Tea Stains and Daisy Chains: 2014

Unique Christmas Gifts for Book Lovers

12:34

Look Up

08:44

I went to a fireworks display earlier this month, during which the man with the loud-speaker told us to "look up". As we all turned our heads to the sky in anticipation, he added that he's found this a pretty good motto to live by. For some reason, this lighthearted comment has really stuck with me, so much so that I decided to include it in this blog post!

Don't worry, I'm not going to go all philosophical on you and start analysing the meaning of life or anything. No, instead I'm just going to share a bit about what's going on in my world at the moment. (This is definitely totally relevant and related because things are looking up, okay?). I get that this might not be particularly interesting for you as a reader, but I do like to include a variety of posts on my blog, with some offering practical tips and others being a bit more diary-like.

Two weeks ago, it was the first time in probably about two years that I was out every single night of the week. For lots of people my age (and any other age, come to think of it), doing something other than watching TV every evening is no big deal. But considering that pretty much all of my friends are at uni and I've spent most of this 'second' gap year sitting at home with the parents, this was a fairly momentous event.

I started the week by going along to the fifth or sixth session of the Alpha Course. For those of you who aren't sure whether this is a new language or some sort of fitness regime (when I told someone the other week, they replied by letting me know that their friend was doing Tough Mudder...), the Alpha Course is basically a series of talks and discussions about the fundamentals of the Christian faith . You may have seen posters outside churches asking 'What's the point?'; these would have been advertising the course. It's essentially a place where anyone, regardless of their beliefs (or lack of), can find out more and ask questions in a safe environment about God and the church. Having grown up in a Christian family, I've found it really useful being around non-Christians who are staring from square one, as well as those who have a really solid faith. It's been encouraging to hear other people raising the same questions and doubts that I've always had floating around in the back of my mind. Plus, it's free and we get food, so everyone's happy.

During the week, I had training for my new job at a bar in the centre of town. I'm not entirely sure what possessed me to choose an insanely popular and busy bar for my pint-pulling debut, but I'm telling myself that we need a challenge every now and then. I witnessed the throng of 21+'s a couple of Fridays ago, as I had my first weekend shift behind the bar. Beforehand, I was absolutely terrified and was shaking as though I was about to sit an oral language exam (my worst nightmare: why I thought I wanted to do French at uni I'll never know). But when I actually arrived and got going, it was no way near as bad as I'd imagined. Having to remember all the cocktails and being able to serve the different drinks at about one thousand miles per hour has definitely forced me onto a very steep learning curb, but I'm hoping that things will start to be a bit more enjoyable once I feel like I sort of know what I'm doing!

Now that I've got two jobs (and one of them involves ridiculous hours!), I've decided that I want to spend some of my money on getting myself insured on my mum's little KA. For me, being able to drive is literally the best thing ever, so I'm a very happy bunny. It's also great to feel as though I'm a bit more independent and don't have to cycle to the gym in the pouring rain or rely on my parents to come and collect me from work at 2am!

So that's pretty much my life at the moment. Although things seem to have suddenly picked up a bit, I'm still trying to fit in reading, art and writing into my week (not always successfully). But I'm not complaining, because about half a year ago I was doing literally nothing and definitely wasn't happy about it!

Life's good when it's full.

Harriet x

advice

Making Time for Art

17:42

book

To read or not to read- Emma

16:10

Happy Sunday! Sorry I haven't blogged in a while. But, as I said in my last post, I don't want this to feel like a chore, so I'm back now because I felt like it!

You may remember the 'BBC Top 100 Books Challenge' I've been doing in preparation for my English Lit degree (which I have now officially applied for, woo!) Well, I've decided that I don't want to restrict what I read to just one list, so I'm pushing the boat out and am just going to read whatever I fancy! I thought it was a bit silly to confine myself, seeing as there are so many books I've always wanted to read. I'm still going to be documenting my really brief thoughts on each book, but it's not going to be under the 'BBC Top 100 Books List' title anymore (see new and exciting graphic above!).

So I've just finished Jane Austen's Emma, which was a really fun read. I'm still not really sure whether or not I liked Emma as a character, something that was evidently foreseen by Austen when she wrote to a friend saying that Emma is "a heroine whom no one but myself will much like". But the truth is, I couldn't really help but like her. While she's a fairly spoilt and self-righteous young woman, she's also just a 21 year-old girl who makes mistakes, falls in love and meddles in other people's business. As well as this, Austen cleverly uses free indirect speech, which means that the narrative is told from Emma's perspective in the third person, while Austen still hold the reigns as the narrator. This is incredibly effective, as we can sympathise and identify with Emma, at the same time as benefiting from Austen's hilarious wit and way with words.

All in all, Emma is one of those classics you just have to read. If you've read Pride and Prejudice, then you'll fine that this is really similar, only funnier, and that Emma is a little more complex and developed than Elizabeth Bennet. (Not to put a downer on P&P though- yet another of Austen's masterpieces!).

I've got a stack of books to choose from next, so not sure what it will be yet. Any suggestions from English Lit students would be very much appreciated!

Harriet x

Autumn

Autumn (non) Essentials- Things to Eat (Part One)

20:27

So, the plan is to do the 'Things to Eat' section in parts, seeing as a post with three recipes on would probably be a bit too long (and boring).

I know I said these were going to be seasonal recipes, but that may be slightly tenuous I'm afraid. The first recipe I'm going to share is for 'Peanut Butter & Jam Pinwheel Cookies', which I'd like to rename 'Catherine Wheel Cookies', in preparation for Bonfire Night (come one now, that's a reasonable link to Autumn, right?).

These are from The Hummingbird Bakery's 'Home Sweet Home' recipe book, which is full of some truly amazing bakes, although some of them do need A LOT of ingredients!

What you will need for the cookies:

2 x pieces of baking parchment (each about 38 x 25cm)
60g smooth raspberry or strawberry jam
1 tsp cornflour (you may have some hidden in a cupboard somewhere as it's often used for thickening gravy)
100g unsalted butter, softened (stick it in the microwave for 10-20 secs)
100g smooth peanut butter (I doubt it would do any harm if it were crunchy, if that's all you've got)
180g caster sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp milk (preferably full-fat)
340g plain flour
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp salt

How to make the cookies:

1. Mix the jam and the cornflour together in a small bowl until the flour has dissolved. This shouldn't take very long at all.

2. Cream the butter, peanut butter and the sugar together until light and fluffy. You can do this by hand if you don't have a freestanding or handheld whisk, but it will be hard work if your butter's not soft enough.

3. Using a sieve, add the flour, bicarbonate of soda and the salt. Then mix slowly (using the whisk if possible) until you have a dough.

4. Now place the dough in the centre of one piece of your prepared baking parchment and spread out slightly with your hands. Put the other piece of paper on top and roll out using a rolling pin, so that the dough is sandwiched between the two sheets. Don't worry if your dough isn't perfectly rectangular, but the better it is, the less wastage you'll get at the ends.

5. Spread the jam evenly over the dough to form a thin layer.

6. The next thing you need to do is roll it up like a swiss roll. To do this, carefully loosen the edge of the dough on one of the long sides and use the paper to push it into a roll. Seal the seam and wrap the whole thing it clingfilm. Place it in the fridge for a few hours to harden up. (I didn't actually do this because I'm really impatient and it was still fine, but I think it made my biscuits less circular).

7. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius and line a couple of baking trays with parchment.

8. Slice your (hopefully) set roll into 2cm thick sections and place on the trays, about 5cm apart.

9. Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and allow to cool before serving.

All that's left to do now is light the bonfire/ campfire/ candle and hand these delicious Catherine Wheels round with steaming cups of tea. Alternatively, just scoff a couple yourself in front of a good film.

Harriet x

blog

Blogging tips: What to do...

19:40

You know those days when you just can't be bothered? When you'd much rather be doing something else, like lying down or eating Ben & Jerry's out of the tub? They suck. I should know, because I'm having one of those days today (which makes this a struggle and also fairly hypocritical, but who says you have to actually listen to your own advice anyway?).

It's not that you haven't got any ideas. In fact, what makes things even worse is that you have got lots of ideas, but you just don't feel like it. If you're anything like me, then on those days there's this irritating voice inside your head telling you you must write that blog post/ article/ comment NOW, otherwise bad things will happen. If you don't do it today then that's it, everyone will think you've lost interest in your 'passion' and have given up on this writing lark.

I'm sure there are loads of blog posts out there that would give you (and me) some really useful tips on how to boost the motivation levels. If you really need to get that piece done (maybe there's a deadline or you're a pro blogger or something), then perhaps you do need something inspirational to help you get your head down. But if not, and you just blog or contribute to online magazines for fun, then the 'fun''s kind of gone if you're having to force it.

Even though I only have 2 followers on Blogger and not many more on Bloglovin' (hint hint), I still find myself feeling under pressure to keep my blog regularly updated. But when I start feeling stressed about it, I remind myself that I'm doing this because I enjoy it, so if one day I don't feel like blogging, that's fine. And although it's important to be committed, if I'm not in the mood for writing an article, then it's not the end of the world if I give this one a miss.

So, you've decided to give yourself a day off. What now? Do you sit around feeling guilty and wishing you were as motivated and inspired as so-and-so? Possibly, but don't. Do something else you enjoy. Or, if you still want to keep things blog-related, take photos or plan future posts. But, if you just want to completely forget about it for a while, then go for it; you'll probably find that when you come back to it you feel totally re-energised.

If all else fails, then I suppose you could just write a blog post about what to do when you're not in the mood for writing...

Harriet x

accessories

Autumn (non) Essentials- Accessories

19:49

banana moon

Banana Moon's Study of the Student Species

09:33

The other day I was sent an email from a lovely lady called Jessica, who told me about Banana Moon's recent blog post about different student stereotypes. The idea is that their 'study' is just a bit of fun for new freshers to find out (if they've been living under a rock and don't know already) the types of students they're bound to meet when they arrive at university. While I'm not a massive fan of labeling people, I can't really deny that students at school and at uni do tend to fall into certain categories.

I would say that while I was at school, I was probably most like the Super Perfectionist (with hints of Teacher's Pet).

The description of the Super Perfectionist given on the blog is as follows:

"The neatest of all the student tribes, this well-kept creature is likely to be spotted lurking behind once all his peers have left the learning cave, placing papers into files and specially allocated plastic wallets. During feeding times, the Perfectionist may be spotted moving items of food around his or her plate into a particular formation – a far cry from the more unsophisticated members of the University social structure".

I'm afraid to say that I was often the last one out of the classroom thanks to frantic filing, colour-coding, or note-scribbling. I was the one who got stressed if the teacher moved the powerpoint on before I'd finished copying the slide down word for word. Being asked to take notes from a double-page spread in the textbook was one of my worst nightmares, as I felt the need to have every single piece of information written down, regardless of its relevance. You can never be sure, this obscure Swedish case study may seem pointless now, but it could come up in the exam.

I was also one of those really annoying people who cried actual tears if they got a B. Not cool.

So there we have it, I'm a self-confessed Super Perfectionist.

And as for the hints of Teacher's Pet... lot's of hand-raising, no detentions and never not doing the homework. Yes, I'm one of those.

I want to make something really clear though: I think it's so important that we don't base our identities on these stereotypes. When we label ourselves and other people, it can make us feel restricted and it can also give us something to hide behind.

While it's a bit of fun trying to work out which 'student species' you're most like, you don't want to finish your education and realise that you don't actually know who you are, as you've been trying to live up to a certain stereotype. If you'd like to hear more of my thoughts on identity and labeling at school, take a look at this blog post.

Banana Moon are also running a competition for bloggers, giving them the chance to win a tablet and a Banana Moon T-shirt! All you have to do to get involved is write a post about which student category best suits you. This competition is open to all bloggers. For more information, visit this page.

Harriet x

bake

Best Ever Lemon Loaf

18:02

I hope you've all had a lovely week! Today I've had a day off, so decided to make a couple of cakes in preparation for the weekend. (Let's be honest though, cake isn't just for the weekend). Seeing as the Honey, Sultana and Pecan Tea Bread was so moreish, I couldn't resist baking that again (this time I remembered to put the sultanas in to soak the night before), and I also thought I'd make a lemon-syrup loaf. There are so many recipes for lemon cake out there, but once you've tried this one I doubt you'll ever bother with any others! The cake is so moist because it involves pouring a lemony syrup over the top once it's baked, which then soaks into the sponge and is just delicious. It's from Nigella Lawson's How To Be A Domestic Goddess recipe book.

Ingredients for the cake-

125g unsalted butter
175g caster sugar
2 large eggs
zest of 1 lemon
175g self-raising flour, sifted
pinch of salt
4 tablespoons milk

Ingredients for the syrup-

4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
100g icing sugar

To make the cake-

1) Firstly, pre-heat the oven to 180C and butter and line a 23 x 13 x 7cm loaf tin. If you have those loaf tin cases, then this step is very quick and easy.

2) Next, cream together the butter and the sugar. If your butter is really hard, then you might want to stick it in the microwave for 10-20 seconds to make it easier to work with. When I made this, I creamed the butter on its own first before adding the sugar, which somehow felt easier!

3) Add the eggs and the lemon zest, beating well. I just grated the zest straight into the bowl to save on washing up another bowl/plate.

4) Then carefully fold in the flour and salt, making sure it's mixed thoroughly, before adding the milk.

5) That's the cake done! Spoon the mixture into your tin and pop into the oven. Now you can make the syrup, which is unbelievably simple.

6) Heat the lemon juice and icing sugar in a small pan until the sugar is dissolved.

7) The cake should be done after about 45 minutes, although ovens do vary, so you may want to check on it after 40 minutes or so. You'll know it's ready when a skewer stuck into it comes out clean.

8) Using the skewer, puncture the entire cake all over and then pour the lemon syrup over the top. It might pool around the edge, so just poke extra holes wherever needed.

9) Leave the cake in the tin until cooled, as it will be saturated with syrup.

10) Once cool, all that's left to do is stick the kettle on and get your cake forks at the ready!

I hope you'll have a go at this classic lemon loaf. If you do, I have no doubt that it will become a regular.

Did you bake this cake? Let me know how it went in the comments section below. If you have any helpful tips, I'd love to hear them too.

Harriet x

cake

Sunday Teatime

22:30

baker

Honey, Sultana and Pecan Tea Bread

21:18

I hope everyone is having a lovely Saturday! I've had a busy day at work but just thought I'd get some blogging done before settling down to watch some TV (yes, this is what your Saturday night looks like when all your friends go to uni *sad face*).

I made this cake last night after a false start the day before (the first instruction on the recipe is 'Put the sultanas in a bowl with the tea and leave to soak overnight'!) and thought a few of you might like the recipe. I mean, what's not to like about plump, tea-infused sultanas, honey and spices?

It's from a recipe book called 'Tea at Fortnum & Mason', so hopefully you'll feel sufficiently high-brow after having whipped up this gorgeous tea-time treat.

Ingredients-

200g sultanas
200ml freshly brewed Earl Grey tea (it's important that it is Earl Grey, as this is where a lot of the flavour comes from)
75g softened butter
125g light brown soft sugar
2 tbsp set honey
2 eggs
200g self-raising flour
1 tsp mixed spice
75g pecans, chopped

1. Place the sultanas in a bowl, pour over the tea and leave to soak overnight. This with soften and fatten the sultanas, as well as infuse them with the aromatic flavours of Earl Grey tea.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F and grease and line a loaf tin. Using a loaf tin lining case is even quicker and easier and doesn't involve any greasing!

3. Whisk the butter, sugar and honey, either by hand or with an electric mixer. If you're doing it by hand, you'll want the butter to be quite soft (but not melted!), so stick it in the microwave for 10-20 seconds.

4. Slowly add the eggs, followed by the sifted flour, mixed spice, pecans and sultanas. Pour in any extra tea that hasn't been soaked up, as this will add flavour.

5. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and bake for 40-60 mins, depending on your oven. If in doubt, set the timer for 40 and check the cake after that. It's better to have to add a little more time than to open the oven door to see that your hard work has burnt! You can tell when it's done by poking it with a skewer and seeing if it comes out clean.

6. Let the cake cool in the tin, then slice and serve with a cup of tea! If you're baking it a couple of days in advance of an occasion, pop it in an airtight container and it will keep for up to five days.

Hopefully you'll give this classic cake a go in the fairly near future- I don't think you'll regret it!

I'd love to know how you got on with this cake, or please feel free to share any other recipes in the comments section below!

Harriet x

bbc top 100 books

The BBC Top 100 Books- Heart of Darkness

09:54

Despite being a classic, I admit that before I read Heart of Darkness (and in fact after I'd read it, before I'd researched it!), I wasn't really sure what it was about. The title undoubtedly suggests a dark story, but I didn't know whether the heart was a metaphor, or that of a person or place. It turns out that it's all three. Actually, it could be something else entirely; the title is left open to interpretation, as is Conrad's ambiguous central character, Kurtz.

The novella tells the story of Marlow, a sailor who takes a job as a captain with the Company, a Belgian organisation that trades in ivory in the Congo. He journeys up the river on a steamboat in a quest to meet with Kurtz, the chief of the Inner Station who has been described to him, somewhat obscurely, as a most remarkable man. Yet as Marlow and his crew near their destination, they enter into a darker world away from civilisation, where imperialism has led to slavery and savagery. The oppressive and smothering mist adds to the tension and the ambiguity of the situation. They hear that Kurtz is ill, the implication being that he has gone mad, and they fear that he might be dead by the time they arrive.

In case you want to read it for yourself, I won't go on and give away the ending. Personally, I enjoyed reading this book, thanks to Conrad's beautiful way with words, as well as the appealing character of Marlow. I also found myself wanting to 'meet' the curious Kurtz just as much as he did, which kept me reading on.

Had I not read up on it, however, I'm sure I would have missed out on many of the underlying messages and themes, which would have undoubtedly caused me to be less appreciative of Conrad's creation. So, seeing as the book itself is only around 110 pages long, I don't think reading a quick analysis before or afterwards would do anyone any harm!

Next up is something a little lighter- Jane Austin's Emma.

Have you read Heart of Darkness? What did you think?

Harriet x

art

Happy Thursday!

17:39

Unique Christmas Gifts for Book Lovers

Look Up

Making Time for Art

To read or not to read- Emma

Autumn (non) Essentials- Things to Eat (Part One)

Blogging tips: What to do...

Autumn (non) Essentials- Accessories

Banana Moon's Study of the Student Species

Best Ever Lemon Loaf

Sunday Teatime

Honey, Sultana and Pecan Tea Bread

The BBC Top 100 Books- Heart of Darkness

Happy Thursday!

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