This week’s blog post consists of two recommendations and a recipe – which is unusual for me, but reflects the fact that the sun has come out! Yes, we’ve seen the sun and it appears to be staying with us for a while. Hurrah!

Don’t you find that it’s so much nicer to think about going out somewhere when you know you’re not likely to get wet? Well, unless you’re going swimming that is.

We took ourselves off to Wimborne market early one sunny morning, where we had a lovely browse around the market stalls and I had to refrain from buying heaps of fresh vegetables that we didn’t need. Well, they just looked so good!

We bought the dogs some treats, our son a hat and for me a quite ridiculously bling cup, saucer and plate set that should look fabulous in photographs for my food blog.

We also bought some olives. Now these olives came from the gentleman who runs a stall in the inside, covered, area of the market. He was a jolly soul, who plied me with olives on cocktail sticks to try whilst saying “have a second breakfast!”.

He had olives in a red wine vinegar marinade, olives stuffed with feta cheese, olives stuffed with garlic – just about every olive combination you could have wanted. However, the olives that we took home with us are marinated in green pesto.

Oh, how absolutely divine are these olives? I keep going back to the fridge and sneaking one when no-one is looking, because they are just so moreish. The green olives are tight, crisp and so fresh tasting and the pesto they are tossed in is just gorgeous. You can taste the basil and pine nuts particularly well – which of course go beautifully with the olive itself.

These aren’t olives to be used in a recipe, they are olives to be eaten whilst sitting on your patio, drinking wine and enjoying the sunshine. All of which, amazingly, we’ve been able to do.

Once we’d finished our ramble around the market and realising that it was coffee time, it made sense to find a nice café that served good coffee. I remembered, years ago, seeing a glowing review of Wimborne’s Riverside Café in the Echo. So we sought it out – and what a little gem it is!

Tucked away under an archway through from Mill Lane, it is a little adventure just finding it, but fortunately the café is clearly signposted. You turn the corner and there is the welcome sight of gaily-coloured tables with chairs, set beside the beautiful River Allen as it wends its way through the town. You can even watch the fish as they do their fishy thing!

Now, as for one of “the best things I’ve eaten in the last week” (which is the premise of this ‘ere blog), it has to be the home made warm fruit scone with jam and butter that I had at The Riverside Café.

It is a simple thing, a scone, but dear me you do find some parlous examples. Take the supposedly “cheese scones” that we had recently from a major supermarket. They turned out to be a travesty of a sweet scone with cheese melted onto the top. No recipe book that I know has ever included that in its pages!

This fruit scone was superbly light and fluffy with deliciously moist sultanas throughout. It separated into two pieces perfectly, without a hint of a crumble or complaint. However, the very best thing about it was that it was warm! Coupled with the gorgeous Latte coffee, it was fifteen minutes of quiet, sunshiny blissfulness.

The last of the good things to have come my way this week, has to be the American Cornbread that I made to accompany some pork steaks in BBQ sauce.

I have made Cornbread before – many years ago – but after we moved house I lost my source of dried cornmeal. Suddenly, our local supermarket has decided to stock it – and we’re back in the cornbread market again.

It really is the simplest thing to make, but before you do, forget all ideas of it being like bread in any way shape or form. The unbaked mixture is referred to as a “batter” and quite rightly – although a very thick batter.

The baked product is very much closer to fairy cake texture, than ever it resembles bread. However, even though it contains sugar (and I use Splenda, which seems to have no adverse effects) and has a sweet background flavour, it is wholeheartedly a savoury accompaniment. Mind you, having said that, it is gorgeous for breakfast when drizzled with honey and a splodge of Greek yoghurt and served with some sliced fruit.

The flavour isn’t obviously corny, as it has a very light corn flavour that is enhanced by the saltiness of the butter. As a foil to something like very highly flavoured BBQ pork though, it is just perfect.

So, here’s what you need …

CORNBREAD

190g plain flour

115g cornmeal

half a tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

55g sugar (or half a tbsp Splenda)

240ml buttermilk (or yoghurt or just plain milk)

1 large egg

55g butter, melted.

Firstly, pre-heat the oven to 200degC/Gas 6. Line a 10” rectangular deep baking tin with baking paper. It will help to scrumple the paper into a ball before lining the tin – you’ll find it sits into the corners better once you flatten it out!

In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients and stir them through to ensure they are mixed well.

Then add all the wet ingredients and stir well to combine.

Pour the resultant thick batter into the baking tin and roughly level the top.

Bake towards the top of the oven for around 25-30 minutes, or until golden and feeling firm but springy when the top is pressed.

Cool to just warm before cutting into nine pieces and serving.

Delicious!