Old Style Christmas Presents

bellaquidsin

Reverbe wrote: »

I didnt get any presents this year which I guess is pretty OS but what I did do was save a lot of my freebies etc especially... which made for some nice treats to come..

Oh dear, Reverbe, I find that a difficult one to follow. Well done to you for thinking positive and saving yourself a few 'treats'. I do hope things pick up for you in the New Year.

I got the RC Everyday cookbook too, must make it a rule to try one new recipe a week.

I also had Alys Fowler's Thrifty Gardener - How to create a stylish garden from next to nothing. As I have been doing this for the last 20 some years this book which should be OS is a total luxury for me. It's the feeling of being 'among friends' which does it for me, just like this site.

Bella.

katycocoa

I got my first ever Kenwwod Chef! I would never have spent this much myself but OH surprised me. Was very impressed!!!

bellaquidsin

Ooooo, it's such a lovely feeling when you get your first KC. I had mine about 28 years ago and it's still going strong. Just been to the repairers a couple of times.

Bella.

thifty

i got a dutch hoe for earthing up my spuds, a beautiful wooden handled stainless steel fork, 2 wooden handled trowels (one for house and one for allotment as my relatives don't seem to communicate!), a load of muck and my lovely dad has spread it all over my allotment and said he will dig it in next year, a muffin cookbook, slippers, pyjamas- one very happy OSer here!
I also got some money and plan on getting an icing set and gravy seperator from Lakeland and a bird feeding station.

fedupandskint

OS style presents I got are a gorgeous duck egg blue blanket from Dunelm to wrap around me or put over the bed; a stair basket (to keep the stairs tidy and I nearly bought one some many times and never did!); a new growhouse!!! just what I wanted - just need to put it together now!

And lastly, best of all....the Victorian Kitchen Series on DVD, garden, flowers and kitchen which I remember watching with my Dad when we had one TV in the house.

Can't wait to watch the first one tomorrow!

soappie

Penelope_Penguin wrote: »

IDid you get any Old Style gifts under your :xmastree:

Penny. x

Pen-Pen, you don't get more old style than Eliza Acton's "Modern Cookery for private families" originally published in 1855. By all accounts, Mrs Beeton took a lot of her ideas from it.

It's interesting that the preface (and this is over 150 years ago remember!) includes the following :

It cannot be denied that an improved system of practical domestic cookery ..... still much needed in this country where, from ignorance or from mismanagement in their preparation, the daily waste of excellent provisions almost exceeds belief ....... for it may safely be averred that good cookery is the best and truest economy, turning to full account every wholesome article of food and converting into palatable meals, what the ignorant either render uneatable or throw away in disdain.

I haven't read it all yet, but what I have read is really interesting. I salute the late, great Eliza Acton

thriftlady_2

soappie wrote: »

Pen-Pen, you don't get more old style than Eliza Acton's "Modern Cookery for private families" originally published in 1855. By all accounts, Mrs Beeton took a lot of her ideas from it.

Yes indeed, one of my faves:T Mrs Beeton didn't just take ideas from it, she plagiarised lots of Eliza's recipes- the naughty lady!

Eliza Acton was the first cookery writer to list the ingredients for each recipe she wrote although she lists them at the end rather than the beginning of a recipe.

I was leafing through my copy the other evening when a recipe for The Good Daughter's Mincemeat Pudding caught my eye. It's short enough to quote here and sounds an excellent and easy way to use up mincemeat. Eliza's writing style is wonderfully clear and readable even after 155 years, I shall be giving it a go later this week. She also includes several recipes for using up Christmas pud.

The Good Daughter's Mincemeat Pudding from Modern Cookery for Private Families by Eliza Acton.

Lay into a rather deep tart-dish some thin slices of French roll very slightly spread with butter and covered with a thick layer of mincemeat; place a second tier lightly on these, covered in the same way with the mincemeat; then pour gently in a custard made with three well-whisked eggs, three-quarters of a pint of new milk or thick cream, the slightest pinch of salt, and two ounces of sugar. Let the pudding stand to soak for an hour, then bake it gently until it is quite firm in the centre; this will be in from three-quarters of an hour to a full hour.

I'm assuming French roll is white bread.

soappie

thriftlady wrote: »

Yes indeed, one of my faves:T Mrs Beeton didn't just take ideas from it, she plagiarised lots of Eliza's recipes- the naughty lady!

I'm assuming French roll is white bread.

Awww, thanks thriftlady! I thought I'd be out on a really geeky limb there - your response means an awful lot me. xx

I wonder though, could a french roll be a baguette? That would make sense...slice it like a swiss roll and then layer etc.

seraphina

Oooooh, got a few!

A Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker
Kenwood Chef pasta maker attachment
Jamie's America
And not os, but a lovely cake stand to put my os creations on!


Glad to see lots of new Kenwood Chef owners -welcome to the club!

Blairweech

I got:

Complete Guide to Self Sufficiency
Self Sufficientish Bible
Surviving and Thriving on the Land
Jamie's Italy

plus chocolates, bath stuff, money, DVD, memory card for my camera. And completely non-OS...a Nintendo Wii :eek:

Am so spoilt this year