Almost packed and ready to go....

Ah decisions, decisions.... how small and insignificant they are, it keeps me busy. As I write this the sun is out here and I see on the Internet it rains in England, so what clothes to bring with you?
And of course there remain two (adult) sons at home who I think , being a real overprotective mum , will starve if I leave no stocked fridge ;-)
So after done endless shopping , completed all my "research" and have packed both my summer and winter wardrobe I think we're almost ready to go.

Hope to meet you here again next week with a lot of pictures of our trip on the other side of the North Sea....

Anita xo

A (garden) dinner party with an Indonesian twist....

Hope your week went well, mine consisted mainly of relax after a rather busy but fun weekend. Having thirty-five people over for dinner is quite a task I can say....
With a husband having Indonesian roots the Asian kitchen has an impact on our daily food. Hence it would be out of the question to have a dinner party without Indonesian satay with peanut sauce !
Because everyone enjoyed I thought it might be fun to share the recipe.

You will need for the Satay (20 skewers) :

  

1 kg chicken breast
20 skewers
for the marinade:
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
2 cloves of garlic
6 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
4 teaspoons sambal ulek (oelek)
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 teaspoons tamarind paste
1 teaspoon salt

Cut the chicken into (not too small) pieces so that it stays nice and tender when roasting. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and leave the chicken here at least half an our to marinate. Though the longer you let the marinade draw in the more tender the chicken will be.

Preparation:

Baste the chicken on skewers and grill them in 4-5 minutes , until browned and cooked on the BBQ or under the grill.


You will need for the peanut sauce:

1 jar of peanut butter (a cheap kind so no fat rises to the surface)
6 decilitre milk
10 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
3 tablespoons sugar
2 onions
6 cloves of garlic
2 teaspoons greater galanger
2 teaspoons coriander
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons sambal ulek (oelek)

Preparation:

Fry the onions until they look slightly glassy. Add the peanut butter to the cold milk and bring to a boil, stirring. Then add the fried onion and remaining ingredients and simmer on a low heat for a moment to let the flavors to infuse.
Continue stirring and you have a delicious sauce.

It's a recipe that doesn't take much of your time, only if you (like me) invite thirty-five people you might spend a little more time in your kitchen.
It's very tasty with sliced bread and a fresh salad!

And even though the weather forecast was not so great, luckily we didn't have any rain. Someone recently said that also people can make the temperature rise, well it certainly did because the real "die-hards" have eaten here at the garden table....

Have a nice weekend and if you go try the recipe.... selamat makan !

Anita xo

Planning our escape to the (English) country....

Hope you had a good week, here I've been quite busy . With three of "my four men" having their birthday, the last few days consisted mainly of preparing our annual (garden) party in May this coming Saturday. Bought all the groceries, spend a lot of time in the kitchen and now I'm just praying for some sunshine this weekend but at least no rain. And during all these preparations I've also been busy planning something I just can't wait for it's going to happen.... our escape to the (English) country.


Although I've had this trip in mind for quite a while I couldn't bring myself to get around.
Maybe because I still had to convince my husband a little of ''the need" of this trip.
Last year we were "driven around" by our two eldest sons but now it's just the two of us. So he has to do the (left)driving by himself and isn't really looking forward to it ;-)
But it's such a sweetheart.... because he knows it's gonna make his wife very happy he's going along with this "adventure".

What eventually made me started....

these three lovely bottles my eldest son brought me home knowing
 his mum likes everything slightly English

For those who also follow me on facebook probably know that I'm a huge fan of all those lovely fairs in England and would like to visit one.
Therefore a date was soon found.... because here I'm definitely going to....

I'm really looking forward to meet all that lovely stall holders I'm
following via facebook for such a while now....

And I also hope to spend a lot of time at one of these....

And guess where I ( as a real Downton Abbey fan ) will be staying....

Downoak Abbey Lodge, Westfield, East Sussex; 

Can't wait to enjoy this stunning view from what will be "our terrace"
for a few days

I'm so excited about the fact that not only I love to watch (as a real addict) the BBC program "Escape to the Country" .....I'm having my own "escape" real soon !
For me at the moment....

All roads lead to Britain....

Hope you'll have a nice and sunny weekend, and if so...... please send a little sunshine to me ;-)

Anita xo

A lovely day in my hometown....

Morning all,

Last Monday I went with a dear colleague and a true collector of china and everything else for that matter ;-) to the flea market (the Northern market) in the famous Jordaan quarter in the centre of Amsterdam. The market is situated at a beautiful square dominated by the Northern church. It's the second oldest market in Amsterdam, founded in 1618.

While walking through the lovely and always charming centre of Amsterdam I realise that I'm doing this far to little..... visiting my hometown. Living in a nice quiet village with a bustling city just around the corner  makes me feel so very privileged.

Because many people still had their ( Spring ) holidays the city was bustling with tourists and day trippers and still breathed the atmosphere of all the festivities but also solemn moments we had this past weeks.
We've got a new King ( and also very nice Queen ), Remembrance Day and celebrating our freedom a day later. And that was still clearly visible....

One of the many wreaths at the national monument
 on the Dam square  to commemorate the dead
during the past wars....

But now more about the market....
Not only do the residents of the Jordaan quarter have a slightly different accent, the same goes for their humour. All this makes it a very friendly but also lively atmosphere ....

with at almost every corner a street musician

'There were so many beautiful things that we didn't no where to look first....

All that lovely china....

but also lovely Vintage clothes....

And outside some purchases at the also present rags market I took these lovely bits home....

I was immediately in love with the plate, and the cup and saucer....

that will be the perfect present for my mum this Sunday at Mothers day

If you're ever in Amsterdam and you want to feel the real atmosphere of the city then you should definitely go over here!

Enjoy your weekend....

Anita xo