Stir up Sunday has been and gone, so if you haven’t yet done your Christmas Baking, then Sorry, you are too late!

Stir Up Sunday, this year was on November 24. But what does it mean? Actually I had absolutely no idea about Stir Up Sunday until about 10 years ago, when we were invited to an Inns of Court. ( These are professional associations for Barristers in England and Wales, and are located in the City of London). We went to Lincoln’s Inn and to their church and sat behind Cherie Blair, wife of our former Prime Minister, along with their daughter, both of whom are Barristers registered there.

It was Stir Up Sunday and , I therefore needed to find out exactly what it all meant! Well of course it has everything to do with both Anglian and Catholic Churches ,( and is always the last Sunday before Advent) but has come to mean the making of the very British Christmas pudding. The pudding which is made from nuts, raisins, currents, all sorts of dried fruits, is rich and heavy and boiled in a pudding basin and not to be confused with Christmas Cake, which is basically made with the same ingredients, and baked and is also peculiarly British. We have been eating these gourmet delights since 1714 and apparently imported from Germany by George1.

So needless to say , I haven’t made either pudding or cake! Once upon a time, living in Houston Texas, I made the cakes for sale in a shop in an upmarket area of town, but here there is only one person who eats them and that is himself! The other thing I made in Houston was English Wedding cakes and yes, they are rich fruit cakes, along the lines of Christmas Cakes. English wedding cakes are usually layered with the top layer, traditionally being kept for the Christening of the first born child, and yes they kept and without freezing! I also made my wedding cake ( and wedding dress) but I digress

For a smallish pudding ( about a litre sized basin) you will need

• 125grms suet, this is a type of fat available packaged in most grocery stores and nowadays there is a non meat version available.
• 50 grms of plain flour or wholemeal flour
• A combination of ground mixed spice, nutmeg, and cinnamon, about 1/2 teaspoons in all.
• 4 Oz of soft brown sugar
• And a mixture of the following :- sultanas, raisins, currants, candied peel finely chopped, chopped dried apricots, chopped soft dried dates, to make about 250 grams in total.
• 75 grms of chopped nuts, almonds or walnuts
• A small apple peeled, cored and grated
• Zest and juice of a lemon or orange
• 2 eggs
• 75 mls of a dark beer something like Guinness better still brandy, cheap will suffice!

Start by preparing your basin, grease it well and line the bottom with greaseproof paper and grease that as well.

Then for the fun part and especially for kids as the mixing of the pudding is best done by hand! In a large bow, simply throw it all in and mix it thoroughly with your CLEAN hands.

Fill the basin to about 1 cm below the rim, cover this with another bit of greased paper, grease side down and then wrap with some aluminium foil and traditionally a clean old mens handkerchief or cloth tied around with a piece of string not too tightly to allow the pudding to expand a bit. Steam the pudding for about 3 hours, so you have to watch that there is always some water in your pan, but to top up always do it with some already boiling water. Once cooked take care when lifting the pudding out and leave to cool! Once cool wrap in clean greaseproof paper and store in a cool place. A bit more difficult these days, given that most have central heating !

It is possible to steam your pudding in a microwave, it is much faster, only about 30-40 minutes but much more care needs to be taken. However, I would thoroughly recommend reheating in a microwave, especially if serving individual portions. Simply put a portion on a microwave safe plate, uncovered, cook on high for1-1/2 minutes. Very fast and very safe ( but don’t put the money in until it has been reheated)!

Again traditionally, Brandy is poured over a Christmas pudding and lit so a bit like flambé , however no need to say care must be taken when doing this! And yet again, the pudding is very often served with Brandy Butter,

Brandy Butter

• 150 grms unsalted butter at room temperature
• 75 grms sifted icing sugar
• A good splodge of Brandy ( 4-8 tablespoons)

Simply, whisk ( easiest with an electric whisk) the butter and sugar together and when amalgamated and cream like slowly add the Brandy whilst still whisking, The butter should be white and like whipped cream, store covered in the refrigerator!

Christmas pudding is not to everyone’s taste, a bit like Marmite, you love it or hate it! As children we were enticed to eat it by usually my favourite Aunt hiding silver coins in the pudding and making sure we always got one ! Unfortunately, nowadays I’m sure that the monetary amount would be too large to hide in a pudding !

Silly question in this house at least, but one still has to eat! We have been fortunate enough to go to Twickenham, the home of English Rugby many times, but this was Super Saturday! All three final matches, Wales played Italy, Ireland played Scotland and France played England, with the England match would not start until well into the evening !

We could have had something delivered, but no, as we are going away and there were EGGS, to be used! And although I say I had eggs to use, but of course I could freeze them ! Eggs freeze well, but not in their shells, simply crack them open, put into a container that is slightly larger than the egg ( it will expand upon freezing), and the whites / yolks have to be beaten together, when defrosted and using them. And again , although I said I had eggs to use, I didn’t have anywhere as many as this poor man!

I really like spicy eggs, they can be called Turkish Eggs ( I call them Mexican Eggs), poached eggs in a spicy tomato sauce. Poached eggs on Avocado and sourdough toast, with Hot sauce! Or the new “In” version is smushed peas!

Another alternative is spicy scrambled eggs, there are several recipes ( not that you really need it) in Indian/ Mexican/ Middle eastern cookery books.Or a Parsi omelette, in other words a spicy omelette.

On all of our travels in India ( thanks to #1 daughter living there) , Mexico ( again #1 daughter ) Guatemala along with #1 daughter and family, Cuba, Turkey and Greece there seems to be a theme! Eggs! Eggs and more Eggs. They really are very versatile and I can hardly believe that I didn’t eat an egg until I was married and 24 years of age ! It was only then, sitting on our balcony in southern Germany, having breakfast that I dared to eat a boiled egg! Seriously how could I be a Cook and not eat eggs?

Eggs, in cakes, pies, puddings, soufflés,Ice Cream, omelettes, boiled, baked, scrambled eggs or poached, the list is endless!Dining out in Mexico City one soon learns that breakfast is definitely the meal to eat and one also soon learns that Mexican cuisine is NOT anything like TEXMEX. It is just very different and there are some superb restaurants some of which have Michelin stars.

Eating out for Breakfast is wonderful, a good choice of cafes, being able to eat outside, listen to mariachi bands, Desayunos, is Breakfast and the choice is great ranging from Huevos rancheros, which comes with a tortilla topped with refried beans, ranchero sauce (spicy red sauce) and fried eggs. Variation on a theme is Huevos Divorciados ( Divorced Eggs) ! Very simply, just like Huevos Rancheros, but one half is with the red sauce and the other with a green sauce.

The markets in Mexico are also very vibrant but so are the local restaurants. One we visited with friends and family after punting down a river south of Mexico City.! ARROYO, is an amazing place. It can seat over 2,200 diners and employs over a 1,000 staff and of course the Mariachi Bands!

So to make Mexican eggs, a simple and nourishing supper/dinner.

There are many variations but they start with tomatoes, eggs, onions, spice in the form of chiles.

• For 2 people
• One or two cans of good chopped tomatoes
• 2+ chopped cloves of garlic ( more if you Love Garlic)
• 1-2 medium white onions chopped
• A Chile or two, or some chili in preserved in oil ( all to taste) or some harissa.
• 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• Some chopped coriander
• 2 eggs per person
• Some oil for sautéing the onions and garlic

Heat the oil and sauté the onions and garlic. Do not let the garlic burn and do not let the onions brown, we want them white and soft. When ready add the tomatoes and the stock. Season according to taste and add the chopped coriander.Normally the eggs would be poached but fried or even boiled, would also work and add them to the sauce when ready to eat. Serve with some bread or better still some freshly fried tortilla chips. Some alternative additions would be some slices of avocado, or some mozzarella balls, some chopped chorizo or some grated Emmental cheese. All sorts of options !

The above is the largest ship in Cunard’s fleet of Ocean going liners, and is the Flagship, so I guess it is a Ship and not a boat! And is apparently the only active ocean liner still in service. To be sure it is not the largest cruise ship, but it has to be stressed that it is not a cruise ship, but a deluxe ship that does cruises! The ship will hold up to 2,600 passengers plus 1,290 crew.

We were fortunate to be in one of the better cabins ( it was huge plus a large balcony). Our little trip was all part of the ongoing celebrations of HIS birthday and it is not done yet! This was just a short trip of 4 nights aboard this iconic ship.

The Queens grill which was our dedicated restaurant can seat up to 130 passengers and is available for breakfast, lunch and dinner along with Afternoon Tea in the adjacent Grills lounge.

We ate well with a slightly changing daily menu, the food was excellent albeit not exciting. And having been on other trans Atlantic boats, I was very much underwhelmed by their bakery.

That being said, the ship is beautiful, with everything you need from shows ( we didn’t see) to a large casino , perfect for those on their mobility scooters ( not us, and we didn’t play) to a large Bridge/ Card room , to designer shops ( didn’t buy) and then the library, large and beautiful. The walk from our cabin ( sorry State room) took 5 minutes ! YES FIVE Minutes! As the ship is just short of 1,000 feet in length ! Oh and I forgot, there is a golf net which I tried out.

Onto food, breakfast was nice ( such a terrible word) absolutely nothing wrong with breakfast ( well the toast was rubbish, as was the coffee, catering for the USA market, methinks!) choice was fine, service was good, though looking at the photos, I think my poached egg was the best option!

Moving on, we ate one night Chateaubriand, which was excellent and the next Beef Wellington ( meat overload here?) and again excellent, but cooked in the traditional way, with a mushroom duxelles and the whole wrapped in a Crêpe to stop the puff pastry going soggy.

However, for Beef Wellington there is a new way and that is to wrap the meat and mushrooms in Pancetta or Serrano ham! What could be better and easier ( no need to make pancakes for starters!)

To serve about 8 people

• About 1.5 kilo beef fillet trimmed off
• +/-200 grams Parma or Serrano ham
• a knob or two of unsalted butter
• +/- 250 grams mushrooms, assorted if possible
• Small bunch parsley finely chopped
• +/- 3 minced cloves of garlic ( to taste)
• 3 finely chopped shallots
• +/-125 grams goose liver pâté ( optional)
• 1kilo puff pastry, ( room temperature) shop bought is fine and a beaten egg to glaze
• Salt and pepper to season

Season the beef all over with the salt and pepper. Melt a knob of butter in a sturdy frying pan and sear the beef on all sides.

Remove the beef and put to one side.

Add more butter to the pan and sauté the shallots and then the mushrooms, then the parsley and garlic. Chop all finely and leave to cool.

If using the pâté put onto a board or plate and mush it until soft and creamy .

Rollout the pastry on a floured surface to roughly the size of the beef ( needs to be wide enough to wrap the beef and long enough to tuck in the ends. Put the pastry onto a baking tray .Lay the ham slices on the pastry and spread the pâté on top of the ham, followed by the mushroom mixture. Brush the edges of the pastry with water, this acts as a sealing agent and wrap up the beef into a parcel. Trim excess pastry, make sure the ends are tucked under and sealed. use the excess pastry to decorate the top of the pastry case. Beat an egg and use it to brush all over the parcel, this is an egg glaze.

Heat your oven to 200C/180C fan or gas mark 6. When the oven has reached required temperature, place the baking sheet on the middle shelf and cook for about 35 minutes ( rare to medium) or up to an hour for medium to well. Remove from oven and leave to stand for 15 minutes before carving ( this is so that the juices are absorbed into the meat.

Serve with your favourite vegetables ( I would go for Pommes Aligot ( Posh Mashed)) and maybe a sauce, a gravy, or simply a jus!

We have been in Greece for several days, supposedly for golf ( along with 34 of our Besties…… do you think that is too many?) However, having never been to ATHENS , before, we thought a little detour might work!

Of course we saw the sites, but more than that, took a bus around the city, a hop/on/ off variety which worked well.

But let us start at the beginning. Our first stop was the Athens Central Market and surprisingly it is smack bang in the centre of town, just around the corner from our hotel. Open from early morning to early evening it is a maze of traders, meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, spices and more. I am always fascinated by local markets, they give one such an insight to local life. London’s markets, Smithfield (meat, is just about still in town) , Billingsgate (fish has moved eastwards and is going to move further out apparently, all prime real estate) Covent Garden, and no, not the Opera house, but the fruit, vegetable and flower market moved south of the river and Les Halles in the centre of Paris, is of course no longer in the centre.

In the Athens market, there was most meat products, including many not seen in London, goat, offal ( liver, brains, kidneys, sweetbreads and hearts) tripe, whole goats, goat heads, and sheep! Pigs trotters, and tongues and don’t forget all the odd bits of chicken! Not for the faint hearted! Onwards to the fish,with Athens being a city by the Mediterranean, there was no shortage of wonderful looking fish, including Octopus , shrimp, whitebait and swordfish. Moving outside it was the turn of Olives, dried figs, olive oil,and spices galore.

Moving on from the market we hunted for the Greek museum of Gastronomy, but never to be found, the building was abandoned, pity but perhaps it is only people like me who hunt down such odd ball sites.

The Acropolis and Parthenon are indeed a sight to behold, as is the Olympic stadium ( the one built in 2004 ) it is modelled on the original stadium at Olympia, so not like any other Olympic stadium, it is long with very sharp rounded ends! Must make running the 800 or 1500 metres interesting.

The most impressive of all ( for us at least) was the Archeological Museum. Lots of gold and lots of statues. A couple stuck in my mind. The bronze boy on a horse and the sea damaged statues found by Sponge fishermen 50 metres down!

Our other find, in Athens was a very local taverna. We found it almost by chance and on the first visit, we sat outside, ate copious amount of freshly cooked ( mostly fish) food. The wine was cheap and was very drinkable. We enjoyed it so much that we returned the following night. We were greeted with open arms and again, ate our fill,but, then, Himself decided to have dessert, but they only had the one ……. Baklava, which he enjoyed , but then the waiter brought along a Digestive, Greek style! No not Ouzo but MASTICKA! Never heard of it, never tasted it, never had any inkling of it! Smooth yes, but did we like it ? That is still up for debate but there is a bottle of it in my suitcase!

I have to admit that I’m not a connoisseur of Middle Eastern food, they all have their roots in the same culture, but of course many regional variations. I have a dear friend of Egyptian origin and I love going out to eat with her. She gabbles away to the waiters and we get glorious food. Here, however it was a menu of pictures and Google Translate that came to our rescue.

We had matchsticks of courgettes, in tempura and fried which came with a bowl of the most wonderful Tzatziki, which is basically yogurt with maybe dill or mint and garlic! We couldn’t get enough of it so order extra on the second evening!! Hummus , shrimp, sardines, octopus, mussels and eggplant dip, would we go again, we’ll tow consecutive nights did not disappoint, but Athens, has been done, so afraid not !

Taramasalata to the uninitiated is salted, dried roe of cod, carp, grey mullet, salmon along with mushed bread, outlive oil, lemon juice and garlic. Variations vary within the Middle East, whilst it should be made by hand using a mortar and pestle, which gives it a grainy texture, whereas, commercially made products tend to be very smooth. I have to say that out of the Middle Eastern Meze dishes, this is the one I like the least.

TZATZIKI on the other hand is the one I prefer, easily made and again with regional variations.

• 1 cucumber, grated and excess water squeezed out
• 500 grams approximately of good quality plain whole fat yogurt ( I make my own) do not use low fat, or any with any kind of flavouring
• 2 cloves garlic crushed ( or more if you MUST)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Good olive oil to drizzle over.
• Some dill finely chopped ( optional, as this is traditionally Turkish)

Simplicity itself, simply add the yogurt, to a bowl, stir well to mix, add the seasoning and garlic ( and dill if using), put into a serving dish and drizzle over the Olive Oil. Serve with bits of vegetables and pitta bread.

The next dish we tried was Burnt Aubergine with pomegranate seeds. Also delicious and is on my must make list ( which gets longer by the day).

• 3 large aubergines ( about 1 kilo)
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• Grated zest and juice of a lemon
• 2 tablespoons chopped Curley parsley and the same of fresh mint
• Seeds of half a pomegranate or if being really lazy buy them already done, (de-seeding a pomegranate can be a bit of a pain!)
• Salt and pepper to taste.

You can either grill the aubergines on the flames of a gas hob, or on a BBQ or under a grill on a baking tray. They need to be throughly cooked and the skins burnt.

When the burnt aubergines have cooled a little,, cut in half lengthwise and scoope out the flesh. Throw away the skin and leave the flesh in a sieve for half an hour to drain out some of the liquid.

Once drained place the flesh in a mixing bowl, mix in the garlic, lemon juice and zest the olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Leave at room temperature until ready for serving ( or if made ahead of time, refrigerate but remove and let it come to room temperature) add the herbs, and stir well! Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary!

Serve in a dish and top with the pomegranate seeds.

Weirdly we went to a cooking class last night as part of a charity that supports asylum seekers and refugees. They help them to learn how to teach and how to be a chef and to cook their own traditional cuisines and maybe help them gain employment. Our instructor for the night was Amro, a civil engineer , from Egypt. Although the class itself was a bit chaotic, it was great fun and considering that we were 8 cooks plus 6 helpers plus Amro, not surprisingly people did get in the way!However, in under 2 hours FIVE dishes were created and eaten ! Congratulations to Amro, on surviving his first teaching experience.

We/ He made

Salata Khadra, a traditional salad which is served at every meal including breakfast.

Aubergine Fattah is a classical Middle Eastern starter, vegetarian and beautiful ( Himself made most of it and I can see he will be making it on one of his cooking days!)

Egyptian Hawaashi, which is a classical dish originally from Alexandria. They are basically pitta bread stuffed with a spicy minced meat mixture, some cheese, flattened and shallow fried.

Egyptian Koshary, which Amro says is eaten everywhere, but is the most complicated but not difficult to make., sauces have to be made(3 of them) onions sliced and fried until crisp, Lentils, Rice and pasta to be cooked and combined. So you can see lots of components to this particular dish.

And finally the dessert, QATAIF, these are a kind of mini pancake stuffed with chopped pistachios, chopped walnuts, and ricotta, which are then fried and dipped into sugar water.

And here is a picture of our dinner !

In the UK, SKI is an acronym for “ Spend the Kids Inheritance!”

We have been trying hard to do this and as such have spent a week in Englands LAKE DISTRICT, labelled the wettest place in England! And believe you me it lived up to its reputation!

It has been a long time since we spent time vacationing in the UK and also a while since we spent time on vacation with the whole family. The last time was in Morocco and we were a family of 10 and now we are 13!

Himself had a significant birthday and trying to fit in the celebration, with Taylor Swift ( x2), major school exam results ( excellent) and the amazingly challenging CHILL SWIM, which to the uninitiated, is a mere 18 km swim from End to End (Guess where?)Lake Windermere! daughter thought it a good idea to enter this Chill Swim event and even persuaded a couple of mates to join her!

Therefore we all decamped to Windermere a lake-side town in Cumbria. We rented a house(s) built in 1671, large enough for us all to be together but not together when time and space was needed.

We spent the week celebrating the aforementioned birthday with many fun things organised by the big kids, we had dinner catered twice by Lucy ( Lucy’s on a plate), had two great BBQs beautifully cooked by “The Boys” ( even managing to shelter from the incessant downpour), Lunch out in a Lakeside restaurant, dinner out, twice, once at Lucy’s restaurant and once at a Michelin starred restaurant. So it would seem that the week was spent eating and drinking! And it was!

Orrest Head House, where we stayed, was perfect, a garden large enough to play Hide and Seek ( except it was WET, apparently a river runs under the house, not a good sign). However, having the two houses ( House and Cottage) meant we had ample room for hide and seek, for the 6 kids and oodles of space for the always in demand Treasure Hunt. Passing time away did not seem to be an issue. The young ones were dispatched to Beatrix Potter world , whilst the swimmers went swimming and the runners running. Walkers explored the neighbourhood including Orrest Head, where is the most amazing view of Lake Windermere!

Hiring a traditional boat gave us all a view of the route for the Saturday 18 km swim, and a plan was developed to enable us all to wave and cheer her on her way as well as to greet her arrival at the finish !Simple, take the Chain Link Ferry to the opposite side of the lake and install ourselves at the 6 km mark and then drive over the hills and though the woods to the Ambleside end of said Lake, which was indeed the finish mark.

Lucy’s on a plate catered twice for us. Indeed we ordered basically the same meal twice and actually it worked well, most of it was cold with a couple of dishes to pop in the oven. We needed to eat earlier than we would have done normally, with little ones to consider.

Finally, but not finally, he reached his birthday . Unfortunately, many had to leave after breakfast, school and work beckoned for big and small. So we had birthday cake for breakfast! I had made a Basque Cheesecake, the week before, frozen and transported, hidden to Windermere. Subsequently , defrosted in secret, a red fruit coulis made and candles inserted! But what a lot of candles! They almost melted before I had them lit! However, done it was, and Himself blew them out in one swoop! WOW!

Weirdly it would seem that restaurants in the Windermere area choose names for their dishes, which actually makes choosing somewhat more complicated than it should be. What on earth are Collywobbles? Or Cocka doodle Oink? Black Belly Way? King of Spain. Well, Cauliflower, Chicken burger, Pork Belly braised and pressed and Prawns with Chorizo? Well that had us fooled. #1 daughter and I both thought we had ordered Prawns, well we had but somehow or other we got a retro prawn cocktail in a Marie Rose sauce, Disappointed yes! Something I would never ever ever had ordered! But there you go, some you win and some you lose!

Finally Finally and Finally the last men standing ( just the three of us, swimmer, him and myself) ate at Gilpin. A Michelin starred restaurant somewhere in the back of Windermere. swimmer has not been drinking so she drove. Dinner was lovely, food innovative , including a rice pudding that somehow I need to recreate at home! Things were lacking though, but won’t bore you! Will we go back? Unlikely, it’s a long way from London !

And so as with everything, it all had to end.The weather decided to return to being dull, dreary and wet as we drove back down the M6 towards London. But, more is yet to come, Big kids have surprises in store , as do I and smaller big kids are taking Himself to an Escape room ( he might never come back !)

Here we are on the French Alps and am actually really shocked at the price of potatoes! I know we are on the Alps and transportation costs are higher, but having compared my local supermarket which I have to say is definitely not my favourite but it is part of the largest French chain, CARREFOUR. It now owns what was GB supermarket in Belgium as well. I have just checked and compared prices in Belgium, France and the UK, and despite everything the UK is by far the cheapest and this is buying from WAITROSE the upmarket store.

In France the cheapest was £1.55 a kilo, in Belgium £1.96 and in the UK £ 1.05 even buying Duchy ( King Charles organic) was only £1.30!

Given that much of the world depends on upon potatoes and Belgium and France are the best at French Fries ( Chips in UK English) I just had to wonder why? I actually do not have the answer ( Yet)!

Back to the Alps. Weather wise it has been very mixed. One day 37 C and the next much much cooler, still better than last year when it reached 41C.

We have several visitors this summer, including our 9 year old grandson who somehow managed to have an ice cream everyday, to Americans from Texas, who had hamburgers and Ice-cream, to In Laws who taught me a new ice lolly which only counts 99 calories.

Of course I make my own nearly all of the time, but the Ice Cream Mouse, ( Himself) isn’t nearly as active these days, but nonetheless he offered some to the in-laws, only to find, he had already eaten it all !

My latest rendition is Peanut butter Ice cream and is really simple to make.

• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar ( 4 ounces). ( I always use caster as it is finer) more if you have a really sweet tooth.
• 450 mls thick cream (2 US cups)
• 225 mls full fat milk ( 1 US cup)
• 1/3 cup smooth peanut butter and if you want some crunch, roast some peanuts or buy them salted or plain and chopped and add them towards the end.

• whisk the eggs together until light and fluffy, whisk in the sugar and peanut butter until blended and then pour in the cream and milk and whisk again until fully mixed.
• If you have an ice cream machine, then very simply follow the instructions otherwise pour into a container that has previously been placed into the freezer. Freezer for a couple of hours and give it a stir. Repeat until fairly stiff and then add the extra chopped nuts if desired.
• Summer time definitely means ice cream but also fruits, which also means fruit ice cream. Using the basic above ( omitting the peanut butter) it is possible to to have a smorgasbord of ice cream flavours.
• Bananas and Strawberries…… mashed strawberries mixed with mashed strawberries, taste before freezing to check on the sugar, you might need more! ….a mixture made in heaven.
• Mango, smush very ripe mango, ad the juice of half a lemon and purée it. Make the plain ice cream, freeze a bit and then add the fruit, taste for sweetness, stir well, it will need stirring a couple of times.
• Kiwi, what about Kiwi? If you love Kiwis then this is for you. Peel and purée 5 ripe kiwis, stir in a tablespoon of sugar, refrigerate whilst you make the vanilla base. When ready add the kiwi mixture and again freeze and stir.
• The freezing and stirring is only if you do not have an Ice Cream machine

I have in London and have had ever since moving back from the USA many times years ago an Ice Cream machine, with a built in compressor but here in France I have to use the freezing/ stirring method of making Ice Cream. I did however buy a cheap ice cream maker. ( this is where you freeze the container first of all, I found it a real pain, especially as when theoretically the ice cream was ready ( soft serve) it simply poured out all over the counter top! Soft Serve indeed!

First, it was the cats and then was the mould, and then it was the maggots!

Haven’t had any of these before, but this time round well young Sam he’s nine years old and he said one morning Nana Nana there is a cat in the kitchen! What I cried, what?

And yes, there was a cat in the kitchen, and Sam decided that the cat going meow was in fact saying hello! Apparently that is cats talk. However we got rid of the cat and then the bread in the bread bin which was maybe a day or two old had the most disgusting mould so that too had to go!

But then the next thing was maggots, normally Himself has a mixture of cereal, yoghurt and berries for breakfast but this day he decided to have some ripe camembert ( he loves smelly cheese, ripe Camembert, Limburg, Stinking Bishop, Epoisses , Reblochon and the like,) but suddenly our Guest said it’s moving and it was; it was heaving with squiggly, squiggly, white maggots!

This made me think about cheese after all many cheeses are made with mould of some kind, and there is one which comes with maggots! It comes from both Sardinian and Corsica, Casa Martu in Sardinia and Casgiu Merzu in Corsica. It actually means Rotten Cheese. It is made with sheep’s milk and the aging time is a mere 3 months. However it goes past the normal fermentation process by the introduction of the larvae of the Cheese fly! ( are you put off already ?) The Larvae are deliberately introduced to help break down the fat in the cheese and can become quite liquid with some of it seeping out. The larvae ( maggots) are translucent.

Nowadays, the cheese is considered to be unsafe for human consumption and is banned in the European Union for sale, but presumably is still made ( and eaten in private homes/ farms). Apparently, some people like the cheese but prefer to eat it without the maggots and are said to place the cheese in a sealed plastic bag, to starve the maggots of oxygen, and then the cheese is eaten ! Umm not for the faint hearted!

In case you haven’t guessed, we are in our usual summer retreat of the French Alps. Sounds a bit like royalty, leaving the city for the summer, but our French home is not that, but I have to say larger than the London one.

However, our French home is almost at the end of a narrow road, almost a track, actually it ends up being just that, a track. The top end of the street seems to have become builders paradise , chalets being built left, right and centre, but at our end, all is calm, most of the permanent residents have been here for at least a couple of generations and then there are a few new comers, like us.

This Sunday, was the day of the Festiplan, normally a yearly get together in May, but apparently July is the new date and we were duly invited. At noon sharp, it was Apero chez Martine, nibbles galore and then at one we all decamped to Babette’s Barn, what a Glory Hole it is, with STUFF stacked into every nook and cranny and beyond, and yet, it had been cleared and cleaned sufficiently for them to erect tables for 30, young and old were there, the youngest being about 10 and the oldest 80 +. It was Bonkers but in the nicest way, everyone brought along something, wine, water, salads, quiches bread, cold meats, cheeses, champagne and a birthday cake ( someone was 15) but not just one cake but two, and everyone was given slices of both. Jean-Claude played his accordion and Martine made the coffee. We left exhausted after 6 hours of French Bonhomie !

I have already mentioned Sam, our 9 year old grandson, he came to stay for a week and then as well friends from Texas. She has been over many times and is a big friend of Sam, but him is new to travelling and so it is all new to him. He fancied a steak sandwich for lunch ( after all he is from Texas) and assumed he had ordered one but it turned out to be basically a double Hamburg’s patty in half a banquette.

Consequently I’ve not been in the kitchen much for the last couple of weeks, but before we decamped, we ate at Côte, the slightly upmarket group of restaurants run by Richard Caring. Côte is an affordable small chain, theoretically specialising in Pseudo French food. I say pseudo as the last couple of times, it really has been just that. Poulet Breton, is a chicken dish cooked in a sauce with cream, cider, onions and Dijon mustard. The Côte version is a dried sad looking bit of chicken, which comes with optional Diane sauce. Ok a Diane sauce, is made with cream, but does not contain mustard, and the whole point of the Poulet Breton IS that it is cooked in the sauce! Shame on you Côte.

Poulet Breton is easy

• A jointed chicken or some thighs or drumsticks for 4 people
• Splash olive oil for frying along with 40 grams unsalted butter
• A white onion diced
• 250 mls dry cider/ white wine
• 100 mls crème fraiche or cream with a squirt of lemon juice
• 2-3 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Tablespoon flour
• Parsley to garnish
• Optional, a couple of carrots sliced and a couple of leeks sliced
• A splash of brandy ( optional)
• I also like to add mushrooms just because I like them!

• Method

Heat the oven to (160 fan) 170, or # 3 gas

Using an ovenproof casserole, pour in the olive oil and after seasoning the chicken pieces with salt and pepper, fry them gently until brown all over.

Add the butter and when melted baste the chicken. Remove from pan

Add the onion ( and leeks and carrots if using) and cook gently until soft but not coloured, stir in the flour to make. Roux and slowly add the cider/ wine, stirring well to prevent any lumps forming.

Add the crème fraiche and mustard and bring to the boil to thicken slightly.

Arrange the chicken in the pan, skin side up and cook uncovered for about 30 minutes until cooked throughly.

Garnish with parsley. Serve with potatoes, salad, French bread to mop up the sauce.

Sitting in a bus shelter, just north of Central London, in fact a side street which lies just behind one of the beautiful terraces of Regents Park. Actually one of the stops on the 88 bus is CHESTER GATE! But this street is a far cry from the hustle and bustle, just 2 stops south. I text TFL ( Transport for London) asking the for the schedule of bus 88. Um? 15 minutes!WHAT 15 minutes and there is only the 88. I am used to a plethora of buses rolling by, so I can take my pick, but today, I’m being lazy and wait for the bus! Just as well, I only want to go 2 stops, because that is where the bus decided was the end of its journey. Pity the lady with the shopping trolley, she had to wait a further 15 minutes ! Me I get on and off and risk my life crossing over the Marylebone Road to the next one!

Whilst waiting for the 88 on this very quiet London Street, none of the Nash terraces here, but post war modernist structures, all is quiet, but wait, someone is home as all I can smell is curry . Not the pungent smell from a dubious Indian takeaway, there were none here, but someone was cooking a Curry!

I put my thinking cap on and decided I too would make a curry, well maybe not a curry but something from the Indian sub continent. How about Cauliflower Schwarma? Or wait a Mo, had lunch with my lovely 7 year old grand daughter, she had Chicken Katsu, which is chicken with a mild kind of curry sauce, whilst I tried out the Bang Bang Cauliflower!

Consequently this Sunday, we had Hanger steak cooked on our new BBQ, with Cauliflower Schwarma, Bang Bang Cauliflower and Bang Bang Stem broccoli.

Bang Bang Chicken as it is called here in the UK, has long been a favourite of mine, since living in Houston Texas. It wasn’t called Bang Bang Chicken back then, maybe chicken salad with Peanut sauce, no idea, but we found it, in the Famous, Celebrity Haunt, The Iv, Bang Bang Chicken, can be as mild or as spicy as you like as long as you like peanuts! And therefore the same applies to my new favourite vegetables, Bang Bang Cauliflower and Broccoli.

We weren’t over keen on the Cauliflower Schwarma, but the Bang Bang Cauliflower and Broccoli were a hit. Simply par cook your vegetable of choice, that is steam /microwave/ a quick boil, as the vegetable needs to stay a bit crunchy. I use the Lekué microwave vegetable cooker to par cook mine as it takes a mere 2-3 mins. Put into a strainer or bowl and add some ice cubes to cool it down and to stop further cooking.

Making the sauce is very easy, I use crunchy peanut butter but either smooth or crunchy will do, but do make sure that it is without and additives, just pure Peanut butter.

.

• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons sweet chilli sauce or sriracha ( if you like spicier)
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 5 tablespoons of vegetable oil, ( I use olive)
• Also give a little more “Je ne sais pas quoi!” Umph to you and me a chopped up chilli.

Put the peanut butter into a bowl and stand it in a pan of very hot water, to soften it. ( DO NOT LET ANY WATER NEAR THE PEANUT BUTTER! It will seize up if you do)

Whisk in the chilli sauce and gradually the oils until it pours easily, you might need more or less depending on the type of peanut butter you use.

Put into a container with a lid until ready to use, but DO NOT REFRIGERATE !

Very simply use on cooked chicken or kebabs, with vegetables. Can top with some toasted sesame seeds.

Believe it or not, summer finally arrived , although I will qualify that by adding “ a sunny day does not a summer make!” Nonetheless, the weather has warmed up and golfers are finally wearing shorts, and swimmers are swimming….. outdoors!

As such, one does not want to spend hours in the kitchen. Across the road from us is a Gail’s Bakery, which opened its first bakery in 2005 and now has over 130 outlets mostly in London, and actually there are 2 within a stones throw from me. We visit often and maybe even for breakfast on a weekend. This is where I discovered their Overnight Oats. Overnight Oats is basically a modern twist on Bircher Muesli. Very simple, Oats soaked overnight ( or long enough to absorb water).

I make 2 or three days supply at a time. I also make my own yogurt, this isn’t necessary, but again is easy to make.

• To make a double portion
• 60 grams fine Scottish / Irish Oats
• Enough water to cover them
• One standard jar plain Greek full fat yogurt. I say full fat as lower fat yogurts have additives to thicken them.
• Put the Oats into a container or bowl and pour over enough hot or boiling water, just enough to cover them.
• Leave to stand and for them to cool down. At this point it could be covered and refrigerated overnight ( hence overnight Oats)

When cool, mix well with the yogurt, one jar should be enough to make a thickish sloppy mixture. I then put about 6 dessert spoons of mixture into a plastic pot, cover and refrigerate until the next morning.

In the morning I am ready to concoct my breakfast and it takes no time at all. I add, some defrosted red berries, a splash of maple syrup, a splodge of nutty peanut butter and a sprinkle of Super Seeds! And that is it ! Easy Peasy!

On another note, myself and friends were invited to the country ( anything outside of central London is considered country to me) to have lunch. Dessert was very much a summer one, Pavlova, with lemon cream and mixed berries.

Of course, one could be super lazy and buy the meringues and the Lemon Curd, but on the other hand without going the whole hog and doing everything from Scratch, it is easy to take a short cut or two.

Firstly, nothing quite like home made Lemon Curd, but made very quickly in the microwave.

• 4 large unwaxed lemons, finely grated rind and juiced
• 4 large eggs beaten well
• 8 Oz (225 grams caster sugar
• 4 Oz (100 grams) unsalted butter diced

Method

• Put the eggs, rind and juice into a heatproof bowl
• Mix well and add the sugar and butter. Cook on high for ONE minute intervals, whisking after each minute. Do this until thickened ( +/- 5 minutes).
• Remove from the microwave, and continue to whisk until more or less cool. Lemon Curd does thicken upon cooling.
• Sterilise a some jars and pour in the cooled lemon curd. Cover. Store in the refrigerator for up to3 weeks.

Microwave Meringues are much drier and crunch ie than oven cooked meringues, but they are incredibly easy and quick to make, especially if you want to make Eton Mess!

Ingredients and Method

• 150 grams sifted icing sugar
• 1egg white beaten until stiff
• Add the sugar to the beaten egg white and mix well until totally incorporated. Take a small amount and roll into a ball about the size of a golf ball.
• Put 3 balls onto a plate covered with rice paper, or onto a silicon mat.
• Microwave on High for 90 seconds. Watch them rise up, really amazing! Fun to do with kids.

To make the Pavlovas, simply whip up some double cream, add a couple of dessert spoons of lemon curd, put on top of the meringue and top with summer berries.

If you re English, you might already know about Eton Mess, but its origins might be a bit obscure. Apparently, it was created by the cooks at Eton College around 1893. Eton College being just outside of London, and where Princes William and Harry were educated along with several of our Prime ministers including Boris Johnson. Eton Mess is basically crushed meringues, whipped cream and summer berries.

Lancing college on the other hand ( West Sussex) have their own version, which is made with bananas , probably not as old as the Eton version, am not sure bananas were readily available available back then !