Well, July flew by in the blink of an eye. As it’s the first of the month, that can only mean one thing… Time to catch up with Sherry and friends and share what’s been happening in my kitchen. Side note if you subscribe to the blog and you’re getting deja vu, it’s not you, it’s me! I inadvertently sent the draft post out last week while editing – damn my fat fingers!
Anyhoo, July is birthday season in our house with me, David and Teddy all having birthdays within 11 days of each other. As you can imagine, there’s a lot of cake!
We don’t go big on presents but we do go hard on the cake and it’s become a little family tradition that David and I make each other a cake, usually from the iconic tome that is the Australian Women’s Weekly Birthday Cake Book. This year I went a bit off piste and made a letter D cake which went down a treat.
If you’re an old timer round here, you’ll know about the great cake debacle of 2024 when I made David the modern version of the Australian Women’s Weekly pig cake. Well, we found the original pig cake in the Australian Women’s Weekly Birthday Cake Book and that was my cake request for 2025. My wish was David’s command and he did the most excellent job.
David’s definitely the cake boss when it comes to decorating but I make the sponge cake that he builds with – we all have our talents, don’t we?! I always use Nigella’s Buttermilk Birthday Cake because it is so lovely and moist and holds it’s shape so well.
Amazon Prime Day fell on my birthday so I treated myself to @emthenutritionist ‘s new cookbook, Live to Eat. It’s got so many great recipes I can’t wait to try.
There was some kitchen serendipity when I realised I had all the ingredients to make Em’s Smashed Cucumber Greek Salad – a most flavoursome twist on a traditional Greek Salad with honey and wholegrain mustard added to the dressing. I think this could be our new go-to summer salad.
My cheap knives were all so blunt they were almost useless and I had been eyeing off a Ninja knife set for ages. I saw that not only did Em use them, they were also massively discounted for Prime Day so added some to basket. Honestly, these days I’m an influencer’s dream. LOL! Jokes aside, the new knives are so shiny and so sharp, I’ll be lucky to keep all my fingers!
On the blog, I finally shared my version of our dear Sherry’s Carrot Cake Granola. Seriously, I am obsessed with the stuff and always have a jar to hand. I made a fresh batch to take up to the outlaws when we went to visit because everyone needs to experience this deliciousness!
It’s been hot as Hades here and I’ve been cooling down with these 3 Ingredient Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Bites. They are so much better for you than ultra processed ice cream, full of good stuff and the perfect bite size treat.
The recipes are coming thick and fast this month, LOL! I also shared this One Pot Chicken and Chorizo Stew – it’s a crowd favourite at our place.
Our dear friends Heather and Richard came for an overnight stay after my birthday which was such a treat. We ventured out to The Rutland Vineyard but it was too hot to be outside so we came home and watched Wimbledon with a refreshing glass of Pimms. It doesn’t get more British than that. I could not love this pairing of my new Tiki glasses (from TKMaxx!) with my nana’s jug anymore!
One advantage of having our birthdays so close together is that we often get joint presents, like this Nio Negroni cocktail kit complete with glasses. Our friends Lucy and James got us this – negronis are a bit of a joke between the four of us (it’s a long story) but these cocktails are seriously good!
We visited the outlaws in the North East where pease pudding is a speciality. Up north, they eat it slathered in a bread roll, filled with ham. It’s not my jam but David loves it so we brought a tub home. and I froze it in portions in an ice cube tray so he can defrost a cube at a time when he wants some pease pudding in a sandwich.
We left Teddy with the grandies and had a sneaky getaway to Palma in Mallorca for a few days. I found a gorgeous store called Tipika showcasing the work of local artisans and typical Mallorcan goods. I was very restrained and only came home with these little dishes.
David came home with a special kind of souvenir, Covid which was not nearly so cute. Nevertheless, I thanked my past self for stashing some containers of Auntie Sandra’s Champion Chicken Soup in the freezer because that stuff cures anything, even Covid! Note: the value added matzo balls!
So now I’ve told you what’s been happening in my kitchen, tell me what’s been happening in yours!
