We have had masses and MASSES of strawberries at the allotment this year. I have made several strawberry pavlovas now, and Rob has made dozens of jars of jam. In fact, as I type, a pan of gooseberry and strawberry jam is bubbling away on the hob. It smells fantastic, really summery.
The Sweet Williams are also growing really well. They last for ages and smell beautiful. I have a vase of them on the bathroom windowsill that feel rather decadent when Iam wallowing in the tub.
Strawberry Streusal. There is definitely a strawberry theme to this post, is there not? I made this a couple of weeks ago after a customer brought me the recipe in one day. We sold it all in one day. It has crushed hazelnuts in the base, and then a crumbly hazelnut topping..yum..
Two weeks ago was the annual Street Fayre. This year is the first time I have been involved. There is a theme every year, and this year it was World War 2. Everyone gets really involved, there are stalls everywhere, loads of entertainment put on and a fabulous atmosphere. All of our customers had warned us of how busy it would be in advance, so we drafted in lots of people to help.
We weren't too sure on what to do regards dressing up, so eventually decided on having customised t-shirts designed. It just wouldn't have been safe or practical in our work environment to be wearing uniforms etc. So we went for Your Cafe Needs You on the front, with the trusty Kitchener logo, and had our names and ranks on the backs.
We had such a fun day. It was madly busy, there wasn't a spare seat to be had, and the atmosphere was amazing. Unfortunately I could only get photos of before-no during or after shots due to the madness! I was (handily) on drinks and cake duty that day, and it was constant. The rain held off, it was warm and sunny and we had heaps of support from our regulars, as well as seeing lots of new faces. We were all shattered that night, and some of our younger workers looked done in, but it was well worth doing. I am really looking forward to planning next years event properly, as we'll have an idea of what to expect rather than just go on hearsay.
Things have settled back to normal again now though. We have a couple of new girls who are working out well and we are just enjoying the summer.
Sewing wise I have a new quilt on the go. It must have been inspired by all of that Union Jack bunting, as I am going for a red white and blue theme this time. There are squares of stripes ginghams and spots on various surfaces around the house, and a couple of rows sewn together. The machine has had a few off days but I think it's sorted now. It only seems to like using 100% cotton, so that is what I'm sticking to from now on.
Thankyou for all of your Happy Birthday wishes cards and pressies, I am a very lucky girl indeed. (still calling myself a girl,ha!) I have only just realised that I am about to hit my 100th post as well! Madness. It seems a long time ago that I joined the blogging world, and despite the infrequent postings these days I do still enjoy reading everyone elses. Most evenings I spend half an hour checking out what everyone has been up to. A very enjoyable way to relax after a busy day.
I won't leave it so long next time, promise.
x
