasters are going to be the Christmas present of choice somehow!

Health Health, low calorie!

And today was another new day.  Isobel was in nursery for the day and as Arthur was full of cold I continued on my making spree.   Finally rid myself of the butternut squash in the fridge and made a squash soup, then turned my attention to the massive box of apples which are slowly going a bit mouldy in the garage!  One lot turned into an apple, sultana and cinnamon stew for Arthur and Isobel, and with the other I decided to try out and review the cake release spray I found at the lovely Lakeland:

£3.99 from Lakeland

 I was a bit dubious about getting it but someone had mentioned that it worked really well.  I'm a bit slapdash normally when it comes to greasing cakes so they end up getting stuck.  This only needs a tiny bit and you then brush it round the tin with a pastry brush.  Pour in the mixture (in my case an apple cake) and then bake.  The result?  Well, the cake just popped out.  It was great.  So, a good investment if you bake a lot.

Here is the finished cake with lovely smooth edges!

And finally, I decided to have a go at sewing another purse - this time with a flat bottom.  Now I found the instructions on a website somewhere and now can'tfind the link.  I'll add it when I do.  It's a good set of instructions and I'm quite pleased with the result.  Might make some more - practice makes perfect!

And this is the flat bottom

Learning something new - mesothelioma

I have had some communication with a courageous woman, Heather Von St James who has survived mesothelioma with which she was diagnosed just after giving birth to her little girl.  I hadn't heard of it before - but it seems that it is a cancer which affects the lungs and abdomen and which is strongly linked to exposure to asbestos.

Heather has written some of her story on the following site which also has further info about the disease:


http://www.mesothelioma.com/blog/authors/heather/

It made me think of my good friend whose husband died just after Isobel was born.  He had lung cancer - the cause was not known.  It could have been smoking when he was young but many wondered if it was linked to working in craft, design and technology at a school and the exposure to pollutants in the dust.  It took less than a year after he was diagnosed for him to lose his battle.  He was a lovely and strong man.  My friend is an inspiration - I really don't know how she does it.

Meringues....

Mmmh, fat free....!

 
This week, whilst Peter is away, I'm going to try to crack on with some sewing.  It's been a while since I did any - I think I've been distracted by baking!  But now I need to lose a little more weight before Xmas so should probably refocus on sewing some Christmas gifties.

Before I move on though, I thought I would share our meringue attempt.  I've seen these giant meringues for sale in shops at ridiculous prices so Isobel and I decided to make some!  Mixed and matched with some recipes.  And the result was a lovely crispy meringue on the outside and gooey-ness in the centre!  And a sugar rush.  Here goes -

- preheat oven to 200 degrees C (gas mark 6) and warm 300g of caster sugar on a roasting tray for 7 minutes or until hot but not melted

- in an electric mixer, whisk 150g eggs whites until they are foamy and then add the hot sugar all in one go.  Put the mixed on high and whisk for about 10 minutes until the mixture is cool and white, shiny and stiff!

- then it's up to you what you do.  Isobel and I made two batches - so we split the mix in two and with one of them very loosely folded through a tiny drop or 2 of red food colouring.  In the other, we loosely folded through some sifted cocoa and cinnamon.  We probably only used about 3 'folds'.

- put large 'blobs' on a baking tray covered with baking paper and decorate. 

Which one was Isobel's?

-  bake in oven at 110 degree C for 1 hour and 45 mins.  Cool.

Eat! They were very yummy!

Finished article - they spread out quite a bit on cooking!

Oh, and our meat free time is going well - we might have had a few slip ups but basically it's all good and it's been a great opportunity to learn how to cook new veggie dishes and to get our 5 a day in one meal!  Now, the next step is to not eat cake.....or drink Amaretto with ice (!)