Round up, and some big news

Yvonne has been busy again in her work for the charity LoveQuiltsUK, here are the latest of her completed projects

And if you go to the charities website, you can see the wonderful work they do.

We had Naomi and Maeve down for a couple of days last week, for a change the weather was kind and we managed to get to the beach in Paignton,

and the breakwater beach in Brixham, where we also had a visit from an inquisitive seal.

Food wise, we had my famous chicken in peanut sauce (equal parts peanut butter and Sweet Chili Sauce) baked in the oven with mixed potato and sweet potato wedges.

And Yvonne made a Chilli con Carne, which we had with rice and garlic bread.

After they had gone I topped up my stock of Sourdough, Beer-battered Onion Rings, using my new fryer,

I use this beer from Aldi, it has a lovely flavour and compliments the sourdough taste, plus I get the spare!

And the other big news, my latest novel is available to pre-order, for a limited time the eBook is HALF PRICE, £1.49 or $0.99 depending on where you are,

The link is myBook.to/Andorra

Plus I got a review

Back to Bread

I've been neglecting this blog and my baking for too long. I've got into the habit of just refreshing my sourdough starters every week and making loaves and rolls almost automatically, with no attempts at trying something new.

That will change, and this week is the start. My daughter and granddaughter are coming down for a few days and I need to up my game.

I'm making the ciabatta with the 18-hour ferment as a standard for toast and lunches but I'm trying a new type of roll as well. 

In the past, I've made savoury rolls, like cheese and pickle, or chorizo and sun-dried tomato, this time I'm going for a sweet version. I have some Blood Orange fruit spread

 and I will add chopped apricots and flaked almonds as well.

The basic dough is a sweet one and I've chosen the Richard Bertinet one,

250g Milk
10g Instant Yeast
500g Strong White Flour (For a softer dough you can substitute 150g Plain Flour for Strong)
60g softened Butter
40g Sugar
10g Salt
2 large eggs.

I warm the milk a little before I make the dough as usual.

Once it's had its first rise, I turn it out and stretch it into a rectangle.

Spread a thin layer of the orange spread on it,

 then sprinkle the chopped Apricots and Flaked Almonds.

Roll up and cut, laying the rolls out on a greased sheet, 

and prove for another 30-45 minutes while the oven heats up.

Bake for 18 minutes at 230°C or until the internal temperature is 95°C.

And that's it.

Grandchildren and book news

We've been away for a few days, visiting children and grandchildren back in Kent.
We went out for a stroll in the countryside and I found these views, which reminds me that the South-East is not the built up area that you might have imagined it to be.

It'll be even prettier when the blossoms are out.

And of course, the grandchildren were as gorgeous as ever,

Thanks for all the chocolate, Elsa was asked (in Hotel Chocolat) what would be nice for a gift for us. Her reply; "one of everything in this shop!"

The full cover for my next novel has arrived, as you may have seen on my author website,
if not, here it is,

the book will be on sale in June, pre-orders should be possible from the first of the month, and I'll be offering the eBook at a special price to get things moving.

My 2016 Steampunk novel "The Rocks of Aserol" has been made into an audiobook and people have repeatedly asked me for a sequel, like this one I got yesterday.

Well the good news is that I have finished a sequel and it is presently in edit, I feel,under a little bit of pressure now, but hopefully I have managed to get another interesting tale, we will get reaction from my trusted team of beta readers and see.
Here's a rough idea  of what you can expect,

What has happened to Horis Strongman since we saw him last? The events in Aserol and beyond have changed him and given him adventures that he could never have imagined. His life is now completely different in every respect. He had travelled far and wide and seen more of his world than he ever would have thought.

But those who were against him have recovered and can still do him harm. Before he and his can be truly safe, he must face his foes again, and this time, the stakes are raised. But he will find that he has allies in the strangest places for this confrontation.

The story takes in foreign lands and new dangers as Horis fights for the freedom to live in peace.

The working title is "A new life in Ventis," and I hope to have it published for Xmas.

See you all soon!

Canonteign Falls, wordless

Canonteign Falls are near Bovey Tracey in Devon, we visited on a beautiful day.

Vegetables three ways, and a new character.

In my quest to eat more healthily, I've discovered new tastes, which are just as good as what I had been eating, but a lot better for me.

Firstly, I replaced the pasta which would normally accompany a bolognese with Aubergine, chopped and roasted in Olive Oil.

That was pretty good, then the next day, instead of potato chips with our fish, we had crinkle-cut Butternut squash chips.  

Again roasted in the oven in a little Olive Oil.

There was enough Bolognese for a second meal, this time I cut Courgette in a spiralizer to make a sort of spaghetti. This only needs to be microwaved for about 45 seconds to warm it without making it go soggy.

And now I feel quite virtuous!

In other news, my next novel, Andorra Pett and the Oort Cloud Café will be out in June. 
The artist who created Andorra, Matthew Britten, has drawn Andorra in another pose for marketing purposes, and here she is.

Look out for her on Facebook and Twitter soon, meanwhile, you can still catch up on chapter one of the book HERE

And looking a bit further ahead, the sequel to my Steampunk adventure, The Rocks of Aserol will be finished very soon, with a prospective publication date of October 1st this year. Keep an eye out for more news and the first chance to read a sample soon.

Note added in 2019, both novels are now available, check this link for details