Barbecoa

Hi everyone!
This is my long overdue blog post about Jamie Oliver's Barbecoa in London. My wonderful boyfriend decided to treat me to a fatty feast and chose Barbecoa.

Set in the beautiful area of St. Paul's, overlooking the cathedral, this restaurant is just as much amazing due to the view as it is the food.
As you enter you are greeted by a hostess who then directs you upstairs into the bar/ restaurant area. Our table was yet to be ready so we thought we'd sip on a cocktail. The cocktail menu is small, which i like and the bar staff friendly. I chose a bramble (a short cocktail i always love) and it was just what i needed.
As we sat there sipping and soaking up the atmosphere, i felt at ease. It was relaxed and not at all pretentious, which is always a bonus.

Time to take our seats, we headed over to a cosy wooden table with a lovely view of the cathedral.

The waiters were friendly and attentive and happy to advise us on what to choose. I knew we were in for a meaty feast when scouring through the menu. We chose chicken wings and ceviche for starters. And for our meaty mains I had the pulled pork and waffle, and the boyfriend had the Rib Eye- which he described as the best steak he's ever had. I must say I agree.

Here are some snaps of the night and the food.

WARNING!!! May leave your stomach rumbling....

My week in food #3

Soooo I know I missed a week but 'My week in food' is back.
I am also going to be blogging a lot more regularly now so make sure you are following me to keep up to date with all my posts.

Feast your eyes on these pics and enjoy :

My spicy mince, homemade flat breads and homemade coleslaw.

A healthy snack- yoghurt with  banana and dried gojji berries

Seafood noodle soup- made with squid, prawns, glass noodles, sweet peppers, chilli, cabbage, egg whites and stock. Its healthy and quick to make.

My healthy homemade coleslaw. Made with cabbage, red onion , peas and a touch of low fat mayonnaise (you can also add carrot for a more classic dish). Recipe on my previous blog post click here to view

A close up for you guys :)

I was a bit noodle soup happy last week. This time with chicken instead of squid

Penne with tomato, olives, anchovies and capers. This was at the restaurant Carluccios ( apologies as I've forgotten the name of the dish on the menu) . But was extremely tasty.

My cous cous salad. Made with prawns, chilli, spinach, cucumber and avocado.

Sea bass at The Roux (blog post on this restaurant coming this week)

Smoked duck at The roux.

White chocolate panna cotta with mango, lime and coconut at The Roux.

Hope you guy enjoyed. Which dishes look tastiest to you?

Back tomorrow with another post  about my food adventures in Milan.

A gorgeous meal at Seven Park Place by William Drabble

A few weeks ago I went for a lovely lunch at Seven park Place (by Michelin star chef William Drabble) at the St James's hotel .http://www.stjameshotelandclub.com/restaurant-piccadilly

Its a beautiful place just a 5 minute walk from Green park station and with the name William Drablle I knew it would be amazing. 

As we entered the hotel and then the restaurant, the staff were lovely. They took our coats and seated us in our elegant booth like table. There were two menus to choose from- one being a la carte and the other was the set lunch menu (with either a 2 or 3 course meal choice). Definitely check out the menu! 

We went for the 3 course set menu (included was a  glass of wine) which was £29.50. This was definitely one of the best meals I've had in a while and was not a ridiculous price for the type of restaurant and experience you get. It was a 4/5 star meal without the expected bill to match. 
Here's the meal in pictures:

The amuse bouche -Prawn , wrapped in spinach with a spicy tomato puree

The starter-Germini of Jerusalem artichokes and foie gras with cepes

The main- Confit of duck with red wine sauce, mash potato and Chinese cabbage

The dessert- Banana Souffle with chocolate sauce

My easy, last minute Christmas cake

Ahhhh its Christmas in a few days. And if you're like me and leave everything last minute, then Christmas cake making may be an issue. I made a gorgeous cake that can even be made the day of Christmas.  Its super tasty and super easy so I had to share it with you guys. (I am not a big fan of nuts in my Christmas cake but if you are just adapt it to your nutty tastes)
 Definitely give it a try....

Ingredients:

900g of dried fruit (sultanas, raisins and any other that tickle your tastes buds) 

225g of brown sugar

225g of butter

225g of plain flour

4 large eggs

2tsp of golden syrup (this is optional but is great for colouring and taste)

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

Zest and juice of 1 small orange

1tsp of all spice

250ml of pear or apple cider

Glace cherries

What to do:

1.Put all the dried fruit in the pan with the cider. Bring to the boil and cook for 3-minutes. Allow to cool. The fruit should have absorbed all of the liquid. ( If there is any left just drain away.



2.Mix the butter and sugar in a bowl. Then add the flour and egg in and mix.

3. Then add the zest and juice of the lemon and orange, the golden syrup, all spice and mix. Then add your dried fruit and glace cherries and mix all together.



4. Put the mixture into a non stick baking tin or one that is lined with baking paper.



5. Put in the oven on gas mark 2 for 3-4 hours. Check halfway through baking- if it is getting too brown u can always cover with some baking paper or tin foil

6. Once the cake is cooked you can either leave it as it is (yes it is that delicious!) or ice and decorate.

I have yet to ice mine but once i have I will definitely include it in a post.
How do you make your Christmas cake? would love to hear..just comment below :)

My carrot cake recipe

I made a gorgeous carrot cake last week and I thought i would share my recipe. I am not a lover of nuts in my cakes but if you are just adapt this recipe to your taste. I know that walnuts are a favorite for a lot of people. This recipe serves 10-12 people.
So here it is :

• For the cake:
• 275g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons cinnamon
• 4 eggs
• 400g caster sugar
• 300g vegetable oil or soft butter
• 375g grated carrots
• zest of half an orange
• 125g chopped walnuts (optional although I prefer without)
• 
  

For the topping and middle:

1 large Philadelphia pack

Half a grated carrot 

squeeze of lemon juice

1. Mix all the ingredients into one bowl and mix until there are no lumps.

2. Pour mixture into 2 seperate non stick baking tins.

3. Put them into the oven at gas mark 4 for 30-45 minutes (checking after 30mins if you are happy with it).

4. Take them out of the oven and allow them to cool and remove from baking tins.

5. Mix the Philadelphia, grated carrot and lemon juice into a bowl. Then spread in between both cake pieces and them on top of the cake.

6. Eat and enjoy.

Do you have a favorite carrot cake recipe? Please comment below as I love discovering new recipes :)

So here it goes my first blog post! Yesterday i went to Wahaca in London west end...66 Chandos place. It's a popular Mexican restaurant that serves your typical nachos and Burritos but also has the great option of authentic street food sharers.


The menu is great...loads of options and no doubt something that will tickle every ones taste buds.
The waitress was great with recommendations and lots of energy, definitely something you want in such a vibrant restaurant. It's not only somewhere you would go for food but the drinks list is endless. With a wide range of tequilas available and a mouth watering fresh cocktail list, this is with out a doubt somewhere great to go with a group of friends. if you didn't want an alcoholic drink though the soft drink menu is fresh and cheap...i had a citrus fizz which was a first for me but definitely something I'd order again.


Id recommend the pork taco and the qasedillas ( potato and chorizo, marinated chicken). Definitely go for the nachos with guacamole...the nachos are fresh and a far cry from your packet nacho chips. As a huge rice lover (and a bit of a fatty) i was dissapointed with the green rice...extremely small portion but hey that might just be me.

This was my first time there and i can safely say i will be going there again...although this time I may let my hair down and try a tequila or two :) x