Lockdown Cooking

How are you all? Still staying safe I hope. Despite the endless confusing information and bending of rules here in the UK (which makes me very angry but I'm not going there) we are pretty much living our lives much the same as the past ten weeks. We're staying at home, going out for walks but keeping our distance and supermarket shopping when necessary but that's about it. We have had one or two meetings with family members over the past couple of weeks which has been wonderful seeing them after so long, but still outside and at a distance. I needed some sandpaper during the week so actually ventured out to the DIY store but on seeing the queue outside I decided I didn't need it that urgently so turned around and came back home. I have no desire to rush back to pubs and restaurants or anywhere that people are gathering. It all feels so unnecessary. The jury is still out about getting my hair cut... Stewart did seem rather alarmed when I suggested I could shave my head!

So now that the demand for scrubs has pretty much stopped and I have used up my supply of mask making elastic I'm looking at other ways to stay busy besides painting all day. I've had a couple of moderately successful sough dough loaves from my starter, which I named Vincent Van Dough, which isn't looking very lively in this photo... but it has only just been fed and returned to the fridge. But then in the heat of last week I decided I couldn't endure another summer living with the Aga turned on. I was literally wilting in the heat and seemed to have a constant headache. So we bought a portable two ring hob and the Aga went off. The kitchen is so much more comfortable and our electricity bill has dropped by 75%. I think this could be the decider for it going for good!

So what to do with poor old Vincent with no oven in which to bake bread? I do have a bread maker so decided it was worth experimenting . I mixed the dough, kneaded it and let it prove before adding it to the bread maker for the longest cycle. I cooked a brick! I was all for throwing it out but the men of the house who will eat anything decided it was worth investigating. And surprisingly it was actually okay with a good sourdough flavour and suitably chewy texture, so probably worth doing again.

But I did also discover sough dough starter makes incredible pancakes so it would appear that Vincent will live on!

I then received a wonderful surprise gift in the post from our friends in the Netherlands, who know I like cooking as much as I appreciate art... Modern Art Desserts. On seeing the wonderful Mondrian cake on the cover my heart sank a little as I thought I wouldn't be able to make any of the desserts without an oven. But on reading there were several that do not require baking.

So On Friday I made these elegant little Panne Cotta based on an artwork by Spanish artist Rosana Castrillo Diaz. A layer of coffee flavoured panne cotta set at an angle, with a layer of liqueur jelly separating it from a layer of maple syrup flavoured panne cotta. An awful lot of work and several dirty saucepans over a period of about six hours but so worth it! Only in lockdown would I spend the time making such a special occasion dessert destined for our Saturday lunch but the Mondrian cake will have to wait until the autumn when the Aga goes back on.

I even managed to find some edible lustre dust to make the jelly layers sparkle.

As well as cooking there has been a fair bit of reading and I have just finished Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, which I loved. I was so engrossed in the characters that I didn't want it to end so I have immediately picked up a God in Ruins, despite having read it only a few years ago with our reading group. Not a sequel exactly but the continuing story of one of the central characters from Life After Life. It's not often I read a contemporary novel more than once but I'm enjoying it just as much second time around and it's made me think of other books I might want to reread.

Our reading group has continued to meet via zoom calls although it's not quite so easy to have a discussion. As it happens our book for June is another Kate Atkinson - Big Sky, the latest in the Jackson Brodie series. Have you read anything good lately? Or cooked anything exciting either for that matter?

I've not been great at keeping up with blogs or replying to comments etc lately so do forgive me and pop by and say hello! I miss you!

The Four Pillars

Blogging really feels like it is taking a back seat the moment, which is frustrating because there is much I would like to write about but as always is the way when there is lots happening there is no time to write. Of course when there is plenty of time to write I've nothing much to say!

Despite being busy I'm still trying to follow the advice in Dr Chatterjee's book The 4 Pillar Plan, trying to improve how I relax, eat, move and sleep. For each of the four 'pillars' there is a five point check list and until I started writing this I thought I was doing really well... oh how we can fool ourselves!

For relaxation he suggests carving out some 'me time' each day. It can be almost anything that is solely for me that doesn't involve a screen plus I mustn't feel guilty about it. If nothing else I read a real book for at least 15 guilt free minutes a day so I think I can consider that ticked. I also eat at least one meal around a table... in fact we generally eat all our meals at the table. so that is two points ticked... however keeping a screen free Sabbath (or any day I guess) is not something I've done, nor a daily period of stillness... although when I'm laying awake unable to sleep I try to meditate on my breathing. Does that count? The fifth suggestion is to keep a gratitude journal which I sort of do mentally but just forget to write it down. He suggests doing it last thing at night but it's just about the last thing I think about... too busy thinking about that elusive sleep!

I'm not scoring so well on the moving either. I mostly manage 10,000 steps a day but strength training, high intensity intervals training, exercise snacking, daily glute exercises? I don't think so... I really must reread that chapter! Sleep is not scoring so well either. I can appreciate an environment of darkness for going off to sleep but I actually like the arrival of daylight to wake me up. Plus I'm not about to get new curtains. I did a few days with no screen time in the evenings (until I discovered the ancestry research) and even a few days with no caffine in the evening but even though I have tried really hard  I find most herbal teas revolting and as there was no discernable difference in my sleeping pattern I've reverted back to old habits. At least I get twenty minutes of daylight outside every morning.

But for the eating I'm scoring four out of five (if you have the book you will know that he suggests it is far better to score two in each pillar than a high score in one and nothing in others... but we'll gloss over that for now!) Retrain taste buds to de-normailise sugar... tick, Eat five different veg a day... tick, eat all my food within a twelve hour window... tick, unprocess my diet... tick! The only thing I struggle with at this time of year is drinking eight glasses of water a day. I do try but mostly forget. And when I do remember, I spend half the night up and down needing a wee, so it doesn't do much for me getting a better night's sleep

But I'm really enjoying the food... breakfast is always a favourite meal especially every conceivable porridge variation - the current favourite is made with blueberries and topped with yoghurt and slices of kiwi. Or maybe fruit and yoghurt topped with homemade granola... so much nicer than any supermarket brands. 

Homemade Granola

I warm up 25g butter with 60g nut butter (usually almond) and 60 g honey. Stir that into 300g oats along with 75g chopped nuts (almonds, hazelnuts and pecans all work well). Spread this onto a baking tray and bake at 180 deg C (160 fan) for 15 mins, turning half way through the cooking time. Do set a timer as there is a fine line between toasted nuts and burnt! Allow to cool and stir in a handful of dried cranberries (or raisins) before storing in an airtight container.

Soup is always an easy way to eat several portions of vegetables for lunch and I've been making soda bread each week to go along with it.

Seeded Soda Bread

Mix together 450g wholemeal bread flour, 75g mixed seeds, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda. In a jug combine 1 tablespoon black treacle with a carton of buttermilk and top it up to 450 ml with some cold water. Mix well into the flour mixture and allow to stand for five minutes while the oven heats up to 200 deg C. (180 fan) Shape into a loaf, place on a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes.

And just in case you think I'm being too virtuous to be true... there were some date and walnut muffins this week (and some chocolate, but that's a secret!) 

So that's where I am with the four pillars... not doing as well as I thought but I generally keep good health and have plenty of energy, plus I have shed a few pounds since the new year so it can't all be bad. I shall definitely stick with it.

I hope you have a good weekend!

Daily Bread

One of my Christmas presents this year, a result of some pretty heavy hints from me, was a voucher for a bread making day at The White Cottage Bakery. Although I have made my own bread for many years I have only ever followed recipes in books and magazines so I was looking forward to actually learning from a pro... I wasn't to be disappointed! There were several courses to choose from but I opted for an Italian Bread Making Day... it turned out to be a wise choice.

We were welcomed to Helen's cottage in the Cambridgeshire village of Kingston with a breakfast of toast (bread homemade by Helen, of course) and homemade marmalade or jam, while Helen explained what we would be doing throughout the day. It wasn't long before the six of us on the course were getting stuck in learning how to make and handle a very wet ciabatta dough. 

While the ciabatta dough was left to prove we got to make some wild garlic pesto to use later in the day as Helen had been foraging just the day before. We then made some more dough, a pane all'olio which again was left to prove before we got around to shaping the ciabatta.

After all that hard work kneading we stopped for a coffee break... accompanied by some delicious Ricciarelli, a type of almond macaroon that originate from 14th centuary Siena, again made by Helen of course!

It was then back to work shaping the pane all'olio - some was left to prove in tins ready to become Focaccia, the remaining dough was rolled out and covered in a variety of toppings... wild garlic pesto and pinenuts...

Slow dried tomatoes, marinaded garlic and basil...

Peppers, olives, cheese and basil.

These were then cut and twisted to make a variety of filled and shaped doughs.

They all look so good and the wonderful  aromas filling the kitchen were absolutely mouth watering !

With all our breads made and shaped and ready to bake we then got around to making our lunch. Helen had prepared some pizza dough for us which she then showed us how to shape into perfect circles. We each got to cover our our own  pizza with our choice of toppings. Peppers, mushrooms, tomato, olives, pesto and plenty of mozzerella for me.

Others chose to add Italian meats to their pizza toppings.

It was fabulous pizza...

Together with salad prepared by Helen's husband Mark who had looked after us at all of our breaks, it made a wonderful lunch, which we ate while our breads baked.

And these were the amazing breads we all made during the day.

Fantasic focaccia topped with pesto or rosemary and sea salt, soaked in fruity olive oil.

Wonderful pillowy ciabatta...

A lots of lovely filled pockets and twists...

All of which we got to take home at the end of the day. It was a brilliant day, I learned loads and as an added bonus I've a freezer full of fabulous homemade bread. Not only that it's another sixty x sixty ambition realised as I've always wanted to learn to make bread properly.

I can certainly recommend a day learning to make bread with Helen, who is a great teacher and very generous with her knowledge. And as for me I will be putting my newly learned skills into practise and I can't wait to go back for a day learning more bread making techniques... sourdough next I think, although French breads... or maybe even sweet doughs also sound tempting. Maybe all three!