Pyjamas by Eight Cherry Canaries via Etsy.
A while ago I was admiring some beautiful silk pyjamas, and I have gone and found myself some more to be tempted by… The black and white set reminds me of Coco Chanel 
Recipe is from the Donna Hay Simple Essentials: Fruit book.
This is one of the jams we enjoyed last week with Devonshire tea (the other was my favourite – blackberry jam). Strawberries and limes happened to be in season at the same time here so I made the jam with lime juice instead of the more traditional lemon, although lemon is also delicious in the recipe too… Note this recipe usually results in a soft-ish set.
Makes approximately 6 cups
Ingredients
1.5kg strawberries
1 kg sugar
3/4 cup lime juice
Method
I like to sterilise my jars and lids as soon as possible – wash them in hot soapy water, then rinse in hot water. Place them on an oven tray in a cool oven, and turn oven to 110°C. Once the temperature has been reached leave them in for 10 minutes (I just leave the jars in the oven until my jam has reached setting point). Cool the bottles to warm before using (if jars are too hot the fruit may rise to the top).
Before you start cooking, pop a small plate in the freezer (you will use this to test for doneness later).
Wash the strawberries, hull and cut in half. Place the strawberries, sugar and lime juice in a large, heavy-based saucepan and bring to the boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 25-30 minutes or until thickened. While the jam is simmering, use a large metal spoon to skim the foam from the surface.
To test whether the jam is ready, place a spoonful of jam on the plate that’s been chilling in the freezer. Run your finger through the jam. If the line remains, the jam is ready. If it doesn’t, continue cooking and test again at five minute intervals.
Carefully pour the hot jam into hot, sterilised jars.
I like to put the lids on the jars, and put them back into the oven (still at 110°C) for another half hour. Some people recommend instead using a water bath to fully sterilise jars, but personally I have found that for jams (due to the high sugar content) the oven method works just fine – feel free to use whichever method you feel comfortable with.
The jam will keep for approximately 6 months.
Image by Petit Bonheur via Etsy.
What a sweet little hand embroidered hanging – love the sentiment of the quote “Life is made of little pleasures”.
Image via My Galician Garden.
Spent a lot of last week thinking about beautiful little potagers tucked away by the kitchen – a quiet little oasis of calm, freshness and utility. Wouldn’t it be so convenient to pop outside and grab a handful of herbs and a few leaves for a salad… or perhaps a small bunch of flowers to grace the table?
Image by Holly Stalder via Etsy.
Have had this stunning bolero in my favourites list in Etsy for quite a while now… isn’t it just divine?
Image 1 by Vintage French Linens; image 2 by Vintage French Style, both via Etsy.
Lately I’ve been loving the idea of buying hand-embroidered antique French linens. The idea of a young girl monogramming her linens to add to her trousseau for her future life, imbuing each stitch with her hopes and dreams, seems charming. Allowing these treasures to be loved and used once more is, in my opinion, just lovely.
What do you think – would you use antique linens on your table?
Yesterday Sam and I decided to have a lazy Devonshire tea at home with freshly made scones, home-made jams, whipped cream and loose leaf tea. It was so enjoyable we have vowed to do it again soon…
Here’s my recipe for scones, which comes from The Margaret Fulton Cookbook, a book I turn to again and again for reliable baking recipes.
Makes about 12-15 scones.
Ingredients
3 cups self-raising flour
1 tsp salt
60g butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup buttermilk (or milk with 1 tsp vinegar added)
Method
Pre-heat the oven to 230°C.
Sift flour and salt into a bowl and rub in the butter. Make a well in the centre and mix in the milk, adding more milk if necessary to make a soft dough.
Knead, handling the dough as lightly as possible (to prevent the scones from becoming tough), and roll out on a lightly floured board to 2cm thickness. Cut into rounds the size you like (my cutter is 7cm in diameter).
Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and brush the tops with a little milk. Bake for 10-15 minutes.
Transfer to a clean tea towel, and cover until required. Serve warm with butter or jam and whipped cream.
Image by Abigail Brown.
Stumbled across Abigail Brown‘s work the other day and was immediately smitten. Abigail hand sews each intricate piece from her collection of fabrics in her little London studio.
Image by Pillars of Creation via Etsy.
This silk scarf comes from a range of scarves printed with telescope images of galaxies, nebula, and stars. How absolutely breathtaking!
We got home last night from a little trip away to Melbourne to celebrate the wedding of some lovely friends. After spending nearly the whole day travelling (stuck in airports) this is what I made when we got home at around 6pm, feeling far too exhausted to go to the shops (but at the same time feeling like something home cooked).
This is just what happened to be in my pantry at the time, but I would have loved to (and usually do) add some chopped bacon and a couple of sticks of celery. Feel free to add whatever you happen to have in your pantry!
Serves 4
Ingredients
20g butter
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup arborio rice
2/3 cups dry white wine
400g tin diced tomatoes
1 tsp of dried mixed Italian herbs (it you happen to have fresh basil at home, omit this ingredient and instead stir through a small handful of fresh basil at the end)
750g vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
lots of freshly grated Parmesan, to serve
Method
Place the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once butter has melted and is sizzling a little add the onion. Cook, stirring often, until translucent.
Add the arborio rice to the pan and stir to coat the grains of rice. Add the white wine to the pan and simmer until nearly absorbed.
Tip in the diced tomatoes and simmer until nearly absorbed, stirring often.
Pop the bay leaves into the pot and, with your fingers, crumble the mixed Italian herbs in to the mixture.
Add the stock, a ladleful at a time, waiting until each ladleful is absorbed before adding the next one.
After the last ladleful of stock has been absorbed it is ready to eat! Spoon into bowls and scatter with the Parmesan cheese.
