When my husband was a child, he remembers that whenever he went to visit his grandmother, there was always cake to be had. Now I know that in this day and age we are more careful about what we eat, but surely a little bit of what you fancy is good for you? Everything in moderation as they say.

We have his relatives coming to visit tomorrow, and much like they always wash their cars when you visit one another, the other rule is that there must always be cake.

The first time I met himself’s whole entire family was bonfire night about 15 years ago. I’d not long left university and had just bought my first house which was still pretty empty apart from my tesco value cutlery and tesco value plates. 

So when he told me that everyone takes a cake to bonfire night, I knew that if I was going to be a bone fide woman of the family (and indeed potential wife material) then I needed to polish up my culinary skills and dust off my apron.

Trouble was, I had no mixer, no tins, no bowls, nothing. So off I trundled to the supermarket. No joke, by the time I’d bought not only the ingredients but also the equipment, that lemon drizzle cake cost me the best part of £35. However, it went down a storm, including with his beloved grandma. That was a proud moment.

Back to topic! Hopefully you’ve read my earlier post Let there be cake – if you have, you’ll see my preferred sponge recipe. And it can literally be modified anyway you fancy. Coffee, lemon, chocolate… Wherever the mood takes you.

Just a little reminder: Weigh your eggs, three big, or four small. Then equal quantities of the egg weight of sugar, self raising flour and butter. Cream sugar and butter, add a spoonful of flour. Whisk eggs, add to butter/sugar. Sieve flour and add. Simples!!! 

Today I fancied a coffee and walnut cake, so to that basic recipe, I added into the sponge 2tsp coffee essence and 50g chopped walnuts. Bake as ever in two greased tins with the bases lined at 180 for 20-25 mins.

This one has a naughty-lick-the-bowl-till-there’s-none-left buttercream icing – speaking of which, if you have a food mixer, don’t faff about, make your icing in there, it takes seconds. Recipe? 350g icing sugar, 200g butter, coffee essence to taste. Start with 1tsp then blend until perfectly smooth. Taste. Add more essence if you’d like. 

Smear half on the bottom layer, half on the top, then decorate with walnut halves. 

This literally reminds me in every way of village fetes and jumble sales in the church hall. It was always my nan’s favourite. 

Delightful.

  
There should seriously always be cake. In fact, it should be the law. 

So. Auntie Phyllis. Who wasn’t my auntie, but lived next door and always wore a flowery apron. She taught me to make quiche, I must only have been ten. She taught me pastry, and how to make a cracking (unintended egg pun, do excuse me) filling. 

If you’ve read my blog Let there be cake! then you’ll know I have always been rather more of a savoury soul. And as someone who became a veggie before I was in double figures age wise, quiche was always rather a staple in my diet. 

But. I. Hate. Shop. Bought. Quiche. 

Bleurgh. Even the best ones from good shops taste absolutely nothing like homemade and the rustic made by your own fair hand ones at a buffet or bbq are always the first thing to go whilst the foil encased Sparks & Mensa ones sit there like the last kid that nobody wants to pick for their rounders team.

What’s that I hear you say? I can’t make pastry? 

Do not give me that. Seriously. I’m talking two ingredients here. And you don’t need anything in the way of equipment. I always make my pastry by hand, just because I always have I guess. It’s so bloomin’ easy I can’t believe I’m actually giving away my trade secrets here.

  
175g plain flour, sieved

85g cold (straight from the fridge) butter cut into little lumps

Put butter in flour. Add a pinch of salt. Grate in some Parmesan if you’re feeling really daring. Rub with your finger tips until it’s all breadcrumby. 

  
Then put a tablespoon of water in and mix and knead. But it should only take a few minutes. 

Then pop into a floured worktop and roll out. Now I don’t turn pastry over when I’m rolling it, I turn it a quarter turn after every few rolls. Hence a floured worktop needed. Roll into a rough circle, then lift on your rolling pin and place over the quiche dish. 

  
A few cracks don’t matter now, so just push into the base edge all the way around and then trim the top around roughly to shape with a knife or scissors. Then fold the top in on itself all the way around so you get a perfect crust. And squash and holes full with a piece of the excess. 

  
Then pop in some grease proof and some baking beans and stick into the fridge to chill for half an hour. That stops the pastry shrinking when it cooks. Don’t try and shortcut this bit out or you’ll regret it.

  
So while that’s chillin’ 😎 you can go and knit a few rows of that blanket I know you’re making and think about your filling. Again it’s a matter of what’s around in this house but today it’s goats cheese and courgette. I’m cooking off the courgette with some mixed herbs and olive oil and seasoning just until translucent with a little bit of colour to them.

 
Take the pastry out of the fridge and pop into the oven at 180ish complete with the greaseproof and beans. Then after twenty minutes or so you’ll see your pastry starting to colour around the edges. Take it out of the oven and fill with whatever you choose. As I said we are doing goats cheese and the courgettes today. I like to spread the cheese as a layer so you get the flavour in every bite. 
  
Top with the courgette then go beat your eggs – five or six large or perhaps seven small. Season. Then place the dish on the oven shelf and pour in the egg from there do you’re not carrying a runny eggy dish and spilling it all over the edges.

And BAKE…

Maybe 30 minutes. Until golden brown. Keep watching it in the last moments and turn 180 degrees to get an even golden bake. I’ve used our amazing Jimmy eggs again and they’re so glorious and golden, it really looks like something to behold. A few new potatoes and that’s dinner done for tonight. I’m ahead of time so I’m off to stoke the fire and try and finish that blanket I’m working on.

  
Take home messages? Don’t be scared of pastry. Don’t buy quiche in a shop. 

Toodlepip 😘

So I grew up as an only child of a single parent. But you know what, I never wanted for anything during my childhood, in fact quite the opposite. 

My mum was always a staunch jumble sale on a Saturday, car-boot on a Sunday enthusiast, firstly out of necessity, secondly out of habit and complete addiction. And it is addictive. Not just jumble sale-ing and car-booting, any form of bargain hunting. So she taught me to be the same, always getting value for money in everything. I will forever be a yellow sticker kind of girl picking up 10p bargains in the supermarket, it gives me a bit of a kick, always has, always will. 

So I was thinking about the old adage, one man’s junk is another man’s treasure… I cannot believe what people just throw away. We live in a culture when things are far too disposable for my liking, and people don’t think twice about chucking things into landfill. 

We have a great game going here if and when we decide that something is no longer needed here, we just stick it on eBay for 1p. The idea being that somewhere locally, someone else might really appreciate what you no longer need. If they give you 1p, you’ve done them a good turn and it’s saved you going to the tip, and that item going into landfill. Sometimes you get a few pounds for things and you’re surprised how many people are after what you’re selling. And we get some amazing bargains ourselves too. Take these old school science lab stools I picked up last week for the kitchen. For just £13 each. And the guy I collected then from thought I’d been robbed and was amazed I’d paid what I did. But I think they’re just stunning. Here’s a little before and after to show what half an hour of elbow grease sanding and waxing can achieve. I absolutely love them. 

  
Today we were taking some hedge trimmings from the garden to the local ‘recycling centre’ – that’s the tip to you and me. We can only compost so much and this was big work, much more than a little trim, I had several unruly bushes. Ahem. Mind out of the gutter please. 

Anyway… Our local tip is literally breathtaking, it’s true. It’s so well organised and efficient and all the guys who work there are delightful and friendly and helpful. Everything has a place and you just know that it’s all about the recycling and not just digging everyone’s crap into a big hole to let it rot. And I will go out of my way to get to go there, as there’s a little corner on the way out where they rescue interesting things from the hoppers… So I must always try and have a few pounds in my purse when I go there. It’s the tip version of the plant graveyard you always find at garden centres where things are being sold for 50p because someone hasn’t watered them for weeks. I always do my best to rescue something from those too. Be it a little shrivelled up herb or a wilting tomato plant.

A couple of weeks ago I managed to rescue this little suitcase from the tip. I literally love things that look and feel and smell like they have some history and a story to them. This is now full of board games under my coffee table (which was a £20 Ebay buy btw). How glorious is he? 

  
I’m literally bouncing out of the car like a kid getting to Toys R Us, running to the sale corner and today, I was rewarded. I honestly think someone looks after me from up above and today, they literally put this little garden bench there just for me. It was exactly what I’ve been looking for for literally months. I did a little whoop, out loud I think. 

Here he is… He definitely needs some TLC, but by Jove he will be a stunner once we’ve given him some love and replaced some of his broken slats. And he will go on for years to come, doing his benchy work in our little garden. Who takes these beautiful treasures to be put into landfill? What’s their story? Where have they come from? Thankfully the lovely boys at our tip rescue things like this so they can be given a new home and another chance at life…

 
I’ll post photos when we start his renovation. He needs a name though. I’m thinking Bernard?