Monday, June 16, 2014

Royal Birthday, Gold Leaf.

This weekenTrooping the Colourd, in London, they celebrated the Queen’s official birthday by the annual trooping of the colour which is a mustering and parade of the guards, originally part of the preparations for war. Once upon a time she would ride to the event but now, at 88, she travels in a carriage. Beside her in the carriage is Prince Phillip. I was astounded to see him wearing a bearskin hat I didn’t remember ever seeing him Trooping the Colour 1981wear one before, however, I found this picture from 1981 where he was definitely wearing one so we assume he is the commanding officer of the Household Guards. In fact, it turns out that both Prince Charles and Prince William were similarly dressed. In this picture the queen is riding Burmese, her favourite 19 yr. old horse and in fact it was taken on the day she was shot at, which I certainly knew nothing about. Once again her Majesty was on her way to Horse Guards Parade to attend the trooping of the colour in her honour. The ceremony is truly impressive to watch although I have only ever seen it on TV. I was also interested to be reminded that she always rode side saddle to these events.

Reading the latest post by Hilary Melton-Butcher she mentioned books of gold leaf. I hadn’t thought about it in years, but I used to Gold Leafhave one, the pages were very thin and the gold leaf itself was basically not a lot more than paint in it’s thickness. I have no idea where I got this book of gold leaf from, but we moved into a brand new house in Hoo, Kent, England and I decided to call it Borogroves from the story of Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. It wasn’t until very much later that I realised it should be Borogoves (only one r). Anyway, somewhere we had obtained a wooden sign with the house name and by dint of using clear nail polish, each letter acquired a coat of gold leaf.  I had the rest of the book for many years but I have no idea what eventually happened to it. I have to say I was actually rather disappointed, didn’t look like much at all when the name was finished. Hilary even included a link for purchasing a similar book. Doesn’t look like much does it? Nor did my sign. It’s £6.95 for a book of 5 leaves.

This is a recipe we tried on Saturday. It was good but we decided it needed more seasoning, i.e. lemon, salt and pepper. Matt figured out he would use half as much again (he was the one who cooked it). We didn't have the Swiss Chard but French cut green beans. On Sunday we ate the remainder cold and the flavours had developed somewhat.

Tuscan Pork Kebabs


Coming in at under 200 calories per serving, these colourful grilled pork-kebabs-ck-pork kebabs are perfect for a light weeknight dinner.
Cooking Light AUGUST 2009
  • Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 2 kebabs)
Ingredients
  • 4 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 pound pork tenderloin, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • 16 (1-inch) pieces red bell pepper
  • 16 (1-inch) pieces yellow bell pepper
  • Cooking spray
Preparation
1. Prepare grill to medium-high heat.
2. Combine olive oil, grated lemon rind, salt, pepper, and crushed garlic in a large bowl, stirring well. Add pork; marinate at room temperature 15 minutes, tossing occasionally.
3. Thread pork and bell peppers alternately onto each of 8 (8-inch) skewers. Place skewers on a grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 10 minutes or until pork is done, turning occasionally.
Sautéed chard: Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add 8 cups chopped stemmed Swiss chard, 1 tablespoon minced garlic, and 1/8 teaspoon salt; sauté for 5 minutes or until chard wilts.

Have a great day

18 comments:

  1. It will be nice to see the parade during the queen's birthday celebration.
    Dish looks very attractive!

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    1. Thanks. The parade happened on Saturday so I hope you can find a video.

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  2. He's not wearing a Busby Jo, he's wearing a bearskin cap. A busby is a different thing entirely but the two are often confused. I had a book of gold leaf once, it was a very boring read and all the pictures were the same... :)

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    1. Thought they were the same thing.

      But such a pretty colour.

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  3. My parents have a sundial that they wanted painted black with shiny gold on the raised parts, so I got a bottle of gold leaf paint and painstakingly worked on the sundial. The finished results were stunning. And lasted all of a week out in the weather before the gold just looked like flat tan paint. Hugely disappointing.

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    1. LOL. I know what you mean. It's a pity isn't it?

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  4. Riding a horse at her age might be a bit rough. Carriage is safer.

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    1. I wonder. Would be interesting to know if she still rides when away at her estates. I guess getting up in the saddle would be difficult though. Probably somewhat undignified.

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  5. Hi Jo: Trying a different search engine to see if my comment is printed. Pork Loin is so versitile plus there is never any waste. I think the Queen still rides, knowing her love of horses.

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    1. I have been wondering whether she does or not. I think getting up on a horse would be difficult for her not to mention if she did have a fall it would be very serious as bones get so brittle when one is older.

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  6. The Queen is doing very well for being 88. The same goes for Prince Phillip who is in his nineties. Must be those Fleet st doctors looking after them!

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    1. As you say Pinky. Think you mean Harley Street LOL. Fleet Street is newspapers.

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  7. Whatever their content, gold leaf books feel so special.
    Yummy recipe, though I switch the pork for beef or chicken.

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    1. I guess it would work fine with either meat.

      But as my sinlaw said, dull reading.

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  8. Those kebabs look tasty. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I'm planning on making kebabs for 4th of July.

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    1. I've always enjoyed kebabs. The Greeks and Turks do some of the best. No barbecue so we have to do them on the broiler.

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  9. HI Jo - thanks for mentioning me .. even if I am late to the party! The Duke certainly still does his carriage riding .. despite having an op for carpal syndrome recently .. he drove with a support ..

    I wrote a long post about the Queen and her horses last year .. the counter balance to monarchy .. cheers Hilary

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    1. I remember your post now Hilary but admit it had slipped my mind.

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