Ideas Worth Spreading

This weekend I went away to visit a friend, which was really lovely for a number of reasons. We only see each other once or twice a year so it was fabulous to have a proper catch up. I also got to play Crazy Golf with her and her daughters, which is a game I've not played in years; teach her youngest daughter how to make a button hole on her sewing machine (last time we made an apron out of an old duvet cover and Scrapstore ribbons); and oversee the creation of a fabulously tasty and simple dessert using just three ingredients, but more of that later.

One by product of my visit was that I spent nearly 6 hours in the car by myself. Under certain circumstances that could be a real chore, but the ability to plug my smart phone into the car stereo meant that I could have all that uninterrupted time to catch up on the TED Radio Hour Podcasts. 

These never fail to wonder and/or delight but they do require dedicated time to listen, hence I generally have loads stored up on my phone waiting for the right moment to indulge. In spite of the title, each lasts for between 50 and 55 minutes and it's very rare that I ever get to sit down for that long. This is why I look forward to the rare, long car journeys in my life.

If you are not familiar with TED and to quote what the internet says about it, its a nonpartisan, nonprofit organisation dedicated to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short talks. TED stands for technology, entertainment, design but that doesn't quite capture it in my opinion. Perhaps their strap line of 'ideas worth spreading' does? Anyway, what the TED Radio Hour does is take a theme and interviews past TED speakers about their ideas on that theme, including playing clips from their talks. Simple, but oh-so enlightening.

After selecting the show called What Is Original? to listen to as I left the house I spent the next 53 minutes being more and more enlightened about the creative process and how copying and adapting is a natural part of the creative process. So, if you don't think you are creative but are able to copy and adapt, that's potentially still OK. I also learned what I thought was a fascinating fact about the fashion industry but I won't spoil it for you.

Inspired by that one, I went on to listen to The Power of Design and The Source of Creativity before switching to Animals and Us and Growing Up, all of which contained at least one lightbulb moment for me. In fact, so called 'lightbulb' moments were discussed in the Creativity show and, if you end up listening to that, you'll know that it's not a term I should use at all! Anyway, I really do urge you to give the shows a listen.

Meanwhile, back to making a delicious dessert with just three ingredients.... and, I should add, achievable by a 9 year-old...

Here's how to make a delicious chocolate mousse. And in the spirit of What is Original, this is a slight adaptation from the original, to make a more manageable quantity and with, hopefully, clearer instructions. I also definitely think this is an idea worth spreading so here goes...

Take 300g Toblerone, 300ml double cream, and 155g marshmallows. If you have a sweet tooth, use a milk chocolate Toblerone. If, however, you are after something richer, go for a dark chocolate one. Mind you, they seem to come in 150g bars so you could always choose a bar of each.

Roughly chop 225g of the Toblerone and place in a microwaveable bowl along with all the marshmallows and 150ml of the double cream. Microwave in stages until the chocolate and marshmallows have completely melted into the cream. We did this for 1 minute, then in 30 second bursts, stirring the mixture well in between. Leave this to cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, whip the remaining 150ml of double cream until it reaches the 'soft peaks' stage and then gently fold this into the cooled chocolate-marshmallow-cream mixture. Divide between 6 small dishes - we used small ramekin dishes but small teacups or glasses would work just as well. Pop in the fridge until thoroughly chilled - this will take a good few hours. Meanwhile, chop the remaining Toblerone and sprinkle this onto the top of each mousse before serving.

I challenge even the least confident cook to give it a go. I guarantee your friends and family will be impressed.

Sorry there are no pictures but the mousse was just too good to hang around and be photographed. Besides, crazy golfers need to refuel quickly to maintain their peak performance!

Tomatoes and up-cycling (but not necessarily at the same time)

It's that time of year when I finally get to reap the harvest of the tomato seeds sown way back in early spring. Last year I didn't get a single ripe tomato until the late August bank holiday weekend, which felt about a month later than usual (they are grown outside, rather than in a greenhouse in case you are wondering). This year was a little better with the first fruit turning ruby red just as I returned from holiday in early August. There has been a steady stream of ripe tomatoes ever since but this week as seen me somewhat inundated.

I have two varieties: Roma, a plum tomato variety; and the ever-reliable Gardener's Delight, which produces cherry tomatoes. This is the second year that I've grown Roma and although great for cooking, I have had a bit of trouble with the tomato blight disease so this could be my last year. Anyway, I picked 2kg of Roma mid-week and a further 1.5kg yesterday and so I've been making roasted tomato sauce, much of which is going in the freezer.

The cherry tomatoes are delicious and juicy, and have been brightening up salads all month. However, I've just spotted an interesting recipe for Honey Baked Feta which uses cherry tomatoes so that's going to be on the menu this evening.  I can't wait!

Meanwhile, I'm having a clear out of wardrobes and the loft in anticipation of welcoming a new house guest at the end of the month. This has already resulted in one trip to the local charity shop and I foresee a couple more trips on the not-too-distant horizon. A couple of items have gone straight in the bin and I always feel guilty about such action as I know it is just going to go to landfill. However, they are items that don't have a category either in what is collected by the local refuse and recycling service, nor at the local household recycling centre so I really have no other option in this instance.

It's not that I haven't tried other options, which led me to an inspiring website that I couldn't resist sharing. It's called Upcycle That and is full of ideas of what to do with different materials (Use That), a few tutorials for specific ideas (Make That), and also items that have already been up cycled and are available to purchase (Buy That).

I spotted a great stool made from a washing machine drum which I must remember to tell my friend in Italy about. He has turned a couple of old washing machine drums into fire pits so he may be inspired to do something a bit different the next time he comes across an abandoned washing machine. Actually, perhaps we could collaborate, with me providing the cushions for the top? Hey Stuart, what do you think?!

If that idea seems a bit large scale for you, there are also some much smaller and simpler projects under the Decor section. It's a veritable gold mine of ideas - and also a bit of a time sink so before you take a look make sure there isn't anything urgent that you should be doing in stead.... you have been warned!

Right, well I had better get on. The roasted tomato sauce should be cool enough to go in the freezer and I've a pile of things to go up into the loft (with, hopefully, an even larger pile to come out at some point!)