Hope I've thought of everything

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 01:25

Am holding a Blooming Great Tea Party tomorrow in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care

and have never done anything like it before. My not-so-young feet are aching as I stood

making cake after cake, and getting everything ready. I am doing it alone but I still don't

know how many are coming! Some are not able to come but have sent generous donations (who

said the Scots were mean?) I have chosen to do an old fashioned type afternoon tea, with lacey

tablecloths, china, and traditional baking. I am making butter balls with wooden things, like my

aunty used to make for her farm tearoom long ago,. Only the scones to do tomorrow a.m

Wish me luck! I have really enjoyed doing it anyway.

rowlo



Joined: 12/10/2008
Posts: 4796

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 01:37

good luck phylray , with more people like you the world would be a better place . xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Navek



Joined: 01/06/2008
Posts: 2656

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 01:37

"Hope I've thought of everything"

The venue and time might help )))

Navek

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 01:44

Venue is my place - "Dumbuie" Dalry, 3 - 5 pm You are welcome (failte) but too far for you!

Navek



Joined: 01/06/2008
Posts: 2656

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 02:02

Hi phylray,

Passed through Dalry many times, on our way to Ardrossan & Saltcoats

Won't manage tomorrow though :-(

Good luck.

Navek

andrew4232



Joined: 04/07/2009
Posts: 1543

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 08:16

what are butter balls ?

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 10:43

Navek Where were you heading for? Arran? Or Ireland?



andrew Butter balls are dainty, little balls of butter that have been rolled between

2 lined wooden spadethings so that they are patterned - people used to do it years

ago as a pretty kind of way to serve butter on table (nobody has time to do it now!)

Another kind of butter ball, I was given as a skinny child, was butter rolled into balls

with sugar!

andrew4232



Joined: 04/07/2009
Posts: 1543

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 10:54

mm how very posh !!

hattikins


Joined: 17/02/2008
Posts: 2793

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 10:54

Sounds wonderful, wish I could be there, wishing you every success in raising money for this much needed cause.

Navek



Joined: 01/06/2008
Posts: 2656

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 12:06

Hi phylray,

Was heading to Specsavers, sorry Ardrossan & Saltcoats ))

Navek

nurseawful



Joined: 06/02/2009
Posts: 5934

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 21:36

Well how did it go today had you forgotten anything? I am sure it was a big success come on phylray tell us all about it.



Chris

Tenakoutou



Joined: 27/07/2009
Posts: 4110

Message Posted:
26/06/2010 21:58

Butter balls are 'knobs' of butter rolled between two - er - like - elongated ping-pong bats, called 'Butter Pats' - they had/have hundreds of little triangulated surfaces impregnated into one surface of the wood of each of the two 'bats' - the other side being smooth wood.



As a child, the school teacher used to beat us with one of these - either side. After about 'six of the best', you wish you'd never been born, because you wouldn't be able to sit down for about a fortnight.



This prompted me to write about it in my novel 'The Remittance Man's Roots', where there is an account of such a mass beating at a boarding school. The whole class had to bend over and take a bare arse beating, because someone farted and wouldn't own up!



However, back to the thread topic:



Butter balls were usually served in a crystal dish with ice cubes, or crushed ice to keep them from melting and losing their shape.

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
27/06/2010 15:10

Ah Tenakoutou, you describe them much better than I! Yes, my cousin told me the pats should be kept in

cold water, (no fridges then) and I put them in the fridge to keep their shape. Remember

making them when I was a kid as my aunt ran a farmhouse tearoom in the summer for day-trippers from

Glasgow/Paisley - it was popular as she was a great baker. The pats are not very big so they couldn't have

hurt much!? Did you really write that book?

Nurseawful Hope you are feeling better and got some help for the trapped wind! Yes, thanks, it went well

but only a few came, good friends. However, they were very generous in their donations, and also cheques

coming in from people who couldn't make it, and even those I didn't ask as they live too far. There was a lot

of baking left over, but 2 of my sons are helping with that, and rest can be frozen. I made too much as there

were some who didn't let me know either way and I allowed for them and friends!

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
27/06/2010 19:34

Oh, forgot, I did forget one thing! The tea quiz, remembered before the last 2 friends left - so they won!

Just realised - all my guests were teachers, or ex teachers! My son's old English teacher stayed long enough

to see him coming in to watch the footie, and eat up left overs!

jock1



Joined: 06/01/2008
Posts: 3786

Message Posted:
27/06/2010 20:44

phylray no disrespect,but as i read this i am imagining Molly Weir writing this, like i say i don't mean anything bad from it but that's the picture i am conjuring up.

well done.

phylray



Joined: 21/09/2007
Posts: 1727

Message Posted:
28/06/2010 11:12

Not sure I resemble her but I do remember the lady and her brother Tom.

She wrote "Shoes Were for Sundays" about her childhood in Glasgow didn't she?

NOthing bad about her as I remember, but perhaps I share a little of her enthusiasm

for things!