Another bank holiday! I could easily get used to this. Here’s everything I’ll be doing over the long weekend…
The only cake I need in my life
It’s always nice to have cake in the house, especially over the long weekend. The only cake I really need in my life is a simple Victoria Sandwich with strawberry jam – with fresh strawberries or cream if I’m feeling fancy. I don’t use a recipe, more of a formula. Simply weigh your eggs with their shells on and then use the same quantity of margarine, self-raising flour and caster sugar. I like to use three eggs for a nice tall sponge. Simply mix everything together with an electric hand whisk and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes at 180C.
Gardening in pots
Our new garden is a completely blank canvas and we’re taking our time coming up with a design that can evolve over time. For now, I’m enjoying just gardening in my pots. It’s amazing how much colour and life you can create without digging a single flower bed. So far I’ve got dahlias coming up, herbs and lettuce – plus some roses and a fig tree. This weekend I’m going to plant some climbing French beans in big posts – they grow so quickly up their canes and will create some much needed height and in the garden. Why not try sewing a few lettuce seeds over the long weekend? It grows so quickly and you’ll able to stop buying it in plastic bags from the supermarket!
The Sunday night costume drama re-invented
Watching a Sunday night costume drama used to be such an event for me – from Pride & Prejudice and Cranford to Downton Abbey. Recently, though, I’ve got hooked on the immediate gratification of boxsets. But just occasionally a good programme will come along to help me re-learn some patience. Gentleman Jack is the new Sally Wainwright series based on the diaries of Anne Lister. It’s fresh, sprightly and like all good costume dramas mixes mild humour with good old-fashioned drama. It’s so good I don’t mind waiting a whole week for each new episode.
Remembering Judith Kerr
This week, the author and illustrator Judith Kerr died. She was 95. Her books have spanned my whole life – from a childhood reading the Tiger that Came to Tea to sharing the Mog series with my own boys. I also cherish her series of auto-biographical books for older children and adults about being a refugee from Nazi Germany – When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit being the most famous. If you’d like to read more about her fascinating life, then Judith Kerr’s Creatures is a great place to start. I’ll be taking my copy down from the bookshelf this weekend.
Dress of the week
My favourite dress this week is this pink-checked frock by Mango. I’ve had it squirrelled away in my wardrobe for a while and it’s finally warm enough to wear it. I feel like a walking jar of Bonne Maman jam when I wear it, which is definitely a good thing. It’s very flattering and has long-ish sleeves if (like me) you want to hide your upper arms.
I hope you have a great long weekend!
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