Posts made in March, 2010
Blog Love – Four Down Mum To Go
So – this weeks Blog Love is for one simple, beautiful, perfect post.
I’m actually not going to say any more – I’ll just let you go and read it for yourself.
Read MorePictures by Pink…
We’ve had the Fisher Price Kids Tough Digital Camera on review – ostensibly for Jolly, who at 6/7 is just too young (and ham-fisted) to trust with a proper camera. But as much as he loves it, as soons as he puts it down it is picked up by Pink. Well, it’s supposed to be tough enough to handle a toddler, so we let her to see what would happen (in the interests of serious reviewing of course, and nothing whatsoever to do with tantrum-avoidance defence mechanism if we tried to remove it from her hot little grasp).
Well.
What a surprise this turned out to be.
The full review is coming oh-so-shortly over on LittleStuff, but I thought you might like a sneak peek at just what kind of pics a camera which can be bounced all the way down the stairs (oh yes, it can; we’ve seen it) takes in the hands of small children:
(NB – these are all straight out of camera, no photoshop has touched these images…)
This is one Jolly took when he snuck up on Pink.
And this is her once she knew he was taking a picture...
Pink decided Boy would enjoy a photo shoot 30 seconds after he got up. He didn't.
The first of many self portraits... Naturally she is her own favourite subject.
I so love this. I also love that she figured out putting the camera on the floor and lying down in front of it.
No, the quality isn’t the best, and the file sizes are small, and the colours are off. But they remind me of old polaroid images, and I LOVE downloading them, seeing what they’ve come up with. Not to mention the fact that I don’t wince too badly when I hear the camera clatter to the floor or bouncing down the stairs. Again.
Read MoreBEST OF BRITs AUCTION – Eight Silver Cross Prams Ride to the Rescue of War Child
Eight Silver Cross prams are among the star lots that have been donated by the winners of the recent BRIT Awards, and Silver Cross to raise money for War Child, the BRITs’ official charity partner.
Lily Allen opened the 30th Anniversary show with an unforgettable performance of ‘The Fear’ before taking home the award for Best Female. Silver Cross have donated eight amazing Balmoral prams used during Lily’s performance. Each of the iconic prams will be auctioned on Ebay in an online auction that will begin on 25th March and run for ten days.
Each of the classic Silver Cross prams will come with a picture of the pram being used at the awards, signed by Lily Allen, and an authentication certificate signed by Alan Halsall, the Chairman of Silver Cross. The prams usually retail for over £1,000 and are favoured by everyone from members of the Royal Family to Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman and Gwyneth Paltrow.
All proceeds from the BRITs Auction will go to War Child who make life-changing differences to the lives of many children in countries affected by war. The charity currently works in Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq and Uganda and it will use the money it raises from the prams to help protect children from the brutal effects of war and its consequences.
If you want to bid for one of the prams you’ll need to be quick as the Balmoral prams (known affectionately as ‘Bentleys for Babies’) are likely to be snapped up.
Here’s the link to the page they’re at – happy bidding!
Read MoreSchool Dinners Cornflake Tart – remember?
For some strange reason I have had a longing to make one of these for ages. Maybe because the school has FINALLY started up school dinners, and the tales of what-they-ate-today has brought all sorts of memories back (but they have no pink or brown or white custard? What’s with that?). On chatting to various friends-of-a-certain-age about school dinners, one dish was universally clamoured after, no matter where we went to school. The Cornflake Tart. You remember it? Pastry base, layer of jam, then crunchy golden cornflakes spread on top?
Well.
I was chatting with the lovely mother in law a couple of weeks ago about this – she was a teacher, and ALSO remembers it fondly. In fact she exclaimed “Oh! I have the recipe for that! I asked the school cook for it at my last school (circa 1978). Would you like it?”
Would I!
And so – here, for you, is the real, actual, proper, straight-from-the-school-cooks-mouth recipe for School Dinners Cornflake Tart. Enjoy.
Shortcrust Pastry
6oz/180g flour
3 oz/80g butter (original recipes says half margarine, half lard… I stuck with butter!)
1floz/30ml water
Filling
4oz/110g Golden Syrup
3oz/80g Cornflakes
2oz/40g Butter (again recipe says Margarine)
1oz/30g Sugar
4oz/110g Red Jam
Method
1. Line the tart trays (I used a flan dish, and remember my school serving this up in enormous tray bake tins) with the pastry and crimp the edges
2. Prick the pastry all over and bake blind, for approx 20 minutes at Gas 6/400F/200C/180 Fan
3. Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a large heavy bottomed saucepan, then stir in the cornflakes.
4. Spread a thin layer of jam over the pastry case and place the cornflake mix on top.
5. Return the tart to the oven for 5 minutes to allow the mixture to set.
Extra steps not actually in the original recipe:
6. Do NOT leave the tart in the oven longer than 5 minutes, or you end up with one that looks like mine…
7. Serve with a heap of gloopy thick yellow custard (or take the school dinners pink custard option) – and tell me you don’t feel better afterwards. And also about 9 years old.
And yes, I MIGHT have left the tart in the oven a bit long. And I MIGHT have broken off the worst of the burnt bits before I took the photo. And it MIGHT be in a rather dated pink flowery dish that was a wedding present nearly 20 years ago. And I MIGHT have forgotten to photograph it looking beeyootiful with custard because everyone was too greedy to wait, so had to photograph the seconds instead. But don’t care – it was still a thing of deliciousness, and comfort-in-a-bowl.
Read More*Now Closed* Absolutely Stunning Mae Wall Stickers
Now, I absolutely don’t use the word ‘absolutely’ very often, promise… but, this is a competition you Absolutely want to enter. (Wait! What am I saying?! I should cancel it and keep them all for myself mwahahaha!)
But seriously, we have a gorgeous set of the truly delightful Mae children’s room wall stickers to give away in our latest competition. Come, click here to find out more and to enter….
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