Sunday, 13 February 2011

Valentines treats for your food lover

Is your lover a food lover?

Here are a few treats to bestow upon them this Valentines Day:

How cute is this salt gift set.  It contains Hawaiian Black Lava, Hawaiian Pink Sea, Himalayan Pink , and Fleur de Sel…and two are pink in colour as well – the perfect thing to add some flavour to your Valentines Day.

The Heart Collection from Le Creuset is the perfect way to serve your Valentine their special meal.


This is an adorable way to make a heart shaped omelette or pancakes for a romantic breakfast with your lover…

Wishing you and your Valentine a delicious day!

ax

Thursday, 10 February 2011

Awkward and Awesome Thursday - a taste of...

One of my favorite bloggers is the adorable hilarious and fantabulous Sydney from The Daybook  
She does this awesome feature on Thursdays – Awkward and Awesome…which is basically a list of things that are sort of ‘whoopsie’ moments, and a list of things which are highlights and more ‘yay’ moments.  After reading every week without fail I find myself laughing, and wanting to high five her, and thinking ‘oh my goodness that happened to me too.'  Then I thought, hey?! I have awkward and awesome moments, and LOTS of them are kitchen (or are at least food based).  So! Here you have it! My very first Sydney inspired Awkward and Awesome Thursday – a taste of…

Awkward:
Posting a million times this week after another hiatus…I need to get better at regular posting!
Trying to get fancy when cooking for my nephew. He’s 14 months…and doesn’t care.
Getting waaay to invested in MasterChef New Zealand – in the first episode.
Being kind of over excited about my new kitchen organization overload….I went to TOWN on my cupboards last week…and literally felt like a kid on Christmas morning

Awesome:
My totally kick butt beef roast from Sunday – almost perfect meat, and amazing gravy…the rest? Just a bonus as far as I was concerned.
Seeing a great friend for said roast – sharing food with long lost buddies is the best way to catch up!
Using my bamboo steamer a million times (well twice) this week and having delicious salmon and chicken come out of it…go steamed food!
Finally having an arrival date for my KichenAid mixer (a whole post dedicated to its beauty will come next week) – I have waited over half my life for this moment!

That’s the first of hopefully many editions.  Thanks to Sydney for her hilarious awkwardness, and always awesomeness!

ax

Wednesday, 9 February 2011

AdoRE!

I stumbled upon this website when I was looking for a glass cover for my cake stand…while I didn’t find that I found a ton more treasures for my kitchen…

Here are some of my fav’s

How cute are these for labelling different flours, sugars, candies and other treats? A fab way to spice up your house for Valentines day too!

I love the abstract nature of these plates…a peek into what the full picture is on each plate.  A lobster puzzle!


This wire heart trivet is so adorable and functional, and is small enough that I can leave it on my counter all the time. Which is perfect for me, as its often I forget to get one out when my kitchen timer goes!


I also am in love with these vintage baking trays! Perfect for little cakes and madeleines – and such an easy way to have a little vintage in your kitchen


http://www.re-foundobjects.com/product/view/41?cat=27

This post could probably go on until I have all their gorgeous stuff listed here. So I’ll leave you with my current 'must have'

They have vintage American green milk glass cake plates, citrus press, pitcher and tumblers – and while I know its ages before the picnic table in our garden is used I cant wait to have mojitos and Pimms in the pitcher and fairy cakes on the cake plates. This has Easter written all over it!



The shop is owned by a couple of ex-fashion designers who decided to use their shopping skills, and eye for design to set up shop in Corbridge.  The website is for all of us who can’t make it there (although I’m trying to figure out a way to get my husband to take me).  There are new goodies online often and I find myself REvisiting often.

I hope you enjoy checking out the treasures they have as much as I do!

ax

My Big Adventure

Like any food obsessed person I spend more time than probably appropriate watching food related shows on telly and drooling over the creations, equipment and general fabulousness of the world of television food. I used to cook in my kitchen as a child speaking aloud to no one in particular, explaining step-by-step directions of my masterpieces. Yes, I used to pretend I was on telly as a child...and looking back it's a bit embarrassing - but at the time? I was the star of my own show.

Here’s a belated story about my food television debut:

When I came back to the UK after a hiatus last January and Market Kitchen had an announcement about needing audience members I sent an email with my 'food story' off and waited for my moment to shine.  Almost 12 months later (an admittedly forgetting I had sent that email all those months ago) I received an email asking me to be part of the Market Kitchen Christmas Adventure.  To say I was excited would be an understatement...starting A taste of...and being on a food show all in the span of 7 days? Amazing! So I convinced my darling husband to come along and crossed my fingers there would be some fabulous food created on the show (which was inevitable really).

We showed up in the morning (me bursting with excitement, the hubs? Starting to get hungry) and waited to go up to the sound stage.  Everyone there was so lovely – constantly checking in and offering hot drinks and snacks…such a hospitable bunch!

Then the moment came, and we were taken upstairs to the set of the show I had spent so many hours watching at home was in front of me in real life.  People bustling around, talking into headsets and the smell of food (more specifically pancetta) took over and I grabbed a seat and prepared to watch the magic!

Matt Trebett and Aldo Zilli were the Chefs of the day, with the location being Edinburgh.  Matt kicked things off with a delicious brussel sprout and pancetta side (cream, white wine and thinly shaved brussels) recipe here.  I do something quite similar to this with savoy cabbage, but being a lover of the brussel sprout I am excited about trying this version! Where Aldo decided to do a roast goose which was absolutely gorgeous and super helpful as in a short time I’d be cooking my very first one for my very first Christmas with my in-laws.

We got to sample a Clootie dumpling as well – a traditional steamed pudding from Edinburgh – which looks like it could sink a small ship, but in actual fact is really light and airy.

We drank lots of bubbles and ate fabulous food.  All in all? A great day.

Thanks you Market Kitchen Big Adventure for making my television dreams come true!

ax