Pages

Showing posts with label Lifestyle. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Lifestyle. Show all posts

Wednesday, 5 October 2016

Tanya Burr's Flapjack

Who's up for another sweet treat?

I'm sharing a recipe with you all that i've recently tried from the Tanya Bakes book. Tanya's Smarties Flapjacks. I did swap the smarties for sprinkles as I can't eat chocolate but feel free to use smarties. I loved how it turned out - and it tasted pretty good too if that doesn't convince you to try it yourself.




Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes

You will need:

★20cm square baking tin

Ingredients:

★125g butter
★10 tablespoons golden syrup
★100g light soft brown sugar
★250g porridge oats
★1 tube of smarties or another choice of decoration

Let's make the flapjacks!

Preheat the oven to 180℃ / 350℉ / GM4. Line a 20cm square baking tin with greaseproof paper.

Melt the butter in a medium pan over a low heat, then add the golden syrup and sugar. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved and stir until everything is well combined.

Remove from the heat and stir in the oats. Mix until well combined.

Pour into the tin, spread out and smash down with a metal spoon, then bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

While still hot, press the smarties into the top. Leave to cool in the tin. Once cool, cut into squares.




Go give it a try, you'll love it!

*all credit goes to Tanya for the recipe. Opinions are my own and this post is not sponsored*

Thank you for reading,

Tuesday, 2 August 2016

Summer Holiday 2016 - Southport

On Sunday 24th July, myself, my brother and Gran and Grandad hitched up the caravan and drove three and a half hours down the country to our holiday destination - Southport. The excitement began to feel real as we reached the services an hour an a half in for a break.
 
As we finally drove along the seafront I knew that I was going to enjoy it. With the windows half winded down and the soft sea air breeze in my hair, the anticipation of the week ahead grew. From setting up on our first day to packing away on our last I never had my camera out of my hand, constantly snapping pictures of the beautiful sights of Southport.
 
I loved how there was so much to see and do so we planned our week wisely so we could see and get to do as much as possible. Our second day was spent having a lovely walk in Victoria Park accompanied by our fury companions, Gran and Granddad's two Rough Collies - Ty and Millie. The park was such a lovely area, very clean and peaceful with other dog walkers and families picnicking and making their own memories of the place. I very much liked the great deal of pretty flowers scattered around the park with their vibrant summer colours - I couldn't resist snapping a picture of them.
 

 
After our little walk in the park we went along to see Lord Street, which if you're not familiar with, is Southport's high street packed with well-known clothing shops, cafe's, restaurants, charity shops, and little vintage home shops - you name it, it's in Lord Street! I was in my element when I found a small little shop selling beautiful home furnishings and shabby chic home décor and believe it or not, it was actually called Vintage Home. I loved this little shop - full of the most beautiful home décor with a very 1950's style to the pieces.
 
Despite my love for Lord Street, Ainsdale beach has to be the most amazing beach I have ever seen. I just loved how we could drive the car right onto the beach and eat our delicious picnic food. The beach has always been my happy place - a place to unwind and just chill so I adored Ainsdale beach. Being able to drive onto it made it so much better because we were near our belongings and our fury friends were able to get a drink when they needed as it was such a warm day so I took the advantage of the moment and snapped some memories.
 




 
My brother loved running down to the sea with Millie and Ty not far behind. I'm not a massive lover of the sea so I stayed behind the camera instead.
 


 
We also had a walk along the pier but sadly we didn't spend too much time as the wind was very bitter against our face but I did manage to get a cute snap of Grandad looking through the telescope getting a view of Blackpool Tower.
 
 
Walking back out of the pier it was such a happy scene as the children were engrossed in the carousel. Their parents standing waving as they passed them on the little horses varnished in gold.
 
 
We took another day of the week to go to Ainsdale beach because we adored it so much and as some of you may know, I'm a massive sucker for pretty sunsets and could watch the sun go down and the sky turn bright shades of orange and pink at any chance I had so I was in my element once again when I could watch the sun set on the beach. It was the most beautiful thing I ever did see. It was as almost like the sun was going to disappear into the shimmering ocean.
 

 
As our week drew to a close, we spent our second-to-last day in Victoria Park. The day was lovely and warm so I took the chance to go to the ice cream van just around the corner from the park bench we were sitting to fetch a refreshing ice lolly back with me. While myself and Gran and Grandad were waiting for my brother in the playground, we sat peacefully and had a good ol' natter. The view from the little wooden bridge was so gorgeous and tranquil, watching the small rowing boats glide past on the lake.
 
 
I just love this snap I got of Gran and Grandad being all cute. It looks so natural as they're in mid-laugh - so adorable!
 
 
I've had the most wonderful holiday this Summer in Southport and I couldn't thank Gran and Grandad enough for making it happen and for being there to share the memories with. I've loved every minute of it and loved spending time with my 'golden oldies' and thank you to the Southport Caravan Club Site for an unforgettable holiday. It was a pleasure to have visited Southport.
 
Thank you for reading,
 


Tuesday, 5 July 2016

Tanya Burr's Lemon Drizzle Loaf

Hello everyone!

One of my favourite recipes is lemon drizzle and one of my favourite YouTubers is Tanya Burr so I teamed the two together and baked 'Tanya's Lemon Drizzle Loaf' from her book, 'Love Tanya'. 


For the cake:

3 eggs
170g self-raising flour
170g caster sugar
170g butter
1 teaspoon baking powder
zest of 2 lemons

For the icing:

150g icing sugar
juice of 2 lemons

Lets bake!

Pre-heat your oven to 180℃. Mix the eggs, flour, sugar, butter, baking powder and the zest of two lemons into a big mixing bowl. line your baking tin with a bit of butter or use a non-stick baking tin and pour mixture in. Bake for 35-45 minutes - the cooking time depends on the size of the tin and your oven. To check your cake is ready, slide a knife into the centre and if it comes out clean, it is ready to come out of the oven.

Mix together the icing sugar and juice of the two lemons to make the drizzle. Stir it together - it should be quite quite a watery consistency. While your cake is still hot, poke it all over with a skewer or sharp knife, and then pour over the drizzle so it can soak in.

(make sure you sieve your icing sugar because i made the mistake of not sieving mine and as you can see, it looked quite bumpy) ha ha.


Thank you for reading,