Sam Stern 'Virgin to Veteran' and a spot of vintage shopping

As soon as I heard about the opportunity to review this book, I stuck my hand up.  I'd heard of Sam Stern before and considered buying one of his books but never quite got round to it.  His previous books have been, I think, very much aimed at a younger audience (hence my temptation to buy one - I am not a confident cook) and I am quite sure that his latest book - Virgin to Veteran - was written especially for me!

The book starts with loads of helpful little tips about food and cooking techniques.  It includes hints on 'Fridge Etiquette', 'How To Freeze Stuff' and suggests what to keep in your store cupboard.  There is a whole section on 'Vegetables and Salads' advising what to look for when choosing veg, how to cook different types of vegetable and which dishes to serve them with.

It covers all of the basics including fish pie, roast chicken and spaghetti bolognese and there is a fab recipe for roast pork and baked apples.

Although it includes all of the basics you'd expect to see, a few unusual recipes also make a welcome appearance - the aromatic lamb madras, Greek lamb pie and asparagus ravioli all sound delicious. There are also a few burger suggestions I'd love to try out.

The book didn't just appeal to me because I'm a novice cook (although it would be a fantastic gift for any teens who are heading off to uni this year).  To me, the book is a celebration of good, simple, tasty food.  It appeals to my appetite for fresh flavours and good quality ingredients.  I can see us using this book a lot - Andrew is trying to improve his culinary skills and has taken it upon himself to try a new recipe each week.  He's going to start with the easiest recipe in Sam's book this week and says he will make bruschetta (with a selection of toppings) on Wednesday night.  One suggested topping with broad beans and feta sounds especially yummy.  I am so hoping for sunshine - a plateful of freshly made bruschetta and a glass of red wine would go down a treat in the garden as the sun slowly sets.

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We've had a busy old weekend - it was Andrew's 40th birthday yesterday and his Mum's present to him was an all-expenses paid trip to the hotel that we were married in two years ago.  It was utterly delightful and we had the most amazing time.  We had the spa to ourselves for about an hour yesterday afternoon which was bliss!

I did manage to fit in a tiny bit of shopping this weekend, though, as you'd expect!  In one of our local towns, Olney, there is a gorgeous little shop called Chic Boutique.  The owner is lovely and stocks (amongst other things) a wonderful selection of vintage china at really good prices - I always want to take the whole shop home with me.  I managed to control myself but did come home with this pretty  floral trio and sweet Peter Rabbit child's mug which I will save for when my niece comes to visit.

Hope everyone has a fab week.  Fingers crossed for some warm, sunny days... 

Nicki 

x

Baking Gingerbread

A little while ago I was contacted by online store Find Me A Gift (www.findmeagift.co.uk) to see if I would like to review this Joseph Joseph food preparation set.

Yes please!  I had been looking at the set for a while (to the point where I have once actually popped the box into my shopping trolley before becoming consumed with guilt - I'm supposed to spend our food money on sausages and things) so I was excited to finally give them a try.

Postage was fast - I emailed on the Friday evening with my address and the postie was knocking on the door early the next morning with my parcel in his mitts.  Super speedy.

I love this set.  Aside from the fact that the colours are gorgeous, the stackability* of it appeals to the [currently AWOL] neat freak in me and saves valuable space in my already groaning kitchen cupboards.

Look at those zingy colours! 

mixing bowl, colander, sieve, pouring bowl and measuring cups

The large mixing bowl is a good size and could take a six-egg cake batter quite comfortably.  I made gingerbread and it was easily big enough for a good wodge* of dough.  The bowl also has rubber feet to stop it slipping when you get busy with the hand mixer.



If you've fancied picking up some of these bowls, it's worth having a look at Find Me A Gift.

Link here

So.  Want to make some gingerbread men, too?  Gingerbread biscuits are enjoyed all year round in our house and not just at Christmas.

It's a dead simple recipe and makes perfectly tasty biscuits.  I have used other recipes involving a longer list of ingredients but this is most consistently enjoyed by people of all ages in my experience.  I found the recipe on the internet a few years ago - sorry if it's yours! (If it is, let me know and I'll do a link back to you).

You will need: 

125g butter

125g soft light brown sugar

200g golden syrup

1 egg yolk

425g plain flour

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon bicarb of soda

Cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.  Beat in the golden syrup and egg yolk.  Sift and stir in the dry ingredients in two batches, press mixture into a ball and knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth.  Cover and put in fridge for about 30 mins.  

Roll out to about 5mm thick (I always roll onto a sheet of greaseproof paper because the dough can be a bit sticky).  Cut into shapes and bake on gas mark 5 (190C) for 8 - 10 minutes.  The longer you bake, the crunchier they will be.  Their colour doesn't change all that much when baked - they are quite pale biscuits.  If they turn brown they are burning!  I bake for the shortest amount of time because we like our gingerbread men to be quite soft. 

Leave on the baking tray to cool for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack.   They will still be quite soft at this point but they will crisp up.   Once completely cooled, decorate however you fancy.  I use strawberry buttons, mini chocolate beans, jelly tots and all kinds of small sweets.  You can also, of course, get creative with the royal icing.  A gingerbread man wearing Y-fronts and a bow tie is super cute.

Keep your eyes peeled because next time I'll be stopping by with a baking-themed giveaway!

Speaking of keeping eyes peeled, I've injured my left eye.  A torn cornea which has developed into an ulcer.  AN ULCER ON MY EYEBALL.  How gross does that sound?!   Quite the most painful and irritating experience.  I am applying eye drops on an hourly basis and even have to set my alarm three times throughout the night to use the drops.  Morale is low.  I'm wearing geeky glasses and a grimace most of the time.  

Sympathy around here is in short supply.  I think the husband's patience started to wane when I woke him up at 4am on Wednesday wailing that I was going blind.  I am a bit of a drama queen but, man, it was scary! :-)

Have a good weekend! 

Nicki 

x

*I don't think these words are in the dictionary, but they should be.  Probably just an oversight.