Recipe ~ Buttermilk pancakes with berries

I don't know about you but I have dozens hundreds of recipes I've cut out of magazines with the intention of making them one day. Except most of the time that day never comes. But no more!! I'm sick of cooking the same meals day in and day out, but I'm loathe to try new things if the girls don't like them because then it's a waste of money.

So I've decided that at least once a week I'm going ask either Tall Daughter or The Teenager to choose one of the forlorn and forgotten recipes from what is laughingly known as the Recipe File (or a random stack of torn out recipe pages shoved into a cardboard file) and I'm going to make it. Oh yes I am!

To kick it all off, here's a recipe I picked up just last week in the free Tesco magazine. Both of my girls love homemade pancakes, so I thought I'd give this a try. It's also a good way of using up any berries that are past their best - I used up some raspberries, but strawberries, blueberries, apricots or peaches would work well.

Buttermilk pancakes with berries.

Makes 12 pancakes

350ml (12fl oz) buttermilk
1 egg
3 tbsp maple syrup
50g (2oz) melted butter
125g (4oz) plain flour
half tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1 tbsp sunflower oil
500g mixed berries
25g caster sugar
2tsp arrowroot

1. In a bowl whisk the buttermilk, egg, maple syrup and melted butter.
2. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt into another bowl. Tip half of the wet ingredients in and mix well. Fold in the remaining buttermilk mixture to form a thick batter.
3. Heat a large nonstick frying pan and wipe with sunflower oil. Ladle some of the mixture onto the hot pan to make small pancakes measuring about 7cm (3") across. Reduce the heat and cook in batches for 2 minutes each side (I found they needed a little bit longer, just check and see if they look cooked). Repeat until all the batter is used.
4. Meanwhile, place the fruit in a pan with the sugar and 3 tbsp of cold water. Cover and cook for 5 mins, mix the arrowroot with a further 2 tbsp water and stir into the fruit. Cook, stirring until the juices thicken a little.
Serve the pancakes topped with a spoonful of hot fruit.

I also drizzled a bit of extra maple syrup over the top of the pancakes to finish it off. Sweet tooth, moi? There would have been a higher stack of pancakes but everytime I started stacking them the girls kept taking them, but that's good!

We enjoyed these, although next time I'm going to put some vanilla ice cream on top of the hot berries and pancakes which would make it even better.

The one where we try canoeing for the first time

We were recently invited by Go Canoeing, the Olympic legacy initiative from Canoe England, to try a bit of canoeing at Salford Quays in Manchester and we went along last weekend to give it a go.

Okay, so I've exaggerated slightly....I didn't try it but The Teenager and her boyfriend did. I thought they'd like to try something new and they were up for the challenge.

I, of course, was needed on the quayside to take photos, that's the only reason I didn't try it. Well apart from my mortal fear of being in small boat in open water, obviously.

It was windy and a bit nippy when we got there, and The Teenager was a bit shocked that she had to put a wetsuit on but even that didn't put her off.

After a safety briefing from the canoeing expert Dave (and our guide for the day) they were ready to go.

After a bit of a nervous start, they soon got the hang of it and were canoeing confidently across the quays.  I reckon they could be in with a shout for the 2016 Olympics. Not that I'm biased, of course.

They both  enjoyed it - much more than they expected to, and they're already planning to have another go at canoeing and after watching someone else on the quays doing wakeboarding, they fancy having a go at that too.

Go Canoeing Week 2013

The eight-day initiative will give the public a chance to pick up a paddle and discover what’s on offer at over 400 canoe and kayak clubs and centres across the country, with the aim to get as many people on the water as possible.

Through offering a wide range activities, the initiative will ensure there is an experience for everyone to easily get involved with, whether they are a canoeing newbie or experienced paddler.


Participants of all ages and abilities will be offered a range of easily accessible and sociable activities to get involved in; from Starter Sessions, Demo Days and Guided Tours to give beginners their first taste of paddling, to Canoe Trails for the more advanced seeking adventure, the initiative also offers a number of mass participation and social events.

National Go Canoeing Week will be taking place across England between Saturday 18th – Sunday 26th May 2013. To find out what activities are taking place at a club near you, whatever your ability, click here.

My friend Tom

I've always liked Tom.

I first got to know him as a school friend of my brother. They were both two years older than me and very alike - rough diamonds if you like, cheeky chappies with an eye for the ladies.

I got to know him a lot better when I was working in a pub during my days as a mature student (does that make other students immature?). He travelled a lot with his job but when he was home he'd come in at the weekend and stand at the end of the bar chatting and flirting with the women. He was good-looking too in a David Essex sort of way, all twinkly eyes and tousled hair that was slightly longer than it should be.

He had a fantastic sense of humour, just like my brother, and could make me laugh more than anyone I'd ever known. He found humour everywhere and his delivery was so dry he could just stand and watch as everyone else was bent over with laughter. He was one of those people that everyone liked: men, women, kids. He saw the funny side of everything and he was just bloody good company.

We even went on a few dates, Tom and I. He persuaded me, against my better judgement, to go out a couple of times and even though I had a great time and laughed more than was decent on a date, I knew he wasn't for me. His roving eye was a real no-no but we always remained good friends.

As the years rolled by I saw him less and less until he bought a house down the road from me and opposite the village shop. Every few weeks when he was home we would bump into each other in the shop and have a chat.  He'd never married and so I always hoped he would flirt and ask me on a date. He never let me down and I could never quite tell if he was joking or serious, but even after my divorce it was still always a no from me.

A few years ago I heard a rumour that he was having an affair with the woman who lived opposite me. She was married with kids, and a bit stuck-up for my liking and I just couldn't see her with Tom. They seemed so different - she was all designer labels and namedropping and he was, well he was still the twinkly-eyed, rough around the edges Tom. I did wonder if it was true.

One day, when I was out in the front doing a bit of gardening, Tom walked up the neighbour's drive. It seemed a bit odd considering the rumours and sure enough moments later when her husband appeared at the door there were raised voices and scuffling.  In seconds Tom and the husband were wrestling each other on the front lawn while she screamed for them to stop. It was all over very quickly but I'd seen enough to realise that the rumours had been true after all.

When we moved to this house I didn't see Tom in the corner shop anymore. And as the new house was further down the village I no longer saw him walking past on the way to the the pub.

But I still drove past his house every morning on the way to work and when I noticed that his car never seemed to be outside I assumed he was working away more than usual.

Last week when I was out walking the dog I bumped into one of the neighbours from our previous house. She asked me if I'd heard about Sylvia. Sylvia lived in the the bungalow at the far end of the village and I knew she was Tom's mum. I said no, I hadn't heard.

"She died a few weeks after her son."

And that's how I heard about Tom's death. After making a couple of phone calls I found out that Tom died of cancer nearly two years ago, six weeks before his mother.  He was 52.

I'm still in shock, mostly that he's gone but also that it took me so long to find out. We must have moved house around about the same time he died and so somehow the news didn't filter through the usual neighbourly channels.

Yesterday, I made a point of taking the dog for a walk down to the other end of the village to where Tom lived, and as I passed his house I said my own silent goodbye to him. I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to see you one last time Tom. We would have laughed.

Thought for the day

The garden in May ~ Verdant

ver·dant  

/ˈvərdnt/

Adjective (of countryside) Green with grass or other rich vegetation. Of the bright green colour of lush grass.

I love that word, and it's the one that sprang to mind when I was out in the garden today. 

Everything suddenly seems so lush and green and ready to explode with colour. This is possibly my favourite time of the gardening year.

There is something very other worldly about ferns and the way they grow.

One of my favourite plants, allium christophii is ready to burst open any day. Can't wait.

The bluebells in the front garden have only flowered in the last couple of days.

Every garden should have a frilly tulip.

This pale yellow tulip was almost transparent with the sun behind it. Gorgeous.

The beds are starting to fill up and everything is growing so unbelievably fast, but then we've had such a combination of rain and sunshine for the past week it's no wonder.

How's your garden coming along? What are your favourite plants in your garden? 


p.s. I've just found this gardening linky via Mammasaurus, and there are plenty of gorgeous entries to enjoy.

Marie Curie Stories: a day with the catering team at the Liverpool hospice

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to visit the Marie Curie hospice in Liverpool. I went to meet the catering team to see for myself how they cater for their patients. It's all part of a national campaign to highlight the brilliant work done by the Marie Curie across the country, and it's a subject very close to my heart.

Head chef Mike Carew

When I arrived at the hospice I was introduced to head chef, Mike Carew, who looks after a team of chefs and kitchen staff, including several volunteers.

Mike has worked at the hospice for over 20 years and it was clear that he not only loved his job, but cared passionately about the welfare of the patients.

He told me how important it was to cater for the individual patient as getting the right nourishment and enjoyment from the food is all part of their quality of life - a phrase I heard several times during my visit.

He recalled a time when a patient was refusing to eat so Mike made a visit to the ward to talk to him. After chatting for a while he persuaded him to have a strawberry milkshake for his lunch. The next day the man asked for a milkshake again and gradually, over a couple of weeks, he started to eat more food until he was eating a full meal (but still with a milkshake!) When it was time for the patient to go home Mike invited his wife into the kitchen so they could show her how to make the milkshake just the way he liked it.

Mike introduced me to chef Michelle who explained that we'd be going up to the wards to talk to each patient about the day's menu and help them choose a lunch and dinner.

Chef Michelle 

10am starting the ward rounds

It was time for me to accompany Michelle on her ward rounds. This is the time when she gets to meet each one of the 30 patients and talk them through the menu choices for the day.

On our way up to the wards, Michelle talked about the importance of getting to know each patient's likes and dislikes and using the right body language and tone of voice. But Michelle has such a lovely, warm personality it was no surprise that the patients loved her.

It's her job to make sure each patient chooses a lunch and dinner from the menu, and it was fascinating to watch her do it by means of humour and gentle persuasion. She clearly had the patients' best interests at heart and gave them a bit of encouragement if they weren't sure what to choose or offered alternatives if none of the choices appealed.  One of the patients didn't eat red meat and didn't fancy the chicken dish so Michelle tempted him with a vegetable stir-fry which was freshly prepared for him as it wasn't on the menu.

The two wards were less clinical than a hospital with some personal touches around. One lady had balloons and bouquets of flowers next to her bed, leftover from her birthday the previous day. She told me the kitchen staff had surprised her with a birthday cake and had made sure her day was special.

Another was having her hair done by a stylist when we arrived and showed me the fabulous view of Liverpool from her bedroom window.

All of the patients spoke very highly of the standard of food  - "Better than a restaurant" - and the staff "They're all lovely" and "They can't do enough for you."

11am  The food is prepared

There are two kitchens, one for hot food (main meals) and the other for cold (sandwiches, salads, desserts, etc).  They have to cater for the hospice's 30 in-patients, as well as 10 patients who attend a day therapy unit, various day support groups and the staff restaurant and all of the food is freshly made on the day.

When Michelle gets back from her ward rounds she discusses the patients' menu choices with chef Sammy who prepares the hot meals.

Michelle and Sammy discuss the patients' choices

As soon as Sammy knows the numbers required he gets cracking because they all have to ready to go up to the wards at 12 noon.  Having only one hour to prepare that many meals would bring me out in a cold sweat but Sammy takes it in his stride.  30 Portuguese chicken dishes, 20 pork fillets and a couple of stir-fry meals? No problem!

Sammy starts preparing the hot meals

Sponge puddings waiting for custard or cream

12 noon Lunch is served

The meals have to be ready for the patients and staff, and are taken up to the wards on trolleys. Each patient might have a slight variation to their meal (cream instead of custard; tomato soup instead of minestrone) so notes are attached to dishes to make sure they get to the right person. 

This is a finely honed team at work, nothing is left to chance and everyone knows their role. 

They are all under tight time pressures and keep to strict hygiene standards at all times - but it's all done with good humour and a real team spirit.

And, as far as I know, everyone enjoyed their food!

The A Team: Sammy, Michelle, Andy the restaurant manager and Mike

Mike with volunteer Elsie

Marie Curie hospices rely on the support of volunteers, and at the Liverpool hospice I met kitchen volunteer Elsie. Elsie had worked in the kitchen for many years before retiring, but soon came back as a volunteer.

She was obviously an important member of the team and told me how much she enjoyed working with the rest of the kitchen staff.

The whole place was imbued with a happy, positive atmosphere, people were friendly and helpful and the patients were happy and well cared for.

But it was the personal touches - the birthday cake, the stir-fry, the milkshake - that made the difference and made me realise how amazing the catering staff are. Nothing seemed to be too much trouble for the patients.

Before my visit I'd been a bit apprehensive about what to expect  (I thought I'd be sobbing all day long)  but I can honestly say it was a very enjoyable experience. In fact I didn't think I would use this word, but the word that best describes it is uplifting.

Thank you to everyone who made me so welcome at Marie Cure Liverpool, it was a real pleasure to spend some time with you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Join #MarieCurieStories today as we give you the chance to walk in the shoes of nurses, patients and carers and experience a day in the life of Marie Curie.

Marie Curie has teamed up with six bloggers who have visited Marie Curie hospices across the UK. Follow #MarieCurieStories on Twitter and Facebook and at www.mariecurie.org.uk/mariecuriestories.

Marie Curie Nurses provide free end-of-life care to people with terminal illnesses in their own homes, or in Marie Curie Hospices.

Updating the living room ~ Fifty shades of brown

We've been in this house for 18 months now and the living room is one area we hadn't touched. We moved our furniture in on the day and kept the previous owner's curtains as a 'temporary measure'.

That's always a trap isn't it? Keeping something to tide you over and having to explain that "they're not our choice of curtain, we inherited them with the house" every time someone comes to visit. It'll only wash for so long before they become your curtains.

So, time for a change but I didn't want to have to redecorate the whole room. I don't have the time, energy or money for that right now as it'll be a big job:  the ceiling needs repainting and every wall needs stripping.

What? So I like sitting in an
armchair. Get over it.

Apart from that, the room didn't really work for us. The seating arrangement was awkward and the dog's chair (ok, it's not actually the Tessie's chair.....she just happens to sit there a lot!) was the first thing anyone saw as they walked in the room.

Nope, instead I decided to do a bit a lot of furniture moving and put up some new curtains! Yes, you hear that right: brand, spanking new curtains! Hurrah!

The living room is long and quite dark at one side despite having two large windows. It's a nice enough room but pretty bland due to the many tones of beige, brown and....more brown. The carpet cam with the house and our sofas are the same sort of colour.  Plus two of the walls are painted - guess what? - brown. Not good.

The Teenager helped me move the furniture but she Could. Not. Wait. to take the curtains down. I went to iron the new curtains and when I came back in this had happened:

We put the new curtains up and moved the furniture around to make it easier to watch TV and sit and talk to each other. This L-shaped arrangement works much better for us.

The other side of the room is still a work in progress - the two armchairs are next to a reading light, but the the blank wall is crying out for some artwork and the corner needs redecorating where the wallpaper is missing.

And now the dog's  armchair is hidden behind the door so it's not the first thing you see.

The curtains are from M&S (Simple Leaf Eyelet curtains/£55 a pair) and were pretty good value for money considering how long and wide they are. I think they add a different tone and pattern to the room without being overpowering. (Oh, and the Teenager wants me to mention that she chose them.)

I bought the cushions from TKMaxx a few months ago, and I've the lamps for about 5 years.

The Orla Kiely box is my inspiration for the room and I'm hoping to use more of the colours for other accessories and soft furnishings.

The bronze figure is a favourite and I bought it many years ago.

This is what you see now when you walk into the room. I think it looks brighter and has a bit more of a colour scheme going on. There's still more brown than I'd like but not bad considering the only thing I bought was the curtains.

In the summer I'd like to strip all the walls and redecorate, making the walls lighter and brighter. I don't think a new carpet is in the offing, so I might consider a rug to break up the sea of brown.

Are you doing any updating, furniture moving or decorating?