One of the things I love most about Spring . . . next to the sunny days, flowers, rhubarb, bumbley bees and blue skies . . . is fresh aspagagus!!



I could eat it every night of the week and never get tired of it. I know you can get it all year round, but I prefer to only eat English Asparagus . . . in season. Nothing tastes better in all the earth.



It hasn't spent weeks being Shipped and held in warehouses before it reaches the shop shelves. In most cases it's only just been picked within a few days or so. The flavour is incredible!



Of course it would be even better if I had Asparagus growing in my back garden, but alas . . . I don't and so I buy it at the shops.



I just adore it roasted until it is crispy tender . . . the flavour is beautiful, and when you toss it with a tasty lemon, honey and mustard vinaigrette, some toasted almonds and flaked Parmesan Cheese, you have something very special indeed!



*Roasted Aspagarus Salad with Parmesan and a Lemon Vinaigrette*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

A stunning springtime favourite with a delicious honey lemon vinaigrette dressing, shaved Parmesan cheese and crunchy toasted almonds!

For the vinaigrette:
2 lemons, halved crosswise
1 TBS Dijon mustard
1 shallot, peeled and finely minced
125ml extra virgin olive oil (1/2 cup)
1 to 2 TBS liquid honey
fine seasalt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Salad:
2 pounds of fresh aspagarus, trimmed of woody ends and
the points on the stems trimmed off
(They have a tendancy to be bitter at times)
50ml of extra virgin olive oil (1/4 cup)
1 1/2 ounces flaked almonds, toasted
7 ounces of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, shaved

Heat your oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Toss the trimmed asparagus together with the olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper on a rimmed baking sheet. Place into the heated oven and roast for about 12 minutes, until crispy tender.

While the asparagus is roasting make the dressing. Juice the lemons into a bowl, making sure you don't have any pips. Whisk in the shallots, honey and Dijon mustard. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until the mixture is emulsified. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Divide the roasted Asparagus between six serving plates in a decorative way. Drizzle each with some of the vinaigrette, drizzling some on the plate as well. Sprinkle with the nuts and shaved Parmesan. Serve immediately.

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The people from Shrewd PR representing Eddingtons sent me some of their newest summer range of goods to test out the other day. I love it when that happens! I have had a lot of fun trying everything out.



First up was a lovely set of glass cruets . . . 4 in the beautifully shaped Firenze pattern and 4 in the Venezia pattern. Both came in a lovely assortment of colours . . . ruby red, pale yellow, bottle blue and light green. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but very useful as well. They have lovely pouring spouts and seals . . . just perfect for taking cold drinks on a picnic or for use as vinegar and oil cruets on the salad table! I just love them.



Included as well was this lovely Salad Spinner by Tovolo! Not only is it quite large in size, holding 5 quarts of salad leaves etc., but it is collapsible!! Yes, you are not imagining things. I did say that . . . it's completely collapsible.



Here it is flat! Only about 3 inches tall, and very easy to store, not taking up much space at all! That means a lot to me in my kitchen as I have very little storage space, so anything that doesn't take up a lot of room makes me happy.



It very quickly pops out into a full size salad spinner! Very attractive!! Some other features are:

1. Effortlessly fast spinning - does the job efficiently and quickly
2. Pull-string handle with in-built brake mechanism
3. Bowl makes an attractive salad server, too
4. Good quality, robust item which is built to last



It is very easy to use. The pull toggle is effortless and the button for stopping the spinning works really well also. I really, really like it!! I love Tovolo everything! Real quality stuff! I like the funky green colour as well. I tried to take a movie of me spinning it, but . . . it's hard to pull the cord and press record on my camera at the same time. It just wasn't happening!

They also sent some lovely Tovolo Ice Lolly Molds.

The Jewel Pop Molds are not only cute but fun as well. They look like big diamond rings. I just know the kiddies will love iced treats made in these!



I made some little adult type of Watermelon ices in them for today. You could do any flavour you want and they are just a nice small size and so fun to wear!



*Minted Watermelon Pops*
Makes 8
Printable Recipe

Easy to make, low in fat and beautifully refreshing!

1 1/2 pound of seedless watermelon, rind removed and flesh cut into 1 inch dice
2 TBS sugar
a handful of mint leaves, minced (about 1/4 cup)
2 tsp finely grated fresh lemon zest
pinch salt

Place the melon and sugar into a blender. Blitz until smooth. Stir in the mint, lemon zest and salt. Pour the puree into 8 popsicle molds and freeze until hard, about 3 hours. Use within a week.

They also sent a set of Ice Cream Pops freeze molds. They are so cute! They look just like Ice Cream Cones!



I did some really fun frozen Yogurt pops in them! They turned out really nice too! I did layers with the top layer being apricot and the bottom layer, summer berries. They can be low fat as well, especially if you use the low fat yogurt.



*Fruity Frozen Yogurt Pops*
Makes 8
Printable Recipe

Creamy and refreshing and good for you too, especially if you use low fat yogurt!

1 cup of fresh ripe fruit, chopped ( nectarines, mango, pineapple, strawberries, kiwi, etc.)
12 fluid ounces of plain yogurt ( 1 1/2 cups. I like Greek)
3 fluid ounces of liquid honey (1/3 cup)
1 tsp vanilla

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and blitz until smooth. Pour into 8 popsicle (ice lolly) molds. Insert sticks and then freeze for 4 hours until frozen solid.

Note: I like to use two kinds of fruit, so I divide everything in half and the fruit in half as well, blitzing twice, once with half the ingredients and one type of fruit, and then the second time with the other half of the ingredients and another type of fruit. I then layer them into the popsicle molds. Top with the lids and freeze.

I was a little concerned that they might be difficult to release, but both types released very easily and I ended up with perfect ice lollies! I was most impressed!

Each mold can be reoved separately, so you can enjoy one pop at a time, and the built in drips guards put an end to sticky fingers!

So you can see I am all set now for some summer fun! Many thanks to the people at Eddingtons and Shrewd PR for allowing me try these lovely things out! I was very impressed with everything and highly recommend!

It is no secret . . . my mother makes the best baking powder biscuits in the world! There is no denying it.



Light, flakey and oh so scrummy . . . with soups, with stews, and on their own . . .
Served up warm with butter and honey . . . or some preserves . . . my . . . my . . . my. You just can't beat them!



There's no surprises here. They're really quite simple, nothing too out of the ordinary, but there are a few tricks to the success of them.



First, light handling. Don't be rough with them. A light touch is the secret behind the flakiness . . . too much handiwork and you get a tough biscuit.



If you want straight sided, tall biscuits . . . pat them out fairly thick, 1/2 inch will do and then cut them with a sharp tap down with the biscuit cutter . . . carefully lift the cutter straight up again. Don't twist, or you'll get lopsided.



Oh they'll still taste delicious, but aesthetically speaking . . . straight sided look oh so much better.



Yep . . . my mom does make the best baking powder biscuits in the world . . . and now you can too!



*Mom's Baking Powder Biscuits*
Makes about 36
Printable Recipe

My mom makes the best baking powder biscuits in the world. Now you can too.

17 ounces plain flour (4 cups)
8 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 TBS granulated sugar
8 ounces white shortening (1 cup)
2 large free range eggs
12 fluid ounces milk (1 1/2 cups)

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. You will need several large baking sheets. No need to grease them.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a bowl. Drop in the shortening and cut it in with two round bladed knives or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat together the milk and eggs until well combined. Add to the dry mixture and stir with a fork until you have a soft dough. You may not need all the liquid. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead a few times. Pat out to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out with a sharp 2 inch round cutter, giving the cutter a sharp tap straight down and up without twisting. (Twisting will give you lop sided biscuits.) Place onto the baking sheets, leaving some space inbetween the biscuits for crispy all around biscuits, or close together for soft sided biscuits.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until well risen and browned. Serve warm. Any leftovers can be stored in an airtight container and reheated in the microwave for a few seconds. These also freeze really well.

Know what I love even more than Hot Cross Buns???? Hot Cross Bun Loaf!! Oh, I know . . . it's store bought and not homemade . . . but . . .



Just look at it close up. It's soft and spicy and absolutely bursting with currants and sultanas! I think it's just wonderful and so does Todd! Our local butcher had it on special last week at two loaves for 99pence, so what could I do, but buy two!



We've had it for breakfast, lightly toasted and spread with butter. We've had it for our evening bedtime snack, again lightly toasted and spread with butter. I've eaten it right out of the bag . . . it's so soft and yummy . . .



AND then I decided to make some scrummy French Toast with it . . . but not just any French Toast . . . a French Toast stuffed with low fat cream cheese and jam. Normally I would have used apricot jam for this . . . but alas . . . I had run out and so I used berries and cherries jam. It was really good too.



Oh my but it was some good. We actually had it for our tea the other night with some grilled sausages, but I reckon it would make a fabulous holiday breakfast for the children on Easter morning.



What do you think?? I'm thinking the kids would love it!



*Hot Cross French Toast*
Serves 4, but easily mulitplied to feed more
Printable Recipe

It just wouldn't be Easter without it!

8 sliced hot cross bun bread (can use raisin bread if you
can't get the hot cross bun bread)
4 ounces cream cheese
4 TBS of your favourite jam
3 large free range eggs
2 ounces milk (1/4 cup)
1 TBS butter
1 TBS oil
Icing sugar to dust (optional)

Lay 4 slices of the bread out. Spread these with the cream cheese, spreading it right to the edges, but having it a bit thicker in the centres. Spoon a TBS of jam in the middle of each one and spread it out a bit, but not all the way to the edge. Top with the remaining slices of bread. Press down slightly to make them stick together around the edges.

Beat the eggs and milk together until smooth.

Heat the butter and oil together over medium heat until the butter begins to foam.

Dip each cheese and jam sandwich into the beaten mixture, one at a time, allowing the egg mixture to soak in a bit on each side and on the edges. Fry them one at a time in the butter/oil mixture, browning them on each side and then placing into a warm oven while you prepare the rest.

Dust with some icing sugar if using, and serve hot with syrup and cooked sausages.



Happy Easter!

When I was a girl, my mother often made us Cinnamon Rolls for a treat . . . not the yeast kind, mind you . . . but the kind made with scone dough. Easy peasy lemon squeasy, and no waiting for the dough to rise and all that faff! We loved them.



What we loved even more was the name my father had for them . . . "Pets de Nonne", or translated into English . . . "Nun's Farts." I know, terribly rude . . . but to a child quite hilarious, bringing us no end of giggles. As Todd would say . . . typical Canadian humour . . . n'est ce pas?



Anyways, they were delicious regardless to the name and we would scarf them down in no time. I often made them for my own children as well . . . but we called them . . . Cinnamon Rolls. 'Nuff said.



Today I got to thinking what if I filled them with something different. I had some white chocolate chips and I have tons of sour cherries and so I decided to combine the two . . . I didn't think cinnamon would be that good with them though . . .



Not that it would taste really bad . . . but I wanted something moreishly different . . . something that would smell just as enticing while they were baking, but that would perfectly enhance the sweetness of the white chocolate and the tartness of the sour cherries.



Ground Cardamom. PERFECT!!

Easy peasy, lemon squeasy and every bit as delicious as the originals . . . and maybe even more so . . . well, all depending on what kind of mood you are in at any rate! I dare say dried blueberries would also be very scrummy done this way! Oh and Dried Strawberries would be just gorgeous with the cardamom!




*White Chocolate, Sour Cherry and Cardamom Rolls*
Makes 12
Printable Recipe

These smell heavenly when they are baking and are scrummy yummy!

8.5 ounces plain flour (2 cups)
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2.5 ounces white shortening (1/3 cup)
6 ounces milk

To fill:
3 TBS softened butter
3 3/4 ounces soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup, packed)
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
6 ounces white chocolate chips (1 cup)
3 ounces of dried sour cherries, chopped (1/2 cup packed)

To glaze:
4 ounces of icing sugar, sifted
milk

Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Butter a baking sheet. Set aside.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add enough of the milk to make a soft dough. You may not need it all. Turn out onto a floured board and knead several times. Pat out into a 12 by 8 inch rectangle.

Spread with the softened butter. Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over top. Sprinkle the cardamom evenly over top. Scatter the chocolate chips and cherries over top. Roll up as for a jelly roll from the long side, rolling it tightly and sealing the edges. Slice into 12 even slices with a sharp knife. Place cut side down onto the baking sheet, leaving space in between each one.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until well risen and lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Whisk together the icing sugar and enough milk to make a smooth drizzle. Drizzle this over the warm rolls. Serve warm. Delicious!

Note - If you haven't got any in make sure you go out and buy a couple of hot cross bun loafs today or cinnamon raisin loafs! You won't want to miss out on the recipe I am posting tomorrow! Perfect for an Easter morning breakfast!

Take your eyes off the steak. This is not about the steak. It's all about the sauce . . . truly.



If you want to know how to cook a really good steak, you can check out my recipe here. But . . . don't leave just yet . . . keep your eyes on this page, coz you're in for a real treat.




If you are looking for the perfect sauce to serve with your grilled meats this summer, look no further. This is spicy, and sweet and oh so delicious!



The ingredient list may seem a bit odd, but trust me . . . it's fabulous. Your guests will be wondering what your secret is . . . and they'll be most surprised when you tell them that it is raspberry jam. Yep!!



Raspberry jam! Who'd a thunk it! Dig in!! (Oh, and for the record, I do love my steaks a tad bit on the rare side!)



*Sweet and Spicy Steak Sauce*
Makes 4 servings
Printable Recipe

A wonderfully delicious steak sauce that helps to bring out the best flavours in your grilled steaks! The ingredients may sound a bit odd, but trust me when I say this is fabulous!

2 TBS seedless raspberry jam
2 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
2 TBS Worcestershire Sauce
2 TBS Tomato Ketchup
2 TBS malt vinegar
5 drops of Tabasco sauce
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes until nicely thickened. Serve warm with grilled meats.