Yet more chocolate mousse

My family are due back today so I've made mousse again. To welcome them home, you understand, not because I'm a glutton.  I suspect it is a little bit wrong to eat chocolate mousse three days in a row.

This recipe really couldn't be easier; I hadn't made it for years and then Sue at 'The Quince Tree' reminded me of it.  Be warned though - it is as delicious as it is simple.  And it seems to work whether you make it with one egg or three.

Today I have put a ginger biscuit base into the bottom of each ramekin...

Just broken ginger biscuits and melted butter.  I guessed the quantities, using 6 biscuits and a large knob of butter for 4 ramekins.  For the mousse I melted 3oz dark chocolate...

and separated three eggs...

Let the chocolate cool a little then mix in the beaten egg yolks.  You can add rum or coffee too, if you like.

Whisk the egg whites...

and then fold gently but thoroughly into the chocolate mixture (I always 'loosen' the chocolate mixture with a spoonful of whites first to make it easier to fold the rest in).

This three egg mixture made enough to fill five 125ml ramekins.

Leave the mousse somewhere cool to set; there's no need to refrigerate it.  

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone.  I've missed them.

I survived...

the 10K training run.  I can't say I enjoyed it though. I often wonder why I do it.  Anyway, it took 61 minutes including stopping to cross roads and to do up a loose shoe-lace, so when it comes to the Bupa race I should be on track for beating last year's time (coincidentally 61 minutes). Most people tend to run a bit faster in a race - dragged along by all the other runners and spurred on by the atmosphere.

My last post may have been a bit misleading because it's not like I haven't done any exercise at all in the last year - I go to the gym 3 times a week, every week, when I'm at home, with the occasional run on a Sunday morning for good measure. It's just that I haven't been training specifically for the run and haven't run further than 5K since the Autumn.

I got home with just enough time to have breakfast, cool down a bit, and make coffee before catching the important bit of the Royal wedding - seeing what Kate Middleton was wearing.  I thought she looked lovely.  I wish Kate and William well.


Right. I'm off to make more chocolate mousse - after all, I've already burned off the calories. Aaaahhh, yes. That's why I do it - so I can eat more!

Home alone

I am home alone.  Everyone else is in the Lake District for a few days.  I was, at the last minute, very tempted to go with them - the weather forecast is fantastic and I know I'll miss them. But I think I am in need of a bit of peace and quiet. I very sensibly did the housework before they left so I don't have to waste time doing any while they're away. Amazing how clean the house stays when I'm the only one in it.


So what are my plans?  Well, the first thing I did after they left was make chocolate mousse using the 1 egg/1 oz chocolate recipe...

The mousse used up the last remaining egg, so, remembering I wanted eggs and asparagus for tea, I had to go out for more and, in doing so, I got a lesson in why it's good to shop locally. The fishmonger had no change for £5. "I'll come back", I said and tried to hand the eggs back.  "Take them", he replied "and give me the money next time you're in."  You don't get that in Tesco.

I'm halfway though making a dress for #1 with this rather gorgeous Amy Butler fabric...

I'm going to sit down later to watch the last episode of 'The Crimson Petal and the White'. I've enjoyed this adaptation - the cinematography has been amazing.  
  

Photo: BBC

The least favourite of my plans involves getting up and running 10K tomorrow morning. My pack for this year's Bupa 10K arrived in the post and I have realised that it is only a little over 2 weeks until the race. And the last time I ran 10K was, urm, probably last May when I ran the last Bupa Manchester 10K. I need some running practice! Wish me luck with this one.

Happy Easter

Easter door decoration

This idea for this decoration was completely stolen from a post on Elaine's blog, Northern Hi-lights.  


The stick was easy to come by because, like all mothers of small boys, I have a considerable collection just outside the front door.  Sticks are, after all, essential equipment for dragging along railings, poking older siblings and jamming the front wheels of the buggy.

The chicks I bought ages ago having learned from experience that if you don't buy these tiny, multi-coloured and slightly sinister looking chicks the moment you see them there won't be any left by Easter.  The reason they look so bedraggled is that when they haven't been driving convertibles, they've spent the best part of their time living under a bed in a clearly labelled and dated freezer bag.  I think sometimes it's just best not to ask.

Off the hook :: A little bear for my little boy

Pattern from 'Super-Cute Crochet' by Nicki Trench. 

Off the hook :: a Mother hen

Do you remember the little chicks I made last year?

Well now they have a Mummy...

The patterns are from 'Super cute crochet' by Nicki Trench.  

New yarn

Last Tuesday I went to the Black Sheep craft barn.  I had #2 with me who, until we got there,  assumed he was going to a farm. To see sheep.  You can imagine the disappointment when he discovered it was only a wool shop.  To add insult to injury I forced him into the buggy and firmly fastened him in.  He can't be trusted in yarn shops.  There was an incident in our LYS involving the unravelling of a bobbin of sewing thread whilst it was still in the display cabinet thus booby trapping the shop at adult knee height.  

Anyway, have a look at this post from the Black Sheep Wools blog.  They stock a lot of yarn and most of it at discounted prices.  I didn't spend as long there as I'd have liked but I managed to acquire some beautiful coloured crochet cotton...

and some very discounted Sublime Kid Mohair (I think it's been discontinued)...

Go if you get the chance.

An explosion...

of blossom...

which seemed to happen almost overnight. It's a wonderful thing to open the blinds to in the morning.

Giveaway winner...

The winner of the granny square cushion cover is entry number...

Fearnie, that's you!

Fearnie, I don't seem able to contact you through the comment you left, so please email me your address and I'll send the cushion cover on to you.  I hope you like it!

Charity shop finds

I don't know what it is about the charity shops near me - some days there is nothing and the next a whole box full of stuff you want.  I suspect I live in a place where lots of people like thrifting and so luck has a lot to do with it.   And we were lucky this week when we wandered into my favourite charity shop.  It's so scruffy from the outside I think it puts people off, but it's the one where I'm most likely to find something I like. I got my green glass bowl there.

Lately I've been on the look out for crocheted doilies and yesterday I found a handful...

as well as a pretty embroidered piece of linen that I thought I could turn into a little cushion...

and a couple of pieces with crocheted edgings...

The bottom one is my favourite - it's a small tablecloth and the work that's gone into that edging is quite something.   They are all in need of a bit of stain removal but I think that had better wait until the sun comes back out.  

Wishing you all a great weekend x