recipe : homemade pizza

I decided it would be a fun idea to make my own pizza. I know it's a little bit cheating to use a packet bread mix but at least I'm not buying a pre-made base :)

 

For 1 pizza you will need:

• a quarter of a packet of bread mix
• a quarter of the warm water listed on the packet for the bread (you should be able to put your finger in it without feeling a temperature difference)
• a sauce or some soft cheese
• whatever toppings you like
• mozzerella for the top

So, you want to start off by making the bread. After reading the instructions on the packet, the general idea is mix in the water bit by bit until you form a dough. You then have to kneed the dough on a floured work surface for about 10 minutes, then pop it in a bowl, cover it with a damp tea towel and leave it in a warm place for about 30-40 minutes.

 

After it has been there for the allotted time it should have doubled in size, if it hasn't you just need to leave it a little longer. When it is big enough you have to stretch it out on a greased baking sheet and add your sauce, I used dolcelatte cheese. Finally add your toppings (cooked chicken and Brunswick ham in my case) and finish it off with mozzerella, I used fresh but you could use grated or sliced if you prefer.

 

 

Put your pizza in the oven (at about 180 degrees C) for 15-20 minutes until all the cheese is melted and the bread base is cooked.

Dish it up and enjoy. Leave me a comment if you give it a go and let me know how it went :)

x♥x

recipe : candy cane hot chocolate

 

 



This is a festive twist on a standard hot chocolate, you will need some instant hot chocolate powder, milk, boiling water, a candy cane and your favourite (microwave safe) mug to make it in :)

Start off by putting 3-4 teaspoons of hot chocolate powder in your mug and adding a tiny bit of boiling water. Mix it into a paste and then add cold milk to fill up the cup. Pop it in the microwave for 1 minute, take it out and stir it, then put it back in for another minute.

 

 

Take your hot chocolate out of the microwave, stick a candy cane in there and stir it around until it has melted. Sit back, relax, and enjoy your festive treat.

 

 

Leave a comment and tell me if you try this recipe :)

 

I made it with my friend Abi, you can find her at www.allthingsabi.blogspot.co.uk, she does excellent hair styles.

 





x♥x

recipe : pan fried trout

A few nights ago I decided it was time for another recipe. This time I've adapted a meal that I ate in a restaurant, I had pan fried sea bream fillet with mashed potatoes and green beans. The meal I am going to show you is pan fried whole trout with creme fraiche mash and peas.

Ingredients (to feed 1)

• 1 whole trout (gutted and headless)
• 1 handful of frozen peas
• 1 red onion
• 3 small / 2 medium / 1 large potato
• 1 clove of garlic (optional)
• a couple of spoonfuls of creme fraiche
• a little butter
• some oil for frying
• salt and pepper for seasoning

To start off you need to peel your potatoes, cut them into even sized pieces and put them on to boil with a little salt in the water. While these are cooking you can peel your onion and garlic clove, chop them up and put them in a medium frying pan with some oil to cook on a medium to high heat. Next you need to score the skin of your trout so that it doesn't curl up and the heat can get inside, and when the onions and garlic are cooked put the fish in the pan and turn the heat up.

At this point it may be worth checking how the potatoes are doing, stick a sharp knife into one of them and if there is resistance then the potatoes are not done.

After a few minutes turn the fish over and check the inside to see how its doing. When the potatoes are cooked drain them and put them back in the pan. Cook the frozen peas in a little water for 2 minutes in an 800W microwave and then drain them as well. Add a bit of butter and the creme fraiche to the potatoes and mash them up, season with salt and pepper.

By this point the fish should be ready, when the trout is completely opaque and falls apart easily then it is cooked and ready to serve.

Pop everything on a plate and tuck in. Leave me a comment if you try out this recipe and tell me how it goes :)

 

 

x♥x

 

how to : french manicure

I really love nail varnish and all things nail art (except duck feet acrylics, I just don't get it) so I thought I would show you how I do a French manicure.

 

all the things I use

cuticle remover cream

You want to start off by filing your nails into a shape that you like, I tend to go for rounded ends, then put a bit of hand or nail cream (I use Superdrug Hand Therapy Intensive Hand Cream, £1.99 for 75ml) on them and rub it in. I leave that until it has soaked in then I use a cuticle removing cream (I have one that a friend gave me because she didn't use it, The Color Workshop Cuticle Remover Cream), after leaving this for a minute or so I rub it down to the tips of the nails and remove the cuticles.

base coat

 

Next up I use Kiko 3 in 1 White, base coat, nail fortifier and top coat. This is super fast drying and helps keep your nails white, it costs £4.90 from the Kiko shop, which is really good value.



white tips



 

After that has dried I use Kiko 203 French Manicure White For Tips to paint the tips of my nails white. I really like this particular polish since it has a short thin brush which makes it much easier to do the tips. I'm pretty sure this one only cost £2.50.

 

I do 2 coats of white on the tips then follow it with 2 coats of the Kiko 207 French Manicure beige. I always make sure I let the polish dry in between coats as I then don't smudge it straight away, I find that it also helps it last longer. I finish with the 3 in 1 as a top coat.

beige

 

 

 

 

 I hope enjoyed reading this little tutorial and as always leave me a comment if you like it or if you tried it or both :)

 



x♥x



recent beauty buys

I thought I would compile a few of the beauty products that I have bought recently and really like. To start off with I got the Nivea Express Hydration Primer that I previously did a sample review for. I really liked the sample so I went out and bought the full size product, this one set me back £3.99. I really enjoyed this moisturising primer and it really helps my makeup to stay on my face where it belongs.



The next product I bought is a Make Up Academy (MUA) blush in Shade 1. I used points on my Superdrug beauty card to buy this but usually it costs £1. It's a really pretty peach and it has lots of sparkles in it. This blush is not too pigmented so it just adds a light colour to the cheeks without looking overpowering, I really like to use this blush when I have a red lipstick on.

 Another 2 items I bought came from MUA as well, they are eyeshadows in Shade 12 (left) and Shade 20 (right). Shade 12 is a pearly brown with blue-ish shimmer and Shade 20 is a matte charcoal grey. I use the matte shade for a smokey eye and the shimmer shade for everyday makeup looks. They cost £1 each and they are really pigmented, a little goes a very long way.

I also got a couple of lip products too. One of the Revlon Colorburst Lip Butters in the shade 025 Peach Parfait which is a really pretty pink peach with little shimmers in. I really like the colour because it's subtle for everyday and perfect if you have heavy or dramatic eye makeup on. The other is a Lasting Finish by Kate for Rimmel London lipstick in shade 107. This one is the opposite of subtle being a deep wine colour, it is also matte which I really like (and I can even add a balm or gloss over it to make it shiny).

The final product I bought is the Queen Attitude Khol Kajal from Bourjois Paris. I had heard about kajal eyeliners from other blogs and youtube videos and I really wanted to try it. Unfortunately Clarins discontinued their kajal so I couldn't get one but then while browsing the makeup in Superdrug (as you do) and I spotted this one. At £6.99 it's a lot cheaper than the Clarins one and I love it, I can use it for a really dramatic look and it can blend out into a smokey eye look. I'm a bit concerned that when the conical shape goes it will not work as well but so far so good.

As always leave a comment if you have any of these products and like them or don't, I would love to know :)

x♥x



 

sample review : maxfactor facefinity 3 in 1 foundation

Another of the samples that I got free was a 2ml sachet of Maxfactor Facefinity 3 in 1 all day flawless foundation, the shade I got was Natural 50. I found this foundation to be a really high coverage product, it's a primer-foundation-concealer combo and it went on really smoothly. I personally prefer a lighter product, and I found this one to be heavy. I thought this product lasted well all day and did what it said on the packet, however I'm not tempted to buy it since it is not what I look for in a foundation. The product also contains SPF 20 so a big thumbs up for protection from the sun. The full size is 30ml and costs £11.99 in Boots, my housemate loves this foundation and will definately be buying one, but as I said before I don't think this one is for me.

 

Leave a comment if you have this foundation and tell me what you think of it :)

 

x♥x

recipe : homemade egg fried rice

This evening for dinner I thought I would make one of my favourite university cheap meals, egg fried rice. It's a very simple and, as I said already, cheap meal to make. All the ingredients you will need are: a clove of garlic, rice (about 50-100 grams per person), a handful or 2 of frozen peas, 1 egg, 3 or 4 spring onions, a bit of oil for frying and soy sauce and pepper for seasoning. As for the equipment you will need, a pan to boil your rice in, a large wok or frying pan, a choping board, a knife, a chopstick, a colander and a wooden spoon or some other such utensil.

First of all you want to cook the rice in a suitable size pan, if there are instructions on the packet follow them since I just cook things until I think it's done. While the rice is boiling you can prepare the other ingredients, the clove of garlic needs peeling and chopping up and then the spring onions need to be sliced as well. The peas need to be defrosted, this can be done by pouring warm water over them in the colander then the egg can be beaten with a little oil using the chopstick.

 Next when the rice is done, drain it off and rinse it to get rid of some of the starch. Leave it to cool down a bit and pour a little oil into your wok/large frying pan. When the oil is heated up a bit, pop the garlic into the pan and then the rice.  Stir it around and then add in the peas and spring onions and mix them in too.

 The peas and spring onions will only take a couple of minutes to cook through and when they have push all the rice mix to one side of the pan. Pour the beaten egg and oil into the space in the pan and swirl it around with the chopstick sort of like a miniature omlette. When the egg is all cooked and broken up mix it into the rice and vegetables and add soy sauce and pepper to taste.

 

That's it, easy peasy and delicious, even if I do say so myself :)



 

Leave me a comment if you give this one a try and let me know how it goes :)

 

x♥x