Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Good food, friends, family, and a little fabrication

That was my Easter, a million times better than the last one.


Only in retrospect can I appreciate how truly wretched I was feeling at this time last year, still numb with shock from Boak's untimely death, surrounded by towers of removalist boxes, tearfully watching pieces of precious (to me) furniture leaving my home in the hands of eBay buyers, and rattling around in a large rectory with draughts, dust and overflowing drains, the collateral damage from major bathroom renovations.


As an unashamed non-cook these days, I can't believe how much food came from my kitchen over the course of the four days of Easter.

First was a crockpot of pumpkin soup, my contribution to our church's Maundy Thursday supper. With the help of Glad Wrap under the lid and my 'old lady trolley' I managed to wheel it down to the car and get it there without losing a drop in transit!


Easter Day's morning tea at church called for something sweet, and with Anzac Day approaching I baked a batch of our Aussie favourite, Anzac biscuits.


My sister and I have started a tradition of bringing afternoon tea to our mother on Easter Day, and this year our brother Phil, and sister-in-law Judy, joined us. My other brother, David, was unavoidably detained on Mount Everest :-)



The Easter Bunny even put in an appearance. 


Someone might have gone a little crazy with the yellow chickens - and there wasn't a child in sight!


More of my Anzac biscuits and an Apple Sour Cream Slice were my contributions to the fare. I just had to share this picture of one of my two pretty Prue Trollope oven mitts, a housewarming gift from Di B last year and pressed into service in a big way this weekend.


The Apple Sour Cream Slice is my easy, go-to recipe whenever something sweet is called for. Its crunchy biscuity base combines well with the soft, creamy apple topping and as it cooks the aroma of nutmeg wafts through the house in such a comforting way. 


On Monday I made it again, this time in a gluten free version to take to an informal dinner party. I'll post the recipe shortly.

In between all this cooking (and eating) I managed to put the finishing touches to my knitted Peppa Pig. Appropriate, eh?



To top it off the sun shone for an Indian summer, and the wonders of modern horticultural trickery gave us potted golden daffodils blooming in autumn.


How was your Easter?

5 comments:

  1. Another beautiful blog Di. Can't believe the kitchen efforts. Well done. So beautiful to have a special afternoon tea with your Mum. And made even more special having Philip & JUdy come down to join the party. What a long way you have come since last Easter - incredible hard work sorting, downsizing, finding a new home and moving into it.

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  2. What a lovely Easter for you Di, as you say so much better than last year. The photo of you and your sister with your Mum is fabulous, such a nice photo. Peppa Pig is adorable. xx

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  3. I was going to ask if you could post the recipe for the apple cake and I see you said you would - now what about the cookies - Anzac biscuits - they look good too. Wonderful family that you have. You have come a long way - I believe I found your blog right around the time you were moving and your story of new beginnings reeled me in and I have read you since.

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  4. I am so happy for you. I wish you a lot of happiness and time to enjoy your creative side. Everything looks wonderful. I also loved the pictures of the ladies on your previous post. SO nice to see some familiar faces having fun together and working for a good cause. I also made Anzac "cookies" this week for a Bee luncheon. I love them; and shared them with friends that are allergic to eggs. Cheers.

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  5. Such a lovely post, Di. I remember the challenges you faced, and can't believe that a year has passed already. But it likely doesn't feel that it has passed quickly for you. Yet, what a different lifestyle you lead now. And you're cooking! I'm terribly impressed by that, and hope you didn't feel the resentment I would likely have felt, for needing to cook for someone else. You're very generous with your time. The slice looks too wonderful. But the best picture is of your family. I love it! Such a handsome group of people. Mountain climber forgiven, you are blessed to be able to spend time with them. Thankfully, I will soon be doing the same with my family. Though I don't know how "blessed" I'll feel when all five grandies are together and underfoot for six days!

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