When I was a child I just adored the story of Mary Poppins. I had been given the first book in the series as an award for good work at the end of the school year in Grade 2 and I practically wore out the pages, reading it over and over again. Oh how I longed for a nanny such as Mary Poppins . . .



The book was filled to the brim with wonderful characters and adventures, pictures and fabulous treats.



Characters such as Mrs Corry, an extremely old woman who ran a sweet shop with her two large daughters . . . A magical sweet shop where you could purchase such lovely delights and cakes such as Gingerbread Stars . . . Star shaped little gingerbread cakes, adorned with golden paper stars . . .



But not just any golden paper stars . . . these ones were special, for, on any given night one could see ( and only if they were very, very observant) . . . the little old lady perched on a very tall ladder pasting the gold stars in the sky along with the help of Miss Poppins herself . . .



How could one resist such a recipe. Taken from the book Mary Poppins in the Kitchen, a cookery book with a story.

This brought back childhood memories and imaginations . . . wonderfully spicy and the perfect accompaniment to an afternoon hot cup of whatever strikes your fancy!



*Gingerbread Stars*
Makes 2 six inch stars or one 7 inch cake
Printable Recipe

Deliciously spicy no matter what the shape!

105g of plain flour (3/4 cup)
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp each of ground nutmeg, ground cloves and ground allspice
a small handfull of sultanas
4 TBS butter
85g of soft dark brown sugar, (1/2 cup packed)
2 TBS dark treacle (dark molasses)
1 large egg, beaten
baking sheet, lightly buttered and dusted with flour
2 6-inch star shapes buttered and floured, or 1 7-inch sandwich cake tin

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/gas mark 4. Prepare the star shapes, and place on the buttered and floured baking pan, alternately prepare the sandwich tin. Set aside.

Sift the flour into a bowl along with the spices and the soda. Set aside.

Melt the butter and the brown sugar together. Allow to cool, then beat in the molasses and the egg. Stir into the flour mixture and beat with a wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in the sultanas.

Divide the batter equally amongst the star shapes or pour into the baking tin. Bake the stars in the heated oven for 30 minutes and the cake for about 40. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Some days just scream out picnic. Days when the sun is shining and you've got nothing to do. Days like today. Today are our designated day off. Today the sun was shining. Today we went on a picnic. You don't have to go anywhere special to have a picnic. I have held many picnics through the years on our lounge carpet . . . it's all in the spirit of things . . . not the venue. Picnics can be held in the rain under an umbrella on a park bench . . . Picnics can even be held around the kitchen table. It's all about having a picnic state of mind!! You can have a picnic all by yourself, although undoubtedly, a picnic shared is much preferred . . . or maybe not. It all depends on the mood I suppose. Picnics are all about the food, really. Finger food. Happy food. Tasty, scrummy holiday food. Food just like this fantastically delicious tuna baguette! Filled with lots of lovely flavours . . . lemon, onion, celery, mayo, sweet pickle, Dijon mustard . . . Let's not forget the tuna! It goes without saying that you want the finest tuna for this scrummy sandwich. I like to use albacore tuna. An old Italian woman once told me that this was the only kind of tuna worth eating. I happen to concur. *Tasty Tuna Baguettes* Serves 2 hungry eaters, or 4 so-so eaters Printable Recipe Perfect picnic sandwich. Todd can eat a whole one of these. Sometimes I can too. It all depends on how hungry I am and how far we have walked. 1 225g jar of albacore tuna in olive oil (Drain well and flake) 1 spring onion, trimmed and finely chopped 1 small stalk of celery, trimmed and finely chopped the juice of half a lemon 2 TBS ultra low fat mayonnaise 2 TBS pickled gerkin relish (Branstons makes a good one) 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper seasoning salt to taste 1 tsp Dijon mustard few drops of Tabasco sauce shredded lettuce (several handfuls) 2 fresh baguettes (about 9 inches long) softened butter or olive oil spread Drain the tuna well and then flake it into a bowl. Squeeze the lemon juice over top and toss. Add the remaining ingredients except for the lettuce and baguettes. Mix together well. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Cut the baguettes in half through the middle. Lightly butter with the softened butter or olive oil spread. Divide the shredded lettuce between the two, and then top each with half of the tuna mixture. Press the tops of the baguettes over top of the tuna and then cut in half diagonally to serve.

Eleven a.m. and I am longing for custard creams. I don't drink tea or coffee, but still partake of the wonderful British tradition of elevensies . . .




That well earned (or not) break in the morning where you sit down with a nice hot cuppa, a moreish nosh or two and put your feet up for a few . . .



There is not a biscuit in the house, except perhaps for a few broken digestives in the bottom of the tin . . . I eat those, but . . . as good as they are . . . they are not custard creams . . . and I want custard creams . . .



Out comes the scales, bowls, and measuring spoons. There is nothing for it but to make my own . . . I know I can do it.

I am like that little train that keeps on chugging up the hill . . . I think I can, I think I can, I think I can . . .



Not quite custard creams, but in some ways similar. I may even like these better . . .

Not too sweet, but short and buttery, with just the faintest hint of custard in the moreishly scrummy biscuits . . . the custard flavour coming through in that luciously rich filling.



mmm . . . a mightly tasty crumbily scrummily delicious mouthful. I can't stop at one . . .

and neither will you.



*Custard Buttons*
Makes about 20 double biscuits
Printable Recipe

Deliciously short and buttery with a lucious cream centre, tasting of custard. Fabulous!

6 ounces plain flour (1 1/4 cups)
3 TBS custard powder (you want the stuff that comes in the cardboard
container, not the sachets you add hot water to, you want proper custard powder)
1 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 ounces unsalted butter (4 1/2 TBS), cut into bits
2 1/2 ounces white vegetable fat, such as Trex or White flora (4 1/2 TBS Crisco), cut into bits
3 TBS icing sugar, sifted
1 large free range egg

For the filling:
2 ounces unsalted butter (4 TBS)
1 TBS custard powder
4 ounces icing sugar, sifted (1 cup)
few drops of hot water if necessary

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 5. Line two baking sheets with baking parchment and set aside.

Whisk the flour, custard powder, baking powder and sugar together in a bowl. Drop in the butter and vegetable fat. Rib into the flour mixtue until you have something the consistency of sand. Beat the egg lightly and then stir into the dry mixture, mixing it in well.

Scoop out TBS size pieces of the dough and shape lightly into balls between the palms of your hands. Place about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Press down with a fork which you have dusted in flour each time. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, until well risen and set, but not coloured.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.

Cream the butter, custard powder and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Be patient. It will come together eventually and be lovely. If the mixture still seems a bit stiff, add a few drops of hot water and beat until you have the consistency you are after. Sandwich two biscuits together with this custardy filling and then sit back and enjoy!

I was looking to make us a delicious lunch today, that was not only scrumptious, but also fairly healthy. Todd has been diagnosed with high cholesterol and I am trying to get him to eat a lot healthier. If they can't get his cholesterol down, it will mean him going onto a medication to bring it down. We don't want that if we can help it. (Baking cookies does not help.)



This means using low fat ingredients, and avoiding butter, cheese and fatty meats. No frying etc. You know the drill. Boring . . . when you take the fat and fun out of food, you also take out a lot of the flavour. You have to get it back in there somehow . . .



Going low choleserol is not an easy change to make when you have a man who loves buttered toast with cheese in the evenings, and tinned corned beef sandwiches on buttered bread for lunch.



I had a jar of mostarda di frutta that I had picked up at the store probably about six months ago. A pricey little item, and something that I had not yet used. I also had a package of cooked chicken bits that I wanted to use up, so today I decided to make him a somewhat healthy chicken salad for his lunch.



I used lots of celery and toasted pecans for crunch. I thought the mostarda di frutta would add some interest and a bit of hot sweetness to the mix. It was a fabulous addition . . . I used the plum and orange. I only added a minimum of mayo, and I used the ultra low fat version at that . . .



We were very pleased with the results. Todd really enjoyed this. Of course you could add not so good for you ingredients . . . like chopped grilled bacon or chopped hard boiled egg . . . but in this instance we didn't really miss them.



Chopped apple is also very good in this, or even chopped mustard pickle or chutney.



*Chicken Salad*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe

A delicous chicken salad, filled with flavour, crunch and little surprises!

For the salad:
250g package of cooked chicken breast bits
(about 2 cups)
2 stalks of celery, washed, trimmed and chopped
2 spring onions, washed, trimmed and chopped
a small handful of pecan nuts, toasted and chopped
two fruits from a bottle of mostarda di frutta, chopped
a drizzle of the syrup from the bottle
several dollops of mayonnaise
salt and black pepper to taste

lettuce leaves for serving
a few toasted pecans for garnishing

If your chicken is in large bits, cut it into smaller bits, about 1/2 inch cubes. Place into a bowl along with the remaining ingredients, adding only enough mayonnaise to moisten. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Arrange some lettuce leaves attractively on two chilled salad plates. Divide the chicken salad equally between the plates, placing it on top of the lettuce leaves. Garnish with some chopped toasted pecans if desired.

Note - this also makes a delicious sandwich filling. If you cannot get the mostarda di frutta you can use mustard piccali, if you wish, or you can use a half of an apple, cored and chopped. Leave the skin on for colour. This adds a touch of sweet and crunch.

My Todd is a simple man . . . with traditional tastes and values. He grew up during the War and knows well the deprivations that went along with that era, both during and after the war . . .



It does not take much to please him, and he appreciates most anything you set down in front of him . . .

Just so long as it's not pasta . . . or chocolate.



He even liked school dinners when he was growing up. Not a lot of people did. School dinners have traditionally gotten a bad rap, but not for Todd. He loved them. I suspect I would have probably have loved them too. In any case they would have been better than a cold sandwich and a bruised apple served up in a paper bag, which is what I had!



Anyways, I digress . . . Todd . . . simple man . . . traditional values.

Like bread and butter pudding, which normally has lovely sultanas studded all the way through it. They always kind of burn on the top and get all chewy and scrummy, however . . .

I am not always a traditionalist. I sometimes like to shake the tree a little bit.



Just a little bit mind . . . not so hard that all the coconuts fall out . . . just enough to give things a little bit of a twist . . .



Like your traditional bread and butter pudding. I got to thinking the other day how delicious it would be with a layer of strawberry jam added in the middle . . . kind of like souffled jam sandwiches . . .

all soft and unctuous, with a tasty layer of sweet jam in the middle . . . the custard gently flavoured with lemon zest, cardamom and cinnamon . . . oh and with a traditional dusting of nutmeg on top . . .



This was some good. Warm and comforting and delicious. School room flavours . . . with a grown up touch.

Kind of like a Queen of Puddings . . . without the meringue . . . but somehow better. With just enough spice and lemon to really bring out the lovely strawberry flavour.

It went down a real treat!



*Strawberry Bread and Butter Pudding*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A delicious bread and butter pudding with the added twist of a layer of tasty Strawberry Jam.

1 ounce softened butter, plus extra for buttering the dish
8 thin slices of sturdy white bread
good quality strawberry jam
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
the grated zest of one lemon
12 ounces whole milk
2 ounced double cream
2 large free range eggs
1 ounce caster sugar
grated nutmeg to taste
demerara sugar for sprinkling

Butter a 2 pint pie dish with butter. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/Gas mark 4.

Trim the crusts off of the bread and butter each slice on one side. Spread half of the slices thickly with some strawberry jam, on the unbuttered side. Put together with the other half of the slices like little jam sandwiches, with the buttered sides showing on the outside of each. Cut each sandwich in half diagonally and then place into the prepared dish. Sprinkle with the cinnamon and cardamom.

Place the milk in a pan over low heat. Add the lemon zest. Scald. (Heat just until you see bubbles appearing around the edges. Do not let it boil.) Whisk in the cream.

Break the eggs into a bowl, add the sugar and beat together well. Whisk in the heated milk slowly. Strain the resulting custard into a beaker, then pour this custard over the bread mixture. Let stand for about 30 minutes so that it is absorbed somewhat. Sprinkle with some freshly grated nutmeg and a dusting of demerara sugar.

Place into the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the custard has set and the top is a golden brown. Serve warm.

Well, it's taken several weeks, but I am thankfully back online now! All the boxes are unpacked and we are finally settled into our new home. Well, almost settled anyways!

It's been a whole lot of fun trying to cram all of our belongings into a much smaller place . . . NOT! There's been ever so much we have had to get rid of . . .



The first thing was my lovely electric cooker. Yes . . . I don't know why we didn't notice it before we moved in . . . but . . . there was no point in the kitchen on which to hook up our electric cooker . . . only a gas point.



We ended up having to go out and buy a new gas cooker. It was kind of exciting, really!! Todd wasn't too thrilled about it, but as most women know, there is nothing like a new cooker to put a smile on your face!

I wasn't very smart though . . . there was only a small space to fit one in to and I didn't want to make Todd do a lot of extra work by having to trim the counter edge to fit a large one in and so I went for a more compact model that would easily fit.



Besides . . . it was really cute. I just love toast done under a gas grill . . . sigh . . . that was something I had missed the whole time we were down in Kent . . .

Don't you think it's really cute? I fell in love with the gold buttons and handles and well . . . I just fell in love with everything about the way it looked!



It wasn't until I went to bake something in the oven for the first time that I realized . . . it is much, much smaller inside the oven than what I have been used to. I had thought it was plenty large at the shop . . . but when you take the heat shields into consideration . . . I lose about 6 inches off of the inside.

*Note to self . . . don't get too carried away with how something looks in the future, be a bit more practical and take measurements into consideration.



Half of my pans don't fit. They are too wide and you can't get the door shut with them in it. This meant that I had to go out and buy some new pans. Oh woe is me . . . woe is me . . .



It also means that when I bake a double layer cake, I have to have both layers on different racks in the oven. The top layer bakes quicker than the bottom one . . . so I found myself having to switch the racks halfway through the baking time.

Which was rather dumb of me actually as, in retrospect, I could have just taken the top layer out a bit sooner than the bottom . . . which is what I will do next time.



I was in Lakeland buying some new pans and saw these handy dandy pan liners . . . kind of like big muffin pan liners, but for larger pans and for loaf pans as well. I bought some as I thought it would be a lot quicker to use them than to have to trace and cut baking parchment.



It was quicker, but . . . my cake layers ended up being a bit lopsided. What with the combination of me switching shelves halfway through the baking time and using paper tin liners, it's a wonder my cake turned out at all when I think about it.

It turned out fabulous. Each layer moist and perfectly ribboned with delicious swirls of blackcurrant preserves . . . the centre filling of buttercream and more blackcurrant preserves being oh so yummy, yummy.

This fabulous cake went down a real treat! It was the most perfect way to celebrate a new home and a new beginning!




*Blackcurrant Jam Cake*
Serves 8 to 10
Printable Recipe

A deliciously moist cake, with ribbons of black currant conserve running through the sponge layers, and filled with tasty vanilla butter cream icing and more conserve. Scrummy yummy!!

8 ounces plain flour (1 3/4 cup) (245g)
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
284ml of buttermilk or sour milk (1 1/4 cup)
(to sour the milk add a tsp of lemon juice
Or vinegar to the measure and finish with milk.
Allow to sit for 5 minutes before using)
8 ounces caster sugar (226g, or 1 1/4 cup)
5 ounces butter, at room temperature (142g of 10 TBS)
2 large free range eggs, at room temperature
½ tsp vanilla
4 ounces blackcurrant conserve (about 1/2 cup)

For the butter cream:
2 ounces butter, at room temperature (56g, 1/4 cup, or 4 TBS)
4 ounces icing sugar, sifted (114g or 14 TBS)
A few drops of vanilla
1 tsp milk

To finish:
2 heaped TBS of blackcurrant conserve
Icing sugar to dust over the top
Preheat the oven to 170*C/320*F/Gas Mark 3. Butter and base line two 8 inch sandwich tins.

Place all of the cake batter ingredients, with the exception of the blackcurrant conserve into a large bowl. Beat with an electric whisk for several minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl down now and then, until you have a smooth batter.

Divide the mixture evenly between the two tins. Whisk the conserve with a fork until smooth. Dot over the surface of the cakes into 5 dollops on each. Using a round bladed knife, drag and swirl the jam through the cake.

Bake in the heated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until the cakes test done. The top should spring back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean. Remove from the oven and loosen from the tin. Let rest for about 10 minutes before removing completely to a wire rack to finish cooling.

To make the butter cream, place all of the ingredients into a bowl. Beat well with an electric whisk until it is smooth and fluffy.

Place one of the sponges on a plate. Spread the butter cream over top. Top with the blackcurrant conserve, swirling it over a bit. Top with the remaining sponge, right side up. Lightly dust with icing sugar to serve.

One might be tempted to ask if Whoopie Pies belong in an English Kitchen. I know they are an American Invention, or more specifically Pennsylvania Dutch.

Whoopie Pies are coming in to vogue over here now though, and there are a few recipes floating about. I believe they are on the verge of becoming the new cupcake or macaron . . . but I could be wrong.



This is my recipe that I have been using for a very long time now. In fact my sister and I once both won blue ribbons at our respective county fairs by making these very same whoopie pies. I think we also each got a set of pot holders and an apron from Fry's Cocoa. It was quite a thrill at the time.



Moist, delicious and chocolatey, these are bound to become a real family favourite. You can use purchased Marshallow Cream in them or you can make the recipe for a homemade version of it, which I have included. I had a jar of marshmallow cream that needed using up so that is what I used the other day. In all honesty afterwards I wished that I had made the mousseline buttercream "marshmallow cream" instead . . . but . . . oh well.




They still went down a treat.




*Whoopie Pies*
Makes six 3 1/2 inch whoopie pies
Printable Recipe

More like little chocolate cake sandwiches rather than cookies, I don't know anyone that doesn't love these.

1.5 ounces dark chocolate (at least 60% cacao) chopped
4.2 ounces dark brown muscovado sugar (1/2 cup firmly packed)
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 TBS canola or safflower oil, room temperature
2 TBS butter, room temperature
125g flour (1 cup plus 1 1/2 TBS)
18g cocoa powder (3 TBS plus 2 tsp)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 fluid ounces of buttermilk (1/2 cup)

For the marshmallow filling:

50g sugar (1/4 cup)
2 TBS corn syrup or golden syrup
1 TBS water
1 large egg white, at room temperature
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 TBS unsalted butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
4 ounces of butter, slightly softened (1/2 cup)
1/5 ounces of icing sugar, sifted (1/4 cup plus 2 TBS)

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Butter two baking sheets. Set aside.

Place the chocolate into a microwaveable bowl and melt it in the microwave, stirring every 15 seconds, or place it in the top of a double boiler, set over hot, not simmering water, stirring often. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool until it is no longer warm to the touch but still fluid.

Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Sift to remove any lumps.

Cream together the brown sugar, egg, oil and butter with an electric mixer until smooth and pale in colour.

Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, and beating only until just incorporated, starting on low speed and raising it only to medium speed. Scoop out in 2 TBS rounds onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving lots of space in between.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time. They are done when the tops spring back when lightly touched in the centre.

Remove the cakes to wire racks to cool.

To make the marshmallow filling: Have a pint glass heatproof measure ready. In a small heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, cornsyrup and water. Stir until all the sugar is moistened. Heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar is dissolved, and the mixture is bubbling. Stop stirring and turn out the burner. If using an electric range, remove the pan from the heat altogether.

Beat the egg white in a mixing bowl, on high speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form with the beater is raised slowly. Increase the temperature under the sugar syrup and boil until an instant read thermometer reads 120*C/248*F. Immediately transfer the sugar syrup to the glass measure to stop the cooking.

Beat the syrup into the meringue in a steady stream, trying to avoid letting the syrup hit the beaters as they will spin it onto the sides of the bowl. Lower the sped slightly and continue to beat until the outside of the bowl no longer feels hot. Beat in the 1 TBS of butter until smooth and then beat in the vanilla. Chil for 9 to 10 minutes, until it is cool, but still soft.

In a clean bowl, beat the 4 ounces of butter along with the powdered sugar until soft and creamy. Increase the speed to high and beat until the mixture is very light in texture. Lowser the speed to medium and add all the meringue, beating it in until incorporated and the buttercream is smooth.

Place about 3 gently roundes tablespoons of cream between two cakes to make a sandwich, pressing down slightly so that the cream reaches the edges of the cakes. Repeat with the remaining cakes.



and then . . . they were gone.