Wednesday 17 November 2010

Post birthday goodies!

OH MY!  I thought that my birthday excitement was over but no...there was this one little latecomer! Squeeeeeal! It's just so gorgeous and looks lovely against my coat.



I've been wearing this delightful piece of crocheted goodness all day long and oh! - how many lovely comments I have had.  Many people have been 'cheered up' or 'brightened up' just by seeing this.
I don't think my lovely friend could have a selected a more perfect item.  I like the idea of crocheting scarves like this - another idea for my to do list!

Sunday 14 November 2010

Tiptoeing towards....

It's only November but I found myself singing a Christmas carol today. OH DEAR! I even ordered some mincemeat this weekend ready to make mince pies and started to think about making a Christmas cake (...although I will allow this one as it does need to be made in advance) and for lunch I had my first taste of the season's brussel sprouts.  Usually, in my house, these things are reserved for December 1st at the earliest.

This year I seem to have been affected by the drawing in of winter like never before.  I didn't even make it into October before I became obsessed with baking heavier cakes and hot puddings..and devouring them. I have tried to make lots of different desserts over the last few weeks.  Today's dessert was a good, old-fashioned, English rice pudding sprinkled with nutmeg.  So simple, so easy and soooooo comforting.   Personally, I blame Nigella's 'Kitchen' series for my current obsession with desserts as everything was desrcibed as 'silky, soft, pillow-y and pleasurable'.  I think it is impossible to watch her show without suddenly having the urge to run into the kitchen! I've had a great time reading through her recipe book too and deciding what I shall make. 


I've taken to spending my evenings and weekends snuggling up with a wheat bag, blankets and cosy slippers, crocheting (following Lucy at Attic 24's neat ripple pattern), dreaming about acquiring vintage items, warming myself by fires and drinking sloe gin. Oh and making friends with my new sewing machine! Mmmmm cozy.  That is exactly how I have spent this weekend! Blisssss.  I love this time of year, although the flu I've had of late is on my winter negatives list!

Sunday 7 November 2010

Birthday Tea Party

Yesterday morning was spent frantically baking in my kitchen and whipping up all manner of cakes ready for my Birthday tea party! A few hours before my guests arrived I wondered if I would possibly manage to  produce cakes, tidy the house and make myself presentable in time....or indeed, even one of the three...! Thanks to the well-timed arrival of a good friend and some emergency baking by my mum, we managed a red velvet cake, peanut butter blondies, cupcakes, chocolate cake and iced biscuits.  PHEW! A work colleague then bought over some trays filled with a 135 year old tea set (forgot to get piccies of this) so we then spent the next 7 hours eating cake, drinking tea from the sweetest doll-house-tea-party-esque china and chattering away with good friends.  Ahhhhh, bliss!

What do you think of our efforts?
Mmmmmm cupcakes (my mum's)........
Here is Mr red velvet cake.................slightly very messy but delicious all the same (at the point of adding the frosting our baking time had run out and the guests had started to arrive!)

Chocolate cake......
Next I give you the peanut blllllooooondies....
A deli-bought exotic fruit cake.

Last up, our tastefully iced biscuits.

Mmmmm, do you feel hungry yet?