Friday, February 11, 2022

Valentine's Day 2021 - sharing is not really an option

Pin It

Looking back over previous Generosity Day / Valentine's Day posts, I'm struck by the fact that all the sweet treats are for sharing - with your darling, with your friends and family, with your colleagues! Covid has knocked that on the head somewhat. 

You could make smaller portions and share a virtual sweet moment with your darling, friends and family, colleagues by emailing them the recipe so they can turn that virtual moment into a moment of deliciousness.

I'm reposting Baileys Chocolate Biscuit Cake; Sour Cherry Rocky Road, and 'Just Because...' cookies

I'm not sure which of these was my favourite... I think if I had to make a choice, it would be the Rocky Road (which is almost too delicious to share anyway!)

Stay safe

Mwah! x


Love is ... sharing your Baileys Chocolate Biscuit Cake


For me, love is in the every day things.  It’s in the whole-hearted, rib-cracking bear-hugs from my godson; in the slightly soggy, pre-licked crisps offered by my three-year-old niece when you know she really, really, really wants them herself (“Thanks honey, but you have them, I insist! No, really – I insist”.
I asked friends and family what love meant to them. It turns out, it isn't in the grand gestures. Love is... in having the washing up done for you; in getting a cup of tea... just the way you like it... brought to one’s boudoir. Love is in chocolate; in a tiny posy of primroses; in a bunch of daffodils (preferably not ones stolen from the local park); Love is in a ‘Thank you for feeding me’ lick from a four-legged friend (awwww - but don't be giving the dog chocolate now - it will probably wolf it down and then be sick as a ... dog... or worse); it's in a crayoned picture of you looking like a happy witch; in a warm hand that reaches for your cold hand; in sharing a bag of salty, vinegary chips; Love is in cupcakes, hot from the oven; in a hug, just when you need it; it seems that love happens in lots and lots of small ways, - funnily, many of them food-related. ... read on for recipe

Sometimes ...  often  ... ok ... practically all the time, life doesn’t go according to plan. The road ahead usually has a few lumps and bumps lurking, ready to trip us up as soon as we cast our attention elsewhere... (click on the post to chortle at the lumps and bumps that were happening that week). 

The good news is that life’s little wrinkles can often work out for the best. Most lumps and bumps can have a silver lining... like when I drop my heavy cookery notebook on my foot (bump, lump) and a little scrap of cardboard falls out. It’s my sister Veronica’s incredible Rocky Road recipe (silver lining).

In general I HATE marshmallow, I HATE desiccated coconut, and I’m not particularly fond of milk chocolate either. However when these ingredients get together with crunchy salty nuts and chewy sour cherries and go skinny dipping in dark chocolate, magic happens. I will happily eat this version by the kilo – leading to further lumps and bumps if indulged too often. 
 ... read on for recipe



Love is bigger than just romantic love. It’s in the everyday things:  it’s in the email/card/text/call that says between the lines “Hey, I was thinking of you”. It’s in making the dinner/walking the dog/cleaning the bathroom/rescuing the laundry from a sudden rain shower without having to be asked. It’s in accepting the irritating imperfections right along with the good qualities that are so much easier to love, whether you are family, friend, or lover.
Since 2011, there has been a move to ‘reboot’ Valentine’s Day as Generosity Day; to make it less ‘cosy couples’ and more egalitarian. At first glance, this smacks of an ‘everyone-gets-a-medal’ race, but why not!  Generosity Day is an opportunity to practice random acts of, well, generosity. It is a day for giving rather than taking. ... read on for recipe






Pin It