Month: November 2021

Hazelnut Cake

Hazelnut Cake

140g butter

200g caster sugar

6 eggs, separated

2 tbsp SR flour, sieved

200g ricotta

200g blanched hazelnuts, roasted, and coarsely ground

3 tsp lemon zest [ about 1 lemon ]

For the glaze

8 tbsp apricot jam

50g dark chocolate, grated

handful of whole hazelnuts

To serve

250g mascarpone

2 tbsp clear honey

Heat oven to 180C. Butter a round 23cm shallow cake tin. In a large bowl beat together the butter and half the sugar. Gradually add the egg yolks and continue to beat until light and fluffy, fold in the sieved flour. In a separate bowl, beat the ricotta with a fork, then add the hazelnuts and lemon zest. Add this to the flour mixture. In another bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff, then beat in the remainder of the sugar. Fold into the ricotta mixture very carefully. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for about 35 – 45 mins until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool, then remove and place on a cake plate. For the glaze. Put the jam and 2 tbsp water in a small saucepan. Heat gently over a low heat and stir until you get a smooth, fairly runny consistency. Brush over the top of the cake and leave to cool. Sprinkle with the grated chocolate and the whole hazelnuts. Mix the mascarpone and honey together. Slice and serve with the mascarpone cream.

 

 

Wenvoe Advent Windows

ADVENT WINDOWS

A St. Mary’s initiative for the whole community

The plans are going ahead for the Wenvoe Advent Windows. Many local people have volunteered to decorate a window to be revealed during Advent on a given day from 1st until 24th December when all windows will be decorated for everyone to view.

The windows will be lit each day from 5pm until 9pm and can be viewed at a safe distance so that no one need go onto someone’s property. Some will have a collecting box for their specified charity that will be emptied each evening.

A map with the plan of all windows will be included in the next Wenvoe What’s On, with maps available in the Church Porch and, with their permission, in the Village Shop and the Wenvoe Arms. The first window to be revealed on 1st December is at the home of Glenys and Mike Tucker at 29, Venwood Close.

There are a few spaces left if you would like to join in to make sure Advent this year is as enjoyable as in 2020.

Please get in touch if you would like further information or would like help by decorating your window.

Jude Billingham

judebillingham@yahoo.co.uk 07516112897

 

 

Farewell to the Rev. Jonathon Ormrod

Rev. Jonathon Ormrod

By the time you are reading this we will have already said farewell to the Rev. Jonathon Ormrod, our parish priest for the last seven years. Jon, as he wished to be called has accepted the position of Priest in Charge of the church of St. Martin’s in Worle, outside Weston super Mare, and we wish him and his family every blessing in his work there. During his tenure here, together with the parishes of St. Lythan’s and Sully, much has been achieved under his shepherding, the congregation has swelled, our “Pebbles” group has grown, and during the past 18 months with the COVID-19 virus, he has been a rock to so many people, and he leaves the parish of Wenvoe in a better state than when he and Sheonagh arrived. Jon did not wish for any “fuss” when he left, no presentation was his wish, for he realised that in today’s uncertainty of the rising costs of living, he would rather people give to far more worthy causes than his leaving for another parish. So it was with a final tea party at Sully and his final services on the 30th October he bade us farewell.

The parish will be in the care of the Area Dean, the Rev. Andrew James of Dinas Powis, who with our assistant curate the Rev. Kevin Barry will be the Ministry team until we enter the “De Morgannwyg” Ministry Area on the 1st January 2022. During this time which is now called a Vacancy, other priests will be brought in to lead services until a time when a new priest will be appointed to serve in the Ministry Area, with responsibility for the churches of St. John the Baptist in Sully, St. Bleddian’s in St. Lythan’s and St Mary’s in Wenvoe.

The Harvest Festival services took place over three weekends and were well attended following the Welsh Government’s “Zero” zone recommendations. There is now no need to book to attend services, but the sanitizing of hands and the wearing of face masks remains mandatory, singing is now allowed and we have reverted to using the hymn books once again. The appeal for tinned or dry goods brought in a huge response and was taken to the Food Bank in Barry. A collection for the Christian Aid Harvest appeal was also taken in all three churches which amounted to £326.00. The Churchwardens wish to thank all who decorated the churches and brought the gifts of food etc and also supported the collection for Christian Aid. Well done. Da iawn

Remembrance Sunday

This year we will resume the commemoration at the Village War Memorial at 10.55 on Remembrance Sunday14th November. There will be no service in St. Mary’s prior to the service at the War Memorial, and a procession will leave the church to be in place at 10.55 am. The Vale of Glamorgan Brass Band will be in attendance and those organisations in the village who wish to lay poppy wreaths are asked to assemble at the church to join the procession. Order of Service leaflets ae being printed and will be available on the day. Donations for the work of the Royal British Legion, which has celebrated its centenary this year, can be posted in the letter box in the church porch or in the church hall.

The Tower Appeal

The Tower Appeal remains open, and we are near to reaching our target figure of £61.000, then we have to face the cost of repairing the church clock on the tower, so we are very grateful to all who have donated money towards the repair and upkeep of the church fabric to make it fit for purpose for the next 100 years. The church officers have for some time been concerned at the continuing failure of the lighting system in the church. The present installation needs constant attention and it is thanks to a generous lighting engineer, who has always replaced and tweaked the system when necessary, who has kept it going at no cost to the church. Church lighting experts have been called in to inspect and suggest a lighting scheme that will enhance the architectural features of the interior and will be an added aid to worship. The demonstrations have shown how light when directed at specific areas, and the shadows thrown up can really lift the soul, and the realisation that we have a lovely church in Wenvoe, and it can be made more lovely with a suitably designed lighting system using the very latest LED fittings and lighting tapes.

Keep safe God Bless

Parry Edwards

 

 

BBC drama, The Trick

oBBC drama, The Trick

The BBC drama, The Trick, which was filmed back in June in Wenvoe, Insole Court Cardiff, London and East Anglia was screened in mid October and is available to view on BBC iPlayer if you missed it.

It tells the true story of Professor Philip Jones; Director of Climate Research at the University of East Anglia, who found himself the target of computer hackers intent on undermining his work just before the 2009 climate change summit held in Copenhagen.

Having viewed the final result I was amazed at how much footage was not used in the completed production. The crew spent days setting up the lounge and it was only partly used in preference to the garden. A bedroom was stripped and a new bed installed for a few seconds shot. A scene was set in the school grounds but not used. Still that is the film industry for you

 

 

The Bell in the Lake’ by Lars Mytting

.  The Bell in the Lake’ by Lars Mytting

Norway, 1880. Winter is hard in Butangen. The lake has frozen, and the ground is too hard to bury the dead. Astrid Hekne dreams of a life beyond marriage and children, and working to the end of her days. Then Pastor Kai Schweigaard takes over the small parish, with its 700-year-old stave church. The two bells in the tower are said to hold supernatural powers.

It is rare that a book receives similar praise from a diverse group of people reading it. An average score of 9.5! Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the book praising the translation, the research, descriptions of the landscape and the cold, the incredible detail of the stave church, and the characters. There was an incorporation of myth and folklore but the story still remained believable with descriptions of the hardships of farming and the long dark winters. Some of the group had been fortunate enough to visit Norway and to see stave churches, of which few remain, and for them the book was evocative and brought back memories of Norway.

The ending felt slightly rushed but as this is the first of a trilogy, this was perhaps as an introduction of what is still to come.

Many thanks to our host for delicious tea and cakes!

 

 

Tucker’s Christmas Reindeer Sale.

TUCKER’S CHRISTMAS REINDEER SALE.

Not long now! Mike and Glenys invite you to come along to their 3rd annual Christmas Reindeer sale on Saturday 20 November from 10am to 5pm at 29 Vennwood Close (opposite the church).

Apart from the stars of the show there will be some lovely things to buy and a festive atmosphere to get you in the Christmas mood. We are being joined by six other local crafters on the day. Trevor Williams will be joining us again and will be selling his lovely, lit wooden houses which include some new designs this year. There will be a table selling hand made cards on behalf of Wenvoe Community Why not join us and pick up a reindeer and some Christmas spirit! We are so looking forward to seeing you there

 

 

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

 

OFF THE SHELF

This month’s reading was a classic novel written in 1852. Uncle Tom’s Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe was the best-selling novel and the second best-selling book of the 19th century. One million copies were sold in Great Britain alone.

The emotive story features Uncle Tom, as a long-suffering black slave around whom the stories of other characters revolve.

Reading the novel more than a century and a half after it was written gave us mixed feelings. On the one hand, the brutal reality experienced by many slaves at that time was hard to digest. The racist language which represented the attitudes expressed by slave-owners of the period was difficult to read. On the other hand, we felt that the novel was over-sentimental in its depiction of slaves as being able to endure any form of hardship and mistreatment if only they had the Christian belief in a heavenly reward for their suffering.

Beecher Stowe was herself a fervent Christian and an anti-slavery activist. Her powerful novel was influential in aiding the abolitionist cause. It was also instrumental in stereotyping black people of the time as simple child-like, faithful creatures, eager to serve a good master.

Nevertheless, we considered the book a good if uncomfortable read, giving us a brutal insight to our shameful past. It was a particularly pertinent read in October’s Black History Month. We gave the book a score of 7.5/10

 

 

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