Hot water pastry makes less mess for blind bakers but also works with commercial “wheat/gluten-free” flour as I tested this week. Just adding a teaspoon of xanthium gum to the flours and we made individual pork pies and a “baked…
Sound effects. The sous-chef has been away for days at a bee convention. We know he’s getting older, but technology really helps. His hearing aids connect to his mobile phone so I’m talking direct into his ears. On the other…
I am just like that talking tea pot in the film: round and warm and producing lots of hot air – in “Received Pronunciation!” That’s what they say in this clip: I was recording a long podcast with Mark and…
Delight this week. Brother Peter’s new laser cutter and fabulous skills have transformed our whimsical wedding crest (Commando dagger, WRNS fouled anchor, crossed white canes and Anjou fleur de lis – drawn by professional illustrator nephew Toby ) into a…
Yesterday I was compared with a talking teapot! The one in “beauty and the Beast”. Apparently, to transatlantic ears, I sound like the late Dame Angela Lansbury whom the older of us will remember from “Bedknobs and Broomsticks” and “Murder…
Too pathetic. bemoaning the problem that I brought on myself. Not enough storage space for new cooking containers, pans, and more bought on an utterly wicked day at the Gunwharf outlet centre in Portsmouth. Now I need to find new…
Some ideas to avoid food going “off” before you can eat it: Vegetables. Head of celery. Cut a very fine disc off the bottom, trying to avoid the stalks detaching. Place upright with the cut end in about an inch…
I’m measuring my progress back to fitness by the number of courgettes I can chop. It is over five years now since the accident and I’m still doggedly pushing on to recover my ability to stand with huge thanks to…
If it is the morning after the night before and you can hardly bear to open your eyes, here’s the answer for that flawless facial finish to disguise the ravages of last night’s over-indulgence. Estée Lauder has launched a new…
Blind Veterans had a big fund-raising drive over the Christmas holidays and I’m sure that including my famous ginger biscuit recipe in their leaflet made all the difference! Check it out and you might also be inspired to make a…
