Wales

We arrived in Cardiff, Wales after a long coach ride from England.  There we had one of our favorites of the trip – fish and chips for dinner. The irresistible combination of a hunk of battered cod resting atop a mound of steaming hot chips (french fries in America), is the quintessential British comfort food. Many meals were served with peas, usually mashed. They added color to the meal but not much else! 

See the green under the fish? Mashed peas.

 

Wales is a country, bordered by England, in the southwest part Great Britain. It is known for its rugged coastline, mountainous national parks, distinctive Welsh language and Celtic culture. It is 8,023 square miles in size (compare to Kansas’ 82,278 square miles. Wales is 130 miles from north to south and varies in width from 40 – 100 miles. Wales has been home to over 600 castles, 100 are still standing today. We stayed in Cardiff which is the capital and largest city of Wales. 

 

A walking tour of Cardiff included the government buildings, churches, and an open market. Wales is also known for limericks – “There was a young woman from Wales….” Our group at dinner even won the limerick writing contest! 

 

Government building

The guide was explaining that this church was built from the stones that were ballast in ships that came to Wales to buy goods to take back to their home countries. The stones were discarded when the ships took on their cargo. 

"Open Market", but under a roof, lots of vendors of food, produce, clothes, and other things to buy. 

Cardiff Castle was once a Roman fort, a Norman castle, and a Victorian Gothic palace. The original castle was built in the 11^th century on top of a 3^rd century Roman fort. During WWII air raid shelters were built in the castle walls. It was given to the city of Cardiff in 1947 and has been restored and many rooms furnished in antiques and reproductive styles.  

 

The Main Range of the Castle. Many rooms were furnished in styles of the past.

The library

The Clock Tower contained bedrooms, servant's room, and smoking rooms.

The most interesting stop in Wales was St. Fagan’s National Museum of History, an open-air museum chronicling the history culture, and architecture of the Welsh people. Buildings from all over Wales had been taken apart, moved, and reassumed at the museum grounds. They represented a wide range of history showing how people had lived. 

This row of houses depicted how the Welsh people lived with displays of every 50 years. The latest was 1985, which looked pretty modern with a microwave oven.

1935

1885

1835

This is the inside of a thatched roof. It was beautiful workmanship. 

A farmstead from early Wales, barn and house.

After 2 nights and a very busy tour of Wales we were headed to our next country - Ireland. 

 

 

 

 

England

When most of us think of Britain, we think of England. Our trip was the British Isles, so a bit of geography:  Great Britain includes Scotland, England, and Wales. The United Kingdom includes Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The British Islands includes the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, Guernsey, and Jersey (3 smaller islands south of Great Britain). Ireland includes Ireland (the state) and Northern Ireland (which is part of the United Kingdom).  The British Isles includes all of these countries. 

 

The coach ride from Scotland to England wasn't too long. We passed through customs, showed our passports and we were in England! As we traveled through northern England we stopped to see the Angel of the North, a very recognized piece of public art built in 1998. It was built in an economically depressed area which had formerly depended on coal mining. At the time it was resented for the expense, but now lots of tourist traffic to bring in many pounds. 

The Angel of the North is 175 feet wide at the wing span and 65 feet high. 

Next was the city of York, a walled city founded by the ancient Romans.  York is home to the Minster of York, the biggest medieval Cathedral in Northern Europe and considered one of the most beautiful Gothic buildings. I asked the difference between a minster and a cathedral. A minster sends missionaries out to minister to the people. A cathedral has a seat for the Bishop. A church holds regular worship services. 

Walled cities were common in England, built during the Middle Ages to protect the city from invaders. 

The York Minster was constructed over 900 years ago and contains many stained glass windows. 

 

York’s narrow street of Shambles Street was the home of butcher shops which sold meat from the front window shelf. Each story of the buildings is larger than the lower one, overhanging the street. 

We arrived in London by a high speed train, speeding through the country side so quickly that sightseeing was impossible, time for a nap. 

Sights to see included Big Ben and Houses of Parliament

Westminster Abby has over 30 kings and queens buried there. 

For lunch we enjoyed a High Tea.

 High tea consisted of, besides tea, small bites of food on tiered trays. The lower tray contains finger sandwiches, the middle has scones and tea cakes with jam, and the top is the desserts. All were delicious. 

 

Buckingham Palace

Did I say it was usually cold and wet in England?

Queen Victoria's monument across from Buckingham Palace.

The tour of Windsor Castle was a highlight. Windsor Castle is the oldest royal residence still in use. Founded in the 11^th century. St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle contains the graves of many royals including Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip. (interesting – our tour guides would occasionally slip and say “Her Majesty” instead of “His Majesty”)

 

We did see the changing of the guards here. 

Bath England is the site of the 2000 year old Roman bath houses and spas. These were build over the natural hot mineral springs between the first and fifth centuries. They fell into disrepair in the 1100s, but were rediscovered in 1755. 

 

Stonehenge has always held a fascination for me. This prehistoric structure consists of vertical stones 13 feet high and 7 feet wide topped with horizonal stones. It dates back to the Stone Age but how and why it was built remains a mystery. 

As we traveled on to Wales, I was impressed with the neat countrysides and the number of sheep. The tour guide explained that many of the churches were "wool churches", financed primarily by donations from rich merchants and farmers who had benefited from the medieval wool trade. 

 

 

Scotland

 

The British Isles tour began with Scotland. One of the fun things about travel is trying new foods. Our tour had a good balance of planned group meals and ‘scatter lunches’ (everyone on their own), and dinners of our choice. 

Our first dinner was an introduction to Scottish foods at the Amber Whisky Bar. Whisky is the national drink of Scotland and was featured in most of the dishes. We were also given instructions on how to properly taste whisky and a tasting of different types of whisky. The food was good, but the tasting did not improve my opinion of whisky. (Interesting fact: Whisky distilled in Scotland is spelled without the ‘e’, Whiskey distilled in the U.S. or Ireland has the ‘e’.)

This was a 'Trios' dinner. Three tastes of starters, three of main, and a dessert. 

 

The Starters were Pressed ham hock with homemade piccalilli, Whisky cured smoked salmon with caviar, and vegetarian haggis bon bon with whisky ketchup. A haggis is a crumbly sausage wit a coarse oats texture and warring peppery flavor.

The Trio of Mains were Chicken Balmoral with a whisky sauce, beef shin Wellington with spring greens and dauphinoise potato, and Pan roasted Steelhead trout with pea puree and shrimp butter. 

Dessert - Sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream paired with Edradour 10 year old.

The Scotch Whisky Bar

 

Edinburgh was our first stop in Scotland, it is a walled city. The castle of Edinburgh was built 3000 years ago on the highest rock, one of 7 old volcanos in the city. The castle is home to the Scottish Crown Jewels, claimed to be older (1540) and better than those in England.  

This shows the rocky hills and ancient volcanic ruins as well as the modern city. 

                                                                     We could see the castle from our hotel.

My touring partner was Betty, a friend from Denver. We enjoyed the good times and fun together.

The rooms inside the castle were impressive. 

The Royal Mile is a shopping area of cobbled streets and colorful shops, pubs, and eateries. I was impressed with the beautiful wool tailored coats, jackets, skirts and pants in the shops. 

 

One evening’s event, Spirit of Scotland Cultural show, was a highlight as we were entertained with Scottish food, music, and dance. 

 

As we drove through the country side in our tour’s coach, there were many rural and farming areas. One of the most colorful crops was rape seed, a yellow plant used to make oil similar to canola oil. There was still peat farming although the use of peat for heat is being phased out and only used in very rural areas.

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After 3 days in Scotland, we drove south into England. 

 

 

Molten "Lava" Chocolate Cake

 

A favorite game of my granddaughter's is Lava Floor. It involves jumping from chair or cushion to another furniture without touching the floor. Lava and volcanos are a source of curiosity. So this Molten Chocolate Cake got good attention when I served it. It combines favorite flavors of chocolate and peanut butter and nuts in a warm gooey way. The bonus is it is easy and quick to make and adds a hint of celebration to the meal. 

There are two options for this recipe. I used the Peanut Butter version. For a Raspberry Molten Chocolate Cake, omit the peanut butter step and top with 1 cup of fresh raspberries just before baking. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Molten Cake

 

½ cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

Pinch (less than ⅛ teaspoon baking soda)

½ teaspoon Kosher salt

½ teaspoon instant espresso granules

1 ¼ cups bittersweet chocolate chips

1 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

4 large eggs

¾ cup granulated sugar

9 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

3 tablespoons chopped roasted salted peanuts

 

1. Preheat oven to 350 °. Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with baking spray. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and expresso granules into a small mixing bowl. Set aside. 

2. Place chocolate chips and butter in a medium microwave safe bowl, and microwave in high in 30-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until fully melted, about 2 minutes total. Set aside. 

3. Beat eggs and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium high speed until pale and doubled in volume, about 2 minutes. Beat in flour mixture on low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds. Gradually beat in melted chocolate mixture just until no streaks of chocolate remain, 30 seconds to 1 minutes. 

4. Pour half of batter into prepared baking dish. Dollop creamy peanut butter evenly over batter. Top with remaining batter. Sprinkle with chopped roasted salted peanuts. 

5. Bake in preheated oven until edges of cake start to pull away from sides of baking dish and center still jiggles slightly, 30-35 minutes. 

Serve immediately, with ice cream if desired. 

Blueberry Honey Muffins

Today was our County 4-H Day, a contest for 4-H members to present demonstrations, project talks, musical numbers, parliamentary procedure practices, and Favorite Food Contest. My granddaughter was busy with her demonstration of Blueberry Honey Muffins (and we now have a lot of muffins in the freezer from many practices!). She also used this recipe as her entry for the Favorite Food Contest. She did well on both and it looks like we'll be eating more muffins as she qualified to go to the Regional Contest in March. 

Here's her recipe and I hope you enjoy and like it as much as we do. It is an easy recipe, stirred together by hand. Also a favorite with our family as it uses honey, and her father is a beekeeper. 

Blueberry Honey Muffins

 

½ cup oil

¾ cup honey

2 large eggs

½ cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup blueberries

 

Combine the oil, honey and eggs. Whisk until smooth. 

Add buttermilk and vanilla extract. Whisk together.

Mix dry ingredients together and add to batter.

Mix with a rubber spatula until just a few streaks of flour remain. 

Fold in blueberries until no flour is visible. 

 

Bake at 425 ° for 5 minutes, lower temperature to 350 and bake for 

15 more minutes. 

 

Makes 12 muffins

Lots of practice!

Finished product

Training a little beekeeper

Kansas Day Sunflower Seed Cookies

A special holiday in Kansas this month is KANSAS DAY! I don't know that other states celebrate their statehood quite as much as Kansas does. Maybe it is because Kansas Day comes at the end of January when we've settled into a glum mood after a month of cold, muddy, icy, snowy days. Sometimes those days all happen in the same day. 

So this year a friend and I are planning a Kansas Day party. Complete with Kansas trivia facts, sunflower decorations, and special cookies. Here is the recipe for the Sunflower Seed cookies that have been my favorite for years. 

I keep sunflower seeds and wheat germ in the freezer to keep these ingredients fresh since I don't use them often. 

SUNFLOWER SEED COOKIES

 

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

1 ¼ cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. almond extract

1 ⅓ cup flour

1 tsp. baking soda

3 cups oatmeal

¾ cup unsalted sunflower seeds (if using salted seeds, omit the 1 tsp. salt)

1 tsp. salt

½ cup wheat germ

 

Preheat oven to 375 °. Cream butter and brown sugar together. Beat in eggs and almond extract. Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda, and stir into creamed mixture. Fold in sunflower seeds and wheat germ, then oats. Drop scoops of dough 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 9-10 minutes. 

Italian Parmesan Casserole Bread

This week I was looking for a quick yeast bread recipe to take to a friend's house to go with soup. Also, it had to be simple enough that I had all the ingredients on hand! (I hadn't planned ahead well enough before grocery shopping). So I looked through my collection of Kansas Wheat Commission recipe books and this one from 2020 filled the need. It is actually a winner in the 1994 Kansas Festival of Breads baking competition. 

The recipe was tested and published using Kraft 100% Grated Parmesan Cheese in the plastic shaker container. But I used cheese from a parmesan wedge grated with a microplane grater. I think that added a better flavor and moistness. 

ITALIAN PARMESAN CASSEROLE BREAD

 

1 (1 ¼ oz) package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water (110 ° - 115 ° F)

3 ¼ - 3 ¼ cups bread flour, divided

¼ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 large egg

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon dried minced onion

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus ½ tablespoon

½ tablespoon unsalted melted butter

 

Instructions:

1. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle, dissolve yeast in water, let proof 5 minutes. Add 1 cup flour, butter, egg, sugar, salt, onion, Italian seasoning and garlic powder. Beat on low speed 1 minute; increase speed to medium and beat 2 minutes. 

2. Stir in ½ cup cheese. Switch to dough hook and gradually add enough flour to form a soft dough that pulls away from sides of bowl. Knead with dough hook 8 minutes. 

3. Form dough in a round loaf and place into a greased 1 ½-quart round baking dish. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and towel; let rise until doubled. Near the end of the rise, preheat oven to 350 ° F. 

4. Brush top of loaf with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 35-40 minutes or until golden and internal temperature is 195 ° F – 200 ° F. If top brtowns too quickly, cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning. The bread sounds hollow when lightly tapped on the bottom. 

5. Remove from oven and cool in baking dish 10 minutes before removing bread to rack. To serve, cut in wedges or slices. 

 

Yield: 1 loaf, 24 servings