LEMON CHEESECAKE

My grand daughter Kiera yesterday asked if she could make a lemon cheesescake for dessert. I sorted out a recipe but had to change the ingredients somewhat as I didn't have all the things. It turned out delicious so here is the recipe. I did'nt use the sugar as the biscuits I used were already sweet enough.

Sian, my other grand daughter wanted to also do some cooking so she made a Thai green chicken curry for dinner with just a little bit of help from me.

Quick Lemon cheesecake

About 10 digestives or 15 plain smaller biscuits

60g butter melted

1 teaspoon soft brown sugar (optional)

1/2 tsp ground ginger

125 g cream cheese

225g mascarpone

60g caster sugar

150ml thick creme fraiche or whipped double cream

Grated ring and juice of 2 lemons

2 egg yolks
3 sheets leaf gelatine

Lightly oil a 20cm flan tin with a loose base. Combine the melted butter, crushed biscuit crumbs, ginger and optional sugar. Press into tin.

Blend egg yolks, sugar, cream cheese, mascarpone and lemon rind in a electric mixer bowl, together with thick creme fraiche or cream. Soak the gelatine sheets in cold water for about 5 minutes. Heat the lemon juice to nearly boiling point, add the squeezed gelatine and stir until melted. Leave to cool then add to the mixture and blend again. Pour into tin and leave to set for about 3 hours.

MOSAICS

I have my eldest son and his 3 daughters staying this week. The eldest Kiera,who is 16 and the youngest Sian, who is 12 wanted to make a mosaic. I had the tiles so I just had to buy some squares of MDF called medium in french. I had a book on mosaics and they based their squares on a design from this book but changed a lot and I think produced some really good work for two complete beginners. All their own work!

BOTTLING TOMATOES

I have so many tomatoes! One of the easiest ways to preserve them is just to freeze them whole. When you want to use them, put them for a few seconds under the hot tap while they are still frozen and the skin peels off so easily. The tomatoes I froze last year lasted all through the winter with no signs of deterioration. However my freezer is full so I have started bottling them again. It's quite easy here in France to find preserving jars very cheap at brocantes (Junk /car boot sales), you just must remember to replace the rubber rings each time you use them. Here is the method I use which always seems to work.

Cover the tomatoes with boiling water for about one minute then remove the skins. Roughly cut up the tomatoes and place in the jars, pressing the fruit down. You will find by the time you have reached the top of the jars that there is enough juice to just cover the fruit. I usually do about 4 jars at a time, each one a 500g jar. Close the lids lightly without doing up the clip. Cook for about 1 hour in the oven at 150 degrees. As soon as they come out of the oven, do up the clip. Leave to get completely cold. Then test the seal by opening the clip. If the lids remain closed, all is well and you can reclip them and store. Otherwise you will have to use the tomatoes up quite quickly.

PEACHES ETC

This has been a fabulous year for fruit due to the very good spring weatherwise with no late frosts to damage the blossom. I have been struggling to deal with all the gluts of cherries, plums, blackberries and early yellow peaches. Now the white peaches are ready. All the branches are weighed down with fruit. If Mr O had'nt propped most of them up, most branches would have broken by now! Last year There were 6 peaches on the tree! I have made a start with a simple recipe for a summer dessert.

PEACHES IN FRUIT SYRUP

Put 15o ml /1/4 pint of water into a saucepan with the thinly peeled rind of 1 orange and 1 lemon. (Use a potato peeler for this) Add 115g caster sugar. Heat slowly until the sugar has dissolved, then boil quickly for 5 minutes. Strain. Skin and slice 3 or 4 peaches. Put them in a bowl. Pour over the syrup and the juice of 1 lemon. Cool and chill before serving.