RUSSIA 42 ~ SWITZERLAND 25 ~ FRANCE 22 & HOT HOT CROSS BUNS.

Happy Easter to you all wherever you may be.

The title may give you a clue, I am going to talk about how you find a blog? It could be that you were passed a link, or you put a word or phrase into a Search Engine that gave you pages of stuff relating to that word or, maybe, you clicked on a link whilst viewing another blog.

Which ever way you find them, it always fascinates me about readership stats. Right from the very beginning of me writing my Blog in December 2011, we had a high level of Russian Dear Readers, then at the beginning of this year, it dropped dramatically and several weeks went by with not even one Russian Dear Reader reading my Blog.

So we asked ourselves, were they Russians who were reading it or foreigners who had been living there for several years?

Then this morning.. whoosh.. the stats showed that late last night and through into the early hours of this morning, whilst we were happily in Land of Nod.. aka fast asleep.. we had forty two Russian Dear Readers catching up on reading this year's posts.

Next up.. Switzerland.

Maybe one or two a month used to be the total amount of Swiss Dear Readers that we would get. Then, last night, whoosh down the slopes came twenty five Swiss reading at exactly the same time as twenty two French Dear Readers.

What brought them to my Blog, we wonder, was it the sound of egg whites being whisked to make Spicy Meringues, the smell of those tasty Pork Chops pan fried with garlic and ginger last night that we ate with Pak Cho, Choi Sum and noodles or maybe, they were alerted by the sighs as she slowly nibbled, to make it last longer, the piece of Nougat made with Pomegranate Syrup.. slurp-the-durp.

Who knows? We don't, that is for sure. What we do know that today is a dull day, old Mr.Sun is either still fast asleep or has he forgotten to put new batteries into his torch. The sky, here in deepest Knightbridge, looks as if someone has laid flat a sheet of pale grey cotton over our head, very dreary.

Gloomy, dull, boring, but at least it is not bucketing down with cold wind-driven rain, we don't have snow on the ground, it's not icy out there, we slept well, we had scrummy egg-the-peg and rye toast to break our fast and she is drinking, not slurping as it is hot, a cup of Velluto Nero.. ahh, all's well.

Why did we not eat a Hot Cross Bun this morning? Well, we only eat them over the actual Easter holiday, we don't count Maundy Thursday, so it is today's Buns she wants, fresh and then toasted.

She overheard a wonderful conversation yesterday.. it went like this.. "I don't know why people make such a fuss about these 'ere Hot Cross Buns".. said a rather too stout woman, as she stuffed a bun into her face.

Her companion, who was smartly dressed and very trim, shook her head and said "Ethel, the clue is in their name.. Hot Cross Bun.. they're supposed to be toasted and eaten with butter, not cold and not whilst walking along Shaftesbury Avenue hunting theatre tickets".

With which, we will leave you to chuckle and to look forward to your tea this afternoon with your HOT Cross Bun.. and now you understand why there are two HOT's in the title!

GeeGee Parrot.
April 3rd, 2015.

PROSECCO WITH POMEGRANATE SYRUP & A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE..

Before I forget.. here's a very pretty fruity-tootie drink to go with your Spicy Meringue..

You need to hunt for a small bottle of Pomegranate Syrup, it should be very thick and only contain pomegranate juice and sugar.. don't buy the stuff that has .... in it! We buy ours from a middle eastern supermarket, it maybe a bit pricey but you only need a very little and she'll give you other recipes that use this.. plus it lasts forever!

So you've got the pomegranate syrup, a bottle of Prosecco and a pomegranate, you need one for the meringue anyway. Put a little bit of the syrup into the bottom of a champagne glass, pour in a tiny bit of prosecco and mix it up, do this ahead of time so the syrup breaks down a bit, then put in a few pomegranate seeds and top up the glass.

It had such a glorious taste and looks simply.. deevine!

After her appointment in Howland Street, her trip down memory lane started in Little Portland Street with a visit to Barnett & Lawson, this shop is a treasure trove of amazing trimmings of every single description, where in the olden days, if she hadn't got a trip coming up to Florence, she used to buy a lot of lampshade trimmings, they have great products with wonderful staff.

Onwards down into Soho to Borovicks in Berwick Street market, Martin wasn't there but the other two men were and they had a majormajor gossip! She used to get a lot of fabrics there but her quest today was for a small scrap of dark brown leather or suede, there was none to be had, so she'll have to go far away to her other source in northLondon.

Then down and across onto Old Compton Street and into the Algerian Coffee Shop, to purchase half a kilo of Velluto Nero and the same amount of Cafe Torino. "Get back" she growled at the naughty nougat which waved at her from the shelf as she shot out of the door before it leapt into her basket.

Across Shaftesbury Avenue into Chinatown, by now she was mighty hungry and if it had been me, I'm pretty sure I would have slid my bum onto a seat in a Chinese YumYum House.. aka restaurant.. but she has a will of iron and went into her favourite Chinese supermarket instead.

Pak Choi, Choi Sum and egg noodles were what she needed but she confesses that thoughts of duck and other such delicious tastes DID prance about in old head, especially as she had to pass right by her favourite in-and-out restaurant on the way to her bus stop.

But she managed not to sniff the scrummy smells sneaking out of the open door and made it to the bus stop without succumbing ~ and ordering everything in sight.. twice! It has been a long time, at least four months, since she ate in Chinatown.

Home again, home again, jiggeddy-jigg to find me perched on her old leather jacket in the hall by the front door, oh, such a fuss, why you'd think she hadn't seen me for a week!

Secretly, between you, me and old front door, I love all of this attention but I was there so I'd know the minute she came home, for I was mighty bored by being by myself and mighty hungry and, Dear Readers, I have yet to figure out how to open chilly-white larder and cook a pork chop!

Which is what we've just had.. plus fresh Chinese vegetables and egg noodles.. I then had a couple of cashew nuts, she had two pieces of nougat but not normal nougat as one thinks of it, the base was made out of pomegranate syrup, oh, heavens to Betsy, her face told me this was something extraextra good.

She has collected her new herbal tea, without camomile this time, ugh, she hates even the smell of that stuff, and a new book, we have two large apples with long stalks and are now going to slip-slide into, and onto, her comfy bed and settle down for the evening.

Good Friday tomorrow.. suddenly the year has started to go faster, when she was in bed for most of February it went verrry slowwly indeed  but suddenly, it's April, then it will be May and whoosh, it will be Summer! And we'll be picking our own Pak Choi and Lettuces. But as old Jack Frost is still a'lurking about, so there will be no tender vegetables planted out just yet.

However, what she can do is to get on and work on the raised beds, replace some rotten boards, add more compost and the well rotted manure and get the beds ready. Let's hope that silly west wind dies down a bit, he was certainly playing his wicked tricks up in the West End today.. she wished she'd worn old fake fur hat it was that cold on her ears.

That's for then and for now we are saying good bye, meanwhile, a very curious thing happened whilst she was out, we had a huge surge of Dear Readers from most unusual places! Were they new Dear Readers or were they regular Dear Readers travelling to strange and far-off distant lands and because you lot ever tell us.. we'll never know.

PipPip.. if she can get her fingers to stop holding Hot Cross Buns tomorrow for a minute, we'll be here again with all the news.. that's fit to print!

GeeGee Parrot.
April 2nd, 2015.

WE'VE JUST WOKEN UP.. AT 12.30!

Well and how about this for a shameful start to the day or rather, the afternoon! Both of us were just zzzing away, completely oblivious to the fact that the big outside world has been up and at 'hem for several hours!

Yawn.. so we'd better play hurry-scurry very quickly and try to catch up on our day, for she has that appointment in the West End, then she has to plunder The Algerian Coffee shop in Old Compton Street for multiple bags of 'Cafe Torino, Brunetto and Algerian Special', these are the three varities of coffees that she likes to drink and there is only just a smidgen left.

Just walking into this little shop gives her such pleasure, the smell of coffee being ground is like nectar to a bee, as does walking into I Camisa, also on Old Compton Street, this one of her regular haunts for Italian food produce.

So she's got to 'rock-n-roll' and I'm going to perch on bucket, a favourite place of mine, and wait for her to come home. Then no doubt, she'll give you folks the two recipes that she gave to a friend of hers who rang and asked her advice about what to drink with that Spicy Meringue.

And this last snippet is for a certain friend who knows who she is, she wrote in an email to us yesterday "that you two are so REAL", that dearest, old friend we most certainly are, there is nothing fakey-makey about us.. and we either love you or we don't and we most certainly love you!

She's off.. hurry-scurry.. I'm so glad I don't have these things called appointments.

GeeGee Parrot.
April 2nd, 2015.

SHE HAS JUST SQUEAKED IN.. YIPPEE!

Well, this is going to be a mutual admiration club! For the dressmaker loved the fabrics and she loved the dressmaker! So both of them are reallyreally happy! Ain't that nice? And, of boy, is she lucky or what?

Because, just as she used to have, this woman sets a limit on the amount of people she will work for at a time, this is quite right as you cannot work for everybody because you physically cannot make more than a certain amount of clothes at any one time and she has just squeaked in!

They laughed together over memories of Ascot and other 'busy' periods when dressmakers are known to burn the midnight oil and work their fingers to the bone on red-hot sewing machine and pressing boards!

She took a very pretty piece of fabric with her, all her fabrics, except the silks, are 140cms wide and over, it measured just under four metres, enough for a single breasted, quite loosely fitting cardigan jacket, a dress and a skirt. She'll take some, interline it with a soft wadding, line it in a glorious satin and quilt it to make a clutch bag.

There has already been a lot of interest shown in the fabrics by a few of the dressmakers other clients, she'd sent a tasting pack ahead with just a few swatches, everyone thinks they're great, which they are!

It has been another dreadfully windy day, she is SO glad that we're snug as two bugs in our little flat and no longer living in a big, old house in the depths of the country! For much as she LOVED that life growing up in the back of beyond as a kid, it would not suit her now.

The boon-docks don't have everything that is important in her life and the transport is dire.. she'd have to run a car, and, that, she does not want to have to do!

There'd be No Singing With Dementia in a small village, a library van would come maybe once a week, there wouldn't be any middle eastern food shops for her much beloved freekeh, pomegranate syrup and all the other 'foreign' food that we eat on a weekly basis and certainly NO street market with the equivalent of our darling Karen selling six juicy persimmon for a squiddly-diddley.

It is Maundy Thursday tomorrow.. this is always a very busy food shopping day, so we hope you've got your food list done and your meals planned and that you'll squeeze in one or two of our recipes?

We were originally going to go away for Easter but both the train companies that cover the south and west of England have got their lines up for engineering works.. typical.. and they're all involving buses and diversions and are warning customers that prams and buggies will not be able to be carried on these buses.. OH LORDY..

For there would be me in quite a large travelling cage, herself, plus a small case big enough for a toothbrush (joke) and a change of clothing, she's rescheduled our jaunt to deepest Wiltshire and we will go another week end.

Sad but we'll go to our own church and we'll then be able to eat as many Hot Cross Buns as she can find.. for we both love them and ONLY ever eat them in Easter Week.

Busy again tomorrow, she has stuff to drop off at the shop and then has an appointment in the West End in the mid afternoon.. now we're off to play chase the almond and beak an apple, she has a couple of research books that she has to finish.

So it is fare thee well from us and we hope you didn't fall for any of those April Fool jokes? But we thought the car wrapped up in cling-film was a good one!

GeeGee Parrot.
April 1st, 2015.

I'M MY MAMA'S BEST GIRL.. AND YOU ALL LOVE MERINGUES, DON'T YOU?

Yes I'am.. I surely am her best girl and she won't have sniggering and saying that I am her only girl..

But before I start my first post of the day, I have to say that ALL of you are just crazy-daisy about meringues!

For I cannot remember when a post has been read by so many people in such a short period of time. MaryLou is going to use our recipe to make one and wrote that she used to put chocolate chips into the eggwhites and bake them, oh, we love that, for melted chocolate = yum.

Now back to today.

We have had a splendidly 'foolish' start to our April Fools Day, for we awoke quite early but instead of getting up and being 'up and at 'hem', we slipped back into her bed ~ she doesn't fit into mine ~ and snuggled for an hour!

She scritched and scratched my head and neck and very gently stroked underneath my right wing, fiddled with my fast-becoming bald tumtum and rubbed Beaky.. sighhhh. Oh, it is so delicious to be caressed by someone you love, is it not?

We've had egg-the-peg and rye toast, we're just like Jack Sprat and his wife, do you remember who they were? One could only eat the fat and the other could only eat the lean, I get the reallyreally crunchy bits of toast crust, she eats the rest of the slice. We waste nothing!

She has an exciting day today.. for she has known this woman for a long time but never had anything made by her as she always worked with Ros and Caro but today she is taking a piece of fabric down to her new dress maker! And, as she was Jean Muir's head cutter, you know that this fabric is going to turn into being something glorious!

And she's taking several other pieces of fabric with her as the woman said "do bring other fabrics as I know who you are an agent for and am mad about their stuff and I have lots of other clients". That's exciting, isn't it?

Now.. about a week or so ago, I wrote about the wicked west wind.. have you experienced him? He is blowing 'fit to bust' all over our country and it has made her think about those Wind Turbines.. grrr.. you know, those very ugly-buggly tall things that are supposed to generate electricity.

Apparently they are in a dreadful way.. why? Because they can only withstand winds of so many mph or kph and these strong winds are causing them all sorts of trouble. Which takes me back to olden times and how they harnessed water to generate power.. yes, folks.. water mills and of course, wind mills which were also highly effective but a much more sensible design than these new monsters.

Hydro-electricity.. is what we call it now and why are we not utilising it more? For HM The Queen does at Windsor, the river Thames powers a lot of Windsor Castle.

Recently she watched an interesting documentary about a 18th century water mill in Northumberland being renovated and how the wheel and the river now creates ALL of the electricity that is needed to heat, light and power this beautiful old building.

The water in rivers doesn't ever stop flowing, water mills were built on the bit of a river where there is a 'race', aka a drop in the level of the river bed. So as the water flows at speed downhill, the wheel spins as the water forces it around.. and hey presto.. power.

They are not affected by murky or gloomy days, or by too much or too little wind. NO BRAINER..

What is also a no brainer, is that she has to stop tapping this post and get dressed and washed. I know, how shameful, we're still lolling about and it is nearly midday! But behaviour of this type is what happens when you stay up late finishing a thriller-diller.. aka book.

So she must get a'going and I'll just continue with addressing.. aka beaking.. my feathers and we are going to come back and tell you all about it when she has been to the dressmaker.

Stretch-n-flap-a-dap, I'm mighty glad I don't have to go out there for it looks mighty windy and very chilly. I'm quite content to stay here and be snug and warm, she can tell me all the news when she gets home.

GeeGee Parrot.
April 1st, 2015.

SPICY MERINGUES.. FOR ONE CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT SPICE IN YOUR LIFE!

Here, Dear Readers, is one of her favourite puds! Spicy Coffee Meringues. Serious stuff.. slurp.

Remember when making meringues, that everything has to be squeaky clean! Your oven should be pre-heated to 120C / 250F / Gas Mark 1/2. You'll need a large mixing bowl, an electric whisk, a large baking sheet with nonstick baking paper and a spatula.

Ingredients:

2 large egg whites.
100g golden caster sugar.
2 tsp of very strong black coffee.
175ml of thick double cream.
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon.
1/2 tsp of ground cardamon.
1/2 tsp of freshly grated nutmeg.
1/2 tsp of Jamaican allspice.
1/4 of slab of dark chocolate to grate and decorate the top together with..
A few dark red pomegranate seeds which would look glorious!

Method:

Whisk the egg whites in mixing bowl until stiff and full of air.
Keep whisking, add the sugar a little at a time but don't bash the air out!
They should look stiff and shiny!
Fold the coffee in gently.

Tip the mixture into the middle of the baking tray, take the spatula, make it round.
DON'T make it smooth! It should have peaks and troughs and look marvellous!
Bake for 90 minutes.
The way to test to make sure it is cooked is to peel a little of the paper away from the base.
The meringue should be dry BUT not rock hard.

Pour the cream into a bowl, fold in spices, whisk together so the cream peaks but is NOT hard.
Chill the cream mixture.

Just before you start your meal, top the meringue off with the spiced cream and grate the chocolate and sprinkle the pomegranate seeds over the top.

Well.. those recipes should do you for March 2015 and give you some yummy meals over the Easter break.

Tomorrow is April Fool's Day and what are YOU planning to do that's 'foolish'? We don't have to plan for she and I can be foolish at the drop of a hat!

GeeGee Parrot.
March 2015.

CRUNCHY-MUNCHIES AS HER MUCH BELOVED HAY DARLING USED TO CALL THEM

Do you have a favourite treat that you love to munch?  A little special something that puts the world to rights? This recipe was given to her by Hay darling.. aka her most beloved and much adored aunt.

Preheat your oven to 180C / Gas mark 4. You'll need a mixing bowl, a buttered baking tray, a broad knife and a mug of very hot water.

Ingredients:

50g insalted butter.

50g of lard (!).

50g caster sugar.

100g of plain flour.

50g of rolled oats.

1 tbsp of cocoa powder.

2 tbsp of golden syrup dissolved in 1tbsp of hot water.

Extra for the cream filling:

25g unsalted butter.

50g icing sugar.

1tbsp cocoa powder.

Vanilla extract a few drops.

Rum preferably dark.. a few drops

Method.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, lard and sugar until fluffy, slowly work in sifted flour, cocoa, oats and golden syrup.

Put the mix out onto the work surface and divide. Roll the mix into balls the size of a cherry.

Place them onto the buttered baking tray and flatten them gently with a broad knife, dip your knife into the mug of how water to stop them sticking to the dough.

Bake for 20 - 25 minutes until they are puffed up and set.

Remove and allow to cool on drying racks.

Cream filing:

Cream butter until it is very soft, add icing sugar, add sifted cocoa powder, rum and vanilla extract.

Beat together until light and fluffy.

Gently place the filling onto a biscuit and then place another on top.

Oh.. how she misses this lovely woman.. in our bedroom there are two picture of her. 

The big one was taken on the day of Hay's marriage (to her uncle Leslie), the colour print was taken by her in the summer of 2002. She was so special.. so brave.. so funny.. so naughty.. so kind.. so adored and so loving.. it is hard to live without being loved or having someone to love.. so it is a good thing she has me and that I have her.

Sniff.. I hope that you'll make and eat Hay's Crunchy-Munchies and think of those you love.

GeeGee Parrot.

March 31st, 2015.

GRANNY'S SHORTBREAD..

This is going to be a reallyreally small post, it is past ten of the evening clock and she is off to bed, as am I but but we did say that you would have this tonight.. so here it is!

Preheat your oven to 160C / Gas Mark 6.

You will need a square baking tray of about 18 cms and a mixing bowl and clean hands..

Ingredients:
200g of PLAIN flour.
100g of cut up / cubed unsalted butter.
50g caster sugar.

Method:
Sift flour into a mixing bowl, stir in sugar.
Rub butter into sugared flour until mix comes together.
Press and smooth mix into baking tray.
With a sharp knife cut mix into sections / fat fingers BUT do not cut all the way through.
Lightly prick a pattern into mix with a sharp fork.
Bake for 12 - 14 minutes until pale gold.
Take out of the oven, allow to cool and break shortbread.

There you are folks.. Florence's very quick and utterly-butterly delicious Shortbread.

We're off and away with the Fairies to 'ninny-bye-land' aka going to bed!

GeeGee Parrot.
March 30th, 2015.

EASTER & CHOCOLATE GO TOGETHER BUT YOU DON'T JUST HAVE TO EAT EGGS.. I'M GIVING YOU THE RECIPE FOR A SUGAR FREE CHOCOLATE MOUSE!

I know.. Of course I know that is not how you spell Mousse but Mouse and Eggs are both animal related, are they not? And I am an animal.. gettit! Perhaps not, which is why sometimes she looks at me, shakes her head and laughs!

And here, just in time for you to get your Easter cooking act together and with no more froll-de-roll is a crackin' (those egg-the-pegs are still trying to roll in again) recipe for a sugar free dark chocolate mousse.

Make this delicious pudding the day before you want to eat it as it needs time to set and allow the flavours of the chocolate and liqueur to mix.

You will need  either a proper bain marie or a small mixing bowl which will sit wedged into the saucepan. The pan should have hot water in it that does NOT touch the bottom of the bowl.

Tools:
Bowl, saucepan, wooden spoon, spatula, glass bowl or ramekins. Should serve 4.

Ingredients:
225 dark chocolate - NOT cooking chocolate - broken into small bits.
1 tablespoon of rum or another liqueur. Kirsh would be FAB as dark choc + cherries = slurp.
4 large eggs separated.
Cold water.

Method:
Place chocolate into the bowl together with 4 tbsp of cold water, put bowl on top of the hot water in the pan and allow the chocolate to melt slowly and then stir in the liqueur.
Let the chocolate mix cool and then beat the egg yolks in one at a time.
Whisk the egg whites until very stiff and add a good spoonful the chocolate mix to loosen it up a bit.
Then add the chocolate mix to the rest of the whisked egg whites and fold them together.
Pour the mixture into either a pretty glass bowl or ramekins and chill.

IT is, from the look on people's faces who have eaten it here, pretty tasty! We like tasty food in this house.

And so we are going to spread as much of it around the world by giving you, Dear Readers, some of our favourite recipes and so the very next tasty recipe coming your way will be Florence's recipe for Shortbread.. which she makes and then dips one end into dark chocolate.. to Gild the Lily as it were.

So go slowly and come back quickly.. for I'll be posting that one later this evening but now I must go as she is off with her bag of tricks to give Susan a pedicure.

GeeGee Parrot.
March 30th, 2015.
PostScript: Florence was her Grandmother, mother of Constance.

FOR ALL SHE KNOWS.. YOUR TONGUE MAY BE HANGING OUT & YOU DYING FOR WANT OF A RECIPE!

Seeing as how all the members of the Nightshade family, potatoes, peppers and tomatoes etc are highly toxic for her, think of severely sore joints and swollen fingers, she scratches old brain and has to find ways with other vegetables to make delicious things to eat.

And this recipe is truly great.. Read on, Dear Readers, read on and remember to go and buy a few sweet potatoes this week. The amount given should feed four, unless you're greedy like us!

Ingredients needed are:

Preheat oven to 200C / 400F / Gas mark 6. Plus a grill.

2 Sweet potatoes - wash well,  leave their skins on and cut into two lengthways.
1Tbsp of vegetable oil.
1 Tsp of coriander seeds crushed.
Large pinch of ground cinnamon.
Fresh thyme sprigs.
1Tbsp of creme fraiche.
2 Tbsp of soft white breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp of parmesan - freshly grated.
Salt & pepper.

Method:

Mix vegetable oil, crushed coriander seeds, cinnamon, thyme, good pinch of salt & pepper.
Rub this mix all over the sweet potatoes.
Put onto a baking tray, cut side up and roast for 40 minutes.
Take potatoes out of oven, turn on the grill to a medium heat.
Scoop flesh out of the skins, try not to damage the skins.
Stir the flesh with the creme fraiche, adjust the seasoning.
Put the flesh into the skins.
Then sprinkle the bread crumbs and parmesan on top.
Grill for 5 minutes, they should be crisp and golden.

Now.. don't squeak and say we never give you anything! For this is a truly fabulous dish to make ahead of time and it's easy-peasy to boot!

She has her nose into a 'Who dun'it', there'll be no sense out of her this afternoon, 'tis a good thing I've got so many feathers to preen and a comfy old door to sit upon whilst I do it. BusyBusy.. I hope you are too or are having a quick nipnet (drink) before you have to go and feed you and yours?

We generally only eat twice a day, we break our fast and then we have a late lunch, supper is usually an apple, a scrap of cheese and some nuts. Mind you, I haven't ever heard her say "no thank you" when invited out to supper and we do, occasionally, have people to supper here.

But that won't happen anytime in the near future, for our pretty sitting room is a 'factory' at the moment and then it will be turned into a plant room with seedlings everywhere jostling for light.

Gardening to be truthful, which you always should be, is hard work but the rewards are tremendous. For your own home grown: Herbs, flowers, fruit and vegetables are, simply, the best. You've just got to get down and dirty and do it and now she has got over the fear of finding little shed vandalised and the plots in a reallyreally bad way, which they aren't, that's where you'll find us, when we're not otherwise engaged, down on the plots by the A316!

GeeGee Parrot.
March 29th, 2015.