Strawberry Jam Must Wait

Just realised we have passed midsummer day without having had a real run of warm sunny weather yet.

Thought I would make my usual quantity of strawberry jam but the price of good quality strawberries is jaw dropping-- cheaper ones are wet and going mouldy, no good for jam making.
Perhaps the price will drop after Ascot and Wimbledon.

Pictures of real summers I have taken in the past.

Virginia

Biarritz

Monet's Garden, Giverny

Cambridge, punting by Magdalene Bridge

                                                     
                                      

Start Partying

Time to put on the silly red white and blue clothes, cut the cakes,  stop arranging flowers and chill out until Wednesday.

Flowers for The Queen, Ely Cathedral

Diamond Jubilee Celebration Cake

 Fame at last.
 Have managed to get my cake in the best cakes line up in the Times diamond jubilee cake competition today-- hooray
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/


Diamond Jubilee Rose Cake

Recipe

Cake

225g (8 oz) self-raising flour
225g(8 oz ) butter
225g(8oz) caster sugar
2 level teaspoons baking powder
4 large eggs
2 rounded tablespoons cocoa mixed with 2 tablespoons boiling water
1 1/2 fluid oz red  food colouring

Filling and topping

 150 g (6 oz) butter
500g (1lb) icing sugar
2 tablespoons milk

Decorations

454 g white marzipan, food colourings, yellow sprinkles


Method

• Pre heat the oven,180c/160C Fan/Gas4
• Line 2 x 20 cm (8 inch) sandwich tins with baking parchment.
• Put all the cake ingredients into a bowl and beat using an electric mixer beat until everything is thoroughly mixed and creamy.
• Divide the mixture between the 2 tins. Smooth out.
• Bake for about 25 mins until firm to touch.
• Cool in the tins for 5 minutes then remove the parchment and cool the cakes on a wire rack.
• Divide the marzipan into 3 , colour as wanted with a few drops of food colouring ( about 3). Knead well and then roll out and use heart shaped and leaf cutters for the petals and leaves.
• Make the butter cream by beating all the ingredients together and when the cake is completely COLD use to sandwich the cake together and spread on the top and sides.
• Arrange the petals and leaves like a Tudor Rose ( see photo) on the top and more petals and leaves around the sides.
• This cake will keep well for several days in an airtight tin in a cool place.

For a speedy version omit the decoration and just use the butter cream. The red  cake is a great surprise when it is cut.

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Diamond Jubilee Party Recipes

Working my way through Mary Berry's Baking Bible.This is a useful book ,the tray bake recipes are practical for the home baker to make for events and parties. I made the banana loaf in about 10 minutes, a good way to use up over ripe bananas in the fruit bowl.

I will be making some of the recipes and  Duke of Cambridge Tart for sale at St Botolphs, Cambridge Refreshment day on Monday 7th May.Come and try them.Lakeland have disposable trays for tray bakes and some nice decorations for Jubilee cakes.

                                                  

Damien Hurst Exhibition

Went to see the Damien Hurst Exhibition at Tate Modern, London.I went round with 5 children ,they enjoyed it,a severed bleeding pig's head with accompanying maggots and flies is just the sort of thing 9 year old boys like.Not so sure about Grannies.

The accompanying literature says "Hurst presents cigarette butts lined along shelves of a cabinet as if they were natural history exhibits, extending his use of museological display techniques"

Ever heard the expression gobshite Damien?

Singapore- what is it like?

Several people have asked me what Singapore is like.

Think of an Asian Paris.A lovely city with wide avenues lined with exotic trees and flowers.Expensive shops , underground malls to protect you from the heat and rain, restaurants of every kind. A clean, well run city where nobody asks you for" spare change", vomits in the street or mugs you . A population of very hard working courteous people.

Yes, there are strict penalties for those who break the law but so what, it is a relief to walk around in a safe city , makes some of our western cities seem crude and out of control.

  

Shopping and Goodbye KL

This week has gone so fast.
The trip to Malacca was good, the driver was very nice and his car perfectly acceptable.
Yesterday was. our last day in KL.

We have done a lot of shopping, the goods are the same as in other stores around the world, e.g. Banana Republic, minus the purchase tax. and much cheaper. The exceptions to this are stingy old Top Shop and Marks and Spencer which charge the same as in the UK so they charge the UK VAT rate (20%) and fleece the customers. Avoid these shops .No bargains there.
The fake stuff is brilliant but check zips work and bargain for a discount.Petaling Street is the cheapest but the stuff is dodgy, could not believe people were buying optical stuff and electronics which were obvious fakes.

Flying Out

Going to Kuala Lumpur via Singapore tonight.13 hours flying time plus many more fannying around at the airports.
Hope I can get a shower at Singapore airport.
Weather forcast suggests it is still the rainy season.
Plan to do some fake ( sorry, inspired by) shopping in KL

Shoes and handbags are a good bet.

Diamond Jubilee Memorabilia

A lot of stuff is appearing in the shops, mostly tat.
Found this in Fortnum and Mason in Picadilly, London.
Quite a tasteful tin of biscuits  that plays God Save The Queen when you wind a key underneath the tin.Expensive at £12 , but a good excuse to visit F&M .
Worth a trip to look at the window displays.
Gorgeous Easter eggs.

                  
Try this link to see the Queen, Camilla and Kate at Fortnums     

  http://www.fortnumandmason.com/

Signs of Spring

The warm weather has brought the bulbs out over the weekend. These displays along the backs of Trinity College are always uplifting after the cold of winter.

Aconites and Crocus