My day started with pumpkin baked oatmeal from the lovely CCK website- recipe here– while listening to Hard Fi as we are off to see them tomorrow- woo!
I used one packet of gingerbread porridge, more spices, a big dollop of pumpkin puree and 1/2 cup coconut milk and baked for 25 mins. It filled 2 ramekins, and I had them both. Yum! I will be having this again for a weekend breakfast 🙂
Then I was off to the course run by Sweet and Floral (for anyone vaguely local).
I did one before and this one was a Christmas cupcake one.
We made:
A present wrapped in a bow, and a snowman.
A bauble (with glitter!!!).
We used a knife to create stitching detail on the bow- how clever.
I think the snowman is my favourite- so cute.
We also made a cheeky elf and a Father Christmas.
All of them together. It was such a relaxing way to spend Sunday morning/ lunchtime. There were only 6 of us, so we all sat around a big table. Rolling out the icing, colouring some of it, cutting it out…. it is all just really enjoyable.
After that I went on a quick run (4 miles- trying to get up to the 60 mile challenge- I think I have done 35 miles now) in the freezing cold! Then it was a quick shower before dashing over to Andy’s parents.
Doing the course reminded me of when we used to do art at school or uni- I always found it so relaxing. I was always al-right at art, not brilliant but it is always something I used to love (even though I am not that good with the really fiddly bits)- something about the colours, cutting, just doing something physical which you don’t have to concentrate too hard on, but at the same time your mind cannot wander to other things (work!)- I just love it- the three hours whizzed by. I loved science lessons too (for the opposite reasons- so interesting and they were so logical) but art somehow is just so relaxing.
What was your favourite lesson/ subject at school?
They never look good in my photos but trust me it was all about the taste!
We shared one this afternoon with some Teapigs chai. Mmmmm.
It will look better once it is covered in marzipan 🙂 Tomorrow I am going on a Christmas cupcake decorating course so I am hoping to have some good ideas for how to decorate the cakes. Other than that I have been relaxing- I had a busy week and somehow did 4 runs (Saturday- 4, Sunday- 8, Monday-5, Wednesday 4) plus aerobics and pump, and normally I would have had another rest day. I was meant to be going out to dinner after work yesterday, but I left work late (super busy) and had such an awful headache- my eyes were hurting as I was driving home looking at all the headlights, so I skipped that in favour of an evening on the sofa!
Little gingerbread men:
And some hearts and stars:
I got some writing icing from Sainsbury’s and had fun drawing on them, but the thing is it is quite sticky- a bit worried it is all going to peel off as I have currently wrapped them in clingfilm.
Then I used my new sugarflair colours to make coloured icing and cut out little gingerbread men;
Which went on top of the cakes alongside the fudge icing from 
Look at the cute case from Paperchase too:
They have little snowmen and gingerbread men and things like that 🙂
Cooked in a pan gently (that seems to be the key)
Tasty anyway.
In the daylight! Yummy alpro chocolate milk.
Toast (sourdough wholewheat, although it tastes nice when not toasted) with red pepper hummus and tangerines. I also had some tea (cinnamon tea from Whitards although I don’t think they make it any more) and an 
Grape juice in pan above.
Yeah, not really reduced to 1/4 yet.
This took about an hour and a half. My gas bill!!!
The fruit was looking good- I used cranberries and blueberries (frozen ones).
Then you had to add the reduced grape juice to the fruit and boil it all up.
It boiled like crazy. I added pectin (to help it set)- I followed the recipe to the letter. I skimmed the foam off the top and checked that it got to the right temperature on the sugar thermometer.
But it will not set- it is very runny, more like a sauce than a jam. Hmm. Next time I am going back to regular sugar I am afraid- I am going to try mango and apple next so wish me luck! And any idea what went wrong? (I am blaming the grape juice myself)