Cherry Traybake

Sea breeze carrying smells from the restaurants nearby; the racket of seagulls and children all day; sunlight pouring over the wooden floors. This is my new flat and I love it. It's bigger and brighter than my previous living spaces, which makes up for the fact that it's also the noisiest place I've lived (but in a comforting, bustling kind of way).

After 3 years of tiny, dark kitchens, this one feels enormous by comparison (and has windows!) and I'm still learning my way around it. I couldn't wait long to pull out my baking stuff and christen the kitchen with sugar and butter, in the form of a sponge cake studded with cherry pieces and drizzled in icing.

The cake cuts into thin slices, with just a smidge of icing to ensure that sweet tooth is satisfied, but is light enough for almost guilt-free second helpings (or so I'm telling myself).

Cherry Traybake 

Adapted from a Mary Berry recipe.

A light cake dotted with cherry pieces, perfect for a summer afternoon tea. 



Cuts into 12 - 16 

Ingredients

• 100g glacé cherries
• 125g self raising flour
• 25g ground almonds
• 1 level tsp baking powder
• 100g butter
• 100g caster sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 100g icing sugar

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C/Fan 140C/Gas Mark 3. Grease and line a deep 20cm x 30cm baking tray.
2. Put 25g of the cherries aside. Chop the remaining 75g glacé cherries into quarters. Rinse under cold water to remove syrup and dry on kitchen paper.
3. Sift flour, almonds and baking powder into a large bowl. Add in the butter, caster sugar and eggs and beat with an electric whisk until combined.
4. Gently fold in the chopped and rinsed cherries. 
5. Pour the mixture into the baking tray and smooth over the top using the back of a spoon. Bake for 40-50 minutes (keeping an eye on it after half an hour) in the centre of the oven, until a skewer comes out clean and the top is golden brown.
6. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for ten minutes, then turn out and leave to cool completely.
7. For the topping, sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Add cold water, a spoon at a time, until a pourable consistency is reached. Drizzle over the cake. 
8. Chop the remaining glacé cherries into small pieces and scatter over the cake. Leave to set, then cut into pieces and serve. 

Bye Bye Southampton...

After spending the year in Southampton on work placement as part of my uni course, I'm now back in Plymouth ready (just about) for my final year. Our last night in Southampton was spent at our favourite place to eat, The Cowherds, located just minutes from where we were living at the edge of the Common. After a long day spent packing and cleaning, a delicious meal enjoyed outdoors was necessary.

We were accompanied by my mum and dad, who were down to help us with the move (it's scary how much stuff we've managed to accumulate and we're only 21!).

After sharing starters of fried calamari with spicy mayonnaise, chicken liver, pork and mushroom paté, and goat's cheese crostini, we indulged in mains from the wide selection offered by the country pub/restaurant.

Spanish chicken with chorizo and potatoes

Wild boar and chorizo burger

Lamb shoulder with dauphinoise potatoes

Handmade salmon and broccoli fishcakes with mixed salad

As usual, all the food was stunning and full of flavour - we've eaten here a few times while in Southampton and have always been impressed. With both incredible food and a gorgeous location, the Cowherds is perfect for a summer's evening meal. It'll definitely be a place I'll miss!

Barcelona!

Hola!

I've been super busy lately due to moving this month and popping home to catch up with family and friends. In between the madness, my best friend and I hopped on a plane and had a few days off in sunny Spain. While we planned to spend most of our time in Salou soaking up some rays by the pool or on the beach, cocktails in hand, after a couple of lazy days we couldn't resist the opportunity to get the train to Barcelona before flying home.

After figuring out the public transport and stocking up on hay fever tablets (I love Spain but it turns out it doesn't like me!), we arrived in Barcelona, ready to explore.

As we only had a few hours there and were oblivious to what was actually in the city, we wandered around narrow streets, getting distracted by each new one until we'd completely lost all sense of direction.

In need of refreshment we drifted through the market, in awe at the mountains of large colourful fruits, before deciding on passion fruit ice cream to head back into the sunshine with.

We didn't get chance to check out many of the sights of Barcelona, but I loved what I saw of the city and will definitely have to come back to discover more of it's hidden shops and try out lots more food!

Hope you're having a lovely summer!

Blues Bar and Grill, Plymouth

Being back in Plymouth for a few days while flat hunting, after not being here for over a year, would be a crime if we hadn't treated ourselves to a meal here. One of my favourite restaurants, the Bar and Grill is located down in the Barbican, the historic, quaint part of Plymouth next to the sea, and a bustling hotspot for food, drink and music. I fell in love with the tourist frequented part of Plymouth from my first visit. While my feelings for the rest of the city have waxed and waned during my first two years of university, the Barbican reminds me why I originally chose to move to Plymouth.

The Bar and Grill is slightly apart from the rows of restaurants and bars that line the length of the Barbican, next to the harbour. Inside awaits two floors - the main bar downstairs with tables and sofas, and a corner allocated to the night's music act. In the evening the upstairs is opened, extending the restaurant capacity.

The wood-panelled walls are adorned with photographs of blues legends - Billie Holiday, Robert Johnson, Stevie Ray Vaughan - complementary to the choice of music. There are also live acts playing most evenings, including regulars such as Vince Lee and Al Wallis (a.k.a The Wildcards), Jill Cole and Thomas Ford. My fiancé, having a huge love for blues music, is in heaven in this place, and being introduced to local musicians is definitely a highlight of living in Plymouth.

And now onto the most important part. The food is, quite simply, amazing. Everything I've tried here has never failed to impress (and believe me, that's a fair few meals). Lots of the dishes are American inspired (think Cajun spices and Tex Mex sides) and there is plenty to choose from - pasta dishes including huge homemade meatballs; nachos smothered in salsa, sour cream and guacamole; and seafood dishes making the most of the restaurant's fantastic location.

But the must-try part of the menu is the burgers.

Juicy, thick homemade burgers chargrilled to give an incredible smokey taste, served in buns with chips and quite possibly the best coleslaw I've ever had. And if that wasn't enough the burgers come with a variety of toppings to choose from.

On this occassion, Tom went for the bacon, cheese and barbecue burger.

I opted for a burger topped with a generous helping of perfectly spiced chilli and sour cream.

Much needed and appreciated after a day trawling through Plymouth looking for our new home for the year!

Baked Eggs and Tomatoes

So this is now officially my summer holiday, and I have time off since finishing placement last Friday. Well, if flat hunting subsequently followed by moving, writing my placement report and starting my dissertation work, as well as trying to get as much overtime at work as possible can be considered time off. But let's be honest, I'd be bored otherwise.

I thought I'd share a recipe I discovered a while back now and have made many times since - it's so easy as it's all made in one pan, can be as filling or as light as you like depending on what you have with it, and it's versatile as to what herbs/spices you fancy throwing in there. And it's vegetarian, so great for sharing amongst a group. 

The main ingredients are eggs, peppers, onions and a tin of tomatoes - I tend to have these in anyway as usually they're the base of almost everything I eat (also on my summer to-do list: try out new foodie things!). Add in a sprinkle of oregano, some paprika, chilli powder, parmesan - whatever you have to hand or are in the mood for. To satisfy meat cravings, fry some bacon pieces or a couple of sausages (skins removed and meat chopped) along with the onions. Chorizo would also be brilliant in this. 

If you're hungry, serve on top of a plate of pasta with garlic bread on the side. To enjoy it for lunch or as a lighter meal, make some couscous and salad to go with it. This would also make a good brunch with some warm, crusty bread. 

Baked Eggs and Tomatoes

Slightly spicy tomatoes are topped with eggs and cheese and baked in the oven - great for serving at any time of the day.


Serves 2

Ingredients

• 1 onion, sliced
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 red or yellow pepper, sliced into thin strips
• 1 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper powder (to taste)
• 4 large eggs
• Parmesan (Optional)
• 1-2 spring onions, chopped (Optional)
• Couscous or pasta, to serve
• Bread, to serve

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C/200C Fan oven.
2. Heat oil in a large frying pan. Add the onions, garlic and peppers and fry until softened. 
3. Tip in the tin of of tomatoes and add the oregano, paprika and cayenne (or herbs/spices of your choice to taste).
4. Bring to the boil then turn the heat down and leave to simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the tomatoes have cooked down and are less watery. 
5. Crack the eggs into the pan, evenly spacing them out. Sprinkle parmesan over each egg, and extra cayenne pepper if desired. 
6. Place the pan into the oven on the top shelf (watching out for the handle when you take it out again!)
7. Bake for around 10 minutes or so, until the eggs are cooked to your liking (I tend to do mine quite well done). A couple of minutes before the eggs are done, sprinkle the spring onion over the whole of the pan.

Scrubbin' Up

I popped into Superdrug yesterday to quickly grab some face products. Seeing that I had a bit of extra time to kill before starting work I ended up having a nosy around and came across these exfoliating body washes from their 'I love...' range. As I was running out of my mini Soap and Glory scrub (a fab product I got as a pressie) I thought I'd give these a try, especially as they were cheap and cheerful at 2 for £2.99 (£2.05 each).

I picked up the raspberry & blackberry and the coconut & cream ones. They also have them in strawberries & milkshake and mango & papaya varieties.

As with all bath products, the scent plays a big part in how nice I find it. The smell is quite subtle and not too overpowering or sweet, which I liked.

I could see through the packaging that it had little exfoliating beads in, rather than the rougher salt-type scrubs, so I assumed it would probably be quite a gentle product, which it turned out to be when I used it. If you're after a product that you could get away with using everyday as an all over shower gel for keeping your skin smooth this would be perfect - it's not too harsh at all so I couldn't imagine it would irritate skin easily.

Personally I prefer products that have a coarser texture - if I'm going to exfoliate I want to actually feel like I have afterwards, otherwise what's the point? I'll still be on the lookout for something else, but this isn't a bad product for the price, so will do to tide me over in the meantime. I'll just have to use it more often!

Have you come across any decent, reasonably priced body scrubs lately, or have a particular one you regularly use?

"every single night's a fight with my brain..."

This week has been a bit up and down, I'm in that weird sort of place where I'm ready to just go and get on with what's next, but I'm still not quite ready to leave things behind here. I've only got two weeks left of my work placement, it's hard to believe just how quickly this year has gone! After that I'll be moving back to Plymouth for the final year of my degree - part of me is quite excited to get stuck into the academic side of my course again, part of me is definitely not looking forward to the stress of it all.

I've loved this year in Southampton, the city is great and I've been very lucky to have worked with such lovely people while on placement, I have learnt such an incredible amount in all respects. So as much as I'm keen to get on with things, I'm not quite ready to leave just yet.

The things getting me through this week include white chocolate chip cookies, whipped up due to feeling particularly lacklustre by the end of Thursday.



Safe to say I felt much better after having a couple of these squidgy, syrupy cookies with a cup of tea, while listening to Fiona Apple's latest after seven years.

Her album has been available for streaming over on npr.org before it's release this week  - if you're a fan of her previous stuff I recommend a listen. It's similar to what she's done before but there are some pretty great songs, my faves at the minute being 'Hot Knife', "Werewolf" and the first single "Every Single Night". The beautifully bizarre video for it can be found here.

A film night was also in order so we went to see Promethesus last night. Now, I only recently watched Alien (yeah, I admit a bit behind!) so I didn't really have any expectations for this film or anything. I thought it was brilliant, even though I didn't really have any idea what was going off, though I get the feeling there isn't actually a reason for all the stuff that goes off (but please enlighten me if there is!). The suspense of the film was very good and Noomi Rapace is brilliant in the lead role. I was looking forward to seeing her performance as I loved her in the Swedish "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo".

We saw it in 3D which I was initially sceptical about as the last time I saw a 3D version it was rubbish. Promethesus has actually been filmed for 3D though, rather than just edited later, meaning the effect actually adds something, rather than being annoying. And I can totally rock the glasses, haha.

To round off the weekend I made a big pot of chilli. I try and improve this every time I make it - tonight I added a big splodge (technical term) of barbecue sauce and a heaped teaspoon of cocoa powder which seems to make the sauce that bit richer and flavourful.

I served it with rice, spinach and a generous topping of mature cheddar - yum!