HAPPY NEW YEAR

Good Afternoon to you,

Firstly, Happy New Year to you and your family.

It is wonderful to be back with you, as I have really missed your company.  

I am so sorry, that during the past couple of months, I could not find the time to sit down and share my recipes with you. I had so many Christmas recipes planned, yes your eyes did not deceive you, I did write planned, not my usual style I know, but for Christmas to run smoothly, as you know, there has to be a bit of planning involved, but  due to family commitments, I could not find the time to share the recipes.

So just for the moment, I will need to reduce the amount of time I write to you each week, so for now, instead of writing twice a week I will be reducing my posts to just once a week.  I have changed the date as well.... I will now be catching up with you each and every Thursday.  

So as today, is my first time of writing to you in 2015, I thought it would be fun to review the past year, which I always enjoy doing, because I don't know about you, but I am always pleased to see how much cooking I have done throughout the year..... and what I share with you is only two meals a week. Imagine if we catalogued all the meals we created, seven days a week, throughout the year...... our files would be bulging.

Do you remember in January we made,

beans in tomato sauce.

I realise a little

more effort

is required

as it is so much easier to

 open a tin of beans,

but,

if you have the time,

the extra effort is really worthwhile

as these beans are so 

much tastier.

Then of course,

 I really had to add one

of my

potato recipes,

because

as

you know 

 I love, love, love,

potatoes.

My

Potatoes Lyonnaise

were made in an unconventional

way,

but which work well for me.

Sorry to all my French friends if I

made you gasp in horror.

.... and

I just had to include

one of George's favourites,

steak pie with a rich gravy.

He so enjoyed this pie whilst watching 

the rugby on television.

I have to say,

one of 

the highlights of the year for me,

was when I was one of

the bloggers interviewed

and featured 

in the

Woman's Weekly Magazine.

What a thrill that was.

I still smile to myself every time I think

about the experience.

..... and really,

it would not be right

if I did not share

my love of chocolate.

These chocolate brownies were divine.

You might think the shape is a little odd,

well, I have to tell you,

 I baked these brownies

 with Phyllis

and I asked her if she would like to cut the

brownies into slices..... and this was the result,

a little off piste, but lovely

all the same.

If you have been reading my blog for a while

you will know about my love

 of Cypriot food, 

this is

my favourite Tzatziki recipe

using 

Greek Yoghurt.

Oh, I love Falafel,

oops

I did not notice at the time that I had

added an extra 's'.

I love aubergines 

especially

when used in

 Baba Ghanoush. 

Along with Tzatziki

and Falafel

these recipes

make me dream of warmer summer days.

Spaghetti Puttanesca

is a very quick and easy recipe,

perfect for when I need to whip

up a meal quickly.

My equivalent of fast food.

My Pear and Ginger 

Upside Down Cake

was lovely

and it is a recipe

I use over and over again

as it never fails to please.

The season for figs is 

very short,

so when they are available 

we eat them with gusto, just as they are,

but sometimes it is nice to do

something a little different

so 

another way to enjoy figs

 is to

wrap figs in prosciutto,

add a little cheese

and

bake..... delicious.

Another fruit I love

is peaches

and

baked peaches

with

crushed Amaretti biscuits

are delightful.

 I love the flavour of Amaretti biscuits.

Don't you just love the 

teacup and saucer.

It is so pretty.

Oh my word,
when I baked this pie

the kitchen was filled

with the gorgeous aroma of

 apples and blackberries
and

George lingered in the kitchen for

quite a while until this pie was ready to eat.

I love fish, and

this mackerel dip certainly 

hit the spot, especially

with my homemade

crisp breads.

As the weather turned

colder,

this 

turkey soup 

with 

pearl barley was a perfect

winter warmer.

 These are just a few of the many recipes we made during 2014.... and what do I have in store for 2015.

..... well one of the Christmas gifts I received was this odd looking contraption,

do you know what it is?

If you don't know, all will be revealed next week..... and no, just in case it had crossed your mind,  it is not an instrument of torture!

Just one more thing before I leave you, I want to say thank you to my friends who have been emailing me privately, I am sorry I have left it so long, but I promise, I will be catching up with you this week.

So take care of yourself and I will see you on Thursday.