Friday, April 10, 2009

A Good Friday

Here are the particulars: a hot cross bun from the Good Friday breakfast gathering that our lovely neighbour gives every year. You will never find anything like these buns in a shop, or anywhere. Only she can make them like this and only her tiny and beautiful kitchen can expand to hold such a convivial gathering as we always have at this time. The candle in a pot of wheatgrass is an Easter gift from her, and the beeswax candel in front of it another gift from a neighbour across the road. The twigs in the strange and suggestive vase (made by my mother-in-law who was a fine potter) come from the cherry tree that was recently cut down. A small yellow chicklet is perching on the rim, it came with the beeswax candle, an early hatching.



Later on, I made Matapa. Well that is what my friend, the Cake Lady (who is not the same person as the Bun Woman) calls it, and I ate it at her house first. But it is a recipe that seems to change every time it is handed on, it is quite accommodating, always delicious and takes hardly any time to make. Spinach, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chilli, garam masala, coconut milk, peanut butter. You have it with rice. Afterwards Son went back to revision and his parents went over the road to an impromptu wine-tasting event set up by neighbours and their kids who are home from college. There were about ten bottles opened and the only one I liked was an Australian Merlot (Burra Brook, 2007). There was an expensive one that smelled of cat's piss. Not that I drank very much more than a sip of anything. Mr. Signs got a bit plastered.



More strange and suggestive mother-in-law vases (one has nobs on, the other indents, and they fit together when pushed close), both filled with daffodils from our garden. We had them in the kitchen for a while but the daffodils came with rather a lot of black creepy crawlies so we took them out. They have gone now, but the daffodils and vases look fine where they are on the patio, welcoming in the spring. And I think of the words that I saw pinned up on the walls of my daughter's school one spring when she was five years old:

For I, the Lent Lily, the Daffy-down-dilly,

Have heard through the country the call to arouse.




Happy Easter, Peeps.


(you can enlarge the first photo but not the other two, don't know why, and it seems to have baffled greater techie minds than mine)

17 comments:

Pants said...

Absolutely daffolightful, Signs. I do miss the English spring.

xxx

Pants

Zhoen said...

That really is a suggestive pot. Actually a bit more than a suggestion. I love it.

Good thing you don't have a cat, or that wheatgrass would be munched.

My mom used to make hot crossed buns. Sadly, I prefer the bakery ones.

Reading the Signs said...

Pants - the English spring misses you too. Albion's loss is Larrikin End's gain I suppose, but still.

Zhoen - me not have a cat? Cat of Signs will not agree with this at all. She has been sniffing the wheatgrass with interest but has not so far munched any.

Yes, it was the vases that brought this strain out in mother-in-law. Every year seems to add to their suggestiveness.

Cusp said...

A Happy Easter to you too my dear.

Lovely Easter offering round your way

Kahless said...

My mouth is watering (not because of the spinach but rather the hot cross buns!)

Yummy!

Basically it is a blogger issue that if you move photo's around a post you cant enlarge them.

However if you upload them in order and put the text around them (rather than move them) you can enlarge them.

I think!

Reading the Signs said...

Cheers Cusp.

Kahless, I have a feeling you are right and will try this next time. When I attempted to do it now the image just automatically went to the top.

Zhoen said...

Ah, my mistake. I assumed no munching meant no cat. Moby is apparently simply a more aggressive grass eater. My apologies to Cat of Signs.

trousers said...

Said on the very last day of Easter, but my good wishes to you for the very same. Lovely post, this, and I lingered far longer on the picture of the Matapa than I did on the suggestive vases.

Reading the Signs said...

Zhoen, Cat of Signs is in very good humour and sends greetings this bank holiday monday.

Trousers, the matapa is very suggestive too - but mainly of itself. It has disappeared while the vases remain.

Anonymous said...

I'm not normally one for hot cross buns, but I had some home baked ones spread with butter and served hot and they were lovely. For some reason, and despite the clue in the name, I'd never thought of eating them hot before.

Reading the Signs said...

Zhisou! Although I've seen you around, I hadn't quite clocked that you were "back". Hello and hello.

Anonymous said...

Hello signs, I've been back a while but keeping a low profile.

Collin Kelley said...

I thought of you Saturday while watching The Doctor run through the sand. Did you like it?

Reading the Signs said...

Collin, I liked the beginning and end but found the rest in the middle quite disappointing. I found the "feistiness" of the new girl unconvincing and therefore tedious. The Doctor himself, though, gets better and better.

nmj said...

I love the first photo, the simplicity of the objects...and I am dying to make matapa!

Reading the Signs said...

hello NMJ - here's what you do:

Fry onions and garlic and when they're soft add 400g spinach. When it has wilted add a tin of chopped tomatoes. Simmer for a bit, then add coconut cream or milk (I put in half a tin) followed by a couple of tablespoons crunchy peanut butter.
I added the chilli and garam masala while onions were softening.

nmj said...

thanks, signs, i will def try this out!