CHOCOLATE & MARSHMALLOW PIZZA

I've been feeling like this: dessert pizza.

STRAWBERRY MILKSHAKE CORN FLAKE SQUARES

An excessive amount of things that break around me, such as not one, not two, but three vintage mugs; and my camera; and the internet; and trains over bank holiday weekends; and my digestive system; plus a busy schedule of stressing, leave me slightly mentally & physically exhausted and therefore prone to wingin'; reason why, when you'll be reading this recipe for the ultimate 5-minute-to-make sweet marshmallowy treat, not only will I have inhaled the whole lot already, but I'll also be in the process of finding out whether or not I'm emotionally stable enough to be travelling on my own. Make them! You can thank me if I ever make it back sound.

FIFTEENS - NORTHERN IRISH FRIDGE CAKE

Like in my head the winter wind carries me along riversides and across bridges and lifts me up, in-between the tall shiny buildings of the City and I can almost touch them, and what’s left of good-Bye’s summons elusive ghosts on the icy streets, and bills and books and papers turn into trees and tombstones and a hill looking down on a Dear Green Place; in this same way, symphonies from the North fill rooms with warmth and tea-time treats for travel companions; and blue maps of far-away islands on a scaredy child’s bedroom wall make space for grown-up plans, and fluffy cakes; and quiet nights in this country, and another, let the sunrise in and salute it with hearty crêpes and cream and fruit for breakfast.

If I wake up one day and will have desisted living by dreams and day-dreams and songs and stories, I’ll give myself a slap on the wrist, and I would be crazy not to; and as for this town of smoke and trouble – I’m already there; and the most delicious marshmallowy treats is what I’ll give, this time, in return for so much.

ROCKY ROAD SALAMI

When it doesn’t really matter whether changing the past was ever a real thing, you’ve got to focus on this more or less expected time of year, which turns out to be all about juggling Pexmas parties and slow-cooked death and retarded cookies and tarots, present shopping and present giving and present receiving, cake receiving and coffee receiving, and sharing, photo boothing, hair cutting and more or less extensive hair dying (yet, no flamboyaging), mulled whining and vintage weighing and recipe improvising, for cake giving; and if you stopped for half a second and looked in the mirror between each ing (or, if you were to spend four hours at the hairdresser’s sat in front of one of said mirrors), you would be astounded to find you could well be a red-haired modern-day version of Anna Karerinina because you’re smiley like that (and only worryingly less photogenic); but then again, why would you stop for even half a second, when the cross that you bear is half as heavy as you run around pushed by the cold wind, and amazing ventures and adventures await, and there’s the new best Engl-alian cake setting in the fridge, ready to be shared like your own special version of gold or frankincense or myrrh, except it’s made of Italian chocolate and English tea biscuits and a bucketload of Canadian marshmallows because you’ve got to make the most of what you’ve got, to wake that winter sun at last.

OREO RICE KRISPY SQUARES

If it so happens that one evening you decide that sometimes there is beauty in the world surrounding you, you should wake up in the morning and celebrate with some noteworthy treats. Well it's this remarkable Rice Krispy square recipe that has brought me joy once again, this time via an upgrade. I know they're like the deities of all Rice Krispy squares, so where do you even start improving them one may say, but sometimes unexpected upgrades come to you like a deus ex machina plus this is Oreos we're talking about. Make sure you're fine with sugar rushes and cow exploitation in Oreo factories and go for it. At least no bees were blindfolded or earmuffed or tapped on the shoulder in the process.

RICE KRISPY SQUARES

These days I sometimes like to pretend I’m still in America (how very sane of me) and I sit on my own sipping Egg Nog and reading Preacher and sprinkling pumpkin spice on anything I encounter, and I thought I’d make something America-related again. 

So this one day in Williamsburg I found a small little shop selling organic groceries and I got this vegan marshmallow rice krispy bar and I went a bit nuts. I'd never had marshmallow rice krispy treats before (how very European of me) and regular marshmallows have gelatine anyway, so a whole new world opened up for me. I know, I know it's only rice cereal and sticky chewy things but they're the best aren't they. So I've recreated them and as they only take a split second to make they will be my accompaniment of choice for my Egg Nog and my pumpkin-spice-everything and I'll be eating them when I read Preacher and you all should too.