I haven’t participated in a Daring Bakers challenge since July (see all my previous Daring Baker posts here).  I’m so pleased to be back and joining in again.  When I first saw this month’s challenge I though ‘how easy’, but I was surprised to find that there is quite an art to getting perfect scones.

Audax Artifex was our January 2012 Daring Bakers’ host. Aud worked tirelessly to master light and fluffy scones to help us create delicious and perfect batches in our own kitchens!  I never knew about sifting the flour at a height to allow more air to circulate and Audax even suggested sifting the flour three or four times, although alas, I didn’t do that.

We had fruit scones on Christmas Eve which my mum made and it took two attempts to get them right.  Recently on BBC2 show ‘The Great British Bake Off’ scones were made and it was very interesting to watch the two professionals show how the scones had gone wrong, either by using too much butter, not grating the cheese correctly (you need to grate it on the coarse edge so that the cheese does not disintegrate when baking) or overworking the dough.  With my new found knowledge I got to work.

I decided to stick with British cook Delia Smith and the recipe is right here.  I have a love/hate relationship with Delia, but I love her at the moment because these scones were so good!

Combine until the dough just comes together.

Roll out until an inch thick.

A sprinkling of grated cheese and paprika.

Don’t overcooked the scones, the cheese was golden but the scones were still pale.

Simply served with butter, although mum ate then plain and loved every bite!

Be sure to check out how the other Daring Bakers did here.

~ Pru

Are you following me on Twitter or Pinterest?  If not, then click on the links.  It would make my day, possibly my week too!

You know sometimes when weeks go by and they just keep plodding on.  Nothing that special happens, nothing to get dressed up for or write in the diary and it all gets a bit boring.  Just going about the motions day after day.

Well this week isn’t one of those weeks.  Oh no, its turned on its head and has all gone a bit crazy.  In fact I don’t know whether I’m coming or going. I’ve ended up scheduling everything.  The days and times when I’ll wash my hair, my travel plans, what buses I need to take, what time the trains run, a time to go to the bank (knowing that this will take all lunch time).  I’ve got singing class tomorrow and practice to do before then.  I walked home this evening practicing my scales.  Thank goodness it was quiet(!).  Dinner with friends in London on Wednesday and a hangover to contend with on Thursday morning, and then another dinner on Thursday with a very close friend.

See, busy.  I’ll need a rest come the weekend.  But it should be oh so good.  Expect a great post on Friday (Its Daring Baker’s Reveal Day).

Oh, and I was thinking of taking photos at dinner on Wednesday as we are going to Bill Granger’s new restaurant.  What do you think about taking photos (on my phone) at dinner?  Acceptable in small doses or completely wrong.  Views please!

~ Pru

So, I thought I would have look through my makeup bag to see what I could get rid of.  Turns out, I like my makeup a bit too much, I like the choice of doing smokey eyeshadow, or greens and purples, or gold eyeliner for a night out with the girls.  I even have different face powders and foundations depending on how I’m feeling (and looking)!

So, welcome to my makeup bag.  I keep some of it next to my mirror and a lot of the eyeshadows in a box under my bed.

Even though I own a lot of foundation and powders and concealers, I actually only wear the mineral powder on a daily basis and the blusher.  It is really rare for me to bother with concealer or foundation, its when I look really pale and ill that I reach for the liquid stuff.

The eyeliners might be a little out of control.  I mean I only have two eyes!  But they are pretty colours, purple, gold, blue, turquioise, green, brown and black.  The pink crayon at the top is by Jemma Kidd and is wonderful, its glittery but not too glittery so is ideal for work and then adding another layer for the evening.

And finally, lipsticks.  Although there is another one in my handbag.  I don’t wear them that regularly though.  I just wear lipbalm.  I’m thinking that I might do a post on lipbalm, for there are many, many pots!

So, is this too much makeup?  How much makeup do you have?  Do you keep certain makeup for special times (like I do with the gold and purples)?

~ Pru

Are you following me on Twitter or Pinterest?  If not, then click on the links.  It would make my day, possibly my week too!

Megan usually picks a great project for Martha Mondays and I was certain that while we don’t eat a lot of artichokes or capers in our house, that this would be a winner.  Its billed as ‘Chicken with Artichokes and Angel Hair Pasta‘ but the closest thing we have is spaghetti, so I changed that.  Apart from that, I made this recipe as it stated.  I even bought parsley.

This past week I haven’t felt that well.  It was a clear sign to me after returning to work for four days and then becoming sick that I was trying to accomplish too much at one time.  I was so pleased that this was a quick recipe which I made when mum returned from a trip to see my grandfather on Saturday night.

It was easy to make, with very few ingredients, although I did have to make a trip to the supermarket for capers, artichokes and parsley.  I wonder if the addition of onion would have helped or another ingredient instead of so much artichoke.  Also, the chicken didn’t have much flavour.  Maybe lemon would have helped.

The verdict?

Oh, we hated this (probably evident from my words above).  I ate two mouthfuls and decided that I didn’t want any more.  There was nothing about it that I liked.  Mum complained that there was no ‘sauce’ and she was right.  What sauce there was was sucked up by the pasta leaving a plain meal of spaghetti with chicken and artichokes.  I have decided that I don’t like capers either.

So we had cheese and crackers for dinner.  I’m pleased I tried the recipe as it was something new, but I won’t be making it again.  Such a shame.

I can’t wait to see what everyone else thought.

~ Pru

Are you following me on Twitter or Pinterest?  If not, then click on the links.  It would make my day, possibly my week too!

The thing with Granola is that you don’t really need a recipe.  Chuck some oats, fruit and nuts into a bowl and add a combination of honey and oil and then bake it and you are pretty much going to end up with good Granola.  But my Granola recipe is the best.  You know why?  The amount of fruit in it.  Granola that is more oats than nuts and fruit is not worth eating in my book.

This recipe is also ideal when sorting out your pantry cupboards.  With all the baking from Christmas I had little amounts of sultanas and raisins and cranberries and almonds (both slivered and ground) in my baking box.  Granola is the answer.

I’m not one of those people who just goes into the kitchen without some sort of plan, I’m not a chuck it in the saucepan and see how it goes sort of person.  I need some rough guide for measurements, so I went to the Ottolenghi cookbook and sought advice.  Therefore, the recipe is lightly adapted from his book.

• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3tbs water
• 4tbs grapeseed oil (although any flavourless oil will be fine)
• 120ml maple syrup
• 120ml clear honey
• 250g rolled oats
• 50g bran flakes (lightly crushed)
• 100g dried cherries
• 100g dried cranberries
• 100g sultanas
• 50g ground almonds
• 50g slivered almonds
• 1tbs light brown sugar
• 120ml apple juice

1. Heat oven to 150c.
2. Place dried cherries, sultanas and cranberries in a bowl and cover with apple juice.
3. Heat the salt, water, oil, syrup and honey and sugar until combined.  Take off heat.
4. Place oats, bran, ground and silvered almonds in a bowl and mix together.  Pour in the syrup and mix.
5. Place in the oven for 20 minutes and then and then turn the mixture with a wooden spoon.  Return to the oven for another 20 minutes.
6. Once the mixture is lightly golden (but still soft) remove from the oven.  It took me 40 minutes to achieve this.
7. Drain the cherries, cranberries and sultanas and stir into the granola mixture.
8. Return to the oven for five minutes.  Take out of the oven and scatter on the tablespoon of brown sugar.

Leave the mixture to cool and then eat it.  It will keep for two weeks in an air tight container, but I don’t have to worry about things like that as it will never last that long in our house!

If you try it, will you let me know what you think?

~ Pru

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Elizabeth March Designs chose Cauliflower Soup with Greens (this is the good bit) from the January 2012 issue of Martha Stewart Living.  (Not currently on the website).

I admit that I was skeptical before I made this and I remained skeptical as I cooked it.  There are some things that I didn’t like:  four cloves of garlic I swear is a typo, this is far too much.  Purified water (I used tap) should have been replaced with stock.  This is the type of recipe that I try when starting a new diet and end up eating a Mars bar instead.  It’s too healthy and a bit dull for no reason.

I fished the cooked cauliflower out of the garlic water and reached for my phone.  Martha offered no decent cauliflower soup recipe, so I turned to my new favourite cook, Nigella.  Nigella to the rescue with Cauliflower Cheese Soup (And this is the sinful bit).

I had to adapt the recipe as my cauliflower was already cooked, but this recipe is a winner.  I made this on Friday night and then after returning from Ikea on Saturday morning we enjoyed this for lunch with crusty bread.

I can’t wait to see what everyone else thought and I hope you weren’t as downhearted about the recipe as I was (I doubt you were).  I will be sticking with Nigella’s recipe, and I hope you try it too as it is scrummy!

~ Pru

I would love it if you left me a comment, or followed me on Twitter or Pinterest or subscribed to my posts.  It would make my day, possibly my week too!

There are so many ways to help charities, and one of those is by highlighting a charity and their cause by word of mouth, or on Twitter, Facebook or on your own blog.  I was so pleased to read on Twitter that Action Aid are holding a Bloggers Tea Party to get to know bloggers (who sponsor though Action Aid and those that don’t) and to highlight the work that Action Aid do and how we can help.

So, what are you doing on the 19th January?  I am now taking a day off from work, I plan a little shopping and maybe an early lunch before heading into a part of London that I’ve never been to before.  If you spot me with a map in one hand and a puzzled look on my face, please point me in the right direction!

Here are the details:

WHEN: 19 January 2012, from 1pm

WHERE: ActionAid London office, London EC1.

If you want to attend, space is obviously limited, register here. There’s also a small crèche facility, subject to numbers.

Action Aid will get back to you to confirm your place, in the meantime any questions tweet @ActionAidUK or connection via facebook.com/actionaiduk. You can also email at bloggers@actionaid.org.

Hope to see you there.

~ Pru

I would love it if you left me a comment, or followed me on Twitter or Pinterest or subscribed to my posts.  It would make my day, possibly my week too!

Usually the house looks very bare and a bit bleak at this time of the year.  No garlands or fairy lights or presents or Christmas cards.  Just plain and a bit quiet looking.    Living in a house with grey walls can sometimes be a bit of a depressing.  Whilst the colour is very calming and goes with anything that we want to do, it can look too sparse.

But just like in the autumn, we have decided to embrace the grey and white for January and so the twigs that we had in the room before the tree arrived have returned with additional twigs and candles and a frosted pinecone wreath which we purchased at the adorable Nina store in Barnes.

Turns out that if a shop sells pretty things and they offer me mulled wine as soon as I open the door, I will most certainly buy things and be planning another visit soon to pick up the earrings that I really should have bought myself in December.  They are still calling to me!

The twigs are sitting on the mahogany bookcase, but after seeing the photo after pasting it into this post, I’m thinking that I might put some photos out.

We had my 20p silver vases on the mantlepiece at Christmas with greenery, red tulips and berries, but they look good still with greenery and the white frosted sticks.

What do you think?  How do you decorate once the Christmas decorations have been put away?

~ Pru

2011 was good and better than 2010 but not as great as I had hoped it would be.  I accomplished some of my goals, but not all of them.  But I have a Plan.  And I am determined to make it work and I am determined to blog about my Plan and my goals.

So, the first is to lose weight.  I know, I know.  How many times have you read here that I plan to cut back on lattes, and eat more salad?  But the thing is, the ‘weight thing’ is holding me back from one of my HUGE goals: to date.  So, I want to lose at least two stone and then to start dating.  I don’t have the confidnce to go ‘look at me’ when I know that I really should show off more of my personality.  Friends have suggested that I carry around baked goods in little bags to entice a man, but I like the idea of having more to offer than just being able to bake a sponge.  I’m going to find a nice, current photo of myself and join a dating agency and try to look more presentable (and approachable) in the hope of finding someone when I’m out and about.  It doesn’t matter if I’m not dating someone for ever, just that I start dating more.

My third goal is to celebrate. Not just birthdays and cultural events, but the day to day things that happen.  I keep reading and reminding myself that I should live more in the ‘now’, but I sometimes forget, or think later that I really should have done more with an opportunity.  I’m planning to entertain friends either in the summer or next winter, and to bake and cook and feed and water them and entertain them.  That’s my Plan.

My final part of my Plan is to stop worrying so much.  This is probably the biggest one for me.  Worryingly, I worried less when I had my breast cancer scare in the summer than I did about leaving a heater on (plugged in, but switched off on the actual heater) at work the other night.  One sleepless night occured.  And I worry far too much about work and what people think of me, and whether I am good enough, and if I will be in trouble.  Must stop that.  It’s damaging my health.

So, a Plan to accomplish four things:  lose weight, date, celebrate more and live in the ‘now’ and to stop worrying.

Do you have a Plan for 2012?

~ Pru

]]> http://perfectingpru.wordpress.com/2011/12/31/my-plan-for-2012/feed/ 12 perfectingpru http://perfectingpru.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/merry-christmas/ http://perfectingpru.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/merry-christmas/#comments Mon, 19 Dec 2011 09:00:44 +0000 Perfecting Pru http://perfectingpru.wordpress.com/?p=2158 Continue reading →]]> Morning!

Actually its evening as I type this.  I have taken to my bed and have the electric blanket warming me, as the West Wing (series seven) plays in the background.  I have twinkly lights on the garland that I made around my window and candles flickering away.  I’m starting to feel more and more festive.

I have enjoyed the last few weeks so much, lunches and dinners and chatting with friends and making time to say the things that I want to say all year around.  I love the time that Christmas gives to celebrate friendships and family.

Next week will be busy.  I’m working until Thursday evening and have fun things to look forward to, like a second Secret Santa lunch tomorrow, a trip to Harrods for a last minute gift, cocktails in town, and a few bits of baking still to be done.  Mum and I are still perusing the cookbooks and looking at ideas for buffet food which we do enjoy along with cheese and ham in the evening.  We have however started eating the Christmas cake that I made since the middle of the week and it is still soft and fruity and really, really good.

I am so pleased that I went with a green and white theme in my bedroom.  I have found it really calming but festive at the same time.  Do you like the garland?

The rest of the house is also decorated and we have changed things around this year with the garlands in different places this year, like along the stairs, and lights in the kitchen this year.

I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful start to 2012.  I’m going to be updating the site in between Christmas and the New Year and will be back with better posts from the beginning of 2012.  Thank you for visiting me here and for the kind comments that you have left me this year.  I have loved them all.

~ Pru