Easter Weekend

Sadly it's almost over and time for me to go back to work (bank holidays don't really happen in retail) but I'm till feeling quite pleased at getting a very unusual three days off together, and having got them managing to have such a very nice time, and unusually still having a lot of chocolate left. 

Today has been far more about the boat race than any religious festival which may have coincided with it and probably more about cake than either. I enjoy the boat race, probably because it's the sort of sport I can understand - only 2 teams, 1 winner, and it doesn't last very long. It's also pretty to watch, I live next to the river in Leicester where both our local university teams practice - watching the eights working together is always impressive even when they're only beginning and still a bit clumsy. This years race was very satisfying to watch, not least because Oxford won so under the terms of our traditional bet my partner now owes me a pack of tea cakes (Tunnock's naturally).

Making Easter eggs turned out to be a really good plan, there has been a small but definite improvement in my chocolate handling skills, but more to the point is the time it takes. I like making bread for the same reason; although no individual part of the process takes to long or is especially demanding you can't rush it, a couple of hours pottering around with the radio for company and the air scented with melting chocolate is as good a way as any to wind down when I can't handle the excitement of a book. I meant to take better egg pictures but they got eaten and I didn't.

There was also a cake - there had to be a cake, I couldn't spend 3 days at home without making one and I had a real craving for a honey cake. This one is hard to beat although I still haven't actually made it with wholemeal flour (this time I had some nice spelt flour which has come out lovely). It's a shame cake isn't a healthy option - this one isn't shy of either butter or sugar but it's so good that I just don't care.