Anna Mckay shares a recipe perfect for celebrating Chinese New Year
Ding Huang demonstrates the art of paper cutting
A group of York students has won the opportunity to have their very own I-phone application developed after winning The App Challenge final, held at the Ron Cooke Hub on Wednesday, January 18.
Laura Reynolds looks at the habits of exam-weary students
I’ve come to the hard conclusion that I’m regressing.
Not in terms of behaviour, mind you, although university is the place for ridiculous acts of immaturity. No, my regression is of a purely culinary variety.
While I love good food, I’ve recently found myself drawn to, shall we say, a less sophisticated brand of cuisine? You know the sort. Animal-shaped biscuits, fish fingers, Angel Delight, soft white rolls, Viennetta and dolly mixtures. In short, I’m slowly becoming six years old again.
Everyone has food which reminds them of their childhood. It might be the Lucozade your mum gave you when you were ill, or perhaps it was the penny sweets you were only allowed after school on a Friday.
Maybe it was the teddy bear shaped ham which your parents always said was full of rubbish. Whatever it is, it tends to be simple to eat and brings back days of packed lunches and Saturday morning cartoons.
Take my recent marshmallow obsession, for example. Marshmallows are soft and comforting. You don’t have to cook them. You don’t even really have to chew them. There’s no dithering around over flavours or colours; eat the pink ones first, leave the white ones 'til last and away you go.
It’s like being six years old again. I’m not ashamed to admit that I still feel a little twinge of naughtiness at piling them into a cup of hot chocolate, all the time hearing my mum’s voice saying, "I think four is quite enough, thank you."
Uni might be all about preparing for the future, but it’s also a chance to say goodbye to past. When else in our lives will we be able to get away with having Weetabix three times a day or making a meal out of two pink wafer biscuits, a banana and a piece of cheese?
As long as it’s all in moderation, there should be no problem with that. Being a grown-up is hard – it’s even harder if you only eat grown-up food.
So go ahead, buy that pack of Party Rings after a hard day’s work in the library! Stressed about finding a job after you graduate? Relax, make yourself some comforting toast with lashings of butter and eat it in front of the TV - after all, there’s no-one to tell you to eat the crusts if you don’t want to.
Super Easy and Indulgent Chocolate Layer Pudding
This is less of a recipe and more of a suggestion. Replace the biscuits with another brand if you prefer, experiment with the flavour of the mousse etc. In fact, you could probably make a more summery version of this with strawberry Angel Delight, fresh strawberries and white chocolate cookies.
1. Make up the Angel Delight according to packet instructions and chill until softly set. While you’re waiting, chop the Crunchie bars up with a sharp knife. Put the biscuits in a freezer bag and bash about with a rolling pin or something similarly sturdy until broken up.
2. Sprinkle some of the broken biscuits at the bottom of a bowl. It helps if it’s a glass one, as you can see the layers better, but no problems if not. Spoon some of the Angel Delight on top to form another layer, then add the Crunchie shards to make up another layer.
3. Repeat again. And again, if you have anything left over, although remember to finish with a layer of Angel Delight.
4. Break the Flake into smallish pieces and scatter over the top of the pudding. Serve and devour.
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