George's Christening

We went to Eton last weekend for our nephew George's Christening.

We ambled into Eton beforehand for a quick brunch to keep us going during the service, and peeped at the preparations for a Queen's birthday street party being set up all down the High Street.

The service was in the college chapel, which is such a beautiful building!

I was sort of hoping Mathilda might sleep as it was perfectly timed for nap-time, however she had other ideas, and although sleepy, spent the service reading her books very loudly and practising her animal noises...

Luckily we were all busy singing hymns and joyfully welcoming little George into the Christian family and she got away with it!

I wore a new dress that I'd made especially for the occasion (just in time - I was, as ever, sewing on buttons late the night before) and I love it!  The photos are awful, but you get the general idea!  It's in broderie anglaise that I bought when I was pregnant and I've been dreaming of this dress for aaaaages, I'm so pleased it turned out just how I imagined!

Mathilda was wearing a gorgeous little vintage coat which was a hand-me-down from my Uncle and Aunt, I've been longing for her to fit it, it's so sweet!  Underneath she had on a new romper I made; it's from a vintage pattern in a beautiful Liberty-esque lawn, and has a hair bow to match of course!

After the service we trundled over to the Queen's Eyot for a few refreshments and a bit of catching up with all the family.  Generously the sun came out for a bit as we hopped on the boat to take us across the river to the island.  (Sooo gorgeous and exciting!)

We sipped champagne and nibbled a delicious afternoon tea, which we followed up with a game of croquet, just in time before the rain arrived!

Then back to the mainland and reality - Ed caught the train down to Dartmouth for a course and we drove home all girls home alone-y and tried to think on all the loveliness of the day rather than missing him.  I say we...Mathilda mostly just slept...

Creme Brulee

Not as complicated a dessert as you  might expect; creme brulee is in fact super easy, fairly quick, and perfect to accompany the British strawberries that are now in season.

For the custard:

1.5oz granulated sugar

5 egg yolks

430ml double cream

1.5 tsp vanilla essence/vanilla bean paste/vanilla pods

For the pralin; 

2oz flaked almonds

2oz granulated sugar

Place the cream in a pan and heat gently until hot but not boiling.  Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar for 2-3 minutes.  They'll turn pale and almost double in volume, keep whisking until the mixture thickens enough that when you lift the beaters, it forms a ribbon on the surface that slowly dissolves back into the mix. 

(Extremely hard to photograph!)

Very slowly dribble in the hot cream, stirring/whisking all the while* (- see note below).  Be careful not to pour too much in at once or the eggs will cook too fast and you'll end up with a scrambled mess!

*Depending on what texture you want, you can either keep whisking as you pour the cream in which gives a lighter slightly mousse-y texture, or for a denser texture just stir briskly with a wooden spoon. 

Return the mixture to the pan and heat gently, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens.  Make sure not to overheat it - don't let it boil!  If you're feeling technical about it, use a jam thermometer to make sure it doesn't go above 74C, but you should be able to see when it's ready by just keeping a sharp eye on it and stirring all the time!

Keep stirring until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spoon.

Remove the pan from the heat and pass the custard through a sieve.  Stir in the vanilla.

Pour into ramekins, bung in the fridge for a few hours and hey presto, creme brulee!

Well nearly!  That's the 'creme' bit, next for the brulee: sprinkle the top with a layer of granulated sugar and toast under a grill until it caramelises.

Alternatively you can top the ramekins with a layer of pralin - blitzed caramel and toasted almonds; utterly delicious!  Toast the almonds in a hot pan until golden, and spread on a baking tray lined with a layer of greaseproof paper.  Place the sugar in a small pan and add enough water just to wet the sugar.  Heat gently, stirring every now and then until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Turn up the heat and boil the syrup without stirring until it turns a golden brown; keep a sharp eye on it as it turns quite suddenly and tastes awful if you burn it! (photos and more detail on making caramel here)  Remove from the heat straight-away and pour over the almonds.  Leave to cool completely before blitzing in a blender to a fine crumbly texture.  Sprinkle over the ramekins just before serving.