Author Archive
Photowalk judging
The voting/exhibition (strictly by invite only) for the @twphotowalk takes place next Wed (April 25th) from 7.30pm at the Summerhouse opposite 10 York Rd.
Apologies for the last-minute change of venue. However, the Summerhouse is a lovely place, close to the York Rd entrance to the Trinity Theatre. Easy to find ~ simply look for the throng of Photowalkers!
All Photowalkers (ie those that purchased a ticket!) are entitled to bring one guest with them to help cast a vote for the winning entry.
We have kept aside a small amount of money from the ticket price to help provide drink and nibbles on the evening ~ but anyone who wishes to help support the event and bring along a bottle or provide some nibbles will be extra-welcomed with open arms!
Please remember this is a non-profit event, it runs with the goodwill and support of the local community and businesses.
Special thanks must go to Hari Covert who is helping to provide some special nibbles for the judging evening. 
The second Big Slurp was as resounding a success as the first. If you missed it… and unusually for a Twuttle / Twuddle event, it is kind hush-hush… please leave a comment below together with your email address, and we’ll include you on the invite list for the next one.
Overall winner of the soup competition was Nick Pope with his utterly-delicious Carrot Soup with Coconut & Lemongrass. However, there were so many great soup recipes, it was nigh on impossible to pick a winner. Next time, we’ll devise a fairer voting system (not that Nick’s soup wasn’t worthy…) as those who’s soup was heated up last perhaps got a unfair crack of the whip. (Sorry Lesley, I didn’t even get to taste yours… which I’m told was delicious).
Winner of the bread competition was Hari Cover… Hari are you going to let us ‘publish’ your recipe or do you want to keep it secret?
We were even treated to two superb desserts… another winner from Nick with his gobsmacking Pear & Almond pudding / cake… and a gorgeously moist Carrot Cake by Sharon Abrams.
By popular request, recipes are below including (by popular demand), Hari Covert’s Beer Bread.
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CARROT SOUP WITH COCONUT & LEMONGRASS
Serves 4
Prep 15 mins Cook 35 mins Freeze up to 3 months
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed and tough outer layer discarded
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons finely grated root ginger
1 tablespoons red Thai curry paste
450g (1lb) carrots, sliced
900ml (1½ pints) hot vegetable stock
3 kaffir lime leaves
165ml (6fl oz) can coconut milk
salt and freshly ground pepper
lime wedges, to serve
Method:
Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add the onion, and fry to 3-4 minutes or until starting to soften.
Meanwhile, finely chop the lemongrass, then add to the pan, along with the garlic and ginger, and fry for 2 minutes.
Add the curry paste and fry for 1 minute, stirring all the time.
Add the carrots and fry for 2 minutes.
Pour in the stock, add the lime leaves and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the carrots are tender.
Remove from the heat and take out and discard the lime leaves.
Pour in the coconut milk, then whiz in a blender or food processor until smooth.
The soup shouldn’t be too thick – dilute with more stock if it is.
Season to taste, then serve with a grating of black pepper and lime wedges.
From “The Soup Book” (Soil Association) published by Dorling Kindersley
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PEAR & ALMOND PUDDING / CAKE
Serves 8
Prep 10 mins Cook 45 mins
2 pears
125g/4½oz butter
125g/4½oz caster sugar
2 free-range eggs, large or medium
65g/2¼oz plain flour
65g/2¼oz ground almonds
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 table spoon flaked almonds (optional)
1 dessert spoon of caster or demerara sugar (optional)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180o/350o/gas 4.
Peel the pears and cut into 4 lengthways, removing the seeds and core. You should end up with 8 pieces.
Grease and lightly flour a round cake tin.
Beat together the butter, caster sugar and eggs until light and fluffy.
Add the flour, ground almonds and baking powder and mix thoroughly.
Spoon mixture into the cake tin.
Arrange the pears on top of the mixture.
Sprinkle with flaked almonds (optional) and additional sugar (optional).
Bake in the preheated oven for about 45 minutes, checking at around 35 to 40 minutes.
Serve hot, warm or cold.
© Nicholas Pope
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SHARON’S CARROT CAKE
8oz self raising flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
5oz muscovado sugar
4 oz carrots (grated)
2 ripe bananas (mashed)
2 eggs
5 fl oz sunflower oil
Topping:
6oz low fat soft cheese
2oz margarine
4oz icing sugar
Few drops vanilla essence
Method:
Pre heat oven to 180 C / 350 F / gas mark 4
Line an 8″ (20cm) deep round cake tin
Place all ingredients for the cake in a large bowl and mix well until roughly
blended and smooth, turn into the prepared tin and level the surface.
Bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes until well risen and shrinking away
from the sides of the tin.
Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out and leaving to
cool completely on a wire rack.
For the topping blend the ingredients together until smooth and spread onto the
cold cake.
© Sharon Abrams
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HARI COVERT’S BEER BREAD
375g Self Raising flour
3 tablespoons Caster Sugar
330ml Beer ( I use a Moodleys beer which is live with natural yeasts)
Teaspoon of salt
Mix all ingredients to a wet batter then pour into well greased loaf tin
sprinkle top with sesame seeds or whatever you prefer!
Bake for 40 – 50 mins in preheated oven at 180 degrees C
© Hari Covert
For more Hari Covert recipes and for information on his Secret Underground Restaurant visit his blog here.
The Fourth Tunbridge Wells Photowalk takes place on Sunday 1st of April. The theme is LOVE & HATE ~ what you love and hate about Tunbridge Wells. We are asking you to take one photograph for LOVE and another for HATE.
Tickets, priced £7.50 each, are available exclusively from REDBOX CAMERAS on Monson Road. They go on sale from Saturday 24th March. Each ticket gains entry into the competition plus a large photographic print of your chosen images, which will be exhibited at Wobblybridge Gallery on Camden Road. As with the last Photowalk, entries will be judged by all who attend the opening night of the exhibition ~ one vote per person.
Here’s the clever bit… both of your chosen images must be arranged to make a diptych. What’s that I hear you cry? Well, quite simply, your two images ~ one for LOVE and one for HATE ~ should be arranged within a single frame. The two images can be the same size, or one can be smaller than the other. You can divide the image as you wish, by a straight line or a curved line. It’s totally up to you!
Some suggestions as to how you might arrange the two images are shown below. The staff at Redbox Cameras, who have great experience in all aspects of photography, will be able to help you and make suggestions. They will also create the ‘diptych’ image for you if you wish… just brief them and they’ll do the rest.
And of course, you don’t have to have a fancy dividing line between the two images at all… they can simply sit side by side, or one above the other. But the final overall ‘canvas’ size MUST be landscape and not portrait.
The event starts between Noon and 1pm at FLOWERS AT COLONNADE (the florist shop/café on Monson Rd in Tunbridge Wells ~ opposite Redbox Cameras), where in exchange for this ticket you will be registered to take part in the competition. The café will be serving their excellent teas and coffees… plus a range of grub if you’re feeling peckish.
The event will finish at SANKEYS in Tunbridge Wells, from 3.30pm onwards, where we’ll all be gathering to sample their famous fish fingers sarnies (kindly donated to the event by Matt Sankey) and no doubt sampling a glass or two of their finest ales.
If you have any queries, or to express interest in taking part in the Photowalk, please leave a comment below.
For anyone who hasn’t yet been down to the Christmas ice rink in Calverley Grounds, Tuesday 20th, from 7.30pm to 8.30pm could well be the ideal opportunity. Bring your friends and family and join the assorted Twuttlers & Twuddlers skating around the rink in a suitably festive fashion (reindeer antlers and Xmas hats are entirely optional). It doesn’t matter whether you’re a dab hand at the triple salchow, or have never strapped on a pair of skates in your life… the event is open to all and suitable for skaters of all abilities.
For more information on the rink, click here to visit their website.
We’re told that hot drinks and food are available down at the rink ~ although we suspect that skating whilst slurping a latte and nibbling a mince pie is probably frowned upon. Actually, there are t&cs on their website, so please take heed of the dos and don’ts.
There is a spectator area for non-skaters to watch proceedings and shout helpful advice from the sidelines.
Next Tuesday evening is also the date for the last Bedford quiz before Christmas. This starts at 8pm and a Twuddle team usually enters, so once the skating is over, it would seem rude not to nip over the road to this most-excellent pub to give them some support. But no help in answering the questions please ~ you wouldn’t want them disqualified would you?
We hope to see you on the 20th! ~ Any questions & queries, please leave a comment below.
PS. There is a discount scheme for parties of 10 or more, so if you are thinking of coming along, please let us know. Get enough people together and we could save some money on the ticket price.
