• Aga Saga

    March 21, 2013 By in Just for fun Tags: , , , 6 Comments

    Aga Saga

    Definition of an Aga Saga –a genre of literature that portrays a story of British middle class life whether in a village or rural setting complete with dogs, wellington boots and of course, the Aga cooker.

    I’ve always wanted to write an Aga Saga but One, Myddylton Place’s blog will have to suffice, for the time being at any rate. I’ve always viewed Julia’s love of all things Aga as rather suspect to say the least; in truth I have almost viewed it as a character flaw in my best friend; one much akin to dabbling in the dark arts – Snape may indeed be her middle name. How have I come to form such a view? I’ve never personally cooked on an Aga, with an Aga – what is the correct term here, which, of course, puts me at a complete disadvantage when in Myddylton Place’s kitchen.

    Julia and Emma refer to me as Daisy, as in the downtrodden kitchen maid from Downton Abbey; though I prefer to see myself as Lady Sybil, practical and always ready to have a go; no, not dead. In my desperate attempt at being useful,however, I stick to what I know I can actually do without creating too much of a commotion and that is to see to the copious amounts of washing up that those two produce while creating staggering amounts of delicious food. In other words I absolutely refuse to go anywhere near that Aga even if it can ‘”iron” your clothes for you – wouldn’t mind though a pair of warm socks and knickers being up there in the top floor of the house on my next visit.

    Julia's beloved Aga

    Julia’s beloved Aga

    To compound things the new Aga is a five door monster, dominating the kitchen with its throbbing heat. At least the one back at Home Farm only had three doors to contend with and was therefore not quite so intimidating. My only memory of it being that of Tony marching into the kitchen one evening and enquiring of Julia  “do you have something in the oven?” Bit of a personal question I know, but the reaction he got was quite dramatic; Julia flinging one of the doors wide open and dragging out a blackened piece of charcoal that was meant to be a cake for tomorrow night’s WI meeting. Aga’s then can deliberately conceal the fact that the cook is burning something; all cooking smells apparently disappearing  up and away out of the flue Mary Poppins style, which is why Tony on getting out of the car had sniffed out a problem. You can’t help but dislike a device that deliberately withholds such vital information from its owner.

    aga brochure (1990s) 1_165x160

    I know I’m just being pathetic here but is anyone else simply terrified by these cast iron Leviathan’s of the kitchen? What are all those doors for anyway?  In readiness for my next visit over to Myddylton Place I decided that I would familiarize myself with the Aga so that next time Julia or Emma asked me to take something out of the oven, instead of my eyes twitching nervously from one door to another in a blind panic, I would confidently take hold of the correct door knowing that this would be the baking oven.  While we’re on that subject- why the hell don’t they have proper handles – is it just me or do you have to wrench them around to the correct angle and lift just to get them open all while wearing an oven glove, let alone get the cooking out? I mean really -we’ve moved on from there surely- I’m exhausted even before I extract the said cooking, what with wasting valuable time working out which oven it is in and then negotiating the opening of the door. My cooker at home, for what it is, has a  large stainless steel handle that remains cool and I know which oven the cooking is in because it’s the only one.

    With me so far, I thought you might be. I knew I was in for trouble when Julia first took me around Myddylton Place during the house’s lengthy restoration. Having introduced me to a very charming chap who was groveling around on his knees fitting a beautiful, new brick floor, in what was to be their kitchen; Julia swept aside a large piece of industrial cardboard with immense flourish and pride and said, ”this is the Aga”. Had Kate Middleton been standing in the room she would not have got a more enthusiastic introduction and in fact would probably have been quite overlooked. “Oh it’s beautiful” I lied, thinking “oh my God it’s got five wretched doors this time – how many doors does any one person need?” The Aga was cream in colour, solid as only an Aga can be and completely terrifying.

    So back to my research; where did these ovens come from anyway? Actually, this emblem of Britishness was in fact invented by a blind, Nobel award winning, Swedish physicist called Dr Gustav Dalen, who apparently was trying to improve upon the lives of his poor wife, Elma and their maid, by inventing a range that would look after itself. I’m not going to comment on the obvious here but not a cook you may note; no, more likely he was probably just some poor bloke sick of not getting his dinner on time.

    story of kitchen classic pp087 copy_191x181 Dr Dalen was in fact awarded the Nobel prize for his works on automating lighthouses, which I think is a far more commendable achievement than scaring the living daylights out of  weekend guests for decades to come when faced with a large piece of cast iron called an Aga. In the year 2000 his design was considered by the BBC, who lets face it do know a thing or two, to be one of only three other top designs of the century; the other two being the Coca-Cola bottle and the VW Beetle.  Indeed, even its instruction booklet, written in the 1920s’, was described by Fortune Magazine as the “finest instruction manual ever written.”  I know that’s difficult to believe seeing as the male of the species never seems to consult an instruction booklet let alone write one; even if that piece of knock down furniture he is working on is proving rather difficult – no impossible to put together.  “Besides which most of it is written in Spanish anyway – so what’s the point” you hear him snap.

    As you know by now I love to throw in a small snippet of information during these blogs that makes you say,” Good Lord, I didn’t know that “ – so here it is dear reader. Did you know – (I say that knowing full well you don’t) that in 1934 sixteen members of the Graham Land Expedition Team took an Aga to the Antarctic and used it for three whole years ‘for cooking, heat and comfort ‘ while -40C temperatures whistled all around them? Now the comfort bit I do understand, being a self confessed Aga hugger when temperatures dip in the house; but really, they dragged an Aga across the ice – what were they thinking? Was noone concerned that they’d all end up plunging through the ice to a freezing, watery death.  I know, I know, I write this sitting in an area of the USA where they think nothing of driving trucks across the ice to do a spot of fishing but even so it still seems a little excessive to me. One can only presume that they knew what all the little doors were for and considered the risk worthwhile.

    Second interesting fact: the waiting list for an Aga rose to a ridiculous 27 weeks during the Second World War – why you may ask? Their popularity rose incredibly during this time due to their placement in canteens in both munitions works and hospitals. Didn’t know that I hear you say.

    Third interesting fact – and we’re back to those doors again. An Aga features in the long running BBC 4 soap opera “The Archers”. In order to replicate the sound of an Aga opening and closing they had to build an actual Aga door into the studio. Clearly Mrs. Archer did not have the same problem as me in opening and closing its doors having built up a fair amount of arm muscle maneuvering livestock around – did she have livestock – no clue?Someone will no doubt tell me.

    Fourth interesting fact – a bit like the Ford Motor car being only available in black; Aga ranges were, for 34 years, only available in cream which means Julia has chosen well in her choice of colour for Myddylton Place’s very own Aga Saga.

    ‘The Mail on Sunday’ once referred to Mary Berry, as being ‘to Aga what Pavarotti is to opera” and I feel Julia and Emma are following in her famed footsteps rather well with their own delectable culinary creations; which finally brings me to the point of this rambling piece of nonsense – I think it’s high time the Aga at Myddylton Place had a name of its very own, being an essential member of the household – apparently Beelzebub is not acceptable. I think I will persuade Julia to offer a suitable prize to the person who thinks up the most appropriate, witty  and printable name – maybe a Vintage Tea for two. Watch this space.

    Me however, I’m off to switch on my fully automatic GE Profile Oven feeling rather relieved as it whirrs into life without too much ado but also with maybe just a little  hint of jealousy on my part knowing it is never going to do the ironing for me however much I stare at it. One thing I will guarantee Myddylton Place’s Mini Me will not be having an Aga – if you don’t understand that comment than keep reading future blogs.

    For all things Aga please go to www.aga-ranges.com where you may drool over the beautiful colours that these ranges come in but also follow their very own blog entitled ‘The world according to Lady Aga’. Hmm maybe I need a sexier name for our blog.

    A very big thank you to Aga Ranges for all their fascinating facts, figures and for the use of two of their historic photographs.

    Deb, the author, continues to be trapped in the Chicago suburbs with temperatures still at an icy minus 6C and could desperately do with a large Aga to cuddle up to ; failing that Daniel Craig will do nicely.

  • To list or not to list; that is the question.

    February 16, 2013 By in Listed Buildings Tags: , , , 1 Comment

    “You never actually own a Patek Philippe. You merely look after it for the next generation”; thus states the ad line for those beautiful Swiss watches.  www.PatekPhilippe.com.  I thought I was supposed to be reading about listed buildings I hear you say? Well, give me a second; Patek Philippe’s ad line may or may not spur you on to buying one of their watches (though Patek Philippe please feel free to send me one; they look beautiful) but the sentiment is clearly one that you could also assign to anyone foolhardy enough to buy a listed property.Shakespeare cartoon

     

    If you are lucky enough to live anywhere near a conservation area then almost certainly you will have come across the term: ‘listed property”.   Estate agents (that’s realtors to our American readers) positively salivate when mentioning any property that is “listed”. Undoubtedly because it means they can sell the property more easily and therefore, charge the seller and the purchaser more money- cynic I hear you say.

     

     “Of course, it is a listed property” they drool, while rubbing their hands together Uriah Heep style while handing you a set of particulars. “The property has considerable interest in it and I will warn you we have 2000 viewings already booked for tomorrow.” Ok, I might be exaggerating on the latter point but even in this much slower market those listed properties still keep flying off the shelf; because let’s face it there just aren’t that many 15th century properties left.Saffron Walden Conservation area

     

    Even though in the dim and distant past I lived in a grade II listed cottage, it was only until my friends Julia and Tony Chapman bought 1 Myddylton Place that I even began to understand the repercussions of owning such a property. “It’s grade I listed “ Julia told me; real trepidation and fear echoing in her voice.  I paused for this to sink in; this was clearly yet another of one of those moments when I was expected to know the implications of what she was saying, but didn’t. Yes, I know we’re back to the “what the hell is a dendrochronologist” type of moment where you really don’t want your ignorance to show. If you don’t understand that last statement then please go back to our last blog. I could tell I was expected to be reassuring  so I tried “ well, that’s amazing isn’t it – what exactly does that mean you have to do?” “It means we have to be incredibly careful what we do to the house” Julia replied in a hushed and almost reverential tone. “Oh I see” I said, not seeing at all.

     

    As you might guess there is much more to it than that.

     

    Well what is a listed building? It is a building that has been placed on the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest. This list was created in reaction to the damage done to so many buildings in World War Two. Wasn’t that a bit late I hear you ask? Well, you’re absolutely right, it was too late for many, many historic and beautiful buildings that have unfortunately already been lost to the nation, demolished on whim or by ‘progress’ being needed before the Town and Country Planning Act of 1947 came into being. An entire book could be written on this subject and probably has. Please let me know if you have a title I’d love to read it.  I know there have been several television programmes in recent years where a sad presenter has stood in an overgrown field while showing a picture of some elegant building that had once occupied that particular spot. Very sad -but we can’t turn back time; but what we can do is protect those historic buildings that are left.

     

    What buildings go on the list?  Any building that was built before 1700 and that survives in anything like its original condition is listed and many buildings that were built between 1700 and 1840 also end up on the list but it doesn’t necessarily have to be old to go on the list. “Ah, there’s a relief” I hear Tony say – sorry, Tony it’s just buildings not surveyors of note that make that list. For example Abbey Road Studios was recently listed as being a building of special interest, being an integral part of our popular cultural history. During the 1980’s and largely as a result of the  amazing art deco Firestone Factory being demolished, much to historians’ great anger and consternation, many, many properties were added to the list with an incredible 36,000 being added in 1987 alone. Additions to the list have slowed up quite some since then with an approximate average of 500 being added a year.

     

     

    What then are the grades?

    Firestone Factory entrance

    Firestone Factory entrance

     

     

    Well, that depends on where you live; if you live in England or Wales they are as follows:

     

    Grade I – considered to be of exceptional interest, sometimes internationally important. Only 2.5%  of listed buildings are grade I. Now you may understand Julia’s fears; quite the responsibility.

     

    Grade II* – important buildings of more than special interest. 5.5% of listed buildings are grade II listed.

     

    Grade II Nationally important and of special interest. 92% of all listed buildings are in this category. Most listed homes fall under this category.

     

    In a nutshell it’s special , more special and very special indeed: One, Myddylton Place falls under the very special category. Visit and you’ll see why.

     

    In Scotland they use categories A, B and C – confusing I know but just to add to the muddle  a grade II* is not necessarily equivalent to a category B  Scottish property but then again, it might be. You have been warned!

     

    Listed building ownership – heaven or hell?

     

    £££££££££££££

     

    Joking – well actually, not really – listed building ownership can be an expensive hobby.  To quote the British Listed Buildings website ; “ Owners of listed buildings are, in some circumstances, compelled to repair and maintain them and can face criminal prosecution  if they fail to do so or if they perform unauthorized alterations.”

     

    Scared – you should be. Buying a listed property that has been altered without planning consent can not only land you in hot water but also cost you a great deal of money not to mention heartache. It doesn’t matter whether or not the alteration was done by a previous owner many years ago ;  you are the one that is now responsible for this little gem of a property and therefore responsible for putting any misguided alterations right. If you added a conservatory without the necessary consent then down it must come. You get the picture: property first, wallet last.

     

    If you are allowed to alter the building or even just repair it, you must use specific materials and techniques, which can be far more expensive and difficult to find.

    Don’t like what you’re reading ; well, there is the slim possibility you can go through the lengthy and complicated process of unlisting the property but this is unlikely to happen; once a property is on that list it’s pretty much there for the property’s life – long may that be.

     Grade II listed cottage

    What listing does not do

     

    Many people believe that because a house is listed that you are stuck with it, warts and all; with all the consequences that brings : no modern plumbing, no respectable heating system but that is definitely not the case. Being listed does not mean no change; it simply means change with a great deal of care and thought. No building can be completely frozen in time if it is to survive; the listing simply means that consultation with the local authority and especially with your local Conservation Officer must be done so that no permanent harm is done to the property and that some form of balance between preserving the property and being able to live a modern life in it is attained. It is possible – just put on an extra sweater Julia and stop moaning; meantime, here in freezing Chicago I will enjoy my triple glazing and state of the art heating system while listening to the sound of the bulldozer next door. No, not criticizing the American’s preservation of buildings but cough and it’s gone over here.

     

    Help

     

    Feeling overwhelmed – don’t; there are plenty of experts out there and 150 of them just happen to be under one roof this very weekend, February 16th and 17th at The Listed Property Show. For more information visit www.lpoc/propertyshow I would love to be there as rumour has it that I too might be buying a listed property in the not too distant future– more of that hair tearing and cloth rending madness on a future blog.

     

    For much more information on listed properties go to www.english-heritage.org.uk and www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk

     

  • Wood you believe it?

    January 25, 2013 By in Myddylton Place, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , 2 Comments

    On a visit over to One Myddylton Place last October,  my friend Julia, the owner of said house, excitedly  informed me that I might want to stick around that morning as the dendrochronologist would be arriving. I nodded wisely trying to hide the fact that I hadn’t the faintest clue what she was talking about and  accepting without question that the appearance of a dendrochronologist at one’s house was really fairly normal.  A few rusty brain cells were firing away saying “trees – something to do with trees.” I couldn’t possibly imagine why a tree person would be visiting One Myddylton Place as the only tree I was aware of  was the small Medlar tree that grows in the middle of the lawn. There are several tales to tell about that particular tree but not necessarily ones that can be published here but more of that another time.

    Vaulted ceiling in the Upper Maltings.

    Vaulted ceiling in the Upper Maltings.

    If like me you are still somewhat in the dark then I will explain. I was correct in the tree connection in that the word dendron comes from the Greek meaning tree and chrono, of course, means time, again from the Greek word Khronos.  Dendrochronology then quite literally means the study of a trees age; it is the scientific method of dating how old wood is, based on the analysis of the patterns of the rings in a piece of wood. Who knew that trees have a sort of fingerprint – well, I didn’t?

    I’m sure most of you will recall being taken out on a school field trip and at some point gathering round a stump of an old tree and being told to count how many rings it had thus allowing you to know approximately how old the tree was when it was felled; that is if you had the patience to do the counting.Rings

    Now if you were paying attention on that particular field trip you will also  know that the ring sizes vary in width according to the climate that that tree experienced in any one particular year i.e. the amount of rainfall or lack of it.  I know what you’re thinking, well, at least those reading this that are resident in the UK and who have just  suffered through a prolonged and extremely wet summer, yes the tree ring for 2012 will be a very wide one indeed.

    Trees in temperate zones make on average one growth ring a year with the newest ring being adjacent to the bark. A drought year  in contrast will  result in a very narrow band. Trees from the same area will of course develop the identical pattern of rings as they are subject to the same weather patterns and so wood from structures such as One Myddylton Place can be matched to known chronologies taken from the same region; this process is called cross dating and thus the wood’s age  can then be determined fairly accurately.

    Some chronologies tree_rings.v2.jpeg.convertedgo back as far as 11,000 years in the particular case of certain river oaks in Southern Germany. England is known to have a gap in its chronology due to a building hiatus in the 14th century caused by the Black Death – literally a plague upon this house or shall we say a plague upon the building industry of the time. Amazingly, in Denmark  there are unbroken chronologies in existence that date back to prehistoric times.

    Dendrochronology when used for the purpose of dating when a building was built is not an exact science  as of course, there is always the possibility that wood has been reused from an older building , is part of a more recent  repair or even that the wood has been stored and used at a later date. At the very least dendrochronology  does though give a fairly accurate date as to when the timber was felled. Oak buildings though on the whole were built from green wood and not from wood that had been allowed to season and so the date of build of oak framed buildings is very accurate indeed.

    The dendrochronologist visiting One, Myddylton Place that morning was Dr Martin Bridge from the Oxford Dendrochronology Laboratory, also of the Institute of Archaeology at University College London. Dr Bridge was excited to find that some of the wood beams at One Myddylton Place do in fact have intact bark on them making it possible for even more accurate dating. The more complete the sequence of rings the greater the accuracy.

    I myself was a little nervous at the prospect of anyone taking a drill to the ancient beams of Myddylton Place but samples are safely taken by means of a 16mm hollow corer which in turn produces a 10 mm sample. The hole is then plugged and stained to match the existing wood so that the casual observer will never know that a sample had ever been taken. The sample is then studied under a microscope. The drill used to take the sample has hardened steel teeth capable of cutting through steel; you might think this somewhat excessive but the strength is necessary due to the oak timbers being hardened by centuries of seasoning, in other words the timbers are very hard indeed.

    By taking seven samples from five posts and two tie beams in the building Dr Bridge was able to deduce that the likely felling dates of the trees used in the construction of One, Myddylton Place were sometime between 1497 and 1501. Dr Bridge used chronologies from various sites in the south east of England to compare and date the wood structure of  the timbers including ones from the White Tower at the Tower of London, St Mary’s and Strethall Churches. If you are interested in reading more about these and other chronologies I would recommend a visit to Oxford Dendrochronology Laboratory’s website at www.oxford-dendrolab.com.

    The site makes for fascinating reading even if like me you are a bit of a non scientific type. One particular link on the lab’s site examines the fascinating legend surrounding the fragments of skin found on the door of Westminster Abbey; gruesome indeed. The door dates back to the 1050’s and the skin found there on was widely believed to be that belonging to some unfortunate felon who was flayed against the door for some crime or other and pieces of his skin then left there as a deterrent to other would be criminals. Read on if you must at the lab’s web site.

    If you are lucky enough to be the owner of a period property of timber frame construction you too may want to find out more about the date of its build by the use of dendrochronology.  Dr Bridge can be contacted at: MarBrdg@aol.com , by calling 01279 876344 or by writing to him at: Oxford Dendrochronology Laboratory, Mill Farm, Mapledurham Oxfordshire RG4 7TX

    At the very least at the next pub quiz we will all be able to answer with some authority the question “what is dendrochronology?”

    The writer of this article is Deb Wheatley, a frequent ( Tony would say too frequent) visitor to One Myddylton Place and a resident of Chicago, USA where they sadly have very few buildings that require such dating.

  • Father Christmas visits One, Myddylton Place

    December 7, 2012 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

    Dear Lily,

     Lily2I just had to write; One, Myddylton Place is buzzing with excitement. Why -because the man himself is arriving on Sunday afternoon. Who you say? Santa Claus, Father Christmas, what ever you want to call him; he’s actually going to be here at our first ever Festive Family Tea. That’s the tea where the children and not just the grown-ups get to enjoy the scrumptious treats.

     Of course, here in the house there is fierce speculation as to how he will actually arrive at One, Myddylton Place; though, he is no doubt being assisted an awful lot by the snow and icy temperatures that we currently have. I know, nothing compared with what you Chicago dogs put up with but even so. Very glad you told me to look out for the salt that gets thrown everywhere at such times; it might help the humans to get around without slipping, but it really can sting one’s paws. They just shouldn’t go out in it if they can’t keep control of their feet.

    Anyway, back to Father Christmas- I  think that he will choose to arrive in the most traditional of ways and my personal theory is that he will be parking his sleigh up on the rooftop of One, Myddylton  Place, because ,as you and I both know, there is a secret door up there which is known only to a few and which he, as a VIP visitor, will be able to take  full advantage of.  Luckily, Myddylton Place also has a fine choice of  chimneys for his rapid descent; chimneys which that silly cat Fudge has already tested out several times already.  I suspect Fudge  has already received advance intelligence on this matter as he, as usual, has parked himself up at the top of the house and is clearly awaiting some activity or other. He might appear to be asleep most of the time but, to my utmost irritation ,he always manages to be in the right place at the right time, so I will be keeping a very close eye on him come Sunday.

    The family have been hosting the first Festive Tea today and I do keep getting a tantalizing sniff of cakes and sandwiches, it smells delicious. We are quite getting into the mood here with Hollie Haines ( what an appropriate name for our wonderful guest singer) singing Christmas carols and other suitable ditties. I suspect though  that I will not be allowed  to participate in the Family Vintage Tea on Sunday due to someone called Elf and Safety; but I do hope I get to meet Santa, who knows, maybe I will get a treat for reindeer sitting. 

     Tony, as you might guess, keeps getting caught munching on delectable morsels that he has  stolen from the kitchen . Hopefully, he’s going to remember to drop me a crumb or two, though if Julia has anything to do with it that is not going to happen. She may be right; it’s not good for my health but a dog can dream can’t she?  Have you seen the cakes that Laura of “Love Little Cakes ” makes – those cupcakes are just the right size for a dog to wolf down?

     santa on sleighBy the way, could you please send me any information you may have on the management, control and feeding of reindeer as I don’t have too much experience in this matter and though I understand the official head count is eight; if  Rudolph, you know the red nosed youngster, is leading them, then there will be nine of them all together. That’s quite a large group of reindeer for any dog to handle and someone must take charge while Santa’s downstairs meeting all the children. Can’t have  a herd of reindeer running amok on the rooftop – Tony won’t be at all happy if the roof tiles get disturbed.

     I also send you my most heartfelt commiserations regarding having to wear antlers and other such Christmas frippery at this time of year. My family haven’t thought of this yet or they probably would have me all dressed up and posing with Santa for photographs. Think I had better lie low if I know what’s good for me.

    Paw for now,

    Honey .

    Honey of Myddylton Place

    Honey of Myddylton Place

    pawprint

     

    Paw Script: I have to agree with you. I also thought Tony should not have commented on your decorations or lack there of when we talked yesterday; after all we had the wonderful Ros Saggers helping us out. She really is a lovely lady and has done a magnificent job decorating One, Myddylton Place. Perhaps Santa on his rounds can pop her over to Chicago to decorate your house as well.

     

     

     

     

  • Christmas at One, Myddylton Place

    November 28, 2012 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , 1 Comment

    CHRISTMAS MYDDYLTON MAGIC 

    “Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
    Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
    The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
    In hopes that St Nicholas soon would be there”.   Clement Clarke Moore

     It may not be the night before Christmas, nor yet quite even December but One, Myddylton Place is already bedecked and beribboned and ready to help you in your preparations for the coming festive season.During the last day or two, One Myddylton Place has been decorated to perfection by Ros Saggers of R and R Saggers Garden Centre of Newport, Essex. Ros has worked very hard indeed to ensure One, Myddylton Place is resplendent in her Christmas finery and as you can see from the photos she has succeeded beautifully.

    If, like me, you have often imagined yourself at the Fezziwig’s party in Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” then look no further and reserve your place at one of Myddyton Place’s Christmas events; it’s sure to put even the most hardened Scrooges among us into the festive mood.

    During the first two weeks of December One, Myddylton Place is offering a wealth of workshops and events to make even the most jaded of Christmas participants ready to join in with the Christmas spirit and perhaps, just add a little bit of extra sparkle into your own family Christmas.

    The festivities commence on the 3rd December with what I’m sure is going to prove to be my favourite event and that is a tour of  One, Myddylton Place by candlelight. Those lucky enough to get a place on the tour will be guided around the house in the flicker of candlelight, while learning some of the house’s intriguing and complex history from One, Myddylton Place’s owners, Tony and Julia Chapman.

     This is sure to be an incredibly atmospheric evening which will conclude with  participants gathering for mulled wine and mince pies in the historic Maltings. If you miss out on this particular tour there will be one other chance to tour the house on the 10th of December. Please don’t miss this event it’s going to be fabulous.

    On the 5th of December One, Myddylton Place is holding its first festive workshop of the season. If you’re stuck for gift ideas or even wanting to be a little more wallet conscious this year then this workshop is just for you. During the workshop recipes and ideas will be demonstrated and used to create the most beautiful Christmas hampers. A home made lunch will be served and each participant will take home a wicker hamper stuffed with goodies. Not a convenient date – then another hamper workshop will be held on Wednesday the 12th December. Each of the workshops will demonstrate different techniques and ideas and should you wish to participate in both sessions you will end up with two different gift hampers ready for Christmas Day. In this case I am informed a reduced price will be offered.

    As part of our team of festive decorators, Sam of “Violets and Velvet” florists will be inspiring our visitors with expert guidance on how to create both the perfect  Christmas wreath and table centre piece ready for your family celebrations . If you’ve always wanted to create your own table masterpiece but never really had the time or know how then this is the workshop for you. Treat yourself to time away from the fray and spend Thursday the 6th of December at One, Myddylton Place getting ready for the Christmas season. Not quite got time to spend the entire day then choose from just one of the sessions, though I wouldn’t advise this as those guests taking part in both workshops will be treated to a delicious home made lunch served One, Myddylton Place style.

    On the 8th of December we will be  holding our first annual gingerbread house workshops. In the morning young guests, accompanied by a favourite adult whether Mum, Dad, Granny, Grandpa or Auntie, will be able to build and decorate a gingerbread house, all materials supplied.  Santa’s elves will be on hand to assist with any construction difficulties if Dad is not quite up to the task and I have it on the highest authority that Santa, himself, will also be dropping by to peruse the glorious creations. This is sure to be one of Myddylton Place’s most magical days and I’m sure will quickly become part of your family’s annual traditions.Later on in the day Myddylton Place will be holding a gingerbread house workshop just for the grown-ups.

    Celebrations of any sort have always been marked with feasting and so it is with the events held at One, Myddylton Place. Our food theme continues on the 11thDecember with Clare, owner of Saffron Walden’s “The Sweet Shop”, demonstrating to lucky participants how to make one of her beautiful and yummy sweetie trees.

    Sweety trees

    Sweety trees

    If you haven’t seen one of these amazing creations make time to pop into Clare’s George Street shop in Saffron Walden; the sweetie trees are absolutely gorgeous and  at our workshop you’ll be able to create one of your very own ; all made with your child’s favourite sweets. Hope someone makes one for me. Willie Wonka eat your heart out!

    On  Thursday the 13th of December Laura, of local company, “Love Little Cakes” will be offering her expert help and guidance  to make and decorate your own Christmas Cakes in Miniature which will make for a delightful and much appreciated edible gift.

    If like me you really aren’t the creative type then One, Myddylton Place’s Christmas Vintage Teas are the events for you.  Sprinkled throughout December on the afternoons of the 7th, 9th and 14thOne, Myddylton Place will be doing what it does best and that is serving an elegant and gracious afternoon tea.

    During September, on a trip over from the States, I was lucky enough to be one of the first to take afternoon tea at One, Myddylton Place and from personal experience I can tell you it’s truly wonderful.  It seems to me that it is no longer necessary to journey into London to one of the smarter hotels to take afternoon tea in grand style; it’s right here in Saffron Walden. During my holiday I was lucky enough to visit one of those grand hotels in London and you have my guarantee that One, Myddylton Place’s afternoon tea far surpassed it in both atmosphere and taste but without the hefty price tag and travel hassles that always accompany such a jaunt.

    I think one of Myddylton Place’s afternoon teas would be a perfect Christmas treat for relatives and friends and if you don’t have the time to attend on one of the dates listed then why not purchase a gift voucher for a Vintage Tea in the new year. It would surely make for a more unusual and delightful gift and it certainly beats yet more soap, ties, hand cream and socks and would give the recipient something lovely to look forward to in the coming months.

    Let me though tell you about my experience of afternoon tea done vintage style:

    having been shown to your table in the beautifully decorated Maltings; a table set with vintage china from a bygone era, you first of all peruse and select from a range of teas from One Myddylton Place’s extensive loose leaf tea menu.  I personally selected a rose hip tea, though for the less adventurous there is also a good selection of more plain teas to choose from.

    Once our selections had been made, the teapots arrived, mine with fragrant rosehips bobbing away at its top and emitting a most beautiful and inviting aroma. My tea companions all selected different teas which created a bit of a dilemma as we were all eager to try each other’s teas to ascertain who had made the better choice. I certainly recommend the rose hip. Once we had been given a few minutes to enjoy our tea the delightful and knowledgeable waitress brought out a choice of dainty sandwiches filled to perfection with a variety of delicious fillings and their delivery was accompanied by our collective sigh of appreciation.

    The three tier cake stand in the middle of our table was continually refilled by our waitress who also ensured refills of our teapots were never too far away.  As you can imagine, this did not allow much room for the scones and delectable little cakes that followed. Oh and did I mention the grand finale of the afternoon tea – that is being able to choose from a selection of delicious cakes created by Laura of “Love Little Cakes” fame.

    Of course, the Christmas Vintage Teas are going to be that bit more special with the Maltings opulently decorated and live music being provided by local singer/songwriter Hollie Haines, who will be singing a selection of carols and festive songs.

    I hope I’ve given you just a taste of the magical weeks that are ahead at One, Myddylton Place but if you have any questions or comments please add them at the end of the blog or contact One, Myddylton Place directly at 01799 516111 or email Myddyltonteas@gmail.com

    Me, I’m off to make a start on my Christmas shopping as I’m now quite in the festive mood.

    One Myddylton Place photos kindly provided by Mr Lee Hellard 

     

  • Friends of One, Myddylton Place

    November 17, 2012 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

    ‘Friends of One, Myddylton Place’

     During the last six months ‘One,Myddylton Place’ has once more burst into life and it is a rare day indeed when the Chapman family don’t welcome someone new into the house, whether it is for a tour, a conference, an afternoon ‘Vintage Tea’, dinner with the family or simply a meeting held in the beautiful and historic Maltings.  As you can imagine we have an incredibly long list of people who have played a part during this truly eventful time, whether during the renovation, helping to delve out its complex and interesting history, restoring its garden or helping out at one of the many events held at the house. As a way of saying thank you for this support, we are going to devote part of ‘One Myddylton Place’s’ blog to those people who have and continue to play an integral part in putting the heart back into this historic house; a house that is one of Saffron Walden’s oldest inhabited buildings.

     Our occasional series ‘Friends of Myddylton Place’ begins today with Hollie Haines, singer songwriter.

     Hollie Haines

     

     

    Hollie’s name is probably very familiar to anyone who lives in or near Saffron Walden as she is  the young lady with the prodigious singing talent; having won Saffron Walden’s ‘Got Talent’ in 2010 at the age of only fourteen.

     Hollie has always been a singer, but only picked up the guitar at the age of thirteen in order that she could accompany herself singing, rather than having to rely on backing tracks. Hollie writes her own songs but also enjoys playing covers; she says that her music is influenced by two of her favourite artists: Taylor Swift and Jon Allen.

     Since winning Saffron Walden’s ‘Got Talent’ she has performed in front of crowds at Saffron Walden Carnival, school functions, village halls and local fetes. Earlier this year she was one of 10,000 acts entering ‘Live and Unsigned’; the UK’s largest original music competition and was voted by judges  as ‘one of the best’ in the Regional Final Showcase which took her through to the semi- finals of the competition.

     Following on from this success she was invited by presenter, Antonia Brickell, to play some of her songs on Radio Cambridgeshire in an hour long programme.

     Hollie is also a passionate fundraiser and only a few weeks ago organized a concert at Radwinter Village Hall which raised funds for Breakthrough Breast Cancer and Alzheimer’s UK. During 2010 and 2011 Hollie lost both her aunt and grandmother to breast cancer and her grandfather to vascular dementia; so she fully understands the sadness and heartbreak that these two diseases can cause. Last year Hollie organized her first fundraising concert and raised nearly £3000. Hollie is proud to have the support of local actor, Steve McGann, who is currently appearing in the very popular ‘Call the Midwife’ and who generously gives of his time by acting as host for the events. 

     ’One, Myddylton Place’ is therefore, absolutely thrilled that Hollie has accepted the invitation to sing at each of the Christmas ‘Vintage Teas’ that will be held at the house. Hollie is greatly looking forward to performing in such an intimate and atmospheric setting and will be singing a selection of traditional carols and festive songs.

     Hollie is currently at sixth form college in Cambridge and hopes to pursue a musical career when she leaves school. You can listen to some of Hollie’s original songs on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/holliesongs/videos

     If you are interested in booking Hollie for one of your events you can email Hollie at hollie.haines@gmail.com or call 01799 599764. You’d better be calling soon though as this young lady is going places and fast. You can also follow Hollie at https://twitter.com/_HollieHaines_ ; we certainly are.

     Thank you Hollie; we can’t wait for the Christmas ‘Vintage Teas’.

  • The Perfect Victoria Sandwich Cake

    November 9, 2012 By in Uncategorized Tags: , , , 6 Comments

    Victoria Sandwich Cake

    cakeThis is the recipe that Emma used to make a delicious cake  for the BBC film crew while they were filming at Myddylton Place and that was so coveted by poor Honey, who sadly did not get a crumb. This of course, was a good thing for her waistline and general well being, but try telling her that.

    Emma and Julia have been using this particular recipe for many years with consistent success. It is from Mary Berry’s Ultimate Cake Book 1999 edition and published by the BBC; in other words, long before The Great British Bake Off became popular.

    Ingredients

    8oz (225g) soft margarine

    8oz (225g) caster sugar

    4 eggs

    8oz (225g) self- raising flour

    2 teaspoons baking powder

    For the filling and topping

    About 4 tablespoons raspberry or strawberry jam

    A little caster sugar

    Emma’s addition of butter cream to the filling makes the cake that bit naughtier.

    Butter cream

    8oz (225g) icing sugar

    4oz (110g) butter

    Splash of milk

    Method

    Pre- heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease and base line 2 x 8 in (20 cm) sandwich tins with greased greaseproof paper.

    Measure the margarine, sugar, eggs, flour and baking powder into a large bowl and beat well until thoroughly blended. Divide the mixture evenly between the tins and level out.

    Bake in the pre heated oven for about 25 minutes or until well risen and the tops of the cakes spring back when lightly pressed with a finger. Leave to cool in the tins for a few moments then turn out, peel off the paper and finish cooling on a wire rack.

    When completely cold, sandwich the cakes together with the jam or butter cream or both if you are  feeling particularly naughty. Sprinkle with caster sugar to serve.

    Deb’s notes

         The first thing to say, before I get into the finer points of my experience in making this cake, is that it really did taste absolutely delicious despite appearances and that the recipe is really terribly easy to follow but, and how did you guess it there is a ‘but’. 

    My first real problem ‘arose’, excuse the pun, while the cake was cooking. The mix started to bubble over the tops of the tins and proceeded to decorate the oven shelves with blobs of tasty looking cake which I am ashamed to say I picked off and fed to the dog, who seems to appreciate my cooking more than most, managing to burn my fingers in the process.

    The oven shelves decorated with blobs of cake

    So my question is this: should the tins have been deeper? Mine were an inch in depth and clearly not tall enough to contain the enthusiasm of my burgeoning sponge. The overflow also caused the shape to be less than circular and made it somewhat tricky to get the cakes out which is clearly the reason why the finished article looked so odd and not very much like the ‘Myddylton Place’ version.

     The major problem I had, though, was that the minute the cakes came out of the oven and despite having done the finger press test, the sponges rapidly deflated in the middle; deflating even more quickly than one’s decolletage after taking off a ‘Victoria’s Secret” push up, padded, bombshell bra. I wonder what percentage of the female population carry out this anatomical subterfuge; but I digress.    

    Deb’s finished Victoria Sandwich

    So why do sponge cakes collapse in the middle?

     Cooking really is, as I suspected all along, the dark arts, as apparently there isn’t just one reason for the collapse; there are four. The cooking of a decent Victoria sponge is, it seems, rather more complicated than a lunar landing and in my case even less likely to succeed. Here then are the four main reasons for collapse:

    1.  If the cake batter is not completely cooked through. I thought the finger test would suffice in judging whether the cake was cooked but clearly no. Maybe inserting a skewer in the middle and waiting for it to come out clean might have worked better or maybe this would have deflated it more? Answers please – there is a comments box at the bottom of the page. I fear inserting a skewer might cause an even more catastrophic collapse.

    2.  Opening the oven door too early in the process and then closing the door too abruptly. Who knew that sponge cakes were such  sensitive little flowers? I may have done this. Memo to self : must not drop kick the oven door closed while trying to stop the dog helping herself to the contents of the dishwasher.

    3.  Placing the cooked cakes to cool in a drafty place. Don’t think I did this; other than reading them a bedtime story I don’t think I could have made them any more cosy and content.

    4. Over beating the batter thus incorporating too much air. May have done this, as I was using my daughter’s Kitchen Aid mixer for the first time and was quite fascinated by its rhythmic, twirling motion, as it so nicely carried out all the work for me.

    The final note (read the word ‘excuse’)  I want to add, is that if the cake has sunk in the middle you should not flip it over before sandwiching the two cakes together in the forlorn hope that it will look better; it won’t. No, doing so makes the cake look quite ridiculous and nothing like it should do, as you will see from my photograph, and certainly not worthy of a  Women’s Institute refreshment table. Remember Chris’ winning sponge in the film ‘Calendar Girls’- maybe, good old M & S is the way to go.

    I also thought Emma’s addition of the butter cream to the filling was a little over kill or it may have been because I had licked out both the batter and butter cream bowls by the time I got around to sampling the actual cake and so  was feeling somewhat queasy; so please make your own mind up on this additional indulgence.

    Last points: shouldn’t I  have used icing sugar for the top of the cake and not caster sugar and should the eggs have been allowed to get up to room temperature before use or shouldn’t they have been refrigerated in the first place? Answers please.

    It did, though, taste delicious; so thank you Julia, Emma and of course Mary Berry. I will just work on my presentation and a few other points besides.

    No, don’t ask me, I won’t  enter the ‘Great British Bake Off ‘ any time soon,  however much you beg.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 217 other followers