A Plethora of Pink and Red Poppy Pictures

Now isn't this how the hats at the Royal Wedding should have looked? The pink poppies, for which I have waited quite the number of years to bloom, are THE perfect pink, no really they are...in person they have an inner glow that makes them

almost neon (in a good way) and they are a little more saturated and a little more perfect...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!
I am so enamoured of some of these photographs that I will have them available as archival prints in my Etsy store sometime this week.

Rhubarb and raisin squares baked in a circle and cut into triangles...

Oh yeh...this is a good one based on an old fashioned British recipe of raisin squares....definitely try this if you like both rhubarb and raisins...what a wonderful combination...I am sure you can do this with all raisin...I'd say two cups if you go that way...or another fruit than rhubarb like apricots (fresh of course!!)

First of all avail yourself of the following delightful ingredients:

1lb rhubarb cut into small pieces

1 packed cup/6oz of raisins or white raisin or currants or whatever dried fruit you like but raisins were WONDERFUL

1 cup/7.5oz sugar

1 large egg

2 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind...this REALLY adds to the flavour of this dessert

so don't leave it out.

A few hours before you want to bake the 'squares' mix the flour with the beaten egg until smooth and then mix all above ingredients together until well mixed...allow to marinate at room temperature.

Yum...flavours marinating and improving in deliciousness by the minute....

The 'squares' ready to have their second top layer of pastry added

Piecrust...Pate Brisee by Martha

Pre-heat oven to 375F

2 1/2 cups/10ozs of white flour

4 tablespoons sugar

2 sticks (8ozs) butter I always use salted, VERY cold

1/4 to 1/2 cup ice cold water

1 whisked egg white

METHOD:

1. Sift the flour

2. Grate the butter into the flour.

3. Gently work butter into flour until it resembles coarse meal.

4. Add some of the water and test to see if it comes together, if not keep adding water until the

dough will squush into a non-sticky ball.

5. Put into the fridge to rest for at least one hour.

6. Take the pastry out of the fridge, allow to warm a very little, separate into two even sized balls,

roll out 2 nice circles.

8. Then line a 9" tart pie with one circle, brush evenly with the egg white and bob into the oven for about 10 minutes to 'set' the surface...take out and allow to cool for about 20 minutes.

9. Strew the luscious rhubarb and raisin mix over the somewhat baked bottom crust...don't worry it might be quite wet...go ahead...put it all in there and even it out as above.

10. Cover with the second disk of pastry...sprinkle with some sugar as below.

 10. Bob back into the oven and bake for a goodly 55 minutes until bubbling and golden brown as below...allow to cool completely before cutting and eating...this is another dessert that really improves with a couple of days maturity...trust me!

Enjoy using up the last of this season's rhubarb with this wonderful 'pudding' 

Bubbling and golden brown fresh from the oven...wait til I'm cold before you cut me!!

Visions of a picture perfect day in Maine...ahhhhh!!!

We wait sooo long and work so hard for these pristine days in Maine and yea today finally we have one....Sunday June 5th 2011 is PERFECT and how lucky am I that I can walk out my front or back door and take these photographs of the glory that is today! 

I hope you enjoy these pictures as much as I do when I sit by the humming wood stove on a wild and wooly winter's day and dream of THIS day when the air is balmy, the birds are singing, the bees are buzzing, the butterflies are fluttering, the poppies are popping and I am in heaven. Ahhhhhh....

Pretty poppies all in a row...

The first iris of the season....

Hope it is as beautiful today where you are as it is here in Maine on Lemonade Day and if you're in Blighty enjoy your community street party lunches partially funded by lottery money!!