Well, after a busy weekend teaching in Central, it is back to the ranch so to speak!  I have been busy unpacking parcels…yes more stock!

We now have a full stand of top quality YKK zips including a good selection of dress, open ended, invisible, jeans, trouser and heavy duty chunky zips.  We also stock lovely metal purse and bag zips which go beautifully with the Japanese fabrics and Yoko Saito type creations.

This week I thought I would show you these really nifty wee zip pouches that make a great place to store your quilter’s safety pins, Wonder Clips, extra money for wine and or chocolate, favourite earrings or whatever takes your fancy.  They come as a pattern ($23.00) or a kit $32.00 which makes two pouches and includes your zip, extra zip pull, fabric, pattern and pellon.  The pattern has clear instructions and colour pictures, although it is important to use YKK zips.  If you get really carried away we have extra packets of zip pulls available as well $22.00 for a packet of 30 or $1.00 each if you want to buy them individually.

If you have been caught by the English Paper Piecing bug (EPP…and no,  there is no cure for it!!), we now have the full range of papers and Perspex templates for Lucy Boston’s, Patchwork of the Crosses.  We also have lots of beautiful reproduction fabrics with repeating patterns that can be fussy cut to give amazing effects.  The Sewline glue pens are magic when it comes to dealing with EPP making the process of attaching papers to fabric so much quicker and easier. These are $18.50 and come with a refill.  Additional refill (2) packs are available for $7.50 each.

This week’s recipe is a delicious dessert that makes the most of the stone fruit that is still in season.

Apricot Custard Tart

Sour cream short crust pastry:

• 250 g sifted flour
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 200 g cold butter
• 125 ml sour cream
• 1 egg white

Place the first five ingredients in the food processor and mix until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.  Add the sour cream and 1 tbsp of cold water and process until just combined.

Roll out the dough and place in a high sided loose bottom dish (about 24 cm).  Press the dough up the sides of the dish and then prick the base before putting it in the freezer for 20 mins.

Pre-heat the oven to 190C and blind bake the tart shell for 20 mins.  Remove the baking beans and cook for a further 10 mins at 160C.  Remove from the oven and brush the inside of the pastry with the egg white and then return the tart shell to the oven for another 5 mins to seal the base.  Cool.

For the filling:

• 2 eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/3 c sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 250 ml cream
• 10-12 apricots (halved)

Whisk all the ingredients together (except the apricots) making sure the cornflour is dissolved.  Place the tart on a baking tray and arrange the apricots on the top of the shell and sprinkle with 3 tbsp of sugar, then pour over the custard mixture.  Bake for about 50 minutes at 160 C or until set.

That’s all from me, enjoy the warm weather and happy stitching,

Rachel

Annie’s CQS