Mary Berry Cake And Me

Mary Berry keeps intruding upon my life she’s every where I go , she’s not stalking me or anything like that.But Mary Berry is intruding upon my life only as Mary Berry can ! You see a few weeks ago when my husband was taken into hospital I had to visit him by bus as I don’t drive.And on one solitary journey back from the hospital one afternoon an elderly gentleman happened upon the bus.

There in my life was inexplicably changed by Mary Berry in that very instance, how I hear you ask well it goes like this ..

“I’m going to write to Points of View about that Mary Berry , her hair is awful , don’t they have hairdressers at the BBC ?”

“I think Mary Berry’s hair is stuck in the 80’s!”

“Don’t get me started on that Claudia Winkleman !”

You see that’s how it all started with Mary Berry and me and I thought it had all gone quiet until Booom! I walked into a charity shop and there was Mary Berry, not Mary in the scribal flesh but the most bizzare and strange Mary Berry canvas also featuring Paul Hollywood.

Seems it is by someone called Jim’ll paint it and is a limited edition canvas ..

“

Description: 

Paul Hollywood and Mary Berry in a tight loving embrace surrounded by an apocalyptic bake themed kitchen with exploding sponges and flaming Battenbergs - As requested by Jay Skinner

nb - the original request asked for Mel and Sue running for cover but I couldn't find a way of incorporating them without detracting from the overall romance of the picture”

So you see Mary Berry is enriching my life like a very good fruit cake !

I’m sending this to by friend who is buying it for her kitchen wall.

Peppercorn Cream Cheese Steak Salad

Here at Toplis towers we are having to eat very sensibly especially with Mr T being diagnosed with diabetes.Mr T is taking very sensible lunches and the lunch he will be taking tomorrow is of course healthy.For our tea/dinner we had had steak but there was some left over so I thought of a quick recipe to use it with.

Ingredients 

Left over thin steak 

Salad 

Some raw tender stem broccoli 

30 g low fat cream cheese 

Teaspoon or more to suit your taste of peppercorns 

Method 

Cut the steak thinly 

Prepare your other salad 

Grind your peppercorns 

Mix the ground pepper corn with the cream cheese 

Mix this with the thinly cut steak

Mix everything together 

New Tea Mug Day

I have a new tea mug ~ drum roll please maestro due to my other Emma Bridgewater mug apparently leaping out the dishwasher to its shattering doom.When my husband told me I half expected a chalk outline round the broken body of my poor poor mug. Or perhaps one of those murder tents and police forensics combing the scene with the suspect helping the police with their enquires.

I loved my previous dotty Emma Bridgewater mug it said Mrs so I knew it was mine , it’s a mug thing it’s personal.The amount of mugs is a whole blog post itself and probably the inability to relinquish those free glass ramekins you get with puddings.I hear the number of these glass ramekins is related to how middle class you are ( very much tongue in cheek )

I have given up long long long away the though of having matching mugs as you amble through life , getting mugs for birthdays , mugs for Christmas , mugs when you leave a job , mug when you start a job, blogging mug, mugs for best ,you name it you acquire mugs .Mugs after all are there to be used and never never abused like my poor mug was when it was killed in the prime of its life.

So I was over joyed to find this mug which is inspired by Venice and is made by Emma Bridgewater and only I am allowed to drink out of it and is NEVER to go inside the dishwater ( though I might rent )  and it is MINE MINE.

Adjusting To Life With A Diabetic The First Week

Your world changes and the world does change literally over night and you point at certain items and shout you evil evil evil piece of bread or hide from the sight of potatoes.Being a diabetic is not only a change for them it is also a change for family and friends and oh how we smile when we are continually offered sugar.

You go from eating cake and whatever you like to to be careful of carbs , going to the shops you play carb bingo.The winner being who ever finds the lowest carb food item , I’m winning on this I think.

Type 1 is not caused by imsering yourself in a bath full of cake nor is it caused by consuming curries in your younger years.

Type1 Diabetes is a complex condition and my husband is only week one into this and it is a rollercoaster of emotions and discoveries but life doesn't stop , life it is NOT and I tell you Goggle is a blessing and both a curse.

Life expectancy is normal with proper care of yourself through exercise and a sensible diet all in line with the various medical professionals such the doctor ,dietician diabetic nurse etc.

I have to stress that there are different types of Diabeties and when I will take about it here I will be talking about it I will be referring to Type 1, now my husband is very practical and is dealign with this with a sense of get on with it.


1. The immediate things we have done are download an app which was recommended on a Diabetes forum it helps with planning out the carbs


2. Meal planning is key ,we pretty much plan we we are going to eat anyway but it just takes a little more tweaking of late and the fridge and freezer has had an overall. And certainly next year I will get back into growing our own vegetables within reason.






3. Register if you want with an online phymarchy service to get your essential medication delivered it will make life a bit easier especially if you work.

4. Look into bags that will keep your insulin cool whilst you are travelling and out and about we have a Frio wallet and it is very good and remember medical items for conditions such a Diabetes type 1 are Vat exempt you just have to fill out a declaration at checkout or if you're buying through Amazon just send back a declaration via Freepost.

Stoneywell Cottage An Arts And Crafts Gem

Arts and Crafts is honest and simple and harks back to simpler times and is honest in its making.Life is fast paced and to have a house and garden in harmony is a rare treasure indeed.










The cottage which was designed by Ernest Grimson so it appeared as if organically grown among the rocky outcrops of Charnwood Forest and he succeeded and even Gertrude Jekyll approved. There are even rooms within the cottage and they are barely split on seven different levels.We found there it was best to go with the information and captivating National Trust Guide when we were looking round as they offer an unique insight into the property.

The cottage has a a slate roof originally it had a thatch roof but due to a fire which destroyed it in 1939, Stoneywell has so much magic and it is a quirky honest property.The cottage was first turned into a summer house to escape far away from the ravishes of city life and industry in Leicester, it went on to become a family home in the 1950's.Stoneywell was always adapted rather than be changed in any way.











The property was acquired by the National Trust in 2012 and you can only visit by booking on line , while visiting you can always partake in soup ,sandwiches or even cake and of course tea no National trust visit is ever completed without a that very British stable of a cup of tea.

The cottage is furnished still  with original pieces made by Ernest and his circle of Artisan craftsman. Just beyond the front door stands a beautiful dining table which top is made from one single plank of wood and today is well worth over £20,000 

All the books and toys that are around allude to a mush loved family home we were told on our tour that the children loved climbing through windows and running through the house.