Week 30 – some much needed rest

When I look back over my recent meal planning blog posts, I realise why I am feeling a touch knackered. Since the end of May we’ve had so much on; and whilst it has all been wonderful (concerts, nights out, posh meals, birthday celebrations, weekends away etc) I definitely feel like it has caught up […]

Jewelled Persian rice with pomegranates, walnuts and parsley

A while ago I was contacted by the chaps at Amira rice, asking if I’d like to receive a few recipes and some samples of their rice to try. I said yes, not expecting to receive a large box filled with portioned containers of each ingredient I would need to make one of their recipes: […]

The Slug & Lettuce is 30 – review

Chances are if you take a wander along most high streets, you’ll see a Slug & Lettuce pub somewhere – they have 80 bars spread across the UK, and I just discovered that the pub chain has reached its 30th birthday this year. To celebrate, they invited me to my local S&L for a review. […]

Weeks 28 & 29 – birthday in Rome, with Anthony Bourdain’s favourite restaurant

My meal planning hasn’t really been particularly noteworthy over the last two weeks as we have been away for a birthday trip to Rome, and Andrew has also been away for a few days in Wales to continue his birthday celebrations (will they ever end?!). I am just about to leave the house to meet […]

40th birthday cake – drunken Welsh dragon vanilla cake

Yes, you did read that correctly: I made a 40th birthday cake of vanilla sponge and it was decorated with a drunken Welsh dragon. Sound strange? Well, it actually was completely suitable for Andrew: it was his 40th birthday, he is Welsh, and he loves getting drunk, so voila! Actually I can’t take credit for the […]

Healthy (kind of!) wholemeal pizza

I thought this pizza was going to be super healthy, mainly due to the fact that I made the base with wholemeal flour. It turns out it’s not that healthy after all, coming in at just under 1,000 calories per pizza. However, it’s a HUGE pizza, and much nicer than supermarket versions (or even Pizza […]

Week 27 – meeting Rachel Allen and coping with a hangover

This is going to be a short post as I am feeling tired and hungover after Andrew’s birthday celebrations last night (his actual birthday is next weekend but he had a party last night, for which I made this amazing – even if I do say so myself – cake!). As you can imagine, the […]

Cookbook challenge – The Sopranos Family Cookbook: Braciole

Andrew and I have always loved cuddling up on the sofa to watch a tv show or film, usually with a cat or four on our laps demanding our attention. In the olden days when Netflix and Amazon Prime didn’t exist and we had to watch DVDs (yes, I do also remember VHS), Andrew and […]

Week 26 – looking forward to the calm before the 40th birthday storm

My birthday celebrations have been brilliant, but carried on longer than expected. This week we have a brief break from birthdays before starting the celebrations for Andrew’s 40th, which will include a birthday party and trip to Rome (mmmm, pasta and tirumisu). I am very much looking forward to a rest as we’ve both felt like […]

G is for Ghana – Sweet Handz

For our most recent Alphabet Adventure, the girls and decided to be brave and truly adventurous and try a cuisine which was unfamiliar to us all – Ghanaian food. We invited our honorary member Jane (who last joined us in Denmark) and booked a table at Sweet Handz in Holloway Road, North London. The restaurant was […]