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Category Archives: baking

Heritage Tomatoes, New Recipe and Garden Bouquet

26 Sep

We are loving our Redruth greengrocer, Grow Box, saved from closure by local traders. Today, among other things, we bought some beautiful, locally grown Heritage Tomatoes.

I needed them in particular for a recipe I had just read in today’s Feast that comes on Saturdays with our Guardian newspaper. Here is the Tomato and Courgette Loaf with Tomato Chutney. This afternoon I met with our lovely neighbour for  a cup of tea in the garden and we each had a piece of the loaf and both declared it to be delicious.

It’s so lovely that we can still find beautiful flowers to bring indoors. Here we have some Jasmine that we pruned yesterday, some Fuchsia that we have pruned today and a Calla Lily that has been broken by the wind.

If you read yesterday’s post and wondered what the creature was, I have added a P.S. to the post with the id that came today from the Royal Entomological Society!

 
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Posted by on September 26, 2020 in baking, flowers, friendship, Photography, Postaday2020

 

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Masks, Flowers and Cake

17 Sep

A week ago I made some masks for a friend and her daughter who is about to go off to University. I  made plain black for the student and prettier ones for her Mum.

Masks for M’s daughter
Masks for my friend, M

When M collected the masks, she brought me some beautiful Carnations and Freesias all in bud to say thank you.  Now they are open and just beautiful. Thank you, M!

Thank you flowers

I read an old Cornish recipe today for Autumn Cake. The recipe came from an old Cornish Women’s Institute booklet and sounded good despite the fact that I didn’t have all the ingredients. I had the cooking apples and one eater and all the basics but substituted the cherries with ginger pieces and the nuts with fat raisins. It’s a success!

A warm slice waiting for ice-cream

Autumn Cake

 

 
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Posted by on September 17, 2020 in baking, friendship, Photography, Postaday2020, sewing

 

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Emily’s Cake, Hay-Making and Pies

14 Sep

Regular readers will know that I love to use edible flowers in salads, desserts and cakes. This morning a blogger friend, Arkenaten,  posted one of the prettiest cakes I have ever seen, made by his daughter, Emily and with their permission, I show it to you here. What a beautiful creation with a rich abundance of colour and shapes! I’m not sure I would be able to cut into it – it’s a piece of art!

Wow! Emily’s edible-flower-cake

We’ve been listening to the local farmer harvesting over the last couple of days and loving the smell of the freshly mown hay. By the end of today, it is all in bales and the sheep are already enjoying it!

For our picnic tomorrow evening at The Minack Theatre prior to the performance, I have made some Rustic Mini pies, chicken and leek. Most of them will be frozen away for later!

Chicken and Leek Mini Pies

 
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Posted by on September 14, 2020 in art, baking, Beauty, environment, nature, Postaday2020

 

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Flowers, A Spitfire and A Pudding

12 Sep

It’s good that the Alstroemeria are still flowering. I like them and the yellow Canna against the dark red of the red Canna’s leaves.

We watched a Spitfire fly past today! It was doing a circuit of all Cornwall’s hospitals saying “Thank you” to our wonderful NHS. It was a long way away!

The NHS Spitfire – Photo by Greg Martin / Cornwall LIve

Mr Netherton’s photo, here with permission.

 

Today’s Feast magazine from The Guardian had a Chocolate and Pear Pudding from Felicity Cloake that I just had to make! It was easy and the result, delicious, served warm with a little single cream.

 
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Posted by on September 12, 2020 in baking, garden, nature, Photography, Postaday2020

 

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Magic, New Cake and Another Sunset Walk

31 Aug

I read a recipe at the weekend that sounded utterly sublime and so I made it today. It tastes as good as I thought it would. It is one of Thomasina Miers’, called Raspberry Meringue Sponge Cake. Her introduction says, “It’s a stunner….  Bake it this weekend and share slices with neighbours,…. Happy cooking.” and we did, with Sue-next-door..

Our sunset walk was lovely this evening, past our favourite old Oak Tree and up the hill for views of Carn Brea and the sea.

 
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Posted by on August 31, 2020 in baking, Carn Brea, Cornwall, environment, music, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Uncategorized

 

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Bread, Gladiolus and a Bird Box

14 Aug

The family have been out and about in Falmouth today, shopping for new school shoes and visiting the Maritime Museum where they had great fun. Because they were coming for tea and we have to meet in the garden, I made finger food – hot dogs which are always a favourite. Homemade bread rolls are  always satisfying to make and they went down a treat, stuffed with locally made sausages and fried onions.

The pattern on the back of the Gladiolus is lovely.

This photo came my way a few weeks ago and I thought I would share it as it both pleased and amused me.

Post Bird Box

There’s a funny thing! The first time I read this, I read through the three errors and me, an ex-English teacher!

 
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Posted by on August 14, 2020 in baking, garden, Humour, Kindness, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Uncategorized

 

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Baking, Cream Tea and A Poem

07 Aug

The lovely new owners of our Greengrocer’s shop, Grow Box, were yesterday giving away some Cornish Cream if you bought some strawberries which I hadn’t realised until the cream was added to my bag.  That meant, of course, that I had to make some scones. I used the trimmings to make some Cheese scones of which I am even more fond, if I dare to admit that!

Cornish cream tea with Strawberry Freezer jam

This gentle poem came my way today and seems so very apt for these difficult days. Be kind to yourself as well as to others.

The Mountain by Laura Ding-Edwards

 

 
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Posted by on August 7, 2020 in baking, Cornwall, Kindness, Photography, Postaday2020, Redruth, Uncategorized

 

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Windblown, Nigella and Pork Pies

27 Jul

Such wind and rain over night and the garden has suffered. The Aliums have blown over across the Daisies and Cosmos creating a rather dramatic purple, white and green picture which I love.The golden roses below which looked fabulous yesterday have lost all their petals.

The self sown Love-in-a-Mist is flowering – such a pretty flower and a lovely delicate palette of colours from blue through to white with all shade of pinks and mauves between.

I spent a happy hour baking over Skype with LiveWire No 2 today, his choice of recipe, Mini Pork Pies, which have turned out really well. We had a couple for supper with veg and they tasted scrummy. I am going to freeze the others for picnics later in the summer when the London contingent of our family are coming to stay nearby so that we can see each other again, first time this year. It will have been over 8 months since we have seen each other in person……It’ll be fun to actually share the pies with J after having baked them with him this afternoon.

 
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Posted by on July 27, 2020 in baking, family, nature, Photography, Postaday2020

 

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Butterfly, Skype Baking and Another Trade

20 Jul

On our walk this morning, we spotted a little blue butterfly which I think was a Common Blue. When I was a kid we used to see clouds of these lovely creatures when on a coastal walk. There seem to be far fewer about now. This is the first I have seen this year.

Common Blue

It was LiveWire No 2’s turn to Skype-bake with me this afternoon and he chose to make Sausage Rolls. It was so lovely to spend some special time together when we haven’t seen the family since New Year except for Family sessions each Saturday.  We also had some delicious Sausage Rolls to eat!

J’s Sausage Rolls

Another trade took place today. Our friend and neighbour, N, was in touch last week when the call finally came that we are to wear face masks when shopping, “Could I please make her some?”  Of course! I finished them off this morning and, as N is a Well being consultant for Weleda, traded the masks for the wonderful muscle soak that so helps my cranky and painful ankles.

Ankle juice
Four pretty masks
 
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Posted by on July 20, 2020 in baking, Happiness, nature, Photography, Postaday2020, Uncategorized

 

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Thrush, Hydrangea and Cake

16 Jul

A Thrush kept us company along the start of our walk today as he was gathering for for his fledglings.

I love this pretty wreath of Hydrangea, Lavender and greenery which we saw on a front door along our walk on the way up to The Great Flat Lode. 

We were given some beetroot  on Tuesday so I made Chocolate Beetroot Cake which is one of the lovely Mr S’s favourites. There wasn’t quite enough beetroot for the recipe so I made up the weight with raspberries and it is totally scrumptious! You’ll find the recipe by clicking on the red link.

 
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Posted by on July 16, 2020 in baking, birds, environment, nature, Photography, Postaday2020

 

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