The Latest...
We all love the latest, the newest. Check in with us to see what is happening in your life, in our life - reviews and recipes from Margaret and the team.
No Strings Attached
Directed by Ivan Reitman Starring Natalie Portman, Ashton Kutcher and Kevin KlinePlot A guy and girl try to keep their relationship strictly physical, but it's not long before they learn that they want something more. Well, technically he wants more and she runs a mile. An inverted romcom for...
Mars Bar Slice
This is a recipe from my primary school years. It is incredibly rich and sweet and a little goes a long way. Which is probably why mothers used to make it all the time! Ingredients 120g Mars Bar 75g unsalted butter 1 tablespoon golden syrup 3 cups Rice Bubbles 185g chocolate,...
Butterscotch Pudding
A perfect sweet treat! Ingredients - Pudding 1 cup SR flour 1/3 cup brown sugar 2 Tablespoons melted butter ½ cup milkMix together and place in greased overproof bowl.Ingredients - Topping1 ½ cups hot water 1 Tablespoon...
Debs Chocolate Pudding
No one precisely knows who Deb is, but this is a rocking pudding.Ingredients - Pudding1 cup SR flour ½ cup sugar 2 Tablespoons cocoa ½ cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 egg 60 gram melted butterIngredients - Topping 1 cup brown...
Quick Pavlova
I don't care where pavlova originated (New Zealand or Australia) - I just care that it did!Ingredients2 egg whites 1 ½ cups sugar 1 teaspoon cornflour 1 teaspoon vinegar ½ teaspoon vanilla 4 Tablespoons boiling waterMethod...
Mango Fool
A great summer dessert.Ingredients150g low-fat ricotta cheese (see note) 1/2 cup low-fat vanilla custard 2 large ripe mangoes, peeled, roughly chopped 8 pieces almond breadMethodPlace ricotta in a food processor. Process until creamy. Pour in custard and pulse until just...
Easy A
Directed by John Lee Hancock Starring Emma Stone, Penn Badgley, Stanley Tucci, Patricia Clarkson, Amanda Bynes, Cam Gigandet, Lisa KudrowPlot After a little white lie about losing her virginity gets out, a clean cut high school girl sees her life paralleling Hester Prynne's in "The...
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas
Directed by Mark Herman Starring David Thewlis, Vera FarmigaPlot Set during World War II, this is a story seen through the innocent eyes of Bruno, the eight-year-old son of the commandant at a concentration camp, whose forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence...
Blindness
Directed by Fernando Meirelles Starring Mark Ruffalo, Julianne Moore, Danny Glover,Plot A doctor's wife becomes the only person with the ability to see in a town where everyone is struck with a mysterious case of sudden blindness. She feigns illness in order to take care of her husband as...
The Book of Eli
Directed by The Hughes Brothers Starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Jennifer BealPlot Eli (Denzel Washington) has been on a journey for 30 years, walking west across America after a cataclysmic war that turned the earth into a total wasteland. The world has become a lawless civilization...
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
Directed by Peter Sollett Starring Michael Cera, Kat DenningsPlot It's been three weeks, two days, and 23 hours since Tris broke up with Nick. And now here she is at his gig, with a new guy. How could she have moved on so fast? This begins the night of Nick, Norah and Manhattan. The night of...
The Blind Side
Directed by John Lee Hancock Starring Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Kathy BatesPlot The Blind Side depicts the story of Michael Oher, a homeless African-American boy from a broken home, taken in by the Touhys, a well-to-do white family who help him fulfill his potential. At the same time,...
The Wolfman
Directed by Joe Johnson Starring Anthony Hopkins, Benicio Del Toro, Emily Blunt, Hugo WeavingPlot Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father, Talbot sets out to find his brother... and discovers a...
Panforte
A fabulous dessert for a lazy lunch or an afternoon nibble.Ingredients250g blanched almonds 150g pistachio kernels 150g raisins 100g currants 100g dried figs, chopped 100g dried apricots, chopped 100g dried mixed peel 100g dark couverture...
Chocolate Fig Pies
A fabulous dessert for a dinner party or lazy lunch.Ingredients2 sheets frozen puff pastry 1/4 cup Nutella 1 egg, lightly beaten 5 figs, sliced lengthwise 1 tablespoon caster sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons apricot jam, mixed with a little water, warmed cream,...
Julie and Julia
Directed by Nora Ephron Starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley TucciPlot Julia Child and Julie Powell - both of whom wrote memoirs - find their lives intertwined. Though separated by time and space, both women are at loose ends... until they discover that with the right combination of...
Chocolate Pistachio Biscotti
The perfect accompaniment to an afternoon coffee.Ingredients2 cups plain flour 3/4 cup quality cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate) 1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda 3 large eggs 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar 60g unsalted butter, room temperature 3 teaspoons...
Cherry Coconut Cupcakes
Pretty in Pink - the perfect cupcake for afternoon tea with the girls!IngredientsBiscuit base200g unsalted butter, chopped 200g dark chocolate, chopped 1 1/2 cups caster sugar 270ml can coconut milk 1/2 cup self-raising flour 3/4 cup plain flour 2...
The Taking of Pelham 123
Directed by Tony Scott Starring Denzel Washington, John Travolta and James GandolfiniPlot New York. A man calling himself Ryder (Travolta) leads a gang who hijack a subway train, hold the passengers hostage and demand a huge ransom from the city. Public transportation manager Walter Garber...
Lemon Cheesecake
This has to be my favourite cheesecake recipe. It’s a no-bake cheesecake that has exactly the right flavour and texture.IngredientsBiscuit base17 Marie biscuits 90g butter meltedFilling500g cream cheese, room temperature 1 can condensed milk 1/3...
