violette

I've been disgraceful absent from these pages however, I've not been idle. Oh no, I've been stuffing my face with violet creams.


I made my fist batch of these for my Granny's 93rd Birthday last month. She is a big fan of the violet cream and when I saw the recipe in Life is Sweet I knew I had to try them. Miss Hope calls for violet syrup and suggests Confiserie Florian which looks lovely but the postage to the UK is trop cher mes amis.


So I went on the hunt for something else. There are several violet liqueurs out there (violet cocktails are tres chic the noo, apparently). I was a little concerned that a liqueur might not be as strongly flavoured as the confectioner's syrup and contacted Miss Hope for her reassuring expert advice before settleing for Lejay Lagoute's Parfait Amour.

The liqueur worked perfectly. I used the recipe for the rose creams (which ups the syrup or liqueur to icing sugar ratio) but  I did need to add a good bit more icing sugar to make the paste knead-able. Apart from that they were ridiculously easy to make. My first batch were ever so pretty and mostly given away but the second lot (for my Birthday) were made on a day too hot for sucessful chocolate en-robement. They were no beauties, but I managed them. I used the same Waitrose Continental dark chocolate as I did in this post and it's slightly bitter edge was a delicious compliment to the suggary, perfumed fondant.
Sweet amour.

Springtime Jamboree!

The past few weeks I've been excitedly getting ready for the first ever Made in the Shade, Edinburgh shindig coming up this weekend. It's the first time I've 'made for the shade' and I've been living up to my nom de plume to get new brooches, tablecloths and showercaps (!?!) ready for Saturday. Yikes!

There'll be lots to keep you entertained with a Made in the Shade Matinee Show by Piney Gir at 2pm, Auntie M's delightful cake lounge, Flora the Tombola, and some Country Crafting - as if 39 crafty sellers aint enough! Find a full list of shady vendees' on MITS's bountiful blog here.

I canny wait!!!

thinking bad thoughts

I've taken my good old time to share this with you...

Well, the thought came to me one sublimely ordinary afternoon. There I was, making a wee cup of tea and a little 'something' to keep my pedal foot peddling and that presser-foot pressing (sweat-shop talk). I figured a couple of wee digestives with banana-on-top would be just the right kinda old-school treat. 

[CUE eerie strings] So, I took a McVitie's from the tin, un-peeled a banana and just as I reached for the butter dish, a terrible notion came over me. As if guided by some inner demon I opened the fridge door and drifted towards it's chilly glow. My hand reach out for the jar of Bonne Maman Confiture de Caramel!   [CUE duh duh duhh!]  I tried. I tried with all my strength to put it back. "No!" I said "Get tae Waitrose - I don't need you - I can live without you!" But I was in it's clutches - it had me and pretty soon, I had the double cream. And lo the lazy-girls-banoffee-travel-pie was born!!!

So easy it makes me wonder why anyone went to the effort of making an actual PIE pie at all? A couple of digestives spread with caramel (you don't need me to tell you how thick to spread it now do you?), a few slices of banana and a blanket of lightly whipped double cream. Ta. Da. On my first attempt, I just poured the cream on. That went everywhere. So, for purely technical reasons - I'd whip it a little.

To be honest, I hadn't thought much of the good mother's caramel goo until then. I actually bought it for the jar (I have an, aherm, collection). It's pants on toast (don't waste your time) but redeemed itself when I plastered it on some left over puff pastry, layered a thinly sliced apple, scattered on a handful of raisins, a dusting of cinnamon and laid a straggly lattice of pastry trimmings over the top. Oh and baked it. That was rather good.


The secret, I think is to add Bonne Maman Confiture de Caramel to something slightly sweet already (croissants, brioche mibby?) as although it is richly caramel-y it's actually not TOO sweet. I wonder what the French would do? Dear reader - I intend to find out!

put a little bow on it

I found this little cutie pie in The Sentry Box whilst snooping about Glasgow's West End the other week (see some lovely photos of the shop here). I said: "you'll go perfect in my kitchen". She was a steal for mearly 99p and with a little recycled ribbon from my ever growing ribbon box I have a brand new "must bake" reminder on my wall. As if I needed the encouragement.

I am a greedy hoarder of trimmings and things and I'm always a little reluctant to use them up. Surely the purpose of having a stash it being able to dip into it? But no, I just like knowing it's there. Not that my ribbons are all that special - I mostly snip the hanger ties out of my tops! But every so often I tug a bit out and be-ribbon something or other. Here was a bag of Parkhead Humbugs: 

So what is in my cake tin, I here you ask? This bready Breakfast Banana Loaf from BBC Good Food. Without the glaze, it's a good not too sweet one using wholemeal flour making it rather, well - wholesome. I especially like the inclusion of the word "breakfast" it adds a certain justification to having it at any old time of the day (or night). My only issue was with the tin size (when is a pound not 450g?) so have a couple of fairy cake cases ready for the extra mix, I say. Which reminds me...

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free-flowing frills

1. Desert Button Up from Red Lips Vintage 2. Gingham and Ruffles from mustardseedvintage 3. Dale Evans Red Gingham from VixVintage 4. Ruffled Blouse from MariesVintage 5. Pink Button Up from tobedetermined 6. Prismatique Rainbow from slubird 7. Embroidered Mexican Blouse also from mustardseedvintage 8. Alice Blouse in Silk from ForetLA 9. Little House Blouse by faithfullvintage


It's that time of year when the weather has got just about warm enough for me to start thinking about casting-off my simmet and consider something more (dare I say it...) - summery. I've been looking to Etsy for inspiration. Ok, some of these aren't high-summery but anything where I can ditch the cardi and free up those frills speaks of summer to me. 


My wardrobe has been seriously lacking in refreshment of late although I have high hopes of fashioning some new stuff myself. Not sure I'll even manage Me-Made-May Lite but if I actually manage to make and finish this top it will be a distinct improvement. Stay tuned. 


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baby bunting

A very exciting week ended with a brand new person to meet. I'd already planned a visit (and the requisite accompanying cake) but a speedy delivery meant the demerara lemon cake had a whole new celebratory purpose! So I rigged up some baby-sized bunting for the very special occasion. 


Long instructions but easy-peasy really:
I used coloured writing paper: made a 5cm wide strip, and marked 2.5cm sections. Sniped them off and folded in two then trimmed from the edge of the fold to the centre of the open edge.    Scribbled on "boy oh boy" in coloured pencil (both sides), folded them over a piece of embroidery thread and prit-stick-ed. The poles are two bamboo skewers trimmed down (I lightly sanded the ends but this is ridiculous) and given a little notch in the top with a stanley knife (mind you fingers please) tied a little knot on the thread et voila!


I didn't know of the American folk song 'Bye, Baby Bunting' other than its brief mention in Janet and Allan Ahlberg's Each Peach Pear Plum. But I came across it again in Little House on the Prairie, which I read for the first time last week. I was totally taken by the pioneer spirit and real DIY ethos of Pa and Ma as well as the lovely descriptions of the changing seasons. I heard the geese flying north yesterday and thought of Laura and Mary and the wide-open skies. 


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elevenses: marmalade sandwiches and bears from darkest peru

There's nothing quite like marmalade sandwiches in the morning. For me it has to be a mid-morning, between-tasks kind of a snack. It's not a rushing-out-the-door option but something to be savoured. Which I think the most famous advocate of the marmalade sandwich would agree with me on. Not that he was the inspiration for this childhood delicacy, but rather it is a fondness we share in common like duffel coats, wellingtons and I am delighted to discover: wicker shopping trolleys.

Other marmalade related themes:

I've been meaning to try out Dan Lepard's Marmalade Chelsea Buns and get over my fear of yeast baking (there I've said it). I'm currently waiting for an excuse to try them out. 

I'm also looking for an excuse to buy some fabric (on bottom left) which I've been picking up and putting down in John Lewis for the past few months. What's putting me off is that I have no clue what to use it for (kids apron pocket?) and it's also one of those darned expensive crafting cottons. But its got me and given I found it so hard to find on the interweb - I may just have necessitated that buying decision.

All of which reminds me that I photographed this shop  the other day (I'm thinking of starting a series on my favourite Edinburgh shop fronts) and who should I spy in the window but Paddington's Aunt Lucy who also happens to be my calendar-girl for March.