To make shortcrust pastry you only need a few basic ingredients, ingredients you will already have if you enjoy baking in the kitchen. These are flour, butter, lard if you want to, and water. When you make this pastry you always use half the fat to the weight of flour, in other words if you need 200g plain flour you would use 100g butter or lard. If you wanted to use a butter/lard mix then you split that into half again so it would be 50g butter and 50g lard.

The main points to remember when making this pastry is to get air into the ingredients as you make it. This can be achieved by lifting up the ingredients into the air as you mix them together. Once you have your shortcrust pastry it’s important to allow the dough to rest for a minimum of 20 minutes in the fridge. This will give the dough time to get more elastic making it easier to roll, if you were to roll this after making you would have problems.

To make short crust pastry you don’t need a lot of water, just a few tablespoons will do as too much and the dough will be soggy and not easy to manage.

Below is a recipe for shortcrust pastry. I sometimes use this when making pies or tarts.

1. 230g plain flour
2. 1-2 tbsp. ice cold water
3. 120g butter OR:
4. 60g butter
5. 60g lard

Blind Baking

One of the things you might have to do when you are making your quiches, tarts etc. is to blind bake. What that is is you make the pastry, rest it then put it inside the flan or tart case, add some greaseproof paper to the base then on top of that baking beans. This is important in some recipes as they use quick cooking ingredients like eggs, cheese, jam etc. and those will be cooked before the pastry. You then cook the flan or tart case for a few minutes before removing, add the filling then popping it back into the oven to continue to cook. Using baking beans or weights like that when blind baking stops the pastry from rising.

Alternative to Baking Beans

You don’t have to buy baking beans or weights either, you can use all sorts of food items found in the kitchen. Foods like beans, peas or pulses can all be used in place of baking beans and will save you money, especially if you already have the beans, pulses or peas.

Another way to blind bake is to get some tin foil (aluminium foil), lightly butter one side and place the buttered side onto the pastry. Then get the beans of your choice. You can use either baking beans, butter beans, kidney beans, or whatever you have to hand, and put them on top of the foil. Cook for 10 minutes then remove the beans and foil. Prick the base with a fork all over, then cook again for a further 10 minutes or until the pastry is lightly golden.

Use a Fork

Another method people use when blind baking is to prick the flan base all over with a fork. Just fill the flan case with the pastry as above, prick the base with a fork then pop it into the oven to bake. That way you don’t have to use baking beans or equivalent. Although I have never tried that method it does seem to work. Why not try it?

Next time you are baking why not use shortcrust pastry instead of your normal pastry? It will make a big difference to the taste of the pies, flans, quiches or tarts you are baking.

Anthony’s Frugal Cookbook

Why not buy my latest book, Anthony’s Frugal Cookbook if you have an Amazon Kindle? Inside there are lots of different recipes from Sausage Casserole, Scallops & Onions, Toad In the Hole and Shepherd’s Pie. Other recipes include a shortcrust pastry section which has wonderful delicious recipes like Cheese and Onion Pie, Chocolate Tart, Apple Pie and Bakewell Tart being a few. It costs 0.86p from the UK Amazon website or 99c from the US site.

UK site

US site

If you would like a version of my book for the PC in .PDF format, click HERE. The price is the same, 86p, BUT included in the book are meal and shopping planners and more hints and tips on being frugal in the kitchen and when out shopping. AND of course a complete chapter on making shortcrust pastry. It comes complete with delicious recipes for you to try, from cheese and onion pie to bakewell tart and lots of other tasty, simple to make recipes.

Click HERE to get your copy NOW!!!

My latest book, Anthony's Frugal Cookbook

My latest frugal cookbook, Anthony’s Frugal Cookbook is now available to purchase on Amazon Kindle. It costs £0.86p for the UK version and $1.41 for the US version.

Inside my latest book are 88 easy to make delicious recipes. Recipes like chocolate tart, chicken with home-grown vegetables, sausage casserole and Christmas cake are included and many, many more. Want to make your own bread or pizzas? Well I have those covered to with some great tasting recipes that will have you and the family drooling. Get my book, Anthony’s Frugal Cookbook on Kindle Now by clicking below, you won’t be disappointed.

With times being like they are, going back to basics and making your own meals will be a must for hard pressed families. My latest cookbook gives you a head start with easy to make, but delicious tasting recipes you and the family will love. All that for pennies, can’t be bad can it? Click below NOW and get it for the Kindle.

For the UK version click HERE

For the US version click HERE

HERE is my blog

Whatever you want I can help turn that dream of being the next JK Rowling or Stephen King into a reality, all it needs from you is the idea. Follow the link below, checkout my Services page then get in touch. I can turn your book idea into a reality in no time with you getting all the plaudits, fame and money you deserve.

http://wayne-anthony.com/services/

If you don’t want to follow the link here are my prices for my book writing services:

3,500 Words £50 or $81
5,500 Words £60 or $97
15,000 Words £150 or $242
40,000 Words £400 or $645

If you require a longer or shorter book please Contact Me.

I accept PayPal or if you live in the UK, bank transfer.

Do you have an idea for a short story but don’t know how to write it, or maybe don’t have the time? Let me write that short story for you, all I need are character names, scenario and genre, then I will turn your idea into a professionally written short story that you can do with whatever you want. Why not sell it to a publisher? How about a glossy magazine? You can even sell it many times over using online websites like Smashwords.

How would you like your short story in print? Just let me know when you order my short story service that you also want a printout. When you are happy with the final outcome I will print it out and send it to you, free of charge, provided you are living in the UK.

Here are my prices for my short story service:

Up to 2,000 Words £15 or $24
2,001 to 4,000 words £18 or $29
4001 to 6,000 words £22 or $35.50

My short story prices are dependent on you having the names and scenario for the story.

I cater for almost any plot, scenario and genre provided it’s not illegal. I even extend my writing into the more romantic genre where the story or book is about 2 people madly in love. These are perfect for the one you love, intimate and for yours and your partners eyes only.

Get in touch now and let me transform that book idea into a reality without delay, you could be sitting on a goldmine of information just waiting to be read by millions of people the world over.

Britcon 2011 will be a great convention

It’s almost here. In 2 weeks time the gamers will be gathering in the city centre of Manchester for 2 days of gaming. Starting on the 13th of August the annual Britcon convention will kick off, will you be there? Held every year at the Barnes Wallis building on the University of Manchester grounds, Britcon this year aims to be special this year.

Prices for the weekend event are £3:50 with a conscessory rate of £2:00. You also get a FREE copy of the Britcon Journal, so the entry fee is more than reasonable.

If you are looking for somewhere to go with the family on the weekend of the 13th August, why not come along to Britcon 2011? If you do then look for me on the Slitherine stand, and drop by to say Hello.

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Increasing Electricity Prices

Electricity prices are increasing all over the world and the next few years they will go even higher. Now is the time to switch to solar power for all your electricity needs, you can even sell some of that generated electricity back to your utility company if you produce more than you need.

Environmentally Friendly

Global warming is something we all have to deal with whether we like it or not. Using the sun’s rays to power your house or office produces no CFC’s or other toxic byproducts like carbon dioxide therefore emits no greenhouse gases. That means solar power is good for the planet and doesn’t contribute to global warming.

Our reliance on fossil fuels like coal, gas and oil is increasing every year and unless we switch to renewable fuels like solar power then our planet will be engulfed in greenhouse gases and choke, resulting in warmer temperatures and less food and water for our expanding population.

Cleaner Living

That leads to the next benefit and that is less waste and noxious fumes. With solar power you are not producing any harmful toxins that pollute our air and environment, which in turn leads to better health for the planet and you too.

Government Incentives Galore

If you want to use solar power then your government will give you all sorts of rebates and incentives including grants, allowing you to install the equipment needed to convert your home into an eco-friendly home. Between 20% and 30% can be awarded to you to convert your premises. With today’s energy prices as high as they are, the incentive to convert your premises has never been better.

Low Maintenance

There are no moving parts on solar panels so little or no maintenance is required. Adding new solar panels is easy to as they slot together and the complete system requires very little space. Once built your system will last a long time, in fact manufacturers can offer warranty’s as long as 25 years on their solar panels as the quality and dependability are so good.

Reduce Non-Biodegradable Materials

Utilizing the sun’s rays to power our homes helps keep our need for non-biodegradable materials to a minimum. All of these non-biodegradable materials require utility companies to use coal fired power stations to produce energy for the making of these materials which in turn pumps out CO2’s into the atmosphere.

Benefits to Solar Energy

The power of the sun is free so once you have the means to collect, store and distribute the energy, everything else, including the power we can harness, is free. Using solar power will more than pay for itself over the years you utilise it.

Solar energy does not harm the environment or increase your carbon footprint. In fact it reduces your carbon footprint as you are less reliant of fossil fuels like gas, oil and coal.

Other Benefits

There are so many different things you can do with the sun’s energy including warming and powering your homes and cars, powering a solar shower or oven, even heating your water. If you travel there are now solar powered chargers for mobiles, Smartphones, and all the computer gadgetry we all use these days, meaning we can stay in touch with our loved ones, friends and work colleagues.

If you produce more electricity then you need through solar energy you can sell the unwanted electricity to your utility supplier helping to pay for itself faster.

With Nano technology becoming more and more prelevant in our lives it’s only a matter of time before this technology is incorporated into solar power. This is a good thing as it will make the equipment needed smaller and cheaper to.

A Changing World

We all know our beautiful planet is changing, the populations of many countries are booming, warmer temperatures meaning faster glacial melt and higher tides which is causing our coastlines to be eroded and reclaimed back by the sea. Our reliance on fossilised fuels like coal, gas and oil are at an all time high which is putting stress on the planet we live on. Coupled with the rainforests being cut down at a rate of 36 football fields every minute, and house building on areas that were once considered green belt areas, are all adding to the problem.

But All is Not Lost

There are many ways in which we can reduce or totally eradicate these problems including our reliance of fossilised fuels, one way is by using solar power. Easy to set up and use, utilising the sun’s rays for solar power will not only pay for itself over time but reduce our carbon footprint and reliance of those horrible fossilised fuels.

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We have all heard the word spam and no it’s not the greasy food synonymous with WW2 and the Americans, rather the spam we get each day in our inboxes. Everything from diplomas to Viagra, watches to car insurance is available according to the e-mail’s we receive each day. Believe me, this sort of scheme is worth billions of dollars each year and the professionals make many millions of dollars on the back of these scams. Some are caught but many are invisible to the authorities or in some cases the authorities don’t care. But it’s a global concern and one which every country should address by some sort of international body set up to rid us all of this scourge.

Most of the time your email account will catch all this spam with their advanced spam protection and either put it in the spam bin or as in the case of Google’s Gmail spam filter system or Microsoft’s Hotmail, send it straight to the normal bin used for everything else. Sometimes though spam does get through and make it to the inbox as these spammers are getting more and more sophisticated, but as they grow so do the email providers and it’s not long before they have updated their spam software to counter the threat.

Some of the mail one gets is from scammers who are trying to extort security details from you. This can be in the form of mails supposedly from banks claiming your account has been compromised, illegal withdrawals have been made on your account, or to update your security details. But no matter if you do bank with the banks they are supposed to come from it’s important to NEVER open them or follow the links in the email. This can lead to Trojans being secretly installed onto your computer which will secretly send information back to the hacker. Information like usernames and passwords that you may use will be available to an unscrupulous person at the other end of the planet. If you do click on the link and are fortunate enough to not receive a Trojan then the next stage would be to input all your security details onto the page that’s open. When you do that and press submit or enter, your information is sent to the hacker straight away and your bank account has now been compromised. This will allow the hacker to access your bank account and empty it at a time that suits him.

Other scams to be aware of are from people allegedly being God fearing Christians who haven’t got long to live. Mails from a Lottery organisation and even the F.B.I. have been used with one thing in common. To get you to part with your money on the pretence of you receiving millions of dollars back. What utter bullshit. Sorry but there’s no other way to put it. These mails are after one thing like I said and that is to scam you for everything you have. When you make contact they claim the money is stuck somewhere and you will have to pay a charge to release it. When you do the scammers either disappear or, if they think they can cream more money from you, will make up another excuse until the victim either becomes aware it’s a scam or ends up penniless which in most cases does happen. These originally started from Nigeria hence the nickname, 419 Nigerian scams. Nowadays they come from other places, mostly in Europe.

How Do They Get Your Email Address?

Every time you enter an email address on a website you are a potential risk of email harvesters. These are small programs rather like the bots which trawl the internet like Google Bots. The difference being these email harvesters are after one thing: yes that’s right, to harvest your email address so scammers can bombard you with spam emails. Many internet websites are now cottoning on to the harvesters and are making it difficult for them to gain email addresses, but as with everything else these scammers are getting more technical by the day.

What Can You Do?

Well there are a few things you can do to stop spam emails without stopping using the internet all together.

1 Do not under any circumstances open emails from people you don’t know especially if the email has made it into the spam bin.

2 If you do open the email do not download any attachments that come with the mail or follow any links even if it’s from the bank you use. Instead open another page and access your account the normal way online.

3 If you do open an email and it turns out to be a scam, change your passwords immediately and contact the bank so they can lookout for any suspicious withdrawals from your account.

4 What you shouldn’t do is to click on the unsubscribe button if there is one in these emails. All that does is send confirmation to the scammers that the email address is active so they can spam you more.

5 If anyone is asking for help, wants you to accept money, or any other scheme which sounds too good to be true, then delete them as they are too good to be true and a scam.

6 If you use PayPal or eBay then you can find out if the email is actually from them. One way with Gmail is too use an add-on which checks the link first then informs you if the link is suspicious. Another good way is to forward the email to them and they will, most of the time email you back and let you know if it’s really from them. I use this on a regular basis, not because I think it’s a scam (as it usually is) but to inform them that yet more emails are out there. They can then look into the email and make the appropriate changes etc.

7 With free email accounts a plenty online these days many people have more than one account. A good thing would be to use one specific email address when you need to sign up with websites. That way if spam does make it to your account you will know it’s just that, spam and delete it accordingly.

Don’t let spam worry or stop you from enjoying the wonders of the internet. It truly is a magical place where you can do almost anything including learn and make new friends from all over the globe. Just think before you give out any details about yourself, don’t open any suspicious emails and maybe use one email address for all the websites you sign up to. All this will go a long way in combating spam, staying safe online and make the internet a safer and more enjoyable place to be.

Since 2000 when I had my first brush with this illness I have tried to come to terms with an ever changing body and mind caused by this jet black demon. At first I had no idea what it was. My GP thought it was depression and prescribed medication which I took, for a while. I continued to get on with life but certain things started to happen. Slowly at first but it got to the stage where I just presumed what I was doing, thinking and saying where normal. Hyper alert, fear of meeting or seeing people, fear of going to places like supermarkets, and many more things infected my mind until in 2007 I fell off the planet.

Since late 2010 I have sought help and now have therapy, it’s the therapist who recently confirmed I had PTSD.

But what does it do to my writing? I hear you say.

Well nothing to be honest. One of the tools in my arsenal against this harbinger is writing. Even if I write a few sentences a day it helps keep me occupied, I have even been told I write some wonderful work when I am having a low period! No, one thing I do to combat this is write whether for myself or my clients who appreciate me and my condition, but don’t care about it as I give them work they are more than satisfied with.

Just because people have PTSD or depression doesn’t mean they are useless and can’t do anything, quite the opposite. Many writers have suffered depression at some stage but still produced work that is top notch and professional.

Don’t judge a book by its cover.

That quote springs to mind whether it’s me or any other person with an illness especially depression or PTSD. You shouldn’t judge me because I have an illness, instead swallow that stigma associated with depression and PTSD and hire me. The work I do for you will be better than top drawer, with a totally professional approach in my attitude no matter if you are an individual or company wanting my services. And of course, I will complete the work you require on time. My writing will also elevate you and you’re company up to new heights and above all your competitors.

I am an Army veteran with 2 tours of Northern Ireland under my belt. I, along with many others, kept you safe at night while you slept, when you were out and about whether shopping or having a night out with the lads, or lasses. Safe in your own homes from people more than capable of terrorising and destroying our very existence. Now why don’t you have faith in me again and let me write that project you or you’re company has?