How to make a Victoria sponge, and a webby birthday

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Victoria spongeHappy birthday to me!

So it turns out that today, this little website is seven years old! Imagine - seven years of blathering, recipes, mad teenagers (well, they weren’t even teenagers when I started), silly stuff, holidays, giggles, beaches, family, chicken-with-lemon-up-the-bum, the odd sad bit, cake, friends, Ireland, cocktails, England, embarrassing waxing incidents, and much more!

If you’ve been with me for the journey, I thank you for the bottom of my bottom for stopping by and reading my waffle, and if you’re new, thank you just as much and I hope this will be the first visit of many.

To celebrate, I baked a cake. Well, you have to don’t you. This is a special cake, because you know that baking ONLY works when you put your heart and soul into it, and if you’re not in the mood, nothing rises or turns out right. This cake contained beautiful, fresh Buckinghamshire duck eggs from just down the road, and jam made today with raspberries picked by my Dad from his garden. With that much love, it was bound to turn out well.

Making the jam

Victoria sponge with home made raspberry jam and chantilly cream

For the home made jam:

This jam is quick and easy. It won’t last a massive amount of time, but it’s handy if you want to make small quantities. You will need:

Raspberries (I had a large bowlful from my Dad’s garden - about 600g)

The same amount of sugar - I used half jam sugar and half granulated, but you can use all granulated, it will just be a bit runnier.

Weigh out the raspberries, then pop them in a large saucepan. Weigh out the sugars so they come to the same weight as the raspberries, then pop that into the saucepan too. Start on a low heat. Stir until the sugar has melted and there’s no gritty feeling at the bottom of the saucepan, then crank up the heat and boil vigorously for about eight to ten minutes. Watch out for boiling hot flying jam lava.

Do the little test when you put a teaspoonful on a cold saucer and see if it crinkles up when you push your finger through it. If so, it’s fine. If you don’t use it all, save the rest in a sterilised jam jar (here’s a link to my friend Mammy’s advice on sterilising jars) in the fridge and use it up within two or three weeks.

Leave the cakes to cool

For the vanilla sponge:

I used duck eggs (they make beautiful, moist, rich sponges and hey, it’s a special occasion), but hens eggs are fine too. Make sure they’re large and free range. Weigh the eggs in their shells, then use the same amount of butter, sugar and self-raising flour.

So, you’ll need:

Butter, room temperature

Caster sugar (I used golden)

3 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

Self-raising flour, sifted

2-3 tbsp milk

Whisk the butter and sugar with an electric whisk (or by hand if you’re feeling beefy) until it’s soft and pale and fluffy.

Break the eggs into a bowl and give them a quick mix with a fork just to break them up. I add the vanilla in with the eggs too, then little by little whisk those in to the butter and sugar.

Have the flour weighed out ready so if it starts to curdle a bit you can add a spoonful in, otherwise just stir it in after you’ve mixed in all the eggs.

Add a splash of milk to loosen the mixture a bit, then divide it between two buttered medium cake tins and bake at 180/gas 4 for about 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Turn the cakes out onto a rack and leave them to cool completely.

For the chantilly cream:

1 tub double cream

2 or 3 tablespoons of icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Whip the cream in a food processor or with a whisk until it’s just soft and fluffy. Add in the icing sugar (sifted) and the vanilla extract and whip lightly again to combine.

To construct the Victoria sponge:

Place one cake on a flat surface and spread generously with your raspberry jam, then dollop on the cream. I always make loads and cover the top cake too, but if you want, just pop all the cream in the middle.

Now place your second cake GENTLY upon the first. Either add more cream (and maybe a few strawberries), or just shake a little icing sugar artily over the top.

TA DA!

Now if you’d like to sing a round of Happy Birthday, I’d be honoured…

Happy birthday to me!

 

Saffron chicken pilaf

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Saffron chicken pilaf small

I’ve recently teamed up with Farmer’s Choice, the online butchers, green grocers and deli to help create a new recipe section on their website. Farmer’s Choice deliver free range, British meat and produce to homes across the UK and they’re keen to provide inspirational, quick and healthy recipes to their customers.

For my first recipe, Farmer’s Choice challenged me to do something creative with chicken, and I’ve started with pilaf, a popular Middle Eastern rice dish that appears in many forms across many countries and cultures. It’s an easy, one-pot way of cooking and is great for warm weather eating as all it needs as an accompaniment is a green leafy salad. It’s also an easy way to feed a crowd and you can strew it with golden raisins, or chopped apricots to make it even prettier too.

You can find this, the first of many recipes I hope - on my author page, plus lots more recipe inspiration from my fellow food-lovers!

Click here for my full saffron chicken pilaf recipe.

 

 

Turkey, tomato and pesto open puff pastry tart

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Turkey puff pastry pieI’ve done a few of these Lean on Turkey challenges now, supporting our hard-working British turkey farmers and showing you just how versatile turkey is. The next challenge, just in time for the school holidays, is to create a recipe using fresh turkey that’s perfect for kids and picnics.

The main requirement for a picnic is that whatever you take has to be portable. We’re lazy picnickers, which generally means we don’t faff about with loads of things in bowls requiring cutlery. Puff pastry is a brilliant base for loads of different toppings and this turkey, tomato and pesto open puff pastry tart is very easy to transport, slice and eat with the miminum of fuss! Here, I’ve used pesto, but any leftover sauce will work just as well, so if you’ve got a bit of leftover pizza sauce, try that too. We’ve also tried this recipe with feta and it was scrummy.

Eggy wash small

Turkey, tomato and pesto open puff pastry tart

500g British turkey fillets

100g baby plum tomatoes

1 ball mozzarella (or 100g feta)

3 tbsp pesto

1 lemon

Ready rolled puff pastry sheet

Cut the turkey into smallish chunks and pop them into a bowl, then halve the tomatoes and add them in.

Chop the mozzarella into similar-sized chunks and pop them in with the turkey and tomatoes.

Measure out 3 tbsp pesto and add this to the bowl along with a good grating of lemon zest and a squeeze of the juice. Season well (if using feta, go steady with the salt).

Stir it all together and leave to marinate for a while in the fridge while you sort out the pastry.

Unroll the pastry straight onto a baking tray and cut around the edge, gently, about an inch in all the way round (don’t cut all the way through!).

Pile the turkey mixture onto the puff pastry, keeping the edge free. Brush this edge with a little egg wash if you like, just to give it a nice shine.

Bake at 200 degrees, gas 7 for about 20 minutes until the turkey is cooked and the puff pastry is nice and brown. Transport to your chosen picnic spot just as it is, covered in foil, or cool, slice and place into a storage container.

Ingredients small

My shopping list:

From the store cupboard:

Pesto

From the fruit bowl:

Lemon

Purchased:

British turkey fillets (£5.35)

275g baby plum tomatoes (£1.99)

1 ball mozzarella (95p)

320g ready rolled puff pastry sheet (£ 1.50)

Total: £9.79

Cooking time: About 30 minutes including prep and baking time.

For more information on the Lean on Turkey campaign, head to leanonturkey.co.uk

 

 

 

 

Driving in France - what you need to know

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Teenager Tetris

So we’re counting the days until our holiday now - we’ve paid the final payment on our (hopefully) lovely villa, the car ferry to France is booked, and work on the packing list has commenced. As always, I’m slightly nervous about driving in France (I stick a post-it note on the dashboard which says ‘on the right, IN the right’ lest I forget), so before we go I’m getting everything organised. What’s the big deal? Well, there are a couple of things you need to do before you travel. Here’s my list:

Get your documents in order

Most important on any trip, this – make sure your travel insurance is up to date and take the documents with you, along with your car insurance and breakdown cover.

Get your car ready

GB sticker: you’ll need to show your country of origin clearly, so make sure that your car number plate shows either the GB Euroflag, or you’ve got a GB sticker on your car.

Headlamp converters: because you drive on the right in France, your headlights can dazzle oncoming traffic and must be converted with a simple sticker that fixes directly to the headlight. They can be a bit tricky to fit, but if you pop in to most motorists’ centres he day before you leave and smile sweetly at them, they’ll fit them for you.

Sort out your in-car kit

In France, you need to have certain items in your car at all times. These include:

Breathalyser: this must carry the French ‘NF’ mark of approval. You can buy packs of two on Ebay quite cheaply, so if you use one, you’ve got another spare. Check the expiry date too.

Hi-viz jacket: at least one, but ideally one for everyone in the car.

Spare lamps: you’re supposed to carry spare lamps for every light that can be easily changed. Obviously, if it takes a mechanic to remove a complicated headlamp unit, then this kind of negates the need for them, but anything easily changeable should have a replacement handy.

Warning triangle: a lot of modern cars already carry these, but double check or buy a folding one to stash in the boot.

First aid kit: this isn’t a legal requirement, but it’s handy to check to see whether your car has a first aid kit, or make up a simple one and pop it in the boot, just in case

Fire extinguisher: again, not a legal requirement, but worth considering.

Remember, legal requirements change so do check before you travel. And that’s it - ferry trip deals sorted, car packed and paperwork in order. Just remember: ON THE RIGHT, IN THE RIGHT. Oh and don’t forget to pack the kids!

A tour of Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas

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As you probably know, I’m a ‘Royal Mum’ - (a Royal Caribbean International Official Family Ambassador, to give me my full title, don’t you know), and last week saw us whooshing down to Southampton on a very sweaty, packed commuter train (‘there was some unwanted bodily contact’, as Charlie put it). Still, when we’d finished playing sardines, we arrived at a hotel in the port just in time to catch up with all my fellow Royal Mums, Tara, Erica, Laura and Karin: the same group, if you’ll remember, that earlier this year took a divine trip on the Liberty of the Seas around the Caribbean. This time we were here with our families, and we brought along a few other families that we know, to enjoy a tour of Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas while she was in dock in Southampton for the day before heading out on another Mediterranean cruise.

Happily, we picked the hottest day of the year so far and headed straight to the FlowRider, which was opened especially for us! We were all delighted to meet celebrity Royal Mum and Royal Caribbean Ambassador Sally Gunnell, who was there with her kids (FlowRider experts!) too. What a lovely lady.

After my ungainly few seconds, the boys were determined to do better, but actually it’s pretty tricky to stand up while the water whooshes underneath you! Here’s Charlie having a go:

Charlie flowrider

But of course it’s not just about the FlowRider - we also had a delicious meal in the main restaurant (as always, their steaks are AMAZING). And I’ve actually asked for the recipe of the scrummy, spicy fish terrine that we were served with some crispy toasts. Yum.

Next it was off for cupcake decoration at the Cupcake Cupboard (a BIG favourite with the kids) and then a taster version of Independence’s AMAZING ice show, which we watched while sipping rum punches. Heaven.

Ice show

It was also nice to chat to the Captain, who told us that he never ceases to be amazed by how the 1000+ kids on board seem to disappear before his very eyes to clubs/pools/activities, leaving parents to enjoy the holiday without worrying about entertaining the smalls (in fact, we know from experience that it’s actually quite difficult to tear them away!).

Last but not least, we headed up to the amazing H2O Zone, where kids of all ages (ahem) enjoyed a little splash about in this incredible water play park:

H2O Zone small

Honestly, it was the hardest thing ever to disembark that day after having such fun with old friends and new, knowing that the passengers were heading off on a sublime cruise around the Med in the sunshine.

Still, an amazing day and an absolutely wonderful ship. I hope we’ll see the Independence of the Sea again very soon.

(For all the pics and action from the day, check out the #royalmums hashtag on Twitter. Follow Royal Caribbean International: @myroyalUK)

Guest post: four thoughtful Christmas ideas you can start planning now

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It may seem crazy, but do you know what July is all about?

Christmas!

July is the month that all the big brands are showing off their Christmas ranges to the press, the monthly glossies are planning their November and December issues and bloggers everywhere are travelling around the country checking out exactly what people like Argos and Amazon have to offer families this Christmas.

If all this festive talk leaves you feeling a little queasy, remember it doesn’t have to be all about the latest toy or the must-have action figure – you can come up with gift ideas that are thoughtful and personal and that don’t break the bank.

To balance out all the Christmas commercialism, here are my favourite four ideas:

Food

Now obviously I am slightly biased, but I think food makes a wonderful Christmas gift – it’s thoughtful, it comes from the heart, and you know it isn’t going to end up at the back of a cupboard – it will actually get eaten and serve a purpose! Pickles, chutneys and jams are all fab, and can be made in advance when fruits and vegetables are in season. You could even offer to make a family member their Christmas pudding or cake this year as an extra special gift.

Drink

Well you can’t have cake at Christmas without a little something on the side can you? Home-made drinks such as sloe gin and limoncello are a fab festive gift, but for families with busy lives they are often one of those genius ideas you have around late November when the moment has somewhat passed. Start thinking now about what you might like to make and then set yourself reminders for when you need to start your preparations.

Personalised family gifts

Nothing says thoughtful quite like a personalised gift and if you’ve got tricky aunts, uncles and grandparents to buy for then putting together a family photo calendar makes for a really simple and practical gift. For each month you’ll need a suitably seasonal snap, so have a look now at what you’ve got from the first half of the year and make an effort to take a decent family shot in each of the months left in the run up to Christmas.

The trimmings

All though it feels like a long way away, why not kill two birds with one stone this summer and keep the kids busy over the holidays making home-made cards, gift tags and wrapping paper? Basic brown parcel paper looks beautiful decorated with simple festive prints – try carving a holly leaf shape from a potato and letting your little ones loose with the green paint. The best thing is that it doesn’t have to be perfect. Even if you make some yourself and it turns out a bit messy you can always blame the kids…

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Guest post: three great Twitter fundraising events to donate to online

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The UK is still in a tight economic spell, we are officially post recession, but many of us have yet to notice. Fuel prices are rising, supermarkets are increasing prices and the media recently reported that the school packed lunch may be on its way out and we will all have to pay for school dinners instead.

During the recession and currently, charities are finding it harder and harder to raise money online. Everyone is watching the pennies and surplus cash is rare.

Still, people are doing some amazing things for charity, and especially within the Twitter community.

If you do have a few spare bits of change in your pocket, check out what these tweeps are up to and support them in whatever way you can.

SkyJump4COPSUK

Mark Walsh (on Twitter as @HantsPCMark) is jumping off the tallest observation tower in the USA - the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas! He’s doing the jump for Care of Police Survivors (otherwise known as COPS), a UK registered charity dedicated to helping the families of police officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty rebuild their lives.

Cheltenham Half Marathon

Emma, (on Twitter as @emmaand3), is embarking on her first half marathon. Emma, who has previously openly declared her hatred of running, is embarking on this challenge to raise money for Steps. A hip and foot charity that provides support to families and individuals and works to raise awareness and understanding about clubfoot, hip dysplasia and other lower limb conditions. Steps supported Emma while her two year old daughter was treated for hip dysplasia.

Ride London

Chef and Masterchef judge John Torode (on Twitter as @JohnTorode1) is doing the Prudential Ride London 100 - a punishing 100 mile bike ride from London to Surrey for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSHCC) with team members Kris Baldwin, Martin Buckett and Nick Bamford.

Good luck to everyone in their fundraising exploits.

By Jane Blackmore

 

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Ten top tips for visiting the Warner Bros Studio Tour, London, and tickets to win!

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The boys on the Knight Bus at the Warner Bros Studio TourOn our recent trip to The Grove Hotel, we’d arranged a visit to the Warner Bros Studio Tour - The Making of Harry Potter at Leavesden Studios. The tour, based in the studios originally used to film the series, has some absolutely amazing things to see and do - loads of props and costumes, sneaky peeks behind the scenes and much more. It’s a difficult one to review as I’m conscious that I don’t want to spoil it for you if you’re planning a visit yourself, but here’s our top ten tips for visiting the Warner Bros Studio Tour:

1. BOOK!

If you want to visit the tour, you MUST book. They don’t accept any walk-ins at all and we saw quite a few people who had paid a lot of money to travel from London who were turned away at the ticket office. You cannot buy a ticket at the studios.

2. Check prices

There are options for family tickets which work out better value than buying single tickets. At the moment, the adult ticket is £29, child is £21.50 (age 5 to 15) and under 4s are free. The family ticket (two adults, two children or one adult, three children) is £85.

3. Invest in the audio visual guide

The guide costs £4.95 and basically narrates your journey around the tour to you through headphones. It’s narrated by Draco Malfoy, which is a rather lovely voice to have in your ear as you wander round the tour. It’s invaluable as it stops you missing bits out and also is full of really interesting facts too. Oh, and if you buy the guidebook, don’t look at it as you’re queuing - it contains lots of spoilers!

4. Check the website before you book

There are often special events - for example over the summer holidays (Friday 26th July to Monday 2nd September) there’s the ‘Summer Spells’ special events where you can learn more about some of the famous spells from the series and take part in wand choreography lessons.

5. Be prepared to queue

The staff let about 100 people in every half hour, so you might queue for a short while.

6. Take your time

The tour is SO exciting, and there’s so much to see that the temptation is to rush round everything. However, once you’ve left the first studio, you can’t go back in, so if you discover you’re pretty quick round the second part, you can’t go back! This is another reason why the audio visual tour thingy is worth the money as it encourages you to pace yourself.

7. Hogwarts Castle

Don’t rush past the model (you won’t want to anyway, it’s beautiful) as the lighting is adjusted from night to day over a 4 minute cycle - perfect for pictures.

8. The shop

Be aware that the tour filters you out into the shop, so you’re going to have to be prepared to run the ‘can I have this? Can I have that?’ gauntlet. If you’ve got younger children it’s worth setting a budget before they’re exposed to all the goodies!

9. Food and drink

There’s a café in the foyer which serves decent food and drink, but if it’s a nice day, bring a picnic as there’s a nice picnic area by the carpark that you can use. You can also buy a drink and a snack in the outside area after the first studio - you can also buy butterbeer here and see the Dudleys’ house and the Knight bus where you can hop on and take photos!

10. Look out for hotel deals or store your luggage

The deal we reviewed was an overnight stay at The Grove. You’ll find more information, and prices, here.

Whether you’re travelling locally or you’re flying in from abroad, ABC Selfstore in Camden have a range of luggage storage facilities to make your trip around the Warner Bros studios more enjoyable and less weighed down!

I’ve also got a family ticket for the Warner Bros. Studio Tour to give away courtesy of the Current Accounts team at NatWest! Just leave a comment, telling me your favourite scene/quote/character from the Harry Potter movie series and the winner will be chosen at random. Usual English Mum giveaway rules apply. Giveaway ends at midnight on Friday 2nd August 2013.

**THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED - THANKS FOR YOUR ENTRIES - THE WINNER OF THE FAMILY TICKET WAS JOANNE BLUNT**

Guest post: dealing with death - legal legislation

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When someone dies, it is often a very difficult time for all concerned. Alongside the emotional trauma, there are also various legal difficulties and ramifications to deal with.

Of course, like many things, it helps to know as much as you can beforehand. In any case, its arguably better the more you know up front, so that you’re better prepared to deal with such an incident should it happen. With this in mind, here are a number of points you should consider. A lot of these can be quite complex, since the legal side of death can be involve a lot of detail, but you should know there is professional assistance, such as that on offer from Co-Op Legal Services, to help you through the complicated paperwork.

Will

First and foremost, a will helps dictate a lot of what happens next. If there is a will left, this ideally details the personal representatives. These are given Grant of Probate, and thus given the legal authority to oversee and divide the estate in accordance with the will; for this reason they are also known as personal representatives.

This then basically allows such Executors to divide the will up in accordance with the estate. This can cause problems, such as areas not clearly defined or parts of the estate not mentioned by the will. For these areas, you have to consider the rules that take place when the will doesn’t apply.

No Will

Of course, there are times when there is no will. Sometimes there are areas that the will doesn’t cover. For any of these cases, the typical procedure is to turn to rules of intestacy. These rules are used to determine personal representatives (for when Grant of Probate cannot be given) as well as how the estate is divided.

  • The Rules of Intestacy work in a tier system. The first class of relation to the deceased (spouse) is considered, moving outwards until someone who survived the intestate (when that person died without a will) is uncovered.

  • If that person dies, but dies after the intestate, their personal share is divided in accordance with their own rules of intestate.

  • In terms of dividing the estate, there are various legal procedures to follow. Whilst the closest ‘class’ of kin is considered, there are thresholds. For instance, the whole estate goes to the spouse (married or civil partner) unless the estate exceeds a certain threshold.

As such, it’s clear that, even without a will, the methods of dividing an estate are difficult. Whilst this increases the argument for legal representation and assistance, it none the less shows the amount of responsibility that you will have to undertake should someone closely related die.

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Easy tapas: baked cod with garlic and oregano for my Dad’s birthday

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Baked cod with garlic and oregano small

So it was the Disreputable One’s birthday on Saturday. As he loves a bit of tapas, I thought I’d cook him a tapas feast fit for a birthday boy. The menu looked like this:

Olives and spicy nibbles to start (we used these from Olives et Al - very yummy they are too)

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Sangria

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Easy tapas:

baked cod with garlic and oregano

Papas arugadas

Spicy garlic prawns (click for recipe)

Smoky bacon meatballs (Albóndigas) in tomato and pepper sauce

Green salad

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Raspberry sorbet

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Selection of cheese including The Birthday Cheese

Baked cod with garlic and oregano

When we were in the Canary Islands last year, we ate a beautiful baked hake dish with garlic and oregano. Sadly there was no hake at the market this Saturday, but I was determined to cook this dish for my Dad so we picked up some nice, chunky cod, which works equally as well. Here’s my approximation of the dish. Use a decent make of dried herb - you don’t want a dry, dusty one. I like dried oregano from Schwartz, but if you’re using fresh, double up and use 2 tsp.

Serves 6

1 kg fresh cod fillets

1 clove garlic

1 tsp oregano

Olive oil (preferably Spanish!)

Preheat the oven to 190/gas 5.

Pop the cod fillets into a large ovenproof dish. Bash the garlic with a pestle and mortar, add the oregano, then slowly glug in about 50ml olive oil.

Pour the mixture over the cod, then bake, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until the fish flakes easily.

I’ll publish all the rest of the recipes for you, but until then, here’s the Birthday Boy, blowing out his cheesy birthday candle. Happy birthday Dad!

Birthday cheese

Fun in the sun: sun creams on test!

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Sun creams on test! Testing sun creams so you don’t have to

At this time of year there’s a huge choice of sun protection on offer: creams, sprays, aerosols, lotions, milks and more. We took a selection of different products and compared them over a week, using them while swimming, sunbathing, playing sport (the boys, not me, obviously) and much more. Here are our (very non-scientific) findings:

 

We tried: Riemann P20 SPF 50+ clear spray £19.99 (200ml)

What we thought: this brilliant product provides 10 hours’ protection from one generous application. It’s a spray, but it’s quite heavy, and you do feel rather like a cross-channel ferry being larded up while you’re applying it, but then that’s kind of the point, because once it’s on, it stays on. This is brilliant for situations when kids are out in the hot sun playing a football match, or off on a school trip and you can’t get to them (or indeed trust them) to apply more cream. I wouldn’t imagine it’s perfect on a beach holiday as I think you’d end up with rather a lot of sand stuck to you, but it’s perfect for sports/by the pool (it’s classified as ‘very water resistant’ so doesn’t need reapplying after swimming), etc. It’s also lovely to put on your legs as it gives them a really nice sheen. Oh and don’t get it on your clothes - it can stain lighter fabrics.

The small print: ‘P20 has both UVA and UVB filters. Very water resistant.’

 

We tried: the Hawaiian Tropic SPF20 Protective Dry Spray Oil, £12.29 (200ml)

What we thought: I love the smell of Hawaiian Tropic. It takes me right back to walking along the beach as a kid and getting a coconutty waft of that heady scent, which, unfortunately, is why the kids don’t like it that much. I guess teenage boys don’t really want to smell of ‘exotic island botanicals’. But hey, sod them, because I’m keeping this one anyway. The dry oil spray is easy to apply with minimal rubbing in and leaves a lovely sheen on the skin.

The small print: ‘water resistant, advanced UVA/UVB protection’

 

We tried: Nivea Sun SPF 30 Invisible Protection Transparent Spray, £11.00 (200ml)

What we thought: big hit with the boys this one - a non greasy spray that rubs in quite easily and is perfect for active fellas as it provices immediate protection. I was’t so keen on this one as I didn’t find it very moisturising and on application it’s got a bit of a chemically smell to it, but it’s perfect for, say, a day trip, when you don’t want to be all greasy all day and be transferring it onto bag/sunglasses/phone etc. The spray mechanism is a bit dodgy unless you’re holding it upright which is a bit of a pain for hard-to-reach areas, still, not rocket science to spray it into your hand first.

The small print: water resistant, UVA and UVB filters.

 

We tried: Boots No 7 Anti-Ageing Sun Protection spray SPF30, £12.95 (200ml)

What we thought: obviously just for me this one as the teenagers don’t need much anti-ageing other than normal sunscreen. It’s smells pleasant and is quite a light lotion, so nice and easy to rub in, although the spray has a mind of its own and tends to rocket out, splattering everything and everyone around you. It’s a bit sticky for a while but does sink in eventually. Definitely does leave skin nice and smooth.

The small print: ‘broad spectrum UVA and UVB protection helps guard against skin damaging effects of both ageing and burning UV rays. With daily use skin is left feeling and looking smoother. Water resistant and non pore blocking.’

 

We tried: Apivita Anti-spot Face Cream SPF50, £20.31

What we thought: I’m prone to dark patches on my face if I’m in the sun, so I always wear a really high SPF. The downside of that is that often they’re quite greasy and can clog pores, causing spots. This is a beautiful product containing loads of natural goodies including sea lavender, sea fennel and propolis, a natural substance collected by bees and used in hive production. It’s so light that I found I could layer it over my normal moisturiser, but for those with less dry skin it can be used on its own. Leaves a nice sheen and sinks in completely. Smells lovely too.

The small print: hypoallergenic, water resistant, protection against UVA and UVB radiation with photostable combination of filters and sea lavender’.

 

We tried: ultrasun High 30SPF Super Sensitive: family formula £19 (100ml)

What we thought: This is a light cream in a smart, pump action dispenser. It’s another once-a-day application but isn’t at all heavy and rubbed in really easily. It’s quite pricey at £19 for the 100ml pump but we really liked it. There’s also a High 30SPF face version which is anti-aging (£20 for 50ml) which was just as light and moisturising with no greasy film. Fabulous products.

The small print: ‘UVA 93% and UVB SPF30) with just one application per day. Its super sensitive formulation is ideal for very sensitive and children’s skin and helps to prevent ‘prickly heat’ reactions’. Water-resistant and free from perfume, emulsifiers and preservatives.

 

We tried: Dead Sea Spa Magik Sunsafe SPF50 £16.95 (150ml)

What we thought: this was my favourite of the ‘splurge it all over’ body creams as it smells yummy and is really moisturising, without being sticky, with anti-ageing benefits too. It’s organic and waterproof for 8 hours.

The small print: ‘UVA and UVB protection, suitable for sensitive skin, 8 hour waterproof’.

 

We tried: Proactiv Solution Daily Protection Plus Sunscreen SPF30 £11.95 (118ml)

What we thought: this cream is prt of the proactiv solution range of products for spot-prone skin. The boys used this before they played American football on a particularly hot day and initially thought it was a bit greasy on application, however, it did sink in and didn’t seem to irritate at all. It’s not water-resistant and needs reapplying after swimming, etc, but if you’re prone to spots this is a good moisturiser to use in the sun.

The small print: ‘provides UVA/UVB protection, non comedogenic’

 

 

We tried: Korres Antispot hand cream with organic Almond oil and vitamin C SPF15 £9 (75ml)

What we thought: this is a hand cream specifically developed to protect hands from developing new sun spots and treat and minimise existing ones while providing SPF15 protection. I LOVED this and have been slathering it on during the hot weather.

The small print: ‘suitable for everyday use, non oily light texture, dermatologically tested’

Easy spiced lamb kofta kebabs with coriander hummus and tzatziki

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Easy spiced lamb kofta kebabs with coriander hummus and tzatziki
This last week of term is such a slog isn’t it? We’re looking forward to a summer of travel: sunbathing, restaurants, al fresco eating and fun in the sun. I’ve slightly scuppered Sam’s plans to get away with his friends by booking us back-to-back on various trips right up until September. Still, not the worst thing a mother could do, I’m sure. They’re trying to squeeze in a group trip to Skiathos, where one of their friends has family with a hotel, which, judging by the photos, is absolutely beautiful. To make him feel better, I made him a lovely Greek-inspired dinner:
Easy spiced lamb kofta kebabs
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 level teaspoon sea salt
1 or 2 cloves garlic
2 slices bread, cut into cubes then soaked in a little milk
500g minced lamb
Salt and pepper
With a pestle and mortar, grind the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, salt and garlic into a paste. Fish out the bread - don’t squeeze it too hard, but too much excess milk will make it a bit sloppy, making it impossible to stick on the skewers - then add it in and squish (technical term) until combined.
Put the lamb in a large bowl, add the spice/bread mixture and the egg, plus the salt and pepper.
With clean hands, squish the mixture together well.
Squish the mixture around some metal skewers in a rough sausage shape. Grill (or barbecue) until golden on the outside (the metal skewer will ensure that the middle is cooked through) - about 10 - 15 minutes should do it, depending on the heat of your grill.

Quick and easy coriander hummus

Hummus is quick and easy although I recently saw Simon Hopkinson painstakingly taking the skin off every single chickpea before making it (go ahead if you’re that way inclined!):

1 tin chickpeas, drained

1 clove garlic (I sometimes cut out the garlic and just use a good quality garlic oil instead)

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Pinch of salt

2-3 tbsp olive oil or rapeseed oil

Handful of chopped mint or coriander

Paprika to garnish

So just whizz the chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice and salt up with a stick blender, glugging in enough oil to loosen the mixture. If you like it a bit runnier, feel free to add a couple of tbsp water. Stir in the chopped coriander and serve sprinkled with paprika and maybe a swirl of oil.

Easy tzatziki

About 1/2 cucumber, deseeded and grated

1 clove of garlic, crushed

1 pot thick Greek yogurt

Mint leaves, chopped

I don’t mind the peel on the cucumber, but it’s a bit much iFirst, make sure that you’ve

 

Asda’s Christmas in July: what to look out for this Christmas (but hands off the crumpets, they’re all mine)

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Crumpets

Christmas tree crumpets and waffle stars

It’s often pointed out to me that I get up to some pretty weird stuff, which is true, but it’s generally for good reason. In this vein, there’s nothing quite as weird as Asda’s Christmas in July event which I pootled along to yesterday at the beautiful Vinopolis, just by Borough Market.

Asda had decked the whole place out with decorations, fake snow and twinkly lights, and it really did look rather beautiful. Of course, the big supermarkets have to showcase their stuff early due to magazine publication deadlines, but it also provides nosy people like me the opportunity to pop along and have a look at what’s going to be on the supermarket shelves coming up to Christmas 2013.

Asda have impressed again this year with some top ideas, especially in their Extra Special and Butcher’s Selection ranges. On the fish counter, I chatted to Jill Skipsey, Asda’s fish counter buyer. Whole salmons are one of the stars of the Christmas fish selection. If you’re feeling brave, you can take it home as is, or the in-store fishmongers will fillet it for you. I also tried some delicious little new starters: Extra Special hot smoked salmon with beetroot and horseradish was particularly delicious. They’re served in little clear pots, ready to pop straight onto the table. Also in this range of pots is Extra Special Potted Crab, and another one with smoked salmon. So easy when you’re busy faffing around with the Christmas dinner.

Talking of Christmas dinner, one of the most important purchases you’ll make is the turkey. This year, Asda have pushed the boat out with not one but two new free range offerings, one a heritage breed called Slate, which is ready for you to prepare yourself, and the other is already stuffed and layered with British Cherrywood-smoked bacon. They’re also introducing colour coding so you can choose the right size bird for your needs.

As usual, my buddy ‘Asda Jim’ (Head of Meat Quality, Jim Viggars) has made sure that the beef, lamb (yes, it’s not just for Easter - there’s a delicious boned stuffed shoulder on offer with a Christmassy apricot stuffing) and pork on offer is top drawer. There is a lovely 28 day matured beef rolled sirloin with mushroom stuffing, and a really interesting outdoor bred porchetta belly joint, stuffed with garlic, rosemary and thyme with lovely skin for crispy crackling.

I was really impressed with the amount of outdoor bred, outdoor reared and free range offerings generally, including in the pork pies and sausage rolls in the chilled party section.

Onto puds, then. Some special ones to look out for are the spectacular Chosen By You frozen chocolate and Coitreau bombe, a beautiful, glossy dome filled with Cointreau soaked sponge layered with orange liqueur chocolate cream. It looked amazing. I also liked the look of the enormous profiterole gateaux: chocolate sponge and whipped cream topped with chocolate covered fresh cream profiteroles. There are also some lovely individual serving boozy jellies that look beautiful.

Starting to feel slightly full, I moved onto the cheese section. I was rather wowed by a delicious Extra Special oak smoked Wensleydale, a scrummy nutty, sweet Comté and of course, creamy tangy Stilton. Asda have also introduced a really good cheese board with Extra Special cheeses: Wookey Hole, Manchego, Bleu d’Auvergne and Cornish Camembert (which I tried and is seriously good). Great for a pressie, it also contains Extra Special quince jelly. I think it was around £10 - what a great pressie to take to someone’s house this Christmas (hint hint, relatives…).

For sweeties and stocking fillers, look out for giant candy canes, gingerbread men and jazzies, rocky road snowmen on sticks and a seriously cute Santa beard lolly.

The wines are particularly good this year (the champers has won awards by the bucketload and is under £20) but I’m going to give them a proper test later on in the year and report back to you with full reviews.

And then, stuffed with cheese, mince pies and candy canes, I popped my sunglasses on and wandered back into the sunshine.

Bonkers.

 

Asda Christmas

Guest post: peaceful holiday destinations in the UK

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More often than not, a holiday is a means of escape. It’s about getting away from routines and traffic jams, from ringing phones and doorbells. One of the best ways to find sanctuary is with a camping or caravanning holiday in a beautiful, quiet part of the UK. Here are just a few spots that offer holidaymakers a little tranquility and respite from everything else.

North

Where: Ayrshire, Scotland

Accommodation: Craig Tara Holiday Park

Park highlights: direct access to a shingle and rock pool beach from the park, a 9-hole golf course, bike hire, and the option to either take your own tourer or motorhome, or rent or buy a holiday home for regular access to the region and the park’s facilities with some exclusive owner’s benefits.

Regional attraction: located on the Firth of Clyde, Ayrshire County has a generally rugged landscape populated by small towns and villages. Once here, you can walk, hike, or cycle across a huge selection of flat or challenging trails by the coast or inland, you can visit castles, go fishing, or catch a boat over to the remote islands that lay along Scotland’s west coast.

South

Where: Poole, Dorset

Accommodation: Rockley Park

Park highlights: clifftop views overlooking Poole Harbour and direct access to an understated sandy beach, luxury spa facilities and a bowling green. A choice of accommodation is available, including holiday homes for sale or lease plus the option to take your own touring caravan, motorhome or tent.

Regional attraction: located on the south coast, Poole benefits from some of the warmest and mildest weather in the UK. There are long stretches of soft sand beaches to walk along, lakes, estuaries and boat charters available for fishing adventures and independent cafés and restaurants serving up delicious home cooking.

East

Where: Belton, Norfolk

Accommodation: Wild Duck

Park highlights: the park is situated in woodland a few miles from the coast, with access to lakes and walking/cycle paths. Facilities include a heated outdoor pool, bike hire, fencing and archery classes and dogs are welcome. A full range of accommodation is available including the option to take your own tent, motorhome or tourer, or you can rent or buy a caravan holiday home.

Regional attraction: Norfolk has a wide range of open, tranquil spaces to explore and relax in, both along its coastline and inland at the Broads National Park. There are plenty of opportunities to walk, swim or cycle, or you could hire a canal boat for a tranquil cruise along the river networks of the Norfolk Broads.

West

Where: Porthmadog, Wales

Accommodation: Greenacres

Park highlights: located in a scenic hideaway between the Snowdonia National Park and the Black Rock Sands Beach on the coast, this park has direct access onto a mile-long stretch of sandy beach, a nature reserve, a heated indoor pool and archery and fencing classes. Accommodation to suit any budget is available, including space for owners of motorhomes and tourers, or a selection of caravan holiday homes for sale or rent.

Regional attractions: take refreshing walks along the peninsula, enjoy a relaxing journey through the Snowdonia National Park on the Ffestiniog Railway or take the more challenging option to walk or hike along some of the Park’s valley, mountain and woodland trails. Play a round of golf with views of the mountains or the sea at the Porthmadog Golf Club or sign up for horse and pony treks at the Porthmadog Activity Centre.

This post was written by Haven Holiday Homes who offer a fantastic range of Holiday Homes in the UK, designed to fit your family and your budget.

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Cherry and basil yogurt… it’s the future (maybe)

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Cherry and basil home made yogurt

I’m quite confident in the kitchen and really happy making lots of things from scratch: pastry, cakes, pies, jams and more. But when Yeo Valley challenged me to make my own yogurt for their blog, I was slightly perturbed – I mean, the masters of organic yogurt production challenging little old me to play them at their own game?

First of all, I felt at a distinct disadvantage – I don’t have the beautiful herds of British Friesians (all Yeo Valley born and bred – they haven’t bought a cow for over 20 years), neither do I have acres of lush organic pasture or the sparkling little stainless steel factory in the Mendips of which Yeo Valley are so rightly proud. Still, they gave me a little pot of their own yogurt to get me going and, being a gung-ho sort of gal, I set to work.

Yogurt making (on a very small scale) is actually quite easy. In the Yeo Valley Cookbook (The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook – out now), Sarah Mayor describes the process step by step. It’s basically heating milk, mixing in bio yogurt and waiting, but everything must be scrupulously clean and you do really need a thermometer to get it right.

And then the fun really begins. We got to choose our flavourings from what we had in the fridge and cupboards: honey and cinnamon, cherry and banana, honey and almond, cherry and almond, and my own creation: cherry and basil yogurt (no, don’t laugh, really, it works).

By this time of course, we were very very full up, but it’s a fab thing to do at home (kids will love it, watching how the milk thickens is like magic) and you can carry on and strain the yogurt more to make it thicker, or add salt, herbs and all sorts of other things to make a lovely soft cream cheese too (more details are in the book). Plus, of course, once you’ve made it, you can repeat the process and make more – meaning that – in principal - you’d never have to buy yogurt again (except, of course, I’m addicted to Yeo Valley’s Lemon Curd yogurt so that would never happen).

Now if only I can sell my cherry and coriander yogurt idea to Yeo Valley…

Review: new blinds, and a very cross Ninja

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The new blind

 

I love our house. We’re perched right at the edge of a sweet development that has matured nicely and we’re a mere 5 minutes away from a station that takes us straight into London in about 30 minutes. We have a lovely sunny garden and friendly, helpful neighbours. We feel very lucky.

Ninja in her favourite spot - note the curtains tucked behind the sofa.

Ninja in her favourite spot - note the curtains tucked behind the sofa.

One of the very small annoyances about being the first house in the road is, of course, that everybody walks straight past your house and, inevitably, has a good look through your window (not good when you have a telly that can be seen from space and you’re watching ‘Embarrassing Bodies’, I can tell you). It’s not so bad in the winter as we can draw the curtains in the evening, but even that’s a pain as the sofa sits in the bay window, and we ended up tucking the curtains behind it - not a good look. Plus, of course in the summer, you want the light to pour in and we’d even considered *gasp* net curtains as a way of ensuring a bit of privacy.

Pinterest blind

Pinterest: Azka Saiyed

Happily then, Hillarys came to my rescue by offering to fit us a lovely blind in the window. A visit from their representative was arranged (the poor chap was terrified about the fact he was being ‘reviewed’ - it took tea, biscuits and reassurance that I’m not some kind of clipboard-toting keyboard warrior for him to calm down) and, I have to say, I was a bit sceptical - I think the word ‘blinds’ conjurs up images of offices and those slatted metallic things. I was pleased to find, however, that there were much better and more stylish options. We talked about material blinds, metal blinds, rollers and shutters and Romans… slatted this way, slatted that way… the list is endless. I also mentioned that, as a family, we’re rather ham fisted so it needed to be pretty robust to stand being handled by ham fisted teenagers (no matter, he assured me, all Hillarys’ blinds go through rigourous testing and are endorsed by the BBSA to ensure high standards).

I showed him this lovely picture I’d pinned on Pinterest, with light streaming in through beautiful wood shutters, and he knew just what would suit us. We went for a wood (actually,wood-effect, which was cheaper, is easy to keep clean, and you’d never know the difference) Venetian blind and the fitting was arranged for a couple of weeks’ time. Exciting stuff.

On the day, I couldn’t believe how fast the blind was fitted. He turned up on the dot (actually, early), there was no mess and no fuss and the whole thing was up and done within about half an hour. A quick demo later and the chap was away and there was my lovely new blind.

Ninja - not impressed with her reduced viewing area!

Ninja - not impressed with her reduced viewing area!

We’re delighted with it. It looks really stylish, lets in loads of light and gives us a bit of much-needed privacy. The only one that’s not very happy is the Ninja, who has lost her prime snoozing and bird-watching position. Ah well…

Our blind was a wood effect Venetian blind that came to just over £250 in the Summer sale. Many thanks to Hillarys for our lovely blind - we’re all delighted with it (apart from Ninja).

 

A guide to flying with children - downloadable ebook

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I’ve had my fair share of travel disasters over the years: lost passports, hours spent waiting for delayed planes, spaghetti vomit, you name it. Admittedly, as in the case of our extra week in Morocco due to the Icelandic ash cloud, there are some things you can’t plan for, but generally forewarned is forearmed when it comes to flying.

My best advice has always been plan, plan and plan a bit more. I have a list that comes out every time I’m packing which gets amended depending on where I’m going and for how long, and then sits by my suitcase until everything is ticked off. It’s amazing how easy it is to forget toothbrushes, phone chargers and all those last minute things, so it’s best to tick them off as they go in the case, so you can see exactly what’s left to pack.

Of course, flying with the family can be stressful, but I’ve got together with Cheapflights.co.uk to bring you a brilliant ebook guide to flying with children because, let’s face it, the more prepared you are, the less stressed you’ll all feel. The advice covers planning, booking, preparing and packing for your flight, as well as tips for when you’re at the airport and on the plane and covers babies, 3-6 years and 7 and beyond. There’s even advice and inspiration from celebrity mums and dads who, let’s face it, are most likely to walk down the steps looking fresh as a daisy, rather than the rest of us who are often crumpled, hot and flustered.

So without further ado, I present to you… A guide to flying with children. Enjoy!

Guide to flying with children

Massive thanks to Cheapflights.co.uk for their time and patience!

 

One word that describes me

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My friend Tara recently challenged me to come up with one word that describes me. Have you ever tried to do that before? Man, it’s DIFFICULT!

I carried a notebook around for the day and wrote down every word that occurred to me:

LOYAL: I’m a fierce friend and an even fiercer mum - mess with those I adore at your peril.

HAPPY: I wrote this after treating Charlie to a bit of my Irish dancing. He was delighted. No, really…

CONTRADICTORY: Mr English would agree with this one

UNSOCIABLE: but love people (see contradictory, above)

COMPLICATED: isn’t everyone?

STUBBORN: undoubtedly

GREEDY: well, yes, but…

MESSY: definitely. But does it define me?

Thing is, I’m pretty happy being me. I’m not confident, far from it. I lean heavily on my friends (I’m a terrible worrier) but love them most because they love me just for me. I like my own company, have my own business, earn my own money, like to do my own thing, ask advice but then never take it, make my own rules (then break them)…

Guess all this just makes me…

Independent

How about you? What’s your word?

 

Guest post: top tips for your garden party

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Summer is officially here, so this is the time of year to make the most of longer days and warmer weather by planning lots of fun activities. A garden party is a fabulous way to bring families and friends together in a relaxed atmosphere, where you don’t need to worry about the risk of spillages or you can have a great day without breaking the bank.

The most important thing about a garden party for any occasion is the planning, so here are a few top tips to help you to organise the event of the summer!

The Food

The catering can really set the tone for your garden party. To keep things informal, all you need to do is throw a few burgers on a barbecue to please the crowds every time. If you’re on a budget, ask people to bring salads and desserts and don’t forget to cater for any vegetarians. For a more stylish affair, organise an afternoon tea party with vintage tea sets and elegant cake stands full of tempting goodies. To really complete the mood, send out formal invitations and request that guests dress appropriately for a high society affair.

The Entertainment

After enjoying all that food it’s worth thinking up a few ideas to keep the troops entertained throughout the afternoon. This could be as simple as bringing your wireless speakers out and getting a party playlist on the go, or if any of the guests happen to be musical encourage them to bring along their instrument and treat you to a show. There are also tons of garden games that you can use to keep the whole family entertained, like bowls, giant jenga or good old fashioned ‘hide the wool’.

The Garden

If you’re going to be crowned party-planner of the season then you will want to make sure that your venue is dressed to impress. Start with the garden itself, making sure the lawn is mowed, the flowers are dead-headed and the decking and furniture is swept and cleaned. If you want to entice your guests to linger into the evening then a display of garden lighting can help to create a cosy mood. You could opt for paper lanterns to add to the décor, citronella candles to keep away the bugs, or even a fire pit to provide warmth as well as light. To really go the whole hog, dress your table with a pretty cloth and make strings of bunting using scraps of material or paper in any design you choose.

Make a Plan B!

It is a sad truth that you can’t rely on the weather to behave itself just because you’ve got plans, but rain doesn’t have to be a disaster as long as you’re prepared for it. A gazebo provides the perfect shelter on a rainy day, but if that’s a little too extravagant for your budget it’s ok to just bring the party inside. Clear a space and lay out a green bed sheet, or arrange a few plant pots and make a crisis into a game. Your guests will enjoy the novelty and have great fun helping to recreate the garden indoors, so that your party goes down in history one way or another!

This post was written by Nicky Hand, who loves nothing more than enjoying the garden with friends. If you’re looking for ways to enhance your garden, Millboard Decking can be used to create the ideal social space.

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Foodinburgh 2013: ten top tips for a casual foodie weekend in Edinburgh

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Stockbridge Market, EdinburghMy lovely friend Erica and I share a love of food. We’ve been on loads of trips together, share (and publish) our favourite recipes, and generally spend far too much time thinking about dinner. Recently we’ve been talking about the food in her home town of Edinburgh, and Erica’s also planning a new website on the subject, so when she suggested I came up for a visit, I jumped at the chance. And so, Foodinburgh 2013 was born.

Erica’s a serious planner and had created a proper itinerary for our trip - a long weekend. We’d decided not to include fine dining restaurants basically to avoid bankrupting ourselves, but also to highlight the great range of casual dining options in the area, however I’m still planning on going back, especially to visit The Kitchin and Erica’s other recommendation, 21212, both with one Michelin star. She’d also planned visits to nice food shops and markets. I was raring to go!

Here are my recommendations (thanks to Erica) for a fabulous foodie weekend:

1. Castle Terrace Market

After flying in to Edinburgh on Saturday morning, we headed straight to our first stop, and I got my first glimpse of Edinburgh Castle. The farmers’ market, on Castle Terrace, has a great range of stalls and we spotted Edinburgh Gin, amazing seafood, and sampled Scottish tablet (a firm, sweet fudge) and local honey. I was slightly hampered by my hand-luggage-only 100ml allowance, otherwise I would have bought loads home!

2. The Royal Mile

The Royal Mile (or ‘high street’ if you’re a local) has loads of lovely shops and restaurants. We were lucky to bump into a proper piper (very exciting), popped into a fabulous Whisky shop and pressed our noses against the window of the famous Witchery restaurant. I loved Cranachan and Crowdie which is packed full of lovely bits for the kitchen and dining room, often with a Scottish theme and all sourced from the area.

Oink3. Oink

We headed down Victoria Street (after ogling the very attractive kilted chap standing out the front of the Missoni hotel) and popped in to Oink for a massive pulled pork sandwich (ask for extra crackling), which Erica has recently reviewed and I was dying to visit.

4. Mother India’s Café

After all that walking, we’d worked up enough appetite (just!) to pop into Mother India’s Café for some Indian tapas dishes. The café is bustling with all sorts of people and the interior is a great mix of traditional (flock wallpaper), and modern (glossy green tiling and stunning black and white images). This is a brilliant way to eat, picking lots of small dishes and trying lots of new things. We loved the chilli chicken dosas (served with an amazing daal), saag paneer and a fragrant type of korma called giri. The price was very reasonable (less than £15 each) and the setting is just delightful. Highly recommended.

The full Scottish5. A full Scottish

Sadly, I can’t recommend an establishment for this one as I was treated to a full Scottish breakfast by Erica’s lovely husband. We went for the full Scottish monty: gorgeous Scottish black pudding and a slice of haggis too (my first time - delicious). The potato scone was a lovely reminder of all our Irish breakfasts. Scrummy.

6. Stockbridge Market (photos at header)

This was one of the many highlights of our weekend. Stockbridge is in a beautiful part of Edinburgh, the sun was shining and the stalls were just amazing. We stocked up on delicious fudge and hand made salted caramel chocolate, admired fruit, veg and gleaming fresh fish and tasted fruit teas, cakes and marshmallows.

7. Harvey Nichols

Moving on to the newer part of Edinburgh, we headed to Harvey Nichols, which has an amazing top floor food hall. It’s worth a visit just for the diversity of produce, from every alcoholic drink you could possibly imagine, through every luxury item and diverse ingredient you’d ever need, to novelty things such as this delicious chocolate covered scorpion. Yum.

 

 

 

 

8. George Street

George Street is definitely worth a wander. We discovered Anthropologie - a huge store with the most AMAZING crockery and kitchen bits. We also popped in to Cath Kidston and a beautiful Scottish interiors shop called Anta where we lusted after the beautiful tartan interiors.

9. Café Andaluz

After all that window shopping, it was time for a late, lazy lunch (I know, AGAIN!) and out of the options Erica gave me, I chose the beautiful Café Andaluz, which is rather like stepping off George Street straight into a lovely Spanish courtyard tapas restaurant. The place is huge, and beautifully decorated, and the tapas was utterly delicious. Every single one of our choices: a stunning goat cheese dish with Seville orange, chilli and marmalade, paella, crisp chicken and potato croquettes, soft meaty pork cheeks, crispy chicken pieces with honey and mustard… were perfectly cooked and delicious. We stayed for ages, chatting and enjoying our food. 3 tapas plus dessert was just £14.95 too. Great value. Mr English would have particularly enjoyed Café Andaluz - a good excuse to return.

Red velvet cake at Mimi's Bakehouse10. Mimi’s Bakehouse

Sadly before we knew it, the weekend was over. But we couldn’t leave without a visit to that famous baker of incredibly cakes, Mimi. Mimi’s Bakehouse is a beautiful place to visit and the selection of cakes was incredible. Erica and I chose a huge slab of soft, moist red velvet cake. Utterly delicious. Mimi’s also do incredible breakfasts, so I’ve heard!

I needed a good week to recover from my eating excesses, but we’re already planning Foodinburgh 2014 with MORE friends and MORE restaurants and MORE eating. Massive thanks to my generous hosts, Erica and her lovely family.

Look out for Erica’s new Foodinburgh project (@foodinburgh and www.foodinburgh.com), coming very soon.

Guest post: a mother’s guide to breakdown cover

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As mums we all try to do the best for our kids. There is nothing as frustrating as being powerless and, when it comes to cars and their engines, I am – like most people – particularly helpless. With that in mind there is nothing as exasperating as breaking down on the side of the road on your way to guitar lessons, or whatever latest hobby your kid is passionate about.

So having breakdown cover can be that ‘get out of jail free card’ that we all need in stressful situations such as this. Family vehicles must perform a multitude of tasks – from ferrying the kids to and from school to hauling the weekly shop back home – and this strain can sometimes lead to problems. Breaking down is never pleasant but with kids in the back seat and frozen produce slowly defrosting in the boot, you have even more things to worry about.

Families are constantly looking to make sure they get value for money everywhere they can in these difficult economic times, and nobody wants to pay for services they don’t really need. When it comes to cars you want to make sure you are covered for any eventuality.

So, what are the different kinds of cover offered suit the family? And how can you find a package which gives you the protection you need without disrupting the family bank balance too much?

Roadside recovery

The basic elements of any breakdown service covers roadside assistance in the event of a breakdown of the vehicle you are travelling in. The knowledge that an experienced professional will help you as quickly as possible brings peace of mind to your journey; whether you are simply making a local trip to the shops or taking a much longer journey.

Many problems that occur, especially with more modern cars, are usually simple things that a trained eye can quickly spot and more potentially fix there and then. This means you can get moving again quickly and if necessary take your car for any further work at a time that is convenient for you.

Onward travel

Sometimes even the newest or best maintained cars will develop a fault that needs more attention than can be provided by roadside repair. In these cases, there are several different add-ons to packages that you can have in place to help you.

An onward travel option means you will be transported in comfort and safety to your intended destination and that you will be spared the extra expense and inconvenience of paying for trains or taxis. Also, your vehicle will be towed to a garage for you or you and your vehicle can be taken home so you can get it to your regular mechanic or workshop.

Some packages even include hire car cover so that you can still go about your usual family business while your car is off the road.

Home start

The knowledge that you can call on helpful assistance no matter where you are in the country brings peace of mind, but there is usually a restriction that you need to be a certain distance away from you home to qualify for roadside assistance. However, other extras that you can add to your cover include ‘home start’ options which mean you can call for help when your car won’t start outside your own home.

This can be extremely useful in the colder months when something as simple as a flat battery can mean all your plans go awry.

So when looking for the right breakdown cover for your family it’s important to understand what products your family needs and what would be useful. If you often drive long trips to see friends, then onwards travel is probably for you. However if you’ve got an old banger, then home start can be a life saver on those winter morning school runs.

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The bar lounge at Oblix, The Shard

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OblixI was in London all day on Thursday for various meetings (hello Air France/KLM! Thank you for my pressie xx). I was really excited about lunch as I was meeting the team from the Florida Space Coast for lunch in the bar lounge of the impressive new Oblix at The Shard - level 32 to be precise.

I’ll be honest. I made a bit of a tit of myself by coming out of London Bridge underground station and asking for directions to The Shard, only for the chap I asked to look a bit baffled and point upwards. I was right underneath it. Still, he was dismissive of my apologies - it’s easy to miss when you’re right underneath. Honest. The building (once you’ve found it) is stunning - shiny, steely, pointy and, naturally, very very tall.

The entrance is a bit cloak and dagger, which makes you feel a bit special: you have to approach the lone member of staff in the foyer, who guides you to the lift where you’re whisked up to the 32nd floor and emerge into a very stark, open area with absolutely no furniture, then it’s left to the restaurant and right to the bar lounge. Lots of very attractive and smartly clad ladies hover to welcome you in, take your coat, all that jazz, then you’re led down a very dark, earth-toned corridor, lit by flickering candles, emerging into a very trendy bar area with THAT view. There’s a range of seating: leather sofas, banquettes, tables and chairs, etc and tons more girls at this point, all in different variations of a pleated, chiffony top - some in black, some floral - all very attractive and very smiley. The equally attractive male bar staff wear leather aprons and hack chunks of ice off huge blocks with massive saws. When we went, the bar was packed with businessmen enjoying a lunchtime drink and was incredibly busy and noisy. By the time we were seated and had ordered drinks, it was starting to die down a bit and we could finally hear each other speak.

And here’s where it gets a bit odd. For your starter, you get to enjoy the salad buffet placed at the entrance side of the bar. It’s a nice, fresh spread, with all sorts of salads (watercress with citrus fruit, loads of different tomatoes with torn mozzarella, green beans in a mustardy dressing, asian slaw and much more), sliced ham, breads, dips, etc, and you can go back as many times as you want. For mains, you get to choose between four (yes, I did say four) options: when we were visiting, these were a chicken dish, a salmon dish, a pasta dish and a veggie dish (poached egg and asparagus). We were surprised when our mains arrived that there were no accompaniments. I ordered the salmon and literally received a piece of salmon (which was delicious and beautifully cooked with a crispy skin) with four new potatoes. Presumably you’re supposed to go back to the salad bar to accompany your main as no side dishes are listed on the menu. It’s all a bit… minimalist. Desserts are back at the bar buffet: my choices - a mango panna cotta and a sweet potato pie that was a bit too cinnamony with a weird, gritty base - were ok, but my companions said that the lemon cake and a fruity streusel cake were both really good.

The cocktails are fab (I had a Negroni which was strong and orangey and perfect), the staff are lovely and attentive and the view is blinking fabulous. I’d love to go back there at night and have cocktails and enjoy being high above the whole of London while it lights up. I’d also like to give the proper restaurant a go.

Our verdict: a fabulous location. Slightly confusing food. Go for cocktails.

Guest post: kit your kitchen out with some professional goodies

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Pic (c) Lceonline.co.uk

Pic (c) Lceonline.co.uk

TV is packed with cooking programmes, magazines are dedicated to page after page of must-try recipes, and we all lust after gorgeous designer kitchens. It’s fair to say that the British public is completely obsessed with food. Show us someone who doesn’t want to cook up a delicious feast like Nigella Lawson or Jamie Oliver, and we’ll show you someone who’s been living off baked beans for the last week.

If you’ve been bitten by the foodie bug, you are probably on the lookout for some top of the range catering equipment – especially if you’ve been using the same old stuff forever. However, with a whole host of must-have items on your list it can be difficult to know where to start. Don’t worry though, because we’ve picked out the best pieces of kitchen and catering equipment to help get you up and running.

1. A food mixer

Have you ever tried making a cake by hand? Yes – well you’ll know what we’re talking about. Sweat no longer – invest in a decent food mixer and you’ll be making cakes in no time. There are loads of models out there, from budget to top of the range. We love the Dualit hand mixer in black gloss. It’s a simple handheld device that looks gorgeous, does the business and won’t break the bank.

2. A good set of knives

Chopping fruit and veg with a blunt knife is a task no one wants to have to undertake. Invest in a good set of knives and they’ll be with you for years. Don’t forget to buy a serrated-edge knife for cutting things like tomatoes and a decent bread knife for cutting loaves. Quality knives will turn your kitchen chores into a dream – no more hacking at that Sunday roast! (Tip: a set of knives also makes a great present for a foodie dad).

3. A decent chopping board

There are loads of chopping boards on the market from plastic to wooden, and it can all depend on your personal preference as to which you go for. Buy different coloured plastic ones to differentiate what you’ll be cutting on them – veg – fruit – meat – fish - and so on. Or treat yourself to a butcher’s block if you really mean business.

4. A potato masher

Ever mashed a family of four’s worth of mashed potato with a fork? No? You don’t want to either. It will take you forever and you’ll be left with horribly lumpy mash. So don’t suffer – buy a potato masher. A decent one will stand you in good stead for years to come so if you want it to last, opt for a masher which doesn’t have a separate handle as all that mashing can easily make it loose. All-in-one silicone sturdy plastic or stainless steel ones are great.

5. A quality baking tray

Flimsy baking trays just don’t cut the mustard with us, so go for a decent thick one and it will help you out in all sorts of cooking situations. A roast chicken? Perfect. Chocolate chip cookies? Absolutely. So ditch that warped one and use a baking tray Gordon Ramsay would be proud of.

For any more pieces of catering equipment, check out LCEonline.

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Yeo Valley’s new cookbook and a rather fabulous souffléed egg and bacon tart

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Souffléed egg and bacon tart

Souffléed egg and bacon tart

I do love a new cookbook. My family would say I already own far too many (if they could speak, my many groaning bookshelves would possibly attest to this), but there’s something lovely about ripping open the cardboard to find someone’s much-loved and oft-cooked recipes, delightfully photographed and neatly bound for posterity, ready for sharing.

I always think this is especially true with a first time author like Sarah Mayor. I like to imagine that she, like me, has a huge file on a kitchen shelf, jammed with hand-written, sometimes sticky recipes (especially given her immaculately foodie heritage, being the daughter of the founders of Yeo Valley farming family; the Meads). I imagine what a thrill it must be to see that scrappy file transformed into a brand new, glossy cookery book.

The book is a wonderful testament to everything that Yeo Valley holds dear: local, organic, fresh and seasonal. As I flicked through, marking pages of recipes I’d like to try (I know, a terrible habit, but I’ve always done it): marmalade glazed gammon (poached in West Country cider), deep trout fish cake with lemon butter and chive sauce (you guessed it, there’s trout in Blagdon Lake, running alongside the farm), it became clear that this is not only a rather wonderful country cookbook, but an absolute celebration of how we should be living right now. Modern food at its best.

And right there, as the postie walked away from the house, I decided I had to have a go at one of the recipes: a puffy, golden souffléd egg and bacon tart: a proper British picnic staple.

And, oh, the tart: light as air, cheesy, dotted generously with bacon and with pastry crisp and snappy. We devoured it. Never mind that it was about three o’clock in the afternoon and I was idly wondering about saving it for tea, maybe serving with some little rosemary potatoes and a nice salad. No, we descended upon that poor tart and devoured it. I’m not proud, but there was actually some arguing over the last slice.

I’m thinking that this one might not make it far away from the kitchen. My groaning shelves will heave a sigh of relief.

The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook (Yeo Valley) by Sarah Mayor is out now, priced £20.00 RRP

Review: ‘Melt’ by Claire Kelsey: ice cream for grown ups

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Melt by Claire Kelsey

Melt by Claire Kelsey

So finally the sun is shining, and if you like tinkering in the kitchen, I think you’ll love this book.

Claire Kelsey’s a bit of a rising star as far as street food is concerned. Her beautifully refurbished retro ice cream van, ’Ginger’ has been gracing the trendiest festivals with her distinctly grown up ice creams, and now Claire has published a book with loads of her favourite, funky ice cream recipes.

The flavours move well away from plain old vanilla and sickly strawberry - in this gorgeous book you’ll find pea and mint sorbet, and marmalade on toast - a flavour that won ‘Best Dessert’ at the British Street Food Awards.

 

Garden mint and chocolate crisp ice cream

Garden mint and chocolate crisp ice cream

I had a go at recreating Claire’s garden mint and chocolate crisp ice cream. I love that her ice creams start with proper custard.

You may well balk at using 6 eggs and double cream in a recipe, but in my view this is just how ice cream should be, not full of emulsifiers and vegetable oil.

My garden mint was just springing up when I made it and wasn’t very strongly flavoured, but the finished ice cream was luscious and fresh tasting and the bit where you drizzle on the chocolate was great fun too. I don’t have an ice cream maker but Claire gives easy instructions and the result had a lovely, soft texture. I’ll be trying it again when my mint has grown up a bit!

Melt, by Claire Kelsey, published by Simon and Schuster is out now. RRP £18.99