Those of you that pop in now and again will have noticed the vast amount of newbies we have on the staff. The "summer" hols mean that we are rushed off our feet and our new Uni students are a welcome breath of fresh air, never mind really useful. In this lovely weather we have been discussing staff past and present and the funny moments we have had over the years. Often Jodie or I will cry "That has to be quote of the day" and the story is resigned to the "for a rainy day" file. As we have a few rainy days I thought I would share a couple of quotes with you.
Tables on the balcony are numbered 1-6 from the steps. On asking a waitress to take a sandwich to Balcony two, I got the reply " But we only have one balcony"
On learning that we employed two Emily's one summer, Emily B asked "What's the other Emily called?"
On restocking the chocolate bars, I was confronted with a waitress that informed me that all the Bounty bars were broken.
A member of staff was showing a newbie how to clean the loos. She went through the chemicals and then stressed that the sanitary bins needed to be emptied. She asked him to then clean the Gents and he asked if he should clean the sanitary bins in there too.
On working the BMC rally- formerly British Leyland cars built in the 50's, 60's and 70's Jodie looked at the old R reg burger van and said that surely cars THAT old shouldn't be allowed on the road.
"Do you buy bread from the butchers as well?"
Many members of staff answer the phone, in my office, in my cafe, then call me and say "It's for you, I don't know who it is" (Always helpful!)
"Will you do the barbecue indoors if it's raining?" I'm thinking the insurance on lit coals in a wooden building would be quite high!
"The ocean is looking rough today- is it a sea or an ocean?" What's the cafe called- does that give you a clue?
On a really quiet morning where we had not seen any people at all, we convinced -almost- a member of staff that there had been some dramatic event and we were the only people left on the planet. Discussion ensued and on being asked what he'd do if he was the only person left he said excitedly "I'd go and rob a bank"
It's comforting to think that in our dotage these are the people that will be looking after us and running the country.
Wednesday 29 July 2009
Wednesday 1 July 2009
Fruit cake
I have been asked to publish this recipe as it is really lovely for wedding and christening cakes because it is not too heavy, and very good for afternoon tea and seems popular with the caravaners and ramblers.
It is a recipe from the Lake District. When the trade routes first opened the wool from the area was shipped all over the world. The ships bought back spices and sugar. One of the first spices to get to this country was pepper, and was used in all sorts of recipes, and although we now use it mainly for savoury dishes it does go extrordinarily well with fruit.
Westmoorland Pepper Cake
300ml water
125g demarara sugar
425g mixed dried fruit
75g glacee cherries- preferably natural
125g butter
pinch salt (optional, if you use salted butter, you really don't need it)
--------------------------------------------
300g plain flour
2 heaped teaspoons baking powder
1teaspoon mixed spice
Quarter teaspoon nutmeg
Quarter teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 egg
Put all of the top set of ingrediants in a pan. Bring to the boil- be careful at the beginning so the sugar doesn't catch the bottom. Turn the heat down to simmer, and cook for 20-30 minutes. The fruit will all plump up and your kitchen will smell of Christmas!
Let the fruit and juice cool while you weigh out the rest and line a 10inch tin. Put all the bottom set of ingrediants in a large bowl. When the fruit is cool- blood tempreture will be fine, add it to the large bowl and stir well.
Pour into a lined tin and cook at 325F for about 2 hours. If it looks like it is getting too brown on the top, cover the tin with foil, greaseproof paper or newspaper.
To check if it is cooked insert in the middle of the cake a skewer, or a kebab stick. If it comes out gooey then it is still raw. If it's clean, then it's done.
Tips
~Rather than just using normal dried fruit, add some chopped dates, figs, apricots etc. I add the amount of fruit and cherries up together, then make that amount up with a good mixture.
~You can also add nuts- walnuts go really well. Take out some fruit and replace the amount with nuts. Don't boil them though as it's good to have a bit of crunch and texture. You can decorate the top with pecans or walnuts, just before you cook the cake. We do this so our customers know it contains nuts.
~To get the shiny finish you see on television fruit cake, heat some apricot jam, add a little hot water and brush it over the top of the warm cake.
~The cake can be frozen, and it keeps well- as do most fruit cakes, in a sealed container.
It is a recipe from the Lake District. When the trade routes first opened the wool from the area was shipped all over the world. The ships bought back spices and sugar. One of the first spices to get to this country was pepper, and was used in all sorts of recipes, and although we now use it mainly for savoury dishes it does go extrordinarily well with fruit.
Westmoorland Pepper Cake
300ml water
125g demarara sugar
425g mixed dried fruit
75g glacee cherries- preferably natural
125g butter
pinch salt (optional, if you use salted butter, you really don't need it)
--------------------------------------------
300g plain flour
2 heaped teaspoons baking powder
1teaspoon mixed spice
Quarter teaspoon nutmeg
Quarter teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 egg
Put all of the top set of ingrediants in a pan. Bring to the boil- be careful at the beginning so the sugar doesn't catch the bottom. Turn the heat down to simmer, and cook for 20-30 minutes. The fruit will all plump up and your kitchen will smell of Christmas!
Let the fruit and juice cool while you weigh out the rest and line a 10inch tin. Put all the bottom set of ingrediants in a large bowl. When the fruit is cool- blood tempreture will be fine, add it to the large bowl and stir well.
Pour into a lined tin and cook at 325F for about 2 hours. If it looks like it is getting too brown on the top, cover the tin with foil, greaseproof paper or newspaper.
To check if it is cooked insert in the middle of the cake a skewer, or a kebab stick. If it comes out gooey then it is still raw. If it's clean, then it's done.
Tips
~Rather than just using normal dried fruit, add some chopped dates, figs, apricots etc. I add the amount of fruit and cherries up together, then make that amount up with a good mixture.
~You can also add nuts- walnuts go really well. Take out some fruit and replace the amount with nuts. Don't boil them though as it's good to have a bit of crunch and texture. You can decorate the top with pecans or walnuts, just before you cook the cake. We do this so our customers know it contains nuts.
~To get the shiny finish you see on television fruit cake, heat some apricot jam, add a little hot water and brush it over the top of the warm cake.
~The cake can be frozen, and it keeps well- as do most fruit cakes, in a sealed container.
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