Picnic Degustabox

Unless it's been raining, eating outdoors (in the garden) has become an almost daily event. If not a proper dinner, then a light impromptu tea with a slice of cake or a mini picnic. Now that restrictions have been eased, I imagine many people would enjoy picnics in beauty spots and designated picnic areas. Picnic was the theme of the latest Degustabox.

Degustabox is a monthly food and drink subscription box. It's an excellent way of discovering new products which have only just appeared in the shops, or those which have been around for a while, but you haven't had a chance to try them yet.

Thanks to Degustabox, I have found new favourites to add to our shopping list, including some products which I probably wouldn't have tried otherwise.

Each time the monthly box arrives, its contents are a total surprise. You get a good selection of foods and drinks.

If you haven't tried Degustabox subscription box yet, and would like to have a go, I have a £3 off discount from your first box (and you can unsubscribe any time), just use code DKRLN when you place an order.

What did we receive in June Picnic box?

My younger son loves Attack A Snak. He takes a lunchbox with him to school 2-3 times a week (that is, before the lockdown), and Attack a snack ham and cheese wraps are one of his favourite quick lunches.
Attack A Snak Chilli Heat Nachos Snak Kit (£1.50) is the latest addition to the range. Inside you will find crunchy tortilla chips, with a smoky chipotle dip plus cooling sour cream with chives.
This product is a good source of fibre.
Nutritional information: 313kcal and 12g of sugar per 90g serving.
Available at Morrisons.

Noisy Snacks (£1.49) are described as a "sensory adventure waiting to happen". The noise is an extra ingredient, because before you open a pack, you have to shake it, to activate extra flavours at the bottom of the bag. Most companies use 4% flavouring, while Noisy Snacks use 8%, double the flavour, double the fun.
We received one of the flavours in the box, which happened to be Noisy Corn, with Jamaikan jerky flavour. It's a plant-based snack, suitable for vegans. A lovely treat if you prefer savoury snacks.
These snacks are available from www.noisysnacks.com and are coming soon to supermarket chains.

Olly's Olives/Basil & Garlic (£1.50) are the finest Halkidiki olives, dressed in a delicious basil and garlic marinade. We love olives, and this small pack has disappeared quickly.
It will be great for picnics, or as an appetiser with an aperitif.
There are no messy oils, no stones and no artificial ingredients whatsoever. At less than 75 kcal per pouch, they are a healthy snack, and/or a tasty ingredient for a salad or pasta.

Available at Sainsbury's and online on Amazon, ollysolives.com, Ocado & Musclefood.
If you want to try them, use a discount code OLLYSFORME at ollysolives.com/shop for a 10% off discount.

Hippeas Organic Chickpea Puffs (£1) are light and crunchy. They are a good source of protein and fibre, gluten-free, no MSG, vegan.. Nutritional information: 89kcal per serving (22g pack).
Available in 3 flavours. We received a Take It Cheesy flavour.
Though cheese-flavoured, they are dairy-free. A lovely snack for when you're feeling peckish, or as part of a lunchbox.

NINE Seed Bar (£1.29) have the added health benefits of super seeds like sunflower, pumpkin and sesame. Naturally high in fibre and source of magnesium, they are vegan, gluten and wheat free and contain 100% plant-based protein.

There were 2 items in the box - Salted Caramel seed bar and Cocoa Orange Seed bar.

Gregory's Tree (£0.69) is a healthier, tasty fruit snack. Their Blueberry & Raspberry and Strawberry fruit twists have no added sugar or other nasties. They are organic, gluten free and will make a handy snack to carry in the bag for a trip or eating on the go.
Available on Amazon, Morrisons, Whole Foods Market and As Nature Intended.

BARÚ Chocolate Marshmallow Bar (£1.69) is a gourmet vanilla bean marshmallow bar with a chai latte topping. It's made with bourbon vanilla bean, real spices and honey.
It will probably appeal to grown-ups more than children.
Available at Whole Foods  Market and a variety of gourmet shops.

Maynards Bassetts Superfruit Jellies (£1) are new soft jellies that come in a variety of flavours - papaya, pomegranate, blueberry and cranberry. It offers higher fruit content and added benefits, each unit contains 30% fruit juice and every six sweets contain 15% of the recommended daily intake of vitamins C&E.
Available at all major supermarkets.

They look pretty too, like gems.

Lizi's High Protein Granola/Low Sugar Granola (£0.75 for 40g or £3.80 for 350g high protein pack or a 500g for low sugar pack). Lizi's granola is known for its high quality ingredients and delicious taste.
They use the most nutritious ingredients inside their cereals.
Per serving, Lizi's Low Sugar granola includes only 1.9g of sugar and Lizi's High Protein includes 27% of your daily protein needs.
There were two sachets in the box. Full size packs are available in the major supermarket chains.

I used one of the sachets as an ingredient in Biscoff granola cookies.

Le Joli (£1) is a great tasting sparkling water, infused with just natural flavours. These drinks have a clean and refreshing taste.
No artificial ingredients, sweeteners or sugar.
Available in 3 flavours - Mexican Lime & Mint, Sicilian Lemon & Mandarin and Scottish Raspberry & Rhubarb.
You should receive 2 items in the box.
Available at Tesco, WHSmith, Whole Foods and Ocado.

Newman's Own (£1.65) is a well-known brand of salad dressings. Newman's Own gives all profits after taxes to Newman's Own Foundation, which donates them to a broad spectrum of organisations, dedicated to educational and charitable purposes.
Newman's Own Italian dressing and dip is made with red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and garlic puree. It's suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
This tasty dressing is perfect for a variety of leaf and vegetable or pasta salads.

When I posted a photo of a salad made with burrata and tomatoes on Instagram and tagged Newman's Own, they have shared my picture, saying "It's perfect".

And finally, there was a bottle of Blossom Hill Gin Fizz (£9), a bubbly blend of wine and botanically infused water with a dash of gin. Serve with a slice of lemon or orange.
A lovely refreshing drink to have on a picnic or garden party.

Photo diary: week 27, project 366

I'm not sure if we're officially out of the lockdown, but it didn't make much difference to our lives.

All Sunday I've been humming catchy tunes from a new film.
The day before we watched Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga on Netflix. I didn't think I would enjoy it so much. There are quite a few crude jokes, innuendos, but overall it's an entertaining family film (age rating 13+).
I'm not a fan of Will Ferrell, but he's pretty good in this film as a man-child obsessed with winning the Eurovision contest. Rachel McAdams is brilliant, and Dan Stevens totally stole the show as the gay Russian star.
Once the soundtrack CD is out, I'm going to buy it, as I keep listening to the videos on YouTube. I know you can get it on MP3, but this is not something I use.

Monday, back to homeschooling and art lessons from Seesaw. This time Eddie has chosen to draw Toothless, following the step by step video on Art for Kids Hub.

Walking into town with Eddie and my husband, when Sasha was at school. We popped into our favourite book shop, and even got a couple of books, including The Wild Way Home by Sophie Kirtley. It's about a 12-year-old boy whose newborn baby brother needs a heart operation. In anxiety and panic he flees through the ancient forest and gets transported into the Stone Age. We're half way through, and it's quite sad.
This book is chosen as the Waterstones Book of the Month for kids.

Last week I took part in two blog tours for Broken Silence by Liz Mistry and A Quiet Death in Italy by Tom Benjamin. The first one is rather tough to read, as it deals with such topics as human trafficking and modern slavery. The second one is set in Bologna, it made me think of that beautiful town, and how much I'd love to explore it again.

We receive a weekly fruit and veg box, and there was a pineapple in the previous week's box. We don't often eat pineapples. I find that the fresh pineapple is too much for my sensitive teeth. So, I decided to use it in baking. I have cubed it and pre-baked in a tray with rum and demerara sugar, then the next day I added the pineapple to the cake batter. It turned out to be a very tasty cake.

On the way home from the town centre I've spotted this evil-grinning cloud.

My echinacea is going to bloom soon, I can't wait to see its spiky petals.

I love hollyhocks, this elegant white one with purple veins has been planted by my Mum a few years ago. It's taller this year, and has more blooms on it.

We didn't do much on the so called Super Saturday, I'm not a pub-goer, and wasn't planning to go out for a meal anywhere. Did you happen to visit any place you've been longing to see?

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A Quiet Death in Italy by Tom Benjamin #BlogTour

"This is not England," said Mario, "this is not fair play and bobbies and Miss Marple. There's no mystery - not to us. Not to any Italian you meet in the street. They'll know, we all know "whodunit"."
"The police, you say," I said.
"But that's not the problem," he said. "The problem is - how to prove it? Now this is where we Italians are beyond compare - fabrication. Manufacturing mystery every bit as fine as our clothes, so even the most obvious facts become obscured, most evident truths remain just out of reach."

When a body of a radical protester Paolo Solitudine is found dumped in the underground canal in Bologna, the police are treating it as an accident. But the locals blame the police, who two weeks earlier has raided the squat where the anarchists live.

A Quiet Death in Italy by Tom Benjamin starts with a scene in the old morgue, which sets the stage for the investigation of the local politics and unravelling a web of lies and deceit.

It's not surprising that the murder of the old anarchist is attributed to the police. Police brutality in Italy is not uncommon. You might know of the case of Stefano Cucchi who died in police custody. He's considered to be an icon of the abuse of power, whose case has polarised the country, and has been heavily politicised.
My husband's home town Ferrara has its own victim of police brutality - a teenager Federico Aldrovandi was beaten to death by four police officers. There were over 50 injuries on his body. The police tried to cover up the horrible death, claiming he died of heart problems. Prosecutors tried to cover the culpability of the police. Police officers returned to work. There were numerous protests in town, and we have attended one of them several years ago.

The premises of the crime allegedly committed by the police rings true. The sense of place created by the author is vivid and true to life. Bologna is the inspired backdrop for a crime novel.
I really enjoyed the Italian setting, and numerous food references which made me long for a proper caffe latte with the pastries.

A Quiet Death in Italy follows a private investigator Daniel Leicester, who's a son-in-law to the former chief of police.
He receives a call from the dead man's lover, asking to look into the circumstances of his death. It also happens, that she is a wife of the current Mayor of Bologna, and there are all sorts if implications to consider.
Daniel's father-in-law, the Comandante, muses, "this is a matter that needs to be handled with the utmost sensitivity - I suppose we could consider it a good result, for our client, if we discover the authorities were actually behind the death. Either outcome, however, could have profound implications for the future of our company."

Daniel is a Brit, who has moved to Bologna with his Italian wife and daughter. When his wife tragically dies in a car accident, he decides to stay behind for the sake of their child who would grow up, surrounded by the extended family she knows.
There are also expectations that eventually, when his father-in-law retires, he will take over the detective agency. "It was a very Italian arrangement - an implicit understanding that I was to gradually take control of the firm while he, rather like a constitutional monarch, would remain titular head".

Being an Englishman, Daniel will always remain an outsider, despite his perfect grasp of Italian language and knowledge of the political system. "An English detective in Italy has certain advantages. For a start, Italians adore the British - or rather, at least before they made a hash of Brexit - deeply admired them for representing everything they believe they are not: sober, pragmatic and trustworthy..."
Certain stereotypes could be a bonus.

Daniel begins to follow the trail, which takes his search back to the 1970s political scene. The past events reverberate through to the present day.
"I wandered along one portico after another contemplating bodies bloated by water, ladies in secret gardens, philandering politicians… Bologna as it had been, as it was now, as it would always be".

Unravelling the web of secrets and lies, Daniel stumbles right in the middle of the corrupt and unscrupulous political establishment. He needs to move fast before he's in danger himself.

The blurb on the back cover of the book recommends the new series to the fans of Donna Leon, Michael Dibdin and Philip Gwynne Jones. I would also add Andrea Camilleri to the list. While not being such a particular gourmet like Inspector Montalbano, Daniel is often portrayed eating and enjoying food.

Tom Benjamin creates an authentic portrait of Bologna, with its fading beauty and dark underside.
"Much of Bologna was like this - placid facades concealing the historic and mundane, beauty and decay. a place with its back turned to the world - what mattered was family".

A quiet death in Italy is the first novel in the Daniel Leicester crime series. It's a great series opener, and I'm looking forward to the next instalment of Bologna's mysteries.

Purchase Links

UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Quiet-Death-Italy-Tom-Benjamin/dp/1472131576/ 
US - https://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Death-Italy-Tom-Benjamin/dp/1472131576/

Author Bio –

Tom Benjamin started off as a reporter before moving to the press office at Scotland Yard and running drugs awareness campaign FRANK. He moved to Bologna where his work as doorman at a homeless canteen inspired him to create English detective Daniel Leicester in a series that serves up equal helpings of the local cuisine and ubiquitous graffiti; the city’s splendour, decay, and danger.

Social Media Links –

https://www.facebook.com/tombenjaminsays/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Tombenjaminsays

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tombenjaminsays/


Thank you to Tom Benjamin and Rachel's Random Resources for inviting me to join the blog tour!
I received an e-copy of the book for the purposes of reviewing, and bought a paperback.

Broken Silence by Liz Mistry #BlogTour

Broken Silence by Liz Mistry pulls you in from the very first page. It's a dark thriller, with a strong police procedural element. It covers such a sensitive topic as modern slavery and human trafficking.
This is the second book in a DS Nikki Parekh series. It reads as a standalone, but there are several references to the events of the previous book.

DS Felicity Springer is leaving the hotel where the multi-agency Making Bradford Safe conference took place. She feels awful, nauseous and dizzy, unsure about what has happened the evening before. Last night is a blur, and she feels guilty. How did she end up in bed with someone she always thought of as a lecherous loser?
On the way home she opts for the back road with less traffic. A big van overtakes her, and while following in its tracks, she sees a hand waving from the rear light casing. Is someone captive in that van, or is it some sort of practical joke?
She decides to follow the van, and calls the emergency number. The dispatcher can hear Springer's chatter, then a judder and bang.
When the police find Springer's car, it is empty, and there's blood by the driver's door. There's no sign of Felicity.
With Springer missing, DS Nikki Parekh and DC Sajid Malik are trying to find her and establish who the unknow assailant is/are.

Felicity and Nikki are not friends, if anything, their interaction was always acrimonious, but when Felicity finds herself dumped in the back of the van, with her wrists and legs bound, she realises that to survive, she should be more like her tough colleague: "She was no Nikita Parekh, yet, much as she despised the woman... distrusted her even, she knew that the tenacious thought niggling inside her throbbing head might be the only thing that would get her out of this mess. What would Nikki Parekh do?"

Springer's abduction is not the only crime committed, it is closely followed by the horrific torture and murder of the young girl, whose body is dumped in a quiet respectable neighbourhood.

And then the body count rises alarmingly. The police resources are over-stretched to the breaking point.

This case is the first major case DS Parekh has since she herself nearly died at the hands of the serial killer the previous year.

Nikki is a strong protagonist, outspoken, stubborn and determined. She has been temporarily promoted to DI, against her wishes. While many people around perceive her as tough and tenacious, she has mental health problems, and is prone to self-harming.

Saj Malik watches her with concern, as he knows the circumstances of the previous year's abduction and consequent mental problems and self-harm. He's a thoughtful, compassionate partner. Being gay, he has big problems of his own. His family would never accept his sexuality, and he is hiding his relationship from them. In the eyes of his community he's a sinner. Will Saj find strength to come out?

Nikki's banter with her colleague Malik brings a necessary comic element to the otherwise very dark narrative.

The theme of the modern slavery and human trafficking is one of the major plots running through the book. We watch with horror how Stefan Marcovici, a Romanian who's been trafficked with his daughter Maria, is subjected to starvation, hard work and inhumane living conditions. His daughter is forced into prostitution. They travelled to the UK, full of hope, making plans for the whole family to join them later. "A new start away from the threat of the gang he'd betrayed back in Romania".
Instead they become helpless slaves, whose documents are confiscated, and they are forced to pay off a huge debt. They live in a constant fear of abuse and death threats.

Some scenes are hard to read. Sadly, they are not a figment of the author's imagination. Millions of people, adults and children, are trapped in modern slavery, in every single country of the world. As hard as it is to fathom, these are facts which we need to know.

Broken Silence is a gripping, tense thriller, that will keep you guessing until the very end. Unmissable.

Potential triggers: human trafficking/slavery, torture, murder, mental health problems.

Purchase Links

E book https://www.amazon.co.uk/Broken-Silence-absolutely-gripping-thriller-ebook/dp/B083Z3ZZ61

Paperback https://www.amazon.co.uk/Liz-Mistry-2-3/dp/0008358370


Author Bio:
Born in Scotland, made in Bradford, sums up Liz Mistry's life. Over thirty years ago she moved from a small village in West Lothian to Yorkshire to get her teaching degree. Once here, Liz fell in love with three things: curry, the rich cultural diversity of the city... and her Indian husband (not necessarily in this order). Now thirty years, three children, two cats (Winky and Scumpy) and a huge extended family later, Liz uses her experiences of living and working in the inner city to flavour her writing. Her gritty crime fiction procedural novels set in Bradford embrace the city she describes as "Warm, Rich and Fearless" whilst exploring the darkness that lurks beneath.

Struggling with severe clinical depression and anxiety for a large number of years, Liz often includes mental health themes in her writing. She credits the MA in Creative Writing she took at Leeds Trinity University with helping her find a way of using her writing to navigate her ongoing mental health struggles. Being a debut novelist in her fifties was something Liz had only dreamed of and she counts herself lucky, whilst pinching herself regularly to make sure it's all real.

One of the nicest things about being a published author is chatting with and responding to readers' feedback and Liz regularly does events at local libraries, universities, literary festivals and open mics. She also teaches creative writing.
Now, having nearly completed a PhD in Creative Writing focussing on "the absence of the teen voice in adult crime fiction" and "why expansive narratives matter", Liz is cock full of ideas to continue writing.

In her spare time, Liz loves pub quizzes (although she admits to being rubbish at them), dancing (she does a mean jig to Proud Mary - her opinion, not ratified by her family), visiting the varied Yorkshire landscape, with Robin Hood's Bay being one of her favourite coastal destinations, listening to music, reading and blogging about all things crime fiction on her blog, The Crime Warp.


Many thanks to Liz Mistry and Rachel's Random Resources for an e-copy of the book!

This review is part of the blog tour for Broken Silence.

The Wine List

Do you admire people who swirl and sniff their wine in a glass and pronounce: "With a whiff of the orchard in both spring and autumn, this has the pulse of fresh acidity and seasoning of peppery spice"? (quote is from 20 best wines for the summer by David Williams)

Do you enjoy drinking wine but tend to stick to those varieties you've tried in the past and know what to expect? Whenever I go out (or went out, since I haven't been in a restaurant, like everyone else, for months and months), I look at the wine list, and then choose a glass of something "safe".

Let's just say, I'm the opposite of being adventurous when it comes to wine.
I applaud people who know their wine and can easily pick the right bottle in the supermarket rather than stand by the wine aisle in confusion, not sure what's best to pair with the dinner you're cooking for guests.

If you want to educate yourself about wine, The Wine List is a wine subscription box focused on learning.

When I was approached with an offer to review The Wine List box, I cautiously mentioned that I'm not a wine expert, though I do enjoy reading features on wine in food magazines and online.

How does The Wine List subscription work?

Once a month you receive a box which contains two bottles of wine, interactive tasting cards and a leaflet which allows you to learn one wine principle.

The box I received had a very informative piece on Wine Roots/Vessel, talking about how the shape, size and material of the vessels impact the final wine.

You discover two wines, which are rarely available in the UK - usually a white and a red.

Let's have a look at what wines we received in our box - Massaya White/Massaya (2018, Lebanon) and Cara Sucia/Durigutti Family (2019, Argentina).
These are definitely new wines for me, I haven't come across these winemakers before, and enjoyed reading their stories, origins, food pairing, including the local food pairing.

The tasting notes and information about the winemakers are concise and direct. As you sample wine, you might want to tick off the aroma profile notes as appropriate, so not only you sample new wines, you develop your skills at the same time. Each month you try new wines and expand your knowledge.
The tasting guide will give you twelve lessons through the year.

The Wine List write on their website: "We've looked at wine learning in a load of different ways. and we believe the best way to learn is through discovery - new grapes, regions and winemakers - with a few core principles underneath."
They promise: "With some practice, after six-to-twelve months, you should be able to look at a restaurant wine list, or shelves in your local merchant, and have an inkling of what a bottle should taste like".

The Wine List subscription box costs £36 per month.

Let's look closely at each wine we've tried.

Massaya White/Massya - 2018 is a medium to full-bodied white, showing off mineral aromas, as well as prominent lashings of white flowers, and lemons.
With background hints of honey, this is a very drinkable wine. It is crisp, refreshing, and will go well with a variety of cuisines and dishes.

Massaya is run by two brothers, Sami and Rammzi Ghosn, in partnership with the Brunier brothers from Vieux Télégraphe and Dominique Hébrard, formerly from Château Cheval Blanc.

Suggested food pairing - seafood-heavy pasta would work well here. I imagine it would be a treat to pair it with spaghetti alle vongole (or pasta with clams).
Local food pairing would be Samkeh Harra, Lebanese grilled fish, marinated in chilli, citrus and coriander.

I consulted a book called Souk by Nadia Zeruali and Merijn Tol, which I reviewed a couple of years ago. It's a cook book of Middle Eastern cuisine, and has a good number of Lebanese recipes.
I was searching for the authentic vegetarian Lebanese recipes. Hummus and Moutabal (aubergine spread with yogurt, pomegranate and oregano) are easy to make, and are perfect for a light dinner.

As it happened, these cold mezze and Massaya White are great together.

Cara Sucia/Durigutti Family - 2019 is an Argentinian wine from the region of Rivadavia, Mendoza.
Described as light and fresh, with crunchy redcurrants, red cherries and hints of strawberry, it has a definite tannic bite on the palate, but nothing aggressive. It would suit slightly chilled.

Brothers Hector and Pablo made wine all over the world in Italy, Chile and Argentina before returning home to Mendoza in 2002.
Cara Sucia is the epitome of that journey: the wine that signifies their return home.

Food pairing suggestions: try vegetarian-led food, or smoky, cured meats, even thrown over the BBQ.
Local food pairing would be a Choripan, an Argentinian sandwich: barbecued chorizo, topped with chimichurri, caramelised onions and pickled aubergines.

I served it lightly chilled, with chilli pistachios and Ancho peppers. It is a fragrant, red-fruited wine, perfect to drink on a summer evening.
This wine of glorious ruby colour makes you think of long summer days and fruit ripening under the sun.

Both wines are perfect for entertaining, or while enjoying a quiet evening in the garden, sitting in the sunset.
I appreciated learning about the wine we sampled, and reading the stories behind the brands.

The Wine List subscription box will make an excellent gift for any foodie.

If this wine subscription box with the focus on learning sounds like something you would enjoy, check out their website or Insta page - @the_winelist which has a discount code offer for your first box.

Disclosure: As mentioned above, we received a box of wine for the purposes of reviewing.

Photo Diary: Week 26, Project 366

Annalisa Barbieri, The Guardian's Weekend columnist is a wise lady. I admire that she doesn't just give her own opinion on whatever problem she is discussing, but consults psychologists and psychotherapists, thus presenting a more focused and balanced reply. I don't always agree with what she has to say, but I follow her column with great interest.
In the latest article she gives advice to a lady who is very anxious about "returning to the world" after the lockdown. She says that our world has shrunk, and expanding it again - safely - can seem onerous for some. And that's how I feel as well. I go out shopping, as if going to the battlefield. My husband needs to go to his office in Oxford, and the idea of him travelling by bus sends me into a mild panic.
Sasha goes to school three times a week, and I keep worrying about the risks he's taking. It's unrelenting.

I was supposed to meet up with a friend for a social distanced coffee in town, but I felt so anxious and stressed that I asked her to postpone the meet-up. I felt guilty about it later.
I need to build up my confidence to expand my world and not to transfer my anxiety to my family.

Last Sunday was Father's Day. I baked a marbled ricotta cake, which turned out very tasty. Eddie did a lovely drawing of Han Solo for his Dad, and we've also chosen a gift for him in the book shop.
I thought of my late Dad, and how much I miss him.

This is one of a very few pictures where my Dad and I are together. We didn't have a camera when I was a child, and there are not many photos from my childhood. A different era, unlike these days, when everyone seems to record every bite they eat for posterity (myself included).

It was taken on the day my Mum was in the hospital, giving birth to my brother, while my Dad looked after me. In those days, fathers were not permitted to be present during the labour. If they were lucky, they would have seen a baby held by a nurse from a window.
With my short hair I looked like a boy, but at least, I've got hair in the photo, as apparently I was a baldie as a baby, while my little brother had long locks, huge eyelashes and was utterly gorgeous.
I'm so much older now than my Dad in this photo. Wasn't he handsome?!

On Monday Eddie did one of the school tasks on Seesaw - to draw a cover for The BFG. The teacher said it was amazing, and awarded him an extra house point for this work.

I was well-chuffed, seeing that Danilo Cortellini has visited my Insta page. Not every day famous chefs look at my pictures.

I was waiting for a hand saw delivery from amazon, which I ordered the day before, so when a thin long package has arrived, I just put it aside. When an hour later, another long package was delivered, I looked at the first one, wondering if I got two seesaws by mistake.
It was a bouquet, which my friend sent to cheer me up. I almost welled up.

Another screenshot - it was so hot, my brain was melting. I hate the heat, I cannot function properly.

Another hot day, made more unbearable by the inconsiderate twats, aka builders next door. They were rebuilding the conservatory, with the music on full blast all day. I'm not a vengeful person, but I did wish a series of calamities on them and the new owner.
My potted phloxes are not doing that well. One of the plants is being eaten by some bugs. I cannot see anything suspicious, but the leaves are pretty much destroyed. Any ideas on who might be the culprit?

The tomato plants in the greenhouse show the very first tiny fruit. I'm very pleased, as these are the tomatoes I've been growing from seeds, and they've been quite a challenge.

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Marbled ricotta cake

Reading Rachel Cooke's column in the Observer Food Monthly, I kept nodding my head in agreement. She writes about the food in lockdown, that in a world where we have been deprived of so much that we love - friends, art, restaurants - every meal is a treat. In such times, pleasure really is vital. And a cake is definitely one of life's pleasures.

Last Sunday many people celebrated the Father's Day, and I wanted to bake something special to treat my boys and their Dad.
I was mixing the cake batter and thinking of my late Dad. How I wish he lived long enough to meet my children. He's being gone these last twenty years. I lived with my parents until I was in my mid-twenties. I often baked then, but my cakes were quite basic. We didn't have the same variety of ingredients as you can get now in Russia. I often think how much I would have enjoyed cooking a good meal for him now.

Ricotta cake is one of the cakes I bake quite often, with slightly different variations. The original recipe was given to me by my husband's aunt Giuseppina. Her recipe, adapted for the competition sponsored by Grana Padano, helped me win the first prize a few years ago.
I play around with different added ingredients, keeping the main ratio of eggs/sugar/ricotta/flour and butter the same.
Ricotta cake is very tasty as it is, but I fancied slightly jazzing it up for the occasion, plus I wanted to see if it would work as a marbled cake. It worked well. The cake barely lasted two days.

Marbled ricotta cake
Ingredients:
3 medium eggs
160g caster sugar
200g ricotta
300g plain flour
1tsp baking powder
100g butter, melted
1tsp vanilla essence
4tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp chocolate spread + 1 heaped tsp of cocoa powder
2tbsp Biscoff spread (optional)
+
icing sugar and freshly squeezed orange juice for the icing

Beat the eggs with the ricotta and sugar, sift in the flour and baking powder and mix well. Melt the butter, let it cool slightly and add to the batter together with the orange juice and vanilla.
Divide the cake batter into two bowls. Add 2tbsp of chocolate spread and cocoa powder to one, and 2tbsp of Biscoff spread to the other one.
The cake batter is rather thick. Spoon it into the oiled bundt tin, alternating spoonfuls of different batter.
Place the tin in the oven preheated to 180C. Bake for about 45+ minutes. Check if the wooden toothpick comes clean, then the cake is ready.

You can simply dust it with the icing sugar, or make a runny icing with icing sugar and orange juice.

Eat warm or cold, with tea or coffee.