Becky Bakes…

Earlier this year we built a green house which came in kit form, with instructions resembling a Swedish flat-pack piece of furniture! It took us a number of weeks to complete the job as a seriously flat base had to be laid before we could even think about how and where to build the jigsaw that became the smart green edged structure we now have. As someone who is risk-averse, handling so much glass was quite a challenge. With gloves on, of course, each piece was positioned with care. Just a couple of panes were broken when we opened the packs and I have to admit we broke a couple ourselves, but luckily our local hardware shop stocks standard replacements. Very quickly the space filled up with pots and growth was rapid. The ridge cucumbers have been delicious – we now have the longer Telegraph variety and have given several away. Tomatoes are finally starting to ripen, no doubt they’ll all be ready together. Peppers? Nothing to see yet, but it’s so satisfying. Just don’t mention my tub of freesias…

The Cake Friday brigade enjoyed a change this week. Since several of them are trying to lose weight I decided that I’d try to do my bit to help…. Usually I make a batch of brownie, that’s 24 pieces of cake, or lots of scones, lemon drizzle wedges or ginger cake. Four little boxes are delivered to some on the list then the rest goes to a group of three, sometimes four peeps in a bigger shop. That’s a lot of cake. So this week I changed the plan and made a batch of Fork biscuits, they’re always popular as they are buttery and crumbly, made with just three ingredients. Mike Liggins had a go at making them on BBC Look East, getting into a bit of a muddle because he hadn’t read the recipe properly and added water rather than squeezing the dough together. So it was a batch of sixteen that I produced again this week, but wrapped pairs of biscuits in silver foil. Two of the shopkeepers ate them immediately, enjoying them immensely and I found myself with one package to spare. Happily I was able to send it to my nonagenarian friend who I haven’t seen for a very long time – I hope she enjoyed them too!

This week I’ve noticed one or two minor errors on a couple of the recipes on my website. Usually I proof read them before they are uploaded but you know how it is – often you see what your brain expects to be there, whether it is or not. So over the next few days and weeks we’ll make the adjustments. Also I’ve “tweeked” a couple of recipes to improve the flavours, so they will be changed too. Would you like me to let you know which ones have been modified when we’ve finished? Many of you have printed what amounts to a folder full of pages and you might choose to reprint some of these. I’ll keep you posted 😉

It seems summer has returned to our little seaside town. It’s lovely to watch families walking through town, towards the beach. The children are often clutching buckets and spades and grandpa brings up the rear with a huge cool bag, stuffed with picnic needs. Many people look forward to a traditional treat of fish and chips and this year they’re probably going to try out the new Ferris wheel. Several years ago we returned to Italy for our holiday and I took the opportunity to cook with Giovanna in her outdoor kitchen. We made beef ragu, fresh pasta and gnocchi-type things with stale breadcrumbs. Like you, we’ve eaten some interesting dishes all over the world, enjoying grits, collard greens and spider crabs in South Carolina, pigs trotters in Bavaria, Pont L’Eveque cheese in Normandy, patatas poverinas in Seville and boar sausages, cloud berries and lingen berries in Estonia. This year our plans are somewhat local, in that we’ll be taking a narrow boat on the Great Ouse in Cambridgeshire. I take several pieces of essential equipment every time we rent a boat even though they are well equipped, so sharp knives, a chopping board and scissors will be in the baggage. Our plan is to make a video whilst onboard – not easy with tourists, unpredictable weather, moorings with nosy cows, but we’ll have a go!

As someone who was never great at maths, I steer clear of puzzles with names sounding like Far eastern mountain ranges – you know the ones…sudoku, kakuro and futoshiki to name just a few! Give me a word puzzle and I’m happy – panagram, codeword and the plain old crossword are the puzzles that float my boat. Imagine my panic every Monday when the Tech Team present me with a sheet of Becky Bakes statistics. To be honest, they do make interesting reading. I can see which videos have been watched in the past weeks and which are the most, or least, popular. Fork biscuits are winning hands down with well over three thousand of the total almost 78000 views. Some don’t do as well as I expected, mincemeat for Christmas hasn’t really taken off but that’s understandable but I was surprised that the Orzo in tomato sauce didn’t hit the mark either, maybe because Orzo pasta isn’t a well known ingredient. Even the website continues to amaze me with views from all over the world – last month including Switzerland, Brazil, Poland and Australia. Incredible! Thanks to everyone, after two and a half years I’m learning to control my fear of stats! x

Reading the news this week I noticed that a very large quantity of contaminated cooked chicken has been intercepted at Felixstowe docks. This leads me to ask a whole range of questions – where has it come from, who imports it, what is it used for, how did they find it….you get my drift. As a foodie I’m very aware of any risk of malpractice because of the effects it may have on the population. This chicken was found to be carrying a variant of Salmonella. Not deadly (usually) but having the potential to cause unpleasant harm to anyone who consumes it. I’ve had first-hand experience more than once of young people who have been very ill. In one case a young person was off school for half a term after eating chocolate mousse made with raw eggs. These are risks we shouldn’t be taking, so please be careful. Even now we are told that supermarkets are too cautious by telling us to cook our chickens for too long, but I disagree with that. Any chicken dish should be thoroughly cooked, don’t consume raw eggs, and only cook just enough rice for the intended meal. Stay safe!

Food safety is paramount. Last week while chatting to an old friend I learnt that he’d been unwell. In the course of the conversation he told me he’d reheated some left-over curry and rice. That led me to wobble on about the risk from bacillus cereus, a bacteria many people won’t have heard of, which can cause food poisoning. We’re all aware (I hope) of salmonella from undercooked chicken and listeria from soft cheeses, but bacillus cereus is less well known. It grows on cooked rice grains which are left uncovered and unchilled. Sitting a bowl of rice salad on a bed of ice only cools the grains around the sides of the bowl, not the centre, so it’s something to avoid at buffets. Food poisoning is very unpleasant so make sure food is cooked thoroughly, then kept cool and covered. If you need to reheat food make sure it’s piping hot all the way through – stay safe!

This week I was asked about the YouTube channel and website – how much do I earn from each “hit”? Well, nothing. We don’t do any of this for money. Once a teacher always a teacher – I’m just happy to help anyone who wants to have a go at a dish and, maybe, along the way I can pass on some of my food knowledge. I think when people see the word “subscribe” they assume it will involve payment which will pass to me. Not so. Subscription to YouTube is free, they earn money by adding adverts to my channel. All the recipes on the website are downloadable for free. So if you know anyone who is confused about this, please explain – no money is involved. x

This is my favourite time of year – the warm weather and long sunny days mean that the garden is at its’ best, particularly the flowers. I’m a keen gardener but I have to confess that I prefer weeding and tending the borders to growing vegetables – that’s a “blue job” in our house. When our young friends decide they want to have a go at growing I’m specially thrilled as a love of gardening isn’t to be taken for granted. So hearing of successes with their allotment or pots of seedlings is just lovely. In the USA green fingers are known as “the green thumb” but whatever we call it they are learning the names of plants and their preferences , knowledge which is fascinating, culminating in the satisfaction of their harvest, whether fruits and veg or flowers. And of course spending time outside is a great way to unwind after a week at work.

During the course of a normal week I wear a number of different hats, like most of us I’m sure. There’s the Macmillan support group that I take part in who meet to knit woolly hats for sailors or little jumpers for a local charity and lap blankets for the Hospice too. I need time to clean the house and tend the garden, but on two other days I help out at the local Emporium and this is where Cake Friday originated. For at least two years I’ve made cake for them and several of the shopkeepers at that end of the town and this week their numbers expanded as two new shops are opening. My challenge is going to be deciding just what to make for them as their numbers continue to grow. What this means is that we have few empty shops and in the current economic climate I’m pleased to see them thrive. It’s going to be double quantities of cake from now on!