They did have their own unique way. Loads of butter and not being too fussy about how pristine everything was. Just like real people versus the over friendly and sterile stuff on most cooking shows now.

What can two fat ladies do? In this world where women are valued when they are young and skinny – what possible interest could two fat ladies from the UK have and how could they have published cookbooks and star in their own popular cooking show (1996 to 1999)?

Jennifer Paterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright were the Two Fat Ladies

I loved the Two Fat Ladies because there dared to do things I would like to do. But, they dared to do them on TV, with people watching and they laughed too.

You can paralyze yourself with fear, make it hard just to get out of bed each morning. Out of bed it’s time to start thinking about how you look and how other people will see you. People with bad teeth won’t smile. People with bad hair wear a hat or shave it off. People who are fat can’t hide so well. Instead we think about how fat we look and we don’t smile, or talk much to other people. In short, many people are so self-conscious they do all they can to escape notice, stay in the background and go about doing what they must, living their own lives like ghosts. Living faded, in the background.

The Two Fat Ladies stepped out of the background and laughed about it.

They cooked with cream, butter, red meat and booze and they were not worried about dipping their fingers in or cooking in pristine conditions. They were biker babes riding a Triumph Thunderbird motorbike driven by Jennifer with Clarissa in the sidecar. The Two Fat Ladies were themselves and they let the rest of us see them that way too. I was proud of them and happy for them.

RIP Jennifer Paterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright - You are missed.

I can't think of anything more summer for me than watermelons.

Buying those massive watermelons at the farmer's market, hauling them home. Of course, remembering the time one dropped on the driveway and went splat! They were heavy and my sister was still little then, but she wanted to carry in the watermelon. Luckily, we had bought 3 of them. I came from a family of 4 kids who all loved watermelon on a hot day.

All 4 of us could sit right on the front steps and have watermelon seed spitting contests. I never won. I think my brother and the other sister won the most often because they had longer tongues (and they were the most competitive).

We seldom ate the watermelon in the house, they were just too messy. All that juice running down your arms and face would drip on the floor too and leave it a sticky mess. No one wanted to be stuck inside the house cleaning up a floor with hot water on a hot summer day.

The Colours of Watermelon

I still love the colours of a watermelon, that shade of pink and darkish green are summer colours to me. Of course there are the shades of yellow, orange and red which we think of as the warm summer colours, but really... can you see the summer when you think only in shades of red? Nope. For me it's the watermelon and the colours of that fruit which give me the summer feeling.

Still like watermelon 40 years later

Here I am, long grown up, moved far and then farther from my old town and the house I grew up in. But each summer I always make a point of buying watermelon. Even if I have to sit on the front steps and eat it all myself. Often, I wait until someone is visiting. We still have to have the seed spitting contests after all. It's not about who wins as much as who ends up the messiest by the end of it all. I'm never the messiest and yet I still find sticky spots on my arms, clothes and other strange places hours later.

Did you know about watermelon cake?

The first time I read about this doughnut baking pan was on a website I didn't keep track of. She was making such cute creations, pretty and yummy too. As I read I thought how clever or brave she was to make so many small doughnuts. Then... I read enough of her recipe to realize all her doughnuts were baked - not fried!

Have you ever tried making your own DIY doughnuts? I have made them with my sister. The part I don't like is the pan full of hot oil. It's dangerous. I do still have the doughnut cutters we used. They have sentimental value more than practical value because I've never tried making doughnuts again. But, I'd like to.

You can make doughnuts with a doughnut cutter, like a cookie cutter with an extra circle inside to cut out the doughnut hole in the middle. But, this requires frying them in oil. This method adds fat and more risk of danger with the large amount of bubbling hot oil on the stove. It's also less expensive (I think) to make baked doughnuts because you don't have to throw away all that oil (you can only reuse it a couple of times).

Doughnuts are more fun to make and decorate than cupcakes I think. Cupcakes are just a rounded bump but doughnuts are round circles with a hole in their middle. You can ignore the hole or decorate it - you can even make doughnuts from just the holes.If you miss the cupcake wrappers you can use them for doughnuts too. Just flatten them out or cut up circles of pretty paper from whatever you like. Left over gift wrapping paper is a great idea.

I also enjoy doughnuts because they can be a bit crispy compared to all cake-like.

Baking doughnuts in the oven is such a sensible idea. Grease the pan and let them cook into the doughnut shape while you wait. Nice and simple. Look for a recipe for baked doughnuts versus the traditional fried doughnuts. As you get the hang of it you can adapt recipes yourself.

Spelling Doughnut versus Donut

Doughnut is still the correct spelling. Donut began in the US. Eventually donut is likely to become the accepted spelling but for now it is more like a short form of the true word.

I know about custard and fish fingers but what else does the Doctor eat? In between all that running he must need something to refuel. But, we seldom see him eat anything. I was curious about a Doctor Who cookbook when I found this one. What does he like to eat and when does he get around to actually cooking himself a dinner, or even just a light snack?

Would you eat with The Doctor?

This book has been created from the new Doctor Who series, 2005 and onwards. Chris-Rachael Oseland, the author, has spent a year watching and re-watching the Doctor Who series to pick out recipes and recipe ideas. Taking inspiration from the past shows she has given Doctor Who fans (Whovians) recipes to explore whether they are great cooks and bakers, or prefer simple fare. If you want to host a Doctor Who dinner party, take a few pages from the book (not literally, that would be dangerous – think of spacesuits and the Library!).

What would you offer the Doctor if he showed up on your doorstep one day? Only a small chance it would actually be your doorstep of course, It could be the shopping mall, just as much as any other place in time and space.

Which companions would you hope to drop in with him? Donna Noble is my first pick. Donna is my favourite companion plus, she isn’t likely to pass up a good conversation and a great coffee. Maybe a slim slice of cheesecake too.

One thing I would not be serving is angel food cake. You just can’t trust those things!

What are his table manners like? He made a mess in Amy Pond’s kitchen. Maybe you should put newspaper down before dining with The Doctor.

Chocolate in a colourful candy shell - not to be confused with M&Ms, Smarties are a Canadian candy, often available in the chocolate bar section. I could not find Smarties in the US when I lived there. They were sadly missed. Not just Smarties of course, but Smarties were on my top ten list of missed things at the time.

This picture is Smartie wallpaper. No matter how far technology has come you still can not email Smarties to family and friends. I would have done it if there was a chance it would have worked.

I grew up as the oldest in a family of four children. My Mother was very popular the day she came up with the idea of a Smartie Party. She brought home a huge (we were kids, it likely seemed a lot bigger then) bag of Smarties from the bulk food store. (It was the first bulk food store we had in our area so it was already a place of great wonders and wonderful things). My Mom thought up games where we guessed how many red Smarties she had under a cup. Or, which colour of Smartie there were four of when she poured a bunch of them out of the bag. Of course, the prize for all the games were.... Smarties! So everyone won and we shared with my littlest sister who wasn't so great at math yet.

Unlike the US M&Ms, Smarties will leave colour on your hands. But, that was not a problem for a pack of kids. We liked to see how many colours we could wear and who could have the best stain before the Smarties melted. Another great Smartie thing was to keep them in your mouth until the candy softened and the chocolate centre was mushy, it was like liquid, gooey chocolate goodness.

Now, when I think of Smarties, I mostly remember them in a big puddle of colours from the days of those Smarties Parties.

When you eat your Smarties do you eat the red ones last?