Friday Find

Autumn brings many treats and here in the UK one of them is the return of 'The Great British Bake off.' The generally warm and fluffy bake-off show has it’s moments of “drama”, for a couple of examples just type Custard-gate and bin-gate into google (or your search engine of choice reader). In the words of current contestant Martha: “I never thought I’d care about it to the point where I’d cry over an éclair” For Today’s Friday Find then I’m pleased to share with you this fun Bake-off themed parody song:

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Altogether now... Ready, steady, Bake

The weather outside is frightful so time for something delightful…on my plate at least. Seriously the last couple of days have been so cold. Ok, Ok yes the crisp blue skies like the one this morning have been beautiful reader and I know it’s still winter (and a mild one compared to last year or the problems recently in America) so I don’t want to whinge but I am looking forward to spring.
In the meantime then comfort food and what better than the humble pie? Well I am northern (occasionally it’s good to embrace the stereotype). Plus I have been looking for an excuse to bust out the winner of my most adorable Christmas present this year- My very own ceramic pie bird, Mine is very similar to this one from Amazon:

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My grandma used to own a couple of beautifully crafted bird pie funnels and it conjures up all sorts of nostalgic memories of being allowed to help in the kitchen and of happy family Sunday meals at my grandparents house.
Hmm just have to decide on a filling... What about you reader? What's your favourite pie filling? Are you a savoury fan or do you prefer a sweet treat
Now my little buddy and I are off to bake.

The Art of Coffee

It wouldn’t take a genius to work out that I’m a gal who likes a brew, whilst tea is most often my beverage of choice, I am partial to the odd coffee. Yesterday a friend texted me about a previous conversation we’d had discussing Japanese “kawaii” characters. I know that sounds like a tangent but stick with me reader, as I sat watching the milk settle in my coffee earlier today and thinking about the shapes it settled in I realised there was probably heaps of Kawaii milk foam art. A quick search confirmed it so I thought I’d share with you a few of my favourites:

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Well, time to pop on the virtual kettle again. What will it be reader, tea or coffee? Will you use a mug or will only a cup and saucer do? Does your coffee have to be a skinny soya decaf cappuccino with an extra shot from only fairtrade beans or will instant do?

A few weeks ago I made Cadbury Crème egg Brownies based on a recipe by my ace friend Marc, in turn inspired by a recipe from French pastry chef extraordinaire Eric Lanlard. I didn’t try them myself as I made them for a coffee morning during lent but they went down very well with everyone who tried them so I thought I’d share Marc’s recipe:

Source: photo my own

Ingredients
 185g Unsalted Butter
185g Dark Chocolate
85g Plain Flour
40g Cocoa Powder
3 Large Eggs
275g Golden Caster Sugar
6 Cadbury Creme Eggs
[I also added a couple of tsp of Vanilla essence]

Method
 1) Pre heat over to 160 degrees.
2) Melt the butter & dark chocolate together.
3) Break 3 large eggs into a large bowl and add 275g of golden caster sugar. Whisk the eggs and sugar until they look thick and creamy.
4) Gently fold the cooled chocolate mix over the egg & sugar mixture.
5) Add the flour and cocoa to the mix.
6) Pour the mixture into a baking tray and cook for 15 minutes.
7) Halve the Cadbury Crème Eggs.
8) After 15 minutes remove from the oven and gently press the crème egg halves into the mixture, spacing them evenly apart.
9) Place back in the oven for another 10 minutes.
10) Leave to cool before cutting into squares.

Friday Finds

Don't know what the weather is like where you are reader but here in the uk winter has arrived- Jack Frost is definately nipping at my nose and/or my toes (or any other extremities you care to substitute). During my adventures over on Tumblr I recently came across this tutorial for making Piñata cookies. The perfect colourful stripey treat to brighten even the greyest of wintry days. Best of all when you break open or bite into these cookies the M&Ms come spilling out just like a real Piñata

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Thoughtful Tuesday

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second – rate version of somebody else.
- Judy Garland

A few years ago I spent some time living in Japan. Like many gaijin before me I fell in love with the culture and left with a few quirky habits. One such wonderful discovery was Japanese cuisine.There is an old Japanese saying that ‘You eat with your eyes’. The idea that food should be just as beautiful to look at as it is to taste. One such example of this is the Obento. I have often been amazed by the effort and creativity put into preparing elaborate bento boxes. I know that the traditional Obento is often negatively associated with ideological and gendered meanings but I love the concept of a healthy, homemade (or at least mostly homemade) meal that is packed into a compact, portable box so that it appears delicious and appetizing several hours later.

Now I confess reader, that despite best intentions, in my day to day life this is something that often gets overlooked due to time constraints or laziness. Today I was feeling a bit nostalgic and as I had a bit of time on my hands decided to inject a bit of art into my lunch…

My humble homage-

Firstly sandwich Nb although not pictured here I did eat the rest of the packet of crisps


followed by Fruit and finished up with this cute little fellow who was a present from a lovely friend