Baking mad!

I love to bake. If it didn't make me bankrupt and obese I would probably bake every single day! I try to control myself but with my boyfriend's family paying a visit at the weekend I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to do some baking.

My joints are all a bit poorly sick at the moment so I enlisted the help of the boyfriend to help with the mixing/wielding my ancient 80's electric mixer. We decided to do lemon cupcakes as they go down well with everyone!

What you'll need for 12 large cupcakes - we did double this and it made 28!

125g caster sugar
125g softened butter - MUST be softened
2 eggs
zest of 1 lemon
125g self raising flour
2tbsp milk

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C.
1. Using an electric mixer (or a whisk if you are feeling masochistic) beat your butter until it is really soft. Then add your sugar and cream together until very light and fluffy (the fluffier you make it the more they will rise).
2. Add in your beaten eggs a bit at a time and combine well making sure it is still very light and fluffy.
3. Chuck your lemon zest in and whisk some more.
4. Add half the (sifted) flour and fold in with a metal spoon. Add the rest of the flour and the milk and fold in. Be really gentle doing this as you don't want to knock the air out.
5. Pop your mixture into some paper or silicone cases (don't fill all the way up - they will rise a lot!) and bake for 12 minutes or until light golden and springy to the touch.

You can eat them just like that but I like some icing on mine so here is a quick recipe for a lemon buttercream icing:

Beat 75g softened butter until really soft then add 125g sifted icing sugar and whisk together. Add the zest of a lemon and 2-3 tsp of fresh lemon juice, also put in any food colouring you want now. Beat together and then just keep adding lemon juice until you have a nice spreadable mix.
Pipe or spoon it onto your cupcakes and you're done!

Here are mine:

They went down a treat! I plan on making lots more lovely baked goods as my boyfriends very sweet mum bought me the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook so I am well on my way to obesity!

Welcome to my Soul Kitchen!

I'm afraid I couldn't do a post without a music reference....sorry! 


So I love to cook, I cooked a bit at home but it is since leaving home 3 years ago I have really started having fun with it. The boyfriend and I cook a delicious home-cooked meal every day - it's not a huge hassle so I thought I would give you a recipe for a very quick, healthy and gorgeous dinner! The recipe is Pea and Mint Soup and it will be ready in half an hour.


What you'll need for 4 portions:


- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 3 sticks celery, chopped fairly finely
- 1-2 large potatoes, in small cubes
- frozen peas
- chicken/vegetable stock
- several mint leaves (3-6)


1. Pop your onion, celery and potato in a pan and sweat gently in a little oil for 5 mins. Add the garlic, cook for another 2 mins and then pour over stock to cover.
2. Leave to bubble away (covered with lid) for about 10 minutes and then test a piece of potato to see if its cooked - if you cut it quite small it should be done in 10-15 mins. Once it is pour in your frozen peas (lots - sorry for not measuring them, I just do it by eye, but you want quite a lot - probably about 500g) and bring up to the boil again.
3. Let the peas cook for about 3 minutes and then chuck in about 3 mint leaves and blend (using a hand blender or a liquidizer) until nearly smooth. Taste, add more mint if needed (don't want it too minty - you don't want to drink toothpaste!) and season with salt and pepper, making sure to slightly underseason with the salt.
4. Blend until completely smooth and enjoy!


The way I have it is with a rasher of streaky bacon crisped up and sprinkled on top - this is why you don't add too much salt. 
It should take less than half an hour and is delicious and super healthy plus you'll probably have most of the ingredients lying around anyway!


Here's mine!

Hope you like it!

London's Burning

I know, I know. Another post about the riots. But i'm not gonna do that! They are horrible and scary but they have reminded me of an awesome band and one of my favourite albums. So while everyone talks about serious things and doom and gloom I am going to wang on about music.
I am of course talking about The Clash! "London's Burning" was a track on their debut self-titled album released way back in 1977, but that isn't the album I want to talk about. I want to talk about "London Calling" - probably their most famous album. This was their 3rd album, released in 1979 and was quite a different style - a lot more reggae and ska with a hint of jazz too! 


It is almost impossible for me to choose fave tracks as the whole album is brilliant but i'll give it a go, i'll give you a top 5 and chat about my top 3. I've stuck the youtube links up too so you can have a listen.
5. Hateful (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhcq5pEv3xw)
4. I'm Not Down (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyUsJWO-7jM)
3. Lost in the Supermarket (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsrEAWcAvRg)
2. The Guns of Brixton (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqcizZebcaU)
1. Spanish Bombs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ertt3o1x65c)


So "Hateful" is about drugs, i'm not a huge fan of drugs but I am a huge fan of the song. So listen to this song and don't do drugs kids! "I'm Not Down" kicks butt. It's about not giving up, not bowing down to pressures, and maybe you haven't faced the worse yet but you can and you'll cope. This is an awesome song to listen to if you are feeling a bit rubbish/like you can't cope!


Lost in the Supermarket: this is a slow song compared to most of the album and features Mick Jones on vocals although it was written by Joe Strummer, it is one of the only tracks on the album to feature Jones on vocals. It is about someone struggling to come to terms with the changing world, the increased commercialisation and the consumerist nature that became more and more prevalent in the late 70's. This theme of youth disillusionment is common throughout the songs of The Clash and many of their contemporaries. It is this theme which makes the music still relevant today as disillusionment is as relevant for teens today as it was in the 80's. 


The Guns of Brixton: ah....memories of being an angsty 15 year old listening to this (if I ever turned Nirvana off for long enough to listen to something else!). This song feels particularly relevant right now, it came before the race riots of the 80's but it sums up the feelings of the residents in the run up to the explosions. There was a recession on and the police were felt to be too heavy handed, a situation which echoes in many ways the one we are in at the moment. This was the first song to be written and featuring the bands bassist Paul Simonon. The distorted female vocals in this remind me of "Ghost Town" by The Specials (another of my favourite bands) - it lends that same creepyness to the song! Protest songs like this were popular and numerous during the 80's, it was a time of great social upheaval.
 On a lighter note, for those of you that know Sandinista (another great Clash album) you will know the clip at the end of "Broadway" which features Maria Gallagher, daughter of Mick Gallagher who was a Hammond Organ player and recorded with The Clash, singing Guns of Brixton accompanied by her dad. I can't find out how old she was at the time but she sounds VERY young and its dead cute so have a listen! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOVeW3qDRls


Spanish Bombs: I don't know why this is my favourite track, its sad and angry and beautiful. Maybe that's why! The song is about the Spanish Civil War, stemming from a discussion about the ETA - a far-left terrorist Basque nationalist organisation founded in 1959 in Spain. The song praises the Republicans, those who fought and ultimately lost against Franco's facists. I don't want to give you a massive essay on the meaning of the song, you can find that kinda stuff online but it's my favourite so you should really check this track out!


Anyway, to quote Maria Gallagher, "That's enough now!"

When I grow up I want to be.....

I had so many ideas and aspirations as a kid. All easily achievable: worlds first short slightly chubby ballerina, singer with 3 platinum albums, hollywood movie star, waitress (that dream was cut short when I dropped a croissant I was carrying out into the garden for my dad), firewoman (see picture below), archaeologist, doctor, historian, musician, and most recently a geneticist. 

Playing with fire at an early age. Also, check out the stunning

90's jumper my mum is sporting, I think it may have once been a 

blanket.

Funnily enough none of those worked out too brilliantly for me and now my stream of ideas is running dry. How do you know what you want to be when you really grow up? The boyfriend is trying to convince me to be an author (like it's that easy) but so far my inner J.K. Rowling is staying hidden. I need some sort of job which doesn't involve much travelling to get there and possibly involves some combination of my best skillz: cooking/baking, knowing the lyrics to most songs, dancing like a fool, and reading super fast. So answers on a postcard/a comment if you have any ideas!

I think I would quite like to work with kids (it might help to deal with the massive brood I am experiencing at the moment - my womb twitches when i'm even near a child under the age of about 5!) but I have no idea in what field or how to get into it. I would also quite like to work in events, but again there doesn't seem to be an obvious way in. 


Anyway, enough rambling now, but if anyone has a place for a tea-drinking, lyric-reciting, cake-baking, silly-dancing, quick-reading, old-before-her-time 21 year old in the central Bristol area let me know!

Dreaming of sun, sea and mountains!

I don't know about you but when it's raining I can't stop dreaming of holidays. The alarm went off this morning and I thought it was still night, it was that dark outside. I had heard the rain falling all night and it still hadn't given up. So here I sit, dreaming of Spain!


Because I am not working at the moment there were many doubts about whether we would get a holiday this year, but thanks to a very generous family friend we had a holiday home sorted out! Add in cheap flights and public transport and you have yourself a bargain Spanish adventure! Sun, sea and sand it ain't....the last time I went it rained almost every day; however this was freak weather so we are hoping for some sun this time! It is right up in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada, a tiny little town, no other tourists, perfect! 

The view from our balcony in Montefrio!

Although most of our holiday will be spend relaxing in the town and walking in the local nature reserves there are a few day trips which I am very excited about planning! One will definitely be to Granada to visit the Alhambra. This 14th Century Moorish palace is one of the most magical places I have ever visited - beautiful architecture, stunning gardens, amazing views. I can't wait to show it to my boyfriend, the last time I visited was with my parents and I know that he is very excited to go. You can visit just the gardens and outer buildings or pay extra to go inside the palace. I believe it is well worth paying the extra - the stunning carvings and tiles inside are not to be missed. 

Patio de los Arrayanes in The Alhambra. An 

inner courtyard with pool.

Each room you enter is more beautiful than the last, you can't help but be overwhelmed by the age and grandeur of the palace. It has been 2 years since my last visit and I am itching to return!

I am hoping there will be some sun and sea, if not sand. The view below is taken from The Balcon de Europa - a precariously balanced panoramic restaurant and viewing point in Nerja, a seaside town along the coast from Malaga. 

The mountains and the coastline are dramatic and beautiful with tiny little sandy coves dotted along the coast. I can picture myself lazing on one of the aforementioned coves right now! (If I ever feel comfortable in a bikini and find one I like!). 

But for now the vision of me, lounging in a bikini sipping a cosmopolitan served by a half naked Spaniard* will have to wait. Back in rain soaked Bristol there is washing to be done and the supermarket calls. See you in 7 weeks Spain!

*Reality may be slightly less glamorous

First time for everything...

So this is my first foray in the weird and wonderful world of blogging and I thought I would just do a little introduction first off.
"Pink Moon" is the name of one of my favourite albums and songs, by Nick Drake. If you haven't listened to him I strongly suggest you check him out - he's amazing. 

Pink Moon Album Cover (from Wikipedia)

Expect lots more raving about music from me, its one of my biggest passions. I play the saxophone and clarinet and am rarely not listening to music. I'm always open to new suggestions too so leave me a comment about your favourite band and i'll see what I think! 

I am also passionate about cooking and baking, since leaving home I have become obsessed and am definitely the foody out of my friends! Luckily my boyfriend shares the same passion as me so we cook yummy food every day, it's a wonder that we're not huge by now! I particularly love baking cakes and cupcakes......next on my list are Earl Grey Tea Cupcakes taken from a recipe by The Hummingbird Bakery, i'll do a post on that soon so you can see my efforts!

Finally i'm very interested in fashion, beauty and all things vintage and girly so expect some reviews and some gorgeous inspiration pictures!