An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown cakes

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown cakes:  I decided to cook everyone another lockdown cake  this weekend.  Gary requested another Moroccan  Orange & Cardamom cake so I did Gary ...

Lockdown cakes

 I decided to cook everyone another lockdown cake  this weekend.  Gary requested another Moroccan  Orange & Cardamom cake so I did Gary & Ellie one of those, Alec & Laura got a vegan version of the same, Olly & Laura  a  Spiced Honey cake and for us a gluten free walnut and date loaf. 

Second time I've done this, it just seems a nice way of keeping in touch and hopefully having a nice slice of cake.

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Practise Trenches

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Practise Trenches: Sounds odd doesn't it. But in the woods near Berkhamsted there was (depending on the records you look at!) between seven and a half  and...

Practise Trenches

Sounds odd doesn't it. But in the woods near Berkhamsted there was (depending on the records you look at!) between seven and a half  and thirteen miles of practise trenches dug just over one hundred years ago.

The Inns of Court Officer Training Corps established a camp  at Berkhamsted in September 1914 as they had outgrown their London headquarters due to the huge influx of recruits since war was declared  but a month earlier. It was a huge tented camp, in exitance until 1919 during which  some 12000 officer recruits had passed through the camp, just over 2000 were killed and three were awarded the Victoria Cross:

2nd Lieutenant Jack Harrison VC 11th Bn The East Yorkshire Regiment

Captain Walter Stone VC 3rd Bn The Royal Fusiliers

Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Bushell VC,DSO  7th Bn The Queens (Royal West Surrey Regiment) 

So what are practise trenches? Actually it is what it says. The troops were practising how to dig good trenches, its more than just digging a hole. There's the parapet and on the reverse side the parados,  the trench itself built in a zig zag or crenelated shape. This reduced the area that shell blasts could effect. The hard digging of flint and clay being practise for what was to come. Although ironically 'The Devils Own' as they were known would be destined to be the  officers overseeing the men digging trenches rather than digging themselves!  There's a field just behind Berkhamsted Castle  called Kitchener's Field, this was their parade ground where arms drill was carried out. Though some of the trenches were filled in there's alot left and much to my pleasure and surprise you get a good idea of what they were. Though really little more than ditches now you can easily discern shape though I couldn't tell which were the front line trenches and which were the reserve and communication trenches, basically  which way they'd have been shooting if they were in France!   

  A good walk, well worth a visit, all socially distanced of course followed by a coffee at the take away cafe at Ashridge College.

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown Dinner. Afters

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown Dinner. Afters: I completely forgot to come back on and blog about the lockdown dinner we had. It was a great success! The starter by Olly & Laura w...

Lockdown Dinner. Afters

I completely forgot to come back on and blog about the lockdown dinner we had. It was a great success! The starter by Olly & Laura was a Mexican pasta soup and pudding by Gary & Ellie was a cappuccino mousse. All timings were pretty good, we all joined Olly's skype invite at the allotted time. Dress code was varied....only we dressed up! Not that anything was compulsory. It worked really well & I think all participants would do it again, the evening flew by and it was brilliant to be able to have a chat to the four of them. G&E's dog Angus was a very good little chap, I thought he may be keen on seeing what was going on but he was fine. Something else i forgot was to take any photos so there's just these two. The wine that G&E chose slipped down a treat. A good evening.

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown dinner

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Lockdown dinner: Any recipe that starts 'pour in a bottle of red wine' is OK by me, and this is what I've been mostly doing this evening. Though ...

Lockdown dinner

Any recipe that starts 'pour in a bottle of red wine' is OK by me, and this is what I've been mostly doing this evening. Though to be honest I wasn't sure whether the recipe meant a bottle in the meal or the cook......so I did both! You see the Memsahib has had a spiffing idea! An online dinner! You must understand this is just prep for next Saturday, Ive cooked the grub tonight to freeze until next week, anyway, the gig is we decide between us recipes for a starter, main and pud, all partisipants cook the same meal, we connect via Skype or whatever and have an evening together apart! Simples! The Mater plumped for the main so I've cooked Beef Bourguignon and a Mushroom version also, we are doing this with Numbers One and Three sons and their beautiful Girlfriends, I think Gary and Ellie are doing the pud which leaves Oliver and Laura the starter. Another part of the gig is you have to dress up.....not as Mickey Mouse or something daft, just dress up as if you were going out. Gary & Ellie will also suggest a wine to go with the meal. Quite honestly I can't wait! It's just another way to connect with loved ones and I'm all for that! Stay tuned for a blog on the actual night! For those interested here's the recipe I kind of followed for the Beef version (from BBC Food) Ingredients 1.6kg/3lb 8oz good-quality braising steak (chuck steak) 4–5 tbsp sunflower oil 200g/7oz smoked bacon lardons or smoked streaky bacon, cut into 2cm/¾in pieces 1 large onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 75cl bottle red wine 2 tbsp tomato purée 1 beef stock cube 2 large bay leaves 3 bushy sprigs fresh thyme 25g/1oz butter 450g/1lb pearl onions, or 24 baby onions 300g/10½oz chestnut mushrooms, wiped and halved or quartered if large 2 heaped tbsp cornflour 2 tbsp cold water flaked sea salt and freshly ground black pepper chopped fresh parsley, to garnish How-to-videos Method Cut the braising steak into chunky pieces, each around 4–5cm/1½–2in. Trim off any really hard fat or sinew. Season the beef really well with salt and pepper. Heat two tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan. Fry the beef in three batches over a medium–high heat until nicely browned on all sides, turning every now and then and adding more oil if necessary. As soon as the beef is browned, transfer to a large flameproof casserole. Preheat the oven to 170C/150C Fan/Gas 3. Pour a little more oil into the pan in which the beef was browned and fry the bacon for 2–3 minutes, or until the fat crisps and browns. Scatter the bacon over the meat. Add a touch more oil to the frying pan and fry the chopped onion over a low heat for 5–6 minutes, stirring often until softened. Stir the garlic into the pan and cook for 1 minute more. Add the onion and garlic to the pan with the meat and pour over the wine. Stir in the tomato purée and 150ml/5fl oz water. Crumble over the stock cube, add the herbs and bring to a simmer. Stir well, cover with a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook for 1½ –1¾ hours, or until the beef is almost completely tender. While the beef is cooking, peel the button onions. Put the onions in a heatproof bowl and cover with just-boiled water. Leave to stand for five minutes and then drain. When the onions are cool enough to handle, trim off the root close to the end so they don’t fall apart and peel off the skin. A few minutes before the beef is ready, melt half of the butter in a large non-stick frying pan with a touch of oil and fry the onions over a medium heat for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown on all sides. Tip into a bowl. Add the remaining butter and mushrooms to the pan and cook for 2–3 minutes over a fairly high heat until golden brown, turning often. Mix the cornflour with the water in a small bowl until smooth. Remove the casserole from the oven and stir in the cornflour mixture, followed by the onions and mushrooms. Return to the oven and cook for 45 minutes more, or until the beef is meltingly tender and the sauce is thick. The sauce should coat the back of a spoon – if it remains fairly thin, simply add a little more cornflour, blended with a little cold water and simmer for a couple of minutes on the hob. And here's the Mushroom version:(from Tesco Real Food) ngredients 30ml (2tbsp) olive oil 15g butter 125g (4oz) shallots or pearl onions, halved 1 carrot, thickly sliced 1 garlic clove, crushed 1tsp tomato purée 2tsp plain four 125ml (4fl oz) fruity red wine 150ml (5fl oz) vegetarian stock 2 sprigs thyme 625g mixture of mushrooms Method Heat 15ml (1 tbsp) olive oil and butter in a heavy-based pan. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes, then add the carrot and cook for 5 minutes more until soft. Stir in the garlic, tomato purée and flour and cook for 1 minute until the vegetables are well coated. Pour over the wine, stirring well to ensure the sauce is smooth. Leave to simmer for a couple of minutes until the wine has reduced by half. Add the stock and sprig of thyme and cook for another 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the remaining 15ml (1 tbsp) oil in a frying pan. Cook the mushrooms for a couple of minutes, add to the pan, along with any juices and simmer for 5 minutes. Scatter over some thyme leaves and serve. Bon appetit!

Bugger!

 Things seemed to be getting easier and then they weren't and now....lockdown take 3. Bugger!  It has taken its toll on all of us, gigs being kyboshed resonated with me of course. Dates bounced from early 2020 to late 2020 are now well into 2021 and doubtful I reckon. However the best of us do feel sad sometimes and my sadness was the New Forest Folk Festival being scrubbed.  Not just the music but not being able to meet our dear friends and the laughter and happiness that it brings and of course the whole experience.

Not meeting up with our fantastic family has been the worst without a shadow of a doubt. Any excuse for a gettogether normally. We have met when we were allowed but it hasn't been quite the same. Then the crowning glory of Christmas being buggered up, though we did have a lovely day just the four of us.....it should have been 13 of us though! We've actually decided to postpone Christmas so we had December 25th instead. So all the secret Santa presies  are unopened until we can meet, when ever that is!

New years Eve was interesting. Neither of us felt very NYE-ish, we watched back to back episodes of 'Casualty,' hardly a bundle of laughs! In bed by 11.30pm and I only realised it was New Year when I put my book down at 12.10am! I should have known by the fireworks of course!  

Hopefully the vaccination will enable us to get back to something like normality, the media of course changing from we're all going to die to now we're all saved!    I don't watch the news anymore, its just too depressing, I pick up the headlines online, that'll do me. As for FaceBook, which I love, I've very nearly come off it for all the political and otherwise crap that keeps on appearing on it.                            I think something that has made the whole thing more real if you like is the fact that up until Christmas none of us knew anyone who had Covid, that's 12 of us in our extended family....now we do!  All getting or have already got better ( most quite young as well) but that's not the point. So it goes.       Gary & Ellies little dog (Ellies really to be fair) Angus is a dear little chap. Far too cute for his own good! Ida was abit nonplussed but is getting used to him, they even played on our last socially distanced walk. 

I must try and get back into blogging, its been a while since I did anything, there hasnt been much to write about I guess. Anyway, keep safe!

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Castles etc

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Castles etc:  To extend our hols alittle Tara suggested finding an English Heritage place we haven't been to and finding somewhere to stop over night...

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Castles etc

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Castles etc:  To extend our hols alittle Tara suggested finding an English Heritage place we haven't been to and finding somewhere to stop over night...

Castles etc

 To extend our hols alittle Tara suggested finding an English Heritage place we haven't been to and finding somewhere to stop over night. We chose Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire.

Fascinating place, built in 1120 it was later owned by John of Gaunt (reading a very interesting book about him and the Beaufort family, lots of intrigue! A family who were at the seat of power in England for years) and was a favourite of Elizabeth I when Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester owned it. It was slighted (made undefendable & uninhabitable)  by the Parliamentarians in 1650.

There's still lots to see though some of the areas were closed off as it would be difficult to socially distance, we still spent a good couple of hours there, helped of course with a nice coffee and cake!

We stayed in Royal Leamington Spa though didn't look round the town , Stayed at a hotel that allowed dogs though only the rooms were open so we booked a pub for dinner. The Royal Pug! Nice enough, they were able to do gluten free pizzas so Tara had abit more of a choice which is always a bonus  and the beer was good! What wasn't so good was the social distancing here. It seemed to be very much a student aged pub. The beer garden/smoking area was rammed, though we were seated away from others it was difficult to keep any sort of distance from people when finding the toilet for instance. But we had a great weekend & will do it again.

    

Ella has been wanting a gettogether for ages and yesterday was the day! Weather was very nice so we could keep some kind of distancing, though to be honest I'm not sure what we should or shouldn't be doing now! Julian organised some darts which was good and  a grand time was had be all. Gary & Ellie had just set out on a Scottish road trip as weren't there and Tim already had a golf commitment so was there later on. Plenty of food of course including a really good fake fish pie that Alec & Laura bought over. Laura is vegan ( no not the pointy eared lot, there're Vulcan!) It used banana blossom instead of fish, sounds strange but tasted great, anyway it was a terrific day, its always a joy to meet up with our family! Next meet up will be the big 80 celebrations for Ella at the mini stately home type place near Towcester. Hope to hell there's no big flare up of Covid to bugger it up!

An idiots guide to an Idiot: New Forest

An idiots guide to an Idiot: New Forest:  We had our first trip away since lockdown restrictions have eased, our Cotswolds trip went for a burton two months ago so we were really pl...

New Forest

 We had our first trip away since lockdown restrictions have eased, our Cotswolds trip went for a burton two months ago so we were really pleased we could do this alternative trip. The weather has been hot. Stiflingly hot, until a couple of days ago of course! Now its a usual wet August, normal Cropredy Festival weather in fact, though of course that too was cancelled this year. 

As it happens the weather was ok driving down. Didn't stop and arrived in two hours so pretty good to be honest. Couldn't get into our Airbnb until 3pm so decided to have lunch at the local pub in Redlynch, the Kings Head. A restricted menu but plenty there though sadly no Sunday Roast. Ah well!

After a good feed and a walk we got into our accommodation. Its an annex to a farm house. Not very big but big enough, enclosed garden for Ida and on the very northern edge of the New Forest. In fact we're about eight miles from Salisbury. I took Ida for a walk a little later down into a village called Lover and back. Very peaceful and relaxing . Just what we need. 

A visit to our ancestral homes of Shaftesbury and Fontmell Magna on our first full day here and a very nice cream tea at the top of Gold Hill. Visited Mum & Dad's grave as well. After all this time I still feel very sombre after a visit. Maybe I always will. Depending on which date you go by (16th or 18th August) was my Mum's Birthday, she would have been 91.  

We went onto Fontmell Magna where some of Tara's ancestors  are from and found the cottage where her Grt Grt Grandmother grew up (Plum Cottage) to be up for sale!  (£320k no less!). Then we went on to a church near Hambleton Hill. It's an Iron Age Hill Fort that I was going to walk with Ida but it would have taken hours and though Tara had said go I didn't really feel right leaving her just sat in the car so instead we went to St Marys Church, Shroton that has an interesting connection with Hambleton Hill.

During the English Civil War a group of locals from the Wessex area got fed up with being pulled from pillar to post by either Parliamentary or Royalist forces as they came and went , so much so they formed the Dorset Clubmen (there was others, it wasn't just Dorset) to more govern themselves. Lord Fairfax got to hear of several thousand Clubmen meeting and sent Oliver Cromwell with a 1000 Dragoons to sort it out. Which he did after first capturing some of the ringleaders in Shaftesbury. The New Model Army was no match for  farmers, labourers and others so he soon had the upper hand. He imprisoned around 300 of them in St Marys overnight and next morning gave them a lecture on the error of their ways and sent them home. The church itself was rebuilt like so many others in Victorian times so the only remains from the 17th Century is the screens which is what I think I've photo'd!     

17th Century screens

Took Ida for a walk on the heathland of the New Forest. We were near a WW2 bombing range that Paul & Kate told us about so I wanted to have a look at it. I didn't find the concrete markers but I did find one or two bomb craters now just deep holes, ponds when there's been enough rain! Many types of ordnance was tested here including the RAF's earthquake bombs the  Tallboy and Grand Slam. At one time there was a mock up ship and various  walls to test  the destruction of these bombs. Barnes Wallis himself witnessed tests of the 'Highball' bouncing bomb, a smaller version of the 'Upkeep' bouncing bomb used on the Rhur Dams though 'Highball' was never used. It was nonetheless an interesting walk only spoilt by the fact the heavens opened and I got soaked to the skin!   

      

We went to Old Sarum Castle which was interesting. It started as an Iron Age Hill Fort before being made into a stone castle by the Normans. Next to it is the foot print of the original Salisbury Cathedral. Also went to Romsey though too late for the market. I looked round Romsey Abbey (couldn't take Ida in so T stayed outside with her). Stood in front of the tomb of Earl Mountbatten of Burma assassinated in 1979. Funnily enough I'd stood there 41 years before, the day after Mountbatten was buried there (5th Sept 1979). My family & I had watched his Ceremonial Funeral Procession in The Mall. What a grand yet sombre event it was. His coffin on a Gun Carriage drawn by 112 sailors. Mountbatten was quoted as saying the finest fighting troops also had the best ceremonial drill. In that case the Gurkhas, Royal Marines, Life Guards and many others did not let him down. Infact he'd  apparently written his own funeral years before! It was a spectacular procession to watch, all the more so as it was such a rarity as Royals don't  snuff it that often! When the Scots Guards officer near us shouted the order  'Rest on your arms reversed' to the troops lining the route there was a palpable thrill though the crowds. I have always liked a parade, I love the history and tradition of it, but most ceremonies  have lost their means over the years. Trooping the Colour for instance, at one time all the troops would have needed to know what their Colour looked like to use as a rallying point in battle. Changing the Guard is just for show but a funeral is something that's real & more pertinent particularly as Mountbatten was murdered. I'm actually no supporter of the Royal Family but murder is wrong whatever your opinion. It was however a splendid but solemn occasion that I have remembered down the years.  

Wednesday a complete wash out! Re booked Hurst castle for Friday and spent the rest of the day trying to   avoid the rain. Bugger! However a first class meal (our third) at The Kings Head (only a two minute walks from where we're staying)brightened the whole day considerably.      

  

  Thursday weather was much better. Ida and I went on a walk starting from where we are staying. My route went a little astray. Should have gone over the path near the bombing range I went to earlier on but somehow went in a semi circle! I was looking for a car park and sure enough there was one, only when we got closer did I recognise it from parking there yesterday! Bugger! Anyway a slight change of route and ended up back on track. Heathland is a bit boring to walk I prefer woods. Walked through a lovely one called Franchises Wood. Part is now an RSPB reserve and partly off limits, though the path we were on was quite beautiful. On we went, stopping part way for lunch. Took a few treats for Ida but she inevitably  got a small piece of my pork pie!! We stopped just off the path. We'd not seen anyone in the wood so I was surprised that a couple of cyclists and a farm truck thing passed us in the twenty minutes or so that we'd stopped! That aside it was a perfect spot.  Didn't see anything in they way of nature  but heard a raptor of some kind and saw some dragonflies that are always fascinating to watch.

Lunch finished we plodded on leaving the forest and going onto quiet lanes. Not sure how old my OS map is but it had a pub marked in the village of Lover which I thought we may avail ourselves of.......except now its a private house. Bugger! Our walk was nearly done, we were both knackered but happy. 9.2 miles in about 4 hours walking at 2.2 miles an hour which seemed pretty good! There was a book the boys liked when they were little about a girl who liked the colour red. She said it made her heart sing. I think that it's a great way to describe  our walk today. It made my heart sing.      

We went to Hurst Castle today, originally a Henrician fort it was added to by  the ever industrious Victorians and was used for coastal defence during World War Two. Surprisingly it never fired its guns in anger so well defended was this area.

It's a great trip to get to the castle. It involves either a two mile walk along a shingle spit or a ferry across the estuary to the castle. We chose the latter  which was a bit of fun, quite choppy though, especially on the trip out as we had the tail end of Hurricane Elenore  blowing and gusting away.   In alot of ways we have visited similar forts and they do of course have the same things. Safety procedures from when they used gunpowder for instance  so as not to make any sparks, so you can get a feel for the layout. No audio tours of course, Tara looked to see whether there was any thing to download to a phone but there wasn't. This fort also had a lighthouse so there was exhibitions and artefacts about that as well. The wind was really whipping up the sea and we could watch great rollers crashing onto the shore of the Isle of Wight, could also see the Needles from here as well.  Though to be honest the sea was actually being blown over the fort, thought it was raining a couple of times!  I'd really recommend a visit here, with the ferry as well it makes the trip abit different. Once we headed back we both felt pretty knackered to be honest so stopped off for pizzas etc and ate in. Tomorrow is our last full day sadly so no doubt we'll eat out then. 

Went to Old Wardour Castle, inbetween the showers!  It was getting quite crowded so I decided to walk Ida first as in the castle its lead walks only. Had a lovely walk all round the perimeter grounds of the castle. When we got back to the car park it as even busier so decided not to go in but drove on to  Donhead St Marys, another village where my ancestors are from.  My Great Grandfather George Morgan was born there in 1859, though my ancestors from the Brockway family would appear to go back to late 16th Century. Unfortunately the church was locked so we walked round the graveyard. I found one Brockway but  not sure whether she's from my line. It has enthused me (and Tara) to get back onto the family tree research, you soon forget links etc if you don't keep doing it!

Pottered about for the rest of the day and had a very good meal in the Wooden Spoon at nearby Downton. Five Bean Chilli for Tara & Belly Pork for me. Delicious. So ends our last day. We've had a great time. It was a real tonic just to get away from it all.