Trip Down South

(photo taken down a little hidden footpath in Orford)

I have spent the last few days down south in Suffolk with my Nana. As usual it took me a day or so to adjust to the pace of life down there. It is a world apart from the hustle and bustle of city living, and i nearly went mad at first, but i eventually grew to quite enjoy it. We went to some lovely walks by rivers and on the coast, and ate some pretty wonderful food too. As we walked along the river on Thursday my Nana told me about when she had been 4, playing in that same river with her brothers and Dad (my Great Grandfather), and the air raid sirens had gone off. Can you imagine?? She said they had to cross the river and find a cove to hide out in. It was amazing how much detail she remembered from that day. It made looking at the peaceful river seem completely different. Will put up a few more snaps from the trip throughout the week, for now it's back to work. 

Exam Weather

Luckily, the degree i have chosen to do does not end each academic year with headache inducing exams. This is brilliant news. Firstly, because i am horrible at exams. I have no talent for storing useless information, equations, quotations and so on, only to regurgitate them, then inevitably forget them. Secondly, if i had exams to revise for, i wouldn't have been able to enjoy the stunning weather we've had over the weekend. Every year without fail, for as long as i can remember, there has been a few days of glorious sunshine and warmth, that arrive just as you should be locking yourself away to bury your head in a textbook. Exam weather has become infamous.

Having said that, i can't quite throw caution to the wind and dig out the string vest just yet. The term has just ended but this Easter holiday is going to be spent mostly whipping my portfolio into shape for the end of year hand in on the 12th of May, and getting on with the last brief of the year (more on that to follow soon). I just hope there might be a few sunny afternoons that coincide with portfolio work breaks.

Pea, Lettuce & Tarragon Soup

This is how i contributed to my family's Easter Sunday lunch. Whilst my Dad was working away at getting a fairly impressive main course of Roast lamb with garlic and rosemary, greens and celariac ready, i whipped up this ridiculously easy starter. It was perfect because it was so light and fresh tasting, you still had loads of room for the main event.

Ingredients:

Serves 6

40g Butter

6 Spring Onions, chopped

675g frozen peas

Leaves from 4 fresh Tarragon sprigs

225g Romaine Lettuce, finely shredded

1 litre fresh Vegetable Stock

2 tbsp Creme Fraiche

Watercress Sprigs, to garnish

Method:

1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add onions and cook for 2 mins. Stir in three quarters of the peas, half the tarragon and all the lettuce. Cook for 1 minute. Add the stock, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

2. Whizz the soup in a blender with the remaining tarragon until smooth. Pass through a fine seive into a clean saucepan. Stir in the rest of the peas and simmer gently for 5 mins.

3. Divide the soup between bowls, swirl in the creme fraiche and garnish with watercress. Would be v. tasty served with crusty fresh bread.

Easter Weekend

Happy Easter Weekend! In the spirit of things i made a batch of wheat-free cupcakes with chocolate eggs on top. I wasn't up to the challenge of 'designer buttercream' but i think they do the job quite nicely. I went to a fairly major famers' market this morning and took full advantage of the samples they were handing out. The photos will appear some time on Monday once i get back to the flat and have time to sort through them.

Enjoy the nice (ish) weather and don't eat too much chocolate.

Easter Food

Not being a particularly religious family, we tend not to celebrate Easter in a big way these days. Especially now that my brother an i are seen to be past the acceptable age for easter egg hunts and over indulging on vast amounts of chocolate. We do however enjoy any excuse for a well put together meal. Below is my ideal Easter Sunday meal, topped off with an imaginative take on the tradition chocolate egg/bunny.

To Start: Pea, Mint & Spring Onion Soup with Parmesan biscuits. It looks such a fantastic colour (and is probably tasty too).

To Follow: Roast Lamb studded with Rosemary and Garlic. We made something similar last year and it went down a treat so i'd be more than happy to have it again. Would be nice with some little new potatoes and wilted spinach.

To finish off, instead of a pud, i'd go for one of these Vosges Chocolate bunnies. There are loads of really interesting flavour combinations, this one being my favourite. It's white chocolate with Amalfi lemon zest and pink peppercorns. It's a steal at $12 (an American company) but i imagine they would get you on shipping costs and i suppose you can't be entirely confident of it arriving in one piece.

So that is my ideal Easter feast. I'd put the kitchen table in the conservatory at home with a nice table cloth, and have lots of little lanterns like the ones below, round the room. There would be a glass vase filled with daoffodils