April was a short month but as you’ll see it was very sweet. We hosted quite a few visitors, sneaked away for a mini break in London town and I activated baking mode in the kitchen. Let’s join Sherry and friends for the April edition of In My Kitchen…
Miraculously, we still had some Easter chocolate left mainly because it is too cute to eat. This one was obviously made for me!
We had some amazing food in London and bought home some edible souvenirs – these Crosstown donuts that we bought from Old Spitalfields market. This sea salt caramel and banana creme offering was scrumdiddlyumptious.
I revamped the recipe for this Carrot and Banana Cake that I made for Bryan’s birthday. I had forgotten how easy and delicious this cake was. It went down a treat, so much so that I baked this cake multiple times this month!
Talking of baking with bananas, I also shared the recipe for my Banana and Peanut Butter Mini Loaves. You have to believe me when I tell you, peanut butter and banana is a winning combination!
I finally made it to the nearest Asian supermarket in Peterborough (about 20 minutes away) and stocked up on some dumpling and wonton wrappers and some gyoza. I can’t wait to get my dumpling on.
Still on the subject of Asian dining, I added these cute cat chopsticks to my kitchen “cutlery.”
With the exceptionally wet weather we’ve been having, the rhubarb has been enjoying a bit of a growth spurt. My friends have been generously sharing their rhubarb bounties from their gardens and allotments because anyone who knows me knows I will never say no to rhubarb. This is just a fraction of my recent rhubarb haul!
I still find it mind boggling that considering it grows faster than a weed it’s still not cheap to buy it here. I made a couple of rhubarb crumbles, made a bucket load of rhubarb compote (so good with yoghurt or on porridge) and froze some fresh rhubarb for later.
I had a glorious couple of days hosting my dear Auntie who arrived with what felt like half a Jewish deli with bagels, rye bread and tubs of chopped herring, chopped liver, egg salad, beetroot salad and even some little latkes. With regards to this spread, taste definitely trumped presentation.
Auntie also bought me some kneidlach mix so I can make matzo balls. Her visit was well timed as I had just run out! I see a lot of chicken soup and matzo balls in my future.
We spent a great deal of time ‘mooching’ in the lovely, local shops. Of course, I took her to my favourite shop Country Traditionals where she surprised me with this garlic grater in my favourite design no less!
I had a craving for cornflake tart – it’s a classic old skool British ‘afters’ – think a thick layer of jam, spread on a shortcrust pastry base and topped with a syrupy cornflake topping. It’s actually really easy to make and I’m excited to share the recipe once I’ve perfected it but for now, here’s my work in progress!
I made Anzac biscuits which looked very flat but tasted seriously fabulous. They were so moreish, I had to give them away to friends and neighbours before I ate them all! If you’ve got some ideas as to why my biscuits are pancake flat, pray do tell…
Just in case you’re wondering, I did bake a lorry load of savoury things too, I just didn’t take a picture of them. My bad. Tell me about what’s been cooking in your kitchen, I’m all ears!
