Thursday 14 July 2011

A day out to the seaside . . .



(View of Llandudno from the top of the Great Ormes)

Louder than gulls the little children scream
Whom fathers haul into the jovial foam;
But others fearlessly rush in, breast high,
Laughing the salty water from their mouthes--
Heroes of the nursery.

The horny boatman, who has seen whales
And flying fishes, who has sailed as far
As Demerara and the Ivory Coast,
Will warn them, when they crowd to hear his tales,
That every ocean smells of tar.
~ The Beach, Robert Graves


We had a fantastic day in Llandudno yesterday! (It is pronounced Clan-did-no)Llandudno is Wale's largest beach resort, uniquely situated between the Great and Little Ormes with two wonderful beaches, the award winning North Shore and the quiet, sand duned West Shore. It is an easy one hour drive from where we are living and I found it to be quite beautiful and not at all garish, as some seasides have a tendancy to be!



(Todd posing in front of some of the old Victorian and
Edwardian Hotels situated along the seafront.)


Llandudno has kept its Victorian and Edwardian elegance and splendour, despite its modern attractions. There are cable cars which enable everyone to be able to reach the summet of the Great Ormes. We didn't go on them yesterday but we did enjoy watching them go up and down.



(A view of the Great Ormes as we walked towards it and the Pier.)

There are ornamental gardens, a beautiful seaside facade of Victorian and Edwardian hotels, beautiful flowers lining the lamp-lit promenade which stretches for quite a distance, a lovely sandy beach and a great amusement pier which has just about something for everyone!



(Punch and Judy Show)


The seafront was filled with groups of children yesterday, I am assuming on their last week of school seaside trips, and a lovely Punch and Judy show was playing on the Promenade.



(The Pier.)

There was fish and chips . . . and ice creams and the lovely sound of gulls and waves crashing against the shore. The smell . . . sea air is so invigorating don't you think? The sounds . . . happy people in a holiday mood, children, gulls, waves . . . it all added to a beautiful atmosphere. We had a decidedly lovely time, and I know Doreen and Billy did too.



(Where the amusements begin on the Pier.)

We walked for miles and miles (it seemed) and it was not until the very end that my hip started to protest! That last bit of walking back to the car was a bit difficult, but I got there in the end.



(The Three Musketeers!)

The best part of the day though was getting to share it with some good friends. Todd has been friends with Doreen and Billy for years and they were some of the first friends I made when I moved over here. Doreen used to live right next door to Todd and Billy is her caregiver. Nobody could take as good a care of Doreen as Billy does. He is just like a son to her! Lovely people.



(View across to the smaller Ormes. Look at the gull getting into the picture!)


It was so nice to be able to bring them along with us, and I know they really enjoyed themselves as much as we did. I think experiences are always alot nicer when they are shared, don't you?



(My sweetie pie posing!)


We had a great day together, and Todd and I have vowed to go back sometime when we can stay overnight, and maybe bring Mitzie along with us. I can imagine how beautiful it is at dusk with all those beautiful Victorian Lamp-posts lit and the string lights . . . and the pier all lit up. It looks like there are lots of musical activities in the evenings with choirs and such and it would be just lovely to be able to listen to some.

My dishwasher should come today! I am excited about that and hoping that it won't be too long before I can have it plumbed in and be using it. We are having the missionaries over for supper tonight and it would have been nice to be able to use it tonight, but I don't think that is going to happen! I picked up some lovely bangers at the butchers yesterday so we'll be having bangers and mash for tea, Todd's favourite meal and I just might make this pie I am showing you here today. It all depends on if I have all the ingredients for it or not. I think I have most of them at any rate. It's probably enormously calorific, but the lads won't mind at all, and I can treat myself to a tiny sliver I think! Or maybe just a small bite!!!



*Lemon Pie with an Almond Stuffed Crust*
Serves 8
Printable Recipe

I have not made this, but it is on my list of to do's. I found it on the Pillsbury site and it looks fabulous!

For the crust:
1 box of prepared pie crusts, softened as directed on the box,
or your own favourite recipe for a double crust pie
1 (7 ounce) package of almond paste
1/4 cup toasted flaked almonds
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the first layer of filling:
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 TBS cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold water
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
3 egg yolks, well beaten
2 TBS butter
1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 tsp lemon extract
1 tsp lemon peel
3 drops yellow food colour

For the second layer of filling:
1 cup icing sugar
1 (8 ounce) package of cream cheese softened
2 (4 serving size) boxes of instant lemon pudding
and pie filling mix

To Garnish:
1/2 cup icing sugar
4 ounces mascarpone cheese
1 cup whipping cream

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Unroll 1 pie crust and place in an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Press firmly against side and bottom. Crumble the almond paste into the bowl of a food processor and add the almonds and 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Cover and process for 1 minute. Spread the mixture in the crust lined pie plate. Top with second crust, pressing down. Crimp the edges together. Prick crust several times with fork, and then bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Mix 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, the cornstarch and salt with wire whisk in a medium saucepan. Beat in the cold water and lemon juice. Add the egg yolks, beating until smooth. Add the butter and then gradually stir in the boiling water. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the lemon extract, lemon peel and food color. Cover the surface of the pudding with plastic wrap. Cool for 30 minutes. Pour into baked crust. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat 1 cup icing sugar and the cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in the milk until well blended. Add the pudding mixes and beat 2 minutes longer or until thickened. Pour over the first layer of pie filling.

In a medium bowl, beat the garnish ingredients with electric mixer on high speed for about 2 minutes, or until stiff peaks form. Place this mixture into a decorating bag fitted with star tip. Decorate the top of the pie as desired. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie.

Note: This was a winning pie from the Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust Championship in 2007. This recipe was submitted by Whitney Haynes of Middleton, first place winner of the Topsfield Fair (MA).



Cooking in The English Kitchen today, some tasty Parmesan Chicken Breasts with Crispy Proscuitto, a la Jamie Oliver!


8 comments:

  1. Sounds like you had a wonderful time in Llandudno Marie. I never did go there when I lived in Wales - Barry Island was my hangout as a kid, LOL The recipes are delicious sounding. You can come and cook for me anytime, yummy. Have a wonderful day and I hope your dishwasher turns up today.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What better than a day shared with friends.Mary and I had a lovely holiday there a whiel ago and have vowed to go back again as well. It is such a relaxing place we found...although we had the usual English weather...but it didn;t stop us enjoying ourselves. One funnt thing that happened was we were sitting at our hotel bedroom window watching the waves whipped up by a really cold wind and there, walking along the beach was three girls their umberellas almost blowing inside out !! and another lady sitting deciding whether to go into the water !! she did...certainly mad dogs and Englishmen/women !!!!
    Have alovey day. Think I will pass on the pud tonight..it looks delicious though but SO FULL of calories.mmmmmmmmmmm.....would enjoy that chickn though..
    Love Sybil x

    ReplyDelete
  3. What an absolutely lovely day you had in a darling place. I could feel your joy as you described everything. I was in Wales only once, back in 1969 I think. It was the day Prince Charles was crowned the Prince of Wales... oh my memory is so terrible, but I think it was summer of 1969. It's a beautiful country. I've been to England three times, but it's been over 30 years ago. I was so smitten with England, and all it's extremes, from punk to victorian! I won't get back to England but I have wonderful memories. Thanks too for the pictorial. It was like being on a little vacation with you. Love you, Jan

    ReplyDelete
  4. WOW!! Llandudno looks sooo BEAUTIFUL!! It has an air of Brighton about it almost, in a way. LOVE the view, those Victorian/Edwardian house-fronts and that lovely pier...*sigh*... Oh, I want to go there right now... LOL! How far is Llandudno from where you are? I'll have to look that up. Glad you had such a grand day out. And that you did OK mostly with getting around. How are you feeling today from all the walking? I have to go back and look again at the photos...so pretty! And have to say, today's lemon pie is calling my name too. ;o) So happy to chat with you the other day--such fun, must do again soon! LOVE YOU ALL LOTS!! ((BIG HUGS))

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a rich post:) The views..the people..the pie..

    Just lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I need some of that pie right now!!! I am drooling. What a nice day you had at??? I can't spell it... but it sounds so nice. Maybe one day we can go there with you and Todd.

    I was so happy to talk to you today. Your voice always lifts my spirits. Have a nice evening... I am sure you will with the missionaries coming for tea.
    Hugs, Lura

    ReplyDelete
  7. what a lovely day out.The photos are beautiful.that was so kindto share the day with good friends.The time away over night there with Mitzie too would be fun, its such a carnival type place.I watched the UK Antques Road Show today and they were in Chester, that pie looks really yummy!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. wow, what a beautiful place and a fun time!!! you guys know how to live it up!! have fun with your new dishwasher when it arrives...its always so fun to get something new, especially for the kitchen! :)

    sorry i haven't been around lately...busy getting ready for a little trip to visit family in south texas. my little brother is leaving for his mission next week! hes going to serve in the states-boston. and his name is austin. it rhymes!! joy. :) anyways, hope you guys have a great weekend!!

    ReplyDelete

Your comments mean the world to me, and while I may not be able to address each one individually, each one is important to me and each one counts. Thanks so much!