Winter Warmer

This has become a parish tradition: a lunch, with a few stalls, run by our Union of Catholic Mothers.

The lunch is simple, but very good.  On the menu today was pumpkin soup (I understand that this was delicious, but having a severe aversion to anything remotely resembling a vegetable, I didn't partake... you'll just have to take Leutgeb's word for it, and, as she's an excellent cook herself, I think that's a pretty safe bet!) with fresh French bread, followed by sandwiches, tea and a mince pie.  Not at all bad for £4.

There was mulled wine available, and popcorn, a couple of raffles (I don't recall what the prizes were, and I rarely win anything anyway, but that's not the point, so I just bought some tickets...), a flower stall, and, my all-time favourite, the cakes' stall.  We have some seriously good bakers among our UCM members.  I made a bee-line for this stall and promptly snaffled a rather nice Christmas cake, (which will do well as a little offering on Christmas Day when I go down to visit my sister), a cake, iced in virulent green icing (but enticingly labelled "sultana-and-sherry") which will make an appearance in the Science Faculty office on Monday morning (it's going to be a tough week ahead, so we will need a little treat!) and a small jam-and-cream-filled Victoria sponge which is mine, all mine!

I also bought some little chocolate cup cakes, which will just have to be eaten quickly, lest they go stale.  It's such an onerous task, but I guess I'll have to try...