A recipe for a homemade vegetarian pizza, homemade dough, tomato sauce and roasted vegetables.

Bluebell woods are magical, a picnic and recipes for The Simple Things magazine

This is a set of images I never managed to push publish on and it got lost in the draft folder. The wonderful Anna Barnett hosted a brunch for a few lucky guests in her then newly renovated flat in association with Falcon Enamel. It was full of spring sunshine and gorgeous flowers and wonderful food.

I wrote about leaving London and our home renovations a year after we moved, you can read that post HERE

3 years on here are a few things I’ve learnt.

The space is modern with clean lines, lots of wood and sleek seating options. It’s inviting and open with a vibe that lingering for an hour or so would be encouraged. There is a whole host of curated independent magazines, travel guides as well as lifestyle books that you can dip into whilst sipping your hand drip coffee or expertly poured latte. The menu is small but has crowd pleasing options, like Salmon and Avocado Toast, which I had and it was generous and well seasoned, or the Figs & Cheese Toast.

I wrote this recipe for a collaboration with Milk & More. We’ve used them for our milk delivery way before I started working with them. I absolutely loved the idea of having a milk man and also really wanted to stop buying milk in plastic bottles. They also provide alternative milks now in glass bottles too as well as sell a whole range of fresh produce and seasonal items usually from smaller suppliers and locally sourced.

I made this recipe in collaboration with Panasonic Kitchen and their new Microwave oven, the concept being to use up left overs, save time and washing up by creating a new meal within the microwave. The great thing about this recipe is creating a risotto that doesn’t require 20 mins of stirring and stove watching. I’m sharing for anyone who sometimes wants a delicious meal made from scratch but doesn’t have the time to pot watch on a weekday evening.

I wrote this recipe for a campaign with the Mushroom Bureau and their just add mushrooms campaign, an idea to reduce meat consumption by replacing a portion of your meat with mushrooms adding vitamins and reducing fat. Of course you can forgo the meat completely and make this veggie.

Mid January, probably the nicest time to be leaving the UK, I flew to Geneva, then after a two hour drive arrived in Courchevel for a 3 day stay in the French Alps. The trip was organised by Alpine Escape a boutique chalet company run by Jo and Neil, that has around 18 chalets in the area. Offering fully or self catered accommodation complete with professional chefs, hot tubs, saunas and a whole host of in chalet activities such as yoga and spa treatments as well as of course organising everything to make your skiing experience easier.

It’s delicious, hearty and warming, I added extra ginger. It’s perfect for January and makes for a great Vegan dish, I have three more portions to look forward too! You can find the full recipe here.

a personal post about saying no…

Last week, I got to experience Christmas in Bath.

I was invited by Visit Bath for this trip and whilst Bath is wonderful all year round, the addition of Christmas against all that Bath stone glory is really very magical. Wooden chalets are set up in the centre, around The Pump Room and Roman Baths and some of the surrounding streets. Selling a vast array of Christmas treats from Mince Pies, to fudge to handmade gifts.

Sunday began all misty moody and magical, so I went on a solo walk with my camera to catch it before it all faded away.

Read about our wonderful stay at the North Star Club in Yorkshire…

Straight after I’d dropped the kids at school, I took myself and my macro lens (which rarely gets an outing) to the forest. I spent a glorious hour or so immersed in nature and bewitched by the fairy toadstools. It felt amazing.

This is both Gluten Free and refined sugar free (except for the sugar in the chocolate and I used a 84% dark chocolate) and it also uses a light olive oil instead of butter which gives it a lovely richness when combined with the chocolate. The sweetness comes from the bananas, so the riper the better.

At the beginning of September, a little nugget of an idea became a reality, running a joint workshop with food photographer Bea Lubas!