The American Suburbanite has Royal Wedding Fever

The village shop getting ready for their party tomorrow!

 Up until a few days ago, I did not expect, nor really want to be anywhere near London for the royal wedding.  But then it happened, I was bitten by the wedding bug.  I found out a friend from the States was going to be there, and decided, I would be too.  We bought my train ticket yesterday, I will be spending 12 hours in London tomorrow.   I have been studying the tube map and am just waiting for the name of the hotel my friends will be staying in to meet up with them. 

What things does one do when going to London to hopefully catch a glimpse of the royal wedding?  One goes shopping!  That's what every girl does before a wedding isn't it?  I bought the ever important accessory, a hat.  I am not wearing an over the top hat, just a cute little hat that will serve a purpose and be a bit more fashionable than my Steelers ball cap I generally wear when there is threat of rain.  We went to 4 different stores before I found a suitable hat a TK Maxx (same as TJ Maxx for all of my American friends out there).  It will not keep a driving rain out, but a light rain should be kept off my face, and yes, they are calling for rain tomorrow.  

It is a shame really as we have had glorious weather for the last couple of weeks, Tuesday was cool and grey, otherwise sunny and pleasant is all the weather people could say.  But look at the forecast for Friday, and check the link for updates.  I have only seen lightening twice in the UK in 2 years, and tomorrow may be the third... This really does play havoc with what a girl wears to such an occasion!

London Weather

9°C | °F	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
Current: Mostly Cloudy
Wind: N at 14 km/h
Humidity: 76%	20°C | 10°C	20°C | 13°C	20°C | 11°C	19°C | 10°C

I do have an exceptionally cute pair of welly boots, just what to wear with them!  I will post pictures once I have returned to my little rural village!

Guilty Pleasures

The theme of Dancing with the Stars this week was guilty pleasures, as such, I figured it was time for me to admit that DWTS is (one) of MY guilty pleasures. It does not hurt that one of my FAVORITE players of the NFL is a competitor this year either.  His smile is infectious and has even won over the judges.  You have guessed it, Hines Ward of my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers has been a contender from day 1.   My indulgence in my guilty pleasure has come to new heights this season as I have even started voting.  I use the online voting system, and vote as many times as it lets me.  I often vote before I have even seen the dance.  Pittsburgh is hoping for a mirror ball trophy.  I think it would look great between the Lombardi trophies at Heinz Field, what do you think?
 
Here is the video of this weeks performance as Hines admits his guilty pleasure is singing in the shower. 

Signs of Spring

We have been  very fortunate over here the last couple of weeks, after a dreary, snowy, winter (coldest on record according to the man who fixes our boiler) we have had an absolutely lovely spring.  I am no longer the recluse in front of the open fire in the snug (living room), I am out and about spending as much time as possible in the sunshine.  It comes no where close to the sunshine of Florida, but it is warming and soothing all the same.  If I am outside, you know my camera is not far behind, here are a few pictures of springtime here in the England:

 Not only do we have leaves on our trees, but flowers as well.  The number of flowering trees here is staggering.  Both due to sheer number, but also due to the allergies that it seems to trigger in me.  The above picture is one of the 2 apple trees in our garden (back yard).  

 Daffodils are another sight, one of the first true signs of spring.  It has been warmer earlier than normal and many of the daffodils have already past their prime.  These along the walls of York are shaded most of the day and look gorgeous in this setting sun.

Daffodils, daffodils, and more daffodils!

 Spring wouldn't be complete without baby animals!  These goslings along the river were precious, mamma goose was not going to let anyone or anything get too close, she chased another goose into the river while we were there!

And my favorite babies of all, LAMBS!!  Here are a few from the village farm.  I walk past them often, it is fun to watch them dash across the field or leap with excitement.  They are growing so fast as well.  Again mamma sheep has a keen eye on me here!  Don't worry mamma, your lambs are safe with me!

The American Suburbanite must return to America

In short, my visa application has been refused.  We have hired an immigration attorney to handle things from here.  More news to come.

Country living, city shoes...

My friends from PA know my love of shoes is a bit on the obsessive side. In high school I had a "catalog" of my shoes as well as a wardrobe calendar so I did not repeat outfits in any given month. I had over 200 pair of shoes I think in my teens and early 20's. Shoes for every season, in every color...

When in FL my shoe collection slowly dwindled, only because I was not in need of different shoes for every season. I did have flip flops for every level of activity though. Since my wedding in November, I have gone from FL flip flops to snow boots. It is only recently that I have been able to shed a few layers and wear shoes! These are the latest addition to my now growing collection. I had seen the style online, when I saw them in the outlet store, at more than 66% off the regular price, I could not resist! I still look as if I am dressed for winter compared to a number of the English woman who have been out in tube tops, short skirts, and flip flops.

Steak and Ale Pie

So I figure if I am going to live in this country for a few years, I should become familiar with foods and customs. We had such a delicious Pancake Day, I was excited to put my hand at the Steak and Ale pie for British Pie Week. The recipe came from the National Trust, so it was a fairly traditional and reliable source. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-chl/w-countryside_environment/w-food_farming/w-food_recipe-videos/w-food_recipe-videos-steak-pie.htm How the British could not all have heart disease after eating a meal like this is beyond me. I am really glad we went to the gym BEFORE we ate the pie! The recipe starts with the filling. I found the recipe a bit unbalanced meat to veg, so I increased the amount of carrots and added some frozen peas to the mix as well.

Once the filling was finished, I started melting the LARD into the water to start the pastry. Once the lard melted, I added in the flour and then the EGG YOLKS... I had an enormous amount of pastry and ended up making the pie in a large casserole dish. The recipe says 4-6 people. I would say it is on the high side of that, unless it was the England Rugby Team coming for dinner, then maybe 1 pie per person!

In the end, it tasted very good. I might make a few minor changes in the future, but that was more my inexperience than flaws with the recipe. It fed us for 3 1/2 meals last week, a week we only made it to the gym once. Oh well, we will have plenty of time for the gym this week!

The Savory Pancake

While America celebrated pancake day 2 weeks ago, Fat Tuesday is pancake day here in the UK. It is also known as "Shrove Tuesday" and is thought of much in the same way that we think of Mardi Gras as a celebration and treat before the start of Lent. About 2 weeks before pancake day, my husband brought home his trusted Betty Crocker shake and mix pancake mix. When I say pancake here, I really mean crepe. I do not understand how some French words have stayed within the language where as others have not. He was not up for home made, he knew how these turned out and was quite happy with them. I figured, no problem, I haven't made crepes from scratch since French Club in high school, that gives me more time to concentrate on yummy fillings. As an American, I think of fruits and sweet things in a pancake. Not here, they are a savory dish. They may splurge with a little lemon juice and sugar for their sweet pancake. If I was going to make pancakes as a starter, main course, and desert, I had some research to do. At a bit of a loss, I trusted the Betty Crocker UK & Ireland facebook page for suggested fillings. They posted a recipe for "Mediterranean Pancakes" and I went with it. You spoon some pesto inside the pancake and then add your sauteed onion, peppers, and zucchini (courgette for all of my English followers, see what I mean about French words!). Fold the pancake in half and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Roast everything in the oven until the cheese melts. These became our starters. I filled pancakes as my husband masterfully flipped each one. 3 pancakes now assembled and in the oven. Mean time, we prepared the "Main Course" pancakes. My husband requested beef filling like a taco... Earlier that day I went to the butcher (yes, small village, we still have a butcher with local meat. They are just across the street from our house) and bought ground beef. I sauteed some garlic and onion, added the meat with some chili powder, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Once the meat was browned, I added some tomato sauce and Franks hot sauce. We put a few jalapeno peppers and some cheddar cheese on top, and voila, taco pancakes. We popped them in the oven to melt the cheddar cheese.

Finally, the pancakes I had been waiting for, dessert pancakes!!! We layered Nutella with fresh strawberries inside. We wrapped them up and added home made vanilla whipped cream on top of the pancakes. I will still say, this is my FAVORITE way to eat crepes. I was however, pleasantly surprised at how tasty the savory pancakes were. It is a good, thing that pancake day is only once a year (or twice if you celebrate the American and English days), I would need to go to the gym much more often to keep up with the calories otherwise!

Next up, the savory pie as it was also British Pie week in the UK last week. Bon Appetit!