A Perfect Picnic

I absolutely love sunny weather. Give me a nice day and something to do and I'm a happy gal. Unfortunately, living in Ireland means that's a rarity. Trudging around the place in wellies and a raincoat is a more likely situation, but that's not my style.

Miraculously, it's been such gorgeous weather here over the past week or so. I've been non-stop busy; between doing my final exams (woop!) and driving - I'm finally insured on my boyfriend's car - as well as helping him move out of his student accommodation, it's nice to take some time out to relax. 

On my mum's recommendation we drove out to Derreen Woods (otherwise known as Bluebell Woods - you'll see why later on in the post) in Boyle. It's a short drive from where my boyfriend lives so it seemed like the perfect spot for a picnic.

I love picnics, they're one of my favourite things to do. Call me boring or old fashioned but I'd much rather go for a nice picnic than go out clubbing all night! I spent a while scrolling through some recipe websites looking for some tasty food ideas. In the end we decided on sandwiches (we recently won some Moodley Manor vegetarian burgers, bacon and sausages) cocktail 'sausages', fruit salad, pasta salad and some homemade juice.

I put on my newly acquired Topshop collared shirt from the charity shop, a dungaree skirt and a floppy hat and we set to making our feast and packed it all into the picnic basket my mum gave me. I'd love one of those really snazzy picnic baskets with the picnicware included but alas, priorities. We drove out to the woods with the windows down and the sun streaming through the windows.

The woods are absolutely gorgeous this time of year. Bluebells are abundant in the woods, and they're such a sight for sore eyes. We even saw an orchid growing in amongst all the flowers! I didn't even know orchids grew over here.

We eventually reached a clearing where we decided to set up our picnic - in the shade as I'm whiter than a ghost and forgot to pack sunscreen! We spread out our blanket and arranged our food into bowls and dishes. So many people walked past and commented on how lovely our spread looked - and a few cheeky dogs came over looking hopeful before being pulled away by their owners. 

It was such a treat to sit back and relax whilst chatting and enjoying some gorgeous food with my love. We enjoyed veggie BLT sandwiches, veggie cocktail sausages, pasta salad, Alpro yoghurts, fruit salad, chocolate dipped strawberries and some homemade carrot, orange and ginger juice. We were well and truly stuffed by the end of our picnic! Then came the arduous task of taking some pictures for the blog. It was such a laugh trying to get a good shot of us both lying on the picnic blanket - there were a few not-so-flattering shots in which I looked like a dying whale but you can't win them all!

I wanted a shot of me sitting amongst the bluebells and Laurence stood in as second in command photographer, usually it's my mum who takes pics of me. We spent a while trying to get the perfect picture, and when we did experimented with some more poses. I have to say, Laurence has got quite the eye for photography - he's a Jack of all trades! Considering we were only using my phone to take the pictures I was quite pleased with the outcome.

We had such a perfect day it seemed a shame to leave the tranquility of the woods, but all good things must come to an end. I just hope the weather improves again so we can get up to more adventures! Hope you enjoyed this blog post - and the tidbit of good weather.

Pizza, Plays and Train Delays

I'm a poet and I don't know it. Yesterday, as it was my wonderful mum's birthday, her and I headed up to Dublin for the day. We booked tickets to go see Peter James' The Perfect Murder in the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre about a month ago and we also had a voucher for Milano's so we decided to do both on the same day. I haven't been to Dublin in yonks so I was excited to go up again.

We got the 9 a.m. train which meant we arrived in Dublin at 12 p.m. It's quite a long old journey but I love taking the train - it's  great to sit back, relax and just collect your thoughts for a few hours.

When we arrived in Dublin we started walking to Stephen's Green as I really wanted to find Antoinette's Bakery. Antoinette's Bakery do dairy free/vegan/gluten free cakes and treats so I was really looking forward to trying  a few. However, Google Maps just would just not co-operate so we ended up getting lost and stressed. In the end we decided to have lunch in Milano's first as we were closer to it and then try and find the bakery.

It was our first time eating in Milano's as it is really pricey for what it is: pizza and pasta. I also found out Milano's is Pizza Express in England, not really sure why it's under a different name in Ireland. 

I chose the Pianta pizza - a cheeseless pizza topped with artichoke, rocket, spinach, pine kernels and chilli oil - and mum went for the Amore pizza - topped with chorizo, olives, rocket and goat cheese. I thought it was great they offered a cheeseless pizza option! My pizza was gorgeous. The dough was perfect and the artichokes and pine kernels added such interesting flavours. I'd never tried artichokes before but they were delicious. Mum enjoyed her pizza too - we both practically waddled out the door we were so full!

Milano's also offer dairy free sorbet but I was so stuffed after eating my whole pizza I didn't have room for dessert.

We finally figured out how to find Antoinette's Bakery which turned out to be just a short walk away. When I walked in I got so excited when I saw they had vegan cupcakes! The girl behind the counter also informed me they had vegan snickerdoodles and doughnuts. I chose a peanut butter cupcake, a glazed doughnut and a cinnamon sugar doughnut. They also had some other divine looking goodies but they weren't dairy free so I had to steer clear of them unfortunately. The prices were fairly reasonable for a specialist bakery so I'd definitely recommend you check it out if you're in Dublin and in need of a treat. The cakes were absolutely delicious, you'd never guess they were gluten free/vegan - I scoffed all of them in the one day. Oops.

It was then time to walk to the theatre to see the play. We did a fair bit of walking yesterday so hopefully my pizza/cake won't go straight to my hips just yet! When we arrived  we were told we'd be upgraded as our seats were up the back. We got moved down nearer the front which was great, I'm blind as a bat anyway. I wasn't really sure what to expect from the play - I haven't read the book version but mum had and she said it was good. It's a crime book so I didn't expect it to be as funny as it was - it had me laughing out loud the whole way through! Shane Richie and Jessie Wallace (Kat and Alfie from EastEnders) were the two main stars of the show and they were both fantastic. I did think Jessie overacted a little bit as she was very loud and over the top but part of that was her character. The supporting actors were also brilliant and the sound, lighting and set were spot on. There were a couple of jump scares too which provoked a few screams from the audience (mostly from me though)! An excellent plot twist rounded off the play. It was unlike anything I've seen before and mum and I thoroughly enjoyed it, I'm delighted we went.

I don't really watch EastEnders but my mum does sometimes. As it was her birhtday we hung around the stage door freezing our arses off to see if we could meet Shane Richie. Sure enough after about 15 minutes he came to the door. We managed to muscle our way up to him and he wished mum a happy birthday and we both got our pictures taken with him. I look like a constipated mongoose in my pic but sure nothing new there.

After the show we took a leisurely walk back to the station. We popped into Marks & Spencers to get some goodies for the train ride home. I was surprised to see how many of the 'food on the go' things contained dairy - even the sushi had cream in it! I tweeted M&S and they very helpfully said they'd see what they could do. In the end I went for a sundried tomato and orzo pasta salad, some crisps, ginger beer and carrot sticks with hummus. I love M&S food, it's divine. One day I'll have the money to do my weekly food shop there. Hey, is that a flying pig? ;-)

We also treated ourselves to a Starbucks before we went to the station because you can't miss Starbucks when in Dublin! I wish we had a proper one here in Sligo - although I'm sure my purse is thankful we don't. We ended up being delayed by over an hour on the train ride home as a poor lady collapsed on the train so an ambulance had to be called out. I had to shake my head at the fact about 6 people crowded around her just looking at each other and not doing anything. A fight nearly broke out because a drunk man tried to perform first aid on her while she was conscious! I was appalled none of the Irish Rail staff were first aid trained and there are no security guards on the trains as it is - that could happen to anyone and the ambulance took so long to arrive you'd dread to think what could happen. Hopefully the lady is okay. On a brighter note we got a free tea or coffee to make up for the delay - woohoo.

Apart from that we had a lovely day out and it was great to break the week up. I'll have to revisit Dublin again when I have more money - and more time! Thanks for reading as usual and roll on the weekend.

A Lovely Getaway: My Valentine's Weekend

You might have read my last blog about doing Valentine's day on the cheap. Well, my boyfriend and I did just that for our Valentine's weekend - and we had a whale of a time!

After freezing my arse off at the train station, Laurence and I exchanged our gifts to each other. He got me a really funny lovely card (usually I hate cards but he has excellent taste in cards) and some gorgeous presents. I had mentioned how I used to love those Claire's surprise/goody bags as a child so he decided to make me a grown up version! He gave me a box of my absolute favourite Booja Booja truffles, sweets, a rose, Lucky Charms, snacks, a heart shaped photo frame, a fantastic elephant cushion - elephants are my favourite animal - and a 'dud' present of some Mr Muscle bathroom wipes. Because what surprise bag is complete without a boobie prize?!

We chilled at his house Friday night and had a lovely Indian meal from a place in Claremorris called Dawat. We had a gorgeous meal of chapatis, pilau rice, bombay aloo and poppadums. I never really branched out to Indian food before meeting Laurence and now it's one of my favourite things to eat.

On Saturday it was time to head up to Claremorris, where we'd booked a night away. Before we checked in we decided to check out the town of Claremorris, the metropolis that it is. I have to say, there are some brilliant shops there, most notably the charity shops. I got a few nice bits for next to nothing! We drove around for ages and went to about 5 different places in the hopes of getting a wedge baguette (I know, romantic) and then ate it in the car. To everyone else we must seem like the world's most boring couple! ;-) 

 After doing some shopping it was time to check into our self catering accommodation at Valley Lodge Farm Accommodation. To be honest, we weren't really sure what to expect as it sounded like a glorified hostel. We arrived (after driving up the country roads in the back arse of nowhere - grass growing in the middle of the tarmac etc.) and met Eugene, one of the hostel owners, who showed us around. I have to say it was a lovely place - clean, bright, with a large lounge/dining room area and a big well stocked communal kitchen. It certainly wasn't your usual grubby hostel! We booked a private room so we got our own en-suite bathroom with a shower which was lovely. We booked through Booking.com which ended up being a pain - we thought the money had been taken already but Eugene told us it hadn't so we had to pay there and then which was a bit annoying as we thought we'd already paid. To pay by card we had to go into their family home and interrupt poor Mary's dinner she was in the middle of making! Eugene told us he'd leave some milk and bread in the kitchen for breakfast and told us we could leave food in his freezer if we needed to which was a nice touch, although in the end we forgot to buy food for breakfast the next morning. D'oh.

We had a few drinks, got a takeaway, and I was so tuckered out I fell asleep at about 11! No stamina, me.

The hostel room was nice and quiet apart from the other people who came stomping in at around 3 a.m. I will say it was a bit cold as the radiator was right under the window so all the heat was being let out. Laurence, clever man he is, had to tuck the curtains in on the windowsill to keep the heat in. It ended up being roasting in the middle of the night - I woke up drenched in sweat apparently. Sexy. The bed also wasn't the comfiest but I suppose you get what you pay for, it was only €22.50 each. Apart from that I'd go back there - it did the job!

The next day we had to check out before 11:30 a.m. which was a bit of a shame as we'd have loved a sleep in on the Sunday morning. I was hoping we'd get to see some of the many farm animals at Valley Lodge before we left but all I saw was a donkey! As it was such a beautiful sunny day we decided to head up to Castlebar for a gander. Castlebar also has some great shops such as New Look, Swamp, Peacocks and a few charity shops too.

We were both starving as we hadn't eaten breakfast so we went to check out The Olive Tree - an Eastern Mediterranean café & restaurant in Castlebar - for some food. I found the place on Happy Cow (a great website for vegan/vegetarian/dairy free eateries all around the world) and it sounded different so I had high hopes. Let me tell you, I was not disappointed. I'm not lying when I say it was one of the best lunches I've ever had!

Upon reading the menu we found lots of tasty options for vegetarians, vegans and meat eaters alike. Laurence decided on the toasted potato bread with salsa, avocado, garlic dressing, salad, olives and the most delicious sweet sauce (I wish I knew what it was!). He customized it so there was no cheese on top which was no problem with our waitress. I chose the falafel pitta with hummus, salad and garlic dressing. We also ordered a side of sweet potato fries to share. Our waitress asked if we were vegan as the dishes contained mayonnaise and we told her we were dairy free. The cherry on top of the cake was when she served us dates with our coffee instead of a biscuit as the biscuits contained dairy. Score! That's good service right there.

Our food came out really quickly and the portions were huge - such good value for money. I took a bite of mine and I swear I swooned, it was absolutely fantastic. Pittas aren't the most attractive things to eat and I was really wolfing it down. How do I have a boyfriend?!

Halfway through both our meals we swapped plates so we could try each other's food (#relationshipgoals) and Laurence's food was just as divine. It was all so flavourful and different to the usual boring sandwiches you'd usually get in a café. Clean plates all round at our table. The Olive Tree truly is a hidden gem in Castlebar - I'm definitely going back!

After our meal we went to Horkan's garden centre to look at the animals, because we are both really 70 years old. They have hedgehogs and giant ants and meerkats and everything there - it's madness! I'm not really sure why they'd keep meerkats in a pet shop, seems a bit cruel to me, but there you go. I'm also not really sure why you'd want a pet hedgehog unless you wanted to scrub your feet on it!

All in all we had a lovely weekend. It was actually my first Valentine's Day with a boyfriend - I'm so lucky I've found the one I want to spend many more with. I was so sad to be back to normality and back in college on Monday. Roll on the summer time when I have lots of free times for more adventures! I hope you all had a lovely weekend no matter what you did.

3 Brilliant Budget Breakfasts

Like my use of alliteration? I didn't do Honours English for nothin'. This is going to be another foodie lifestyle type blog, following on from my previous blog. As I was making breakfast the other day my boyfriend commented on how nice it looked and suggested I write a blog about some of my meals.

 Since going dairy free I've found myself becoming more creative with what I eat. Instead of just dumping cheese on everything I try different foods and flavours and don't just stick to the usual cereal (which can be nice too, but not as exciting!)

All these recipes can be adapted to be gluten free, vegan, dairy/meat filled (they're already all vegetarian) - whatever takes your fancy. They're also all budget friendly. I get all of my shopping from a combination of Aldi and Lidl who are fantastic for cheap fruit and veg.

Recipe 1: Two ingredient pancakes

These are my favourite pancakes. If you don't like bananas or eggs these may not be for you as they're quite different to a normal pancake, but they're essentially guilt-free (unless you cover them in Nutella which is definitely a good idea) and really easy to make. I love these as a weekend treat. My usual toppings are fruit and dairy free yoghurt/cream, sliced banana, honey and nuts or just plain old unhealthy dairy free ice cream, crushed Oreos and chocolate.

Ingredients (makes about 5 small pancakes)

1 large very ripe banana

1 medium egg

1 tsp baking powder (optional)

1. Mush the banana until it's quite liquidy. Make sure there's no huge lumps (small lumps are ok). Whisk in the egg and mix to combine. Add a tsp of baking powder if you want your pancakes to be fluffier.

2. Heat a thin layer of oil over a medium heat in a non-stick frying pan. Pour in a small (smaller than the palm of your hand) amount of the pancake mixture. Let one side cook for a few minutes and very carefully flip it - try not to lift it up, just lift one side and flip it very gently so they don't fall apart. They take some practice!

3. Top with whatever takes your fancy and enjoy.

Above left: Two ingredient pancakes with peaches, strawberries, chopped hazelnuts, Alpro soya cream and maple syrup. Top right: Topped with dragon fruit, banana, blackberries and vegan chocolate. Bottom right: Topped with banana, Oreos, vegan chocolate and vegan ice cream - these ones were made by my boyfriend!

Recipe 2: Crunchy granola

I love making granola. It's so easy and tasty. Unlike shop bought versions which are full of sugar this one is sweet and crunchy without all the added sugar. I like to have granola warmed up in the microwave on cold mornings, with some cold nut milk or on top of some Alpro soya yoghurt. It also makes a really nice gift if you put it in a pretty jar with a ribbon around it!

Ingredients

250g oats

120ml honey or maple syrup

3 tbsp vegetable or coconut oil

2 tbsp peanut butter

50g nuts of your choice

75g dried fruit of your choice (I like cranberries)

1.Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celcius.

2. Put the oats in a large mixing bowl and add the oil, peanut butter and maple syrup or honey. Mix to combine until the oats are all wet. Add your optional extras and stir in. 

2. Spread it all out on a large baking tray and pop into the oven. After 15 minutes check on it and turn it on the tray so it doesn't burn. Oven it for another 10 minutes until golden brown, leave to cool and store in a sealed jar.

Above: Alpro coconut soya yoghurt topped with homemade granola, honey and passionfruit. P.S. No I'm not endorsed by Alpro, I wish I was though!

Recipe 3: Smoothie bowl

Another healthy one. I love smoothies, but sometimes I don't feel like drinking my breakfast. Smoothie bowls are a great remedy for this - you still feel like you're eating a hearty breakfast and there are so many tasty combinations you can make. I love topping mine with granola, coconut, dried fruit... whatever I fancy! I like using almond milk, berries and banana in mine but you can put any combination of fruits/veg in yours. 

Ingredients
1 frozen banana
100ml milk (nut/soya/whatever milk you want)
Handful of berries
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp honey

1. Add all the ingredients to a blender/NutriBullet until smooth. Pour into a bowl and top with fruit, coconut, granola or whatever takes your fancy and dig in!

Above: Acai smoothie bowl topped with homemade granola, coconut and goji berries.

I hope this blog was helpful for some breakfast ideas. I plan to do another post with 3 savoury budget breakfast ideas in the near future so stay tuned!

What's your favourite breakfast?