Raspberry Brownie Cake

This is a really great recipe for raspberry brownie cake. A very good friend of mine told it to me and we made it as one of my daughters birthday cakes. (she had three). This is a very rich chocolate cake maybe not the best cake to make for a child's birthday, but like me she is mad about chocolate and so we could not resist. 

Fresh Pesto

 My basil was about to flower so I picked off all the tops and made some fresh pesto.  Picking the tops off the basil stops it from going into flower which helps it to last longer.  
My girls just love Pasta Pesto and its a really great tasty thing to make for supper when we are in a hurry. 
The other great thing about pesto is you can just put anything in it, I like it with lots of garlic and lemon.

A Birthday Dress

Finally after a few months I have made the big sister a dress as promised.   She just had her birthday and so it became her birthday present from me.  I bought two different types of materiel, I got silk for the main part of the dress and some cotton for the lining.  I also got two buttons for the back and some lace to use as a trim at the bottom. 

Plum Chutney

This is another one of Linda Browns great recipes for chutney.  Chutneys are an Indian side dish and the name comes from Chatni which means a strong, sweet relish. They first appeared in England in the seventeenth century and since then they have been adopted and changed. Indian chutney  differ from English ones in many ways.  First Indian chutney's are freshly prepared and don't contain vinegar or added sugar they are mostly runny and very Hot. In the west we make them as a preserve and they are sweet and sticky with a jam like consistency. But what they do have in common is, they are made from a combination of fruits and spices giving them a sweet and sour taste.

Pickled Gherkins

   Sweet and sour pickled Gherkins are really easy to make and there is no cooking involved.  This is a combination of different recipes I have used in the past, before I didn't use sugar and I found the gherkins too sour so I tried it with sugar. The sugar adds a nice sweet taste and also helps with the preserving process. 

Sweet Courgette Relish

 I have to start by saying this is not my own recipe, I got it out of a really great book called The Preserving Book by Lynda Brown.  I love this recipe for sweet courgette relish, I used it last year and it tastes delicious.  There are a lot of courgettes growing at the moment and on a hot day they grow really fast.  Not only are we eating them every day, I think I will be making a lot of this. 

 Here is the Recipe:

• Ingredients 

  900g courgettes  1 large Onion
  500ml cider vinegar
  350g sugar
  2 tsp mustard powder
  2tsp turmeric
  1tsp chilli powder
  2tsp cornflour
  2tsp coriander seeds

• Chop the courgette and onion as finely as possible. Put them into a heavy-based, stainless steel pan, and pour over the vinegar.

•  Mix well and place on a gentle heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil and let it simmer for one hour.  Remember to open a window as the smell of vinegar can get a bit much.  
• The relish needs to thicken and should resemble burger relish you can buy. 
• When it is ready ladle into warm, sterilized jars with non-metallic vinegar-proof lids.   
• The vinegar makes it taste a bit tart just after being made so leave for a month to let the flavours mature and the sweetness come through. 

• This taste lovely with meat and also goes well with bread and cheese. So good luck and Enjoy. 

Crochet Slippers

 Here are some little slippers I have made to sell.  They are very warm and cosy, just what is needed to keep little feet away from the cold. I have made them using wool yarn crocheted onto sheepskin soles. The sheepskin soles give the comfort, support and durability that is needed for growing and active feet. 

 

I made holes in the sheepskin and then crocheted the yarn through the holes. 

 

 Inside the sole is soft and warm so these little slippers can be worn with bear feet.

They Both have a little apple blossom flower on the side.    
  
I am selling them on my Esty shop, here you can take a look
http://www.etsy.com/listing/78724137/crochet-100-wool-sheepskin-slippers?ref=pr_shop 

Speck met Boonen

 This is a Belgium dish, speck met boonen it is just bacon with beans and potatoes.  The first time I tried this I thought hmm is this it, just beans and potatoes. Its very simple but very tasty. Everyone I have made this for just loves it and can't get enough of it. It is one of those things that you can't stop eating, so I always try not to make too much.