Good morning! I’m so happy to be chatting with you here on my blog. I’ve been wanting to have a space to write whatever my heart feels like sharing for a little while now. I’ve had various blogs since 1999, some of them for a number of years and others for just a few weeks and I’ve really missed it. You can expect a lot of posts about cosy books – books with little to no content warning you want to snuggle up with by the fireplace with a cup of hot chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon and perhaps a freshly baked pumpkin spice roll too. Mmmm… but I digress!
Today is Sunday, and I’m heading back to work tomorrow (I wish I could stay on holiday forever!). It’s been blissful staying at home and devoting my time to doing my favourite things! Here are a few highlights of my week:
Baking an apple crumble & new food musings
Whenever I want to bake something, I always head to Sally’s Baking Addiction, she rarely steers me wrong (I make her banana bread pretty much every month! I don’t change a thing and add the recommended chocolate chips & walnuts – it’s divine). I followed her apple crisp recipe to a T even though I forgot the nutmeg but I must have missed a step in the making of the topping (I think my butter might have been too warm?), it wasn’t as crispy as I wanted it to be but a bit apple water logged. It was still delicious though and my sweetheart thoroughly enjoyed his share with plenty of Greek yoghurt (we both prefer this to vanilla ice cream, the tanginess offers a great balance here!). Next time, I’ll double the topping, make sure my butter is rock solid, buy nutmeg & cook the filling one the hob for about 5 minutes to give it a gooey caramelised headstart. I’ll report back!
I don’t cook or bake much (I’m extremely picky with food and have expensive tastes and none of my cooking comes up to scratch. My darling once joked I should have been a Michelin star critic – I WISH!) but I’m obsessed with food, and good food in particular, and I’m always thinking about dishes and recipes. I want to make it a priority this year to master at least ten recipes that I personally find wonderful (I think the banana bread mentioned above is out of this world even when I make it, so it IS doable). This is my fourth time baking an apple crisp/crumble for the past few months and none of them were exactly where I wanted them to be (though I’m delighted my angel seems to appreciate those attempts nonetheless!). I’ll let you know how it goes and will post a picture each time I cook something great! ❤︎
Princesses & fairytales
I went through a bit of a reading slump in December for two reasons. 1/ I was looking forward to a fresh start in January and 2/ I was away visiting family on holiday and any change in my routine always impacts my reading. I, however, have been fully embracing all things Princessy since the beginning of the year. I will be writing a separate blog post about this soon – I’ve been revisiting a lot of favourites and rediscovering just how much this is my own special niche! To tide you over and if you haven’t seen it yet, I posted a video about a few of my favourite magical princess books here. There are four recommendations there, including two series. The Elemental Blessings series in particular is my desert island pick alongside Harry Potter! ❤︎
I’ve also always loved Disney concept art but finding art for this first blog post has been marvellous. The Tangled bookshop concept art at the very top of this post, by Scott Watanabe, for example, was found here. I loved reading this post on Pushing Pixels about The Art of Tangled. I own the gorgeous book but I had never seen this cut bookshop scene before. I’ve also watched Tangled: Ever After, but I still need to watch Rapunzel’s Tangled Adventure. I can’t wait!
Currently Watching
I’ve reached the end of the second series of Miss Fisher. This is a rewatch for me. I completely adore it. A 1920s lady detective who’s a flapper, a wit and has a great heart. Hugh and Dot are engaged! My precious babies. I’m sad I’ve only got one more season to go, it’s been such a romp!
Father Brown is also back for its 11th series. Bless this show, I love it so! Ms Devine is an absolute delight, I adore her.
That’s it from me, I hope you have a marvellous week! ❤︎
Magical Emma Rose 