In my Kitchen October 2014

October already! My nephew is turning seven next week, already! He has a big decision to make about what birthday cake he wants. It started off with a train cake (again! You had that last year!) then he changed his mind to a hidden surprise sponge cake (have you seen them – OMG!! My sister says it’s not that hard!) and now he’s had my delicious Sacher Torte, which I made at school, and that’s the WINNER ladies and gentlemen!! I wish I got Sacher Torte birthday cake for my seventh birthday!!

So cooking school this last month has been busy with bread making, making our own Danish pastry from scratch to make Apricot Danishes, fish filleting and dessert making – I’m a pro! –Not! But they look pretty good for a beginner – what do you think? See photos above. They include my left to right – chocolate Swiss roll with Chantilly cream & strawberries; two baked cheesecakes – the one at the back is Tangerine flavoured with crystalised rose petals and the front one is a plain cheesecake topped with a lychee jelly and strawberries; three Sacher Tortes all with some spun sugar for decoration and profiteroles with crème patissiere for the filling. All of them were absolutely delicious and very moreish. I’m not a sweet tooth and don’t do a lot of baking because if I did there would be nothing left to show you, I’d eat it all within two days 😉

I’m excited to show you in my kitchen this month. Thank you to Celia at Fig Jam & Lime Cordial for hosting this wonderful party. If you’d like to show us what’s in your kitchen we’d love to have you! So enjoy the goodies in my kitchen and we all hope to see you soon – it keeps growing bigger every month! Lots of lovely foodie friends to make.

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . is my apron from Rick Stein’s Bannisters, where my wonderful husband took me for my birthday. We had dinner with him and a masterclass the next day – absolutely the best birthday present ever so far, I’m very lucky. I am yet to wear it as I don’t want to get it dirty! I just like these cool postcards I picked up from Bannisters too.

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . one of my birthday presents from my sister, nephews & brother in law. My very own fish boning tweezers! So excited! These are an absolute god send if you have to get those big bones out of fillets of salmon yourself. They came in real handy when I had to de-bone mullet at school! Thank you sis, just brilliant!

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . These absolutely stunning handmade Japanese bowls, from Japan – another lovely birthday present from my husband. There were five but one broke in transit but four are perfect for us. I am yet to use them – they just look too good. They’re hand painted and glazed on the top and left raw clay on the bottom. I have no idea what the documentation says I may have to ask my friend Kahori, in Japan, what it says! Unless anyone of you can speak Japanese?

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . my homemade garlic & olive oil croutons, made from the Bloomer bread I made at school. It was a little salty – I didn’t measure the salt when I added it to the dough, my bad – so not really good for having a sandwich with. But the croutons taste delicious. All I did was cut the bread into desired cubes, added olive oil and about three garlic cloves while on a baking tray, placed them in a 180C oven for 20 minutes, turning once or twice and you have homemade croutons. Allow them to cool then store in an airtight container until needed. I think I’ll need to make a Caesar salad to use them.

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . some fresh thyme, rosemary and bay leaves from my friend’s garden. I just love fresh herbs, they’re so aromatic fresh, they fill the apartment with ideas of what I should cook with them. For now, they’ve been put in containers in the freezer for later use. I couldn’t think of a nicer gift – thank you June.

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . are my cleaned stovetop hobs. I’ve been meaning to clean them for weeks but kept forgetting. Now they sparkle and my secret? Baking soda (powder) – 4 heaped teaspoons with boiling hot water in the sink. Cover the hobs and allow to soak for an hour or three. Once the water is cool enough, get your scourer and scrub the hobs. And presto, sparkling new hobs. Want a sparking sink too? Give it a once over while the sink is full – just like brand new! Great jewellery cleaner too!

In my Kitchen . . .

. . . my easy mushroom pilaf, which is my go-to dish whenever I can’t be bothered cooking or I’ve run out of time. It’s perfect with any protein you like. I also cooked up our absolute favourite at the moment, my one pot creamy chicken pesto, made with my very own homemade pesto – place everything in to the saucepan and dinner is done in 30 minutes, yumm!