Goodbye to the Noughties by Dominique Godfrey

Let's wave to the noughties
As they say their goodbyes,
When Facebook was born
and Michael Jackson dies.

The rise and fall of Britney
Oh what a drama,
Climate change and botox
and don't forget Obama.

9/11 tragedy,
Big Brother, Doctor Who,
Everyone joined Twitter
and avoided catching swine flu.

The Oyster Card and You Tube
The Wag and the Chav
Carbon footprint, Cheryl Cole
and up to date sat nav.

Flat screens and Ugg Boots,
Sienna boho chic
Wind farms and bags for life
a world of Sky+ freaks.

SuBo and Tsunami,
The search for Madeleine McCann
Property boom, credit crunch
Google mania began.

Simon Cowell, Brangelina
Texting and O.M.G.
The smoking ban and global warming
Our promise to be carbon free.

London bombing, Northern Rock
Winehouse and size zero
Hybrid cars and pictures of Mars
Russell Brand became our hero.

Kate Moss and Katrina
The iPod and Iraq,
England wins the rugby
and Federer makes his mark.

The Beckhams and the Euro
Topshop, Playstation 3
Wikipedia, Ebay
and blogging all about me!

All of this and much much more
It really has been great,
We leave you now for a new decade
I really cannot wait!

Ocado

The absolute worst part of Christmas for me has to be trawling around the supermarket with a million other people all fighting over tubs of brandy butter and the best Brussels. This year I decided very early on that I would not be a part of that pandemonium and very cleverly ordered my shopping from Ocado in, wait for it ..... September!!

However difficult it was trying to predict exactly what I would need 3 months in advance, I did it in the comfort of my own home and even with the £10 delivery charge it was worth every penny. The price of the shop came to £254 which I think is about right for a Christmas shop and I am confident that I have ordered everything I need.

My relief at pre-ordering was confirmed even more so today when a trip to my local Budgens for a packet of butter turned into a 40 minute obstacle course and fight for the check out!

I am so looking forward to a nice polite delivery man bringing all of my shopping downstairs into my kitchen this evening in clearly marked bags for cupboard/frozen/chilled and being able to spend the rest of the evening relaxing instead of experiencing a near coronary!

PS. Above are some very snowy cup cakes I made this morning whilst still snowed it!

Snow

Louis's Christmas party at nursery was a great excuse to cook up another batch of mince pies which were very well received even by the children who are notoriously sceptical about the little pies.

As you know, the house was supposed to be filled with hungry relatives this weekend but due to the incredible snow fall they couldn't make it and so the five of us have been slowly devouring everything I made last week including my Christmas cake which if I say so myself is absolutely delicious.

I have already distributed seven pieces to various neighbours but it hasn't even been dented. I am a bit worried that I will end up eating most of it and delicious as it is this would not be good. I think I will have to offer a piece to everyone who comes to the door as a festive offering!

Matthew and I are off out tonight to what should of been our family Christmas meal, it will be lovely to enjoy somebody else's cooking for a change but sad not to be sharing it with those we love.

Oink Oink!

I literally haven't stopped this week. In anticipation of soon to be arriving relatives and the Christmas festivities my kitchen has been a conveyor belt of mince pies, cranberry and white chocolate cookies, girdlebuster pie, flapjacks, chocolate cup cakes and christmas cake most of which is tucked away safely in the deep freeze to avoid being eaten before the weekend!

My Christmas cake is finally complete and I am pretty chuffed with the result. After some deliberation on how to decorate it in the end I opted for a crisp white bow with a few adorning holly leaves. It is definitely my biggest achievement in the kitchen to date and i'm so excited about actually getting to taste it over the coming days. I hope that it will not disappoint.

It's hard to know when to stop baking and eating at this time of year, and so I have decided to continue indefinitely! Inspired by one of my favourite female icons, I leave you with an appropriate quote; 'Never eat more than you can lift' (Miss Piggy). Happy eating!!

To have or have not?

I have been continuing my quest to make the perfect cup cake. After pondering my own questions I decided that I would try and double layer the cases to avoid burning them and use an ice cream scoop to ensure equal amounts for each cake. The result was mixed but I think I am definitely getting there.

In order to complete my quest, several new tools were required and so a trip to my favourite kitchen shop was scheduled. Armed and ready I got to work and had the most fun decorating them! As you can see today's cakes are terrifically festive and colourful and are just screaming out to be eaten. I myself have managed to avoid a single grain of icing sugar passing my lips all day proving that it is possible for me to have my cake and not eat it!

Holly Cup Cakes

After a hard day's childcare, I decided to wind down with a spot of cake baking this evening, going against my vow to never bake mid week. Another reason is because I have ordered various sugarcraft paraphernalia recently which I haven't had a chance to test out so tonight seemed like a good opportunity.

I stuck to the cup cake variety of cakes, mainly because they are quick and easy and everybody likes them, also it's not so much the cake making I am interested in as the cake decorating, after all if I am hoping to sell my cakes then they must look amazing as well as taste amazing!

I decided on holly leaves for the decoration as these seemed like a simple place to start and spent half an hour cutting out tiny green leaves and rolling little red berries to put on top. Using royal icing I generously smeared the icing over the cakes laying the holly and berries gently on top.

I am pleased with the result however, there are a few questions that I need to find the answers to; a) how can I stop my muffin cases going brown in the oven? b) how can I make sure the cakes come out flat and not with a big hill on the top, and c) how can I add the icing without it looking so messy!

The answer to c) I think is to start piping my icing out instead of using the spatula, something I will have to put to the test next time. If anyone has any tips on a) or b), answers on a postcard please ...

Muffin Top

Tonight I made my first 'real' curry, and surprise suprise it's taste surpassed any shop bought alternative that I have had in the past. The combination of free range chicken, sweet potatos, red lentils and peas was a symphony on the tastebuds and I hereby swear to make only home made from here in!

The amount of sugary treats consumed over the weekend has left me with a less than desirable muffin top and I am starting to resemble a sumo wrestler, not good as the party season is upon us and I have several pretty dresses to squeeze into over the next few weeks.

This is most definitely the negative aspect of my new found hobbie. I have had to put a ban on any more cake cooking until the weekend and am trying with all my might to resist the left over mince pies and cup cakes which have been giving me evils all day!

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1555/chicken-sweet-potato-and-coconut-curry

T Rex

In my experience you either love or hate mince pies. I myself am a lover, not surprising as they are first cousins of the cake. Over the years I have enjoyed a number of different shop bought mince pies; lattice topped, deep filled, puff pastry, laced with brandy, spiked with port, the list goes on.

This year, unsurprisingly, I have made my own and they are the best I have ever tasted. Admittedly, I bought ready made mince meat but I followed Nigella's recipe for the pastry to the letter, combining flour, butter and an interesting new ingredient called Trex which turns out to be vegetable fat and not an ancient dinosaur or glam rock band.

After perfecting my pastry, all my play dough practice with Louis was put into use as I cut out the pie cases and delicate star lids. 15 minutes later, fresh out of a hot oven the mince meat was bubbling over and the pastry was light, fluffy and gently browning.

Finished with a dusting of icing sugar, the final ingredients were a swiftly boiled kettle and a willing husband. His reaction was undeniable and so was mine, the tantalizing star topped treats were here to stay!

Advent

Today is the 1st of December and the beginning of that lovely time of year they call advent. The next 3 and a half weeks are definitely among my favourite of the year, filled with excitement and frenzy as everyone prepares for the festivities that lie ahead.

To enter into the spirit of things I hung our family advent garland for the very first time, a tradition that I hope will prevail for many years to come. I loathe commercial chocolate advent calendars which have no connection to Christmas and hope my charming alternative will please the children just as much.

The last few days have seen a lull in my culinary journey and I have had to accept that it is going to be impossible for me to cook or bake something new everyday. There are just not enough hours in the day to do everything I would like and unfortunately making cakes is not a top priority. Having said that, I did purchase Delia's new Christmas bible yesterday and have already dogeared a few gems.

As we lit our advent candle for the first time this evening, I was filled with excitement over what the next 25 days will bring, the decorations, the lights, the smells, the music and most of all the tastes of Christmas!