North Berwick - Tiffany's Tea Room

On Tuesday, we put Sylvia into her cosy teddy bear suit again and took the train to chilly North Berwick. Not to be confused with Berwick-upon-Tweed on the border of Scotland and England, North Berwick is a formerly fashionable seaside town east of Edinburgh, which nowadays is prime commuter belt real estate. E visited North Berwick each summer as a child and has fond memories of these day.

I have been there quite a few times since I met E but rather than playing on rocks and staying in guesthouses, my memories focus on gift shops and marvelling at how different the British seaside looks to our Australian seaside towns.

I am also fond of a town that has a Melbourne Place and a Melbourne Road. (NB Edinburgh used to have a Melbourne Place on the corner of the High Street and George IV Bridge but the ugly old 197os building has been replaced with a new hotel and the name seems to have gone.)

When we arrived we wandered through the town admiring the buildings and browsing in giftshops on the High Street. Unfortunately our first stop at the Westgate Gallery was too early for lunch but my parents-in-law tell us it is a lovely place for a bite.

Soon after we were looking for a place to eat and stopped at Tiffany's Tea Room. We were initially attracted by the candles and old sewing machines in the window but inside were impressed by the warm red colour on the walls and the light and space created by the mirrors. A large festive wreath hung in the middle of the ceiling among the chandeliers.

The soup of the day was tomato and basil. I asked if there were cheese scones to have with it. No cheese scones today, only plain or cherry or raisin, I was told. I asked for a plain scone with cheese and the owner looked at me in bemusement but brought out a large warm scone with a little container of grated cheese. The soup was lovely - simple and tasty. It came with a little jug of cream on the side. E had a tuna toastie with salad.

We both ordered a pot of tea. I loved the list of speciality teas with names such a cuddly tummy and apple strudel. I had peppermint and was pleased it was loose tea rather than a tea bag. The tea was poured into elegant floral bone china cups with saucers. We shared a millionaire's shortbread to have for afters. It was a large slab that tasted rather good. E told me it was the nicest he had had for ages and he didn't like Australian millionaire's shortbread any more.

Satisfied with our lunch, we found the baby change room at the very nice public toilets (that even have an attendant there) in Quality Street. The name says it all really! You can view North Berwick Law from this street. This is a hill with whale bones on top of it. I am not sure why but I think it has to do with local maritime history.

Then we strolled down to the Scottish Seabird Centre. You only have to take a look at a door knocker shaped like an anchor or notice wee Puffin Cottage - it is the small one in the photo - and you feel the presence of the sea without even viewing it.

I am not sure I have ever been inside the seabird centre but it has nice tea rooms (again according to my in-laws), a good gift shop and fine sculptures outside such as this one. The harbour is also worth a look. The thought of swimming in the old pool, which is now a carpark, gives me the shivers on a cold day. E found it so cold on Tuesday that his fingers were icy beneath his gloves. My hands were ok without gloves but maybe it was all the snapping away on my camera that kept my fingers warm.

From there, we walked around the beach to E's rocks. They are the ones he loved playing on as a boy. You have a great view of Bass Rock from them, as you can see in the top photo. It is impossible to be in North Berwick and not see Bass Rock. It is so iconic that even if you do not see it from the shore, you will probably see it on a souvenir somewhere in the town. In fact, it is on every postcard that E's family send him when they holiday in North Berwick each summer.

Tiffany's Tea Room
21 High Street
North Berwick

Edinburgh Castle: Queen Anne Cafe

On 30 November we queued to enter Edinburgh Castle and were delighted to find entry was free because it was St Andrew's Day. When I first visited the Castle I had a fairy tale notion of a castle as one building and was quite surprised to find it is actually a complex of buildings more akin to a small village. A few visits later, I enjoy wandering about the buildings and exploring the many layers of history.

This is the best place for views of Edinburgh. The Castle is visible from many points in Edinburgh and building regulations have done well in keeping it as one of the tallest buildings in the city centre. Even the flat we lived in before we left Edinburgh had a wonderful view of the Castle. I always loved seeing the sheer cliffs upon which it was built.

We were lucky to be there on a clear day and could see far out to the Kingdom of Fife across the Firth of Forth. Here is the view of Calton Hill and Waverley Train Station.

The castle is heavily armed with cannons that would have fired upon any invading enemies.

The oldest building in the complex is St Margaret's Chapel. This tiny building dates back to the twelfth century. It has beautiful stained glass windows and very little room for weddings, which as you can imagine are very popular.

I love all the little details around the castle. E laughed at the sign for the New Barracks which were built in 1796-1799. He commented on how ideas of old and new are different in Scotland to those in Australia. Here is a close up of the detail on ye olde drainpipes. I wish we had drainpipes like this in Australia!

We visited the war memorial where Sylvia's happy laugh rang out loudly. Coming out into the Crown Square we decided it was time for lunch and ignored the Crown Jewels in favour of the Queen Anne Cafe.

We were seated in an area that was once a narrow outdoor path between buildings. It is now a warm enclosed area. A large skylight ceiling makes it feel light and airy despite the grey old stone walls. A Christmas tree in the walkway adds some festive colour to the area.

We had a variety of menus to choose from - the carvery, the Christmas or the cafe. We still hadn't had any haggis so we both chose to have the carvery menu so we could have haggis, neeps and tatties. (That is one of Sylvia's mittens, which she wore while walking around the castle because it was so cold. Putting the mittens on her took enough energy to warm anyone!)

My vegetarian haggis was so peppery that it was hard to taste it properly but I enjoyed it with the sweet neeps (turnips to a Scot and swede or rutabaga to others) and creamy tatties (or potato). The potato had sat a bit long in the bain marie but was still nice as part of the meal.

I took a photo of E's meat haggis to show how similar the carnivore and vegetarian versions are. I did see the beans in mine so it was possible to tell them apart.

For dessert E had the cranachan brulee with winter fruit. He thought it superb. I had a taste and it was indeed very creamy and nicely flavoured.

I was tempted by the clementine and gingerbread trifle but instead chose the baked apple and scotch fudge pie. It was a cold apple pie topped with a toffee flavoured cream. It was a bit cold for my liking but I enjoyed the creamy topping even if it wasn't quite as dense as I had expected of fudge in a pie.

You will see Sylvia's paws again in the photo. These mittens went very well with her cosy teddy bear suit that she wore around the castle. Her Scottish Gran had bought her a couple of warm suits because Scotland is indeed colder than a Melbourne winter, especially on the castle ramparts. We walked out of the cafe back into the cold air, pleased to have had haggis at the Castle on St Andrew's Day.

Queen Anne Cafe
Crown Square
Edinburgh Castle
Castlehill
Edinburgh
Website: http://www.edinburghcastle.gov.uk/index/plan/essentials/cafes.htm

Edinburgh Winter Wonderland

When we decided to visit Edinburgh in late November, I was excited at the opportunity to visit the German markets, which are part of the Edinburgh Christmas. When we lived here, I loved to go along to the brightly lit cluster of stalls and have a mug of mulled wine and a slice of stollen.

After Sylvia’s christening, we went along with Chris, Fergal and Dash, who were visiting from Ireland. We caught the bus to the Princes Gardens and Chris tried to stop Dash from grabbing at Sylvia (a natural reaction of an older cousin to the younger one – it is what Sylvia tries to do when playing with wee Florence, her younger cousin in Scotland).
It is eight years since we had last visited the markets and we were surprised at how they have grown. Last weekend was the first after the markets opened this year and they were heaving with crowds. I was surprised at all the fast food stalls that have sprung up at Christmas in this part of the Princes Gardens. The Big Wheel is still there as is the ice rink. I love the ferris wheel which gives wonderful views of Edinburgh, especially the nearby Walter Scott Memorial but I still shiver in horror at my memory of my one and only attempt at ice skating.

We found ourselves a spot to rest our drink and E went off with Fergal to order some mulled wine or gluhwein. The warm spicy drink is wonderful in cold weather (and there is a non-alcoholic version but I haven't tried it yet). Once you have finished your drink you can return your mug and get your deposit refunded or you can choose to take it home as a souvenir.

But there was no sign of the slice of stollen that had always accompanied the mulled wine. There were donuts and strudel, chips and gingerbread but no stolen. Finally I stopped at one of the stalls selling loaves of stollen and asked them to slice one up for me. I was determined to get my stollen and it was worth the effort. I love the marzipan centre in the yeasted fruit bread. It goes so well with mulled wine and seems so festive.

Once we had finished our wine, we browsed the market stalls, which have lots of interesting Christmas decorations. We particularly liked the little houses, which are so festive, especially when a candle is lit inside them. Nutcrackers, Christmas tree decorations and toys are also found alongside the German baked goods.

After browsing the stalls, we needed a cup of tea to warm us up. Chris and Fergal found the Scottish weather very cold and the babies needed feeding. We decided to stop at the nearby Scottish National Gallery café and restaurants. It seemed many others also had the idea to stop at the café which has one of the best views of the Christmas Winter Wonderland. We had to wait in queue for a seat. (Enough time for Fergal to run up the mound to take a look at the Witchery.) However the maitre d’ was most obliging, which made it more bearable.

E chose fish and chips which came with mushy peas but were done very nicely. Chris had one of the cheese plates. I can’t remember which one but she was most pleased with it so I am showing you this blurry picture above. I tasted a few samples and can vouch for the fine cheeses.

I chose the soup of the day and a cheese scone. They told me it was cauliflower and, although it was delicious, it tasted like lentil more than cauliflower but I never got a chance to check with the staff. I was glad to have my soft scone as the bread with the soup wasn't too flash. It was a simple but warming meal.

Chris and Fergal sat in seats overlooking the large windows and were most impressed with the view of the Christmas lights, glowing more brightly as the afternoon darkened. All too soon they had to go for their bus to the airport but it was a lovely afternoon with them and we look forward to seeing them in the warmer days of the Australian summer soon. Meanwhile, we headed home with some stollen, lebkuchen and a little house.

The Scottish Café and Restaurant
National Gallery of Scotland
The Mound, Edinburgh, EH2 2EL
Telephone: 0131 226 6524
Web: http://www.thescottishcafeandrestaurant.com/

Christening Cake

We held Sylvia’s christening in Edinburgh on the weekend. I do not advise planning a christening over the other side of the world. It is a stressful business and you need a very helpful sister-in-law to pull it off. But if you do attempt such an event, I highly recommend making Nigella Lawson’s Nutella Cake for the occasion.

We decided a long time ago that it would be nice to hold Sylvia’s christening in Edinburgh to include her Scottish relatives and family friends in a significant event in her life. Not having been in Scotlnd for a few years, it was also a good opportunity to catch up with everyone. Fortunately a family friend, Fr Robin, helped us arrange the christening and E’s sister HH helped organize refreshments afterwards.

So on Saturday, we dressed Sylvia in her tartan dress, stripey purple tights and white crocheted cardigan and took her to the church. It was quite an overwhelming occasion to see so many faces we had not seen for years but so lovely that many could come to meet Sylvia and be part of her special day.

I was pleased to have some family present because my sister Chris came from Dublin with her partner, Fergal and little boy, Dash. It was fun to see the two babies meeting for the first time. Dash has a cheeky grin and made many attempts to grab at his little cousin, Sylvia. She also made a grab or two for him but his hair isn’t as long as mine so it doesn’t make for such enjoyable tugging!

The church is a beautiful nineteenth century building near where we are staying. It has recently been renovated and has warm red walls and colourful stained glass windows. The service, conducted by Fr Robin, was lovely and welcoming. I loved how he encouraged us to eat together as a family and live a life of justice and peace. E's childhood friend, Douglas, played guitar and his nephew Barney filled the font with water. Sylvia was well behaved with only a small cry when the water trickled over her hair.

Afterwards we went to the Braidburn Inn for refreshments. The sausage rolls and sandwiches were said to be very good. I enjoyed a bit of quiche but was too busy to eat much. The food was very good and the staff were just great. Nothing was a problem for them.

I took along a chocolate cake because it seemed the easiest way to ensure we had the sort of cake I wanted there. Chris and I cut it into slices and passed it around with a little jug of cream. By the end of the cake, the slices were very thin but I was impressed that we were able to serve it up to about 30 adults plus kids. It was well received with E’s nephew Barney declaring it to be the best chocolate cake. Now there is a kid with good taste.

It is a sign of how well-stocked our apartment is that I was able to bake this cake with ease. I liked the recipe because even though I could not find ground hazelnuts, the ingredients were easy to find and buy without having lots leftover. The fan forced oven was a joy to bake in and I enjoyed using old fashioned egg beaters to beat the egg whites.

For the decoration, I made grubs because they are a sentimental favourite with my family and I bought berries. The berries are not local – having been flown in from South Africa, Mexico and Spain – but the extravagance seemed justified for a special event. (Although HH told me that berries on the cake spoilt the calorific feast.) Such a simple and delicious way to make a cake look amazing, helped along by a cheap plate from the supermarket.

I was really pleased with the final cake and just a little sad not to have any leftovers to take home.

Nigella’s Nutella Cake
From Nigella’s Website or How to be a Domestic Goddess

• 100g dark chocolate, melted
• 125g soft unsalted butter
• 400g Nutella (1 large jar)
• 100g ground hazelnuts (I used ground almonds)
• 1 tablespoon Frangelico, rum or water (I used baby puree)
• 6 large eggs, separated
• pinch of salt

To decorate:

• 125ml double cream
• 100g dark chocolate
• Berries (I used raspberries, blackberries and blueberries)
  
• Grubs or other truffles (mine were the size of a cherry)

Preheat the oven to 180ºC and grease and line a 23cm round springform cake tin.

Melt chocolate in the microwave and set aside to cool slightly. In a large bowl beat together butter and nutella till creamy. Add frangelico (or liquid of your choice), egg yolks and hazelnuts. Then mix in the melted chocolate.

Beat the egg whites and salt in a large bowl (I used a medium one and it was ok but a large bowl would be better as the egg whites expand with beating) until soft peaks appear. Stir a spoonful of egg white into the chocolate mixture, being as rough as you like. Then gently fold in the remaining egg whites, a third at a time.

Pour mixture into prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes. It is ready when the cake is coming away from the sides but this cake is better a little underbaked and fudgy in the centre than too dry. Cool cake in tin.

To decorate: Nigella suggests leaving the base of the springform tin on the bottom when decorating but I was able to remove mine. When cool, I made chocolate ganache by melting the chocolate with the cream and cooling a little. Then I spread it over the cake and down the sides. I arranged grubs around the bottom and the top of the cake. When ready to serve the next day, we arranged berries on top with a dusting of icing sugar.

On the Stereo:
Forever: Dame Shirley Bassey (free with the Daily Mail)

Spicy Cabbage and Coconut Soup

There is not a lot of cooking going on here right now. You will notice most posts focus on lunches, which we are mostly eating out. Evenings we often visit E’s folks and then get home and crack open a packet from Sainsburys supermarket. They do some wonderful vegetarian food. Spinach, Feta and Cherry Tomato Pie, Smoky Sweet Potato Soup, and Spinach Pakoras have all found their way into our trolley. But after too much eating other people’s food, I crave healthy home-cooked food. Last week I managed to find time make a smashing Spicy Cabbage and Coconut Soup.

Root vegetables and cabbages were on special. I remembered Wendy’s Lemongrass and Cabbage Soup, which I have wanted to try for ages, and decided I could make my own makeshift version. Rather than using lemongrass, chilli, garlic, coriander and lime, I bought a stirfry sauce. I also had a bit of fun choosing some flavoured noodles that we wouldn’t normally find in a Melbourne supermarket.

I have mentioned that my in-laws stocked up the pantry in our apartment. I was surprised to hear they had to buy me peanut butter. My surprise is not that peanut butter is seen as essential for me but that it is not essential for everyone. I added a few spoonfuls to the soup to add some flavour and protein.

I loved the soup but E was not keen. It was spicy enough but too watery for him. I suspect there was also a bit much cabbage. Cabbage soup does not sound the most appetizing of meals but it was rather tasty with Asian-style spices and quite hearty with the addition of root vegetables and noodles. I was quite glad he didn’t like it much, so I could eat more of it.

I always love wandering the aisles of a supermarket in a foreign country. One thing that amused and amazed me about the cabbage was that the grower’s name is on the label. I kept teasing E that I would tell David Grant that he was rude about his cabbage. It does make it quite personal, doesn’t it!

The soup seemed a good way of pepping up British vegetables. I have also horrified E by buying a “Brussels sprouts tree” from Sainsburys (grown by David Carr). It is the perfect way to have some greens on hand.

Greens and Scots don’t go together! (Apologies to Mr Carr!) On the other hand they love porridge. Sylvia who is half Scottish loves the baby porridge made of quinoa, millet, oats and spelt grains with banana and plum flavouring. Sounds quite fancy for a baby, doesn’t it! On the morning that I made the soup, we went to see E’s nephew Barney in his school assembly. There was gaelic singing, dancing and presentations on crofting families. When it was mentioned that they ate porridge, the little boy behind us shouted loudly, “I love porridge”.

The Brits also do such lovely Christmas food. The weather here is so much more appropriate than in sunny Melbourne. We watched Delia’s Classic Christmas on BBC2 tonight. Despite her love of meat, I enjoyed the program with footage of a cat running around her country home in between seeing her freezer stuffed with food and Delia relaxing with a festive drink. I fancy trying the Cheese and Parsnip Roulade with Sage and Onion Stuffing (to be served with cranberry sauce) and the Chocolate and Sour Cherry Crumble.

Lastly, I thought I would apologise that I am not able to visit other blogs at the moment. Although we have wireless broadband here, I know if I start looking at all the posts appearing on my blog reader I will get distracted and wish I could do cooking that is just not practical here. Besides, we have little enough time here. So during my holiday in Edinburgh, I have decided to just spend my blogging time trying to keep up with posting about the trip. When I get home I will catch up with all your posts. Meanwhile, here is what I did with my soup away from home.

Spicy Cabbage and Coconut Soup
Serves 4

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 parsnip, peeled and diced
• 1 turnip, peeled and diced
• 3 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 x 250ml jar of Wagamama coconut, ginger and lemongrass sauce (or similar)
  
• bring to boil and cook for 15 min or so
• 2 cabbages, sliced
• ¼ cup crunchy peanut butter
• 250g creamed coconut
• about 250g cooked noodles (I used garlic and coriander ones but vermicelli or rice stick noodles would work well)

Place onion, parsnip, turnip, carrots and salt in a large saucepan. Cover with water and bring to the boil. Leave while visiting in-laws and shopping at Cameron Toll. Pour in lemongrass sauce, bring to the boil and simmer for about 15 minutes while preparing cabbage. Add chopped cabbage to saucepan. Discover saucepan is so full that I wish I had my big stockpot at home but let it stew with the lid, prodding and poking occasionally, until it is wilted enough to stir soup. Add creamed coconut and peanut butter. Bring to boil and simmer for about 20-30 minutes while feeding baby and watching television. Divide noodles among four soup bowls. Pour soup over noodles and serve hot.

On the Stereo:
The Music of Ennio Morricone (free with the Sunday Times)

Edinburgh: the grim, the cosy and the grumpy

On Thursday we decided to have a stroll along Royal Mile, starting with some lunch. We took the stroller into a cafe we have been to before, looking forward to some haggis, only to be told it is actually a bar with no license for children. I was upset to be barred from pubs because these are some of my favourite places to eat in Edinburgh. We walked the streets in search of a child-friendly place but it was all pubs. (I have since asked in other pubs which seem ok to have children in them for meals.)

In desperation we finally stopped for lunch at the Rabbie Burns Cafe. E decided it was the grimmest cafe in Scotland. Nae music and nae atmosphere despite copious amounts of tinsel hanging from the ceiling.

I didn't mind the lack of ambience as much as the lack of vegetarian options. In most British eating establishments I am spoilt for choice. Here I was reduced to a baked potato with cheese and beans. E had his haggis, which was presented in a most unusual way with oatcakes.

We were close to John Knox's House and decided to have a neb. When E told the man behind the counter that we were now living in Melbourne, he said he missed Edinburgh. Ironically it wasn't until he had left that he really appreciated his home town. Meanwhile, I was cursing cruel fate. If we had just walked a little further I could have eaten at the adjoining cafe. It not only had a cosy warm ambience with interesting wooden tables and chairs, but it also had a delicious-sounding gratin of butternut squash, leek and sweetcorn in white wine with a hazelnut and herb topping .

We left our stroller in the ground floor and carried Sylvia up the spiral stone steps to John Knox's house. There were displays about Protestant reformer, John Knox, and James Mosman, goldsmith to Mary Queen of Scots. I didn't have much energy for reading a lot of the storyboards and so left without altering my image of John Knox as a grumpy old man who argued with Mary and was against all fun.

I did, however, enjoy the top room, which gave a sense of how the house might have been in Knox's lifetime. Not only was there a quill and ink bottle that he might have written with but also an invitation to dress up in replicas of the cap and gown he might have worn. No doubt Knox would not have approved of the fun we had with them.

Also of interest was the painted ceiling. It reflected decadent times in Edinburgh and apparently was boarded up as the population became more prudish. I did wonder if it gave an insight into why fruit is not enjoyed more in Scotland. This picture seems to suggest it is the bounty of Beelzebub.

We then returned to the adjoining Scottish Storytelling Centre on the ground floor. The displays of literature are quite interesting with something for everyone from Walter Scott and Peter Pan to Maisie of Morningside and the Gruffalo. Once we had purchased some Scottish books for Sylvia, we had to stop for a cake at the cafe.

I had a splendid chocolate beetroot cake which was wonderfully fresh and soft with a sweet creamy buttercream icing on top. E had a slice with biscuits and coconut (reminded me a bit of hedgehog). The raspberry and vanilla lemonade was also delicious. The cake display generally looked lovely, and I particularly also liked the look of the honey, apple and polenta cake.

I would love to get back to this cafe before heading home. Unfortunately today we were in the High Street again and saw so many cafes I want to try that I feel we need much more time than we have to visit all these places. I can tell you one thing: life is too short for grim cafes. At least I now know one source of very good cake!

Scottish Storytelling Centre Cafe
43-45 High Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1SR
Tel: +44 (0)131 556 9579
Web: http://www.scottishstorytellingcentre.co.uk/