today i made...

the christmas spirit is slowly seeping in.  yesterday i strung some twinkly lights over the window and this morning i cut out this zombie snowflake and stuck it on the microwave...well...its a start...

 

also cooked up a batch of salted caramel brownies...they went all holey when i poured the hot caramel sauce on them and so ended up looking a bit prehistoric (but tasted delicious!). 

 

this was the recipe i was going to use but in the end i cheated with an easy brownie kit and just added sea salt and made up some of this salted caramel sauce.  yum.

garden update

as the jubilations and celebrations come to an end (apart from the Paralympics!) i finally bought something patriotic.  picked up this fab deckchair on sale in Argos (£17.99) today and spent a few hours in the garden reading in the sun...till it started raining...here we go again.  its good for the flowers tho.....

my Borage plants, grown from seed, are coming along nicely and i picked some of the lovely blue flowers today and popped them in an ice cube tray - apparantly they have a cucumber flavour so should be perfect for gin & tonics later!

couldn't resist a spoonful

and while the rain drizzled i ran inside to whip up a rhubarb and ginger sort of soft crumbly cake, which i'm looking forward to eating after my bowl of mussels. tonight i am rather spoiling myself it seems!

finally using [yet another useless thing i tend to buy] the silver mussel grabber!

mini-me-bar

picked up this fantastic old bar the other day - it was sitting in front of a nearby house along with a lot of broken furniture and i spotted it cycling home thinking it was an old desk.  i was delighted when i opened to find a fab mirrior interior, complete with stencilled bottles and cocktail glasses.  i had to rush back home, lock up the bike and zip back in a taxi to pick it up before someone else nabbed it.  the taxi driver thought i was completely mad and had a good giggle about it, but did concur it was a good find!

perfect for all my pretty bottles & glasses

just managed to squeeeeze it into the only available space!

 had a few friends over later to sample some delish cocktails straight from the bar and fed them with some equally delicious smoked mackerel fishcakes with wasabi mayo (adapted from this recipe)...they went down a storm.

must be on a bit of creative cooking tip as last night i ended whizzing up some avocado pesto - a great addition to my home made spicy tofu burgers...yum.

 thankfully the sun has FINALLY decided to come out for a bit so i've been enjoying sitting in the garden soaking up the rays...with the local strays....who are just about working up the courage to venture inside!

they seem to like a bit of Classic FM on the radio

nobody here but us chickens!

eggs rothko

mmmmm....how delicious do these look -  Eggs Rothko from the brilliantly named crepes of wrath - all you need are some brioche, eggs and a hunk of chedder/gruyere cheese....yum yum yum melty cheesey goodness....i know what i want for breakfast!

the cheesy garlic potatoes look pretty delicious too!

eggy weggy

mmm mmm mmm...how delicious does this egg in a basket look...wish i had a spare avocado, i fancy this for brekkie tomorrow.  will have to go out and get one and have it monday. yum yum double yum. 

 

attack of the ninja-bread men

BEWARE...ninja-bread men on the loose...aaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiieeeeeya!

tonight i succumbed to the urge to make some ninja-bread men ...ha ha ha...great fun.  not sure about ninja...more like revenge of the blobby! the first batch got a little burnt and set my smoke alarm off, but i was wondering whether a battery replacement was needed so that was handy, and the next batch looked more tasty but still in need of some post-holidays weight loss boot camp!  i have quite a few and of course as always happens when you make things, you then don't feel hungry (hmmm may have something to do with the bowl licking!) but am sure i can chomp on a leg or two with a cuppa.  all in all tho they are pretty tasty for  a first attempt...only next time MORE GINGER, LESS NINJA!

 

 

ninja bread men

ha ha love it...available here as spotted via hither & thither...def gotta get me some of these  and gett baking pronto...aaaaaaaaiiiiiiyaaaaaaaa!

LOVE IT / HATE IT

the Very Peculiar Chocolate Bar containing a hint of Marmite goes on sale in BHS, Debenhams and Robert Dyas from the 4th October.  i LOVE marmite but even to me this just seems WRONG...still i can't wait to try it!!

i do give a fig...

went for a farewell lunch at pizza express in Soho (the jazz one) yesterday and had THE MOST DELICIOUS DESSERT i have ever tasted. it was a Dolcetti (mini dessert with coffee) called Caffe Reale which consisted of baby figs in cinnamon and white wine syrup with a delicious dollop of mascarpone...yummmmm...i am def going to replicate this at  home and have searched the internet for mini-figs...found these lovely ones from the bay tree so will be tracking them down soon...

lady marmalade

thanks to the fab wendolonia for this delish looking lemon ginger marmalade recipe...she even provides templates for the lovely labels here yummy yum yum...can't wait to make some.  think i might try it over the easter weekend.

arse biscuits

gutted i missed the Bust Craftacular Part II...cos i really would've loved to snap some of these treats up from  Belgian Waffle  ....

via India Knight's Posterous

London, Paris, New York...Whitstabubble

continuing the world tour...spent a wet, wild, windy and wonky birthday in Whitstabubble...fantastic food, hilarious gossips, friendly cheese nutters, lots of fishyness and all in the company of some extra special friends...

stayed in the teeny tiny lovely Polly's Attic
went cheese crazy at the wonderful Cheese Box
ate at the delish Oyster House
and Wheelers
drank at The Neptune
and shopped all over....

feed your head

also attended the brilliant Mad Hatter's Rambling Tea Party at Lunch as guests of the fab Rambling Restaurant crew and ended up taking part in the Fifth Plinth's 24 hours 24 shows at The Oubliette Arthouse.

a great excuse to dress up in silly costumes, scoff cakes, drink tea and wave at the bemused tourists through the glass of a squatted shopfront on oxford street....and met some lovely people!

in the words of the great Jefferson Airplane....

"When logic and proportion
Have fallen sloppy dead
And the White Knight is talking backwards
And the Red Queen's "off with her head!"
Remember what the dormouse said;
"Feed your head, feed your head, feed your head"


http://www.foodrambler.com

penguin love

ever since reading the most excellent book Death and the Penguin by Andrey Kurkov a few years ago myself and Brussel sprout Katie Onbeschoft have had a bit of an obsession with the little fellas.

i feel like this when i see one....


i absolutely love Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers and Studio AKA's animated version shown on Channel 4 at christmas (at last something decent on the telly - please repeat it soon!!!)


i really want one of these KoKo lamps (http://www.kokodesign.it/)


spotted at a shop in Westbourne - which, by the way, is right opposite THE BEST fish + chip shop in the country, bar none.....Chez Fred's (http://www.chezfred.co.uk/) - so good the q's are always out the door (even for takeaway) unless you go mid-week during the day (and its still rammer jammer then). the food is lip-smackingly delish and very reasonably priced - the decor alone is worth a visit as the walls are lined with photos of various showbiz star regulars.
and they even do "moggy bags" - takeaway cod scraps for your cat (Boo, would not approve, only doggy bags please!).