COCKTAILS IN THE CITY - 2014

some things are better late than never right...right? i lost my memory card for what has seemed like an age and it's just turned up complete with all my pictures from cocktails in the city. It's a night where great bars from across London come together under one roof to sample one of their best cocktails so i couldn't not share it with you. i headed down with one of my work colleagues in search of the best tipple the capital could offer...

First up was one of my favourite bars...steam & rye. they are known for their outlandish cocktails and today's offering was 'fly me to the moon' - complete with paper airplane and bootlegger. it was delicious with a lovely lemon kick, just what i need before bumping in to the fella below....

Next on the list was Quo Vadis for a classic vodka martini...Smooth, sophisticated and will blow your head off!

Next stop was to watch in awe at the mixology from the Alchemist - the most theatrical and exciting bar of the night! i felt transported back to my GSCE chemistry class...

along the way we stopped off to be pampered by Harvey Nics who were on hand to do nails, make-up and hair...

my overall favourite drink of the night, and not just because i was stood queuing next to it for my hair, was from the harvey nichols bar. A delicious orange creation called lady marmalade served in jam jars and pretty straws. i literally could have stood by that bar chatting to the friendly staff all night!

Cocktails in the City will hopefully be back next year and i highly recommend it, i had a great night complete with dancing on twister mats, begging djs for 80's power ballads and scoffing hot dogs from bubbledogs - if you you can't wait till next year, check out the bars mentioned above in the meantime, look at the links below!

The Alchemist
Steam & Rye

Quo Vadis

Harvey Nics

WEEK IN MEALS #3

This week again has been about strict clean eating (with a couple of cheats in the form of condiments - i can't live without hot sauce!). I find i have a lot more energy when i don't eat carbs which i know is strange as they are a source of energy - but by restricting them to a low amount i feel less sluggish and bloated. Below is a summary of my favourite eats this week:

Monday: Breakfast
3 poached eggs, spinach and grilled vine tomatoes

Tuesday: Lunch
Little salad of lambs lettuce, chicken and cucumber

Wednesday: Breakfast
Three poached eggs and spinach, a pro-active yoghurt drink and green tea

Thursday: Dinner
Salad of spinach, avocado, cucumbers, olives, beetroot, toms, peppers and smoked salmon - my fav this week!

Friday: Dinner
An attempt at home-made nandos. Peri rubbed chicken, cous-cous, cabbage and brocolli and charred peppers

Saturday: Dinner
Sweet potato, chicken, beans, pak choi and broccolli and asparagus

Sunday: Lunch
Spinach, peppers, toms, olives, poached egg and bacon salad with seeds

SUNDAY LUNCH: THE OLD ORCHARD

sunday afternoons for me are all about spending time with my family, eating good food and relaxing. I love visiting quiet little pubs for a sunday roast and one of my favourite places is the old Orchard pub in nearby Denham.

It's only about 20 minutes drive for my house into Denham and it feels like a little escape from London life. There's a massive lake, plenty of green grass and fresh air and a little canal which you can walk along before settling down for some good home-cooking.

They do brilliant roast dinners, i always go for for the mixed roast which comes with rare beef and pork with crackling and all the trimmings.

Followed by a deliciously dense chocolate brownie and ice cream. All washed down with a glass of sauvignon blanc before heading home for an afternoon nap - bliss

Park Ln, Harefield, Uxbridge, Middlesex UB9 6HJ

A WEEK OF MEALS #2

Another week of food brings with it the second in my series of ‘A Week of Meals’ posts. This week I’ve been really trying to eat healthily and adopting an ‘eat clean’ approach to my meals. The idea is that meals should only contain natural ingredients (as a rule of thumb is, if it includes anything that you can’t pronounce on the ingredients list –don’t eat it). I have felt really energised and have noticed a reduction in the amount of bloating which I have after meals now that I’m eating a low-carb diet. Hopefully the meals below show that you can still eat interesting things, the more colourful the plate, the better!

Monday: Lunch

delicious salad of beans, sugar snap peas, tomato, pepper and feta

Tuesday: Breakfast

bowl of oranges, blueberries, blackberries and a plum

Wednesday: Dinner

roasted vegetable couscous with hot pepper sauce and avocado

Thursday: Lunch

another yummy salad packed with butter beans, sugar snap peas, tomato, seeds and peppers

Friday: Lunch

ham hock salad, with boiled egg, watercress, crushed new potato, peas and pesto

Saturday: Breakfast

poached egg and avocado on toast

Sunday: Dinner

wok fried liver, tenderstem broccoli, peppers and spinach in a garlic and soy sauce