Forever Nigella: Diamond Jubilee

Queen Elizabeth II ascended to the throne in 1952.  This year marks her 60th year and is being celebrated with her Diamond Jubilee.  She’s the second longest reigning British monarch, just barely tailing Queen Victoria. For more information, programing and merchandise, us Yanks can turn to BBC America’s Diamond Jubilee page.

Of course, this is Forever Nigella, so we have to cook up something yummy to go with any celebration.  This month I decided to try my hand at making my own custard creams.  “What are custard creams?” You may be asking.  Just one of the most delightful little cookies you’ll ever have.  I must confess, although these were easy to make, as Nigella states in her book, Feast, I did find that mine turned out to be just a little fussy.  It may be completely my fault though.  First, I think I added too much of the liquid to the cookie mixture.  I ended up having to add more flour when it came time to roll out the dough.  It was also difficult to roll out the dough thin enough.  Next time I will be more careful with the liquid.  The second thing I had trouble with was my cookie cutter.  Using a diamond shaped cutter for this occasion was a no brainer.  My particular cutter is the kind with the closed top.  It was very difficult to use.  I will soon invest in an open designed diamond cutter.  Those two things aside, these are tasty little cookies, or biscuits as they probably should be called.  I’m so glad I tried them.

Some may think of me as an Anglophile.  I’m not sure that I am.  Yes, I enjoy certain aspects of British culture, history, cuisine, literature, pottery, etc.  But I don’t buy things just because it’s got a Union Jack on it.  Actually, I don’t think I have anything with a Union Jack on it.  So I made a little something for my Diamond Jubilee display. I’ll blog about that later.

Gracing the table is also a commemorative dish I picked up in England.  It celebrates the Queen’s Coronation in 1953.
 
I have to admit something to you.  I found this picture, (actually a postcard), of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip at Heathrow.  It reminds me of the cheesy Olan Mills pictures we all had made in the 80s.  I imagined framing this in the most gaudy gold picture frame I could find (the one it’s in now is quite tame) and displaying it in my home amongst family photos.   We would casually mention to guests that this was Aunt Liz and Uncle Phil.  I wondered how many people would recognize her without a crown, a big hat or her Corgis. 
 
By the way, we have decided to refer to this picture as Cousin Liz.  As I’ve mentioned before, Brian and the Queen may share a common ancestor in Henry of Scotland.  That would make them 24th cousins. 
I’ve a few more postcards from my collection to share with you, just for fun.



Actually, now that I think of it, there is something I have with a Union Jack on it.  It is one of my favorite pictures I took in England.  It graces the back cover of one of my travel journals.  I hope you like it as much as I do.

Awesome, right?
Forever Nigella
Forever Nigella #15 is being hosted by Nelly of Nelly’s Cupcakes. This month’s challenge is to prepare and blog any Nigella Lawson recipe that you would serve for the Diamond Jubilee.  Forever Nigella is organised by Sarah at Maison Cupcake.
So are you interested in joining the fun with Forever Nigella?  Each month is a new theme, so come and fun cooking and baking tempting treats and delicious meals. 

Forever Nigella Rules

Blog checking lines: Forever Nigella #[number] is being hosted by [name] of [blog]. This month’s challenge is to prepare and blog any Nigella Lawson recipe [describe theme]. Forever Nigella is organised by Sarah at Maison Cupcake.

1. Blog your entry by 28^th of the month showing:
a) the current Forever Nigella badge
b) a link to this announcement post
c) a link to the Forever Nigella page at Maison Cupcake: http://blog.maisoncupcake.com/forever-nigella

n.b. posts must have been published since the announcement post. Archived posts need to be re-published afresh if you wish to submit.

2. Remember copyright.
You must NOT reproduce Nigella’s recipes verbatim. Tell us which book it is from and/or link to it online. If you’ve adapted the recipe in some way i.e. changed at least two ingredients or amended the method then it’s ok to publish the a recipe in your post but you MUST write directions in your own words.

3. Submit your post Use the linky tool or email the host cc’ed to sarah AT maisoncupcake DOT com.

The Forever Nigella page shows a list of online Nigella resources, future hosts and links to past themes and round ups.

Tweet your post: #forevernigella
If you don’t have any Nigella books check out these resources online:
Nigella’s official site: http://www.nigella.com/
BBC Food: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/chefs/nigella_lawson
Channel 4 Food: http://www.channel4.com/4food/recipes/popular-chefs/nigella-lawson-recipes
UKTV Good Food Channel: http://uktv.co.uk/food/chef/aid/530864/
Food Network: http://www.foodnetwork.com/nigella-lawson/index.html
Daily Mail: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=Nigella+Lawson