Today was our festive rent day and wreath making workshop. Thank you to all our members who came along to pay their rent and sign their new tenancy agreement.
Members enjoyed mulled wine, spiced apple punch, tea and coffee. There was also a gluten free squidgy chocolate log, a traditional Christmas cake, delicious Cherry and pecan chocolate brownies (recipe below), mince pies and festive nibbles.
Jars of honey mustard, plum jam and plum chutney were sold in decorated bags- a perfect Christmas present.
The children enjoyed making a herd of reindeers decorated with glitter glue and pompom noses.
Later members made beautiful seasonal wreaths and bunches of greenery using willow and foliage from around the site.
A lot of Christmas trees also went to their new homes. There are still plenty left if you would like to buy one.
Committee members will also be on site next weekend to collect any outstanding rents.
Here’s the recipe for Jane’s cherry and pecan chocolate brownies.
It was based on Jamie Oliver’s cherry brownie recipe, but fresh cherries have been swapped for tinned (and more were used) and soft light brown sugar was used instead of caster sugar.
For one large traybake, i doubled the amounts of the original recipe. So, per tray:
250g unsalted butter
270g 70% dark chocolate
220g tinned cherries, drained of syrup (this was one tin)
90g roasted pecans
450g light soft brown sugar
110g cocoa powder
150g plain flour
Half a teaspoon baking powder
6 large eggs, beaten
90g milk chocolate, broken into pieces.
The method:
Toast pecans in oven for 10 mins.
Melt the butter & dark chocolate in a bowl over a pan of simmering water (gently).
Take off the heat & add the chopped cherries and pecans.
In a separate bowl, mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and sugar.
Add this to the melted chocolate/butter mixture & stir to combine.
Beat the eggs & mix in to the other ingredients.
Add the chopped milk chocolate.
Pour into your tray & bake for 25-30 minutes – 180 degrees for 20 mins then 160 degrees for 10 minutes.
Leave to cool before cutting into squares & dusting with icing sugar.
People enjoyed watching the pond as well as pond dipping. The pond is teaming with life – we found several newts (including the one shown below), a dragonfly larvae (below), tiny red bloodworms, two types of snails, caddisfly larvae and a host of other invetebrates.
We had a range of activities for our younger visitors including bubbles to chase, a magic show, cake decorating, hook a duck, bouncy castle, no tears tombola, the Woodcraft Folk did craft activities, as well as pond dipping and helping with the bug hotel.
As well as enjoying the homemade cakes there was an exhibition by the Beckenham Photographic Society that included photographs taken on site, such as the amazing sequence showing a dragonfly emerging. Here’s photographs 