Friday 31 August 2007

Things to do with your Marmalade

As it is Friday, I thought I would give something sweet for the week-end.

I made all this marmalade last weekend, and now have to find ways to use it all. While it is divine on toast, I hardly think my family are going to get through 8 big bottles in a year! I still have more oranges which I am going to convert to gold tomorrow.

I found this lovely recipe at Bay Tree Food Company .

Seville Marmalade Puddings

Ingredients

  • 8oz Butter
  • 8oz Sugar
  • 4 Eggs
  • 8oz Plain Flour
  • 1 Orange
  • 1 Lemon
  • 5 Tablespoons Seville Orange Marmalade

Preparation instructions

1. Cream the butter and the sugar together until light in colour, add the eggs, one by one until light in texture. 2. Add the juice and zest of the orange and lemon, adding in the flour at the same time beating lightly until well mixed. 3. Mix in 3 tablespoons of the marmalade to the mix and lay the other 3 tablespoons on the bottom of a 3 pint pudding basin.You may wish to purchase more than one jar to ensure you have some for breakfast.

4. Pour mixture over the marmalade in the basin and steam for 1½ hours or test with a skewer. 5 Serve with cardamom ice cream or cream flavoured with cardamom pods. 6. To flavour cream either heat the cream slowly with the cardamom pods in it, leave to cool and refrigerate. Strain off the pods before serving or just add crushed pods to the cream and leave for a day before straining and serving.

It really does come out well. But you have to eat it with something like ice-cream or cream. I didn't do the cardamom ice-cream, just regular vanilla soft serve. The nice thing is that while it is a pudding, it is not overly sweet.

I hope you try this before winter is totally gone, as it is definitely not suitable for summer.

Have a wonderful weekend, come again next week as I have some great things to share : Markwin's birthday, These are my Favorite Things and my Solardom experiments.

Thursday 30 August 2007

Rose & Thorn


You might be wondering where "Rose & Thorn" comes from, so I thought I would tell you the big secret!

I have a passion for baking and cooking. I love to make things and give them away as gifts. I started making lemon marmalade and it was very well received. I decided that I wanted to take my products to the next level, and work on the packaging. My husband is a packaging expert and is in the self-adhesive label business. So the first step was to "order" some beautiful labels.

Keith designed the label, and we worked with the name Rose & Thorn - I am sure you can work out where the Rose comes from, as for the Thorn - I joke that it is my alter-ego.

I am hoping that in time this can work out as a saleable product, and having good packaging is a start. But until then I will just continue to make nice looking things for those I care about, packaged in a way that looks professional.

Above is a picture of my Rose&Thorn Seville Marmalade. I had to cut my cell number off the picture, as I hardly want the entire world wide web to phone me. If you are lucky enough to get one of my products, you will have the number, so you will be privileged enough to be able to call when you wish to order again!

Have a wonderful day.


Wednesday 29 August 2007

Best Ever Carrot Cake


BEST ever CARROT CAKE



250ml Sunflower Oil
400ml (320g) Sugar
2 Beaten Eggs
300g Carrots
100g Walnuts Chopped
300g Cake Flour
10ml Baking Powder
5ml Bicarb
7ml Cinnamon
5ml Ground Cloves and Nutmeg
2 Oranges Zest Only

Icing:
100ml Butter
250ml Cream cheese
150ml Icing Sugar Sifted ( you can use more if you like it sweeter)
Marmalade (if making Cake)

Walnuts and Orange Zest

Beat together Oil and Sugar
Slowly add the eggs; beat well after each addition.
Stir in the carrots and nuts
Fold in sifted dry ingredients and Zest.
Divide between two 20cm round lined greased cake tins.
Bake for 40 – 45min @ 180°C.
Or make muffins (+/- 18) and bake for 25mins.
Cool in the tins for 10min before transferring to wire rack.

To make icing, mix soft butter, cream cheese and icing sugar, beat well until smooth.
For cakes – spread marmalade on first layer and then top with ¼ cream cheese mixture,
Place top layer and spread remainder of cream cheese and decorate with orange zest and
Walnuts.

August 2007


This is the start of something new. I have read so many other blogs. Countless hours spent reading life stories and cooking ideas. Well here it goes... me and my life.

I live in the sleepy mother city of Cape Town. Spring is slowly pushing it's way through the stubborn winter clouds. It sounds very poetic, but the beauty of this city never fails to inspire. You only have to look at Table Mountain on a clear day and know you are in paradise.

The most exciting thing in my home at the moment is Markwin's 13th birthday on Sunday. We are having a small "party" at the toboggan track in Durbanville. I say “party”, as I am not sure as too what to do for a group of 13 year old boys. I guess party packets are out, unless I am able to include the latest PSP game as the party treat.

As for cooking, I like this time of year. The best of winter and the first of the summer fruits. I see that the first strawberries are sitting on the shelf , but still can’t bring myself to pay that kind of money for early fruit.

I did get something for free last week. My friend Che brought me Seville oranges from her friend’s (Sue and Andrew) “farm”. I started to Google Seville Marmalade” and ended up at Delia Smith’s. I must say I really enjoy how clearly everything is set out. I followed the recipe very carefully, and ended up with a year's worth of Seville Marmalade. I am very happy with the result. Tart and tangy – just like me!!!

Another project under way is my Carrot Cake baking. I have sold 2 already and have an order for another 2. It’s not bad a bad start – I read that it was one the first products by a famous deli in Cape Town.

Well that’s all for today. I will try again tomorrow – hopefully this will get easier with time.

Hiking the Mountain







I have climbed Table Mountain a number of times. Taken some pictures I would love to share. Although I am not a photographer, I do enjoy taking pictures, much to the irritation of my family.

Jeremiah 17: 7-8

"Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water."

It is not your business to succeed, but to do what is right : when you have done so, the rest lies with God.
C.S. Lewis

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