In anticipation of summer, we are bottling ginger beer. 

The bug has been growing on the window sill for a week now. Each morning we feed the yeasty mud with some more sugar and ginger. 

Despite the sound of it, it is downright fascinating watching it bubble away.

The first batch is bottled.  Tasting should be in a week, when summer finally arrives.  However,  it feels like I can guarantee rain by simply hanging out the washing.  Hopefully, I haven't cast a jinx on summer in the same way.

The bug is still growing.  One ready to give away and the other ready for round two.

Every spring I start looking at my vegetable garden.  The needles get put down in favour for spades, hoses and time outdoors. Sometimes it hold my attention, other times things get a little despondent by the end of January - lack of water (or watering), white fly and plants bolting to seed.  This is not one of those years. 



So far we have had :

• Peas and potatoes ready for Christmas, if only we had been at home to enjoy them.  
•  Avoided the tomato glut by just planting cherry tomatoes for myself, admitting that I am the only one who eat them
• My first success with climbing beans  - it's true you really do get more than with dwarf beans
• A successful strawberry bed - the answer to millipedes is to plant flowers instead.  Probably doesn't taste any good, but they looked fantastic.

To celebrate the end of the end of the festive season, we made galette des rois.  While the galette baked, we broke down the Christmas tree and boxed up decorations.  We celebrated a few days early this year to avoid a clash with first day back to work blues.  Great food and company made a fantastic end to our Christmas celebrations.

Unlike last year, we had a tiny ceramic charm to bake into the pie.  If you look carefully, you can see her standing on a dollar coin for scale. 

In honor of the last day of Daycare for the year, H and I made sprinkle fudge to give to the teachers.


To make your own you will need:

395g can sweetened condensed milk
100g butter
200g  brown sugar
3 Tbsp golden syrup
180g white chocolate buttons
2 tsp vanilla essence
Lots of sprinkles  - 100s & 1000s, chocolate buttons etc.

1 Combine the sweetened condensed milk, butter, sugar and syrup in a microwave-proof bowl and cook on medium-high power for 7 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes.

2 Mix in the chocolate and vanilla and stir until combined, then beat well until glossy. Spoon into a lined 17cm x 27cm tin . 

3 Sprinkle - gather the decorations and go for it!  Set aside to cool, then cover with cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour until firm. Cut into bite size pieces.

Then the thrifting - I found a breadmaker at a recent garage sale.  At $10 with a "it might not work" caveat I wasn't expecting much.  I found a copy of the manual online and 3 loaves of bread later, the bread maker has more than paid for itself.


Finally, the Christmas - With a surplus of quince meat, 3 pints to be precise,I'm on the lookout for recipes to use it up.  This braided loaf recipe was in the bread maker manual.  I had my fingers crossed behind my back expecting disaster but it was brilliant.  It tasted even better on day 2 and 3, which is a little unusual in my experience of home made bread.


Now I only have 2 1/2 pints of Quince Meat to go, any ideas?

Stir it up Sunday is something my grandmother introduced me to.  Before launching into all the rush of Advent and associated Christmas preparations, we have Stir it up Sunday.  It takes it's name from a 1549 prayer

"Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded;"

While this could trigger all manner of contemplation, this talk of stirring and fruit sounds suspiciously like pudding. Since the 1800's Stir it up Sunday, has been known as the perfect time to be making Christmas pudding.

Gran took great pride in sharing traditions with me.  As she told me all about this day, she smiled conspiratorially, and told me she had already made her puddings.

Given the day and all it's traditions, it could only mean a trip to Grandma's, my mother, for the girls to Stir it Up.

Measuring

Making bread crumbs

Cutting liners

Stiring it Up

And finally - the first cooking