crumpets – The Omnivorous Bear

Things that make me smile

No matter how gloomy things are, there are always things that can make me smile

This fork, for example, always makes me smile.

I bought it years ago… years and years ago. I had left home and was a student, living in a ramshackle flat. I couldn’t cook in those days and probably only used it to stir tinned soup.

Still, things gradually changed and I started to cook properly and so the fork got more use.

Look at it – you can tell I am right handed because over the years it has worn down on the left hand side. We must have been eating fork for years. Well, tiny little bits of worn away wood from the fork, anyway.

Probably the Health and Safety people would say that it is a heinous kitchen crime to feed people wood. I don’t care. It makes me smile. It makes me think of the hundreds of hours I must have been standing at a cooker, stirring away

It’s cold outside, bitterly cold and we spent this afternoon visiting a relative in a hospital. That’s not going to make you smile but coming home to a warm fire and a hot drink…. and crumpets

Well, that makes you smile.

I made crumpets not so long ago, when my sister in law was visiting us, but today I just bought a packet. Hot and dripping with butter – perfect.

Here in the North it’s snowing and it is lying deeply . It’s bright and crisp and while it is like this, I really like it

Ankle deep in snow, in the bright sunshine. That’s good and I smile at that. Especially when I can see my mother’s house

And I know that inside the family will be waiting….

Last night, one of my oldest friends came round to my house with her husband to celebrate her birthday.

We drank Moet & Chandon Rose Imperial and smiled. Who wouldn’t?

And the other thing that always makes me smile is this

It’s a picture hanging on the wall in my kitchen. I have no idea who painted it or what it is called. It was on a card that I was given for my birthday once….

I think it was meant to resemble me…. but it always makes me smile anyway.

See? I don’t need to win the lottery to be happy.

Find the simple things in your life that make you smile!

Share on Facebook

A nice bit of crumpet…..

A couple of weeks ago I was reading “Bread” A River Cottage Cookbook

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 064

and today it was chilly and foggy…

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 063

and I remembered that I said I would make crumpets. What could be better on a cold, grey afternoon than hot buttered crumpets, dripping with honey?

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 067

To make crumpets you will need a heavy based frying pan or griddle and some metal rings to cook them in. If you don’t have rings then just pour the mix on and make pikelets, instead.

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 069

So, into a bowl with 450g of plain white flour,

350ml of warm milk and 350 ml of warm water

5 g of powdered yeast

10 g of salt

1 tsp baking powder

Some sunflower or vegetable oil

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 072

And whisk it all together. It makes a thin batter, like single cream. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave it to rest and do its yeasty business for at least an hour until it is lovely and bubbly. I left it for three hours as we were going off into town.

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 073

When I looked it had expanded beautifully and looked smooth and frothy

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 075

Now you need to warm your griddle, or heavy pan on a medium to high heat and while that is warming, whisk in the baking powder an salt.

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 076

Whisk it…

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 077

Put some sunflower oil on some kitchen paper and rub it round the inside of the metal rings

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 079

Try making a test crumpet first, the book says. Good thing too… Ladle in some batter mix to just below the rim of the ring

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 080

It was fine, at first…..

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 085

The book said leave it for 5 minutes or so till the top is just set then flip it over….

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 087

Ooops!

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 089

Just goes to show that a test run is the way to go. That griddle was obviously far too hot. I turned it down and let it cool just slightly (that was cast iron, just turning down the heat wasn’t going to radically change things in seconds) and then tried again

Crumpets, ragu, chicken pie 091