CREATIVE CAMPDEN WEEKEND- A SUCCESS

This weekend was the Creative Weekend in Chipping Campden. 30 different creative people or groups joined together and opened their showrooms, helt talk, had workshops etc. All put together by Arthur Cunyngham and his wife Rachel, Paula Lingard etc...
I was part of it and talked in the Old Court Room about my work as a Freelance Journalist and Interior Designer. The idea is to make people understand that Campden is a very creative place and put on the map as Creative Campden for the future...watch this space for more!
Above, Liz Alchin and Christina Kingsmill shared Christinas courtyard garden as a showroom

PURPLE RAIN at FORMEX

A few weeks ago I went to a gift and interior design show in Stockholm. Formex, has become one of the most interesting interior shows in Scandinavia these last couple of years.
Not much had happened since the last show in February but what felt new was the colour purple, from deep purple to lilac. A trend that is shared with fashion at me moment....Mauve mixed with black and warm grey at Mateus (www.mateus.se).
Mixed with greens in Mairos new fabric that will be shown at Chelsea Design Week next week.
Stripes is one of Linums strong patterns, this Autumn in purple and green....(www.linum.se)
At one of the cafes at the fair the press breakfast was presented in gift boxes. Inside was luxuriously packaged yogurt, sandwich and brightly coloured macaroons. Not so environmentally friendly but beautiful and different.
Purple mixed with the blues at Paradisverkstaden (www.paradisverkstaden.se).
Paradisverkstaden is best known for its ceramics...here the latest "forms" inspired by nature.
From purple nearly over to pink at Guzzini (www.guzzini.com).
Deep, deep purple in table linen and china from Himla (www.himla.se)

SLOW ROAST SHOULDER OF LAMB

Coming back from Sweden started a new season with local lamb and game. I started by buying half a lamb from the local pig- and lamb farm (near Ebrington in The Cotswolds, UK). To slow cook shoulder of lamb is not only very easy it is absolutely gorgeous. Takes four hours so you need to plan your Sunday dinner....
This is what you need.

One shoulder of lamb (lammbog)
4 sprigs of rosemary
1 whole garlic
Olive oil
Flaky salt
Freshly milled pepper

Blast the oven. Sprinkle olive oil in a large roasting pan. Crush the garlic cloves (with skin on) and place half of them together with 2 sprigs of rosemary in the pan. "Massage" olive oil into the lamb shoulder and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Put the rest of the garlic and rosemary on top of the shoulder. Cover the pan tightly with aluminium foil and put into the hot oven. Turn the heat down to 170 degrees Celsius and leave it in for four hours!
Serve with mashed root vegetables like potatoes mixed with carrots and parsnips, and greens like spinach or broccoli. Add some red wine to the pan and make a nice juice. Lovely!

FLOWERY BUNS

If you saw the progam with Jaime Oliver about Stockholm and the Stockholm archipelago you will recognise this recipie but he got a bit wild with it. This is the more traditional wheatbread/buns but in modern disguise with flowery baking trays and cases from the www.kalasform.se.


You will need

150 g melted butter
500 ml milk
50 g fresh yeast or dried yeast (follow the instructions on the package)
100 ml sugar
1200-1500 ml plain flower
1 pinch of salt
butter for the filling
ground cardemom for the filling
blueberry jam also for the filling
1 egg for glacing
decorations

Heat the milk with the butter to 37 degrees celsius (41 if you are using dried yeast mix it with the flower) and add the fresh yeast, sugar and salt. Mix in the flower until it has a soft and shiny look at will detach itself easily from the bowl. Work it with your hands until soft and shiny. Leave in the bowl and let rise under a teatowel for approx 30 min.
Work the dough on the baking table and divide into two parts, roll each part iout into a rectangular approx 2 mm thick. Spread soft butter on the dough. Sprinkle over sugar and cardemom or the blueberry jam. Roll and cut into two pieces if you are doing loafs or 2 cm thick "buns" if you are doing individual buns. Alternatively just fold the filled dough over once. Cut into 5 cm strips and twist and knot it into a bun! Easy! Put the loaf/buns into the cases and leave to rise again for another 30 minutes. Glace with a beaten egg, decorate and bake for 10 minutes on 225 degrees celsius (buns) or until browned. The loafs take a bit longer, up to 15 minutes.

TIME TO PICK MUSHROOMS

It has been a very hot summer in Stockholm (Sweden), especially in the archipelago where I have spent my holidays. We were fearing that there would therefor not be any mushrooms growing this year. But during the last ten days a lot of rain has come down and it looks promising...Just look at this baby "Karl Johan" mushroom or Porcini as the Italians calles it. I have found a little "goldmine" of them and will let them grow a bit more before I will pick them, unless somebody else is there before me! Will be back later today or tomorrow with a mushrooms risotto recipie etc...

AMARETTO PARFAIT delicious dessert

Last night we had a dinnerparty with some friends from and on our fantastic archipelago island Gåsö....

We had freshly boiled beetroot and goat cheese for a starter (again). Filet steak and chantarelle risotto as a main and amaretto parfait with black sugar and wild rasberries (picked outside our door!) as a dessert. Here is the recepie for the lovely homemade icecream:

Will make 6 portions


3 egg youlks
1 dl (100 ml) sugar
3 dl (300 ml) whipping cream
0,75 dl (75 ml) amaretto liqueur
sugar and rasperries for decoration

Whip the egg youlks with the sugar until it is fluffy and creamy. Whip the cream, it should be quite firm. Mix the eggmix with the whipped cream. Add the amaretto and stir gently. Pour into ramequins and decorate with sugar and rasperries or something similar. Freeze.
Let them thore for about 20 minutes before serving. Delicious....

BANANA CAKE AND NEW OUTDOOR FURNITURE FROM IKEA

This summer I am trying to improve my ability to bake. Two weeks ago my English friend Rosie taught be how to maka Banana Cake. We had some nearly overripe bananas and it inspirered her to find this recipe. Rosie use to live in Canada and it was there she picked this recipie up.
So of course it has to be calles;

ROSIE´S BANANA CAKE

Here is what you need:

225 g (4 dl) selfraising flour or
225 g (4 dl) plain flour and
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
100 g butter, room temperature
150 g (2 dl) sugar
450 g overripe bananas (3-4 bananas)
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs

Start by putting the oven on at 180 degrees Celsius (170 if you have a fan oven).
Grease a baking tin and line with breadcrumbs.
Stir the butter with the sugar. Mix in the flour, eggs and salt. Mash the bananas separately, be gentle so that they do not get to watery. Mix with the rest of the dough.
Pour into the baking tin and bake for approx 1 1/2 hours. Check after an hour and if the cake look too brown, cover with some tin foile...
Serve with yogurt, crème fraiche, ice cream or whipped cream. Yummy!

We went to Ikea this week, to the biggest one in the world in Kungens Kurva (the Kings Bend) outside Stockholm. The founder, Invar Kamprad was very inspirered by the Guggenheim Museum in New York when this was first built in the 60-ies. You will know what I mean if you go there...We bought some nice wicker chairs for our "lounge deck" in Gåsö (Stockholm Archipelago) and some more black tables, "Noresund". And we "invigde" (inaugarted) them with coffee and banana cake!