Smaller Ice Creams

Thinking of our figures, or at least the waist lines it has been decided that we need smaller (less calories) ice creams.

smaller ice creams


However, if they are so small I am sure some of us will be very tempted to just have 2.
What is your favourite ice cream?

Happy Chinese New Year, Pancake Day and Ash Wednesday.

The Year of the Monkey.


Are you celebrating the Chinese New Year?

It is a busy week with Shrove Tuesday, (Pancake Day)
Ash Wednesday and Valentine's Day all within the week 


Pancake Day has been celebrated by Britons for centuries.  Known also as Shrove Tuesday, its exact date, rather confusingly, changes every year, because it is determined by when Easter falls. But it is always the day preceding Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent), and always falls in February or March. This year, you'll need to get your pans ready for Tuesday, February 9th. 
Traditionally, pancakes were eaten on this day to use up rich, indulgent foods like eggs and milk before the 40-day fasting season of Lent began. But although it is enshrined in Christian tradition, it is believed that Pancake Day might originate in a pagan holiday, when eating warm, round pancakes - symbolising the sun - was a way of celebrating the arrival of spring. 
In England our pancakes each is rolled up by itself, with its own small slice of lemon. This pretty much sums up a traditional English pancake, and the authentic English Pancake recipe below will make this classic Shrove Tuesday treat, which has been made traditionally like this for hundreds of years

A TRADITIONAL ENGLISH PANCAKE RECIPE

makes 8 pancakes

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:

• 75g plain flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 pint (300ml) milk
• 25g melted butter

traditional flavourings

• a little lemon juice for each pancake
• a little caster sugar for each pancake
• a wedge of lemon if serving more than one per person

These are traditional English pancakes not to be confused with Scotch Pancakes which are popular in America.

Ash Wednesday is a Christian festival. It marks the beginning of six and a half weeks of repentance, fasting and abstinence in preparation for the most important Christian festival of Easter. Many Christians will attend a religious service where the ashes are blessed by the church leader, and placed on their forehead.

Sunshine and Plum Blossom

This morning when I got up the sky was turning from inky black to royal blue.
As the sun arose I went out and took my camera to get some photos of the plum blossom in the sunshine.










I was not alone out in the early morning, there were lots of birds singing and chirping.

Super Bowl

As I type this the United States of America, well much of it will be having Super Bowl Parties, large or small in the run up to the game beginning.
The Super Bowl is 50 this year so of course the reason for yet greater celebrations.

Here is Dame Helen Mirren doing a little advert!
Super Bowl Ad

I am sure there are many other fabulous ads as Super Bowl Ads are almost an entity in and of themselves.

Bunch of Flowers

These are flowers, well daffodils and plum and japonica blossom from the garden.
They look good and make you think of spring, but you do wonder what happens when the next frost comes.

Here are some of the many snowdrops growing along the verge outside the chalk barns.

The Plums That Will Not Be

These are the early flowering plum blossoms, that are really just too early in the year and will never make it to being fruit.
Such a shame.

More Veggie Tales

Sometime late last autumn, I heard that it was a good time to plant purple flowering broccoli, which I did!
All through the winter this has just been out there doing its thing, and now all of a sudden it seems to be sprouting pretty purple flowers, guess it is soon time to pick some and eat it!

The great thing about this is that it is planted so late that the cabbage white butterflies have almost gone into hibernation so the plant can get on and do its own thing without the caterpillars munching through the leaves.

And fresh home grown produce must be good.