Pardon the 'blog absence'. What I neglected to tell you when I wrote last is that after California, there was a long planned visit to the UK, and I trotted off to Wales to visit my mother and Cathy (the pastry chef sibling).
It was a beautiful day for a drive, perfect for engaging in a purposeful abandonment of purpose and direction. The result? We found ourselves at a lovely little hotel called Tudor Farmhouse, which is tucked inside The Forest of Dean. Not only were we in a historic spot, we were also experiencing a historic hot day, the hottest recorded for an October in 100 years.
As any Englishman or woman will tell you, nothing cools you down like a hot cup of tea. What better time to engage in a quintessential British indulgence, Cream Tea? "Cream" in this instance means clotted cream, and as my 91-year-old mother will tell you, it's not something that you do everyday, but is entirely survivable. So a nice pot of Earl Grey, scones, jam, butter and clotted cream. Heaven. What was also 'heavenly' was eating something that is not easily had here in the States (clotted cream has a very short shelf life). Dairy in the UK is a different animal (less processed) from what we experience here in the 'colonies', and the flavor is amazing. The Brits may be discrete in their social habits, but when it comes to cream and butter there simply is no restraint!
All that lovely fat to the brain the got me thinking. Romans were living in this spot at one time; perhaps it's a sign of long embedded civilization that can produce something so, well, civilized!
As a postscript, I want to let you know that I am in the process of rethinking New Kitchen Primer. This is almost the 200th entry and maybe it’s time to ‘shift gears’ (just a little). Suggestions are more then welcome and please stayed tuned.
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