You might know that for the last 5 weeks, (and for the next 4); I’ve been placed in Wrexham, North Wales. It’s not what I would have chosen, especially with Tom placed down in Swansea, which is a bit of a trek just to go and watch Doctor Who on a Saturday night with some hot chocolate and the duvet pulled up, the way I want to. But I thought that while I’m up in the best of the beautiful Welsh countryside, I’d try and make the most of the fresh air, and the opportunity to bake.
What you probably don’t know is that while I’m here, I am living with two fluent speaking Malaysian boys, we’ll call them S. and A., and one of them at least seems like a lovely man, but we have absolutely nothing in common.
And S. and I can’t even go and air out our differences over a pint, as his religion forbids him to drink. Not a big deal for me, you understand, but another cultural barrier in us going out in the evenings? There’s only so far daily chats over cups of tea can get you, when even cooking together is fraught with the hazards of haraam (unlawful) food. I’d never even considered before that I’d need to check my cheese carefully before including it in a veggie lasagne! In the last week or so, we had our results and unfortunately, both my new housemates have to resit in order to continue studying, so even my daily cups of strong loose leaf tea with S. have taken a back seat to revision. We'll not talk about A., except to say Raw.Chicken.Bits.Wiped. EVERYWHERE. I think that covers our relationship. Dirty the kitchen, make me an enemy.
All these cultural, social and (occasionally) language barriers mean that life in Wrexham for me is very isolating, and it’s something I was totally unprepared for. I had no idea what it would be like to go for several days without really speaking a word to a single soul. I’ve become a constant presence online, devoured books in a single long sitting and I’ve been baking. But I’m out of practise in meeting new people and intimidated by the thought of going out alone with the express purpose of finding someone new. Evenings are especially bleak, and it’s sometimes all I can do not to fall into a pattern of being generally slovenly and staying in bed all hours.
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| In conclusion, I'm moving here when I retire! |
Daytimes are better and I’ve been exploring the towns around me lately. Going with my camera makes me feel less like an obvious loner and gives me a purpose as I march around some very pretty streets.
(The advantage of being alone; I can spend hours around charity shops and no one can complain.)
My latest find is a thin little book called ‘1 Dough, 50 Recipes’ for 70p. At first I doubted the deliciousness of a volume of recipes that can supposedly be chewy or crispy, fruity, chocolaty, nutty, ice-creamy or spicy, all from the same basic dough. But then, why not substitute my ‘go-to’ dough for a particularly chewy or crisp cookie as needed and just use the book as an ideas board for new flavours. It only took me a day to crack out a big knife and board and start chopping the hazlenuts!
My current cookie favourite is this David Leite recipe, which I’ve adapted a little to allow for me being an impoverished student and all those other excuses I have for not buying really good chocolate (or buying it then scoffing it all myself, whichever really). And I skip the Kosher salt too because, well, I’ve never salted anything in my whole life and I’m damned if the first thing I do is going to be something chocolaty. I know, foodie snobs, I know. I’m working on my own ignorance, I promise. Plus, I use salted butter as a vague compromise. Pfft, it’s cheaper.
I added about 50g chopped milk chocolate, 50g chopped hazelnuts and 50g oats. I can’t even explain in words how much better a chocolate chunk is than a chocolate chip, it’s just one of those undisputed laws of the universe and is not to be trifled with. So kindly don’t, just chop your own or use pre bought chunks, and we'll be just fine.
I halved David’s dough recipe, because the volume of dough gained from the two egg version is simply too eggstravagent when baking alone.
Chocolate chunk hazelnuts oaties
(adapted from David Leite (for the dough) and ‘1 Dough, 50 cookies’ by Linda Doeser)
1. 1. Cream 8oz butter, 4oz granulated sugar and 5oz brown sugar like your life depends on it (ie a lot).
2. 2. Add one egg, a swipe of vanilla essence and stir.
3. 3. Add 5 oz cake flour, and 4 oz bread flour. Stir just enough to combine.
4. 4. Add chunky bits and give it a quick mix. I tend to just use my hands here, the dough is getting pretty heavy for my arm (+wooden spoon) to cope with.
5. 5. Fridge for AT LEAST a day. Up to three days ideally, I’ve done up to a week without anything too bad happening to me, my oven or my cookies. Just bake enough for your day each time, so they’re always fresh and lovely. For me, that’s a four cookie batch, or six if it’s raining, but scale up if you’re expecting company, or down if you have a modicum of restraint.
6. 6. Bake at 190C for about 15 mins in little balls straight from the fridge. I say about because not all ovens are created equal, so just go with it.
These are very nom-worthy. And with so many oats and nuts, they nearly feel good for you. No honestly, you’ll be telling yourself your body’s thanking you right into your fifth cookie of the day.
And they actually do improve if you leave the dough in the fridge, so don’t skimp. Or if you do, only bake what you absolutely need that second and age the rest.
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| This is how my mind sees tea and cookies- in a haze of romantic soft focus.... |
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