Indian Feast Continued: Dal Soup, Saag Paneer and ...

It’s been a busy and exciting week. A wildlife expert came around to assess my garden for the Kent Wildlife Garden Award Scheme (more on that later). I’ve been busy finishing up an excellent writing course at Savvy Authors and I have had new clients for my Reflexology and Aromatherapy practice.

This weekend has brought more rain so I felt it was time to write about the other 3 dishes my husband and I prepared for our Indian Feast last weekend.

Dal Soup is a firm favourite and my husband decided this was his dish to make. He used a recipe found in a book my mum bought ages ago in a local charity shop; ‘Cooking for Today. Indian Vegetarian Cooking,’ by Louise Steele This is an excellent book full of a wide range of easy to make delicious food.

Dal Soup

Here is the recipe from Louise’s book.

Dal Soup

Ingredients

250g / 8oz chana dal or yellow split peas, soaked

1.25 litres / 2 pints water

½ tsp turmeric

1 onion chopped

1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp vegetable oil (my husband used olive oil)

½ tsp mustard seeds

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 dried chillies, seeded and chopped (my husband used 2 fresh red chillies)

250g / 8oz canned chopped tomatoes

Salt and pepper

Directions

Drain and rinse the lentils then place in a pan with the water and turmeric. Bring to the boil then cover and simmer for 30 minutes. (NOTE: Keep a sharp eye on the pot as it overflowed a few times creating quite a mess!)

Add the onion and cumin, stir, cover and cook for another 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small pan and add the mustard seeds. When the seeds pop add the chillies and tomatoes. Cook for 2-3 minutes then add the contents of the pan to the lentils. Stir well, add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

NOTE: There was no mention of when to add the garlic so my husband added it to the mustard seeds, chillies and tomatoes.

Paneer Cheese

Saag Paneer is a beautiful combination of spinach, paneer cheese and spices.

This recipe from the Indian Food Site is quick and easy to follow.

Saag Paneer serves 2-4

Ingredients

1 kg/2 lbs spinach

1 tsp cumin powder

2 tbsp chickpea flour (NOTE: This is also called Gram Flour – I didn’t realize this and stood next to a huge stack of it while asking a shop assistant where all the chickpea flour was)

4 cloves of garlic finely chopped

1 onion chopped

salt to taste

¼ tsp chilli powder

½ lbs or ¼ kg paneer

2 tbsp heavy cream

¼ cup oil (I used olive oil)

3 tbsp ginger julienned (I just chopped mine into little chunks)

2-3 tbsp fresh coriander

Directions

Chop spinach and set aside

Heat oil, add cumin while heating. When oil starts to crackle, add garlic and onion, sauté until light brown, then add chickpea flour and mix well to avoid lumps

Cook until oil emerges, then add spinach, and sauté until pan is dry

Add salt, chilli powder and paneer, finish with cream and serve garnished with julienned ginger and fresh coriander

Saag Paneer and Chicken Pulao and Rotis

We bought some basmati rice but wanted to do something a bit more adventurous then just steaming it. On the same Indian Food Site (which is brilliant and definitely worth checking out) I found a recipe for Chicken Pulao.

I have to confess I was very VERY pleased with the way this dish turned out. The spices came through beautifully. It really was like something you would get in a restaurant. The great thing was that it was all done in one pan. If you decide to make one dish then I strongly recommend this one.

CHICKEN PULAO

Ingredients

(2 Ib 3 oz) 1 kg chicken

1 cup basmati rice, washed and soaked in water for 2 hours

2 onions finely chopped

2 tbsp fresh ginger, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 green chillies, finely chopped

2 red chillies

1 cinnamon stick

3 black cardamoms

2 tsp cumin powder

2 tsp coriander powder

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp garam masala

6 peppercorns

2 cups water

salt to taste

leaves from 2 sprigs coriander

¼ cup cashew nuts

4 tbsp vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

Directions

Heat the oil in a non stick pan

Put in chopped onions. Fry till the onions turn transparent

Add garlic and ginger

Add black cardamoms, cinnamon stick, green and red chillies

Add coriander and cumin powder, salt to taste and stir-fry for 3 minutes

Add pieces of chicken

Stir fry for 5 minutes or until chicken has golden brown colour

Add basmati rice and 2 cups of water. Cover the pan and let simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, or until all water has evaporated

Transfer the rice to serving dish. Garnish with cashew nuts and coriander leaves

Enjoy!

I hope you try making some (or all) of these dishes for your very own Indian feast at home. My husband and I had lots of fun preparing them and even more fun eating them!

Simple Mint Chutney and Homemade Rotis...

Fresh Mint

It was a stay in doors kind of weekend so my husband and I decided to spend some extra time in the kitchen cooking up an Indian feast. We wanted to give ourselves a bit of a challenge but honestly these dishes were much easier then we thought.

What can become labour intensive is preparing the wide variety of herbs and spices you need. But with all those wonderful smells wafting about the kitchen – it’s more a labour of love.

Indian cuisine is one of our favourites. Any opportunity we have either locally or on our travels to try some – we jump at the chance. Of course we have had some great experiences:

• Early morning pumpkin rotis from a family run news agents on the campus of the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji

• Homemade samosas and pakoras being passed through a city bus window by street vendors in Nadi Fiji

• The first time we ever tried king prawn korai at a local restaurant

And we have had some not so wonderful experiences:

• A super spicy chilli parantha in Singapore which was so hot that not even 3 mango lassis each could put out the fire on our tongues

• Sag Paneer made at a different local restaurant which was made with cheddar cheese instead of paneer (sigh..I can still taste the disappointment)

• Soggy poppadoms (UNFORGIVEABLE!!!)

This weekend we prepared a few dishes including mint chutney, rotis, dahl soup, sag paneer and chicken pulao. Just to keep things simple I will break the menu up. So today I am just posting the recipe for the mint chutney and rotis.

They work wonderfully together and the mint chutney just gets better over time so make extra! You can also add the mint chutney to the other dishes as well.

I found the mint chutney recipe on this very informative and helpful site and the roti recipe on this site which gives wonderfully clear instructions.

Mint Chutney

Mint Chutney

Ingredients

A handful of fresh mint leaves (I used loads from my garden)

2 tsp garlic paste (I crushed 3 garlic cloves)

2-3 green chillies (I used 3 and it was HOT so think about what you can handle)

½ tsp tamarind paste

½ tsp white sugar

1 tsp water

Salt to taste

Directions

Wash and clean the mint and pluck the leaves from the stems

Put the leaves in a mixer and give them a whizz for bout 2-3 minutes to squeeze out the juice (there wasn’t a lot of excess juice for me)

Once the juice is drained off add the remaining ingredients to the mixer and whizz until smooth (it never went smooth for me but the texture was actually very nice)

Rotis

Rotis (makes approx 13)

Ingredients

200g Medium Wholemeal Flour (I used white chapati flour)

150ml luke warm water

2 Tablespoons oil (I know it isn’t ideal but I only had olive oil – it worked well)

Ghee or butter to spread (I used butter)

Plain flour to dust

Directions

Take a mixing bowl and add the flour and oil

Mix the two together with your hands and whilst kneading gradually pour in the water. (The final amount of water required will be dependent on the absorbency of level of the flour so leave a little until you have mixed the flour well. Add remaining 50ml if you want a softer mix. A softer dough allows you to produce a much thinner and pliable roti that will not crack at the edges when cooked. However soft roti dough is hard to roll without some skill so practise a few times before hosting a dinner party!)

Knead the dough for about 2-3 minutes. The dough should be smooth and pliable, cover and allow to relax for 10-15 minutes

Apply a teaspoon of oil onto your palms and knead once more, very briefly. Divide the dough into 13 equal parts. Each portion should be about the size of a ping-pong ball

Before you start to roll, dust each flattened ball with plain flour and use a rolling pin to make a thin circle measuring about 14-15cm in diameter. (The trick to a perfect roti is to ensure that it rolled out evenly. Do not grip the rolling pin too tightly. Place the palms of your hands on the tapered edges of the rolling pin and let the roti almost roll itself. It does not matter how long it takes for you to roll the roti- the result should be smooth and even. A common failing when rolling is to press too hard at the centre giving a roti that is thin in the middle and thicker on the edges. This leads to uneven cooking)

Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat. Place your roti into it.

As soon as you can see little bubbles appear on its surface – usually within 30 seconds – turn it over onto the other side. Cook the other side for 30 seconds. Then place it under a preheated grill or directly onto the fire to bloat – little brown specks will appear on the surface. (Turn it over during bloating. (The preferred method to bloat the rotli varies from household to household. Many use a pair of smooth tongs (chipyo), some use a mesh grill and yet others place it under the grill. The key is to get air into the rotli to make it soft and pliable)

Place your cooked roti in a plate and smear with a little melted ghee or butter

Make all the rotis in the same way and stack them on top of each other. Keep them covered with a clean tea towel, NOT a container, as steam given off by hot rotis will dampen the rest

Enjoy!

Here are some great sites for Indian recipes:

Indian Foods Co

Indian Food

Recipes Indian

Indian Food Forever

Addicted to Gardening: The Detling Garden Show...

This weekend was the first time I visited the Detling Garden Show. It was also the first time I realized I have a serious addiction to gardening. Although my outdoor space is limited I couldn’t resist buying a few more plants for my Magical Fairy Garden. Over the next few weeks I’ll be learning about them and sharing my findings here with all of you.

For those of you that have never been to the Detling Garden Show it is a must! There are over 300 exhibitors selling a wide variety of plants, stalls from various wild life trusts and all sorts of wonderful garden ornaments including chimes, fantastic children’s play houses and gigantic wooden Gorillas (just what every garden needs!) I have also discovered there is a 2nd garden show in the Autumn! Hurrah!

My new plants are all settling happily in my garden. Here is a quick peek at some of them:

Heart Ease or Wild Pansy

Lupins

Cat Mint (A Treat for Nutmeg)

A Japanese Maple Tree (I LOVE these trees!)

Growing An Apple Tree From Seed...

Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.

Martin Luther

I have become obsessed with the idea of having my own orchard. There are garden centres all over Kent selling a wide variety of apple, pear and cherry trees and I could easily buy myself a ready made orchard. However I don’t want to take the easy option. So I have taken the bold (and very possibly insane) step of growing my very own apple tree from seeds.

Now seeds and I don’t tend to get along. We definitely have a love hate relationship. I lavish them with love and attention and in return they either do nothing or they sprout and then promptly rot. So I know I am doing something wrong.

This is my 2nd attempt at growing my own apple tree. The first attempt ended in bitter disappointment. I managed to get 2 seeds to sprout and then in my youthful exuberance planted them outside (way too early) where they withered and died. I learned my lesson and spent more time doing research on the best way to grow apple trees from seed. This article by Steve Snyder is one of the best I have found.

For this attempt I am using local Braeburn apples.

What I have done so far:

– Enjoyed eating 3 lovely, juicy Braeburn apples – cut into slices

– Used the tip of a knife to carefully extract the seeds from the core

– Placed the seeds on wax paper in a small dish so they can dry out

My next steps:

– Wait patiently for the seeds to dry out (this can take 3-4 weeks)

– When they are dry enough they will have a light almost grey/silver colour

– I will then add them to a small Tupperware box filled with soil and place in my fridge for 3 months

– Every 2 days I will open up the box to give them some air and extra TLC

– Keep my non–green fingers crossed and hopefully start to see some sign of growth after the first 2 months

It really doesn’t matter if I am successful or not (although I would love for this to be a success). What’s important for me is the process and learning more about my garden and how plants grow. I will keep you posted on my progress – wish me luck! (and please send some loving thoughts to my apple seeds)

Thanks Everyone!

Luna xx

Bacon and Avocado Sandwiches...

Today my husband and I went for an early morning country side walk. The sun was shining brightly, birds were singing, we even saw a large hare bounding up the path. It was the perfect start to the day. All the walking and fresh country air got our appetites going. By the time we got back we were more then ready for lunch. As a treat we had bacon and avocado sandwiches. This is a dream combination and goes wonderfully well with a big mug of tea.

Luna Raye’s Bacon and Avocado Sandwiches (for two)

Ingredients

4 slices of really good quality smoked streaky bacon (we buy ours from our local butcher)

1 ripe Hass Avocado

Mayonnaise

4 slices of thick whole wheat bread

A pinch of salt

Generous amount of freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Cook the bacon in a frying pan until just crispy (but not burnt)

While the bacon is cooking spread some mayonnaise on 2 slices of bread that will serve as the bottom half of each sandwich

Cut the avocado in half and remove the stone

Scoop out the flesh of the avocado and layer it over the mayonnaise on each slice of bread

Add a pinch of salt to the avocado

Once the bacon is cooked layer it on top of the avocado (I don’t drain the bacon on paper towel but you can do so if you wish)

Add a generous amount of black pepper before placing the other slice of bread on top

Cut in half and serve with a big mug of tea

Enjoy!

Deep Fried Brie with Cranberry Chutney...

I absolutely love cheese! A wedge of mature Irish cheddar on a slice of warm soda bread, a generous portion of Roquefort with a chilled Sauterne or smooth creamy garlic and herb Le Roule spread thickly over oat cakes – I love it all! One of my all time favourites though is deep fried Brie or Camembert with homemade chutney. This is top of my list of things to order when I dine out.

Before I watched Simon Rimmer prepare this dish on Something for the Weekend I thought it was well beyond my capabilities. The idea of deep frying cheese made me nervous – maybe because I am so accident prone – but really this is such a simple dish to make. I don’t have a deep fat fryer but I did use my wok – it worked very well but it is important to be careful (especially if you’re accident prone like me) as hot oil can be dangerous.

The best thing is now I don’t have to wait to go to a restaurant to have it – I can make it at home easily whenever I have a craving – which unfortunately for my waistline is often.

It’s perfect for lunch or elegant starter and will definitely impress your dinner guests. I serve mine with a simple salad of rocket (arugula) with red peppers and a lime vinaigrette.

Here is Simon Rimmer’s recipe from the BBC Food website.

Deep Fried Brie with Cranberry Chutney

Ingredients

For the chutney

1-2 tbsp vegetable oil (I used olive oil)

1 red onion, finely chopped

1 red chilli, finely chopped

200g/7oz demerara sugar

150ml/5½fl oz red wine vinegar

250g/9oz fresh cranberries (the supermarkets have these in abundance in the lead up to Christmas so buy a few packs and freeze them for later)

100g/3½oz dried cranberries

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp ground cloves

For the deep-fried Brie

100g/3½oz plain flour

2 free-range eggs, beaten

125g/4½oz polenta (I have used both regular bread crumbs and gluten free bread crumbs and both work just as well as polenta)

1 lime, zest only

4 x wedges Brie or Vignotte cheese (I have also used Camembert)

Vegetable oil, for frying (I used olive oil)

Directions

For the chutney, heat the oil in large saucepan and fry the onion and chilli for 4-5 minutes, or until softened.

Add the sugar, vinegar, cranberries, seasoning and cloves. Bring the mixture to the boil and cook for a further 15 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened.

Meanwhile, for the deep-fried Brie, sprinkle the flour onto a plate and beat the eggs in a bowl. Mix the polenta and lime zest together on a separate plate.

Dredge the Brie pieces first in the flour, then dip them in the egg, then coat them in the polenta mixture.

Heat the oil in a deep heavy-based frying pan until a breadcrumb sizzles and turns brown when dropped into it. Alternatively, use an electric deep-fat fryer heated to 180C/350F. (CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.)

Deep-fry the coated Brie pieces for 4-5 minutes, or until golden-brown. Using a slotted spoon, remove the Brie from the pan and set aside to drain on kitchen paper.

Serve the deep-fried Brie piled onto small plates with the chutney in ramekins alongside.

Enjoy!

Best Sherry Cake….Ever!...

There really is nothing like a glass of sherry especially after a hard days work. I know it isn’t to everyone’s taste but I do have a real fondness for it. Usually when I am cooking I’ll have a spatula or wooden spoon in one hand and a large glass of sherry in the other.

Not only is sherry a lovely tipple but its also great for cooking! Harveys Bristol Cream is an essential ingredient and star of the show in my mom’s famous trifle. A generous splash of Amontillado to sautéing onions and garlic will add a lovely flavour to sauces and soups.

NOTE: I have never ever used cooking sherry and wouldn’t touch it with a barge pole. Generally cooking sherry has a lot of salt added to it and it is definitely not something you would want a glass of. For most of my cooking I use a leading UK supermarket brand of Amontillado sherry which is slightly drier and less sweet. It’s lovely to drink and cook with and not that expensive. If you are going to cook with sherry then it is worth it to get the real deal.

I thought I had experienced all that sherry had to offer when my cousin surprised me with her Grandmother’s recipe for sherry cake.

My original plan was to make this cake to celebrate the Royal Wedding but my husband and I ended up using most of the bottle to toast the happy couple (which wasn’t such a bad thing after all). Anyway the drinks cabinet has now been replenished and I was finally was able to make this amazing cake. Trust me this is a winner!

Here is the recipe courtesy of my lovely cousin (and her Grandmother!)

Grandma Reid’s Sherry Cake

Ingredients

4 room temperature eggs (you can put them in a bowl of warm water to warm them up if you don’t have time to let them sit out)

3/4 cup salad oil (my cousin uses canola while I used olive oil)

3/4 cup sherry (my cousin uses Harveys Bristol Cream while I used my favourite Amontillado)

1 package yellow cake mix (I used a Madeira cake mix)

1 package instant vanilla pudding (my sister brought me some Jell-O Instant Pudding from Canada. In the UK I think Angel Delight would work although I don’t think they have vanilla but banana or butterscotch would work well. Size wise the Jell-O is 102g which is what you would need for the recipe) Don’t mix up the pudding. Just add it straight to the bowl!

1 Tbs ground nutmeg

Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup sherry

1 tsp ground nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large bowl with a wire whisk beat together the eggs, oil and sherry

Gradually mix in the cake mix, pudding mix and 1 Tbs ground nutmeg

NOTE: I was told electric mixers are a no no – good old fashioned muscle is what’s needed. Also as there may be lumps in the cake mix it’s a good idea to use a sifter

Place the batter in a well greased tube or Bundt pan (a pan that is round, deep with hole in the middle)

Bake for 45 minutes

Remove from pan immediately

Mix together the glaze ingredients with a whisk

Allow the cake to cool cake for 10 minutes and place on large plate or large chopping board covered with aluminium / tin foil

Spread glaze on top of cake. It will melt and run down sides in a lovely gooey mess

Cool completely, cut and eat cold

Enjoy!

Bird Baths and Brownies...

I haven’t been writing as much over the past few months mainly because my mum was visiting from Australia. During her stay we had a great time scouring charity shops for treasures, visiting the lovely town of Faversham several times and of course cooking up many delights in the kitchen.

My mum is a master of organization! I, however am the complete opposite – although I do have ‘a system’ (it usually doesn’t work very well and results in mega tantrums). Anyway, while she was here she very kindly took it upon herself to sort through and organize my collection of recipes. There were clippings from newspapers and magazines as well as print outs from websites stuffed and stacked in various cupboards and shelves in my kitchen. It took a full 2 days (and 3 bottles of Pinot Grigio) but she did it and the result is;

• I can actually find the recipes I am looking for

• I rediscovered some long lost recipes I had always wanted to try

One of these rediscovered recipes is a Jamie Oliver one, snipped years ago from a magazine. It’s for chocolate brownies, something I enjoy eating but have never made. Well this past weekend I gave them a go and they are absolutely scrummy! However they are definitely NOT low in fat. I doubled the recipe so my husband could take some into work and let me just say that when you see a whole pack of butter disappearing into your brownie mix you know you’re in trouble!

So to balance things out (in my own mind anyway) I have been putting extra time into my garden. Over the past few days there has been a lot of pruning, re-potting and general sorting out. I was actually just enjoying one of these brownies in the garden (with a large mug of tea) as a reward for assembling my newly acquired bird bath. It was bought from the RSPB and I also become a member at the same time. Wildlife is very important to me and I love watching all the life going on in and around my little garden.

In fact I think I may have another brownie and watch to see if any birds decide its bath time!

And Thank You MUM for all your love, help and support!

Here is the original Jamie Oliver recipe:

Chocolate Brownies (Serves 4)

Ingredients

• 100g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces

• 125g butter

• 4 large organic eggs

• 300g caster sugar

• 100g self raising flour

• Pinch of salt

• 125g shelled walnuts

• Icing sugar, for dusting

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 190C (375F, gas mark 5)

• Grease a 20x20cm baking tin with a little butter, then cut a square of greaseproof paper to fit neatly in the bottom

• Melt the chocolate and butter in a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water. Remove from the heat and set aside

• Mix the eggs, sugar, flour and salt together in a bowl. Add the melted chocolate and butter mixture. Sprinkle in the walnuts. Stir and fold together being careful not to over-mix

• Spread evenly into the cake tin and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 – 18 minutes, or until a crust has formed but they are still a bit wobbly (you don’t want them to be really cooked through like a cake)

• Allow the brownies to cool slightly and then cut into squares. Serve with icing sugar dusted over the top

Jamie’s top tip: If you don’t like walnuts, try the recipe with dried cherries, apricots or pecan nuts.

Luna Note: As I doubled the recipe I used 125g of walnuts and 100g of dried cranberries. It was a great combination!

If you are interested in the RSBP then please visit their website to find out the many ways you can help protect our natural world.

http://www.rspb.org.uk/

Sweet Peas: First Bloom of the Year...

“Here are sweet peas, on tip-toe for a flight: With wings of gentle flush o’er delicate white, And taper fingers catching at all things, To bind them all about with tiny rings.”

-John Keats

Botanical Name: Lathyrus odoratus
Family: Leguminosae
Ruled by: The element of Water and the planet Venus
Magical properties: Friendship, courage & strength

This morning I awoke to the sound of rain. Along with the rumbling purr of a happy cat, falling rain is one of my favourite sounds. As I pulled back the curtains to look out on the day I was delighted to see my sweet pea is now in bloom.

This was especially important to me as last year I bought some sweet pea seeds from a local garden centre. I planted them and was shocked when sweet peas actually emerged! Not knowing how the whole propagation thing worked (duh!) I assumed I would have to buy more seeds this year. Imagine my delight when 2 months ago I started seeing the beginnings of a whole new sweet pea poking through the soil.

It has now shot up to almost 1.2m and is a beautiful sight in my garden. Basically the seeds from some of the late blooming flowers last autumn went into the soil and presto….a whole new life began. Hurrah…….the magic of nature! Not being much of a gardener I am really pleased at how easy it has been to grow sweet peas. They are stunning plants which can bring magic to any garden.

Here are some important and interesting Sweet Pea facts:

• It is an annual climbing plant that can reach heights of 1-2 metres. Make sure you have something to support it. I have a stick but it has also wrapped itself around my Kilmarnock Willow Tree
• Sweet peas come in a wide variety of colours; pink, red, white, purple and lavender
• They like full sun and good deep, well drained top-soil
• They benefit from regular deadheading but towards the end of the season keep some of the flowers to seed for the next year (that’s what I unknowingly did and it worked)
• Sweet peas have been cultivated since the 17th century and the first sweet pea was introduced to England from Sicily in 1699
• Their sweet fragrance is what gives them their name
• There are different varieties including;

Old Fashioned (these should be very fragrant)

Spencer Cultivars (hardy with bright, bold colours but not necessarily fragrant)

Bijou Group (Sweet scented variety that are suitable for containers)

• Many gardeners call Sweet Peas the Queen of Annuals
• Sweet Peas are long lasting as cut flowers but personally I prefer to leave mine in the garden!
• They help attract bumblebees and butterflies to your garden

IMPORTANT NOTE: Unlike most peas, the seeds of the sweet pea are poisonous, and should not be eaten. Sweet pea flowers are also not edible and are poisonous. According to the brilliant book ‘100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names’ by Diana Wells ( Published 1997 by Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill) , there is a medical term to describe sweet pea poisoning – lathyrism. Symptoms can include convulsions, paralysis in the legs and unconsciousness.

So best leave the sweet peas to the bumble bees and butterflies!




If you are interested sweet peas here are some helpful and informative sites:

http://www.sweetpeas.org.uk/how.htm

http://www.theflowerexpert.com/content/giftflowers/flowersandfragrances/sweet-pea

http://www.howtogrow.co.uk/how-to-grow-sweetpeas.html

http://gardening.about.com/od/plantprofiles/p/SweetPea.htm

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Anzac Biscuits...

The word ANZAC stands for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. The Anzac biscuit as we know it today seems to have originated during WW1 and was sent as part of the rations to the troops fighting in Gallipoli. These biscuits are an important part of Australian and New Zealand history.

Although there is some debate as to where the actual recipe came from, it seems to have been based on Scottish oatcakes. Oats of course are healthy and would have provided the troops with much needed nutrients. The lack of eggs in the recipe also gave the biscuits a long shelf which was essential in preventing them from spoiling on the long journey

Anzac day is held on April 25th in both countries. It is a special day to commemorate all those who have died fighting for their countries.

If you have never tried Anzac biscuits then give these a try. You can find the recipe here at the BBC Good Food website or follow it below.

Anzac biscuits (recipe from the BBC Good Food website)

Ingredients

• 85g porridge oats

• 85g desiccated coconut

• 100g plain flour

• 100g caster sugar

• 100g butter, plus extra butter for greasing

• 1 tbsp golden syrup

• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Directions

1. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Put the oats, coconut, flour and sugar in a bowl. Melt the butter in a small pan and stir in the golden syrup. Add the bicarbonate of soda to 2 tbsp boiling water, then stir into the golden syrup and butter mixture.

2. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the butter and golden syrup mixture. Stir gently to incorporate the dry ingredients.

3. Put dessert spoonfuls of the mixture on to buttered baking sheets, about 2.5cm/1in apart to allow room for spreading. Bake in batches for 8-10 minutes until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Anzac Biscuits