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Disaster averted

I enjoy cooking and like any excuse to spend a morning in the kitchen with Radio 4 and no time constraints. This morning, I had to make one of my brown rice salads to take to Cherington later, where my WI is entertaining a party of Highgrove garden visitors to lunch. Whilst I was listening to Desert Island Discs (Richard Ingrams, surprisingly interesting and entertaining I thought) I decided to get on and bake an apple cake from the Ottolenghi recipe book. Ottolenghi in Islington is one of Edward's favourite restaurants and having shared a great, relaxing meal there with him I bought the book intending to give it to him. No chance though - when I saw the yummy things inside I hung on to it and have made a couple of things very successfully already.

So, with friends coming over for supper tomorrow and a few things from the book chosen, I gathered the ingredients for the Apple and Maple Syrup cake and set to following the rather unusual recipe which begins by whisking sugar, vanilla and eggs into olive oil.

As I peeled the Bramley apples, I had the same thought I always have when I do this: I thought of my Nan who baked several apple pies almost every Saturday for friends and family. she'd peel the apples using an ordinary knife and would always challenge herself to get the peel off in one long strip - no breaks. On the odd occasion when she did this, she'd pass the peel to one of us to throw in the air to see what letter formed - that would be the initial of our husband to be! (I've just googled this and found a few variations on this story here It would appear that it's wasn't just my Nan who did such things)

I can't peel anything using a knife and struggle to get the peel off in one go using a peeler, even. Perhaps apples these days don't have such tough skins? who knows... But today, I did it. For the first time I can remember, I managed to peel one of the three apples in one go. I threw it into the air and watched it fall and tried to interpret the letter on the kitchen floor just for old time's sake - a bit late to identify a husband!

I continued through the recipe, stirring in the apple mixture, folding in egg whites and poured the batter into the prepared tin. I thought that the instruction to level the top with a knife was a little superfluous since the runny batter needed no levelling at all and put it into the oven. As I gathered up the bowls for washing up I found the bowl of sifted flour, spices and baking powder!

I quickly opened the over door, poured out the mixture into the bowl again thinking how surprising just two minutes (or even less) in an oven starts the cooking process - quickly folded in the flour, greased a new tin and shot it back in the oven as quickly as I could.

We'll see how it turns out!

As for the letter on the floor - you'll have to go here to see.

A different kind of circus

After the circus that took place at home yesterday afternoon, we got ourselves together and headed off with good friends Lyn and Chris to Minchinhampton Common, for we had tickets for Giffords Circus. We have heard only good things about this show but since we're usually on holiday during August, we've not managed to get ourselves to see for ourselves till now.

Lyn and Chris supplied the pre-show Pimms and the rain held off long enough for us to sit on the common and pretend it was a warm Summer's evening. We admired their nifty Pimms kit!

When we were on holiday recently, we saw the Barnum and Bailey Circus train passing through...hmmmm...New Mexico somewhere?

I joked and said how disappointed I was that there was no giraffe's head popping up above the carriages, nor could I see an elephant looking out like in a Richard Scarry book! But really, to see a circus train at all was a first for me and I was rather surprised to find that there are such things.

We were delighted to see these grand wagons parked up on the common, which, even though they didn't look quite like the story book either, did have an old world elegance about them and a genuine feel of the circus.

We took our seats in the Big Top - smaller than I'd imagined, even though Lyn had told me it was an intimate affair - and enjoyed the pre-show with some fun with Tweedy the clown who was simply fantastic. Totally daft, very very clever - with none of that vaguely sinister feeling a more traditional clown usually provokes. We loved him.

Whilst he spent fifteen minutes being silly, the musicians and a few others were playing cards in the ring - with a rabbit or two here and there.

Their costumes were beautiful - traditional and elegant rather than wacky.

No photographs during the show, understandably, so you will have to imagine the delightful and incredibly skilful performances we enjoyed. (There is a great slide show, with music here) We saw tightrope walking, acrobatics, a kind of trapeze act, a series of beautiful horses parading in the ring - one dancing, circus-horse-style, another large heavy horse walking gently around followed by a duck! All accompanied by the most gloriously mad music played by a band from Hungary (I think). The energy, spirit and total commitment of everyone defies description - we loved every minute! These are such skilled people and they perfom with such incredible style and good humour.

After the show, we enjoyed a delicious meal cooked in one of the circus wagons by Sauce, all served on Bridgewater china - the spotty and starry plates being so appropriate to the circus. On the table in the centre of the dining tent was a single word - EFFORTLESS.

I don't think so.

If you haven't seen Giffords Circus and you have the chance, don't wait any longer! I can't wait to see them again. Another review here if you need further persuasion.

The fun continues

Following on from last week's film fun, I had a call to say that a national newspaper was going to do an article about the project and would it be possible for a journalist to come along and talk to me about the ideas and tips I'd given. On this occasion, I would have the support of the PR person and there was nothing new to do - simply use the ideas I'd already got together. Since I didn't feel I had to perform live on camera, I was a little more relaxed about it and made arrangements for them to come here, to my home - somewhere I normally guard carefully and keep private on such occasions.

But then a photographer was arranged and yes, he took over, as they do. We moved furniture, exercised patience as he scouted out suitable locations for pictures of the before, the after and the processes in between.

The journalist had brought a skirt with her, with a "weirdly drooping hem" - her words not mine.


My challenge was to do something with it to make it wearable. Sally's suggestion of making a jacket out of it was a no-go, as were other creative proposals from the Artful Dodgers. This was to remain a skirt, albeit a rather shorter one.

I was a little anxious about it for after all, I don't cut other people's clothes up every day - if at all! I remembered the old chalk and string tip for getting that hem right and managed to pull it off successfully. Fortunately, the Gods were on my side and the shortened, neatened skirt was enthusiasically received and shown off to the photographer with genuine delight - unless the journalist was a better actress than I was!

The results will be published next week sometime I believe, in an article about the project as a whole and will include details of how I did it, illustrated by some of the 450+ photographs taken during the afternoon. It will also be accompanied by my ten tips for survival sewing, because I'm such an expert, you know!

(I had my fingers crossed when I said that)

View from a desk

Following Jordi's request to share the view from our desks, I took a few photos in the studio just now. To the left of my computer screen, I can just about see what the weather is doing through the blinds - raining, as usual. I can also see that pile of paper which needs dealing with. I wonder what excuse I'll have this week?

There's also the old computer which is connected to my sewing machines - comes in handy when Mark needs a taste of the old Win98 days too.

To the right of my screen, I can look over to my worktable, where there are a few things needing attention, homes to be found and some newish books I want to read before putting them onto the shelves.

Swivelling round on my chair a little more to the right and I can see what my nearest and dearest is up to. Notice the screen is tiled a little away from me? Hmmm...if I sit forward I can see what's on it though!! This corner is where our best friend Roomba lives too - he who zooms around picking up all those dust bunnies when we're not there.

Next stop, immediately behind me, the door to the laundry reminds me that I could be ironing or dealing with the washing - but notice I stash all that out of sight (out of mind?) The travel bookshelf is a far more interesting place to rest my eyes.

Last stop is the door to the storeroom (best kept closed...believe me!) and the main door, out to the hall and upstairs. Telephone, fax, modem, security system and all of that in this corner...charge-central.

Curiosity satisfied, Jordi?