What a weasel eats on its birthday…

Tags

birthday, birthday cake, breakfast, cake, chicken, coconut, fry up, hemma, holyrood 9a, mimis bakehouse, nobles

It happens to us all, we all get older, ok?! And as more than one of my friends pointed out – if you’re not getting older, you’re most likely dead. These are the kind of people I choose to spend my time with.

In a futile attempt to stop the aging process/conduct a scientific experiment that would freeze the ages of my cells with alcohol (with absolutely zero scientific basis)/get so drunk I didn’t remember I was turning a year older…off I trotted to Hemma and Holyrood 9a with my lovely pals. Many pints of Black Isle blonde were consumed, as were copious amounts of Innis and Gunn, and a delightful evening was had by all. I even got a little surprise, baked by the fair hands of my super thoughtful boyfy, Rob…

Man, that boy bakes good cake.

To clear away the cobwebs it was entirely necessary to head to Nobles and eat my body weight in fried foodstuffs the next day.

Quite possibly one of the best fry ups to be had in Edinburgh, and served until 5pm, luckily.
Heading to work on Monday you’d think I’d be a little sad the festivities were over…but no birthday would be complete without a copy team outing to Mimi’s Bakehouse!

The crispy coconut chicken with tangy mango salsa is a summer menu treat, but the real main event came after…

A generous slice of Bounty sponge cake, which I was so ready to devour I forgot to take a photograph before I stuck in. We voted it a ten out of ten.

All in all a pretty outstanding birthday. BIG SHOUT OUTS to my brother Mark for making it so special with banners and bubbly, to Rob for his phenomenal cake making and to all the lovely people who came to celebrate the fact I’m still alive – yay!

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Super simple prawn stir-fry

Tags

bok choi, chillies, chinese, dinner, recipe, sesame oil, soy sauce, stir fry

Sometimes it’s a real effort to make anything from scratch – particularly after a long day at work. Check out this quick and easy stir fry that takes minimum effort but gives maximum taste, and is perfect for a midweek dinner. And I love sesame oil…

What you’ll need…

(serves 2)

180g cooked king prawns

1 bok choi cabbage, chopped

2 portobello mushrooms, chopped

2-3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 red chilli, chopped

300g straight to wok noodles

2 tablespoons sesame oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Black pepper

How to make it…

1. First fry the garlic in the sesame oil for a minute or so, then add the chilli and fry for another minute.

2. Throw the mushrooms and bok choi into the pan and stir fry for another few minutes until they soften.

3. Next, add the prawns and stir for around 30 seconds until they are warm through.

4. Then add the noodles and mix together for a further two minutes.

5. Finally, add the soy sauce and stir in, then serve with a grind of black pepper.

The garlic is a great immune booster, while chilli will help clear out any sniffles, and in small doses prawns are excellent sources of vitamin B12, zinc, selenium and omega-3 fatty acids.

In other news, I am going to “A Curious Evening of Chocolate and Beer with Edward & Irwyn and Innis & Gunn” very soon and I can’t bloomin’ wait!

Beer AND chocolate, I think I am about to reach my nirvana…

Taste cancelled…brought back down to Earthy

Tags

cake, Cooking, Earthy, edinburgh, flat white, Home, leith, Saturday

“I don’t quite know how to tell you this, Louise…”

That was how my boyfriend Rob prefaced the news that Taste of Edinburgh food festival had been cancelled. At that point only the Saturday sessions were cancelled. My disappointed face came out and moped around a little. Then the entire Taste weekend was cancelled and my disappointed face got even more disappointed and I moped around some more.

But what was I going to EAT all weekend? Luckily Rob gathered my sorry little self up and off we went to Earthy at Canonmills for a spot of lunch.

I bloomin’ love Earthy in Portobello and the small section of shop in Earthy Canonmills has the same vibe going on – fresh, local, healthy, organic produce for the health conscious foodie.

With my stomach already set to indulge in preparation for Taste, I was ready to bury my sorrows under mountains of cake. The rain, however, had other ideas. As if drowning Taste wasn’t enough, it turned out the kitchen in Earthy had been flooded – which the furiously flowing waters of the Water of Leith outside the window further attested to – so no food was being served.

We didn’t get lunch, but there was a small selection of cakes to choose from. I went for a raspberry and white chocolate cake, while Rob had a lemon and rosemary cake.

The presentation was…interesting, although I couldn’t really fault the waitress’ cheeriness despite the downpour outside. In fact all the staff were very upbeat and lovely.

My flat white ticked all the boxes but the cake didn’t really satisfy me (possibly a lingering effect of my indulge setting), it just tasted kind of…healthy. I understand it was probably made with the most wholesome organic flour/sugar/eggs money can buy, but it just seemed to be lacking something. Cake should be moreish, rich, and you should feel a bit naughty when you’re eating it.

What Earthy does have going for it is atmosphere. From the quirky low hanging lightbulbs that pepper the ceiling, to the heavy wooden furniture, Earthy Canonmills has a charming, welcoming feel to the place.

I’m definitely going to go back to Earthy and give it a second bash because I’ve heard only good things about the place. Might just have to wait for it to stop raining…

Plan for Taste next year? Go to the Friday session 🙂

 

 

 

Looking Glass cafe and bookshop

Tags

bookshop, brownie, cafe, cake, Carrot cake, edinburgh, flat white, Looking Glass, Macaroon, Muffin, Peter, Quartermile, Starbucks

Looking Glass cafe and bookshop is the newest addition to the spangly, glass-fronted Quartermile and on Sunday I popped in for a cake (or two!) and a cuppa.

The cafe is tucked away behind Starbucks and Peter’s Yard, and perhaps for this reason we didn’t have to fight to get a seat or a table in Looking Glass – although the two big comfy sofas were already taken. The atmosphere was pretty laid back and I found myself distracted by a) the lush looking selection of cakes on the counter and b) the rows and rows of pretty books.

The cake selection was adequate although not particularly breath-taking, with the cafe staples – scones, carrot cake, cupcakes and flapjacks. I opted for a nutty chocolate brownie AND chocolate and coconut macaroon (in my defense the macaroon wasn’t that big…) and a flat white. The macaroon and coffee were delicious, although the brownie was rather average.

After scoffing the cakes I weaseled my way around the book selection which was small but perfectly formed, and I was pleased to see a section dedicated to Scottish fiction. The tables were a little small for the three of us, but I’ll head to Looking Glass again for some quiet time – to curl up with a good book and to treat myself to a macaroon…or three.