A wet & windy afternoon

What else do you do on a wet and windy afternoon in October but snuggle up on the sofa with your knitting and one of your favourite films. 

The Calendar girls is based on the true story of a group of WI ladies from Yorkshire who take it upon themselves to create a calendar in order to raise funds to buy a new sofa for the relatives room of their local hospital.  This was not just any old WI calendar this was a very tastefully created calendar where the participants, all members of the local WI, stripped off against cancer. Annie had recently lost her husband to Leukaemia and wanted to do something to help the relatives of those supporting their loved one.  Little did they know that this small gesture would go viral, as the kids would say these days. The story of the Calendar girls is now known far and wide and is now a successful musical with music by Gary Barlow based on the book by Tim Firth and I had the great pleasure to go and see with my daughter in London two years ago. It is currently on tour and if it comes to a theatre near you  I would highly recommend you see it.   

Of course one of the famous scenes of the film is when Chris, played by Helen Mirren enters a Marks & Spencers Victoria Sponge in a local show because she says that Annie, played by Julie Walters won't have had time to bake one in between taking Yul Brynner, as she affectionately refers to Annie's husband, to his hospital appointments. 

Not only does she go on and win the May Wilkinson award but also the WI discretionary award. 

When asked her secret she say's that she follows her mothers method of baking by lining the bowl with butter, use a warm spoon and if for a special event then you go and buy one from Marks & Spencers. 

I have not bought this one from Marks & Spencers this is all my own work. And if you would like to have ago then you will need. 

200g butter

200g caster sugar

200g self raising flour

1 tsp of baking powder

a pinch of salt

and four eggs that collectively weigh approx 200g

and a raspberry jam for the filing

• pre heat the oven to 180C/Gas mark 4
• grease two 20cm sandwich tins and put to one side
• cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until creamy. 
• add the eggs one at a time. I usually break them into a separate bowl and add rather than putting straight into the mixture just in case you get a bad egg. 
• add the pinch of salt and tea spoon of baking powder
• fold in the self raising flour with a metal spoon in order to keep the sponge light and airy
• divide the mixture equally between the two tins 
• bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.
• Turn out onto a wire rack until cooled.
• Once cold decide which you are going to use for the top and which for the bottom. 
• Settle on a plate or cake board and add the filling of raspberry jam, usually about half a jar from a make of your choice.
• Finish off with a sprinkling of icing sugar if you so wish. 

Then there is only one other thing to do and that is to pop the kettle on for a cup of tea and cut yourself a generous slice, sit back and enjoy.

Mx

"The flowers of Yorkshire are like the women of Yorkshire. Every stage of their growth has its own beauty, but the last phase is always the most glorious. Then very quickly they all go to seed."

"Which makes it ironic my favourite flower isn't even indigenous to the British Isles, let alone Yorkshire. I don't think there's anything on this planet that more trumpets life that the sunflower. For me that's because of the reason behind its name. Not because it looks like the sun but because it follows the sun. During the course of the day, the head tracks the journey of the sun across the sky. A satellite dish for sunshine. Wherever light is, no matter how weak, these flowers will find it. And that's such an admirable thing. And such a lesson in life."