Although our English summer always comes with a nasty price-tag, one demanding the patience for silly rain and general grey and the necessary sad goodbyes and partings, the brighter side of things must certainly be acknowledged. Summer = travelling. And what kind of travelling is best but food travelling?

Before I get on to the food-traipsing-about bit, however, might I thank Cannelle et Vanille for a wonderful yoghurt panna cotta recipe? I followed her recipe (found in the link shown), including the strawberry mousse but was a little too lazy to carry on with the strawberry gelee. This was lush, especially the strawberry mousse. Tasted absolutely delicious and so creamy! I reckon my panna cotta could have been a little less gelatiny but it was a hit with the special someone (and a good mate of mine). I took the licked glass sides and spoons to be a good sign. My home-prepared dinner date was a success; well, fairly. Strawberries are my feel-good fruit and on a typical summer day, cold strawberries topped with honeyed yoghurt is something I love. Combine the two in this recipe and I couldn’t think of a more suitable summer pudding – sweet, pretty, refreshing and uncomplicated. Threw on a few pink pearl dragees for luck (and yes, a touch of elegance to a student-prepared dessert) and voila!

As the weeks went by, I found myself re-entering the baking zone after a month of exam-induced unhealthy eating and consumption of convenient foods. I was in the zone! Baked a lemon poppy seed cake for Steph in Shrewsbury, her 21st birthday sponge-cake at a bbq in Fleet and then a chocolate torte with brandy cream in Kent (did not take any pictures of this but will soon recreate this pudding as it was too good to chuck the recipe out). I couldn’t be happier. I may have lost a bit of the baking touch from being idle in the kitchen but I’m quite sure it’ll all come back to me very soon. It’s like riding a bike – not that I can ride a bike, unfortunately! But I’m just saying…so don’t judge me.

When the end of June came and went, I’d lost so much weight from lugging huge suitcases and tea boxes about, painting walls and bedrooms, climbing up and down to paint ceilings and skirtings or wipe down hard-to-reach surfaces, I could see no better way to treat myself than to eat all the sweeties I desired whenever and wherever the urge sprung up. First stop in my travels was Shrewsbury – the birth place of Darwin but more importantly, a very dear friend of mine – Steph who was recently our newbie-21. Thanks to her food enthusiast of a mum, we had a road trip to Much Wenlock, Church Stretton and a little farm shop on the way home. 

I know few who do not love lemon curd, or as Steph’s mum calls it, lemon cheese. Sabrina’s Cottage Kitchen lemon curd was star quality. We found this little stand of jams, preserves, fruit & nut butters and curds in the guild-house of Much Wenlock. Everything was prettily packaged the traditional way and I admit I got very carried away with the tablewater crackers and jam testers on the side. Couldn’t help ooh-ing and aaah-ing at everything because it isn’t an every day thing to find homemade jams and preserves as pretty and tasty as these in Birmingham city. It was unfortunate I had little luggage space or I would have bought quite a few jars of their lovely product. We did, however, leave with a humble jar of lemon curd which we had nearly every day for the rest of my stay with fruit, on toast, on lemon poppy seed – every available opportunity to have it! I realize I have yet to talk about why this lemon curd is so good. It’s just curd isn’t it? Yes and no. I love my M&S lemon curd but this topped it. Using a recipe that uses no water, this baby uses only eggs, unsalted butter, white caster sugar and lemons! Simple, uncomplicated and so good (this is totally my motto in life). The recipe was leaked out to us, very kindly. But if I tell you it, I’d have to kill you because this simple curd recipe isn’t just a curd recipe. It’s a recipe for a curd that’s so lemony and so creamy, it gives you a party in your mouth every taste. Unfortunately, the lack of preservatives means this must be consumed in a few days. Really now, it’s so good it won’t last more than 3 days max in all honesty. I can guarantee that.

With the taste of lemons still lingering on my tastebuds, we were ready for a coffee and some heartily good homemade cake. So where to in Much Wenlock for none of that mass-produced coffee shop sweets but the real homemade stuff with real butter? In the cosy basement of the sweetest gift shop, Rainbow’s End, I was taken to this little gem providing some of the moistest and most tasty cakes I’ve had – retreat Coffee Shop. And what a name! Going to the Rainbow’s End where I find not the leprechaun’s secret stash of gold but a little retreat serving up coffees, drinks and little sweets. What a treasure of a find and a great place to put your feet up for a bit before wandering through Much Wenlock’s array of quirky, antique and lifestyle shops. Want cake?

Have cake! The St. Clementine cake (if you love orange and lemon) is my no.1 and the Carrot Cake is quite lush too. The icing on both is to die for! If you want something less sweet, the English scones available are lovely too. They are served with butter and strawberry jam. 

The rest of the day was spent lazying about in Steph’s garden, checking out the blackcurrant and gooseberry bush, and designing a cherry-picking plan for the rest of the week. By the end of the week, we’d picked loads of the reddest, fattest cherries before the birds got to them and a little box of blackcurrants. Joy! The next day, Steph took me into Shrewsbury town. I thoroughly adored all the Tudor houses, the quaint backstreet shops, giftstores, chocolatiers and traditional sweet shops. There was just something quite fairytale-like about the whole experience. Walking on cobblestone through little streets, turning a little crooked corner to find a small giftshop selling a collection of handmade trinkets, odd boy paraphernalia, indie designer dresses, etc. I loved it! Every corner was something fascinating, something to see and wonder about.

At lunchtime, we popped into The Cornhouse Restaurant and Wine Bar which was much raved about by Steph’s mum and coincidentally where Steph’s aunt and partner had first met. I had high expectations of this restaurant and I wasn’t disappointed at all. I ordered the Honey Roasted Ham with free range eggs, homemade chutney, chips and salad main. The chutney was probably one of the best I’ve tasted. The chef was pretty generous with the ham and the free range eggs were fried but without the brown crispy sides which is just the way I like it. With fried eggs, I hate it when the sides of the eggs start to crisp up and the whole egg is just an oily, greasy mess. Mine were perfect with the egg yolk about halfway cooked, so it was cooked on the outer most ring of the yolk and then gooey in the middle. Aaah. I hate to sound utterly silly but I tend to judge a restaurant (the ones that serve chips) by their chips. Good restaurants make the chips themselves and if they’re served chunky, are real solid chunks that are properly cooked. Crisp and golden brown on the outside but fluffy inside. These chips were just that. Very golden brown which I believe was due to a special seasoning that wasn’t overpowering at all. Even doused with vinegar and salt, they were quite perfect. Steph ordered a burger which came with chips and a salad as well. A fat chunky burger with lots of herbs inside. Sitting across the table, I couldn’t help sneaking looks at that glorious burger of hers. Really good food is all I can say. Not poncy and not overly-priced. Just good food made with fresh, top-quality ingredients and served with a personal touch and warm, friendly service. The interior is well-decorated with warm lighting so you sorta feel like you’ve come home for a relaxing meal. Comfy chairs, smooth dark wooden tables, the whole shebang. Lovely! If you decide to check out The Cornhouse ( click the link for their website) or here’s where you can find it:

59a Wyle Cop
Shrewsbury
SY1 1XY
Tel: 01743 231 991

24-26 George Street
Oxford
OX1 2AE
Tel: 01865 83 83 83

I was sad to leave Shrewsbury for another bit of England but am delighted to say I visited Jamie’s Italian in Oxford! The reason I was in Oxford was because I was visiting a close friend of mine, Hansey, who’d recently returned to England from Marseille. And we were just meeting up before jetting off to gay Paris the morning after. Talk about over-scheduling my holiday! The Oxford restaurant, the first of Jamie’s casual dining chain, is situated right in the heart of Oxford amongst a cosmopolitan offering of other very lovely restaurants. Once in the restaurant, you’re overwhelmed with the smell of gorgeous food, of people with happy faces bonding over antipasti and a glass of wine, busy waiting staff expertly maneuvering their way between tables and chairs with plates of steaming pasta, risotto or some other luxurious dish. I think I was sold the moment I stepped through the doors, over the threshold into Jamie’s world of food.

We ordered a few starters: a little box of various breads and breadsticks, a plate of gia-normous fresh olives on ice and seasoned fried chickpeas. The verdict? All good. I wanted more! My main was (I do not remember the exact name of the dish) but stuffed pork skewers served with a caramelized lemon and a salsa dip. I paired the main with a side of seasoned vegetables which tasted like it’d been curried but was so lovely, it sort of melted in your mouth. The pork skewers were delicious but I knew I should have scrutinized the menu a little bit more for the sake of blogging the dish as I now cannot recall what other ingredients went into the stuffed skewer. All I know is that it was moist, it was tasty, it was lush with the caramelized lemon! The only beef I had with it was probably that the food had gotten a little cold by the time it’d been served. 

Throughout the whole dinner, the conversation was flowing as well as the food was rapidly being consumed. The wine was good, the ambience was great and totally suited for family meals or casual gatherings between friends. Although the waitress could have been a little friendlier and less stressed out, my ice cream pudding could have been a lot less melted, the whole evening was lovely and I’d still be eager to mark a dinner date in my diary to return to Jamie’s.

From Oxford we jet-setted to Paris and boy was I excited about having croissants, brioche, crepes, macarons, tarte au citron and loads more! One of the mornings in our week-long stay, we zombied (this is us, caffeine-less and breakfast-less braving the morning metro crowd) it all the way on the metro to Montmarte, getting off at Abbesses station for a 2-3min walk to the highly-recommended café/boulangerie Coquelicot which is poppy in French; hence, the poppy red theme of the café. Absolutely loved this little place. It’s quite crammed in there and really hard to move about especially if you’re a tourist with ridiculously big bags stuffed with maps, cameras, camera equipment, mineral water, yada yada. But the waiting staff in there are friendly despite the early morning start. The ladies behind the counter zip about at lightning speed, slipping freshly baked baguettes, croissants, sugar rolls, madeleines, etc. into brown paper bags. Don’t get too carried away staring at this morning hustle-bustle though. Find yourself a seat quick, whether it’s outside facing the street or inside, slotted about 2 inches away from a stranger – it’s fine! The scrambled eggs are good, the orange juice is freshly squeezed, the brioche comes in a little bread basket warm and so soft, tearing it apart is like tearing up warm cotton candy. Best of all, they serve morning coffee the traditional French way – in bowls!

Yes-a-roonie. Un bol de café noir, s’il vous plait! 

That’s all I need to say. No more typing, or trying to pimp this place out. It’s GOOOD. Go find Coquelicot:

24 rue des Abbesses
Paris 18e
Tel: 01 46 06 18 77

Another special place we went to in Paris was Le Beouf sur le Toit, a place recommended to me for great seafood: oysters, mussells, lobster, the works. We went, we ate, we conquered, and had a mammoth amount of pudding. That, all on top of a bottle of wine between Hansey and I. That explains why there weren’t any pictures. Woops. My bad!! Nevertheless, we ate Paris through and through. I did have a small moment of food poisoning but that’s beside the point.

So leaving Paris was another moment of goodbye for me. Saying goodbye to friends, going separate paths, planning the next reunion. It was sad. But I’m excited about doing my Masters in London next year and the food opportunities in London! Anyway, before I start gushing about that and before I end this ridiculously long entry, would like to tell everyone about the little Crooked House of Windsor teahouse. Unfortunately, the parents and I weren’t hungry enough to have their traditional selections of teacakes but we did sample their coffees and teas which were delightful. Dad ordered a chocolate cappuccino of some sort – he was going through a phase of having chocolate in his usually black coffee after travelling to Switzerland and Mum had a rose-infused black tea which smelt divine. I ordered a black coffee which I believe was of an Indonesian roast that smelt like chocolate but tasted quite smooth and intense. I would return at some point to taste their teacakes and scones but I am proud to say I left happy and caffeined-up. 

Sainsbury’s has recently launched an ‘Eat Britain’ campaign and I’m excited about this campaign to eat locally produced foods and so forth. I don’t think I have done exactly that by traipsing about the country and then to Paris but I’m glad something like that has been launched. Hope it goes well and if you guys have anything to say about it, drop me a comment!

Diva shall now attempt to unpack and sort out her clothes and all. Yikes.

This is the long-awaited pudding which according to the opinion of many has beaten Alex’s bread & butter pudding (which he made last night for dinner, yea you bet) hands down. Made this today to pair with a meal for Sam & I (which I will post about tomorrow because I’m too knackered now). Was really tired from shopping in town after my paper but there’s nothing like making pudding to calm the nerves and relax from a hard day at work, etc.

According to Nigella, a grunt is a different take on the cobbler which is an American take on the crumble. A cobbler has either a biscuit-y or cakey texture. A grunt has instead a scone-like texture and because of the double cream it uses, it’s absolutely gorgeous, creamy and warming. Think warm scones on warm sugared rhubarb with a healthy serving of lovely heavy cream. There! That’s it.

The sultanas are a great add as well and add a little more sweetness to the tartness of the rhubarb. I do not recommend going any more than 200g of sugar as you want to keep the general flavour of the fruit and not some intensely sweet cooked fruit.

This little doodle was done in the library during our 7hour revision session. Indeed Hans and I were reaching near breaking point and so a little entertainment break was needed.

To all who have wished me luck for my exams – thank you! It went well. One left to go before party time.

To sum this up, the meal and pudding was lovely and a great way to unwind. Great way to start the weekend and recuperate before revision for the last paper.

On insistence of Sam, here’s a little quote that he’d love to see on here…

Sam, rubbing his furry belly, says: “Fantastic!”

Rhubarb Sultana Grunt
Ingredients

For the filling:
650g rhubarb, cut into 2-3cm pieces
200g caster sugar
1/4 cup sultanas
50g salted butter, cut into small pieces

For the topping:
100g plain flour
50g whole wheat flour
3 tbs caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
250ml double cream, whipped

Preheat oven to 190d Celsius.
Spread out the fruit and sultana over the bottom of the overproof dish and sprinkle the sugar all over. Drop the butter pieces over the fruit.
For the topping, sift flours, sugar and salt into a mixing bowl. Make sure the double cream is whipped till just before it is too stiff. Gently stir in the cream into the flour mixture until it forms a sticky dough. Spread the mixture over the fruit and cover the top in an even layer.
Bake for 45min or until the fruit is bubbling and the top is golden.

Serve with the best vanilla ice cream you’ve got.

Think I made fish cakes? Or tiny burgers? Wrong again.

Never heard of Welsh Cakes? Well, if you’re not Welsh, you can still find out more about this teatime delicacy here. Originally cooked over a hot stone or bakestone over a fire instead of baked, they were a good alternative to bread (or when there was a shortage of bread). Not a surprise why it would have been labelled a poor man’s food. The welsh cake is similar to a scone and made pretty much the same way – with your hands. It is just as dense but more cake-like in texture and less crumbly. They are usually not eaten with anything else other than a bit of sugar and butter, warm or as it is, with a comforting cup of tea. What makes it so good is its unique flavour from the spices, rich butter and raisins in it.

It is so easy and quick to make this, although a note beforehand: you’ll have to get your hands dirty and greasy to make these lovely cakes. After they are made, you can wrap them up in a sandwich bag and keep them for a teatime snack whenever or breakfast the next day. The flavours will just keep getting better and stronger the next day.

Welsh cakes are usually quite light in colour. At first I thought I’d burnt mine but I think the dark brown colour of my cakes occurred mainly because I’d used dark brown sugar instead of caster. When you don’t have the right ingredients around, either go out and get some or find a suitable substitute! Don’t give up before the game’s over, is what I say. After these cakes are cooked, roll them about in caster sugar for extreme prettiness and subtle crunch as you bite into them. If you’re on a tight budget like me or am just very unprepared, leaving them as it is still works beautifully.

I’d been meaning to give this recipe a try for ages but had never bothered to get down to it. Very pleased I made them because they’re just so good. This really is about as close to one of the yummiest quick-fixes I’ve ever made. Bless Nigella for that! Recipe has been taken from Nigella’s How To Be A Domestic Goddess but I’ve halved it.

Welsh Cakes

Ingredients

250g cup self-raising flour
125g cold unsalted butter, diced
100g sultanas
1/4 tsp ground allspice
touch of cinnamon
75g caster sugar
1 egg, beaten

Right. To get started – sift your flour into a bowl. Add the cubed butter. Wash your hands, dry them. Plunge ‘em next into the bowl and start rubbing the butter into the flour. Raise your hands in an upward-downward motion as you do this to get some air into it. This will finally end up with a nice, light, crumbly mixture. Try not to leave any large pieces of butter because you want to really get it all into the flour to flavour it and get it altogether.
Next, add the spices in. You don’t usually need to add any cinnamon but I think it works beautifully with allspice. 3 good shakes is enough I reckon. Don’t forget the allspice. It’s really what makes welsh cakes welsh cakes. The sugar and sultanas goes in as well. Add the egg to make a soft but not sticky dough. Form a dough ball then press into a disc. If it’s a little too sticky, flour it a tiny bit. Cover with clingfilm and leave for a minimum of 20 minutes.

Put it in the fridge for a minimum of 20min. When the dough is easier to handle, flour your work surface. Get the dough out and flatten it to about 1 1/2cm thick. These cakes will rise slightly as they cook on the pan. Either using a cookie cutter or a round class, cut out the cakes. Preheat a frying pan – unoiled.
When it’s hot enough, place cakes gently onto pan and let cook about 3min each side. Careful not to let them get too brown and burnt or it’ll just ruin the flavours.

Remove from pan, roll about in caster sugar. Serve warm with butter.

First and foremost – Happy Easter Sunday everyone!

Woke up in clean sheets under a nice-smelling duvet this morning. It definitely made my Easter morning great. Nothing quite like fresh sheets to put you in a festive mood right from the moment you wake up. To align myself with this start-the-day-right motto, I decided to have a cooked breakfast rather than the usual muesli and cold milk (which I honestly think is amazing) and a cup of tea. Savoury muffins are a good way to start if you’re looking for something like an English breakfast but aren’t too keen on fussing about with all the ingredients, having a large breakfast, greasing it up first thing in the morning, etc. The best thing is muffins are quite the independent lot and don’t need much attention or work on. You hardly ever need to mix them up completely because they continue to cook and mix about in their little cups/muffin trays in the oven. Overmixing causes them to go tough and rubbery in texture. The worst case scenario: rock buns (and I don’t mean those lovely scone-like pastries, but literally a rock creation). Muffins are the easy-to-handle, matter-of-fact, country-bumpkin type (no offense intended) cousin of the cupcake and despite my great infatuation for the latter, muffins were my first attempt at baking. I remember singing the Muffin Man song as I went about mixing the batter too. See, they’re so easy you can multi-task to it too. Awww. Well, if you’re just starting out in the kitchen, I reckon muffins are definitely the first thing you should try.

“Muffin…a term connected with moufflet, an old French word applied to bread, meaning soft….The word muffin first appeared in print in the early 18th century, and recipes began to be published in the middle of the 18th century. There has always been some confusion between muffins, crumpets, and pikelets, both in recipes and in name. ‘Muffin’ usually meant a breadlike product (sometimes simply made from whatever bread dough was available), as opposed to the more pancake-like crumpets…Muffins were most popular during the 19th century, when muffin men traversed the town streets at teatime, ringing their bells. In the 1840s the muffin-man’s bell was prohibited by Act of Parliament because many people objected to it, but the prohibition was ineffective…”
—Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press:Oxford] 1999(p. 517)

Interesting trivia: American muffins are completely different to what we would know as the English muffin. The term ‘muffin’ only makes sense now because muffins (as we know them now) were introduced in England in the 19th century, promoted by large companies like Spacey’s and Britain’s own Cadbury’s . Muffins in England are those flat disc-like white, fluffy breads – very much similar to a crumpet with the bubbly bits in the middle instead of on the surface facing up. English muffins are eaten split into two, toasted and buttered. A great way to have them is Eggs Benedict or with grilled cheese on top of it. They are made with yeast and date back to the 10th and 11th centuries in Wales when ‘bara’ bread was cooked in circular muffin trays on a stove or bottom of a skillet. American muffins on the other hand are mini quick breads and need to be cooked in sturdy molds because they are made from a batter rather than a yeasty dough.

Although I classify these as muffins (because, well, they were meant to be), they turned out rather crispy and slightly scone-like which I think adds to the yummy factor of these babies. They’re crumbly, flavourful and light enough for you to have 2 at a go. How amazing is that? This recipe was inspired once again by Fergal Connolly’s 500 Cupcakes and Muffins. I’ll certainly be making these again, if not for breakfast then for a daytime snack or savoury treats for when guests come round. If you should like the original recipe, you can leave a comment and I’ll get back to you asap.

Courgette & Feta Cheese Muffins

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup plain flour
1 tbs baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
85ml olive oil + 30ml extra virgin olive oil
about 1/4 cup grated courgette
about 1/2 cup feta cheese, cubed
freshly grated black pepper
dried oregano

Preheat the oven to 175d Celsius and grease your muffin pans. This yields 6 regular sized muffins.
Whisk eggs with a small whisk, then add the oil in and mix till combined. Add the grated courgettes and cheese. Salt, pepper and oregano go in next. Finally, add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix till just combined. Do not panic if the batter is not be very wet but slightly doughy. Spoon batter into tray and bake for 30min.
They should be slightly browned and crispy to touch when done. A tester inserted should come out clean. Leave in tray for a minute to cool for added crispiness then remove and let cool on a plate. They smell amazing just to warn you so you might wanna be slightly cautious when tucking into these hot treats. Cooks get privilege for first taste!

I’ll be leaving one for Ben as an appetizer (not the best thing but it’s good enough for B-Boy) prior to Easter lunch – gotta work up an appetite for my lamb chops tonight. Awesome.

Awww… the long awaited post and a late one at that. Have been too lazy to get around to posting but here it is.
The weekend was spent with my beloved flatmates getting all excited about our little tea party and sunday! behold! scones, victoria sponge cake, cucumber sandwiches that became salad & cream cheese sandwiches because we’d completely forgotten bout the cucumbers, hot tea and great company.

I’m so glad it turned out great. My flat is amazing! We worked so well in the kitchen and had such a good time tryin to figure out if “scones” were pronounced “scOnes” or “scAWnes”. apparently, the latter is the correct one and scones just a more posh way of saying it and also the american pronunciation.

anyway, i’ve always had my scones with cream cheese and jam and my flatmates introduced me to this amazing clotted cream. the true blue english way of eating is scones is to have it with ultra fattening CLOTTED CREAM and sugary JAM. honestly, the cream is so rich, yet light on the palette, milky buttery flavour spreads out on ur tongue like a dream. i had 2 scones slathered in generous heaps of clotted cream and i haven’t regretted it ever since.

I’ve never ever done a proper cake without using an electric mixer and since i’ve yet to get one here, i was really apprehensive bout making a cake without it. However, anna & hannah were superb! I’ve not seen someone whip the butter into the sugar by hand and then mix in flour and wadever else into the butter mixture with a wooden spoon in a saucepan for chrissakes all by hand! Amazing. i’m very inspired now to be less dependent on technology. besides, i think it’ll definitely tone up my arms if i do that too.

Ever since I’ve been here, I’ve been cooking all my meals. Kinda like the new independence and it gives me a chance to be really creative with my meals. I’ve done some very funny fish dishes, salad pastas and guess wad? I’m still alive. I’m not very confident in cooking but so far, all’s well and will continue to be well, if not great.

I’ve been looking at jamie oliver’s new cookbook. and i’m so tempted to get it. it’s 7pounds off @ waterstones but i hardly think it’s a need. i mean well yea, it does mean i can try that awesome lambshank recipe in it, but it’s seriously a want. i would love to have it though. hint hint to some ppl who do read this blog. *wink* once again, i’m going off into my little dream of jamie oliver being the best cook in the world. of course, that statement is really up for much contention. but i suppose he’s the most creative and talented guy i’ve seen who can create dishes that are delicious, unpretentious, relax and just so good to look at. he’s just so good at throwing the right ingredients together.

soon enough this week, i’m gonna be really ambitious and do this pineapple chicken breast oven bake thing. probably on a friday when i don’t have a really heavy day. can’t wait! i’m gonna continue to feed myself well. it’s the only way haha. and thus i’ll become a ball by the time christmas comes, rolling down the hallway, ho ho ho.
ending off with a photo of my friends in bham. love. xxx.