In my last post I wrote about the value Clare Chambers grants suburban life in her 2020 novel Small Pleasures. Her protagonist, Jean Swinney, unmarried, in her early 40s and living in the suburbs of South East London with her widowed mother, leads a life of routine and duty, punctuated by ‘[s]mall pleasures – the first cigarette of the day; a glass of sherry before Sunday lunch; a bar of chocolate parcelled out to last a week; a newly published library book still pristine and untouched by other hands; the first hyacinths of spring; a neatly folded pile of ironing..’ Continue reading “A miracle in suburbia”
Tag: jam
Hannukah doughnuts
The door of the flat was open. Dan had made whiskey-laced hot apple cider, which he was distributing in red plastic pint glasses. Willa circulated behind him, her blonde hair hidden beneath a red felt Santa hat, offering Chanuka doughnuts. (Francesca Segal, The Innocents) Continue reading “Hannukah doughnuts”
Life after Life 4: Raspberry and Redcurrant Jam
Ursula remembered…the kitchen at Fox Corner on Mrs Glover’s baking days – the big brown ‘health’ loaves that Sylvie insisted on, but also the sponges and tarts and buns. She imagined eating a slice of the warm brown bread, thickly buttered, with the jam made from the raspberries and redcurrants at Fox Corner. (April 1945, page 439)
Until last year I had never made jam. I assumed it was a terribly complicated process involving thermometers and sterilising equipment – and the effort would not be worth the result.
How wrong I was. Continue reading “Life after Life 4: Raspberry and Redcurrant Jam”
Life after Life 3: Milk Fadge
Nanny Mills was rather frightening (although not to Hugh apparently), spending a lot of time quizzing Ursula about her manners and inspecting Teddy’s ears for dirt. Her sister was nicer and plied them with glasses of elderflower cordial and slices of milk fadge spread with blackberry jelly. (September 1923, pages 198-99)
It is perhaps no surprise for a foodie like me that my memories and thoughts of people are so often bound up with food. Continue reading “Life after Life 3: Milk Fadge”