Tag: Music

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Bakes Recipes Snacks

Anzac Biscuits

Anzac Biscuits are a traditional Australian sweet treat that I enjoyed on my recent travels there.

The story goes that they became popular with Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) soldiers in the First World War, since when they have been adopted as one of the nation’s most popular foods.

Picking up a genuine recipe (from the Aussie supermarket chain, Coles) before I left, I made a batch of the oaty, coconutty, slightly chewy delights this week, as shown in my photo above. I am very pleased with how they turned out, so I’m sharing the recipe here.

Servings

This will make 24 biscuits.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, and 20 mins in the oven at 180C.

You Will Need

  • 150g plain flour
  • 80g desiccated coconut
  • 90g rolled oats
  • 110g caster sugar
  • 55g brown sugar
  • 125g butter
  • 2 tbsp golden syrup
  • 1 and 1/2 tbsp boiling water
  • 1/2 tsp bicarb of soda

Method

  1. Switch the oven on to 180C. Line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.
  2. Put the flour, coconut, oats and sugars in a bowl, and stir to mix.
  3. Place the butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over a low heat. Stir until the butter is melted, then leave to cool.
  4. Combine water and bicarb in a bowl, then add to the flour/oats, along with the butter mixture. Stir to combine.
  5. Pick off 1 tbsp-sized portions of the biscuit mixture and roll into a ball between the palms. Place on the baking trays, equally spaced so that they have room to spread out as they melt. Flatten the tops slightly with your hand.
  6. Place in the oven for 15 mins or until baked to your liking.
  7. Once baked, let cool on the baking tray for a few moments, before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

Customise it!

If you like your biscuits particularly chewy, try reducing the brown sugar and replacing it with caster sugar. To make them crunchier, step down the caster sugar and increase the brown sugar.

From classic Australian baking to classic Australian punk. Here are Brisbane’s The Saints from back in the day, with (I’m) Stranded.

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Blog Music

Northern Soul Orchestrated

This week I’ve been to see the Northern Soul Orchestrated Tour at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

Northern Soul really is the bop that just won’t drop. It’s a subculture that developed in nightclubs across the North of England in the 1960s and 70s. DJs played mostly lesser known singles and B-sides by American soul musicians that had been put out by Motown, Chess, Vee-Jay and other independent labels.

It was uplifting music, with soulful lyrics that celebrated the joy and elation to be found in everyday experiences. It resonated with northern working class life, and tapped into the Mod scene that was also prominent at the time.

Clubs like the Blackpool Mecca, Manchester’s Twisted Wheel and the Wigan Casino soon assumed legendary status on the Northern Soul scene, staging all-nighters where afficionados could forget their cares by dancing Saturday night away into Sunday morning.

The scene has never really gone away since, with the music influencing numerous others over the years, from Dexy’s Midnight Runners to Amy Winehouse and Fatboy Slim, to name a few.

The current wave of popularity began last year, when the Proms Season at the Royal Albert Hall in London held a special Northern Soul event, bringing together some fabulously talented soul singers, a rhythm and blues band and the BBC Orchestra.

The performances celebrated and breathed new life into a roster of Northern Soul classics, with orchestral arrangements by Joe Duddell and Fiona Brice. Songs included Hold Back the Night (by The Trammps), Out on the Floor (Dobie Gray), and Tainted Love (Gloria Jones), amongst others. The event was so successful it has now been taken out on the road on the Northern Soul Orchestrated Tour.

Which is how Northern Soul came to be at the Royal Festival Hall. All the hits were here, with beautiful strings, euphoric trombones, booming, passion-filled vocals and sparkling xylophones. It’s the equivalent of taking those old scratchy vinyl 7-inches and B-sides you once loved playing on a mono turntable, and hearing them afresh, performed live and completely digitally remastered.

The Night, originally by Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons, was received rapturously by the audience, as was There’s a Ghost in My House (by R. Dean Taylor). Punters were invited to dance in the aisles, and plenty obliged, many sporting 60s fashions, Small Faces haircuts, Harrington jackets and Fred Perry T-shirts.

I liked hearing Sliced Tomatoes, an instrumental originally performed by Just Brothers, now instantly recognisable as the guitar track sampled by Fatboy Slim in Rockafeller Skank.

Host and curator, Stuart Maconie, from 6 Music, introduced the 3 before 8 – the 3 tracks that signalled the ending of the all-nighter at Wigan Casino back in the day as 8am approached. I have to say, as a sleepy head who values a good night’s kip, a dancing all-nighter would have been my worst nightmare. I once tried a horror film all-nighter, having to leave to go home to bed, practically falling asleep after only the second movie, and forgoing a 1960s Peter Cushing classic (which is saying something) in the process.

So the Wigan Casino all-nighter would not have been for me – I’d have been tucked up nice and toasty in bed, well before the first round of pep pills was being handed out.

Thankfully, this show finished on the right side of midnight, allowing ample time to get to nearby Waterloo Station and then home. There was a real buzz of elation as everyone filed out of the arena.

There are so many tracks I could choose to add to the ADK Playlist, but I will settle on this one, which opened the show and typifies the Northern Soul sound. This is The M.V.P.s with Turnin’ My Heartbeat Up.

Categories
Recipes Snacks

Peanut Butter, Oat & Apricot Bites

Having made my Peanut Butter Boosters recently, I found myself with half a jar of good quality peanut butter left. I wanted to come up with another bite-sized temptation to fill the annoying hunger gap that can open up after exercise, or simply when the next mealtime is still a little way away.

These fit the bill. What’s more, they don’t require any cooking and are very quick to make. There are only 5 ingredients, so you stay in control of exactly what is going into the snack. They are both vegetarian and vegan.

The best part however, is that making them requires the squidge technique i.e. getting your hands into the baking bowl and manipulating the mix with your fingers. Why is that the best bit? Well, when you’ve finished shaping the Bites, your reward is getting to lick your fingers clean. Mmm!

Convinced? Then give this a try…

Servings

Depending on your preferred size, this mix will make around 9 -10 Bites.

Timings

15 mins max to make, after which they are ready to eat. Keep them in the fridge and they’ll last for 2 – 3 days (if they’re not all eaten by then, that is 🙂 ).

You Will Need

  • 120g oats
  • 120g peanut butter
  • 60g maple syrup or runny honey
  • 40g dried apricots, finely chopped
  • a few splashes of milk (dairy or non-dairy)

Method

  1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, and squidge together between your fingers till you have a sticky mix.
  2. Pull off a piece of your desired size and roll into a ball between the palms of both hands. Set on a plate, and repeat till all the mixture is used up.
  3. Place in the fridge.
  4. Enjoy licking your fingers!

Customise It!

You could swap in another dried fruit for the apricots if you wish – dates would go well. Chuck in a handful of seeds if you like.

I’ve carried on listening to The 1975 this past week – their music is very uplifting and it reminds me of a great night in Birmingham with my friend – see The 1975. Here’s another track I particularly like, therefore: The Sound.

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Blog Music

The 1975

As a massive music fan (the blog tag line here being Good Food, Great Music), I’m excited to say that this week’s live music experience (see The Lexicon of Love) has continued.

There I was in the ADK Kitchen, working on my next post about a nice vegetarian soup, when a friend called with the offer of a spare ticket to see The 1975 at the Resorts World Arena in Birmingham. I hadn’t heard too much of their music, but am always game to see a new band play live, especially one as globally successful as The 1975. Apologies – that soup recipe will have to wait until this weekend, folks!

With my apron hung on its peg, and the spatula in the dishwasher, we headed off in my friend’s car towards the M40.

We weren’t disappointed – The 1975 were very good.

The stage was set extremely stylishly (see my photo above), all in white and, for the first part of the show, decked out like the cool interior of a chic apartment. Warmly illuminated in changing pastel shades, the coffee tables, lamps, armchairs and TV sets created a relaxed feel, against which the band played great music and their engaging frontman, Matty Healy, acted out his inner angst.

I am still not sure whether Matty really is the chainsmoking, hip flask swigging, tortured romantic soul that comes across on stage, or whether this is just a character portraying the emotional vulnerability that runs through the lyrics of so many of the band’s songs. The answer, I suspect, is somewhere in between.

Track after track of their brand of soulful pop rolled out across an adoring audience – some of their biggest songs, like Oh Caroline and I’m In Love With You, included.

They’re clearly a band that like their performance art, and this is stepped up in the middle part of the show. With the band off for a break, Matty, alone on the stage, sinks to his knees before a bank of TV sets, fizzling with snippets of newscasts reporting global issues of concern. I won’t say any more for fear of spoilers, but what happens next is fascinating.

Some people in white coats swarmed on to the stage. No, not to take Matty away – it was the stage crew, who proceeded to rearrange the set for the second half of the show while the band played on. It reminded me of how the road crew build Talking Heads’ set from the floor up, track by track, during the great concert movie, Stop Making Sense.

The final hour of the set was a joyous celebration of the band’s best music, including Tootime, The Sound, Love It If We Made It, and People. It brings pleasure to the whole of a packed arena. Heck, it even brings a smile to Matty’s face.

All in all, a thoughtful, considered, ever changing, engaging and very entertaining performance. I now consider myself a fan!

Here’s one of my favourite tracks that they performed live. The 1975 with It’s Not Living (If It’s Not With You).

I’ll be back at the weekend with, er, some soup.

Categories
Blog Music

The Lexicon of Love

The Lexicon of Love by ABC had been playing for several days in the ADK Kitchen, in anticipation of this long-awaited live rendition that I attended this week.

2022 was the 40th anniversary of the iconic album, no less. Where did that time go? The occasion has prompted band leader, Martin Fry, to go on the road on a UK concert tour, performing the work in full. He’s ably supported by the current members of ABC and the Southbank Sinfonia, an orchestra with full strings and percussion sections, conducted by Anne Dudley. Anne was responsible for the orchestral backing arrangements on the original album. She is also known for being part of experimental 80s band, The Art of Noise, along with the album’s producer, Trevor Horn.

To justify such an extravagant tour, an album really needs to hold a special place both in pop heritage, and in the hearts of its audience. That certainly apples here, with a full house of now, somewhat more mature fans still able to sing along, word perfectly, with every track.

Martin takes the audience through the album’s running order, track by track. He reminds us of the days when music was experienced by removing a vinyl disc from a cardboard sleeve, and putting it on a turntable. You placed an arm with a needle on the outside rim and let it run for about 15 mins of joyous sound, until it reached the label in the middle. Then, you flipped it over and did the whole thing again with Side 2. Concepts like streaming, mobile phones and online playlists with shuffle option, were still the stuff of science fiction.

Consequently, the band started with the opening track on Side 1, Show Me, and played the album in its proper running order, right through to the final track on Side 2, the instrumental reprise of The Look of Love. Along the way, every track, including the hit singles Poison Arrow, Tears Are Not Enough, The Look of Love Pt. 1 and All of My Heart received a rapturous welcome.

I was one of the many who played the original (on my little stereo turntable – what else?) more or less on repeat for quite some time when it was first released. It was a time when the New Romantics and Bowie Kids were emerging from the underground nightclubs and beginning to take over what, in those days, were popularly referred to as ‘The Charts’.

The Human League were showing us that electronic pop music was the future, with the Dare album. Spandau Ballet were sporting silk shirts and tartan cummerbunds, later becoming soul boys, embracing funk. Depeche Mode, Duran Duran, Visage, Ultravox and others would join them for what became known as the Second British Pop Invasion of the US (the first being the era of The Beatles and The Stones), providing a fresh, colourful and youthful soundtrack for the newly emerging world of 24/7 music television, MTV.

ABC’s masterpiece held a special place in the hearts of this generation.

A trip down memory lane, for sure, but the music still sounds as great as ever, brought to life here on the stage with a great band and the perfectly performed orchestral backing. Martin Fry’s voice holds up fine, and the intricate wordplay of his lyrics still sounds clever and witty. A performance that leaves a warm glow in the heart.

In a nice closing touch, Martin dedicated the performance to both the New Romantics and the Old Romantics in the audience.

Here’s ABC with The Look of Love Pt. 1.

Categories
Bakes Recipes

Blueberry & Coconut Crumble Squares

Here’s a delicious tray bake that thinks it’s a fruit crumble. A cup full of the oaty, dark sugary, coconutty cake mix is removed before the eggs are added, and then spread over a top layer of juicy blueberries before baking. The result is a cake base with a fruit crumble topping.

Enjoy it warm or cold, on its own or with a dollop of custard or greek yoghurt alongside.

Inspiration for this post has come from BBC Good Food. It’s another variation on a favourite traybake of mine that I posted previously on A Different Kitchen. In this version I’ve changed the sugar from light brown to dark brown, and swapped in blueberries for blackberries. It demonstrates again how easy it is to play around with recipes, rather than feeling we have to strictly follow them to the letter!

Servings

Makes 16 squares.

Timings

15 mins to prepare, 25 mins to bake at 180C.

You Will Need

  • 250g self-raising flour
  • 25g oats
  • 250g dark brown sugar
  • 200g butter or spread
  • 75g desiccated coconut
  • 2 eggs
  • 300g fresh blueberries

Method

  1. Grease a baking tin and line with baking paper. The one I used is 22cm square.
  2. Sieve the flour into a large bowl. Stir in the oats and sugar.
  3. Add the baking spread and mix in with an electric whisk, until you have a crumbly mixture.
  4. Take a teacup or sugar bowl and fill it with some of the mix. Set aside.
  5. Add the eggs to the large bowl and whisk in once more until it is all combined.
  6. Spread over the bottom of the baking tin, and smooth out towards all four corners. Scatter the blueberries on top, then sprinkle over the reserved teacup/sugar bowl of crumble mixture.
  7. Place in the oven for 25 mins, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out with no mixture sticking. Leave to cool.
  8. When cool, remove from the tin and cut into 16 squares.

Customise It!

Other fruit like raspberries will work well if you wish. Swap in light brown sugar for the dark if you want a lighter cake. Chuck a few chopped nuts or seeds in with the reserved mixture to add further texture to the crumble topping.

This week I’ve been following developments about the current musical collaboration between two legends of the Manchester music scene – John Squire (The Stone Roses) and Liam Gallagher (Oasis). So far they have only released a couple of tracks for streaming, and I am looking forward to hearing the whole album when it comes out next month. John Squire’s distinctive swiping guitar sound and Liam’s rasping vocals have the potential to make this something special.

It’s prompted me to listen to tracks by The Stone Roses this week. Their sound is an engaging mash-up of 60’s-era vocals and late-80’s dance. This is probably my favourite track of theirs, so I’m adding it to the ADK Playlist. It showcases the Roses at their best: choppy lead guitar, bouncy drums and percussion, steady bass and understated vocals: The Stone Roses with What the World is Waiting For.

Categories
Recipes Sides

Mango Salsa

This is a side dish to truly wake up the senses. Juicy mango combines with crisp cucumber, crunchy red onion, fiery chilli, fragrant coriander and tangy lime to make a real treat for your taste buds, that’s visually enticing! It’s also suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

I served it spooned over my Jerk Chicken with Roast Peppers, all wrapped up in a warm tortilla. You can just as easily serve it alongside a spicy mains or as part of a salad.

Thanks to the guys at Sunday Brunch for the inspiration with this one.

Totally tropical!

Servings

A side dish for 4 adult mains.

Timings

10mins to throw together.

You Will Need

  • 1 red onion, chopped
  • 1 mango, chopped
  • half a cucumber, chopped
  • 1 red chilli, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 30g fresh coriander, chopped
  • zest and juice of 2 limes

Method

  1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Place in the fridge until mealtime.

Customise It!

Feel free to chuck in a few nuts, seeds or dried fruit. Pomegranate seeds would look good and, in my experience, have never been known to detract from a dish such as this. Try not to over-complicate it though – part of the attraction is that it is so quick and easy to prepare.

Here’s La Roux, keeping up the fun, tropical theme with the catchy Tropical Chancer. Be mindful that the chorus of this track can lodge in the brain, resulting in in it being hummed and sung on repeat for the rest of the day. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Categories
Blog Snacks

I Sat By The Ocean

This week I’ve spent a few days down in Poole, on the Dorset coast, in connection with a very important event. I will tell you more about it in a moment, though the musically astute of you may be able to guess what it is, given the clue in the title of this post.

While you’re puzzling on that conundrum, I will tell you about the terrific place we visited for the morning coffees and pastries, shown in my main photo above.

It is a place called Rockwater, on the beach at Branksome Chine. It has been under construction for many months, and opened just recently. There was a cafe here before, but I do not recall it being anywhere near as stylish as this.

As you can see, it is right next to the golden beach. Look carefully and you may even spot some of the sand that the recent Storm Ciaran blew up against its entrance.

We sat on the upstairs terrace, which has terrific views right across the bay, from the hotels of Bournemouth and Hengistbury Head to the east, out to Sandbanks and Old Harry Rocks to the west.

Although it is mid-November, the sun was warm on the terrace. My pumpkin spice latte and croissant went down a treat. We discovered they serve breakfasts here on the terrace, and will definitely be back to sample those.

So have you solved my teaser yet? You may have guessed it is music-related. The main reason for my visit here was to see the California rockers, Queens of the Stone Age at the nearby Bournemouth International Centre. They arrived in the UK last week on this leg of their tour, which they have called The End is Nero. The band have been receiving top, top reviews so far, which I can confirm are fully justified.

I have liked QOTSA a lot for many years, and have now seen them live on four occasions. That puts them level with U2 as the group I have seen in concert the most times.

They played for 1 hour 45 minutes, with a setlist comprising tracks from across all 8 studio albums. They encored with Go With The Flow, and an electrifying version of Song For The Dead.

I also enjoyed the Aussie support act, The Chats, a punk trio from the Sunshine Coast which, incidentally, I will be visiting in Spring 2024. They have an energetic sound and don’t take themselves too seriously. I shall try to feature a track in a future post.

That is it now for live music for me in 2023. It has been a pretty good year, seeing many of my favourite bands including Fatboy Slim, Elton John, Inspiral Carpets, Arctic Monkeys, The Hives, Muse, Royal Blood, Billy Joel, and now QOTSA. I will try hard to equal that line-up in 2024.

In the meantime, here is a track from the 2013 album, …Like Clockwork. Something tells me Josh Homme didn’t write these lyrics about sitting in the sun by a beach, on a roof terrace with a terrific view, munching on a croissant and drinking a pumpkin spice latte. Then again, you never know 🙂

Here are QOTSA with I Sat By The Ocean.

Categories
Blog Drink

Labour of Love

My motorhome tour of Scotland has now taken me, literally, the length and breadth of the nation to seek out some of the best Scots craft beers – a route taking in the famous John O’Groats.

John O’Groats is situated at the northerly end point of the longest journey that can be completed on the British mainland – a full 874 miles from Land’s End in Cornwall, south-west England. In fact, as we were leaving it in the motorhome, there was a hitch-hiker standing by the side of the road, holding a piece of cardboard on which he had scrawled, somewhat optimistically, in marker pen, ‘Land’s End’. That made me laugh!

Craft beer has really come on around the Scottish regions since I was last here. There is now an extensive range of locally produced ales, and most areas I’ve visited have their own home brewed specialities.

This being a food and drink-inspired blog, I’ve considered it my duty to sample a fair few of these on our travels, so that I can offer my readers an honest appraisal. A labour of love, I guess. I know, it’s a tough job, but someone has to do it. Don’t mention it – you’re welcome.

So we’ll start in John O’Groats itself, where the iconic signpost shown in my photograph is only about 100 yards from the John O’Groats Brewery Visitor Experience. It hosts an exhibition celebrating the range of beers that are brewed on site. This is a selection I took away to enjoy with my evening bbqs.

Here’s another beer I bought and enjoyed of an evening as the sun was setting in the Cairngorms National Park. Wildcat is brewed in Aviemore (the winter ski resort) and has a deep colour, good body and malty taste.

St. Andrews in Fife may be better known as the ancient birthplace of golf, but these days it is also home to the St. Andrews Brewing Co. I first discovered their tap room in nearby Dundee, just across the Tay estuary, and later picked up this tasty IPA while visiting St. Andrews itself.

My overall favourite on this trip, however (cue drum roll….) is the Joker IPA, brewed in Alloa by the Williams Brothers Brewing Co. I found it to be golden, well balanced, hoppy and full of flavour. Guaranteed to satisfy, and I was a repeat customer on more than one occasion.

I described making my critical assessment of some of Scotland’s best craft beers as a labour of love. What better track to add to the ADK Playlist than this one from Pat and Greg Kane from Lanarkshire, better known as Hue and Cry: Labour of Love. Cheers, lads!

Categories
Bakes Mains

Leek, Bacon & Stilton Flan

It’s the time of year for quiche, eaten warm or cold while sitting on the patio in the summer sun. Perhaps enjoying a glass of fresh Elderflower over ice, or maybe even something stronger.

For me, leek, bacon and Stilton cheese is always a winning blend in a dish. The deep oniony taste of the silky, buttery leeks complements the saltiness of the bacon and the creaminess of the cheese. As my photo above (taken in the back garden sun) shows, the greeny blue hues of the toasted topped flan just make you want to tuck into a slice.

Serve this as a main accompanied by some side salads. If you need some ideas, check out Beetroot, Feta and Walnut Salad with Bulgar and Quinoa, Crunchy Fruit and Nut Pilaff, or Royal Blood Orange Salad.

Servings

4 adult portions.

Timings

The whole process takes around an hour: 10 mins to make the pastry, 10 mins to chill, another 10 mins to blind bake the pastry base, and then 25 mins to bake the flan.

You Will Need

  • 225g plain flour
  • pinch of salt
  • 100g spread or margarine
  • 2 – 3 tbsp cold water
  • 2 leeks
  • a knob of butter
  • 3 slices of bacon
  • 100g Stilton cheese
  • 2 eggs
  • 50g milk
  • a few twists of black pepper

Method

  1. Turn the oven to 180C. Grease and line a flan dish – the one I used (in the photo) is 22cm diameter.
  2. Sieve the flour and salt into a food processor with blade fitted, and add in the spread. Blitz until it resembles the texture of breadcrumbs. Add a few drops of the water until it binds into a lump of soft pastry.
  3. Tip out and wrap in cling film. Place in the fridge to chill for 10 mins.
  4. Meanwhile, wash the leeks and chop into a saucepan with the butter. Place over a gentle heat so that they soften in the melted butter.
  5. Chop the bacon into pieces and fry till browned and crispy.
  6. Take the pastry from the fridge and roll out on a floured surface to a size that fits your flan dish. Fit it into the dish and trim off any overhanging excess. Place a crumpled piece of baking paper inside and fill with ceramic baking beans. Place in the oven for 10 mins.
  7. Remove from the oven and discard the paper/ beans, taking care as they will be hot. Spread the softened leeks and bacon over the base, then crumble over the Stilton cheese.
  8. Mix the beaten eggs, milk and pepper in a jug, and pour carefully into the flan. Place in the oven for 25mins until cooked.
  9. Remove and serve hot, if you wish, or let it go cold. Serve it al fresco, with salads and cold drinks.

Customise it!

As I’ve said, I regard leek, bacon and Stilton as a classic taste combo, so wouldn’t change it. However, you could add other green veg for the leeks if you wish – broccoli would go well. You could also add grated cheddar or another favourite cheese, in place of the Stilton.

Music time. Here’s a song I really like from a new artist for the Playlist – Ladyhawke, with Black White and Blue. Maybe not quite the colours of my Leek, Bacon and Stilton Flan, but still a great track nonetheless!