Let The Festivities Commence!

Oh hello!

It's been a while, I know! 2012 has whizzed by in a blur ... but recently I have started to want to blog about Plum Cottage again and the stuff that we get up to.  It's just finding a time when I am not at work, rushing around taking Miss Plum to ballet or various play dates, not stressing about the state of our flat (I would love to have a cleaner!) or asleep (usually in front of the TV at 9pm)! yes, my life is still as rock 'n' roll as ever!

So suddenly, December is upon us.  I had thought of a festive re-launch of my blog, but as it is now mid-December that is unlikely! ha ha! December is here ... and I don't feel very festive.

This is unusual for me.  Christmas cakes are usually baked in October and decorated at the beginning of December.  This year's are still sitting on my work top waiting for their marzipan.  I must get on with that.  I have normally started the Christmas weight gain by now having started truffle making and cupcake baking ... but (thankfully, for once!) this has been delayed!

I had lots of plans to get on with various crafts - a felt Christmas tree for Miss Plum, an Advent Scarf that I had seen on ravelry, a tutu for Miss Plum to wear to ballet, a sleeping bag for her favourite doll.  Most of these are still on my to do list! I must sit down and get on with them!!!

So here I find myself on a rainy Friday morning, recovering from the bug that has been doing it's rounds at nursery, sitting with a sleeping babe beside me on the sofa (I have exhausted her out with Christmas card decorating and biscuit dough preparation), watching Meet Me In St Louis (this, if anything will make me feel Christmassy I hope!).

We have decided, for the first time in a long time, to spend Christmas in London, rather than go to our parents (we alternate).  Miss Plum is 2.5 years old (can you believe it?) and we wanted her to have Christmas morning at home.  We are looking forward to it - and will be heading to my parents on Boxing Day and then up to Yorkshire to spend New Year with my inlaws.  But I think that I have been in denial about the whole thing as .... I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I AM GOING TO HAVE FOR MY CHRISTMAS DINNER!  So I am having a flick through my favourite cook books to decide on a nice veggie dinner ... anyway, here I come to the reason for my post.

My inlaws are rather partial to port and Stilton ... not separately, which would be nice (!) but Stilton with port in it (this is far too strong for my palate!) They discovered it while cruising and are often prepared to pay up to £30 for a tiny jar of it in Fortnum & Masons.  Crazy!  One year I made them some.  I think they liked it, although they may have been humouring me!  On a recent visit to Fortnum's, my mother-in-law glanced towards the Stilton ... but came to her senses and didn't buy any as she thought that she would be able to get it in Waitrose. (Waitrose did it for about a tenner last year, I think).  It turns out that Waitrose aren't doing it this year ...

I have found a recipe for potted cheese in my Betty's "A Year Of Family Recipes" cookbook

Ingredients:

250g hard cheese (such as Wenslydale, Stilton, Cheshire, Swaledale, Single Gloucester) - finely grated.

85g butter at room temperature

2-3 tablespoons of port

pinch of cayenne pepper

1.  Place the grated cheese in a large mixing bowl.  Add the butter and mix together to form a paste.

2.  When well amalgamated, work in the port and cayenne pepper.

3.  Transfer to one large pot or individual ramekins and place in the fridge to set. 

Oh I do like to be beside the seaside!

Well ... we finally made it to the campsite!!

After my in-laws fixed the problem with the caravan they towed us up to a lovely, quiet camp site in Hunmanby, East Yorkshire ....

Here is our little home for the week ....

We had day trips to our favourite coastal places: Bridlington, Filey and Scarborough ... the weather was beautiful - perfect for coastal walks.

Of course, a trip to Scarborough means a trip to the wonderful Harbour Bar ... and Knickerbocker Glories!! Mmm mmmm!!

We also spent time snoozing, knitting, drinking tea and eating yummy tea loaf from Betty's Cafe in York!

Here we are on the beach in Filey! I'm the short dumpy one! Ha Ha Ha

What a shame that we had to come back to London and go back to work!

Thank you for all your lovely comments while I have been away ... don't forget that there is still time to enter my 200th post giveaway!

I have been catching up with all your wonderful blogs, and have even been given a blog award by Deborah at Fondant Kiss!! I will blog about that later in the week!

Victoria Plum is ...

... still stuck in Hull. We should hopefully find out later on if the problem with the tow bar on my inlaws car can be rectified ... if not we will be heading back to Plum House tomorrow and to work on Wednesday .... boo!

Today we are heading to York for a trip to my favourite place, Betty's Cafe, for lovely tea and cakes.

Rather than moping around today - I will be counting my blessings that we were not hoping to fly anywhere ....

Autumn days ....

It's been a while since I last blogged ... not sure where the time has gone! I think it might have something to do with my (rather late) discovery of the Twilight Saga ... I have now read the three books which are out in paperback (and will see if I can restrain myself for a while longer and wait for Breaking Dawn to be released in paperback!). I even bought the DVD last week! For some reason these books and film had passed me by, but I picked up a copy of Twilight while walking in Guildford and am hooked! I am looking forward to the release of the second film in November!

This posting will be a bit of a catch up post! Here goes ....

I finally got to see the latest Harry Potter film! I know that it has had mixed reviews, but I thought it was fab!

Last night we had a new arrival! Yes ... finally, welcome to Plum Cottage Pansy and Twister - our lovely little kittens!!

Pretty little Pansy playing with my apron!

Gorgeous Twister!

We had a trip up North to visit the inlaws ... and watch the start of the round the world clipper race, a fly past by the red arrows ... of course a visit to Betty's in York! My favourite place ... we stocked up on tea loaf, parkin and a fat rascal!! YUM!

Mr Plum took some fab pics ...

I have also been busy harvesting my vegetables .... golden sunrise tomatoes and scrummy red peppers ...

More tomatoes and a green pepper ...

As promised ... here is the picture of my yummy coffee cake!! Mmmmm mmmm tasty!! You can never have enough buttercream!!

I haven't forgotten my giveaway! Sorry for being so behind with things. I will draw a name out of a cake tin tomorrow!

Blackberry Jam

Last weekend, me and Mr Plum scoured the hedgerows of Plumton-on-Stour for blackberries and sloes .... there was an abundance of fruit and we came away with 3kgs of berries and 2 kgs of sloes! The sloes are in the freezer (traditionally, you shouldn't pick the sloes until after the 'first frost' - freezing them is a bit of a cheat!) - I will probably defrost them tomorrow and get the sloe gin on the go.  Anyway, back to jam!

I have never made jam before - so am quite excited! I am using a recipe in my trusted Betty's cookbook - usual equal amounts of fruit and sugar.  I have also stocked up with jars from Ikea - not sure how much jam I will make!  In my head it will be enough to stock a farm shop and I will be able to give up work and live off the proceeds ... 

Next on the list of things to do is making green tomato chutney .... 

Limoncello - part 1

In preparation for the festive season and pressies for family and friends, the Plum Brewery started off their first batch of Limoncello!

I got the recipe from "A Year of Family Recipes" by Lesley Wild and published by the Betty's Cookery School.  As with my Sloe Gin - this takes time and attention.  I have just completed part one of the recipe, and am writing this while I wait for the kettle to boil.  I am just about to take afternoon tea out into the garden for Mr Plum who has just fixed my shed!

Ingredients (makes 1.5 litres)

8 organic unwaxed lemons (or whatever you can get at the market ... I only got 7, so will be adding an extra one later on!)

750ml 80% proof vodka (the vodka I have is only 37.5% - so not sure whether it will work!)

625ml water

500g caster sugar

Method for part 1:

1.  Carefully pare the peel from the lemons with a sharp knife, ensuring the white pith is left behind.

2.  Pour the vodka into a large glass jar, then add the peeled lemon zest.  Cover with the lid and leave in a cool dark place for 40 days.  Gradually the vodka will absorb the flavour and rich colour of the lemon zest.  At the end of this stage the zest will be pale and quite brittle - this is a sign that you can progress to the next stage.

Today I am mostly drinking ...

Yu Luo White Tea 

This exquisite white tea comes from the Hunan province in China.

Grown at an altitude of 4,500 feet, the tea bush ‘wakes’ after the winter in April and produces delicate white buds, which often have a white down on them. They are picked by hand and sun-dried so that fermentation cannot take place.

Very little white tea is produced, as this process requires particular care, increasing its rarity making it highly sought after by tea buyers all over the world.

It has a delicate flavour, which is best drunk without milk.

Bettys Cafe Tea Rooms, York

Mr Plum and I recently spent 5 days in Yorkshire, house and Nanna sitting, while the in-laws were on holiday in Devon.

There are certain things that we must do while up North, these include:

1.  Visiting relatives

2.  Visiting friends

3.  Go to York and visit Bettys!!!!

York is a beautiful city - full of lovely little streets and quaint shops.  I lived there for 18 months (1999-2001) and have done lots of the tourist stuff (Jorvik, Castle Museum, the York Dungeon, Shambles etc!) .... 

Whenever we get to go back to York now, we head straight for Bettys Tea Shop! This is the most amazing place - and we never grow tired of a piece of tea loaf, stem ginger cake, pikelets, pot of tea ... 

We had found out that by the Ladies there is a mirror. During the Second World War, Canadian Airmen who were stationed outside York would visit Bettys Bar regularly - so regular in fact, that when the MOD wrote to Bettys threatening to requisition the building for the war effort - Bettys wrote back and said that there was no way the MOD could requisition the building as they were currently serving 20,000 meals a week - mostly to the airmen!  Anyway, on this mirror - the airmen have all signed their names ... a cursory glance at the mirror, and you would think that it was just graffiti ... until you look at the dates on the glass (1941).  The most poignant thing about this is that Mr Plum's Nanna was in the Land Army and based outside York ... she used to go to dances at Bettys with her Canadian Airman ......

I would recommend a visit to Bettys - don't be put off by the long queue ... it is well worth the wait! Have a look at the mirror - it is downstairs to the right of the ladies toilet!