What I've Been Baking... Cherry and Almond Muffins

Office law dictates that when it is a resident's birthday that they must bring cake...

Who am I to defy that law?

So I took these beauties in.

Cherry and Almond Muffins.

Preparation: under 15 min.
Makes: 12
Oven's temperature: Gas Mark 5/200 C
How Long?: 20 m

The Ingredients:

175g (6 oz) soft margarine
175g (6 oz) caster sugar
300g (11 oz) self raising flour
3 eggs
5 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon almond extract
½ teaspoon baking powder
200g tub glacé cherries, roughly chopped

The Method:

1. Place 12 muffin cases into a muffin tray. 
2. Using an electric whisk, beat sugar into the margarine. Add eggs, milk and almond extract, beat again until well combined – it may look a bit odd and curdled. Carry on regardless. 
3. Stir in the flour. 
4. Reserve some cherries for decoration and fold the remainder into the mixture. 
5. Divide mixture evenly between the paper cases, and decorate the tops with remaining cherries. 
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 – 25 minutes. 
7. Next time I make these I'm going to drizzle the top with glacé icing for a Bakewell tart type affair.

These are so good.

What I've Been Reading: Going the Distance by Christina Jones

This month Accent Books have re-released Christina Jones' Milton St John Trilogy with new covers.

They have also been on special offer in the Kindle bookstore, so of course I took it upon myself to top up my collection.

This trilogy started calling me due to my part-time job where I input racing detail. It gives me something to daydream and play makebelieve about during my shift. I know, it's naughty but hey it passes the time.

The book is set in the town of Milton St John, and reminds me a little of a frothy Polo. Granted I haven't read Polo since I was a teenager so I might just be romanticising it a little.

Our heroine of the piece is Maddy. Unlucky in love, but successfully running her own business, living in horse racing village Milton St John with her younger sister - also an apprentice jockey she is at the heart of the neighbourhood.

Peapods, the property across the road from her cottage, used to be a sports club run by her ex-boyfriend has a new resident. Horse trainer Drew Fitzgerald is moving his stable over from Jersey.

The pair first catch sight of each other at a party held at one of Maddy's client/friend home. There is an instant attraction, which strengthens when Drew saves her from her letcherous ex.

Soon Maddy finds out that the Drew is married and feels that they are coming too close for her comfort. Feeling that it would be wrong to come between and man and his wife, which is complicated even further after she meets Caroline and finds out that she really likes her.

As if that wasn't complicated enough, Maddy's ex manages to dived the village with his latest stay rich and powerful scheme.

The village rise up against the scheme as the racing season heats up.

This is a fast-paced story, that didn't let me put it down for long. Probably why I read it in one evening.

I've already started on the second book in the series.

What BeeBee Read: Bones Never Lie by Kathy Reichs

So while I've been on my blogging break, I have been picking up some extra hours at work. Which has left me with a couple of hours to spare between finishing and starting again.

I've packed my handbag, stocked with fine fare like jelly babies, notebooks and obviously a novel or two and a kindle. Last month one of the books in my bag was this thriller by international best-selling author Kathy Reichs returns with another novel from The Temperance Brennan series.

Tempe is called in to consult on a case, alarm bells start to sound as it becomes clear that she has searched for this child-killing monster before.

This is her ‘one’ that got away.

Picking up from where the last tale dropped off Detective Ryan has fallen off the grid, grief stricken since the death of his daughter.

So before she can get down to business Temperance Brennan must first track him down.

This time the forensic anthropologist gets help from an unexpected avenue, her ill mother. Quickly coincidences begin to mount until it becomes clear that the murders are all, in some way, connected to Brennan.

As the search heats up and evidence begins to mount, Ryan and Brennan find that their prime suspect has also been killed and the body hidden in a barrel of maple syrup. Which turns out to be a successful preservation tool.

Question is - who is killing these girls?

My Life Monday: Decision Making

When faced with despair, there can only be a decision to be made.

To I rise above it, or do I sink to the bottom of the pit.

I'll put my hands up and admit I have been sinking. I've been sinking fast.

I am starting to turn a corner, at last. It's going to be hard work, but I am going to pull myself out from underneath the chasm I have been hiding under.

First in this step is starting to care for me again. Rather than the opinions that others may have of me. I can't change those, I can't change me. I can however be the best me I can be. At home, at work and online.

I have downloaded some inspirational books to my phone and I will take baby steps from here, and with summer coming up I may even get to grow my nails - for a little bit at least.

10 Things To Do...

In your lunch break. 

Since returning to work I've been looking for things that I can do during my lunch break to make sure I actually leave my desk and take that break. I only get 30min but if your luckier and get that full hour just think what you could get up to!

1. Take a stroll. The weather is getting better and it sure as heck feels good to break free from your desk, even for just 15 mins. 

2. Nip to the shops. If you are lucky enoiugh tot be in the centre of a bigger town or near a city centre bo to a chemist, department store or even a supermarket and pick up a new lip gloss, lipstick, eyeshadow or even mascara. It doesn't need to cost the earth, but it will brighten up your day. 

3. Me time. Book yourself a treatment. Getting your eyebrows tamed takes no time at all. Or if you have a slightly longer have an appointment a tthe hairdressers for a treatment and blow dry. 

4. Getting handsy. If you can get the space, give yourself a mini manicure. Pop a bright nail varnish into your bag and liven up your fingertips at lunch. 

5. Every day is a school day. Try and learn something new, a skill or  a craft. I'm a crochet fan, so I sometimes hook at lunch, your could knit, start to learn a new language, take up puzzles. 

6. Go on holiday. Well not a full one. Plan a virtual break, where would you go, what would you do, what would you like to do, where would you stay/eat... I think you get my drift. Dream big. Pinterest is a great site to do this on. 

7. Embrace your smartphone. Most of us have a smartphone these days, pop some earbuds in your bag and you can catch up on some vlogs, a tutorial or even a tag video using YouTube.  

8. Take a picnic. Pack a nice lunch and meet a friend for a picnic lunch in a local park. 

9. Eat out. Instead of your normal packed lunch, get out and visit a local eaterie and have a nice lunch. Your sandwich is always going to be there tomorrow. 

10. Novel idea. Read a book, obviously not a whole one but you could squeeze in a chapter or two depending on the length of them. Have you a book that you've always wanted to read, but you never seem to have the time at home anymore? Lunch breaks are the perfect in for a blossoming reading habit. 

What I've Been Reading: Kindle Edition

Have you got a Kindle? Or even the Kindle app on your tablet/smart phone?

I've mentioned before how my father-in-law has lent me his Kindle, before that I used the app on my android tablet.

On a whole I read a lot. I'm partial to murder mysteries, light and frothy chick lit, horror tales and short stories.

Right now I have been on a run of novellas from De-Ann Black's Tea Dress Shop Series 99p reads that don't take long to pick up and get to the point.

As it is I am already a sucker for a Christmas novel which is originally how I discovered this series of three.

As a busy mum I don't always have time for a big book or an indepth novel. I just want something that will occupy me during the football.

Got to love living in a house full of boys.

Back to the books, they are all very similar, so all can be read independently of each other. Although, Findlay, the lead protagonist from the first story, is referred back to as she is the original Tea Dress shop owner.

Personally I preferred the third book in the series.

The Vintage Tea Dress Shop in Summer.

Hard-working marketing expert Esmie is passed over for promotion once again, just as she is offered the chance to own her own shop in a small Scottish village.

After a short weekend visit she finds herself falling in love with the quiet life and the villagers residents... and one in particular.

The Fairytale Tea Dress Shop in Edinburgh

Delphine leaves Glasgow and with her redundancy settlement opens the Fairy Tale Tea Dress Shop in Edinburgh. At the same time she splits from her chef boyfriend.

After previously working as a fashion merchandiser Delphine puts her knowledge to good use. The other businesses in the neighbourhood quickly showed support for the fledgling retailer.

A couple of mislabelled blog posts and an email later and business is booming, but can Delphine find what her heart is searching for?

The Tea Dress Shop at Christmas

Findlay has been unlucky in love, after finding out that her boyfriend and her supposed best friend have been more than just friends, she moves to Glasgow and decides to make a fresh start for herself.

After finding a shop that had laid empty for a long time she decides to pile in her savings and open a shop selling new and vintage tea dresses that she has designed and made herself.

We follow Findlay as she renovates her shop, builds her business and listens to what her heart wants.

Relaxing and Maxing

After this week I took the opportunity today to clean the house from top to bottom.

After lunch I took to the kitchen, making Jim Beam chocolate brownies, bourbon chicken wings and crabby pancakes for a night in with friends.Oh my those brownies were good!

Normally after a spate of cleaning I like to relax by reading.

It is quite simply my most favourite thing. I'm lucky, as my job is basically reading, and on occasions writing about what I've read. My hobbies are reading and writing on here. I also love photography, but time is key with that one.

If I'm at a loose end with the internet near by I like to slip into @pinterest the things in there either relax me, inspire me to try new things or give me ideas of what I can do and how I can improve my lifestyle. I love that place. So much stuff in one location. It's mind boggling and much cleaner than snipping bits out of magazines.

I'm starting to enjoy looking at beautiful gardens and hope this means I may embrace gardening as a fun activity, what with the size and state of mine it needs a lot of hard work and inspiration!

Exposure by Kathy Reichs and Brendan Reichs

Before it was a TV series Bones was a character dreamt up by former forensic anthropologist turned best-selling author Kathy Reichs. In her famed novels Temperence Brennan hunts down killers as she splits her time between Vancouver and South Carolina.

Her the author teams up with her son Brendan for the fourth novel in the Virals series.

Based around the adventures, and mis-adventures, of Victoria 'Tory' Brennan, great-niece of Temperence, and her school pals.

Tory, Hi, Ben and Shelton aren't your average teenagers though. After an experiment went wrong the friends were infected with a virus which changed their DNA, heightening their senses and turning them into a pack of 'Virals', almost superhuman with wolf-like mannerisms. They are linked by Tory's wolfdog Cooper, the original source of the man-made virus.

When twins Lucy and Peter miss school, and a video ransom is delivered, it becomes apparent that they have been taken. A cryptic clue is left behind in the form of a card picturing the astrological sign Ophiuchus. Wanting to help, the school friends take it upon themselves to find out where they went.

Able to tap into their wolf-like senses, and with some forensics knowledge, picked up by Tory from her aunt, the pack decides to hunt down the culprit. After searching the twin's home, Tory discovers that something bad has happened in the house, but gets the sense that she is also in danger. However, her reputation at the police station is shot and no one believes them when they present evidence that something is going on.

But when her best friend is also abducted, and a card with Cetus on is left behind, in the midst of a flawed manhunt, the pack redouble their efforts to get to the bottom of what is going on, even putting their own lives on the line to discover the truth.

I loved this book, yes it is aimed at Young Adults, however so was Twilight and I enjoyed those too. It flowed well and the shorter chapter style (eerily similar to James Patterson) kept the pages turning.

I have now downloaded the first 3 novels and the 2 novellas on to my Kindle to enjoy.

You can get a copy here.

February Favourites

I can't believe that February has gone already to the big calender in the sky.

This month I have loved so many items it was hard to choose just a couple.

From Avon this month I have been obsessed by the Apricot and Shea products. Fresh and fruity withotu being overpowering. The fragrance spritz and hand & body lotion have been everywhere with me from the sleepover at the Deep to the office.





My candle from Harper's Bizarre has been hit this month.

On a whole I burnt this while reading the Tea Dress Shop series by De-ann Black

Three fantastic novellas, there will be a review coming shortly. 

I loved my night at the Deep too... that one will be difficult to top. 

I also discovered these chocolatey beauties by Cadbury. Basically a Dairy Milk sandwich with either LU biscuits or Ritz crackers.

What I've Been Reading: Naughty Girls Book Club by Sophie Hart

So, there I was casting my eye over the book section in my local Tesco when this title popped out. There is something to be said for a title that just draws me in.

In part this one appealed as I've always wanted to be part of a book club, and I've not always toed the line either.

Instead of buying this novel there and then, I went home and work on the pile of books I already have set aside to read. However, it kept appearing on my Kindle recommendations list, so I fear that the universe spoke to me and I got it. My father in law has lent me his Kindle for the time being. I really must get around to getting my own.

Anyhoo, back to the book in hand. Divorced, single mother Estelle owns a small cafe and bakery in Bristol (in my head I've imagined it as the tea shop that was at the top of Park Street 15ish years ago).

Her elderly neighbours, a couple with a bookshop are closing the door on their business, and an idea begin to bloom in Estelle's mind. Why not start a book club?

In an effort to boost takings during a slow month at the cafe Estelle is joined by feminist librarian Gracie, bored newlywed Rebecca, freshly-retired Sue and Phd student Reggie (who is there just to 'observe' for his thesis honest!).

At the first meeting the group discuss Tess of the D'Ubervilles. It would appear it didn't exactly prick at the interest of the fledgling reading group, accidentally Estelle's bag fell open to reveal a battered copy of Ten Sweet Lessons, the 'IT' book of the moment.

SIDE NOTE: Ten Sweet Lessons is there as a vehicle for the novel and is basically there to emulate the phenomenon that was Fifty Shades of Grey.

Embarrassed to be seen with a mass-market erotic book Estelle quickly bluffs that it is to be the group's next tome. This peaks the members' interest in many ways.

Meeting by meeting the group reads various 'naughty' books from Riders and Lace to the Marquis de Sade's Justine.

The more they read the more adventurous the group grow in their own lives. Rebecca approaches married life with a new vigour, Gracie stated to open her mind to new ideas and romance, Sue realised what is missing from her life, Reggie makes his mind up and Estelle falls in love.

This is an nice and easy read, not without a few naughty bits of it's own. The way Hart has managed to interlink each group member's story and it was a joy to see them grow with each chapter. I'm now going to see if she has any other books I can add to my Amazon wish list!

To buy it in Paperback
Or on Kindle

What I've Been Reading: Kate Harrison's The Secret Shoppers Affair

After the first two books I was really looking forward to reading this one. There was a stab of disappointment when I saw the cover when I picked it up off the shelf. The other two had a certain something that this one just doesn't. 

After the last two books the three friends have left their secret shopper past behind them. The things that kept them together have fallen by the wayside. Sandie is pregnant by Toby, Grazia has said goodbye to the great love of her life and is embracing an long-forgotten skill, Emily is still with Will in Heartsease working in and living above their homemade shop. 

Emily wants to be pregnant, Will has put a kibosh on that one for the foreseeable future. Emily is starting to become more and more resentful of the time that the shop demands from herself and Will. 

From the outside Sandie appears to have it all. The climbing career, the heir to Garnetts as her boyfriend and a new home being renovated. However, Sandie is struggling. The house looks like it won't be ready in time for the baby's arrival, Toby's family's empire is crumbling around their ears and Emily is just draining her. 

Grazia has finally stepped out from her late husband's shadow, and stepped into the arms of a loving man - with teenage children. She quickly finds her stride as the relationship looks like it could blossom into something more. 

Can these friends make their way back to each other or are they destined to float ever further apart?

What I've Been Reading: Kate Harrison's The Secret Shopper Unwrapped

This is the second book in Kate Harrison's Secret Shopper Trilogy. 

We meet up with Sandie, Emily and Grazia. Formerly, Charlie's Shopping Angels. After the success of the rebrand of Will's DIY store, Sandie is on the up and up with her new business helping troubled companies to keep the wolves from the door. 

Emily and toddler Freddie are now living with Will above the shop. They've re-opened as a village shop and are struggling to make ends meet. Over Christmas, with the help of her son, Emily visits the department stores of London to check on the Santas in their grottos. 

Grazia, has moved on from her old life. With wealth on her side, and a new toy boy, she is checking out the latest hotels. 

Can Emily and Will pull together and lift the shop out of certain financial ruin. Will Sandie find balance instead of losing herself in her work and will Grazia remember just how old she told everyone she was?

I loved this book, and was really difficult to put down. 

List of Pleasures

It's the most frugal month of the year.

January seems like the longest month ever. This is probably due in part to being paid a week earlier than usual in December and all the other extra outgoings that creep in.

To treat myself I have made up a list of Small Pleasures that won't cost me a penny but will keep me happy and relaxed.

On my list I have:

Read a book
Browse blogs (I like to use bloglovin')
Shuffle through Pinterest (hours disappear in seconds on this site)
Do my nails.
Go for a walk.
Play a computer game.

Watch a film (go onto YouTube you'll be amazed what you'll find on there).
Mini pamper session (if you don't have any pamper products, head to the kitchen and make a couple).
Listen to a podcast.
Watch a favourite tv show on iplayer/skygo.
Take your digital camera out for a walk.
Learn origami.
Listen to some music.
Change bedding (a bit of a chore, but boy the result pays off later).

Those are just a few from my list of free pleasures and treats

This post has been inspired by Kate Harrison's new book 5:2 Your Life: Get Happy, Get Healthy, Get Slim you can get your copy here from Amazon.

What I Read: Wish Upon a Star by Trisha Ashley

Another uplifting and heart-warming tale from the queen of Christmas fiction's pen.

In Wish Upon a Star we are introduced to Cally who is deserted by her fiance, only to find out she is pregnant. Stella is born with a complicated heart condition.

The single mum dotes on her precious daughter. Her career as a food writer is booming and her second book is due soon, but as her professional life soars her personal life begins to crumble.

Stella is starting to get sick and needs vital surgery not available in the UK, so to conserve cash Cally moves up to west Lancashire to live with her mother Martha to try and save the much-needed money to pay for the surgery in America. The sale of her home in London is gifted to Stella's Stars; the charity she set up to pay for the surgery.

After an appointment with Stella, Cally pops into a new bakery in Ormskirk and meets baker Jago. She feels an instant connection, and the pair strike up a firm friendship. Jago has his own romantic baggage and when his ex-fiancee turns up after running out on him on the eve of their wedding determined to win him back.

As Stella's surgery draws closer the residents of Sticklepond draw together to help give the child a fighting chance of a normal life.

It's another well-paced story from Trisha Ashley, just enough sweetness and a couple of characters who then cut through so it's didn't become sickly. A great read not for Christmas.

Seasonal Flavours: Nescafe Latte Gingerbread

I happened upon this drink one day whilst I was in the office. One of my favourite drinks from Starbucks (yes I said it, I'm a Starbucks person not a Costa one - they need a bit more coffee in their coffee for me) is the gingerbread latte. So much so I have a bottle of the syrup in my kitchen cupboards. This looked to be the perfect addition to my festive treats in the run up to Christmas, and to put a cherry on the top it didn't hurt that Co-Op had them on offer at £2 per box of 8 sachets. 

As far as the instant latte drinks go, this is a good one. A nice amount of coffee taste and a well balanced warmth from the gingerbread flavouring. Be careful if you have a larger than average mug though, if you add over the desired 200ml of hot water it quickly becomes a bit insipid and bland (if you think about it an average cup measurement is 250ml).

But still I have found myself replenishing my supply for at home while I'm on Christmas break from the office. Even the husband has found himself dipping in. That in itself is praise indeed!

So if you see these beauties on the shelf, go ahead and pick them up (and possibly a wintery book to read as you settle in to drink it).

What I Read: Good Husband Material by Trisha Ashley

This novel has been on my bookshelf for a while, my groaning bookshelf at that. I don't know what took me so long to pick it up. As with every other Trisha Ashley book I have read (which is almost all of them - I've just got 2 outstanding) it was a perfect piece of escapism.

Here we are introduced to Tish, a romance novelist, and her husband James, a seemingly straight-laced solicitor with big ideas. 

We first meet Tish as an idealistic 17 year old. She's been dating the dark and brooding next door neighbour Fergal Rocco for a year and is planning to go to university. Rocco drops the bombshell that he's moving overseas with his upcoming band. 

Not hearing from Rocco, Tish starts uni broken hearted. That is until she meets James. Good looking, dependable and perfect father material. It doesn't hurt that Tish's mother also likes him (she never approved of Rocco). 

Fast forward 10 years. James and Tish have been married for seven year and have just moved to a cottage in the countryside. In need of a lot of work Tish starts renovating the property, as James spends longer and longer at work and in the village pub. It soon becomes apparent, for Tish at least, that something isn't right. 

Rock star Rocco is filling the headlines with his celebrity lifestyle, but inside it's all feeling empty. He has travelled the world, had a girl waiting for him at every port, yet all he can think about is the girl that got away. Can he win his former love back, just as she is entering a new phase in her own life?

This novel is well paced and easy to read. It really pulls you in from the middle and races to the end making it difficult to put down. I finished reading this one morning at 2am, which I think is testament to how you get sucked into the world that Trisha Ashley has created.

To buy a copy from Amazon click here currently £3.85 for the paperback and £1.49 on Kindle.

You can also follow Trisha on Twitter just click here