Blueberry polenta cake

What a performance I had this week with trying to buy ingredients for a luscious-looking blueberry polenta cake which I discovered in a Sunday supplement. I thought it would be a nice idea to bake it and give it to a friend on her birthday.  So, armed with the torn-out recipe, I went to my local Waitrose to buy the items which are not in my store cupboard.

The recipe called for xylitol sugar substitute to be used and, as I had only seen this ingredient on my usual packet of chewing gum, I just didn’t know what the package would look like! I scanned the shelves of sugar alternatives but couldn’t see what I wanted.  I then went to look for the required second item on my list - fine polenta. After a careful scan of the shelves I found, on a bottom shelf amongst a huge display of pasta in all shapes and varieties, the usual quick-cooking large-grained polenta but I was concerned that this would make the cake ‘crunchy’. Oh goodness, I realised that I would have to try another supermarket and, just in case I couldn’t find the two ingredients there either, the blueberries - which had gone into my basket earlier - were then returned to the fruit section and I left completely empty-handed.

The drive to Tesco was a miserable affair with rain lashing down and I drove through several huge puddles that I felt almost (and I know I am prone to exaggerate) totally engulfed the car. Nevertheless, I was ‘on a mission’ but, would you believe it, in this store I still couldn’t find the two missing ingredients. Not to be outdone, I returned home and researched xylitol and, to my astonishment, found that it was sold under the Total Sweet label and sold..... in Waitrose! I also discovered that fine polenta could also be called cornmeal and that I had not been alone in not being able to easily purchase a quantity, as others had also found it difficult to source. Several forums spoke about substituting cornmeal for semolina etcetera but I was now utterly resolved - there is a streak of stubbornness in my family that I like to call determination -  to purchase the correct ingredients for this newly acquired and experimental recipe.

On returning to Waitrose, the elusive products were found within minutes, the blueberries picked up again from where I had left them earlier, and I returned home once again feeling absolutely triumphant!

Sadly, the story doesn’t stop there - before I could even put the fine polenta into my kitchen cupboard, I noticed that the ‘best before’ was stamped with 22.02.2012 - nearly four months ago!

Back to Waitrose I went and, through gritted teeth, explained the problem. The customer service member of staff was efficient and charming (they train them well at John Lewis). She checked the rest of the stock on the shelf but they were all stamped last February. She also discovered that a new batch should be delivered tomorrow. ‘Would you be able to return to the store if I telephoned to let you know of the arrival?’ she said kindly. Well, I had simply had enough at this point and agreed that this would be the best option. She refunded the amount spent twice, as ‘the product was not of best quality’ and now, back home, I am wondering what I should do with 2 punnets of blueberries and a bag of xylitol if the call doesn’t materialise.....any suggestions?

Walnuts

Almost every day, whilst walking our beagle named Amber, we pass in our village (or small town as it likes to be called these days) an ancient walnut tree. According to research, the tree could date from the 1600’s and is an important landmark in this area. It was a focal point for travellers heading south towards London and was also used for many years as a meeting place for villagers seeking work from employers in the town. Sadly, however, due to its longevity and weakened by years of neglect and severe weather, only two branches remain today.  It’s so sad to see it in its current state but, I noticed today, that the sparse high twigs are, indeed, once again in leaf and so there remains a tiny amount of life, which is so nice to see.

There is a lot of ‘medic speak’ these days about the benefits of nuts in our diet and walnuts do, I am told, have a good amount of antioxidant but, putting that aside, I have always enjoyed the flavour and texture of nuts and they are especially good in baking. This week I made an Apple and Walnut cake and the sweetness from the apples and the crunch of the walnuts makes it a very pleasurable afternoon treat with a cup of tea, or it can be warmed and served with cream following a meal. If you would like the recipe, just ‘comment’ below.

In the meantime, I will continue to walk past the old gnarled walnut tree in Higham Ferrers and hope that it finds the strength to actually produce a few fruits for those that live by it; and admire its willingness to brave the elements for so many centuries.

Clandestine Cake Club - inaugural meeting

We had an article published this week in the Chronicle and Echo newspaper about the first meeting of our local (Northampton) branch of the Clandestine Cake Club. If you would like to read it, here's the url:

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/lifestyle/weekend-life/food-drink/size-matters-for-cake-club-1-3914868
Our next event is on Saturday, 16th June and we already have 22 attendees booked, with a maximum of only 25 places available! Our theme this time is the 'Olympic rings' and I'm sure our member bakers will be inspired by the shape, or the flavours of the continents that the rings represent. As yet, I can't divulge the secret venue but all will be revealed a few days before the meeting. Haha.....it's real cloak and dagger stuff!

'Tortoise in Love' - and chocolate cake!

This week, my daughter Laura and I had the privilege of attending the film premiere of ‘Tortoise in Love’ in Leicester Square, London. My very good friend, Lesley Staples, was flown to the UK from her home in the United States to play the part of Mrs Summers in this light romantic comedy but, sadly, she was unable, due to work commitments, to make the return journey here for the special night. We have been friends for over 40 years (that shows my age)! We first met whilst working at an Embassy in Grosvenor Square, then went on to share a variety of accommodation, as well as acting beside each other in our local North London Rep and Shakespeare companies.

A few weeks ago, Lesley asked whether we would like to attend this particular premiere and, of course, we said ‘yes please’. It is a lovely experience to ‘walk the red carpet’ and this was the second time we have done such a thing. Lesley was one of the original ‘Calendar Girls’ and, together with her family, we shared the occasion of the premiere for that film too.

‘Tortoise in Love’ is set in Kingston Bagpuize, Oxfordshire, and directed by Guy Browning, a village resident, who had the notion of filming the story set around the annual fete. With the help of some commercial sponsors, the villagers mostly funded the film, provided the majority of actors, as well as the vast amount of ‘behind the scenes’ personnel. It was truly a community effort.

Three years later, the film has caught the headlines and a major distributor, thus allowing during this summer the general release in British cinemas of this low-budget enterprise. At the same time, it is to be shown in New Zealand and Australia.

Now what, you may ask, has a film premiere got to do with a baking blog!? Well..... Lesley insisted on paying for our tickets and just requested a payment in kind of a chocolate cake when she visits England in August. Of course, it will be my pleasure to bake one for her – my only hope is that it brings a smile to her lips, as much as the viewing of this film did to mine. Thanks, Lesley!

Afternoon tea review

After the very successful first meeting of our local branch of the Clandestine Cake Club, I brought home one or two (in fact, four) left-over slices of cake for my other half to sample. His little eyes lit up (ahhhhh....) when I produced the plate of ‘samples’ and within minutes I had a very happy, smiley, hubby – just like the 20 or so members and guests earlier in the evening.

The following week, we decided to go back to the Apothocoffee shop in Earls Barton to sample their Queen’s Diamond Jubilee High Tea for two. Our table had been reserved for us when we arrived and, on a cold but sunny afternoon, we sat looking out at the courtyard garden planted with early summer flowers.  We thoroughly enjoyed the dainty sandwich platter – egg and cucumber and smoked salmon and cream cheese – which had been freshly made, cut into neat triangles (with no crusts, of course) and sprinkled with mustard and cress. We were then treated to a warm scone accompanied by jam and Cornish clotted cream and, finally, we were served a champagne sorbet, which was absolutely delightful and just right at the end of a rich spread. At £8, including coffee or a pot of tea, we thought it very good value for money.

If you know someone you want to give a little treat to, I can think of no better place than to pop into this shop full of surprises beyond their market place front door.

Granary Soda bread

On holiday in Southern Ireland last year, one of the highlights was breakfast each day with the accompaniment of fresh Irish soda bread. The inclusion of buttermilk and bicarbonate of soda as the raising agent seemed to settle in my tummy much better than 'yeasted' loaves and I have, of late, enjoyed making my own soda bread in a variety of flavours.

Today - using a Woman's Hour recipe - I produced a loaf using granary flour (a brown flour with malted wheat grains added for a distinctive nutty flavour). I bought the flour on a recent visit to Denver Windmill in Norfolk (http://www.denvermills.co.uk/) where it is home stone-milled, using local grains. Health-wise, granary flour, compared with wholemeal, has slightly less fibre but more folic acid. But, what the heck, I like the taste!

If I am sufficiently brave, and able to find a local course, my next adventure into bread baking will hopefully be sour dough (a loaf made with a natural fermented starter) and, like soda bread, does not need the inclusion of extra yeast.

However, back to today's bake, I think there is nothing better than a slice of freshly made granary soda bread accompanied by a good cheese - and it's equally good toasted with light, fluffy scrambled eggs on top - or perhaps spread with butter and home-made jam (a sweet treat when there's no cake in the cupboard).

Biscotti

As a teenager, still living in London with my parents, I was fortunate that they both had a flair for good food. We travelled abroad on holiday most years and Mum, I think, was inspired in the kitchen by those visits to Europe. They both loved to watch Graham Kerr (The Galloping Gourmet) on TV but Dad never got the urge to actually cook but - like most men of his generation - he carved the meat and made 'all the right noises' when a plate was presented to him at table.

My father also travelled overseas quite a lot with work, mainly to Italy, and we were always treated to something special on his return. Sometimes he brought wine or liquers, Italian chocolates, or pasta made into a shape never seen in our local Sainsbury, but my favourites were white paper bags full to the brim with almond biscotti. These hard, crunchy, biscuits were produced when my parents had dinner parties and were used as a final course - 'dunked' into sweet marsala wine. Yummy!

I don't know why I have never attempted to actually make these biscuits and, whilst sitting in a coffee shop recently and dipping one into a skinny latte, I thought I must try this very week to cook a batch. So, when home, I had a quick scout of my cookery books and stumbled across a recipe - in a WeightWatchers book entitled 'Cook' - for coffee and pistachio biscotti and the photo is the result. For me, a taste memory revisited with fondness.