As you probably noticed in my earlier post I was recently contacted by Flamingo Gifts and asked if I would like to review a few gifts from their magnificent gift site!   Flamingos stock a varied and unique range of gifts to suit everyone and all occasions. From kitsch to traditional, from adults to children, there is sure to be something on their pages to suit just about every taste. Really, really  lovely things.  I was hard pressed to pick a few items as there were just so many nice items to choose from!  After a couple of days of perusal I managed to narrow my wish list down to a few and within 24hours of my voicing my wish list . . .  a big box arrived on my doorstep.  I have to say that delivery was quick and everything arrived well packed and undamaged in transit.  Perfect packaging and delivery.  Positive number one!



I showed you the lovely Folklore Coffee Pot earlier today.   It's on sale right now at 10% off the regular price.  You can read what I thought about it here.  So cute!




I am a big fan of Orla Kiely anything.  I adore her fresh designs, with their very distinctive patterns, colours and texures.   I fel in love with this set of Three Herb Pots On a Tray.  The patterns used are Flower Stem, Scribble Stem and Daisy Spot.  Ideal for growing herbs, each pot fits comfortably on the tray, which makes it very easy to water them from below.



Mine have been planted and are sitting on the windowsil in the dining room, where I am eagerly awaiting in anticipation of something green showing up.  Oh, I know  . . .  I could have just gone and bought already growing herbs, but experience has taught me that those herbs you can get in the pots at the shops are not meant to last for very long.  Seriously.  Orla Kiely deserves much more than a flash in the pan.  These are also on sale right now at 10% of the regular price.   Check them out!



Another item which I fell in love with was this Sparrow Serving Set, which consists of 4 serving utensils (spaghetti server, Ladle, Slotted Spoon and Solid Spoon) and a unique tree branch holder (which slides apart for flat storage.)  You all know how much I love watching the sparrows at play in my back garden and this caught my eye from the get-go.  The sparrow server set would look great in any kitchen and is ideal to leave on the side.  This pretty set of kitchen utensils looks like 4 sparrows sitting on a tree.  Pretty and fun.



Made completely from recycled materials this set is great for cooking or serving.  Very stylish.  It's out of stock at the moment, but you can ask to be notified for when more stock arrives.   I just love it!  Check out more details here. 



Finally I chose the Abode Egg Cups.  This lovely set of four porcelain egg cups is the result of a collaberation with Mengsel and features Luzelle van der Westhuizens illustrations of 4 animals each on an egg cup of their own.

It's super cute,  and would make a lovely gift for any special occasion or birthday.  It comes in a sturdy and attractive box.  From the abode range, they also have stacking tins, plates and espresso sets. The cups are also dishwasher and microwave safe.  These are also on sale at 10% off at the moment.

I really love all of the items I received and feel that if you are looking for a gift for that special occasion or someone, or even as a treat yourself, you could not find a much nicer site to get it from than Flamingo Gifts.  They cater for every budget and offer the lowest prices possible for extremely high quality goods, with a top class service and a simple mission, which is to provide amazing gifts to you at a great price and quickly, and to deal with any problems even faster so you enjoy your splurge!

Many thanks to them for indulging my wish list.   I really am thrilled with all my goodies.

You would be forgiven for thinking this is a somewhat ugly dessert . . .  but this is one dessert where you don't want to judge the book by it's cover, for it's fabulously delicious!

I have to say I am especially fond of Cod or Haddock, responsibly sourced of course.   I grew up with salt cod which is what we used to make fish cakes with back home . . .  

Today I baked Todd's favourite Jam Filled Scones.  You know we love jam in this house . . .  I make no secret of it, and I always have lots of it in the cupboard and refrigerator. I have several varieties that I prefer over others . . .  Strawberry being my top favourite, followed closely by seedless raspberry and Blueberry.  Cherry jam is also a real love of mine.

One thing that Todd and I are both really crazy about is Jam.  We eat a lot of it here.   I use it for baking and all sorts, and sometimes when we are both feeling really lazy we have nothing but bread and jam for a light supper.   We both really enjoy it and it feels like a real treat.  Especially if I have some crusty or homemade bread in the house!

My sister made this recipe that she found on Pinterest a couple of weeks ago and put a picture of it on her facebook page. It looked so good that I immediately wanted to try it myself.   We love cabbage and potatoes in this house and the recipe incorporated both of those along with some onions, chicken pieces and bacon!  If it's got bacon you just know it's going to be good!

 

I've been collecting the Waitrose Recipe Cards for years now. Every month they used to put new ones out and I would dutifully collect the ones that looked delicious to me. I haven't collected them much since I moved back to Chester, but every once in a while I like to dig them out and make something from one of them.  Today it was this quick and easy dessert made with blueberries.  You all know how much I love them!

I have always been a foodie.   When  I was really young my mom used to give me her old magazines and I can remember clipping recipes from them.  I can still tell you how very delicious a slice of her lemon meringue pie was . . . yellow and transparent, covered in a seemingly mile high pile of sweet and sticky meringue . . . this remembered from lunch time when I was about 8 years old.   She used to make my brother a small bowl of lemon pudding instead of pie because she didn't think pastry was good for wee ones . . .  and it probably wasn't.

I have made no secret on here of my love of lemons. It's very clear that I can't get enough of them! Todd . . . well, he says lemon is not his favourite thing, but that fact doesn't seem to stop him from indulging in my cakes and cookies . . . it is my dream to have a lemon tree, filled to overflowing with lovely organic and unwaxed lemons . . . sigh . . .

One of the tastes I have come to really enjoy over here is Golden Syrup. A pale thick amber coloured syrup, it is a form of inverted sugar syrup, made in the process of converting sugar cane juice into sugar. Oh, it is soooo scrummy and has a lovely caramel like, almost buttery flavour.

I freely admit that one of my great weaknesses is chocolate  . . .  and it doesn't seem to matter how I get it . . .  candy bars, cakes, biscuits . . .  creamy hot chocolate.  I confess I am not a fan of really cheap powdery tasting chocolate though.  I am a bit more discerning than that.   It always disappoints.  I do have a passion for Coconut Bounty Bars . . .  that chewy coconut filling . . .  the milk chocolate coating.  The two together are simply bliss.

In any case, I had it in my mind today that I wanted to make a bounty bar kind of a cake.  I thought a nice moist chocolate cake . . . with a scrummy bounty type of coconut macaroon type of filling, iced with a delicious buttery chocolate icing.


So that's what I set out to do . . . although it didn't end up exactly as I had envisioned . . . the end result was still rather scrummy and completely edible.


The cake was quite moist . . . and the macaroon coconut quite sticky and scrummy.  I had wanted the filling to settle somewhere in the middle . . . but alas, it sunk completely to the bottom.

 Epic failure . . . or a wonderful discovery???


I dunno . . . but . . . in any case, here it is!

 I am now on a quest.  I think I need a batter with a denser texture.  Perhaps then the filling will stay where I want it to be.  Watch this space!

I have to say up front that one of my absolute favourite flavours has to be ginger. I love it in any way shape or form. It's wonderful, dried and powdered . . . and sprinkled into spicy cake and cookie batters. I love it freshly grated . . . and cooked up into wonderfully fragrant stir fries and sauces. I also like to make a delicious lemon and ginger tea with the fresh ginger root. (It's just wonderful steepedin boiling water, along with the juice and zest of half a lemon . . . and then served with a bit of honey and a great cure all for when you have the sniffles . . .)

 



Believe it or not this is my most popular recipe of all time (next to the Chocolate Fudge Brownie Cake.)  It's lived for quite a time now over on my Big Blue Binder and I thought it was about time I moved it over here so my English Kitchen readers can enjoy it as well.