Have you ever made Banoffee Pie?

Banoffee Pie has to be one of my family's favourite puddings and in fact it was chosen by my daughter Lucy instead of a birthday cake last October. 

Now I can actually lay claim to being one of the first to know about Banoffee Pie because I worked for the publisher who brought out a book written by the owners of a restaurant called The Hungry Monk (think it was in Eastbourne.) Well, they are meant to have invented the recipe for this delightful banana, toffee and cream confection, which has brought grown men to their knees and grown women to give up on their diets!

Now the question is - or to be more precise - the questions are:  
 - pastry case or crumb base?  
 - boil condensed milk in the can for three hours or take out of can and heat until boiling in a pan? 
 - plain whipped cream, or whipped cream with coffee essence? 

I guess it's down to personal taste, but I'd love to be reminded of the original recipe so if you could help that'd be great. I thought I'd include my own version of events in case just reading about this delightful dessert has set you dribbling...

The latest fashion and an exciting new watch range

I'm very much looking forward to this week's shows as I have two hours of fabulous yet diverse fashion - Tiana B and Dreamkeeper. So, watch out for a chance to update your wardrobe or to add something truly stylish to it. 

I'm excited too about a rather fab watch you'll see me wearing which is from a brand new range called Elite. "Elite. That sounds familiar!" I hear you say... not surprisingly because it's the name of one of the top model agencies in this country, and if you take into account the calibre of their models, I know you're going to LOVE their watches.  

Been loving Glen Campbell's Style File and the guessing game to see whose shoes he was showing... I think you're all brilliant to have got them pretty much right each time! Seems Catherine Huntley and I are closest in style with our shoes, but I take my hat off to you, because the amount of time our feet are actually on screen is minimal, so clearly your eyesight is a great deal better than mine! Do you think it would work with the guy's feet? Not so much variation on a theme perhaps...

Time's a funny thing...

... and I find it harder to remember where I left the car only an hour earlier than I do recalling childhood memories. I did laugh reading Debbie Greenwood's blog about her big birthday. Kathy and I are only a year behind her, and yet, as she say's, it's hard to think where the years have gone! 

It all begins at 50 - and according to journalist Molly Parkin, who recently wrote about the improvement in her love life having hit the big 5 0, we have a lot to look forward to! Between you, me and the gatepost, Debbie Greenwood - contact lenses or not - looks a lot closer to 30 then 50, and having spent many a hilarious evening in her company, she can take years off you - which in my case is a bonus! As my kids pointed out when I said the lines around my eyes were laughter lines, "Nothing's that funny, Mum..."

After a busy, although enjoyable, weekend with Liz Earle and her TSV, it all ground to a very satisfying halt on Sunday with a roast beef lunch. Time to recharge the batteries... and do the ironing... oh, and watch the BAFTAs... didn't Kate Winslett do well!

Our Liz Earle TSV and getting caught in a blizzard

Ever seen the film 'Groundhog Day'? I had very much that feeling of deja vu on Wednesday night after our fab Northern Nights TSV. I left QVC Towers at 2.15pm and drove into a blizzard on the M1, which meant I didn't get into my lovely 100% cotton flannel sheets til 4.30am! 

But, to be honest there was a limit to how wound up I could be as only hours before I'd had the lovely Emma at Liz Earle's salon, just off King's Road in Chelsea, give me a fab facial treatment and shoulder massage! What luxury! 

Every single blissful ingredient that was applied to my skin is included in Saturday's Liz Earle TSV. Whether you wish to cleanse or hydrate your skin, all the naturally active products needed are included in our amazing collection. So, if you can't afford the £80 or so that it costs to be cosseted, then you can get the same professional results at home, time and time again, by buying our TSV and enjoying all that makes Liz Earle such a results-led success story.

Jack's birthday and a day in the snow

Well I'm delighted to say that Jack's 16th birthday was a great success - six lovely kids and very little in the way of muddle to deal with afterwards!! There was only a slight amount of panic prior to them all arriving when the fuse responsible for lighting the whole top half of the house kept tripping out!

Jack was fine showering in the dark - the same could not be said for me attempting to apply make-up by the light of my magic torch!!! Fab for dealing with emergencies, but none as extreme as holding the torch in one hand while applying eyeliner with the other. The kids were too polite to point out my somewhat surprised expression.

To be honest the party all seems an age away in the wake of THE SNOW! As yesterday was actually Jack's birthday, he was thrilled to bits to officially have the day off. I was very relieved to not be due in to work as I wouldn't have got into the car, let alone off the drive, but I did dig out my skiing outfit and head into the garden to make a miniature snowman for Sam to see from his window... it made him smile. Marks out of 10 anyone??