Sachertorte - sort of...

We made a sort of Sachertorte with Springy today. It's a bit too bitter for her taste so next time I will use a lower percentage dark chocolate for the ganache. I reckon it would be nice to add grated orange rind and use marmalade instead of raspberry in it too (it would be lovely with Cointreau or such but I'd probably fall over after one slice then).

We spent the morning doing our lessons - Springy did some paper weaving because we've been discussing baskets and tried to do some form drawing type exercises with the up and down of that. We stuck it into her Main Lesson book.


We've had 2 walks with our dog today so far, cleaned out R, our guineapig and played a very intense game of Ludo this afternoon.

We also played a tune on the recorder together. The words involved weaving sweetly, weaving neatly, up and down, down and up...

Recipe needs modifying to larger quantities too (although it was probably enough to make 12 Sachertorte type fairy cakes) as it was a bit thin in the cake pan.  The current one is as follows:

4 oz caster sugar
4 oz butter
2 oz almond flour
4 eggs - separated
1 tsp vanilla essence
100g dark chocolate
+ chocolate ganache and raspberry jam

Prepare a round cake tin - brush with butter to prevent sticking
In a bowl:
Cream butter and sugar together with almond flour.
Add 4 egg yolks.  Gently fold in the dark chocolate (melted in a bain marie) and add vanilla essence.
Sieve Self Raising flour into mix and gently mix it in.
Beat the egg white until forming stiff peaks and fold it into the rest of the mixture.
Pour into cake tin and even out top with spatula.
Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes
Turn out onto cake rack and cool for 5 minutes.
Cut cake top off and spread a layer of raspberry jam in the middle.

To make ganache - 50g of dark chocolate, 20ml double cream and a dash of rum or brandy (if you wish)
Melt chocolate in bain marie, add double cream and mix in and then add dash of rum/brandy (you could subsitute with a dash of fruit juice)
Spread ganache over Sachertorte.
Serve your torte with a coffee or whatever drink you feel fits.

Three Cakes for Easter

We're enjoying the weather, although some of my potted plants have wilted slightly in the heat. We have potatoes growing (we hope) and also a few bean plants. The strawberry patch needs a bit of a tidy up.

All the birds are singing their dawn chorus each morning which is just wonderful. Our hens have been laying quite a few eggs. This morning Springy and I had scrambled eggs for breakfast. Our weaving project needs to be continued but Springy did a spring-themed crossword and wrote in the most beautiful neat writing. We haven't done much writing recently because Springy didn't want to and I was forcing workbooks on her before Christmas due to a lack of confidence - we both hated doing them. It's much nicer when writing comes from a more natural interest and the crossword was just that.


Banana Gingerbread
Ei


Cherry Crumble Cake

175g (6oz) SR flour
100g (3.5oz) soft butter
75g (3oz) caster sugar
50g (2oz) almond flour (ground)
1 egg
2 tbsps milk
1/2 tsp almond essence
1 can black cherries
25g (1oz) almond flakes

1. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper
2. Rub butter into flour to make crumble mix.
3. Add sugar and ground almonds and mix in.
4. Remove 75g (3oz) of the crumble mix (to use as a topping later).
5. Add the milk, egg and almond essence to the remaining crumble mix and blend until smooth.
6. Pour into baking tray.
7. Pour off syrup from the cherries and put drained cherries on top of cake mix in baking tray.
8. Sprinkle on crumble mix that was set aside.
9. Sprinkle on almond flakes.
10. Bake in oven for about 25 minutes, at 180 deg C.

Sultana Soda Bread

150g (5oz) wholemeal plain flour
175g (6oz) plain flour
2 tsps cream of Tartar
pinch of salt
1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
50g (2oz) brown sugar
125g (4oz) sultanas
25g (1oz) butter
175ml warmed milk

1. Mix flours, salt, cream of tartar, bicarb, sugar and sultanas together.
2. Melt butter in saucepan and heat milk.
3. Pour in gradually to dry mix until dough is formed.
4. Knead dough on surface (use a sprinkle of flour to help prevent sticking).
5. Roll out dough to form a circle and place on baking sheet.
6. Bake in oven at 200 deg C (180 deg C fan oven) for 25 minutes - the soda bread should sound hollow when tapped.
7. For crusty top wrap in tea towel or leave to cool without one for soft top.

Vanilla Chocolate shortbread

We're having this for our dessert tonight, served with organic ice cream (not homemade although we have made it before). I've gone all American because I'm working out things with cups rather than ounces.

Vanilla Chocolate Shortbread

2 and a 1/2 cups of plain flour (actually a bit less but remove some, about 1 heaped tablespoon, of the plain flour and replace with cornflour to give your shortbread a softer texture)
1 cup caster sugar
2 sticks butter (about a cupful)
2 tbsp cocoa powder (I use Green and Black's)
1 tsp Vanilla essence

1. Sieve flour into bowl, add sugar and then butter.
2. Rub ingredients together - mixture will go crumbly (a bit like for apple crumble topping) and then rub it until it forms a very soft crumbly doughlike consistency (make sure it doesn't go sticky though - it should be 'short')
3. Divide mixture in half
4. To one half, add the cocoa and mix in well
5. To the other half, add the vanilla essence (I just pour it from the bottle in a quick flick) and mix that in
6. Take your baking tin and grease well with butter (I use 2 tins - round Victoria sponge ones)
7. Pat down half the mix and then add the other half on top (or if using 2 tins then do different tops and bottoms - so one is chocolate on the bottom, vanilla on top or vanilla on the bottom with chocolate pressed on top)
8. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes - with the first bake mark out segments with a knife or slice.
9. Put them back in the oven and bake for a further 15 minutes. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes.

Serve with ice cream...(you may want to serve them warm).

Tip: if you use unsalted butter then you may wish to add a pinch of salt to the mix - it gives them a better flavour.

Baking cakes and pizza

Today we made homemade pizza for lunch (from the Baking Bread With Children book) and then we made a Dundee cake for my husband's birthday.

Springy still has a cough but it's not so bad during the day. I am still full of a bad cold and am going to see a consultant in the New Year because my GP thinks there may be more to my throat problems than just repeatedly catching colds (plus I lose my voice on a regular basis all through the year - it often cuts out).

Yesterday we talked about a dozen and half a dozen. Springy knew what a dozen was but was confused as to what half a dozen meant. I told her to find 12 things and to put them on the floor. She then had to divide them in half. We also did some work on paper with my drawing out a number of dots (even) and Springy having to put a line through them to divide them in half. She can halve a pizza or other things in the kitchen but for some reason she's not getting it when applied to non-edible things. Anyway, we kept working through and she understood and I think it was more of a case of the way I was saying it confused her.

It's pretty hard doing anything much at the moment because I keep coughing and getting very short of breath.

I am so grateful for computer-based technology at the moment. Last night, since I can barely talk let alone do a complete story, Springy and I listened to the next few episodes of the Advent story at Waldorf Radio.

Update on the shed

I forgot to update this - our chicken/piggie shed is fine now and has been refitted with a slide lock and a load of bricks to stop ratties and foxes. I think I saw a rat up a tree that goes on the shed roof last night so need to be extra vigilant for them. It could have been a squirrel but we tend not to have any so I'm thinking it may have been a rat. If I see another one or two then we need to sort them out because they can create a problem with small bantams - basically small bantam = takeaway meal!

It's gone so cold today and the westerly winds really add an extra chill. We're going to have bangers and mash tonight for dinner. I love cooking with Springy and she is able to make sandwiches (as well as tell bad jokes about sand witches!). I really enjoyed the soul cakes today because she enjoyed them so much. They're also not too messy to make which means washing up afterwards is simple.

All Souls Day Cakes

These were made a little early but were great fun for our "lesson" this morning. They involve a lot of simple mixing and at the end the dough is nice to roll about and then squash and mark. They smell really nice too (not to mention the taste - yummy!).

All Souls Day Cakes

1/4 cup of caster sugar

1/4 cup of butter

1 cup of plain flour (sifted) + a little extra flour for dusting

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup of raisins, currants or sultanas

1 tsp allspice

1 tsp mixed spice

Splash of milk

1. Cream sugar and butter together.

2. Add the egg yolk

3. Sift flour into mixture

4. Add spices

5. Add in enough milk to make a soft dough.

6. Grease a baking tin

7. Heat oven to about 180deg C

8. Take dough and take enough in hand to roll small balls out. Squash ball slightly to make a small cake shape and then put a mark on the top of the cake (in days gone by people used to make the sign of the cross on the All Soul cakes but you can mark on initials etc).

9. Put the cakes onto the tin and put in oven for about 15 minutes.

10. Cakes should be golden brown upon removal. Cool slightly and then eat (care with sultanas as they may be hot still). You can add butter if you wish but they are moist enough to eat on their own.

Our current read at the moment is Moominland Midwinter by Tove Jansson. We love these books and Springy listens through the chapters which are quite long and peculiar in nature. We talked about the North Pole today and the way the sun goes to bed for months and then doesn't go to bed for months. Springy thought this quite strange. she knows that where we live the sun sets either over the church at midsummer or over the fields in midwinter and we always watch the sunsets (as they are so beautiful) so she seems to be quite observant of where the sun goes to bed (we can't see the sunrises here though). A few months back, Springy and I watched a Joanna Lumley documentary on the aurora borealis which was amazing to see - one day I hope both Springy and I can see it in person.

Back to the Moomins - I grew up watching a beautiful stop-motion animation of the Moomins. Since then they have been tragically turned into a cartoon animation of extremely low quality which we won't be watching anytime soon. The books though are always a delight and this particular one is very relevant to the impending cold of winter coming upon us. We were reading the bit today about the troll (Moomintroll's forebear) who lived behind the stove. It made me wish we had a woodstove because I'd love to imagine a troll of sorts rattling around behind one. Ah, atheist pagan that I am...

Illness and hens

Today has been a beautiful October day. We spent a lot of time with Springy outside as today was the first day she has not had a temperature for three days. Springy has been ill since Sunday. She came home from a Beaver event with a headache which we just put down to being overwhelmed. However, it seems that there is a bug going around and Springy developed tummy ache and a very high temperature for the past few days, along with frequent toilet needs.

Today was gorgeous. We had the bantams out on the lawn and Springy and I played a little bit of football (just kicking the ball back and forth). We also baked some bread (I've been reading a book called Bread with Children). Later on I drew some chalk numbers from 1 to 12 in a line on the path and Springy did some maths that way (moving between numbers with plus and minus). I think tomorrow will be nice too because the sky has a nice pink flow about it.

Summary of Summer

Our learning doesn't stop during summer or any holiday for that matter. Springy had a number of playdates which has been lovely for her. She's also had music lessons and the bantams have been a valuable asset to our home. We went swimming twice (we would have gone more but I would only go to a private club pool around here as the public one makes me feel queasy). We went to visit my parents and saw my beloved Oma (sad because my Opa is no longer around). Springy got to hear quite a bit of German because of it (and she seems to take to pronouncing the sounds with ease). Springy went to the cinema for the first time ever and saw Wall E.

We've finished The Adventures of the Little Wooden Horse and started The Wise Enchanter. Springy has started her own Magic Book (sort of a main lesson type book) which relates to The Wise Enchanter. We've had lots of other stories too, both from oral and book formats including our favourites Rapunzel, Rose White and Rose Red and the Michael Hall readers (last night we read the September one).

We've played a great deal with The Noble Knights of Knowledge maths curriculum and ... yes we have even done some workbooks such as the letts Magical Maths one. Springy has a reading age of a 9-year old. Her writing and spelling require working upon but this is happening. She can write well in upper case and likes to leave notes, create cards for people and so on. She has created some lovely pictures in recent weeks and has made some pretty patterns with her Hama beads which show signs of symmetry. We're practising our music almost every day in between the weekly lessons (although sadly we have to stop next week as money is once again very tight). I'm still using the odd smattering of French and German with her and she responds in turn. Singing is something we do all the time and we're still doing fingerrhymes, beanbag stuff and so on (I just don't call it circle because we're not in that shape when we do these things).

Springy has been to craft and countryside events, watched the harvest, been to the zoo, seen performances (not many though and in fact one was so inappropriate for children I had to complain to the event hosts but that's another story! I do regret not being able to take her to the theatre this summer as there have been some really good shows on but money is tight).

We have had lots of walks, playing in the garden - running, football and Springy has swimming weekly so this covers all the physical exercise side of things. She also does lots of physical activities at Beavers. We discuss the food we eat and how to stay healthy. We go shopping with Springy and she helps choose the ingredients for our meals. We've also grown tomatoes, courgettes, red currants, blueberries and various herbs such as rosemary, oregano and mint. We go to a museum quite often that enables us to see history in action - there are demonstrations on early food, traditional crafts and so on. Springy also went on a special trip to visit the Victory in Portsmouth with her father.


Yesterday we made pastry and today we had quiche - all homemade. Next week she resumes swimming and Beavers.

We watched the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony on the 8.8.08 together. Today we watched the Paralymic Opening Ceremony which was even more moving for me because it wasn't as epic but somehow had much more of a human component to it - needless to say I bawled my eyes out.

It's very clear to me that if my LA ever asked for what we do I would have to write about past tense stuff because planning and my family doesn't work well. It's much better to write summaries of what has happened rather than to try and predict what may happen. However, they'd have a lot to read because we do so much.

Butter and bicycles

Today Springy and I heard some more from Rumer Godden's The Dolls House. Marchpane is causing a lot of trouble for Tottie and her family. We're nearly at the end.

Springy also heard more from Mummies in the Morning - the third book in The Magic Treehouse series. I like the stories but have to say that the author needs some writing lessons to learn how to write proper sentences.

This afternoon we baked some chocolate chip biscuits and then we made some of our own butter in a small kilner jar. I have some lovely milk that is very rich; it's made from Jersey and Guernsey cow milk. We poured off the top cream and dolloped it into a kilner jar. Springy and I took turns in shaking it and it wasn't long before we had some golden butter and a small quantity of buttermilk to drink. I'm hoping that when we go strawberry picking we can do this again and use the buttermilk in the recipe for scones and then have strawberries, scones, butter and cream - yummy!

This afternoon we went for a bicycle ride (well I went on my scooter since I don't have a bicycle). It was so warm today - the breeze was from the East and I managed to do two loads of washing as well as some orders that needed sending off.

My cold is improving but I still have tonsilitis and pharyngitis. My left ear still feels strange too. Yesterday I had some sage tea as well as a steam inhalation.

I forgot to write an update on the duck situation. We get mugged every day by the three ducks. Mrs Duck escaped from the fox but has abandoned her nest. This resulted in her being courted again and her regular white-breasted suitor and another male have been hanging around with her. We gave up incubating the duck eggs (I'm sure I posted on this but can't find it).

My favourite recipes

Fairy Cakes
1 cup SR flour
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
butter

Cream sugar and butter together.
Add eggs gradually
Add flour (sieved)
Spoon into 12 cake cases
Bake for 12 minutes at 180deg C

Chocolate Sponge Cake
(use Victoria sandwich tins)

5 oz SR flour
1 oz cocoa powder (preferably organic)
1 tsp baking powder (optional)
6 oz butter
5-6 oz caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
3-4 eggs
2 tbsp cold water

Cream sugar and butter.
Combine dry ingredients and add gradually with egg and 'wet' ingredients.
Spoon into sandwich tins.
Bake for 12 -15 minutes in 180deg C oven (fan).

Chocolate Ganache (icing)
5 oz plain chocolate
5 oz double cream

Melt chocolate in bain marie. Stir in cream when chocolate has melted.
Pour on cake and leave to set.

Almond Chocolate Cake
4 eggs (separated)
150g dark chocolate
150g diced butter
75g golden caster sugar
1 tbsp runny honey
200g almond flour
75 ml milk.

Separate eggs (beat egg whites until they are stiff)
Bain marie: chocolate, butter, sugar and honey - melt down
Add egg yolk
Then add almond flour and milk.
Fold in egg white
Add to cake tin (flat round e.g. Victoria sandwich)
Bake 15 minutes at 170 deg C (fan - 190deg non-fan)

Marillen Cake

Apricot Cake

Need a flat cake tin

2-3 eggs (dependent on tin size - needs to be a minimum 1" high)

Weigh eggs with shell on -
Measure out same weight of butter
and of flour
and of sugar (you can reduce sugar slightly)

Cream butter and sugar first
Then add in dry ingredients
Grate in rind of lemon and squeeze in some lemon juice and add 1tsp vanilla essence
Mix in
Add to tin
WAsh apricots - remove kernels
Add the apricot slices onto top of cake dough
Bake in oven until golden - 20 minutes (180deg C)