...then I could do the same as this little guy.
Friday, 27 February 2015
Monday, 23 February 2015
Munchy Monday #50: Col de la Iaia Sofia
O.K. folks. I'm sorry to say that this is my 50th and last Munchy Monday post. It's not that I have run out of recipes, it's just that it ties me down too much.
This Munchy is different in another way, too. I am directing you straight over to my eldest daughter's blog for a recipe that my grandson called "Granny Sofia's cabbage".
Why? Because it's purple!
Note: If you can't make head ner tail because it's in Catalan, then drop me an e-mail and I'll help you out :)
This Munchy is different in another way, too. I am directing you straight over to my eldest daughter's blog for a recipe that my grandson called "Granny Sofia's cabbage".
Why? Because it's purple!
Note: If you can't make head ner tail because it's in Catalan, then drop me an e-mail and I'll help you out :)
Monday, 16 February 2015
Munchy Monday #49: No-cook chocolate squares
Very simply delicious!
You will need:
275 dark chocolate
175 butter
4 tblsp. golden syrup
175 Maria biscuits
25 g Rice Krispies
50 g walnuts, chopped
100 g red glacé cherries, chopped
Method:
Place the chocolate with the butter and syrup in a bowl over hot water. Place on a low heat and stir frequently until all ingredients have melted.
Break up the biscuits and add them to the syrup mixture together with the cereal, nuts and cherries. Stir well.
Line an 18 cm squared mold with parchment paper and fill with the chocolate mixture.
Smooth the mixture evenly and leave in fridge for at least two hours.
You will need:
275 dark chocolate
175 butter
4 tblsp. golden syrup
175 Maria biscuits
25 g Rice Krispies
50 g walnuts, chopped
100 g red glacé cherries, chopped
Method:
Place the chocolate with the butter and syrup in a bowl over hot water. Place on a low heat and stir frequently until all ingredients have melted.
Break up the biscuits and add them to the syrup mixture together with the cereal, nuts and cherries. Stir well.
Line an 18 cm squared mold with parchment paper and fill with the chocolate mixture.
Smooth the mixture evenly and leave in fridge for at least two hours.
Friday, 6 February 2015
Lovely song... Oh, so true
Please, dear bloggy friends, pop over to my daughter's blog and listen to the song she posted some days ago.
http://www.dreamymaygirl.blogspot.com.es/2015/01/we-have-this-moment-today.html
http://www.dreamymaygirl.blogspot.com.es/2015/01/we-have-this-moment-today.html
Wednesday, 4 February 2015
More snow
This time it has snowed on our very own doorstep!
Here are some photos I took between 8:00 and 9:30 am. I went for a walk even before breakfast because you have to be quick to catch it here.
Here are some photos I took between 8:00 and 9:30 am. I went for a walk even before breakfast because you have to be quick to catch it here.
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| At 8:00 am |
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| Across the valley |
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| Vineyards in the snow |
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| The woods down the lane a bit |
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| The road out of the estate |
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| The main road up... |
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| ...and down |
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| The mountains - by 11:00 you can see the snow is melting |
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| Harry, the happy snowman (Can anyone smell carrots?) |
Dad's Dictionary...
LURGY
This week's word is one my Dad used frequently. It's also quite a suitable one since we've all had it over the past days to some degree or other!
To have "the dreaded lurgy" seems to have originated from one particular episode of 'The Goon Show' back in the early fifties. According to my Dad, if you had the lurgy you were suffering from a cold or perhaps some 'flu' symptoms but this wasn't the case, it seems, on the Goon show. They used it to refer to some terrible imaginary outbreak of who knows what which could "swamp the whole of the British Isles in Six weeks".
It could well have been linked with an expression from the north of England which originated during WWII - 'fever-largie' meaning a sudden attack of laziness.
Knowing just a little about Spike Milligan as I do, one can imagine him being "tickled by the idea of an epidemic outbreak of idleness".
All info. taken from worldwidewords.org If you like words like I do this is THE web to browse.
It could well have been linked with an expression from the north of England which originated during WWII - 'fever-largie' meaning a sudden attack of laziness.
Knowing just a little about Spike Milligan as I do, one can imagine him being "tickled by the idea of an epidemic outbreak of idleness".
All info. taken from worldwidewords.org If you like words like I do this is THE web to browse.
Tuesday, 3 February 2015
Montblanc and Siurana
The weekend before last we took my husband's sister and brother-in-law to visit this end of Catalonia. It was a very cold day with a biting north east wind making it difficult to stand still for too long! Having said that, we all had a NICE time. Here are some photos that were taken by E. and D. I actually had my camera with me but only realized this once I had arrived home!
We went first to Montblanc. Montblanc has a rich history, starting even before the Ibearian settlers who came during the 4th to the 1st centuries BC. Apparently, Hannibal came through with all his elephants during this time, on his way to conquer Rome, the year 218 BC. In 711 AD it was invaded by the Moors. There is plain evidence of Roman life from 2 BC to 2 AD. Montblanc has very well preserved medieval buildings and can boast of having had three different names over the course of it's history - first Duesaigues, because it lay between two rivers: the Francolí and it's affluent, the Anguera. It was later called Vilasalva because the villagers were exempt from taxes for a time and, finally, Montblanc which refers to the complete lack of natural vegetation in the area!
The first two photos are from internet, the rest are a selection of the ones D. and E. took.
From Montblanc we travelled towards Reus and then across to Siurana for an afternoon visit to the dam and then the village. There were some amazing sights to see: rock formations, birds, vegetation and sometimes simply how the pinkish, late afternoon sun shone on everything. Beautiful.
Hope you have enjoyed this as much as we did... The only difference is that you didn't freeze whilst looking at the post!
We went first to Montblanc. Montblanc has a rich history, starting even before the Ibearian settlers who came during the 4th to the 1st centuries BC. Apparently, Hannibal came through with all his elephants during this time, on his way to conquer Rome, the year 218 BC. In 711 AD it was invaded by the Moors. There is plain evidence of Roman life from 2 BC to 2 AD. Montblanc has very well preserved medieval buildings and can boast of having had three different names over the course of it's history - first Duesaigues, because it lay between two rivers: the Francolí and it's affluent, the Anguera. It was later called Vilasalva because the villagers were exempt from taxes for a time and, finally, Montblanc which refers to the complete lack of natural vegetation in the area!
The first two photos are from internet, the rest are a selection of the ones D. and E. took.
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| The main street |
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| Looking up a side alley |
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| Irresistible |
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| We decided on meringues in the end! Mmmm... |
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| The church facade |
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| The legend of St George and the dragon |
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| Apparently, St George killed the dragon right here! Of course, it wasn't paved over then and the rose grew quickly in such rich soil... |
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| The Siurana Dam - looking right... |
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| ...and looking left |
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| Sorry, no bananas for scale - just our Micra! |
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| The road we came along to get up there |
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| Siurana High Street! |
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| The view over the dam - where we were before |
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| Looking back towards the village, 180º turn on where the previous photo was taken |
Hope you have enjoyed this as much as we did... The only difference is that you didn't freeze whilst looking at the post!
Monday, 2 February 2015
Munchy Monday #48: Yogurt sponge cake
This is the first 'foreign' cake I learnt to make after I was married and moved to Catalonia. The ingredients are very basic, the recipe simple and the results are guaranteed. It is also done in a jiffy, so if you have nothing for breakfast tomorrow, pop one of these in the oven whilst making supper and you have yet another problem solved. I serve this for breakfast on a Sunday morning with a fresh fruit salad or an orange juice each and squares of chocolate. Everybody eats breakfast on a Sunday morning!
Instructions:
1 plain or lemon yogurt. Empty yogurt into a mixing bowl and wash container.
Then measure and add to the yogurt, 1 container of white sugar, 1/2 container of sunflower oil and 2 eggs. Mix with a hand blender. Add 3 containers of plain flour and 1 sachet of baking powder (approx. 15 g).
Blend until smooth and pour batter into a 30 cm x 15 cm cake mold (or equivalent). Bake in a medium oven for 20 - 25 minutes. When golden in colour and cooked right through, remove from oven and lightly sprinkle with white sugar. Hide cake and leave to cool.
Because this recipe is so basic it allows for many variations. Here are a few suggestions which have been tried and tested over the years:
# Just add slices of apple to the top of the cake
# Use a coconut yogurt and add a container of desiccated coconut to the recipe, before adding the flour
# Sprinkle pine nuts over the top
# Pour most of batter into cake mold, add a level tablespoon full of sifted cocoa powder to remaining batter, stir well then pour over original batter to give a marbling effect
Enjoy!
Instructions:
1 plain or lemon yogurt. Empty yogurt into a mixing bowl and wash container.
Then measure and add to the yogurt, 1 container of white sugar, 1/2 container of sunflower oil and 2 eggs. Mix with a hand blender. Add 3 containers of plain flour and 1 sachet of baking powder (approx. 15 g).
Blend until smooth and pour batter into a 30 cm x 15 cm cake mold (or equivalent). Bake in a medium oven for 20 - 25 minutes. When golden in colour and cooked right through, remove from oven and lightly sprinkle with white sugar. Hide cake and leave to cool.
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| A variation of the original recipe - apple yogurt cake |
# Just add slices of apple to the top of the cake
# Use a coconut yogurt and add a container of desiccated coconut to the recipe, before adding the flour
# Sprinkle pine nuts over the top
# Pour most of batter into cake mold, add a level tablespoon full of sifted cocoa powder to remaining batter, stir well then pour over original batter to give a marbling effect
Enjoy!
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