Saturday ephemera

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I do one of these ephemera posts every now and again when my Pocket fills to near bursting point. This are one of those times.
Here’s some stuff to look at over the weekend.

Automatic beehive is better for bees, better for you (if you’re a beekeeper).
Everyone wins.

The clever invention works by providing the bees with a partially-completed wall of honeycomb cells that they then complete with their own wax. After they fill these cells with honey and cap them with wax, the beekeeper can open the other end, allowing the honey to flow out into a tap without ever disturbing the bees.

 

High speed photos of liquid splashes “look like floating sculptures” (or just “like liquid splashes”, IMHO) (but they’re still rather cool).

f+w_004

 

Here’s Nickelback’s discography (not sure what happened here).

Eight studio albums, two compilation albums, one EP, thirty-five singles, and five video albums.

 

The Poke’s brilliant The Week On Twitter.

 

Werner Herzog motivational posters tell it like it is.

Werner_Herzog_5

 

Jacques’ post on the “scientific journalism” of BizNewsdotcom this week was superb:

If you only get your news from people and places that agree with your pre-existing view, then you are living in a filter-bubble. This is not a good thing, as it means that you’re (relatively) impervious to discovering any errors in your beliefs, while simultaneously getting constant affirmation that you’re “right”.

 

And finally, I like Ed Browse’s Instagram feed.

qqq

That’s your weekend sorted then, right?

Beagles continue to follow me

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They’re everywhere. If it’s not enough that there’s a real one at home, anything and everything beagle-related is now being sent to me by an ever increasing number of contacts, twitter followers and blog readers. The morning after the night before (the Westminster Dog Show) was particularly gruelling.

Here’s the latest:

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Which, given my new-found culinary prowess (i.e. I didn’t kill those friends that came round for dinner), has given me a wonderful idea for the braai this weekend.

Break out the Hendo’s!

That Chocolate & Hendo’s Mousse recipe

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I mentioned it here. And I got it from here (although I have adapted it a little bit).
If it goes well for you, support the author and buy a copy – there are loads of other lovely recipes in there too.

Ingredients

  • 325g 70% dark chocolate
  • 2 medium egg yolks
  • 25g caster sugar
  • 130ml milk
  • 4 tsp Henderson’s Relish
  • 150ml single cream
  • 400ml whipping cream

Method

  • Melt the chocolate slowly over gently simmering water or in a microwave.
  • Beat the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl until light in colour.
  • Heat the 150ml cream, milk and Henderson’s Relish until a gentle simmer.
  • Slowly pour the cream onto the egg mixture, mixing continuously to avoid scrambling the eggs.
  • Pour back into a clean pan and stir.
  • Cook until the temperature reaches 80°C or the mixture coats the back of a spoon.
  • Remove from the heat, put into a cold bowl and immediately blend with a stick blender.
  • Pour onto the chocolate, stirring continuously.
  • Whip the 400ml of cream into soft peaks.
  • When the chocolate mixture has cooled slightly, fold in the whipped cream using a metal spoon or flat spatula
  • Pour into moulds or glasses as required and chill in the fridge.
  • Serve with fresh berries and a sprig of mint.

As I said, this is a slightly adapted recipe. I found that the Hendo’s flavour wasn’t coming through enough and so I (wait for it) quadrupled the amount the that original recipe suggested. That might seem like a massive increase, but if anything, I think you could go even further. Be warned that this makes a lot of very rich chocolate mousse – certainly enough for eight people. You need the berries and the mint to cut through that richness.

Usually the only recipes on this blog are ones for disaster. But given that I got a couple of cookbooks for Christmas and the fact that I am now a master in the culinary arts, expect some more over the next few months. I’d suggest that this one marks a pretty decent start to the proceedings though.