tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11355655742180808382009-11-15T15:26:30.875ZA pantry is a room where food, provisions or dishes are stored and serves in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen. So this is my space to write about what I've been cooking and baking; to share new ideas and old favourites.Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.comBlogger65125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-18526759253096456962009-10-07T20:55:00.005+01:002009-10-07T22:42:43.190+01:00

I'm sure you weren't expecting to hear from me again so soon. But alongside the bread, I also made Promise cake this week.Promise cake is a very important institution at both the Brownies and Guides I volunteer with. When a girl is ready to make her promise she does so in front of the rest of the unit, and we welcome her into the Sisterhood of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. To celebrate this

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-23477923175316666992009-10-06T13:13:00.006+01:002009-10-06T15:17:39.699+01:00

Well good news folks, the laptop is back and *touches wood* almost as a good as new, I have lost nearly all my photos though, so for the first time in my life I'm thankful for Facebook et al... Anyway, as promised, I'd tell you what I've been up to while internet-less.I stocked up the freezer, with portions of Lentil Ragu and Lifechanging soup. I tackled bread from the leaven my friend Matt had

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-3493831487971439952009-09-16T22:57:00.003+01:002009-09-16T23:09:39.363+01:00

Well it is if you’re my laptop. The hard drive had died. Again. And on the new one. To say I am annoyed is possibly the understatement of the century. I’ve lost a ridiculous amount of work, photos and a whole year’s Guide accounts. Much swearing has been heard around the house this week, along with the occasional tearful exclamation about unbacked up work.Anyway, so this post is not only brought

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-85029526359225298842009-08-26T20:25:00.005+01:002009-08-26T21:29:12.063+01:00

Naturally I've spent a week trying to locate the inspiration to write this post up, and as you may infer from the title we are Greek in flavour. Although I do confess, I have never seen Mamma Mia on stage, to be truthful jukebox musicals just really aren't my thing, but I have seen and enjoyed the film, which did make me feel slightly guilty as usually I'd far rather see a stage musical than a

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-24693685289348963542009-08-03T20:27:00.004+01:002009-08-03T21:07:51.422+01:00

More of a theme than a title, Patience and Faith, from In the Heights, another of my favourite Broadway musicals. Perhaps I should just move there since there's barely anything on in the West End that takes my fancy anylonger. Although, that said the upcoming adaptation of Terry Pratchett's novel Nation by The National Theatre is making me squeeishly excited despite not being a musical (unless

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-25727356370965373262009-08-01T16:15:00.004+01:002009-08-01T18:11:37.780+01:00

Alternative title I toyed with was Mama's making May wine... but figured so few of us would get it that I'd stick with the obvious.OK, I hold my hands up to this one and am guilty as charged. This post is overdue by 6 weeks, which is, quite frankly inexcusable. However, if you understand Guiding then you know that the summer term is the busiest term, Pack Holiday and camp have taken up pretty

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-7065858581898765412009-07-30T20:20:00.005+01:002009-07-30T21:14:40.063+01:00

Tell him! Tell him in a song!Or so the song goes (Fool, from Xanadu of course!) That's a lot of exclamation marks, I shall be less declamatory for the rest of the post. Which is of course about fools. As you clearly realised from my witty quotation type title. Really, you can just smile and nod sometimes. I'll get to the food eventually I promise.Now firstly I know I still haven't blogged about

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-80886462550289386642009-07-07T13:17:00.009+01:002009-07-07T22:14:14.274+01:00

In which your author and friends use their best flirting techniques to obtain the name of a particular cheese and the method for making bacon foam. Yes really. And it's Sondheim in case you were wondering.A fortnight ago a group of female friends and I descended on Notting Hill for a much looked forward to lunch. Without exception we're all definitely foodies and try to meet up for trips to

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-17575345936235005242009-07-04T23:28:00.007+01:002009-07-05T00:25:30.824+01:00

Sorry it's been a little while since I've posted; as always life, work and love seem to get in the way. However, I do have a stash of notes in my book so will try and write those up into coherent blogposts over the next couple of days.Firstly a slightly ranty one. Consider yourselves warned. Also miniscule foodie content here, foodies await the next post about a lunch with friends at the Ledbury.

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-79997313701542167422009-06-14T16:04:00.004+01:002009-06-14T16:36:46.633+01:00

This month I have mostly been; broke. For some reason there just seemed to be too much month at the end of my money. So I've been eating my way through my storecupboard, glad that I have a few meals that I can knock up from tins and other goodies stashed away in the pantry. I say pantry, really I mean big cupboard that my flatmate and I each have a shelf in, but after all - this blog says I have

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-45805829163020152142009-06-14T15:08:00.008+01:002009-06-14T16:45:56.730+01:00

I think I mentioned previously about being interested in entering London's first Iron Cupcake comptetion, which naturally had a theme of Chocolate. Being more than a little retentive, I naturally expended energy in planning my entry - an adaptation of Nigella Lawson's Chocolate Guinness cake. Duly had a practice run to see how much like a pint of Guinness I could make my cupcakes look. Result -

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-45031712861874211522009-06-14T14:44:00.006+01:002009-06-14T15:07:35.068+01:00

As the title suggests, this is a post about the wonderful cafe that the Guides ran last weekend. I'm so proud of them - anyone who is known to roll their eyes, despairing of the 'youth of today' had better not come within a 10 mile range of me at the moment. Our girls having decided that they would support Help the Hospices (and the North London Hospice in particular) as part of their Changing

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-83144381931220613272009-06-14T13:59:00.006+01:002009-06-14T15:45:35.485+01:00

See how tidy my desk is? What do you mean no?!I don't know about anyone else who finds themselves desk bound, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm - there's a variety of things I bribe myself with to stay there, which progress to threats when a trip to Lush to stock up on goodies, or a Milkybar stops working (by the way, as an aside... why I have I failed to understand the inherent goodness of white

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-49850619164248142532009-05-20T21:14:00.007+01:002009-05-20T22:47:46.967+01:00

Or at least perks up biscuit recipes no end. This Sunday, with the recent acquisition of a pot of candied ginger, and nothing to do except watch the rain and prep for Guides I decided to make some ginger biscuits. There must have been something in the air, as Jules from Trainee Domestic Goddess had the same idea.I knew I didn’t want to make ginger nuts, as much as I love them I am yet to find a

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-81573264679291669552009-05-10T18:19:00.005+01:002009-05-10T18:33:13.389+01:00

These are a few of my favourite things:

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-23667020868391025712009-05-10T16:54:00.004+01:002009-05-10T18:33:56.843+01:00

Which always makes me think of playing Maria in West Side Story, “white is for babies!” but then as I’m sure you know by now, my links are at best tenuous and at worst, well arbitrary... and that’s being kind. Seasonality is a big thing for me, so cakes, and bread aside I am very happy at this time of year because we have ASPARAGUS! Or sparrowsgrass as my darling Daddy used to call it. I have no

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-20687704494718426382009-05-10T16:26:00.008+01:002009-05-10T18:34:19.478+01:00

Or so the song goes anyway. This weekend I’ve been trying to bake my cares away. With a certain amount of success it has to be said. There is an amount of satisfaction to be derived from the creation of things for others to eat, especially when one’s appetite is absent without leave as mine is at present. That said, I’ve done an admiral job of polishing off two slices of cake this morning – only

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-22813326941413421982009-05-09T15:38:00.005+01:002009-05-09T16:33:42.939+01:00

Well I'm actually feeling pretty rotten at the moment; a whole host of emotional stuff, pneumonia again, randomly earache, and the n key on my keyboard has decided it needs to be hit with a surprising amount of force to work. As is my wont this has meant little cookery has taken place this week as has little eating. Fortunately tea and biscuits - all hail the chocolate coated, malted milk (and

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-49352489783041789572009-04-30T20:08:00.005+01:002009-04-30T20:42:28.216+01:00

I know. It would seem I've finally run out of showtunes to link even somewhat tenuously to blog posts. I haven't allowed myself a Google, but this truly is a sad day. Hopefully normal service will be resumed shortly (when the current muscle spasm and resulting painkiller consumption has passed I expect). Recently I was digging through my cookery book pile; Nigella at the top, Jamie below, Gordon

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-14219499109340543612009-04-27T21:45:00.003+01:002009-04-27T22:03:16.424+01:00

Nope not covered in cobwebs and remnants of an oft forgotten A Level in History... but of my birthday weekend. I know I promised to blog the menu from Morston Hall, but since the computer crash I've managed to mislay the CD for my digital camera, so there's a serious lag in blog postage. That said... there's one to come on sushi, another bread one, and some on some backwoods cooking I've been

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-58141121986511097112009-04-27T21:31:00.003+01:002009-04-27T21:45:01.550+01:00

One a penny, two a penny… Hot Cross BunsWell, with Holy week and the long Easter weekend swiftly being consigned to memory as alarms across the country alerted us all that today was Back to Work, I thought I’d try to prolong the spirit of the break and blog about buns. Hot Cross Buns to be precise. Until this year I’ve been quite happy to buy my hot cross buns, as generally around Easter time the

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-26077516295557649982009-03-11T18:43:00.006Z2009-03-11T19:34:37.698Z

My laptop that is (and yes, it was a incredibly childish excuse to get swearing into the blog, and quote some more Spring Awakening... more on the latter later) Possibly in protest at the amount of use it got, or as a refusal to play last year's Patti LuPone Gypsy revival one more time, said laptop sat down and point blank refused to switch on. Ever again. What can I say? There was weeping.

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-49745069797123883372009-01-26T21:13:00.011Z2009-01-26T22:15:43.356Z

Well 'My junk' is mainly baking and musical theatre as regular readers will testify. This weekend heralded the much longed for, slightly feared (in case it was ruined) first preview of the UK production of Spring Awakening.As much as I was excited about Friday night's performance I was also insanely trepidatious about what it held in store, I have a lot of admiration, respect and love for the

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-49169498132274963502009-01-21T19:45:00.009Z2009-01-21T22:45:06.219Z

Continuing on with my breadmaking/ baking/ general yeast obsession, I spent some of my sick leave trawling the internet for different recipes, things as a working woman I wouldn't usually have the time or the inclination to work with. I knew that I wanted to experiment a little with the idea of 'natural' yeasts and a little digging came up with 'Amish Friendship bread' which, oddly enough is

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1135565574218080838.post-55714642784632701652009-01-07T22:07:00.006Z2009-01-09T15:20:52.222Z

Ask my boyfriend what I like to drink, and he'll look slightly bemused and offer "Tea(?)" as the most likely answer... press him for alcoholic drinks and he'll probably tell you "sherry" by which time my credibility as a cool thirtysomething Londoner will be sinking faster than shows are closing on Broadway (which, by the way is fast. Damn the economy). Both of these are infact true, I mainly

Penhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02065737862434551428noreply@blogger.com1