Oh so pretty....

What the Easter Bunny Baked...and then left!

Well these are the double-chocolate hot cross buns I made for Easter. I have never been one for the traditional buns - all that fruit just isn't my thing. But figured this was different enough to give it a go and see if its any good.

I found the recipe in Country Living last year which I only happened upon a bit ago when trying to sort out all my recipe cuttings. I finally put them all in a notebook so that at least I could note which ones I tried and liked. I would then of course write it up in my other written book so that I had notes all together of what I did differently from the original recipe. As with just about anything in life tastes change and you alter slightly things (in this case recipes) to suit the time and place. Well at least I do...what do you do? So to end your anticipation here is a picture of all my current recipes - yes, way too many but what would you expect from moi? I always aim to please! =)

Off to enjoy those buns with a nice cuppa as they say...

Vintage purses and findings....

Well this is mostly a cookery blog but thought I'd share the latest find I got on eBay. I love these small pearl clutch purses. I cannot say what makes me gravitate towards them but they are just so cute! I used this small purse for my mobile. I have a little sock thing but I used this to organise my purse (yes, it is a bit disgusting that everything has a place in my purse!).

This one is brand new and came yes, in its own box! It also came with a bevelled double-sided mirror (not sure why as you can only look at one side but cute nonetheless, and a small change purse. When you feel the weight of these purses you'll know why I love them. They feel like something and they are so utilitarian. What do I do with them you ask? I use them as purses (as they are called on this end of the pond) or wallets as known in the US.

A long time ago I was pick-pocketed. Not the happiest of days but I swore then that I would no longer use a traditional wallet. So I began using these small purses to keep my change in. I then found a nice one that has a snap closure rather than a zipper for my credit cards. I find this generates a lot of conversation at the tills - as everyone is interested in what they are. My point...? Be different and adapt things to your use. Some people will only see these as too small to carry their lip stick and etc. in. That may be but they still have a life with me and I buy then whenever I can (translate into when they are cHeAp!).

Well I'll take a snap of the inside of my handbag some other time - you really will be sick as I'm a neat freak inside the bag! Till the next time!

The remains of dinner...

Oh my what a habit this is becoming in that I've made so many posts but I am trying to be better - if just a bit!

Dinner was cannelloni with ricotta and spinach. The pasta was of course home made but the ricotta was reduced and the rest was in the house. It is such an easy meal to prepare and also economical too!

I keep finding things at the stores bizarre to say the least. While out the other day we noticed all the stores pushing their own brands and how great their are - both in taste and on the pocket book. I recently went to this site which ranks the supermarkets own brand items against the 'real' brands. I found it interesting and will at some point try to have a better look but the few items I tried to look at were not things that we buy so it is pretty much useless for us. Perhaps someone else will find it useful.

In any event, I'm off to bed now that J and I both had a meal that cost us about £3.00 and we'll get another meal or two from it we feel quite swish with ourselves!

Time for a change...

Well two posts in such a short space of time you all will be spoilt! But I have been having some time off and thought I'd change the colours of the blog. I really should figure out how to change the whole thing to my liking but alas I'm just too busy to fuss around with it (perhaps a bit lazy too!).

Have been thinking about Easter and what to make J for the day. Well finally had a clear out of all those magazine cuttings one does and thinks - yeah, I'll make that but then they go into the cupboard or drawer and promptly are forgotten. Well finally put them into one of my notebooks and it is now full! But at least it is in some sort of order rather than the chaos I had before.

So flipping though that I found this recipe for double-chocolate hot cross buns. Well I don't do the normal hot cross buns as I don't do the dried fruit bit. I am very picky about what dried fruit I eat (mostly raisins and such but only in certain things) and more importantly what they are in! But I digress...in any event the recipe seems quite good in that you replace the fruit for chocolate. How bad can that be?

I'll post something on how they turn out but I expect they will disappear just like everything else in this house! Do you have a favourite thing you like to make on Easter? If so let me know.

Beauty of Spring....

Sometimes the best things in life are those you never expect. Like the following picture of a poinsettia plant that I got which wasn't bigger than 3 inches when I got it but now it is a towering plant and this is the second year it has turned red and the first year I got the actual flowers. What a joy - albeit later than Christmas but still a joy to view! My other poinsettia plant is much bigger than this one and when I got it - it was pitiful - just three leaves and looked so tired! But it too is now turning red on the very tips. When it's got something more to post I'll add a snap.

Now this is a picture of some freesias I got from a friend. One day the postie came and I thought 'Who could these be from?' as I wasn't expecting them and J was there with me so I knew they weren't from him. I had never heard of freesias before but what a lovely scent they give off! And they just keep on giving and opening their petals to exude more lovely scent.

Spring is in the air....I can smell it!

Even longer but now we're onto CHOCOLATE!

Well again a long time between posts but what can I say? Life has to be lived and while it's great to have an archive of what you do at varying times in your life I don't want to be in front of a keyboard and monitor all the time!

So what have I been doing? Well, I went back home in March/April to visit my niece for the first time since she was born. That was really great to do and I have many movies and pictures of our time together. I don't like posting pictures of her - suffice to say we look strangely and eerily alike! I will post one picture - this is of a telephone mast in Tampa - yes, it's meant to look like a tree - weird or what? I guess a mast would have been too daring for that part of town and well a fake tree that's a mast well that would be just so much better to look at! Um, OK....

I then of course returned home and to work (what a dirty word!) and it has been non-stop since. I have been off the last week but have been feeling poorly due to a bad back but today has been the first day I've actually been able to sit for any period of time so thought I'd put the sitting to good use!

I recently baked a cake for J which was a 'Death by Chocolate' cake - yes, I keep going back to that book. When you see the recipes and you try a few you will see why. In any event, here is my cake which I must admit looks home made but who cares?!

It's the tasting that counts and well with chocolate - how far can you go wrong? Not far in my book. In any event, it was very good and is sadly nearly gone too! Oh dear....will have to just make something else...check back soon!