Ideas to transform basic pizza into something special

Herby Butternut squash pizza

You can''t go wrong with pizza, right? Right. But I'm always on the look out for ways to make pizza even righter.

Quick ways to transform normal, standard pizza into something a bit special:

1 - Pimp that base: if you're making the base, add roast butternut squash, garlic or anything you like to the dough.

I think I need to try adding roast beetroot next! Don't you think that would look amazing?

2 - Herb it up: use fresh herbs with your topping of choice. Herbs really bring pizzas to another level.

Try unconventional ones. Thyme goes well with butternut squash and roast peppers. Mint is amazing with feta, olives, spinach and tomatoes. Rosemary and chicken? Delicious.

3 - Vary your sauce: Tomato is traditional and there is nothing wrong with that. But what about a satay sauce topped with chicken and green peppers? Or a Bechamel sauce with leeks and courgette?

I think its time I started expanding my pizza repertoire. Any suggestions on how to make your pizza extra special?

How to: Homemade goats cheese

Homemade goats cheese.
It's seriously easy.
And tastes divine.

You'll need:
Saucepan and spoon
A piece of fine muslin or a cheese cloth Colander and bowl
2 Caps of cider vinegar (or juice of half a lemon)
Chives and wild garlic (or the flavouring of your choice)
Salt
 

- Bring a pint of goats milk to the boil. As soon as it boils remove from the heat.

- Add, bit by bit, the cider vinegar while stirring. This will make the milk separate into curds (the solids) and whey (the remaining liquid). Once it's separated it should look like this: 

- Place the colander in your bowl, and the muslin or cheese cloth over the colander

- Pour the separated milk through the muslin. All the curds will gather in the cloth, while the whey drains through the colander and into the bowl. They whey is ideal for use in scones or soda bread (the acidity helps), or can be used or many other things, so don't throw it away!
 

- Let the curds drain until they reach the consistency you want (I leave mine for about an hour for a soft, spreadable cheese).

- Gather the cheese cloth up around the curds and twist to remove more whey if desired. 

- Transfer to a bowl and add salt and other flavourings to taste. I used wild garlic and chives from our garden.

What this bicycle needs...

On your bike, how much stuff is too much stuff?

For my commute I have the basics: pannier, lights, bell, helmet. My bike is fairly accessory-light.

And that's fine.
But it isn't easy for me.

I'm a hoarder, aesthetically driven and an impulse buyer, so keeping my bike simple and functional is harder than you might think. I just really love stuff.

Every time I browse a bike fashion blog or a bike gadget website, I risk ending up with something else to attach to my bike. One of my favourite cycling bloggers, Alice from Quaint Living, has a handlebar mounted cup holder.

Do I need a handlebar mounted cup holder? No.
Do I want a handlebar mounted cup holder? Apparently so!

The internet is a dangerous places - I work pretty hard not to bankrupt myself.

I'm such a Mrs Armitage:

"Mrs Armitage sets off for a quiet cycle with her faithful dog, Breakspear, but she just can't help thinking of ways to improve her bicycle. Before very long she has added three very loud horns, a bucket of water to wash her hands, a complete tool kit. And by the time she has also added a seat for Breakspear, two umbrellas, a cassette player and a mouth-organ, Mrs Armitage is riding a very eye-catching contraption. But it is when she finally adds the mast and sail, that Mrs Armitage really runs into trouble. . ."
 
With a whole world of beautiful bike accessories out there, how much is too much?
Have you ever seen an over-accessorised bike?
Where is the line between basic:handy:luxury:overload?

How to: White soda bread to restore the soul

 Bread makes me feel good about myself. Once I've baked bread I can open my door, hold my loaf on high and declare to the street:

''I created this! It's beautiful! What have you done with your time that's half as good as this?"

Bread restores the soul. It's hearty, its comforting and, most importantly, its that little bit tricky, so once you've mastered it you can feel like a proud, productive member of society.

As far as I'm concerned you're winning at life if you can make bread.

The problem is that bread isn't actually tricky at all. Some bread is really easy. A doddle in fact.

Soda bread for instance. Quick, easy, tasty. This recipe makes a small loaf, and can be quite dense.

300g white flour (I sometimes use 100g of either spelt/wholemeal/white bread flour mixed with 200g of normal white flour for variation)

Large pinch of salt

2 tsps of baking powder

Approximately 200-250ml of buttermilk/whey/milk (sour if possible - the acid helps)

- Pre-heat oven and baking tray to 230°C. It's good to have the baking tray hot too. 

- Weigh out the dry ingredients and mix in a large bowl.

- Add most of your chosen liquid and mix with a fork until a sticky dough is formed, adding more liquid as required.

- Transfer dough from bowl to a floured service and shape into a round loaf. Place on the baking tray and score a deepish cross into the top of the loaf.

- Bake for 15-25 minutes. When you remove the loaf from the oven you can either leave it to cool as is, or wrap it in a damp tea towel to form a softer crust.

- Eat, enjoy and be proud.

I've spent many an other wise miserable evening eating this bread straight from the oven, dripping in butter and drinking red wine. I can highly recommend it to lift your spirits.

Inspiration strikes: Fever Ray and Shaman

Have you heard the eponymous Fever Ray album? It's bloody good.

I adore When I Grow Up. I wake up to it ever morning, and the video is mesmerising.



After watching the video repeatedly for days on end I decided I needed more shamanic, witch doctory attire in my life.

So I got stenciling and ended up with this motif on a t-shirt:


I'm pretty pleased with it, especially the feathers. I also love the way the antlers reach right onto my shoulders.

I suppose it's kind of gruesome?
What do you think?

What one thing could you not live without this winter?

What is the one thing that really makes winter for you? The one thing that you really love and look forward to?

For me it's probably wool: being snuggled up in heaps of scarves, socks, tights, jumpers and gloves.
It may not be all that fashionable, but there is little that pleases me more than being snug while outside on a cold, crisp winter's day.

At least I didn't think it was fashionable until I saw Missoni's A/W collection:



In preparation for autumn squirrels will be burying nuts, but I will be hunting for scarves! Many, many scarves.

Of haws and thorns

Has the Natural History Museum identified your parasite yet?

My commute to work is generally spent chatting to my fellow car sharers

How's the knitting?
Do you want to talk a three hour lunch break today to walk to the Crowmarsh Battle Barns?

But recently I've been distracted by searching the hedgerows for a sign.

I'm looking for the tiny spots of acid green that means the hawthorn is coming out. If the hawthorn is starting to grow that means spring is just around the corner.

Hawthorn is one of my favourite things in the world.
It's green leaves are a joy to see in the otherwise brown hedgerows. Not to mention you can eat the young leaves, they make a great addition to salads and are one of the earliest spring wild foods to be found. Now that sounds like an excellent sign of spring to me.

We're nearly out of the darkness.