Becky Bakes…

We had fun making our latest video. The recipe was very flexible and quite an economical one, so should have been straightforward. Our cats had a different view! They are very inquisitive and like to be involved in whatever’s going on, so quite often they are “encouraged” to go out to play while we’re filming. But this week they declined to cooperate as the aromas were too tempting. Several times one or the other of them appeared in the kitchen, rattling through the cat flap! Thank goodness our sound engineer wizard was able to edit out all those clunks and clicks. The patient cameraman almost lost it though, with “hang on” being my cue to pause for a minute whilst either Minnie or Tim was enticed away with treats. Never work with children or animals they say – children are great, animals not so much 😉

Not a commonly used term in the UK, but such a useful addition to a kitchen. I don’t have one, but certainly would like one. It’s an overhead cupboard which extends down to the worktop surface to house appliances. My favourite style has a roll-top desk type of door and means that gadgets are hidden away but still easily brought out for use. I was reminded of these handy hidey-holes recently when I had a long chat with a lady needing a cupboard for her food processor etc. Clutter is an issue for lots of us and our cupboards on either side of the chimney breast are the nearest we have to the appliance garage, even having room for two vacuum cleaners as well as the bread machine (rarely used), the sandwich toaster (very rarely used), the Kenwood chef and my little hand mixer (both often used). So, air fryer? No. Car park FULL. 😉

Last weekend we undertook a very short trip to visit friends in the frozen north to celebrate a significant birthday (not mine!) It was lovely to catch up with lots of old friends and acquaintances whilst enjoying delicious food. The event was held in a prestigious hotel in Cheshire, somewhere new to me, but all the faces were familiar. I spent a good while chatting to a lady who’d arrived early enough to enjoy a swim but had declined afternoon tea. When pressed, she opined that she couldn’t see the point of it; she’d had lunch and was looking forward to dinner, this would spoil her appetite. So what is the point of afternoon tea? Originally to bridge the gap between lunch at 12 and dinner at 8, but those timings no longer exist for most of us. So adamant she was, that it made me question the value of afternoon tea unless it’s a booking at The Ritz and only a slot at 1p.m. is left. Remember that, husband? 😉

As a person who enjoys the long, balmy days of summer I find winter quite a challenge, and January in particular. It always seems a bit of an anticlimax after the busyness of Christmas, but this week we saw a glimpse of sunshine so I managed to while away several minutes in the garden. What a treat! Although the weeds are still growing it was lovely to find the little irises manfully pushing their way through. It will be another couple of weeks before we see them bloom. The aconites are usually first here, even before the snowdrops. One of our young friends was thrilled to find a tete a tete daffodil in bloom this week – on the windowsill, not outdoors. Seed catalogues have already arrived and so Husband is milling over them, debating how many packets he’ll order for the veggie plot. A request… not quite as many tomatoes this year please, the mice got to the stragglers before we did! x

…. buy and air fryer? Having bought one as a Christmas gift for a young friend, I had the chance to try it out this week. The accompanying recipe book was excellent, full of imaginative ideas, so I decided to have a go with hassleback potatoes. Admittedly mine were larger than recommended and so took longer to cook, but they were great. They should have taken 25/30 minutes and came out crispy and golden on top. Later in the week I saw a stack of air fryers for sale and paused…..would I regularly use one? Based on energy and time saving evidence, yes. But it’s yet another appliance to store when not in use. Having a tidy kitchen and clear work surfaces matters to me, so I couldn’t leave it on view. Would I be bothered to get it out of the cupboard and put it away each time I use it? The jury is still out but I have to say I was sorely tempted to buy one. Have you succumbed?

Earlier this week I heard Jamie Oliver speaking about school meals on the radio 4 Today programme, as their guest editor. It took me right back to my school days when we took our dinner money in on Monday mornings, the dinner register was ticked so we’d be sure to get our meal each day. Over the years I’ve eaten a great many school lunches, often as a reward for playground duty, sometimes as a parent, occasionally as a guest. They are a vital part of the school day, when children can have a well balanced meal and Jamie Oliver has done a great job by campaigning to make them healthier. They still have to paid for though, with free meals available to some children if their household income is below £7.5k .But what about the single parent who brings home £8k ? They have to pay the full cost of the meals. It’s not uncommon for parents to get into debt, owing the school a chunk of money at the end of each month so that they can’t afford to buy food for themselves. It strikes me that any family receiving Universal credit should be entitled to free meals. I know from experience that a hungry child can’t concentrate, learns less and performs less well in exams. Give them breakfast as well as lunch, because arriving at school with 2 custard creams in their pocket is no way to start the day. In these difficult times, feeding children needs to go hand in hand with teaching them.

Busy days – I had a list but it’s all gone to pot after some unexpected late changes. The mince pies are thawed and ready to cook when the gammon joint goes in the oven. The veggies are prepped and the desserts are made. All the presents are wrapped so we just need the guests. Pilot son is dropping in between flights to Grenoble and Lodz (Poland); sound-man son has an extended break but has tested positive for Covid. Daughter and son-in-law are dealing with health issues so we’ll probably see them next week. So friends, whether you’re hale and hearty, or home from hospital, feeling rough, nursing a broken leg, staying with friends or just having a quiet break we wish you a very happy Christmas and a healthy new year and look forward to hearing from you soon xx

It was such a treat this week to be offered a mince pie which had been made by a total novice. I knew he was going to have a go and had bought the ingredients – flour, butter, sugar and eggs so clearly he was going to make dessert pastry. Without a food processor he planned to do it by hand but was also short of a rolling pin and cutters as well as the patty tins. Not a problem, he found all he needed locally and had a go. When he offered me one he asked what he’d done wrong, so I tasted it… nothing wrong at all! They were delicious. He’d even jazzed up the mincemeat with apples and oranges. A great success and all credit to someone who was prepared to just give it a try!

Do you remember how there was a shortage of flour at the beginning of the pandemic? Producers couldn’t keep up with the demand as everyone began baking, with little else to do! At that point I also noticed that ready-made pastry was taken out of circulation, only some types reappearing sporadically over the last six months or so. Fine for those needing short crust or puff, but what about dessert pastry? I’ve used it for many years, especially when little people were going to make tiny lemon curd tarts in 24-hole mini muffin tins. Sure I can make my own but the pink wrapped block was so handy. Imagine my delight then when I spotted a packet last week. It was ready-rolled, but I decided to give it a try. It wasn’t great. There was barely enough to make a dozen mince pies even after I’d rerolled the scraps. It had very little flavour and predictably shrank in the oven. Will I be buying it again? No.

In my first year at Secondary school Mrs.Norton, the needlework teacher, required me to make a pinafore from black and white gingham then decorate it with a coloured cross stitch border. The edges had to be turned twice and neatened with catch stitch. Phew.. my mother took over and finished that bit. Mrs.Norton was so impressed she asked me to show the class how I’d done it so nicely 😉 Did I wear it for Domestic Science in my second year? No, I needed a white overall with my name embroidered near the collar. How I wished I was called Ann or Mary. Rebecca took forever to complete. ‘O’ levels, then ‘A’levels and D.Sc. became Home Economics. Three years in Bath then jobs in Orpington, Barnet and Hemel Hempstead brought another name change, now I was teaching Food Technology and the National Curriculum took away our ability to decide our own curriculum based on the pupils needs. One whole term had to be devoted to airline catering. British airways sent us cartons of packaging, husbands brought containers from trips with Air France, Lufthansa, Air UK etc. The children planned what they would put in them for children, people with dietary needs or allergies. What did they actually cook? Nothing at all. These are the parents of today, now faced with providing food for their families having very little proper teaching. The supermarket shelves are heaving with ready-meals containing many ingredients that wouldn’t be there if it was home made. It’s rare to see a shopper looking at the labels. Home Economics went out of the window – with it went common sense!