You will need . . .
1kg of vegetables, peeled, such as pumpkin, butternut squash, carrots, parsnips, sweet potatoes, shallots
5–6 cloves of garlic unpeeled
3 tablespoons olive oil
handful of fresh herbs (sage, thyme and rosemary work well), washed but kept whole
¼ teaspoon of dried chilli flakes (optional)
salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius, 400 Fahrenheit or gas mark 6.
Chop all the vegetables (except the shallots – they can stay whole) into chunks, keeping the carrots slightly smaller as they take longer to cook.
Tip all the vegetables into a large plastic freezer bag, add the oil, herbs, garlic cloves, salt and black pepper to taste and squelch it around to mix in all the flavours. Leave to marinate for 2 hours.
Pour into a non-stick roasting tray and roast for 40 minutes in the pre-heated oven. Adjust the seasoning before serving piping hot.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
When my daughters have had a tough day at school (e.g. cross country running or French tests!), I make a batch of these for them to tuck straight into as soon as they come home. These really are better if you can chill the cookie dough overnight, although you can get away with less in an emergency!
You will need . . .
120g salted butter (preferably at room temperature)
75g light brown sugar
75g caster sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
240g plain flour
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
150g chocolate, roughly chopped (your choice of milk, dark or white)
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius, 350 Fahrenheit or gas mark 4.
Beat together the butter and sugars until just combined using an electric hand mixer or wooden spoon. First add the vanilla extract, then the egg, and beat well. Sift together the flour and bicarbonate of soda, then add to the mixture, stirring until it just comes together into a dough. Fold in the chocolate pieces, then chill overnight, or for at least an hour if you’re pressed for time.
Lightly grease two baking sheets, form the dough into 15 golf-ball sized pieces and space them well apart. Bake for about 13–15 minutes, until golden, but not browned.
Let the cookies cool on the tray for a couple of minutes, before moving to a wire rack to cool completely. Feed to those who need immediate cheering up.
Coming February 2015, a charming and funny new four-part series from Cathy Bramley . . .
Appleby Farm
Freya Moorcroft has wild red hair, mischievous green eyes, a warm smile and a heart of gold. She’s been happy working at the café round the corner from Ivy Lane allotments and her romance with her new boyfriend is going well, she thinks, but a part of her still misses the beautiful rolling hills of her Cumbrian childhood home: Appleby Farm.
Then a phone call out of the blue and a desperate plea for help change everything . . .
The farm is in financial trouble, and it’s taking its toll on the aunt and uncle who raised Freya. Heading home to lend a hand, Freya quickly learns that things are worse than she first thought. As she summons up all her creativity and determination to turn things around, Freya is surprised as her own dreams for the future begin to take shape.
Love makes the world go round, according to Freya. Not money. But will saving Appleby Farm and following her heart come at a price?
Settle down and get cosy with a cup of tea and Freya’s adventures at Appleby Farm.
A Blessing In Disguise – Part One
A Family Affair – Part Two
Home Is Where The Heart Is – Part Three
Love Is In The Air – Part Four
Appleby Farm is published in February, March, April and May 2015.
About the Author
After four years of flinging herself round the dancefloors of Nottingham’s nightspots, Cathy somehow managed to get an honours degree in business. She then plunged herself into the corporate world of marketing, working on high-powered projects such as testing the firing range of SuperSoaker water guns and perfecting the weeing action of Tiny Tears. After making it onto Timmy Mallet’s Christmas card list, she realized it was time to move on and so in 1995 set up her own marketing agency.
She now lives in a Nottinghamshire village with her husband, two daughters and a dog called Pearl.
Random Facts about Cathy Bramley:
Lucky charm: pottery frog out of a Christmas cracker
Favourite tipple: Polish cherry vodka
Best ever Christmas present: potter’s wheel (toy version)
Hates the expression: ‘Compliments to the chef’
You can get in touch with Cathy via her website www.CathyBramleyAuthor.com, her Facebook page www.Facebook.com/CathyBramleyAuthor or on Twitter: @CathyBramley.
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IVY LANE: AUTUMN PART 3
Version 1.0 Epub ISBN 9781473509702
First published in Great Britain
in 2014 by Transworld Digital
an imprint of Transworld Publishers
Copyright © Cathy Bramley 2014
Cathy Bramley has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
This book is a work of fiction and, except in the case of historical fact, any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
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Ivy Lane: Autumn: Part 3 Page 10