You know how the saying goes....when life gives you lemons! This simple, very tasty lemonade recipe is so super quick to make and perfect for this weather that we've been having! We took some to the picnic we had today :) Ingredients 3 unwaxed lemons 140g caster sugar 1 litre of water
Method to the madness Roughly chop up the lemons and de-seed.
Chuck the lemons, sugar and half the water in a food processor. Whizzy whiz whiz for about 5mins.
Pour the mixture through a sieve into a bowl and press through as much juice as you can with a spoon. Repeat a couple of times just to make sure all the pulp is removed from the juice. Top up with the remaining water and serve.
Clean Bandit blared into my eardrums a couple of months ago, I first mentioned them in my January Favourites and I haven't stopped loving them since. They have a amazing mix of classic, electro with a dash of pop thrown
in.
Imagine my delight when we managed to get a couple of tickets in a ballot to a special, intimate gig - which considering they are playing the big festival circuit this year is a big deal.
We followed the signs to a warehouse type venue in Hackney called The Laundry and grabbed ourselves a couple of very overpriced drinks and settled in by a column to give us a little bit more space to dance.
The cheers started as they took to the stage and off they went! They played all the songs I knew like Mozart's House, Rather Be, and A+E. They played their new single and also covered Wildfire by SBTRKT and Show Me Love by Robin S.
It was a brilliant night and so fantastic to be in such a little venue hearing the songs I've been singing in my kitchen for weeks!
If you haven't already give them a listen, they are going to be huge.
Preheat
the oven to 180°C. Grab a loaf pan and lightly grease.
Combine
the poppy seeds and milk in a bowl and set aside for 15 minutes.
Add
all the ingredients to an electric mixer. Beat on high for 5 minutes until the
mixture is pale and thick.
Pour into your greased pan
Bake in the oven for
40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Turn
onto a wire rack to cool.
Meanwhile,
melt the remaining butter and place in a bowl with the icing sugar and lemon
juice. Beat with an electric beater until smooth, then drizzle over the cake.
I can finally
talk about my very good news! About a month ago I went and landed myself a
brand new shiny job and after working out my notice I have left my old job,
which although is quite sad as I have been there for 3 years and made some
great friends, I am going to something that I will absolutely adore!
I am moving on
to a role in Events, Admissions and Marketing at a girls school and I am very
excited as events/events planning is something that I have been trying to get
into for a couple of years now but you know the old Catch 22 - if you don't
have the experience etc etc. But I have managed to get a foot in the door and
with it a chance to gain some knowledge. It's more money and more holidays as
well which is always a bonus!
I start on the
17th so in the meantime I have a week off work to pour over some cookbooks and
some find some recipes to cook and show you....
It'll also be
so nice to get out and see some of London, do some cooking and spend some time
with friends. It's rare just to have some time off to get some things
done....although no doubt I will just sleep and sit in front of the TV!
Hi there everyone! It’s time for my February Favourites!
Woo!
Isn’t it crazy that February is over with, time goes so very
quickly when you are having fun. Without further ado let’s jump right in!
Website
My website of the month is the incredibly humbling www.52-lives.org. The aim of
the website is to help somebody once a week for a year. You can nominate
somebody to get picked for the week and the site then appeal for volunteers to
help out. It is so very heart-warming and the kind of idea that I love.
Music
As always it is hard to pick a favourite song of the month
but I have listened to this new track by Sam Smith non-stop since I first heard
it so I think it deserves a mention:
Another favourite of mine is Dance with Me by LE YOUTH which
includes a brilliant sample of No Scrubs by TLC
Book
I have finally got round to reading this book, it’s always
so hard to read my own stuff when I’m swatting up on all my nineteenth century
literature but I managed to grab a weekend and devoured this book. The twists
and turns are brilliant and you change sides throughout. A must read.
Food/Drink I may have mentioned before but I don’t really like hot
drink. I HATE COFFEE. Tea is ok and I only really like Hot Chocolate if whipped
cream is involved. BUT I have found my drink! We went to Leigh’s parents over
the weekend and his mother didn't like this so I gave it a try and I love it. Chai Tea Latte! All the froth without the coffee. It’s spiced yumminess that
perhaps is better in the winter months but I might just drink it all year
round.
Fashion
I've made a few fashion purchases this month (when don’t I?)
but not enough for a haul so instead they are being dropped in here, because I
just love clothes.
EVERYTHING IS AWESOME! If you don’t know what I am talking
about then you haven’t seen The Lego Movie, and if you haven’t seen The Lego Movie
you are wasting vital time by not going to see it. Leigh wanted to go and I
went along to keep him company but I thought it was hilarious and laughed more
than the children in the cinema. Surprisingly the cinema consisted of about 30%
kids and 70% adults!
We might have also bought The Lego Movie game to play,
because EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!
Random
My random favourite of the month are these 2 cookbooks which
I bought from Amazon. It does say for students, but in my mind that just means
cheap good food. There’s tons of recipes including one for cheese and ham puff bites and another
delicious sounding one for Coconut and Lime Icecream. I got the Vegetarian one and the Standard as
I’m always on the look out for new recipes.
I hope you have enjoyed my February Favourites, let me know what your favourites are this month in the comments below. The light is
hanging around in the evening and it’s starting to get a bit warmer so dare I
say it spring is on its way!
If you are a regular follower then you will know that I am a fan of broths instead of thick soup. With that in mind with lots of cold and sniffles going around what better
than a little chicken broth to make you feel tip top. It's so simple to make
and tastes lush.
Ingredients
2 onions, peeled and sliced 2 sticks celery, finely chopped 2 carrots, peeled and finely diced 25g plain flour 55g butter 1.2 litres chicken stock 1tsp of ginger 500g cooked chicken, skinned and shredded 1 tbsp freshly chopped spinach salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method to the
madness
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat
and gently fry the onions, celery and carrots until they start to soften.
Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chicken
stock and bring the mixture to the boil, stirring as you do so. Season, to
taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then reduce the heat until
the mixture is simmering and simmer for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are
tender.
Add the cooked chicken and cook until heated through.
Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
