Poesie

La Notte

Notte profonda rabbiosa

come l'insonnia.

Con quanto furore

la voglio afferrare.

Finalmente cala

la notte ...

Lina Ghidotti

Pensiero

Se fossi un sasso,
sarei sulla strada

e vedrei il mondo molto dal basso.

Se fossi un sasso

mi farei amico

di tutta la natura

che ruota intorno al mondo.
Se fossi un sasso,

non mi sentirei mai inutile
perche' niente e' piu' bello

di un vialetto ghiaioso,

o dentro una cascatella d'acqua.

Lina Ghidotti

Verde come

Verde come il portafoglio dopo

le feste di Natale.

Verde come lo smeraldo che

abbaglia nelle sue
sfaccettature.

Verde come un prato inglese
sconfinato come

un'immensita'.

Verde come l'eta' dei sogni

che non finiscono mai

di lusingarci, tradirci.

Verde come il mare che sbatte.

Le sue onde si agitano

all'infinito.

Lina Ghidotti

... ninna nanna mamma

happy campers sweet potato and coriander soup

“If the people have no cake, let them eat soup.”

Other than cake, nothing can satisfy a happy camper's appetite better than soup. But this is not an ordinary soup: it's a bowlful of steaming, fragrant, chunky, happy campers sweet potato and coriander soup!
Easy enough to prepare in advance (perhaps while you are baking the cake) and to enjoy each and every day of happy camping.


olive oil
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
5 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into large chunks
1 glass of cider (you can drink the remainder with your soup ... when it's ready!)
vegetable stock (about a litre or so)
1 large bunch of fresh coriander, chopped
salt and pepper
a handful of grated parmesan


Sautee the onion and garlic in the olive oil.
When they've softened, add the cider and let the liquid evaporate slightly.
Add the chopped potatoes to the pan and stir for a couple of minutes.
Add enough stock to cover the potatoes and bring to the boil.
Reduce the heat, cover (or partially cover) and simmer for about 1 hour.
Stir from time to time, adding extra stock or water if required.
When the potatoes are really soft, mash them up with a fork to thicken the soup.
Remove from the heat, stir in the fresh coriander and season.
Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan and crusty bread. Wholesome!

happy campers chocolate birthday cake

It's a fact: happy camping makes you hungry ... when you're hungry, you want chocolate cake. If it happens to be your birthday, and you are camping, then you must get some 'happy campers chocolate birthday cake', quickly! Now say that when you've had one baileys too many ...
Bake your cake in advance and store in an airtight container. It will keep for days (given a chance)!







Cake
150 gr unsalted butter, softened
150 gr icing sugar
4 medium eggs, separated
150 gr plain chocolate
150 gr self-raising flour, sieved

Filling
200 ml double cream
150 gr white chocolate

Icing
150 gr plain chocolate
75 gr unsalted butter, cubed
75 ml double cream

1. Preheat the oven to 150C - Grease a non-stick 20 cm round cake tin.
2. For the cake: cream the butter and icing sugar together in a bowl. Gradually beat in the egg yolks.
3. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Cool slightly, then beat into the creamed mixture. Gradually stir in the flour.
4. Whisk the egg whites until stiff. Beat 2 tbsp of egg white into the cake mixture, then fold in the remainder.
5. Spoon into the tin and level the surface. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours or until firm to the touch. Turn out and cool on a wire rack.
6. To make the filling: whip the cream until thick. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Cool slightly, then fold into the cream.
7. Slice a thick layer off the top of the cake and spread the filling generously on both layers.
8. For the icing: melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir in butter and cream. Chill icing until just firm.
9. Spread the icing over the top and sides of the cake. Decorate the cake, if you wish, with chocolate curls, smarties, cocoa, birthday candles if the occasion requires!

Finger licking good (... and bowls and spoons too)!

Happy Campers go Knockin

Last weekend we took the van out for our first overnight stay: how exciting! We decided on a place called Knockin, see map, as most sites were still closed for winter.

Everything worked (hurray), the site was perfect for a little exploring by bike or foot.

As you can see from the photos, it was peaceful and quiet ... well, except for the gunshots echoing in the woods!!! Made us city types feel right at home that did ...

The snowdrops looked beautiful ... spring is almost here!

sandwich fillings

Have you noticed we're up to here in a credit crunch? sounds a bit like a breakfast cereal, I know, (when do we get the honey nut variety?), so now we can't afford to pay someone to make our lunch, we have to bring our own ...

This blog will do exactly what is says in the title: sandwich fillings!

Lightly buttered bread
grapes (halved)
cheese

That's it! Well, we all have to start somewhere ...

happy campers!

After long deliberations, a huge amount of cold sweat and the credit crunch biting our backside, we finally took the decision to Buy A Campervan! The girls piggy banks have had their share of bashing, getting the pennies together, for the most extravagant lavish of a purchase ... finally, another adventure! Any ideas for our first trip anyone?