John Steinbeck – Of Mice and Men

 Ok, not really new or original, but as I am teaching this book every year – yes, every year – and this year even to two different year groups – I might as well review it. As a novella, it’s great: compact and dense, it manages to paint a touching image of life during the…

Kichererbsen und Chorizo Eintopf: Erfolgreiche Schatzsuche im ‘Cupboard under the Stairs’

Vor ein paar Tagen sah ich, daß der Blog Lochlöffel zu einer ‘Schatzsuche im Vorratsschrank‘ aufgerufen hatte, mit der Bitte um Rezepte, die Zutaten aus den dunkelsten Ecken der Vorratskammer aufzubrauchen helfen.  Das erinnerte mich an Ryansmillas ‘Britblog’-Artikel über eine typisch englische Raumvariante, nämlich den cupboard under the stairs. Diesen, so schreibt sie, gibt es nicht nur in vielen englischen Häusern, sondern auch…

Springtime on the Hazienda

It’s finally spring – I know this because the rain is not as sleety as it used to be and because my friend Joanne from Ourganic Gardens has started posting pictures of her endeavours. Joanne is gardening in Donegal in the north-west of Ireland. To give you an idea of the climatic conditions there I suggest you…

Bagels – easy does it!

I discovered bagels after moving to the UK – not that they don’t exist in Germany, i just never came across them before. I love the sheer chewiness of the dough, which is the result of the bread first being boiled, then baked. The following recipe originates from an American bread book, Peter Reinhard’s The…

Eton Mess – Erdbeeren, Sahne und Baisers als Nachtisch

Dieser Nachtisch darf während der Erdbeersaison auf keiner englischen Speisekarte fehlen – die Mischung aus Erdbeeren, Sahne und den crossen Baiserstückchen schmeckt einfach großartig. Aus zerbrochenen, fertiggekauften Baisers ist innerhalb von Minuten ein leckerer Nachtisch gebastelt; der Vollständigkeit halber habe ich aber auch mein einfaches Baiserrezept aufgeschrieben, mit dem ich meine vom Custard (Vanillesauce) oder einer Erdbeerrolle übriggebliebenen…

Quick and Easy Meringue

This recipe is an adapted version of Delia Smith‘s – I use it to use up the leftover egg whites after making custard or a strawberry roll. It takes about 10 minutes, plus one hour of baking and some cooling down time. It’s also fun to get kids involved by piping the meringues and making…

Meet the British: Politeness for Beginners

What is deemed acceptable and unacceptable behaviour in a conversation varies from country to country, and if I had travelled more I would be able to add some weight to my conclusion, namely, that the British and the Germans represent opposite ends of the spectrum. To put it bluntly: Germans are rude, and the British lie. Germans don’t mince…

Easter Egg Hunt in Cliveden

Today, with it being Easter Monday and sunny, we decided to go out and go to Cliveden, a National Trust property near Maidenhead. We live just inside the M25, the circular parking lot / ring motorway around London, which means that whenever we go, we have to go along it. Cliveden has the advantage of being only around 25…