A Little Gem of a Secret...

picture borrowed from the web

A while ago a friend of mine told me about Fattoria la Vialla.

 

As it is explained on their website "The La Vialla Farm is a family-run agricultural enterprise, one of the oldest and largest organic-biodynamic farms in this little piece of Chianti".

 

picture borrowed from the web

My friend had purchased their products for years and was so thrilled with them, so on her recommendation I ordered a bottle of wine, some pecorino cheese and some olive oil.

  ☺

The products were all amazing - particularly the wine - the Casa Conforto Chianti Superiore D.O.C.G. 2010.

picture borrowed from the web - I see the label says 2008, I have only tried the 2010

To be honest, I am not a big wine drinker. Most of the time I would rather have water, but this wine is really something else. At £6.50 a bottle - including free delivery - you can't argue with that! (You have to order for minimum £75 to get free delivery, but I teamed up with my friend, so no problem reaching £75 between us.) A new case is now in our house and no other wine will do!

♥

To top it all - A few days later I also received in the post a small sample of their new wine as well as a few pieces of biscotti and a mini-bottle of olive oil. I like service like that.

picture borrowed from the web

I don't know if they ship to other countries (other than the UK) and what the customs implications might be, but they are easy to contact via the email found on their website to find out.

 

Apparently, they also have holiday houses for rent on their property.

Perhaps we do another Italian holiday this summer...?

♥

 

PS: I am (unfortunately) not sponsored by Fattoria La Vialla

☺

Recommended Reading: "Tett Inntil Dagene"

I am reading a book I got for Christmas by an acclaimed Swedish-Kurdish author, Mustafa Can. I am reading it in Norwegian (originally written in Swedish: "Tätt Intill Dagarna") and the English title is "Close To The Day".
 

The book is mesmerising in its sadness and at the same time a tender description of Can's dying mother. The book is about her last months and how her son during this time gets to know his mother in a new way. He rediscovers her culture and background, a world he has fought to get rid of and has felt ashamed of. He gets to know a woman who has lost 7 of her 15 children, who left her country and settled in an unknown culture. He sees the challenges she faced settling in a culture she struggled to understand, but which her children quickly embraced. The story is also an example of the challenges of growing up between different cultures.

 

The book is beautifully written and I am enjoying the lovely use of the language. I read quite a lot, and most of the time the language is fine (sometimes it is not!). But every now and then you come across something that is superbly well written.
 

This is one of those books.

And Then the Snow Came...

After several days of severe warnings and very little action, proper snow finally came this weekend! Ok, I know that some parts of the UK have had loads more than we have, but I can't help thinking there is a slight sense of drama going on... Many schools are closed, trains and flights are cancelled and people are forced to either take holidays to look after their children or try to work from home. At least let's hope the kids go out and play in the snow!

I spent a large part of my childhood in Norway and can't remember that school was ever shut even for a single day because of snow... However, I do remember there was talk of sending the children home once because it was too hot one summer...

☺

But since there are no winter tyres for the cars and many don't have proper winter clothing (amazing to see people walking to work in their wellies! - must be sooooo cold and slippery!) it is no wonder even a small amount of snow take people by surprise. The Cat has not been outside since Thursday evening when he spent the grand total of 2 minutes outside...

☺

I am enjoying this little show of snow. It makes everything look very pretty and clean. And I like the freshness in the air. 

So, put on another layer of clothing and stay warm out there! I can see the daffodils and other spring flowers are already about 5-10cm above the ground so it will be spring soon enough!

♥

4 Blue...and Freestyle Knitting

4 blue degrees this morning and bright sunshine makes the world look pretty

☺

But it was awfully cold biking in to work...

I have been busy lately with the "knitting bug" - knitting socks and other things.
One of the projects was to re-vamp a cushion we were given last year by good friends. Being very creative people, they had in a joint project made a scatter cushion for us. I loved this cushion as they had all contributed with the layout using different textures and materials in the panels. So, I was really upset when one of the panels made with lace got worn and torn!

The new panel in the cushion is made of the same yarn I used when knitting the "Marius-cushion"

To repair it I knitted freestyle two new panels, making up a pattern as I went along alternating knit and purl stiches (rett og vrang) and simply covered the broken lace.

One of my favourite shapes is the heart, so I included a couple of hearts.

 Now we have a unique scatter cushion jointly made with 

love!

I Used To...

Great book with very easy explanations - in Norwegian.

I used to collect cooking books...

I still do. I have a lot... 

No, I have not counted them...

♥

But lately I note that another collection is starting to take shape - knitting and crocheting books. Even if I know how to knit and crochet, it is always good with new inspiration and to learn new techniques! Just like I know how to cook, but it is still good with new inspiration and to learn new techniques...

Do I sound like I am trying to justify myself here...?

☺

Inspiring book and the description of the shawl I am hoping to make is in this book

Here are three of the latest ones that have found their way to my bookshelf the last month

Original book is in Norwegian, but you can now also get it in English (as you see!)

Nope, my hands are not idle in the winter evenings. 

☺

At the moment I am knitting socks to use up some old yarn after making some of the Christmas balls.  I have promised myself NOT to buy any new yarn until some of the old stock has been used up! I have finally cracked how to do the heel nicely! Very satisfying!

So proud of myself!!!

But I have also promised to try to crochet somebody very special a rather intricate shawl. Even if I have got myself a special lamp - with a magnifying mirror which is excellent for doing bead work -  I prefer daylight to do that so it will have to be a weekend project.

So, what is YOUR project these days (or evenings)?

Slow Start to the New Year... (or perhaps not)

Happy New Year!

I went a bit quiet over the holidays, but I am back again!
Here is a quick summary:

 

We enjoyed lovely, peaceful days over Christmas with loads of seasonal food... and it continued when we went to Norway to celebrate the New Year!
The weather was not the best although we were greeted with a lovely white wintry landscape. Well, that soon turned into pure ice and rain... But never mind, the company was great! A couple of days before New Year's Eve we were invited for pinnekjøtt and on New Year's Eve we were 15 around the table enjoying a gourmet meal cooked by the host's nephew who is a professional chef at a great restaurant in Oslo.

We have been so spoiled!

♥

Marius pattern bedsheets!

I didn't manage much shopping whilst 'home', but I managed to run and get new bedsheets for Our Boy. He was lucky enough to be given a super long down duvet (2.20m) and bedsheets when kind and considerate friends came from Norway earlier in December. At 16 he is 1.85m, so the regular duvets (2.00m) are short for him and you can't get any longer ones here (yes, I have asked!). Talk about happy boy!  'Now I don't have to choose whether to have cold feet or cold shoulders', he says. Oh, the little details that make life comfortable

☺

After we came back to England The Professor and I we went straight to Durham to suss out the town and to start looking for accommodation for him. Early days yet, but we plan to rent something for a while whilst waiting to sell the place in Edinburgh and then buy something new in Durham. I am pleased to say I liked the town very much! Reminds me in many ways of where we live now, but still different. For one thing, Durham has hills.... On a positive note - great for exercise!

Oh, and we managed to see "Life of Pi" at the movies! I had not read the book, but I enjoyed the film!

 

 

So, now back to normal routine!

Work wise, that is...

☺

I end today's post with a picture of my friend's new Jack Russel puppy...

Too cute for words!
 

Hope you are having a good start to the new year!

 

 

 



Tried and Tested: Peanut Brittle

 

Busy weekend cleaning, baking and cooking!

Just love it.

True to tradition, I went to "carols by candlelight" last night with 3 friends. We tried out a new church this year - it was nice, although more 'happy clappy' than the more traditional places.

♥

Time to try something new for Christmas! In addition to my regular Rocky Road,

I made Nigella's Peanut Brittle and it is super easy and super yummy (and not too much!).

Let's just hope Our Boy gets his braces off for Christmas so he can enjoy them.

If not, they are great little gifts!

 

Heat up gently

200 gram caster sugar

60 ml water

150 gram golden syrup

 

Let it boil briskly for about 10 mins!

Be aware - this is VERY hot!!!

 

Add

150 gram salted peanuts

1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

25 gram soft butter

1 1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

 

Stirr well and pour the mixture onto a well greased baking paper and smooth it out.

Let it cool and break into pieces.

 

Make the brittle up to 1 week before eating or giving. Store in airtight bags or containers in a dry, non-humid environment.

Once opened, eat within 7 to 10 days.

Not Much Time...

for keeping up with the blog these days!

 

I am planning to start baking and preparing for Christmas this coming weekend and thinking of making some new things this year. No point baking too soon - it won't last till Christmas then! The gingerbread cookies and biscotti I made earlier this month (twice!) are all gone, so I think it will be better for all of us if we wait for some days with the rest

♥

So, instead I share with you a picture I took of the mailbox by our house yesterday morning.

It is really cold here.

No, I mean it.

R-e-a-l-l-y cold.

-7 is no joke with added humidity.

But the frozen spider's webs are rather magical, I think!

 

But the question is

- will there ever be snow?

Perhaps better not wish for it - I couldn't bike to work then!

Tried and Tested: Cranberry and Red Onion Marmalade

I bought some really nice red onion marmalade when I went to the Country Living Christmas Fair and it 'disappeared' very quickly. A friend gave me this recipe for this very nice and seasonal accompaniment to cheese/cold meat/pate/etc. and I made some last night. Judging by how it was received in our house, I will probably have to make another batch for Christmas. 

Here is how I made it:

2 tablespoons olive oil

500 grams red onions, sliced

Juice of 1 orange

1 tablespoon pickling spice

150 gram dark muscavado sugar

150 ml ruby port

120 grams dried cranberries

(the original recipe called for 450 grams fresh cranberries, but I took what I had)

Heat the oil in a pan and gently fry the onions for 5 mins.

Add the orange juice, spice, sugar, cranberries and port and simmer gently for 1 hr.

Cool and chill

In The Run Up To Christmas...

This week and next has been and will be a bit hectic around here!
In addition to all the various work projects that need to be done before Christmas, all sorts of social events are going on!

♥ 

It started peacefully with a visit from a friend from Oslo and her son earlier this week! Although they came from -15 to about 0, it has been incredibly cold here this last week! This damp wet cold really is ruthless!!! But as always it was lovely seeing them and we really enjoyed being together. It was a short visit for a very specific purpose and they went back again yesterday, but we have hopes that we might see them again in January...?

 ♥

Today was the Christmas lunch with a group of Scandinavian ladies I have met during this last year and tonight I am off to the office party. This year the party will start with a quiz and we are encouraged to form teams and 'dress to impress'. Each team has to have a name and I am apparently on the team are called 'The Decorations'. I have been instructed to dress up as a Christmas Decoration....
☺ 

I chose an easy way out  - I will be 'The Lights'.

Two strings of battery driven LED lights will do the trick, I think!

 

I hope this won't be the only way I will 'shine' tonight!


On the Move...

We are selling our flat in Edinburgh!

 

the lounge

The Professor is taking up a new job in Durham (2.5 hours from us as opposed to 5 hrs like today!) in the spring and this means that we have to put the flat on the market and hopefully start looking for a new property for him!

 

kitchen

Let's hope somebody nice is looking for a lovely place to live in Edinburgh! It has been an extremely useful and easy property to have, so I hope it will be possible to find something similiar again.

 

master bedroom

We have fallen in love with these old properties with high ceilings and big windows. As the flat is on the top floor it lets in a lot of light.

 

en-suite

You can see the prospectus here 

 

main bathroom

2nd bedroom

Viewings on Sundays from 2 pm - 4 pm!

(The pictures are all taken by the estate agent)

 



Never Too Old...!

Never too old for an advent calendar!

Although Our Boy is 16, he insists on having one and I must admit I love making one for him. I think I am almost as excited as he is when he opens it over breakfast in the mornings. Nothing really expensive in it, but little bits and bobs that he could use or enjoy.

☺

 I am really fond of the calendar I made years ago for him.

This is what memories and tradtions are made of!

 

This weekend I managed to get some of the preparations for Christmas done. The advent candles were lit yesterday, some of the gifts are bought and wrapped (don't think I have ever been this early...!) and I made gingerbread men. I used the ready made dough from Ikea and it was absolutely fine!

♥

A small tip - when I went to find the advent calendar in our Christmas decoration box, I also found 4 purple candles and some left over Christmas napkins from last year. I always pack away any leftover seasonal candles and napkins and they come in handy now at the beginning of the season. Particularly the purple candles which are hard to find around here (I found them online last year). Purple is the traditional colour for advent and I like to stick to this tradtion, if I can. Although this year I also have put together a white one.

 

Can't have too many candles in the dark evenings, if you ask me!

♥♥♥

Not Wanted...

I have for the longest time felt my conscience tugging and been thinking that I should do my bit and start giving blood.

 

A TV-campaign last spring(!) prompted me to register, but I never got around to making an appointment to actually go and do it.
Until last Friday.

 

I proudly went for my appointment and filled in various forms and had a small interview with a very friendly nurse whilst drinking lots of water. All was fine, and I was escorted into a long rectangular room where the other good donors were sitting in chairs hooked up and donating. I made myself comfortable in the chair that tilted backwards and was feeling very smug and good about myself as I offered my arm to the nurse. 

 

She rolled up my sleeve on my right arm and started feeling around for a vein.
"Hmmm....", she said.
"I think I sometimes can be a little tricky. They tend to use the veins by my wrist", I offered.
She smiled back and said "I can't use those by the wrist, I need to check your left arm".
She did and again the "Hmmm..." came.
"I will go and ask my colleague to have a feel", she said.
I felt the entire room was looking at me, the only one not hooked up.
The same "Hmmm..." came after the colleague had felt my right arm. She then proceeded like her colleague to check my left arm. "I can't feel anything at all in the left arm", she said. "The right one is very faint and it rolls away. I don't think we can use you," she concluded. Now the entire room was staring at me (at least I think they did).
Me - the unusable one!
I hadn't even been stabbed once! 

 

She explained that instead of them starting to stab me randomly in the hope of finding it and thereby scarring the veins I was better off saving my veins in case I ever really needed access to them... Which was nice of her and makes sense, I guess.
But I still felt the rejection burning...

 

I scrambled out of the comfy chair and did the walk of shame out of the room. In the waiting area, The Professor had fallen asleep waiting for me. A thought struck me - perhaps I can just roll him in and get him hooked up ...! Imagine his surprise...
Well, of course I didn't and we couldn't as you have to register and sign up in advance. But I will work on getting him registered as he might be the only one in the family that can donate. Our Boy seems to have inherited the same type of deep embedded rolling veins that I have. They probably won't want him either.

 

But it is the thought that counts, isn't it?

☺

Pinterest Inspiration - Table Decoration

The Ladies Who Dine came to my house for lunch yesterday, Sunday. It was kind of a start-of-the-season-gathering/birthday-celebration and just a general-together event.

 

We chose to meet on Sunday lunch as it is already increasingly hard to find a suitable Friday or Saturday that everybody can make. Besides, Sunday lunch is a great British tradtion!

 

The above IPhone-pictures (I really need to get my good camera more out - I have becom lazy!) are from the table and I was pleased with my simple silver/acorns/candle decoration on a slate tiered cake stand. Inspiration from Pinterest (you can find me there)! Very simple and just using what you already have but put together in a new way. And for some extra sparkle I added a smal battery-operated garland of fairy lights along the table.

 

As usual, I was worried it wouldn't be enough food (ok... I admit that after various canapees and a starter with scrambled eggs and smoked salmon followed by the main consisting of 2 mustand-and-honeyglazed hams and a roasted chicken along with a 'mountain' of roasted potatoes, mashed swede, brussels sprouts, fried mushrooms and a tomato and onion salsa and my friends dessert of apple strudle with whipped cream followed by coffee and mints and biscotti was too much for 6 ladies), but it looks like there are enought leftovers for me and The Boy for the rest of the week...

☺



Another Year ...

 

Another year older, yes...

♥

It was my birthday this weekend and after starting with lunch out with friends on Sunday, I treated myself to a day off on Monday!

My gift to myself was to do whatever I really fancied doing...:

♥

It started with Our Boy waking me singing 'Happy Birthday' while bringing gifts and serving tea in bed

♥

The day progressed with

 

baking a cake (this is my most downloaded recipe)

listening to a lot of music

hemming some material I had bought a year ago I and making it into a new table cloth

having coffee and cake with a friend that popped by

starting knitting on a small project (which should be done in a day or so)

reading a book

having a lovely dinner with Our Boy

receiving lots and lots of phone calls and emails



♥

Next weekend The Professor is coming home

We are invited to a Thanksgiving party on Saturday - the turkey is ready at 2 pm...

On Sunday the house is being 'invaded' by friends coming for lunch

♥

No, age doesn't matter, there is plenty of time to plan celebrating the BIG year, next year...!

☺

Tried and Tested: Chocolate Fondant

Talk about mid week temptation!
On an ordinary Wednesday I surprised Our Boy with Fru Tunheim's recipe for chocolate fondant.

It won't be the last time...

All in all it took less than 25 mins from start to finish! 

 

You can either make them the traditional way with flour and sugar or there is the alternative to make them low carb. I did kind of a mixed version using ground almonds and sugar. I also want to mention that I got 5 fondants out of 3/4 of the recipe below so the recipe is generous.

 

To make 6 generous fondants

125 gram butter
150 gram dark chocolate

125 gram sugar OR 75-100 gram Sukrin/Splenda
85 g flour OR ground almonds

4 eggs

Melt the butter and chocolate and add the sugar/sweetener.

Mix well.

Add the flour or ground almonds and whisk with a hand held mixer.

Add one egg at the time.

 

Pour in to well greased ramekins.

 

Bake in the middle of the oven for 11 mins at 200 degrees.

 

They were lovely and had exactly the right consistency of lovely gooeyness when we cut into them

mmmm....

♥

 

Country Living Fair 2012

Yesterday I went with my two Welsh friends to the Country Living Magazine's Christmas Fair 2012, in Islington, London. I didn't bring my main camera, so you will have to do with the IPhone pictures.

 

The fair is an annual event, although this was my very first time.

 

It was almost a bit overwhelming, to be frank, but well worth going!

 

So much creativity and inspiration!

 

I didn't buy very much (ok, a few things...), but  I enjoyed even walking around making notes on creative suggestions. Got to love the "Notes" function on the IPhone...

☺

 

I simply loved the fair and I think it will become an annual event for me!

♥

Grumpy Country Bumpkin...?

Just loooove this area of London...

Our Boy and I went to the Norwegian embassy in London yesterday to renew his passport which is due to run out in January. The consulate services and passport office got new locations (still same building) three weeks ago and it is all very smart! Must also say the people there are lovely and very helpful. It was quick and efficient and the new passport will be mailed us when it is ready. Good news is also that the new passport will now be valid for 10 years. No more going to the embassy with him every 3 years...!

 

We also found some time for shopping for the young man.

☺

 But I feel a need to vent:

I am rather annoyed with certain shops. Particularly those where you are met at the door by a bunch of scantily clad overly-excited-super-informal-and-way-too-familiar-for-my-liking young male shop attendants (and some young ladies) dancing away to deafening music (it is IMPOSSIBLE to talk inside the shop), dressed in OPEN SHIRTS and flip flops (hello! it is NOVEMBER!!! - OK, I KNOW it is part of the 'uniform') in premises so dark that you have to feel your way around the room...coming up to within an inch of your personal space and asking whether they can
 

"Help you guys with anything?".

 

It didn't help my mood as we were leaving we were surrounded by chorus of
 

"So nice seeing you guys"

"Thank you guys for shopping with us."

"Hope you guys have a nice day".

"Hope to see you guys again real soon"
 

coming from 10-15 attendants whose job clearly is just to smooch (and annoy) the customers!

 

Nah, it made me really grumpy!

 

This is not the way NORMAL people behave on this island.

I know the brand is not British, but this kind of behaviour really doesn't work here!

It just seems sooooo fake!

 

I grant that the quality of the clothes are good (the jeans Our Boy bought last year still look brand new!), but

 

I do not want more-than-half-my-age-over-the-top-eager-shop-attendants try to make me feel hip and young...

I do not want to be called 'you guys'.

I do not want people to pretend they care about me when I perfectly well know they couldn't care less, except for what is in my wallet!

And I HATE loud music in shops!

I just leave then - I can't think!

 

Don't worry.

I swallowed my annoyance and didn't embarrass my teenage son who did get what he came for.

☺

And on Sunday I am off to London again!

But that will be a different trip!

♥

Bonfire Night!

Guy Fawkes - borrowed from the web

Fireworks have been going off all throughout the weekend although Bonfire Night is actually tonight on 5 November. The Cat is not too pleased about that, but he tends to stay indoors when it gets chilly and he doesn't seem to mind the fireworks when he feels safe inside.

☺

Bonfire Night is also called Guy Fawkes' Night. For over 400 years bonfires have burned on November 5th to mark the failed gunpowder plot - a plot that relates back to the conflict between catholics and protestants. In 1605, thirteen men planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament. Among them was Guy Fawkes.

Some of the 13... borrowed from the web

After Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603, English Catholics who had been persecuted under her rule had hoped that her successor, James I, would be more tolerant of their religion.  Unfortunately, James was not and 13 young men, decided that violent action was the answer by blowing up the Parliament. In doing so, they would kill the King, the Prince of Wales, and the Members of Parliament who were making life difficult for the Catholics. However, as they realised that also innocent people would be hurt or killed in the attack some of the plotters had second thoughts and an anonymous letter was sent to warn a friend to stay away from the Parliament that day. But the warning letter reached the King, and the King's forces stopped the conspirators. Guy Fawkes was in the cellar with the barrels of gunpowder when the cellar was stormed so he was caught and executed. So, the questions many ask are - was he framed and would the plot have worked as the gunpowder apparently was old...

 

On the 5th, agitated Londoners who knew little more than that their King had been saved, lit bonfires in thanksgiving, a tradition to this day!

 

You can ask whether it is anti-Catholic to celebrate this event, but I agree with those that say that it is important to remember the history and the fact that the celebration is a commemoration of the thwarting of an act of mass murder. Also, I feel it is safe to say that the passage of the centuries has eradicated any sense of anti-Catholicism associated with the celebration.

Tried and Tested: Fruity Biscotti

Lovely treat with a nice cup of tea or coffee on a windy and rainy Sunday...

I got inspired to make biscotti after last Saturday's adventure to the pop-up restaurant and was recommended this recipe by the chef. It is from BBC's Good Food website but since this blog also serves to keep my own favourite recipes, I have shamelessly copied it here. They are super easy to make and an instant hit in our house. BBC Good Food calls them "Fruity Christmas Biscotti", but I don't think these should be limited to Christmas (besides - it is too soon to start baking for Christmas, isn't it?) :

 

 

To make about 72 biscotti you need:

 

350g plain flour , plus extra for rolling

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp mixed spice (a British spice blend of cinnamon/clove/ginger/coriander/nutmeg)

250g golden caster sugar

3 eggs, beaten

coarsely grated zest 1orange

85g raisins

85g dried cherries

50g blanched almonds

50g shelled pistachios

 

This is how you do it:

 

Heat oven to 180C. Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper.

 

Put the flour, baking powder, spice and sugar in a large bowl, then mix well.

Stir in the eggs and zest until the mixture starts forming clumps, then bring the dough together with your hands - it will seem dry at first but keep kneading until no floury patches remain.

 

Add the fruit and nuts, then work them in until evenly distributed.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 pieces. With lightly floured hands, roll each piece into a sausage about 30cm long.

Place 2 on each tray, well spaced apart.

 

Bake for 25-30 mins until the dough has risen and spread and feels firm. It should still look pale. Remove from the oven, transfer to a wire rack for a few mins until cool enough to handle, then turn down the oven to 140C.

 

Using a bread knife, cut into slices about 1cm thick on the diagonal, then lay the slices flat on the baking sheets.

 

TIP: The biscuits can be cooled and frozen flat on the sheet at this point, then bagged and frozen for up to 2 months (so perhaps it isn't too early to start preparing some of the baking for Christmas...?).

 

Bake for another 15 mins (20 mins if from frozen), turn over, then bake again for another 15 mins until dry and golden.

 

 Tip onto a wire rack to cool completely, then store in an airtight tin for up to one month, or pack into boxes or cellophane bags if giving as gifts straightaway.

This was my contribution to Sota Saker's November challenge

This Got My Attention...!

Not always easy to get the attention of passengers - particularly if you fly often, but this was an inventive way

☺

 

First Time in a Pop-Up Restaurant

picture borrowed from the web as I forgot my camera!



I had heard of pop-up restaurants and curiously signed up for a new one that was opening not far from my house last Saturday.

 

What is a pop-up restaurant, you ask? Well, they are an alternative to traditional dining out as they tend to be in people's private homes where you can sign up for a meal cooked and served by the hosts. Another name for it is a "Supper Club" or "Underground Restaurant". They have historically been a way for aspiring professionals to experiment and gain exposure, but they originally come from the idea of prohibition speakeasies or Cuban paladares. So, actually not a new phenomenon!

Saturday was the first time this particular Pop-Up Restaurant was launched and we were 5 guests in total (they can cater for max 6 guests). We were greeted with a glass of bubbly and lovely canapes

 

Cherry tomatoes with mozzarella & basil,

♦

Crostini with pea, mint and cannelloni beans,

♦

Savoury cracker with colton basett and homemade apple and date chutney

 

while we got aquainted with our fellow diners. What a small world - in addition to discovering that one of the couples now live in the house sold by friends of mine who moved to New Zealand a few years ago, the two men - who did not know eachother from before - had both worked for the same company about 20 years ago!

We were then invited to join the table and were treated to an amazing menue and such a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Here is what we ate:

 

Pear, Walnut & Ginger Salad with Smoked Duck

♦

Beef with Squash, Sweetcorn & Chilli, served in a small pumpkin accompanied by Courgette Muffins and Southern Cornbread and Sour Cream

♦

Mint Sorbet

♦

Fig , Hazlenut & Fennel Shortbread with a Fig and Dark Chocolate Profiterole

♦

Coffee & Biscotti

 The food was truly amazing - really fine dining. I couldn't fault it in any way! It was generous portions and delicately presented.

A real treat!

 

Wine was not included in the offer and we had been encouraged to bring our own wine. At the end of the evening we were invited to write our comments in a small visitors book and leave as a donation of what we thought the meal was worth so the chef would (at least) cover the expenses.

It was a really unique experience with an intimate feel.

It was a very different experience to traditional dining out - much more fun, more innovative, very unusual and a great way to get to know some new people!

I had a really good time and was very happy as I walked home with my little bag of complimentary biscotti!

It sure won't be the last time I try something like this!

♥

Festival of Ideas

Last night I went after work with a couple of friends to one of the talks at the Univsity's annual Festival of Ideas . You can sign up for some of the talks, but many of them are drop-in sessions. 

 

This talk focused on how linguists and regular people use analytical tricks to unlock the secrets of language: focusing on identifying a speaker's gender, race, region and age. 

 

Very interesting!

 

Even after all these years here I marvel over the privilege it is to have such offers on our doorstep.
 

Next week is half term here and there is a wealth of activities and talks - also for children!

♥

Tried and Tested: "Form" or Mac & Cheese with Fish

 

Food is so often connected to memories.

We loved 'form' (don't know where the name came from) when we were children. It was a staple dish when we came to visit my grandfather in Oslo's house.

 

 It is actually a form of mac&cheese with extra filling.

This is my version, this time with fish (this will easily feed 5-6 people):

 

Warm up (a bit warmer than luke warm) 5 dl of milk with half an onion and 5-6 peppercorns and set it aside to infuse while you

 

Boil 500 grams of macaroni till almost soft enough to eat.

Drain the macaroni and put it to the side while you

 

Make a cheese sauce with

70 grams of butter and 3-4 tablespoons of flour and the warmed milk (discard the onion and the peppercorns before adding to the sauce).

Add 200 grams of grated cheese to the sauce along with

2 teaspoons of English mustard

A good dash of Worcester sauce,

2 teaspoons of lemon juice and

a good pinch of salt

 

Add the cheese sauce to the boiled macaroni and coat the pasta well

Add 350 grams of chunks of uncooked fish to the macaroni mix. I normally use a variety pack containing salmon, haddock and smoked Alaskan pollock.

 

Pour it all into a greased heatproof oven dish and cover the top with breadcrumbs. You can also crush some garlic into the breadcrumbs, if you like for some extra flavour.

 

Bake in the oven for about 25-30 minutes on 200 degrees.

 

Serve with a salad

 

Such a simple comfort food on an autumnal day!

♥

 

SWEDISH Shop - I am ALMOST in Heaven!

 

I have mentioned before how the world is getting smaller

- you can ALMOST get anything anywhere!

 

This was again proved when I discovered that my grocery delivery company Ocado now have a Swedish Shop!

♥

So, no need to go to Ikea to indulge my cravings for kaviar, sild, Wasa knekkebrød, leverpostei, falukorv, fiskeboller(!), various cheeses AND grønnsåpe! They even have various forms of old familiar sweets and crips... - even Twist (although I am pretty sure that is originally Norwegian ...!). Actually, I am not too fond of Swedish chocolates and sweets - sweeter than Norwegian treats, I think, but beggars can't be choosers!

☺

No sign of a Norwegian shop, but as I grew up 10 minutes from the Swedish border,

I am almost in heaven!