The Quince Tree

Quince Blossom with Robin

2013-05-19T10:55:00.001+01:00

The robin and I have been appreciating the quince blossom. There is a lot this year. I hope it all comes to fruition. It seems like a long time since I tasted quince jelly.

Kitchen Relay

2013-05-16T11:22:00.000+01:00

It was Charlotte who called it a culinary relay, where the weekly race to feed the family is won by the handing over of an ingredient from one meal to the next. Rose Prince in her book The New English Kitchen talks about rolling one meal into the next and Tamar Adler in her inspiring book An Everlasting Meal: Cooking With Economy and Grace calls it 'catching your tail'.

Part of it is about painlessly getting ahead by creating a store of ready-prepared ingredients. If I'm cooking rice or potatoes for supper I try to remember to cook extra so that I have the foundation of another meal under my belt. If I'm making pastry I make a double quantity and freeze the extra. I cook up bowls of lentils to store in the fridge for salads or stews. Unlike dried beans lentils are quick to cook and don't require soaking.. My answer to the 'oh but I can never remember to soak and cook dried beans' is to soak and cook a whole packet at a time and freeze them (or buy tinned). Vegetables can be prepared ahead, Tamar Adler has a lot to say about roasting vegetables ahead to use in the week. I find this works better with some veg than others, peppers and courgettes are good as are squashes and roots but roast cauliflower and broccoli did not work for me (or the rest of my family).

Another part of the kitchen relay lies in making use of the ends of things. I've long been a snapper-up of unconsidered trifles (and incidentally trifle is an excellent way of using up broken or stale cake, the ends of jars of jam and overripe fruit). I save gravy, leftover veg, crusts of bread, I religiously make the remains of every chicken I roast into stock, I pour drippings from any roast into little jars, use up the last bit of whipped cream in a sauce and if I were ever to have such a thing as leftover wine you can be sure I would throw it in my stew.

This week has been a fairly typical example of a kitchen relay.

I'd bought a squeaky bunch of curly parsley from the farm shop with vague thoughts of fish pie. I stood it in a Cornishware jug and admired it for several days before realising that it needed using up fast and fish pie was not going to take care of all of it. I made it into pesto with olive oil, garlic, walnuts and a heel of Shropshire blue.

I put the stalks into my stock pot along with the bony remains of our Sunday chicken.

The pesto was delicious on toast with a bowl of leftover fish-stew-without-the-fish. I often find myself eating leftover stews minus the meaty bits for my lunch.

I think I've said before that these days there is never much chicken left after a roast. Teenagers. There was enough, however, to make a pasty filling. I used the chicken fat saved from roasting to make a roux with flour, added a little of the chicken stock and the remains of a carton of single cream plus a splash of vermouth. This made a delicious sauce to which I added cooked leeks, the leftover chicken, some dried out grated parmesan and a sprinkle of parsley.

The rest of the chicken stock was poured into plastic tubs and put in the freezer.

I bought lots of asparagus as I always do at this time of year. We like it simply boiled and buttered. This time I saved the good green water in which my asparagus had boiled. I also saved the tough ends and used the water and the ends to make soup with the addition of potatoes and single cream. This soup benefits from being sieved as the asparagus stalks are quite fibrous.

We ate it with a big dish of croutons made from leftover crusts which I tossed with bacon (bacon is my secret weapon in getting kids to eat things they think they don't like).

There was leftover cooked asparagus -I buy too much- I chopped it up, mashed it a little, stirred in a big handful of parmesan, piled it on toast and put it under a hot grill for a few minutes. Another delicious lunch of leftovers for me.

The kitchen relay works for me, it works because I like to cook with what I have. I'm not good at sticking to meal plans, or at finding recipes and buying ingredients to make those recipes. I find the necessary task of feeding people as creative and fulfilling as any artistic endeavour. For that reason I favour cookery books which suggest ideas, allow flexibility and encourage thrift. Books of recipes have been replaced on my shelves by books like An Everlasting Meal and The New English Kitchen, The Thrifty Cookbook by Kate Colquhoun, The Modern Cook's Manual by Lynda Brown, Food From Plenty by Diana Henry and Appetite by Nigel Slater, these all demonstrate how to cook with creativity, economy and grace.

May Posy

2013-05-13T11:43:00.000+01:00

That's more like it. A riot of colour for May's posy.

But the most spectacular thing in my garden at the moment is the white blossom on my crab apple tree. It is smothered. I am sure there are more flowers this year than usual. The quince tree too is blossoming although not quite as blatantly as this.

What To Do On a Spring Day

2013-05-07T12:49:00.000+01:00

1) Take a trip on the river aboard the Betty B. The river is the Severn, the city is Worcester and the Betty B belongs to my aunt and uncle and is named after my grandmother. She is a narrow boat.

2) Walk through a bluebell wood.

3) Make a daisy chain.

4) Paint a bedroom (Katie's) forget-me-not blue and keep your fingers crossed that it stays looking clean and tidy

5) Roll the car windows down, put this in the cd player and drive to the farmshop for asparagus.

6) Count the dandelions on your lawn.

7) Admire the apple blossom.

Fifty Golden Years

2013-05-04T12:57:00.001+01:00

Fifty years ago today my mum and dad were married. Little did they know then that they were getting married on Star Wars day and I am sure they couldn't care less about it. In fact when dad took my brother and I to see Star Wars at the Gaumont in Birmingham he fell asleep before the end which says something about his good taste. Mum stayed at home which says something about her good sense.

My mum and dad both have plenty of good taste and good sense which they have demonstrated by choosing to be married to each other and to stay happily married to each other for half a century.

They won't be reading this today as they are having fun in Cornwall but I shall send them my love and congratulations anyway along with this selection of golden things for them to enjoy when they return, and I shall try not to dwell on the fact that when one's parents celebrate fifty years of marriage one's fiftieth birthday cannot be far away.

Now Is The Month Of Maying

2013-05-01T18:44:00.000+01:00

Now Is The Month Of Maying* and I am celebrating this lovely May Day by having a sort out, taking stuff to the recycling centre, buying new bedlinen and taking lots of photos of my garden doing its spring thing.

Taken with my phone's camera

* 16th century song by Thomas Morley which is apparently about outdoor sex. Now you know.

What I Did in April

2013-04-30T14:30:00.000+01:00

~Knitted two pairs of socks
~Finished my Ravilious blanket
~Unravelled half of my Ravilious blanket
~Bought some new old cutlery (see above)
~Spent a day in Oxford with Katie where she was ecstatic to find a Cath Kidston shop -
(Me 'Aren't these buildings beautiful?'
Katie 'Oh my God, oh my God, a Cath Kidston shop!'
Me ' Some of these colleges date from the 13th century you know'
Katie (flapping her hands like a demented hen) 'Oh what shall I buy? I don't know what to buy!'
Me 'Look at the carving on that arch'
Katie 'I'm getting this flowered cup, look it's plastic I can take it camping')
~Picked grape hyacinths and pulmonaria
~Admired my flowering currant
~Bought lots of bunches of daffodils
~Dried lots of washing outside
~Reorganised my kitchen
~Admired the shadow and light play on my kitchen counter as the evening sun streamed through the window
~Made egg sandwiches
~Made sardine sandwiches
~Taught George how to make toad-in-the-hole, Spanish omelette and cheese sauce*
~Breathed a big sigh of relief when Tom finished his GCSE art and wondered why the course seems to have been designed in such a way as to put students off art forever
~Said goodbye to winter at long last

*He cannot remember how to make any of these things now

Small Delights (II)

2013-04-23T19:17:00.000+01:00

Flowering currant, flowering.

Cupboard swap. The plates and glasses are now where the groceries were. Much better. Children and husband are getting to grips with it.

Laundry drying in the sunshine. Always a delight.

The Quince Tree is unfurling her leaves.

The granola tin has been replenished.

Beautiful packaging.

Sardine butter destined for sandwiches with cucumber but also good in a baked potato or stirred through pasta. Mash a tin of sardines with a lump of butter.

A new and successful supper dish. Mashed potato mixed with slow-fried onions, chunks of Brie in the middle baked until melting.

And the sun, at last the warm sun.

Tatty Blossom

2013-04-19T09:42:00.000+01:00

7th April 2010
18th March 2011
25th March 2012
19th April 2013

You can see by these dates how late spring is this year.
Two years ago the cherry tree in my front garden was in full blossom a whole month earlier.
It was flowering on the 20th March 2000, the day I brought Katie home from hospital after her birth.
This week the blossoms finally opened to their fullest and almost immediately began to brown and drop and look tatty. The wind hasn't helped. The point where the tree becomes a cloud of pink is not going to come this year. It has been bypassed.

Here are some pictures of my tatty cherry blossom.

Last year the strong winds and rain in late April destroyed my quince tree's blossom and consequently the quince harvest. This year the quince tree is barely in leaf let alone blossom. I fervently hope that by the time it does flower the weather will have improved and I shall have quinces this autumn.

Many many thanks for all the advice about blocking my blanket. I think the difference in width is too great and am reworking the bottom third. It's all part of the creative process and I have a new book to listen to while I do it.

Tension Headache

2013-04-17T10:34:00.000+01:00

Here are some pictures of boiled eggs cooling in a bowl of water (for egg sandwiches). Nice aren't they?
I'm hoping they will distract you from the slight mess I have made of my Ravilious blanket.

The bottom edge is some eight inches wider than the top.
It's a tension issue rather than a mysterious multiplication of stitches. I counted to be sure.
I was fairly galloping along as I did the last four stripes. I was listening to Bring Up the Bodies by that time and my concentration was clearly on the machinations of the Tudor court rather than on my tension.
What to do?
On the one hand as this blanket is designed to be thrown over a sofa or someone's knees does it matter that it isn't perfect?
On the other hand I'm not really happy with it as it is. I love the way the colours and stripes work but I think I'm going to have to unravel back to the biscuit-coloured stripe and tighten up my tension before I will be satisfied. I will put a narrow border around it when I've really and truly finished it.

Someone asked if I'd unravelled the granny squares. Yes, I did, thrift is my middle name.

Simple Saturday Pleasures

2013-04-13T18:32:00.001+01:00

Early morning sun.

A bunch of daffs.

A pile of new cards for my fireplace patchwork.

Something sublime to listen to whilst crocheting.

Yes, this is my Ravilious blanket. It has undergone quite a transformation.

More Socks

2013-04-08T13:19:00.000+01:00

My goodness sock knitting is addictive.
These are made from two 50g balls of Regia yarn 4 ply Mosaik 05560.
It was like knitting a spring garden.
They are too big for Katie who is modelling them here but they fit my wide feet perfectly.
I'd like to knit a shawl next, something like this perhaps but before I do I think I will attend to my neglected crochet.

April Posy

2013-04-06T12:29:00.000+01:00

Slim pickings indeed this month.
The spring sunshine makes the most of what there is.

Socks

2013-04-01T21:51:00.001+01:00

This pair of socks is dedicated with my thanks to Ali who helped me choose the yarn, advised on needle size and leant me a pattern, and to Kristina who inspired me when she gave me a pair of handknitted socks and assured me that I'd be able to knit my own. Also grateful thanks to Lizzie who left a comment explaining how to avoid laddering -most useful Lizzie.

They are not perfect by any means. The toes have pointy lumps and grafting was tricky. The cast on edge is raggedy and the knitting uneven in places. But they have turned out much better than I anticipated and I know my next pair will be an improvement.

I've always regarded myself as a non-knitter but now I am not so sure. My sock knitting experiment has been so enjoyable and rewarding that I feel ready for more knitting adventures.

Before I cast on my next pair of socks though here is my March sampler. March has been an inspiring month for me -meetings with creative blogging friends and a new skill learnt. I do wish it had been a bit warmer and springlike though. Here's hoping for some proper spring weather in April.

Easter Deliciousness

2013-03-31T16:32:00.001+01:00

I like Easter, Charlie has a few days off work, there's chocolate, booze and nothing in particular to do. It's like Christmas but without the stress and obligations.

I don't do a huge amount of cooking at Easter but I always make hot cross buns for Good Friday and something chocolatey. I do a roast on Easter day -chicken this year and something lemony for pudding.

Hot cross buns. Their crosses disappeared during baking. Maybe next year I'll make proper crosses.

Good Friday fish. Salmon with parsley garlic butter.

Salted Chocolate Nutella biscuits. These were inspired by this recipe. I didn't use the cookie recipe though preferring to keep it simple with my trusty fork biscuit recipe which I made a little thinner than usual and sprinkled with sea salt before baking.

Chocolate biscuit cake made with pistachios, dried cranberries and dried apricots.

Lemon curd pavlovas. I made some lemon curd earlier this week and thought how lovely, fresh and springlike it was, perfect for an Easter dessert.

Now I must get back to my sock knitting, I'm halfway through the second one now. Such fun!

Happy Easter to you all.

Concentration

2013-03-28T15:39:00.000Z

We are all concentrating very hard here on this first day of the Easter hols.

Katie is threading and wrapping. She's making beads and bracelets.

George is painting a model. It's some kind of armoured beast.

And I am knitting a sock. This is the second attempt. The first was going so well but then I got to the toe and the pattern said 'knit to first marker' and I swore because I had taken the first marker out rows back thinking I wouldn't need it again.

Never mind though because although the heel on this second attempt is lumpier than my first attempt the rest of my knitting is better. This is the first thing I have ever knitted after all and despite a very sore left index finger I am thoroughly enjoying my sock.

I am even planning the next pair.

Tom, by the way, is concentrating on sleeping. He went to a sleepover yesterday.

Knitwit

2013-03-22T15:33:00.000Z

Charlie is teaching himself to play the guitar. He's a long way from being Jimmy Page but with the help of books and Youtube he is making progress.

I am teaching myself to knit properly, also with the help of books and Youtube. While I know how to knit I am not very good at it -a bit of a knitwit really. However, inspired by the formidable sock making skills of blogger friends I am attempting to knit a pair of socks.

It's a steep learning curve and as Charlie observed maybe I should have started with Twinkle Twinkle Little Star rather than Stairway To Heaven.

He's probably right. This was the first time I had tried knitting with four needles at once and it isn't easy. It took me at least six attempts before I was able to produce this poor practice sample. But despite its obvious faults -I seem to have purled the last row- I am pleased with it. I know that knitting the leg part of the sock is the easy bit. Heel turning is a complete mystery to me but I am feeling ready to learn in spite of Charlie's doubts

I bought my sock yarn from The Fibreworks in Chipping Norton. What a lovely shop it is. Beautiful yarns and such helpful and friendly ladies. They have their own blog, do pop over and pay them a visit.

The yarn I chose is a self-striping sock yarn called Jawoll Magic Dégradé from Lang Yarn (peacock 88). It's a wool and nylon mix. I shall enjoy seeing the stripes appear as I go round and round.

I like what Jane Brocket has to say about sock knitting and domesticity

'The only way to knit a sock in the round is to keep coming back to your starting point. But, almost imperceptibly, progress is made. It's a pattern, yes, but it's not really a circle, it's a spiral and all the stitches and rows, like days and weeks, are linked to form an unbroken chain. We can think we are getting nowhere with the cyclical nature of domesticity, and yet all the time, as with sock-knitting, we are moving on to a new stitch or a new day and then, suddenly, a whole new row or colour..'

Jane Brocket -The Gentle Art of Domesticity

I shall ponder the nature of domesticity as I knit. Until I get into a mess, then I shall swear.

Scenes From a Birthday

2013-03-17T19:23:00.001Z

Katie turned thirteen today.
She celebrated by acquiring a Facebook account, a great deal of money from various relatives, a great deal of sweets and chocolate from her brothers and some Converse socks.
I made pollo alla diavolo and squid for supper and a vanilla buttermilk birthday cake from How to be a Domestic Goddess.
A very satisfying birthday.

Only Connect

2013-03-12T15:06:00.000Z

There are several reasons why I love blogging.

1. Self-expression. I can express myself with words and with photographs. Photography delivers a double hit of satisfaction as it can be a thing of beauty in itself as well as a way of recording something lovely that you have made.

2. Instant gratification. Obviously you have to spend time writing a post, taking photos, finding links, sometimes doing a little research but once you have finished you hit publish and there it is, out there waiting to be read, or ignored, but there for you to admire even if no one else does.

3. Being in charge. I love this. I like being able to choose how my blog looks, what I write about and how often I post. Who wants to be a clone of another blog? The Coffee Lady has written an excellent post about blogging your own way here (and do read the comments too).

4. it is a record of my life. I love looking back at old posts and seeing what I was up to, what was flowering in the garden, what the children were saying or what I was cooking.

The fifth reason why I love blogging is the best reason.

5. Making connections.When I began blogging I knew no one who was interested in the same things as I was, no one who crafted, read the books I read, or cooked from scratch. The other mums at the school gates would look at me in astonishment when I mentioned any of these deviant activities. When I started blogging I realised I was not a freak after all, that there were women out there with whom I could connect.

I never imagined when I began this blog that I would actually meet some of those marvellous, creative and funny women, nor that they would become real friends (the 'sock group ladies' as Curvywitch calls us). But I have and it has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.

Then there are those bloggers who I haven't met but who feel like friends just the same because of the connection with their blogs. Bloggers like Annie, Lynn, Megan, Lucille and Mrs Bean (who likes the same books as me) and many more.

And then there all those readers who don't have blogs but who regularly comment or email me, you feel like friends too. Toffeeapple, Pati, Kari, Faye, Bonnie in PA and Barb in GA and many more I appreciate your comments enormously.

Comments
I believe that a blogger who doesn't allow comments is missing the point. It is after all how we make those connections and although people may read your blog if you don't allow them to respond how will you connect?
Having said that I no longer allow anonymous comments. I am not particularly happy about having to make this decision but it seems to be the only way of stopping the unmanageable amount of spam that was getting through even on my most recent posts. The spam ranged from infuriating nonsensical garbage to graphic descriptions of sex toys. I had had enough so I made the decision to only allow comments from people with an internet identity.

I had a couple of emails from readers about my decision. Both readers were under the impression that they would no longer be able to comment. As I explained in my replies this is not the case. You do not have to have a blog in order to comment. If being able to comment really matters to you then you will have to set up a google account or an OpenID but it is free and easy. Many, many regular commenters have done it and I think it is preferable to having word verification (hateful for commenters) or moderation (I'd still have to read the spam).

Remember that you are more than welcome to email me instead. I always respond to emails, even unpleasant ones.

Favourite Blogs
On my link bar under my blog title there is a page with a list of some of my favourite blogs. I have recently given it a shake up and added some new ones so do take a look and maybe visit some new places and make those connections.

The photos today are entirely random and for decorative purposes only.

Still loving the yellow forsythia against the Bristol blue.

Winter bites back.

Nutella breakfast

Quince buds!

Random Deliciousness

2013-03-08T09:39:00.001Z

Gosh I haven't done one of these posts for ages. This one is heavy on the salad. No cake or puds. Sorry about that.

Feta Niçoise. This was slightly adapted from the Fast Diet book. It comes in at around 390 calories. I used big handful of little gem lettuce leaves, chopped cucumber, 50g green beans, 6 black olives, 2 medium boiled eggs and 60g feta plus a squirt of lemon juice and some black pepper. Very filling.

I made this noodle salad for the children's lunch boxes. Noodles are their favourite foodles.
It is Nigella's sesame peanut noodles but without the peanuts or sesame and with completely different veg. It is in fact a totally different recipe. I followed her recipe for the dressing substituting sunflower butter for peanut butter, leaving out the sesame seeds (I had none), using sunflower oil in place of garlic oil (I had none) and lemon juice instead of lime juice (I had none). I cooked some dried egg noodles and mixed them with the dressing and some cooked carrots, peas and sweetcorn and raw spring onions. It has gone down very well and has lasted nearly all week. Next Time I might add some cooked chicken.

This is a ready-made endamame and aduki bean salad which I bought for one of my fast day lunches (186 calories a tub). These ready-made salads are fab for calorie counting days but you do pay the price -literally.

This is lentil, feta, grape and walnut salad from here. I used beluga lentils for this which are like tiny black beads. They don't retain their black beadiness once cooked and any lentil would work for this salad apart from orange ones which will turn to mush.

A piece of grilled chicken and a heap of salad has become my favourite fast day meal. I bash the hell out of a skinless chicken breast to tenderise it and make it thin enough to cook quickly on the griddle. then I squeeze half a lemon over it and sprinkle some spices and or garlic over it and leave it to marinate for a few hours. Much nicer than the pasta bake the rest of the family was having.

I apologise for the quality of this photo. I've done my best with it but it still looks as if it were taken in 1975.
Note to self -do not photograph food in the dining room when the light is on.
Roast parsnip, carrots and red onion with halved cherry tomatoes added for the last few minutes. The whole lot was tossed in a honey-mustard dressing and served with spicy sausages. Really delicious.

Small Delights

2013-03-06T14:27:00.001Z

The incredibly neat stitching and beautiful patterns of my new potholders made by Feather Your Nest. At first I thought they were too lovely to use, but they were made to use and so I do with much pleasure.

The contrast of yellow and blue. So good together.

Kristina's exquisite knitting. She assures me that I will be able to knit a pair of socks. I am doubtful.

The oddly satisfying act of gathering up frozen kale into a bag so that I can make colcannon next time I have leftover mash.

The shadow of forsythia branches as the morning sun hits my sitting room wall.

Sparkling orange on the kitchen windowsill as the afternoon sun streams through my washing up liquid bottle.

March Posy

2013-03-04T14:36:00.001Z

Crocuses, primrose, lenten roses (hellebore), snowdrop, forsythia and a miniature daffodil.

All with their own individual charm but coming together to make a posy of loveliness.
Not unlike the twelve blog ladies who gathered together on Saturday to make a posy of sock knitting, cake eating, coffee drinking, patchwork piecing, gift giving, story-telling and crochet hooking all tied up with a big ribbon of laughter and friendship.

This posy is especially for them. Thank you ladies for a wonderful, wonderful day.

And to everyone who reads this blog please enjoy the flowers, it really is starting to look a lot more like spring and lot less like winter and that is surely something to celebrate.

February Sampler

2013-02-28T19:48:00.000Z

February turned out to be all pink and white. Very pleased with this one.

I am done with winter though. The days are lengthening, there are crocuses, hellebores and even a primrose blooming in my garden and there are buds on the quince tree.

March promises many good things. It begins with a day spent with blog friends and ends with Easter. In between I will become the mother of three teenagers (and by the end of summer I will be the mother of one adult).

I'm planning to join in with this photo challenge through March. I shall be using my phone and posting my pictures on Instagram so if you're an Instagrammer by all means follow me- thequincetree- and maybe join me.

Many thanks to those of you who suggested closing my comments to anonymous commenters to combat the spammers. I have done this and it has had an immediate effect -I was getting continual spam throughout the day and now it seems to have stopped.

Mood Food

2013-02-27T21:41:00.000Z

Do you cook the same kind of food all the time?

I don't. When my family go camping in the summer I cook myself extravagant little delicacies. I make dishes like tarragon chicken, garlicky scallops, baked goat's cheese in pastry, steak and hollandaise sauce. I indulge.

When I am feeling full of good intentions (usually after eating too much of the above) I make lots of lovely, big, modern salads. Like these.

When I want to make everyone happy I cook roast chicken, sausages and mash, pizza and chocolate fudge pudding.

When the weather is cold and miserable and I'm a bit bored I bake things like brownies, cinnamon roll cake and rainy day muffins.

And when I'm trying not to spend too much (I am not a British Gas share-holder after all, just a customer) I cook simple, old-fashioned grub. If I bake then I choose recipes which don't call for things like whole bars of best quality chocolate, pistachios, maple syrup or dried cherries. I choose instead recipes like flapjacks, scones or these date slices.

Date Slices

Cook 8oz of chopped dates in 5fl oz water until soft -about 10 mins.

Rub 4oz self-raising flour and 1 teaspoon bicarb with 4oz butter until you have a breadcrumb-like mixture.

Stir in 4oz oats and 4oz sugar.

Grease and base line a tin about 7" by 11" and press half the crumb mixture into it.

Spread the dates on top and cover with the rest of the crumbs pressing down.

Bake at 180°c (160°c fan oven) for 25 mins.

Homity pie is a good, honest, frugal dish. A shortcrust pastry crust is filled with chopped cooked potato, fried onions and cheese. I added a parsnip and a leek to mine because they needed using up. This was made in a deep cake tin and baked for 40 minutes at 200°c (180°c).

Simple, wholesome and cheap is my kind of cooking at the moment. Who knows for how long though. It all depends on my mood, the weather's mood, and how many driving lessons George is going to need.

In other news I am being plagued by spammers at the moment. The spam box is always full but just lately a lot is getting through Blogger's screening and ending up on the blog. I delete between thirty and forty spam comments a day at the moment. I do not intend to put the word verification as I don't think it is fair to ask genuine readers to decipher those things. I won't enable comment moderation either because I'll still have to read and delete them. Instead I have decided to close comments on all posts older than a month. If anyone has a question about an old post just contact me directly -details on the black bar under my heading.

Rhubarb, Roobarb

2013-02-23T17:08:00.000Z

I've been thinking a lot about rhubarb this week as you do.

First Richard Briers died. Then Bob Godfrey died. Those of you of a certain age will no doubt remember Roobarb and Custard. Richard Briers narrated it and Bob Godfrey was one of the animators. It was one of the many superb five minute programmes which used to end the children's programming on BBC1 each weekday before the boring news came on forty odd years ago. The theme tune will stay with me forever.

Richard Briers was best known for his role as Tom Good in The Good Life. No doubt Tom and Barbara grew plenty of rhubarb in their Surbiton garden.

Now is the season for that English speciality, forced rhubarb. Two hundred years ago a gardener discovered that the rhubarb he had accidentally covered with soil had started to sprout bright pink stalks unseasonably early. This rhubarb was not only pinker but sweeter and less sharp than the later darker rhubarb.

Ninety percent of the world's forced rhubarb is grown in the rhubarb triangle, an area of Yorkshire between Wakefield, Morley and Rothwell. It is grown in sheds and picked by candlelight. You can actually hear it growing. At the height of its popularity there was a special train called the Pink Express or the Rhubarb Special which took the crop from Yorkshire to London each night during the season.

Usually I make a crumble with rhubarb but today I thought I'd get creative and come up with something different. Inspired by Bakewell tart I thought I'd have a go at a rhubarby version.

I apologise for the mixture of imperial and metric weights. I make pastry in imperial, it makes more sense to me.

First I made some shortcrust pastry by throwing 8oz of plain flour and 4oz cubed cold butter into the food processor. I processed it for a few seconds until it formed crumbs. Then I poured in 3-4 tablespoons of cold water and processed until it formed a ball of dough. It is just as easy to make by hand but it is quicker using machinery.

I rolled the pastry out straight away and used it to line a 9 inch (23 cm) tart tin. Then I put it in the fridge for about 20 minutes before baking it blind for 15 minutes at 200°c (180°c fan oven). After removing the foil and baking beans I put the part-cooked pastry back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Then I let it cool.

I mixed 250g of chopped rhubarb with a jar of strawberry jam. I used homemade jam and I think it was about 1lb. I spread this mixture in the tart case.

Next I made the almond layer. I beat together 2 eggs, 200g ground almonds, 150g caster sugar and 100g of soft butter. This is just a double quantity of the almond filling for galette des rois. I spread it carefully over the rhubarb and jam and then sprinkled flaked almonds over.

I baked it for 40 minutes at 180°c (160°c fan oven) until golden.

I put it on a baking tray before putting in the oven because I was a little afraid I'd overdone the jam and that I'd have jam escaping all over the oven. I needn't have worried but it is a wise precaution.

I was very pleased with my Rhubarb and Almond Tart, but it was a little on the runny side. Next time I think I will use less jam and more rhubarb and maybe give it another ten minutes in the oven.

If you want to make this gluten-free then I am sure that if you put the rhubarb and jam filling in a shallow baking dish and top with the almond mixture you will have a lovely pudding. It might be good in individual ramekins too but I would reduce the cooking time.