Tuesday 28 September 2010

Orders

MillieMooshu is now set to take orders before the Christmas rush. Hand painted silk scarves are perfect for that lovely unique gift idea for any occasion. A bespoke service is available on request. Drop me a line if you are interested...x

Tuesday 14 September 2010

Make

Marrow and apple chutney
I used the marrow that I was kindly given into a tasty chutney. Mixed with apples and spices and really gives that Autumnal taste. It was easy to make and a great way to prolong the life of the ingredients. All you need is...
3lb Marrow
1lb Onions
1lb Apples
1lb Sultanas
1 Pint malt vinegar
2lb Sugar- brown gives a nice rich colour
1tsp Ginger
3 tbsp Pickling spice ( I couldn't find this so used mixed spice, cumin, nutmeg,paprika etc)

Add all ingredients to a large pan and cook until the apple and marrow is tender but not too mushy. Make sure the vinegar has been soaked up by the ingredients. Spoon into sterilized jars and leave for around a month to mature. I cant wait to have it on my sandwiches!!

Make

Yellow plum and apple jam
A friend at work gave me a bag full of lovely ripe yellow plums. Although I love plums I didnt think I could eat them all so I decided to make a jam with some cooking apples. Jams are so easy to make and a lovely way to use fruits.  I only used apples, plums and sugar as both fruits are high in pectin which meant the jam set quickly after boiling. I used ...
1lb Yellow plums- remove stones
500g tart apples roughly chopped
400g sugar

Add the ingreditents to a pot/preserving pan and cook until boiling temperature. Boil for five minutes and then remove from the heat. Spoon into sterilised jars and seal.
Perfect for presents or to indulge on a coissant or toast anyday.

Bake

Chocolate and marrow cake
I was kindly given a marrow from a colleague at work and after making marrow chutney I had some marrow left over. After looking for recipes I found a lovely recipe for courgette and chocolate cake and so decided to have a go replacing the courgette for my marrow. Sounds strange but it was tasty and went down well at work. All you need is...
170g Pain flour
1tsp Baking powder
30g Cocoa powder
1/2 tsp mixed spice
90ml Olive Oil
190g Light brown sugar
2 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla extract
250ml Marrow/courgette
70g hazelnuts or chopped nuts.

Set oven to 160C
Toast chopped nuts
Grate marrow in a jug
In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, coca, mixed spice and a pinch of salt.
Add the oil, eggs (beaten) and vanilla.
Fold in the marrow and finally fold in the toasted buts.
Add to a prepared and lined tin.
Cook for 40-50 minutes.
A great way to indulge and still get one of you five a day ! :-)

Make

Sloe Whisky/Damson Whisky
We had lots of sloes and damsons left after our forage and my hubby found a bottle of whisky that was a Christmas present and so we set to making sloe whisky and damson whisky just how we had done with the others. Fingers crossed it works out- its a new experiment.

Make

Blackberry Vodka
During our Sloe picking we found copious amounts of blackberry bushes and so we picked basket loads. After making jam we decided to make blackberry vodka. All you need is juicy blackberries, vodka, sugar and a vanilla pod. Wash the berries and fill a glass bottle a third full. Next add a third of sugar and then top up with vodka. Add a vanilla pod which brings out the blackberry taste. Shake well every day for two weeks or so and then leave for up to thee months. Once ready strain through muslin and bottle. Another tasty drink for the winter...yum!!

Make

Sloe Gin

Its that time of year again where the trees and bushes are full of ripe fruits and berries. We had a good forage one Sunday and now have plenty of bottles of Gin, Vodka and Whisky on the go. Sloe Gin is so nice and warming on a cold day or night, we tend to take a little hip flask to the rugby to keep us warm at half time...beats a cup of tea (just). Its so easy to make, all you need is sloes, gin and sugar and a good glass bottle. Pick the sloes after a frost or if its still early in August /Sept just pick them and then freeze the berries overnight. This makes them sweeter. After cleaning the berries prick the skin and add to a sterilised glass bottle. Fill until  three quarters full, then add a third of sugar, caster or granulated is fine and then top up with a third of gin. Shake every day for a good few weeks and leave for three months- it takes patience but its worth it. Once ready sieve the liquid through muslin or fine strainer into bottles and enjoy!! 

Monday 13 September 2010

Make


Embellished clutch bags.
I have only made a limited collection of the clutch bags and am now thinking of A/W 2010. I love these straw clutches for Summer but need a different look for the Winter.

Sew

Corsage hair slides
Super cute!!

Sew



Bow Brooches
The bow brooches have been a huge hit since I started making them so I decided to broaden the colour choice and now have three main colours to choose from, champagne, rose and navy. A pretty addition for the latest craft table.

Create


Sunflower Silk Scarf
I loved painting the blue and green silk scarf so I decided to try another with a different background. The sunflower takes time and patience as I also paint each circle/seed within the flower individually. The salt method worked really well on this piece so opted to stick with one background colour.

Create


Late Summer Lily Scarf
Lilies are my favourite flower as you may be able to tell from other scarves I have designed. Rather than using the bright colours that i usually opt for I decided to experiment with more natural tones and went for caramels and cocoa shades for the background. The muted background allows the colourful lily flowers to stand out . I also used the salt method which I love to use as you cant control it and the end effects are always a welcome surprise.

Create


Gladioli Silk Scarf
I bought some beautiful bunches of gladioli last week and couldnt resist using them for my inspiration for my latest scarf. The colouring worked really well with the silk dyes and I also used the stems as background decoration. I took them to my latest craft fair and they proved to be a hit. Now to try them in different colourways.