Presents

Just some of them, the ones that haven't been used, consumed or spent. I was very lucky.

1. Neal's Yard Remedy products.
2. Books, hot chocolate, the best mug, and new earphones for my i-pod
3. A fish eye lens for my Diana camera. I am waiting for the first film to be developed.
4. The perfect necklaces, The Hound was actually for my birthday, but it certainly deserves another mention.

What did you get? Lovely things? Are you ready for work tomorrow?

We are not actually opening the shop fully until Friday, but there are brides to be seen and a wedding.

Pot luck

On New Year's Eve we made passage to The East. To Mr Naylor's for a pot luck supper.

We started with Champagne and sloe gin, and proceeded to pistachio soup. I brought beef in red wine with juniper dumplings, and chicken in white wine - it was all so deliciously Abigail's party, Mr Naylor roasted up potatoes and a celeriac gratin, i overcooked the broccoli.

Dessert was a crumble, a mango and blueberry shortbread and Mr Naylor wheeled out his roulade. Then there was cheese, and chocolates, and wine and more champagne, and then Jools Holland and an unrecognisable Kylie Minogue.

It was perfect, apart from the broccoli.

The chicken also made for good leftovers.

It was a hybrid recipe, as they always are.

Ingredients:
Some chicken in bits
Some white wine
Mushrooms
Herbage
Butter with truffles in it
Truffle oil

Brown the chicken, transfer to a casserole dish, deglaze the pan with the wine and pour over the chicken. Saute the mushrooms in butter until golden, and at the last minute add a dollop of the truffle butter. Add to the chicken with some bay leaves and thyme or other herbage, season.
Cook in the oven at 150C for an hour and a half.
Pour the cooking liquor into a pan, reduce add in some double cream and a spoonful of mustard.
Place the chicken on a fancy platter, pour over the reduced sauce and a few drops of truffle oil.

Serve with good company and sparkling conversation and champagne.

2010 - 2011

There was to be a look back at the year post, where we would recount tales from all the things that happened, but you know, because you were there with us.

and if you weren't, well stick around for 2011, it has the promise of being a fine year.

Also it is because i am up to eyeballs in juniper and thyme dumplings.

I am even getting out the fancy china tonight, Orla Kiely has nothing on Myott's "Malaga" collection.

Do you have resolutions? Mine list is long, be more organised, do more exercise, wear more hats - the usual things. I also intend to make time to be more creative in a non-floral way. I have stocked up on film for my camera collection, and dusted off the charcoals and watercolours.

and then there is the book. It is coming this year, quite soon.....

May your year in 2011 be full of happiness and the odd gin.

Do we have any marscapone?

said The Captain at 5.30pm on Christmas Day

"Of course we do!" Said The Mother Hen, somewhat indignant that her husband would call into question the contents of her Christmas larder.

The Mother Hen is Margot. Christmas comes in a van. Fast forward to 6 min 50 secs.

The marscapone was for the seafood dressing, an unusual and delicious inclusion from a recipe The Captain sourced.

Then The Other Miss Pickering delighted us with a Salted caramel chocolate tart. The recipe for which she has kindly given me. Be warned it is addictive, and you will need some strong espresso to go with.

Pastry
175g Plain flour
15g Icing sugar
90g Salted butter, chilled and cubed
1 Egg yolk

Filling
300g Golden caster sugar
250ml Double cream
200g Salted butter
150g Dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)
¼ tsp Sea salt

Make the pastry,line a tart tin and bake blind.
Heat the sugar and a tablespoon of water in a pan and heat without stirring until it turns amber.
Add of the 200ml double cream, stir in 175g of the butter and simmer for a few minutes.
Pour into the pastry case and chill.
Melt the chocolate and remaining cream and butter in a pan, pour over the tart and sprinkle on the sea salt.
Chill for a few hours.

What of the turkey? Well, it is now residing in the freezer along with the bread sauce, 3 different types of stuffing, the pudding and various other accompaniments.

We will do Christmas when all family members are well and not residing in an Isolation ward. The importance of family has never been more prominent.

Like a court jester, The Hound raised spirits by donning a number of outfits. There are more.

Like a flower

waiting to bloom
Like a light bulb in a dark room
I'm just sitting here waiting for you
To come home and turn me on.

Garlands and table centres.

If "finding the time to take decent enough photographs of Christmas flowers" was a GCSE subject.

I would get a C+ an improvement on last year, but could try harder.

Was it wonderful? Did you get presents?

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

To each and everyone of you.

From the bottom of our hearts we thank you for reading, commenting, sharing and supporting us throughout 2010.

Love as always

Miss P. and The Boy Wonder
xxx

We'll be back with garlands and flowers later, you haven't heard the last of us in 2010 just yet.

x

'Twas a few days before Christmas

and Miss P. and The Boy Wonder were busying themselves with weddings and making garlands, and eating chestnuts, and chocolate, and marshmallows, and toast, and cake. When it is minus outside the calorific value of all food is halved.

The wreath was of course for Mr Naylor the flower farmer.

The poodles? Well once upon a time Mr Naylor made comment on the sport that is competitive dog grooming, and Poodle Pam took umbrage, quite a lot of umbrage as it happens.

A Christmas wreath for a blogger

It's a Christmas Quiz.

Which "blogger" did i make this festive decoration for?

74 bonus points for knowing the significance of the poodles.

Christmas chez Miss P. and a call from America

I get my fill of spruce at the shop. Home is a calm oasis.

Fairy lights in the trees by the bed, and some old roses in a Coronation mug. That's all, the only room in the house that ever get's used at this time of year.

Making something for myself is just another thing to do

The blond blur in the 3rd image is none other than The Hound. A Hound with a belly full of 500g of the finest Serrano ham purchased from the Spanish food stall on the market.

I could have cried, he had obviously very carefully unwrapped the wax paper and feasted whilst my back was turned.

Just as the tears were welling, the phone rang, it was Small but Charming Jane, all the way from Virginia in the U.S of A. Can you imagine? She rang to say "chin up" "keep going" I was bowled over, completely bowled over. Now i know what she sounds like.

Friendship is the most marvellous of things.

The thick and thin of it all

Skinny wreaths the size of hula hoops, an adaptation of the original pink peppercorn and spanish moss number.

Thick wreaths dripping with all manner of edible things for The Stamford Hen. Orange slices, chillis and toadstools......

Also our pails of hyacinth have been given an super Christmassy scattering of snowflakes.

A glimpse of the chaos

Urns are filled to bursting with berries, spruce, and eucalyptus. The scent of pine, cinnamon, paper whites and hyacinth is intoxicating.

Chilli peppers and our old friend Rosa Rannuncular are firm favourites.

I keep gazing at the potted jasmines, the white pots, green moss and delicate trails of scented flower are an oasis of calm.

and the mistletoe has arrived by the crate load.

I am powered by adrenalin, i keep saying yes.

A 6ft garland by Saturday? Of course.

We will be open everyday now until Christmas, The Hound is readying the camp beds.

Fairy lights

Mother nature styley

Eating like a celebrity

They are always banging on about staying thin by eating litle and often.

They probably mean salads, and not my Grandmother's shortbread biscuits topped with Caramac, or a walnut tart from Hambleton Bakery, or hot buttered sourdough with chicken liver pate.

Berries

My obsession with foliage reaches new heights at Christmas, I am all about the berries, we have 7 different varieties of berry today. It's like Baskin Robbins, only with berries not ice cream.

If like me you would be tempted by the pink ones, that look like small pumpkins dancing, don't be. One look at them, and the berries Cha-Cha-Cha onto the floor leaving you with bare sticks.

Very expensive bare sticks.