French Toast

I've always liked stale bread. Stale bread means french toast. I like thick slices of crusty french bread so the middle is soft and the outside chewy. Caramelised apple goes indecently well with french toast and so does maple syrup and vanilla sugar. Sunday mornings will never be the same, i think.

Caramelised Apple

Quarter 2 bramley apples and coat with lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla sugar. Heat a knob of butter and add the apple when it atarts to foam. Allow the sugar to caramelise on both sides adding more sugar if it is too tart.. Lastly add some cider and allow to cook down. When the apple is tender to touch it is ready to serve. The apple will be sweet and tangy.

French Toast

Ingredients

4 Thick slices of stale crusty french bread (if not stale toast a little)

Whole milk

2 Large eggs

pinch of nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

drop of vanilla essence

butter

Beat the egg milk, vanilla and spices until smooth adding whole milk until the mix is pale yellow. Next soak the bread for ten minutes. Heat some butter until foaming and add the soaked bread. Fry for around two minutes on each side until golden.

Leaves on the floor

Running through the forest i noticed a lot of leaves on the floor. Seems a shame to leave them there.

The leaves are warping as they dry, i've forgotten my training.  I've decided to press them then we'll see.

Applesauce

Its getting cold, this means 1 thing, Applesauce! Like warm edible cider it makes me happy. I make a fruit syrup stock and then add apples and cook down. The lime and alcohol gives it a bit of a tangy kick and if your making it for children..... don't make it for children, no just cook on a higher heat.

Ingredients

2 cooking apples (like Bramleys) cut into large hunks
3 assorted eating apples (more variety=more flavour) cut into small pieces
handful of sultanas
3 tbsp agrave nectar
1 tbsp maple syrup
cap of apple brandy
squeeze of lime juice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
160ml cider

Directions
Heat the liquid ingredients with the spices and sultanas. Once warm add the eating apples and cover. Cook down for 10 mins on a low heat. Next add the cooking apple and cook for te more mins. Stir with a wooden spoon to break up the smaller pieces into a sauce. If its too thick you can add some apple juice. Serve with yogurt and maple syrup.

Playlist
Definitely tastes better when you cook to music..

Hung up on my baby - Isaac Hayes
Who's that Lady - Isley Brothers
Stars in your eyes - Herbie Hancock
Playing your game baby - Barry white
Papa was a rolling stone - The Temptations

Hippy

I've been working on some hippy style font to go with my marbled paper.

Lemon and Blueberry pancakes

Love on a plate, this is probably the American in me. I like pancakes, and i like blueberries and i like lemons. These are all of those and thick fat and warming. I'd say their best with yogurt and lots of maple syrup. The wheatgerm makes them slightly more filling but without being too wholemealy. The Blueberries work well whole since they are less likely to stick to the pan.

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• zest of an unwaxed lemon
• 160ml milk
• 60ml natural yogurt (mix into the milk)
• 2 tbsp agrave nectar
• 150g blueberries
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 20g wheatgerm
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 120g plain flour
• 11/2 tsp baking powder
• Few drops of vanilla essence

Directions

Beat the eggs with the nectar, zest, milk, vanilla and yogurt until smooth. Add the melted butter. Next sift in the flour, cinnamon and baking powder and stir lightly. Lastly fold in the wheatgerm and blueberries.

Heat a cast iron pan on a medium burner. Add a knob of butter (you need less after the first pancake) and let it foam. Spoon in enough batter to cover the pan and cover with a lid. Covering the pan helps cook the top a little so the pancake is easier to turn. The pancake is ready to turn when bubbles and a slight skin appear on the top. Fry the other side briefly and then turn out. Keep warm in the oven.

Preparing to cook Pancakes

Pancake stance in memory of many a tasty pancake.

Marbling

In the summer i marbled and let the papers dry on the clothes line. I've seen it done the traditional way, with inks added to cooked irish moss and paper treated with alum. I don't have any moss though, even if you can see your future in the ink.

I've been using standard water insoluble drawing inks and thick watercolour paper. The inks dissipate quickly so the key is to use very little water and be snake fast. I swirl the water a little with bamboo before dropping in the paper.