Food, Exercise and Other Thoughts
I love food - I love eating it, I love growing it and I love making it. I also love exercise as it keeps me a little trimmer than I have been and helps me de-stress after a day at the chalk face. And don't get me started on the reading and travel!
The point is, how much should the day job infringe on my love of these other activities? Or how much should I ensure I am undertaking these when I could be reading yet another document on educational matters? When does the music teacher have to say, I have another life as well!
Favourite Recipe Sites
BBC Good Food also BBC Food
Weber.Com - For BBQing but can also be done in the oven. Beer Can Chicken is sensational (other beverages/ stock can be used!)
Jamie Oliver - Some nice recipes here.
Paul Hollywood - This mans bread recipes have never let me down.
Mary Berry - Traditional stuff done well.
Running on Real Food - A new site I have discovered, but looks interesting.
Recipe of the months
2018
2017
Places I Love to Eat At
Scotland
Ben Nevis Inn - Climb a mountain and then enjoy cracking food and drink in this converted barn
Crafts and Things - Some of the best Victoria Sponge Around
Craigies - great food, great cafe, great food and great pick your own!
The Real Food Cafe - THE best fish and chips.
The Scran and Scallie. Also love their sister restaurant, The Kitchin
Martin Wishart's - The place for that special occasion.
The Three Chimneys - The food makes the 6 hour journey all worthwhile. And their shortbread is a must. The recipe is here. Make it.
Qatar and the Middle East
Turkey Central - The place for Cheap Eats Turkish style in Doha
The States
New York and Food - almost too many places to mention, but these were the ones that stood out for me:
Kaffe 1668 - good coffee in Tribeca :)
The Spotted Pig, NYC. This place makes me very happy :O)
Joe's Pizza - Great pizza slices in Manhattan.
Australia
Burger Project - So good I had to go back a couple of days later!
De Bortoli, Yarra Valley - Nothing goes with a wine tasting like a cheese tasting! Heaven on a plate and in a glass!
We ate at some many great places in Australia that I cannot remember them all! I must admit to having being hooked on toasted banana bread and smashed avocado on toast.
Food
We all have to eat, but to actually cook something from scratch that smells and tastes great is like a great performance:Favourite Recipe Sites
BBC Good Food also BBC Food
Weber.Com - For BBQing but can also be done in the oven. Beer Can Chicken is sensational (other beverages/ stock can be used!)
Jamie Oliver - Some nice recipes here.
Paul Hollywood - This mans bread recipes have never let me down.
Mary Berry - Traditional stuff done well.
Running on Real Food - A new site I have discovered, but looks interesting.
Recipe of the months
2018
2017
Places I Love to Eat At
Scotland
Ben Nevis Inn - Climb a mountain and then enjoy cracking food and drink in this converted barn
Crafts and Things - Some of the best Victoria Sponge Around
Craigies - great food, great cafe, great food and great pick your own!
The Real Food Cafe - THE best fish and chips.
The Scran and Scallie. Also love their sister restaurant, The Kitchin
Martin Wishart's - The place for that special occasion.
The Three Chimneys - The food makes the 6 hour journey all worthwhile. And their shortbread is a must. The recipe is here. Make it.
Qatar and the Middle East
Turkey Central - The place for Cheap Eats Turkish style in Doha
The States
New York and Food - almost too many places to mention, but these were the ones that stood out for me:
Kaffe 1668 - good coffee in Tribeca :)
The Spotted Pig, NYC. This place makes me very happy :O)
Joe's Pizza - Great pizza slices in Manhattan.
Australia
Burger Project - So good I had to go back a couple of days later!
De Bortoli, Yarra Valley - Nothing goes with a wine tasting like a cheese tasting! Heaven on a plate and in a glass!
We ate at some many great places in Australia that I cannot remember them all! I must admit to having being hooked on toasted banana bread and smashed avocado on toast.
Exercise
Running, Cycling, Walking
I love exercise, not only to keep off all the extra pounds the eating threatens to add to the waistline, but also as a stress buster. I try and give myself one challenge a year to work towards, be it the West Highland Way, running some kind of race, or if I have managed to injure a knee (like in 2016), training to cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats. A case of a little madness keeping me sane!
For 2018 I am tempted by a little cycle along the John Muir Way and maybe a little running around Iceland and along the West Highland Way from Fort William to Tyndrum. Great chips there at the Real Food Cafe :)
West Highland Way
Great Glen Way
Lands End to John O'Groats (LeJoG) - This is a different route from that I took, and I spent 14 days dawdling up the west coast, but this is definitely something to have on your bucket list!
Runners World - My go to page for all running related ideas
Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op - My favourite bicycle shop. I might as well just have my wages paid into their account!
Best bits?
Australia for the scenery, food and wine. It helps having relatives and friends there to share this all with.
Asia for the culture and food, especially Thailand. Love Thailand.
US for culture, food and beer.
Europe for all of the above!
Travel Wishlist
New Zealand
Malaysia
Scandinavia
West Coast US - - I had a course there in the summer of 2017, and there was not a place that I did not like - San Francisco, Yosemite, Napa Valley, even Las Vegas was fun!
Caribbean
Road tripping in a convertible Mustang through the States (ended up being a Ford Explorer, but still a great trip)
Training it around Europe (again!) and walking/ cycling in the Alps.
Also strangely drawn to the idea of a package holiday as I have not been on one for 30 years!
I love exercise, not only to keep off all the extra pounds the eating threatens to add to the waistline, but also as a stress buster. I try and give myself one challenge a year to work towards, be it the West Highland Way, running some kind of race, or if I have managed to injure a knee (like in 2016), training to cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats. A case of a little madness keeping me sane!
For 2018 I am tempted by a little cycle along the John Muir Way and maybe a little running around Iceland and along the West Highland Way from Fort William to Tyndrum. Great chips there at the Real Food Cafe :)
West Highland Way
Great Glen Way
Lands End to John O'Groats (LeJoG) - This is a different route from that I took, and I spent 14 days dawdling up the west coast, but this is definitely something to have on your bucket list!
Runners World - My go to page for all running related ideas
Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op - My favourite bicycle shop. I might as well just have my wages paid into their account!
Travel
Train, Plane and Automobile - I love to travel and have visited most regions of the world.Best bits?
Australia for the scenery, food and wine. It helps having relatives and friends there to share this all with.
Asia for the culture and food, especially Thailand. Love Thailand.
US for culture, food and beer.
Europe for all of the above!
Travel Wishlist
New Zealand
Malaysia
Caribbean
Training it around Europe (again!) and walking/ cycling in the Alps.
Also strangely drawn to the idea of a package holiday as I have not been on one for 30 years!
Good Reads
Presently I am reading a lot of books on Orff Schulwerk, which while interesting to me are not to everyone's taste. Failing that I also read a lot of cookery books - The Three Chimneys Cookbook mixes recipes and the story of how the restaurant got to be the 28th best in the world while being in the middle of nowhere on Skye. Their shortbread is the best ever!
One of my favourite reads of the past couple of years has been Mark Beaumont's account of cycling around the world The Man Who Cycled The World. I loved reading this book, especially as I was injured at the time and was not running. In fact it is probably his fault I decided to do LeJoG in 2016... Well worth looking out.
Toast by Nigel Slater was a cracking read and very funny. The tale about the strawberries at some posh event sounded just like what would happen at one of my families get togethers!
Lord of The Rings is also a favourite, as is Hemmingway's The Old Man and the Sea.
Andrew Greig's At the Loch of The Green Corrie was a cracking read and persuaded the family to explore a bit further North than Ullapool. We have since returned many times to this wonderfully rugged and beautiful part of the world, although we are yet to fish up there!
One of my favourite reads of the past couple of years has been Mark Beaumont's account of cycling around the world The Man Who Cycled The World. I loved reading this book, especially as I was injured at the time and was not running. In fact it is probably his fault I decided to do LeJoG in 2016... Well worth looking out.
Toast by Nigel Slater was a cracking read and very funny. The tale about the strawberries at some posh event sounded just like what would happen at one of my families get togethers!
Lord of The Rings is also a favourite, as is Hemmingway's The Old Man and the Sea.
Andrew Greig's At the Loch of The Green Corrie was a cracking read and persuaded the family to explore a bit further North than Ullapool. We have since returned many times to this wonderfully rugged and beautiful part of the world, although we are yet to fish up there!
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