Whodunnit?

It’s OK there are NO spoilers in this post! read on…

We’ve now watched 4 out of 6 programmes in the new “Partners In Crime” series – the BBC’s latest interpretation of Agatha Christie’s husband-and-wife sleuths, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford. This pair first appeared in a 1922 collection – and unlike many other fictional sleuths, these do get older in subsequent stories – Agatha’s last story ‘Postern of Fate’ written in 1973 has them in their 70s!

Down the years they have appeared on TV played by various actors. In the 80s they were played by James Warwick and Francesca Annis – this 10 part series was recently repeated on the Drama channel. In this they do not have children, but they do have a hapless assistant called Albert. [In the books, they have twin children called Deborah and Derek, plus an adopted daughter]

In 2006, in the Geraldine McEwan ‘Miss Marple’ series, bafflingly, Granada TV decided to take a T&T story [By the pricking of my thumbs] and make Miss M the one who really helps the pair solve the mystery. Anthony Andres and Greta Scacchi play the couple. I didn’t spot Albert in this one! It was only very loosely connected to the original story, and set somewhere around 1951 [we know this because of the Festival of Britain stuff on sale in the village shop]

And now we have David Walliams and Jessica Raine in the latest incarnation. Again, just post WW2 – but the pair are meant to be late 30s early 40s I think – and they have one son, George. Albert is now a scientist friend who helps when they need things tested or analysed. Tuppence is clearly the driving force.

Jessica has been on TV on Sunday nights in Call The Midwife, and DW became well knows in Little Britain, but latterly as a judge in Britain's Got Talent [I admit, I have not watched CTM, LB or BGT!!]

Did I like it...I am not sure! I admit to my usual pedantic habit of checking for errors in the sets and costumes [please, how many more green beryl teacups must we endure, to convince us it is the 50s?] and there is some cool knitwear. And episodes 4-6 are set in Cromer, so I shall enjoy watching all the Norfolk scenes  -the train used is from the Sheringham Railway, and they also use the Muckleburgh tank collection [been there, done that!]

I think maybe it will grow on me…after all, I have only just got round to accepting there is a new Inspector Barnaby in Midsomer. Two things worth a mention. The accompanying BBC website is very informative and has some lovely little quizzes. And the umbrella shop visited in Episode 4, James Smiths of New Oxford Street really is there, still in business, and were they not so fiendishly expensive, I would adore one of their umbrellas! The ladies ones with animal head handles are particularly endearing [very Mary Poppins]

I know that Mags and family are enjoying P in C – because they watched it on iPlayer last Thursday when they stayed with us overnight – but what do other people think of this latest BBC offering for Sunday evenings?

Matthew 25;45

Thank you to the Joint Public Issues Team [a Baptist, URC, Methodist, Church of Scotland Initiative] for their statement on the situation in Calais [click here] and for the prayer below, which the JPIT has written. Thank you too, to Sally Magnusson and her team, for the BBC Songs of Praise programme from France last night.

God of all humanity
When your people were enslaved and displaced,
You led them to a land that they could call home;
When your people were in exile;
Your promise was that one day,
They would live in streets of play and laughter.
When your disciples were afraid and uncertain,
You spoke of a Fathers House
With mansions and places prepared.

We pray today for all those who have no place to call home,
Hearing the heart-cry of your word
For those who are without refuge.
Where shelter is ours to offer
Grant us the will and resolve to reflect the generosity of our Creator.
Where others stand in the way of those who need safe haven
May our cry for justice never falter.
May the idols of self-interest and economic gain
Never deflect us from the ways of your Kingdom.
Through Christ our Lord.
AMEN

Chicory Tips

No not Chicory Tip, they were a very strange band from the 1960s. This post is about chicory, endive and escarole. In recent foray into horticulture, I planted seeds from all the packets in the tin. Many of the  coloured paper outers had gone, and I just had lots of the inner little foil packs.

One of these was labelled ‘endive’ – so we planted a row of these seeds, and had no idea what would emerge. Would it be the Belgian Endive, often called chicory [left]- or the curlier one sometimes called frisee ? [right]

…and what came up was a healthy crop of these leaves pictured below – which turns out to be the variety of endive called escarole.

Martha Stewart had some recipes, and I had a small butternut squash, so I made some ricotta with half a pint of milk [reserving the whey for scone-making] and halved the quantities in this recipe

Martha Stewart’s Spaghetti with Butternut Squash and Escarole

· Salt & pepper

· ½ medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into ½” pieces

· 12oz spaghetti

· 3oz unsalted butter

· 1 head escarole, leaves torn into 2” pieces

· 7oz ricotta

· 1 lemon, cut into wedges

In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook squash for 3 minutes. Drain in colander. Return water to a boil. Add pasta and cook till al dente. Reserve ½ cup pasta water; drain pasta and return to pot. In large nonstick skillet, heat 1 oz butter over medium heat. Add squash and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned in spots and tender when pierced with a knife, about 8 minutes. Add escarole and cook, stirring, until just beginning to wilt, 1 minute. Add vegetables to pot with pasta. To skillet, add 2 oz butter and cook, swirling skillet occasionally, until butter is lightly browned and has a nutty aroma, about 1 minute. Drizzle over pasta and toss to combine, adding enough pasta water to create a light sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving dish, top with ricotta, and serve with lemon wedges.[serves 4]

I had wholewheat penne, not spaghetti – I think mine looks as good as hers. It tasted OK, but maybe I should have added more salt. Bob declared that the escarole tasted ‘very worthy’ [i.e. dull!!]

Do not confuse escarole - a vegetable, with barcarolle – a song sung by a Venetian Gondolier or rigmarole - a set of confused and meaningless statements [like some of my blogposts!]

It’s Time…

Time to return from summer holidays

Time to reflect on the blessings of past months

Time to think about the autumn activities

Time to pray for grace and strength

Time to look, to listen, to learn, to love

Time to work, and worship, and witness

Time to see where God is leading

Footloose And Fancy Free

When Steph was about 9, she took a fancy to those ‘Victorian’ china dolls. They were quite popular and she saved up and bought herself two. She had said she’d like another for Christmas, so I decided to make her one. The kits were readily available and I purchased a pattern for the clothes from a local sewing shop [this is in the Dark Ages, before everything came via the Internet!]

The kit was a rather gruesome collection of body parts like this, with shoes and white stockings included in the package. There was a pattern for the ‘torso’ which I had to cut and sew from strong white calico, and then stuff with toy filling. There were no holes in the porcelain parts, you just had to sew the limbs firmly in place. A display stand came too

I quite enjoyed the project, working away in the evenings after the girls had gone to bed. Steph loved her doll and the three were displayed in her bedroom for ages. But girls grow up and toys get put in boxes. When I was doing the ‘old toys’ topic in December I noticed that the 2 porcelain dolls in the box at school were really damaged. I asked Steph about her dolls when I was packing for the move and she said she really didn’t want them. So the two shop-bought ones went off to the Resources Box at school in January- but the one I had made and dressed was packed to come to Ferndown.

But look! when I got her out of the box recently [yes, I am still unpacking boxes, even though it is over six months since we moved] I found her foot had come loose. There was nothing for it, she had to be mended – I gave her hair a good brush and she is going to go into the spare bedroom, along with my lovely Anne Of Green Gables doll [a gift from a Canadian friend in 2005]

I put so much work into making and trimming the blue dress, and creating the lilac slip and matching lace-trimmed bloomers, that I really didn’t want to give her away! I never did get round to the other garments on the pattern – a cloak and bonnet, nightgown and nightcap, and a second dress with contrast sleeves and a little headscarf. Maybe one day I will create a complete wardrobe for her. Poor dolly – I have forgotten her name – perhaps Steph remembers…

Please Be Seated!

What Bob really wanted – and has been hankering after for a little while now, was a proper ‘Steamer Chair’ – something like this

But as the picture above shows one of only seven of the Titanic’s deckchairs [sold at auction for £100,000 back in April] and the modern day equivalents [shown below] are in the region of £200, I told him to forget that dream!! You can get modern ones cheaper- but they are usually slightly smaller in scale and don’t fit his 6’4” frame comfortably.

But then he saw a regular deckchair [2nd hand] on Wimborne Market for only £6. He sat on it, liked it, and bought it. The frame was grubby and the cream sling was a bit mildewed. I measured the sling, then washed it. It shrank from 135cm to 125 cm in length – and didn’t come clean either. Before our holiday, I got a 2 metre length of deckchair canvas for £12. Whilst we were in Norfolk, I found a slightly smaller chair with arms at a salvage yard. I haggled the guy down from £10 to £7. The sling on mine was fine, but again, the frame needed a refurb as the rivets were a bit loose. On our return, I made a swish new stripy sling**, and also added a head cushion with the leftover piece of canvas, Bob cleaned, and waxed the frames and tightened joints. Ta Dah!

The holidays may be over, but we did enjoy reclining on the new chairs to watch the Perseids on Wednesday night [until it clouded over] Please note the tray with flask of hot chocolate. We may not be sitting on two £100K deckchairs, but we can still enjoy a little bit of luxury – after all, we have saved ourselves £195,975. No risk of icebergs in our Dorset garden either.

**You cannot see because of the headcushion – but Bob’s chair also has a neat ‘carrying handle’ slot in the top of the frame to match my chair. And the slings are threaded on dowels so come off very easily for cleaning.

Bean And Gone

OK, so maybe Alan Titchmarsh would not be impressed, but for one who struggles to grow cress on a flannel, it was wonderful to be able to pick three different sorts of leaves for my lunchtime salad and a handful of broad beans to go with our evening meal this week. The raised bed here in Dorset is producing more than just leaves for radish pesto! I just couldn't bring myself to discard the bean pods though. Happy memories of Tom's resourcefulness in the Good Life...

7 bean pods are hardly sufficient to make 2 dozen bottles of bean-pod-burgundy are they?  Instead I sauteed a small onion, and put the pods, the onion, and a peeled, diced potato into a pan with some home-made stock, simmered until soft, then liquidised it. It was quite thick, so I thinned it with a little milk. It  really tasted lovely - but was a rather uninspiring khaki colour, so I did not bother to take a picture.

When I Look At The Sky–Again!

After enjoying fabulous Norfolk skies for the past fortnight, it was wonderful last night to see the sunset from the front garden – and then immediately see the rainbow from the back garden

We’re hoping it will be fine tonight so we can sit out in the garden and watch the Perseids Meteor Shower. Much more light pollution here than at Cornerstones, but I am nevertheless optimistic.

RIP - Respectful Insolence Personified!

There are some people who do their job conscientiously and diligently, and really make a difference to the lives of others – but often get forgotten [or not known outside their own countries] Such a woman was Canadian doctor Frances Oldham Kelsey, who died at the weekend, at the age of 101. The Canadians honoured this great lady on their banknotes.

Fifty years ago, a new sedative was being developed in Germany. Thalidomide first entered the market in 1957 as an over-the-counter remedy, based on the maker’s safety claims. They advertised their product as “completely safe” for everyone, including mother and child, “even during pregnancy,” as its developers “could not find a dose high enough to kill a rat.” By 1960, thalidomide was marketed in 46 countries, with sales nearly matching those of aspirin.

Around this time, an Australian obstetrician discovered that the drug also alleviated morning sickness, and started recommending this off-label use of the drug to his pregnant patients, setting a worldwide trend. Prescribing drugs for off-label purposes, or purposes other than those for which the drug was approved, is still a common practice in many countries today. In many cases, these off-label prescriptions are very effective, such as prescribing depression medication to treat chronic pain.

But in the USA, the Federal Drug Administration Inspector, Frances Kelsey, was unhappy. She felt there was insufficient data showing the safety of prescribing this drug.  Displaying ‘respectful insolence’ [her term] towards the drug company, she repeatedly insisted on even more rigorous clinical trials in the USA – and then she refused to approve the drug. Her actions prevented the Americans from the tragedy that befell much of Europe in the 1960s, where over 10,000 babies were born with serious limb defects and other health problems. In this country alone, over 300 people continue to struggle with the dark legacy of thalidomide, taken by their mothers over 50 years ago. Having suffered appalling morning sickness myself, I can understand why these women might have trusted their doctors when offered something to help them feel better. I cannot imagine their distress at the outcome.

In 1962, President John F. Kennedy awarded Dr. Kelsey the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, the nation’s highest federal civilian service award, saying she had prevented a major tragedy. Through Kelsey's actions, not only did regulation of the pharmaceutical industry change, but she changed people’s attitudes about women taking drugs during pregnancy.

It takes faith and courage for one individual to stand up against a giant – and it is always wonderful when David vanquishes Goliath.

RIP Frances Oldham Kelsey

Snakes Alive!

I finally found a little project to use up my leftovers of DK. But when I looked at the knitted pieces before sewing up, they reminded me of a family of snakes! Once you sew them up however, they become cute little baby bootees.
The pattern is ridiculously easy - I memorised it and was able to knit and sew up 3 pairs in 3 days, whilst out in the car!
You need 25gm of DK wool and a pair of 3¼mm needles.
Work in plain [garter] stitch throughout - all in one piece.
SOLE Cast on 6 stitches. Inc 1 st each end of rows 3,7,11 and 17 **[14sts] SIDES Knit 17 rows. Dec 1st each end of next and following 4th row. [10sts] Now knit on these 10 stitches till this strip is long enough to wrap round sole [approx 80 rows] Cast off. Wrap side round sole, crossing left side over right, and stitch across the front. Now sew lower edge of strip all around the sides and back of sole piece. Repeat with other slipper but wrap the right side over left this time! [see picture] Stitch through both layers at the front, and decorate with bow or button.

If you want to make the sole a different colour, change yarns at ** I have just spotted the left hand bootee was positioned badly - the button is in the right place!

At Sandringham on Saturday, in one of the craft tents, Marion and I noticed a whole table of  'trad' baby bootees, similar to the ones on the left. We wondered if modern Mums still like these lacy pastel creations- there is a lot of work in them [and those ribbon ties are a bit fiddly]
Whilst I admire the work that has gone into them, and respect the skills of the ladies who made them, I confess that I am a bit more pragmatic. Most babies pull off their footwear and are prone to losing socks and bootees. I think I prefer knitting cute, quick-to-make, easy-to-wash, cheap and cheerful. [and yes, I did sew the buttons on very firmly!]

All Finished - Time To Go

I just made a cup of tea, then went out into the back garden - and found this. I love it!

But now I have to switch off the PC, tidy Cornerstones, pack the car, and get back to Dorset.

Smokin' Hot!

Some people have asked about the smoker. So here’s some basic information for you

• The original filing cabinet was a freebie – discarded by a neighbour in Kirby Muxloe. Bob modified it last summer.
• Standard oven shelves fit the drawer runners beautifully [again, freebies]
• This summer, he made a fancy outer cover – and added a layer of insulation [scrap strips of Selotex from the church building project]
• The heat comes from regular barbecue charcoal in the bottom tray [shown below – with some jacket potatoes wrapped in tinfoil cooking away!]

This summer, Bob wanted to check the difference the insulation makes, so on Friday he smoked a chicken. There are two thermometers in use – a fixed one which tells you the heat inside the cabinet, and another one on a wire probe which tells you the heat of the meat. The oven temperature is hard to control – he was aiming for 105°C, but a lot of the time it was nearer 150° – the chicken needed to reach at least 85°C all through. It is important that the probe is tested in different parts of the meat, therefore.

 This magnetic IKEA Fantast thermometer/timer costs £7.25 and the probe detaches- so much of the time it is in the kitchen, attached to the cooker hood and in use as an oven timer.
Here is the chicken in the smoker – you can just see the tray underneath which collects the drippings. After about 3½hours the temperature was reached and the chicken was done. So we cut it up and took it for our picnic to the Sandringham Food and Drink Festival with Adrian and Marion [and used our hampers!]

This was slightly posher than our usual picnic – crusty bread, fancy salads, bottles of orange juice and blueberry drink, chicken, pork pies, Babybel cheeses, grapes and nectarines… Well we were at Sandringham!

A Great End To Our Holiday Fortnight

This afternoon we went up to Old Hunstanton with Liz and Jon, to meet up with Jon's family, also on holiday in Norfolk, to have a barbecue on the beach. It was utterly glorious! Thank you Wheatley clan!

When I Look At The Sky…

…which you have made,
at the moon and the stars, which you set in their places—

what are human beings, that you think of them;
mere mortals, that you care for them?

Yet you made them inferior only to yourself; you crowned them with glory and honour. You appointed them rulers over everything you made; you placed them over all creation: sheep and cattle, and the wild animals too**; the birds and the fish and the creatures in the seas.

O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world!

Words from Psalm 8 – pictures from Bob, who has been photographing the most amazing cloudscapes seen from our back garden this week! [thanks Bob, for permission to use these]

[**that included caring for Cecil the lion]

Posh OSH Nosh

A few months ago I was reading my free ‘Metro’ on the tube, and decided to keep the recipe page. It was for a chocolate cake using Old Speckled Hen beer [OSH] I knew there were some cans of OSH here at Cornerstones. The picture in the newspaper showed a rich, dark cake…

I set to and made the cake yesterday [we couldn’t go out till the BT engineer had been to fix the broadband]
I’ve checked on the internet and this recipe appears a few times – always with this picture. The ingredients list implies that cocoa powder or grated chocolate should be dusted on to, I cannot see any, can you? Here’s the recipe

Preparation Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 20-25 minutes Total Time: 40-45 minutes 
Ingredients:

• 175g self-raising flour
• ¼ level tsp baking powder
• 1 level tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 275g dark brown soft sugar
• 110g spreadable butter
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 50g cocoa powder, sifted
• 200ml Old Speckled Hen

For the Icing:

• 200g butter, soften
• 400g icing sugar
• 2 tbsp Old Speckled Hen [OSH]
• 50g dark chocolate, melted
•  Cocoa powder or grated chocolate to dust

Method:

1. Preheat the oven 180°C, fan oven 160°C, gas mark 4. Grease and line the base of 2 x 22cm round cake-tins, with non-stick baking parchment.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a freestanding mixer.
3. Add all the other ingredients, except the OSH. Using an electric hand whisk or the freestanding mixer combine all the ingredients for about one minute until you have a smooth creamy consistency. Add the OSH a little at a time till thoroughly combined.
4. Divide the mixture between the two prepared tins and bake for about 30–35 minutes. The cakes are cooked when pressed lightly with your little finger and the center springs back.
5. Place on a cooling rack and leave to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the tin and cooling further on a cooling rack.
6. To make the icing: melt the chocolate in the microwave – 2-3 minutes on medium should do it – or in a bowl sitting over a pan of simmering water, and let cool slightly.
7. Beat the softened butter, gradually adding the icing sugar a spoonful at a time. Once all the icing sugar has been added, whisk the icing for about 5 minutes on a high speed with an electric whisk until light and fluffy. Add OSH and mix thoroughly. Add melted chocolate, beat until icing is glossy and smooth.
8. Spread half the icing onto the bottom layer, top with the other cake, spread remaining icing on top.

Here’s my cake

Spot the difference! I made up the icing exactly as per recipe, but there was no way it was dark as the one in the picture- plus there was way too much icing. I wonder if there was a mistake in the quantities?

Or maybe the icing on the cake in their photo was made to a very different recipe? I suspect less butter and icing sugar, and more chocolate, would have given a better result. The sponge tastes OK, but the icing is rather rich. Not complaining too much!

Brushstrokes

Bob decided the inside of smoker cabinet was looking dingy, and found some spare green paint – so cleaned off the old labels, and made the doors look bright and shiny. The original plastic handles stuck out too far, and were melting – they have been replaced by wingnuts. Next time we come, he will put leather straps across as heatproof handles [we’ve got some leather offcuts in Ferndown]

He also had a spare external socket lying around in the garage [I didn’t ask why!] so this has been fitted under the roof. My thought was that this was to power pretty fairy lights- but I suspect Bob, Jon and Mark will find a use relating to chilled beverages! I undercoated the cabinet, then painted it green, and finally added white gloss details, and a doorknob.

Is this not the most beautiful smoker you have ever seen? I cannot believe how brilliantly he’s interpreted my dream - thanks Bob!

Now I am asking for your suggestions, please – what should I add as a final decoration to the door of my splendid little hut?