Sunday, August 24, 2014

Travel Photo Diary | Part 1...

Ben and I have just got back from 5 weeks travelling around Dubai, Thailand and Vietnam (if you follow my Twitter or Instagram you may have seen my regular updates). Throughout the year we've spent a long time planning and saving for this trip and it seemed like we were waiting forever for Sunday 13th July to roll around. But, it finally did and it was hands down the best trip I have ever been on - I've been back almost a week now and I'm already desperate to jet off to Asia again!
We took endless photos and videos when we were out there on my Canon EOS M and our GoPro so I thought I'd put a selection of my favourite on here. Typically, I got snap happy so I'm going to split this photo diary into two...

Share:

Sunday, August 10, 2014

White Chocolate Mousses...

I was at my Nan's a little while back, casually flicking through the pile of recipe leaflets she likes to keep for a rainy day and stumbled upon one by the baking legend that is Mary Berry. I'm not ashamed to admit that whenever there's a new series of The Great British Bake Off on, you'll find me glued to the TV pondering why my Victoria Sponge never seems to rise quite like it's supposed to. 

Whilst thumbing the pages of the freebie leaflet, one particular recipe caught my eye: White Chocolate Mousses. I instantly wanted to try making these little beauties but had to wait for a reason to make them. That finally came a few weeks ago when the family came to visit. The best thing about these is they don't require any cooking and can be made up to 12 hours in advance!

To make 6 of these indulgently chocolatey mousses you'll need:
- 40g plain chocolate
- 75g of Hobnobs
- 225g strawberries
- 200g of 100% Belgian white chocolate
- 200g full-fat cream cheese
- 200g full-fat creme fraiche

1. Melt the plain chocolate over a pan of simmering water
2. Add the coarsely crushed biscuits to the melted chocolate
3. Use a metal spoon to press the mixture into the bottom of the rings/ramekins - allow to set in the fridge
4. For the mousse, melt the white chocolate in the same way as the plain chocolate, stir until smooth then set aside to cool and firm up
5. Add the cream cheese and creme fraiche, mix until smooth
6. Neatly arrange the thinly sliced strawberries up the side of the rings/ramekins - spoon the mixture onto the biscuit bases
7. Chill until firm or cover and chill for 12 hours over night

If you love chocolate then you have to give these a go - let me know if you do!
Share:

Sunday, August 03, 2014

The Breakfast Post | #4...

If you ever find yourself in the Tottenham Court Road area and in need of brunch, Gail's Kitchen is a must. We decided to try the "kitchen" but the food in the adjacent Gail's Artisan Bakery looked so deliciously tempting we almost didn't make it through the door to the restaurant side.

When the waitress brought the menu over she explained what 'Shakshuka' was as from the name and description it isn't particularly obvious. She obviously sold it really well as that's what I opted for!

Like last month's breakfast, I ended up with a bit of a quirky dish. When our food arrived, the first thing Ben commented on was the fact mine looked like I'd ordered a lasagne. Yes, it may look like that and not resemble breakfast/brunch but this rich, eggy, tomatoey, cheesy dish tasted heavenly! I personally love feta so this was right up my street; eggs baked over a tomato and pepper sauce with a generous grating of feta - what more could you want?

Ben decided to go for a dish of fried duck egg, chorizo and roasted potatoes, topped with tomato butter. According to him, the egg was expertly cooked, and the rich tomato sauce was a perfect accompaniment.

It's definitely a place we're looking forward to going back to!


Share:
© As A Blonde. | All rights reserved.
Blog Design Handcrafted by pipdig