GIVEAWAY: The Collective Yoghurts & Gourmet Parcel NOW CLOSED

NOW CLOSED.

In order to say thank you, I've teamed up with The Collective, a Kiwi-originating company now conquering the UK yoghurt scene (I adore their passion fruit and Russian Fudge flavours), who have kindly agreed to donate a months worth of their delicious yoghurts to a reader of Adventures of a London Kiwi.

*plus*

I'm going to add a little 'something something' and make up a Foodie Penpals-esque parcel of gourmet goodies which will be delivered (separately to the yoghurts) to an address of your choice. It will take food allergies into consideration and contain £25.00 worth of hand picked goodies, unique to you, by answering a few questions over email like;

- Sweet, Savoury or a mixture?
- Good or naughty?
- Do you follow any particular diet such as vegan, vegetarian, low carb?

Life is all about adventures - in this case, Timtams may be involved.

Further info on The Collective and their utterly delicious products here

 

For the gourmet parcel you may be thinking £25 isn't the most massive value - for that much in your average-high-street-hamper that would get a bottle of chutney, some crackers & maybe a cheap bottle of plonk. The nice thing is I don't have a profit margin to make, and this is what approx. £10.00 gets -->
#justsayin

I'm also keen to share some of the delicious products my Foodie Penpals have introduced to me.

Personalised to your likes & dislikes it could include;



How To Enter:

• Simply complete the Rafflecopter widget below to verify your entries
• Entries can be via blog comment, Facebook, Twitter etc
• This competition is open to UK residents only. Please read the rules below
• Leaving a blog comment is mandatory and failure to do so will void any other entries
• Closing date -  27th April 2013 12.00 pm

*Terms and conditions

1. This offer is only open to UK residents (sorry international peeps)
2. One prizewinner only
3. The Yoghurts will be dispatched by The Collective directly to the winner as soon as possible
4. Adventures of a London Kiwi will post the gourmet parcel Special Next Day Delivery but is limited to the reliability of Royal Mail
5. The winner will be contacted by email within 48 hours of the end of the competition with and the gourmet parcel dispatched within 72 hours of the winners reply

How Entries and Rafflecopter works:

• You will need to complete the mandatory entry first by making a blog comment. Click 'leave a comment' at the bottom of the post and leave your reply. The comment won't show immediately as it needs to be moderated, however rest assured it will appear on the site, so carry on with rest of your entries.
• Go back to Rafflecopter and click the green button to tell me you have made a comment, this will unlock all the other options. All entries are checked to see that the mandatory question is answered, if its not all bonus entries will become void.
• Rafflecopter will tweet, like and follow on your behalf.
• For information on how to find the URL of your tweet click here.
• For bonus entries you can return to this page and enter the daily bonus entries.
• If you are still unsure as to how Rafflecopter works please do check out this short video.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Good Friday - A few Sailors, a drink and a Hot Cross Bun

Hot Cross Buns have a colourful and lengthy history. Amongst the superstitions, sailors would take Hot Cross Buns baked on Good Friday with them on their voyages, as it was said to prevent shipwrecks. Located not too far from the East End docks, the associations with the Widow's Pub in Bow in East London are incredibly strong.

The legend goes that in the early 19th Century a widow lived in a cottage with her only son. Her sailor son left for the sea but promised to be back on Good Friday, 1824. Awaiting his return, his mother baked him a hot cross bun, but he never arrived. Every year until her death she baked a bun on Good Friday, hoping to welcome her son home, but she never saw him again.

In the 1840's a pub replaced the cottages called the Widow's Son and the tradition has been carried on with a Hot Cross Bun baked every Good Friday and hung in a net above the bar. A service is held in the pub and a member of the Royal Navy adds another freshly baked to the net admist singing, a few jovial drinks and a lot of goodwill.

Another story says claims the Widow was the publican of a pub already on site - but we will possibly never know.

  

Thanks to a tip off by the lovely Miss Regula Foodwise, we couldn't resist popping along, and chatting with the friendly locals (proper proper Cockney Sparra's) - some who have been attending the service for over 50 years and Navy members - some fresh from a 6 month voyage.

 

 

 

Sadly there was a fire about 15 years ago in which many of the age-old buns were burnt, but a few were saved and have been treasured with their fresher counterparts.

It's a real festival atmosphere; everyone crowded in at 3pm glasses in hand, rock music pumping and the buffet kindly laid on (over the billiard table) and such a nice atmosphere.




The legend is such a heartbreaking tale, can you imagine what the Widow would have to say if she knew that the tradition is still being carried out over 125 years later? Maybe as the MC said “Another year, another Good Friday, another bun.”

We especially loved the sign hanging above the pub of the Sailor returning many years later to the pub, with the many buns hanging in their net. The old Facade can be seen here.


There are many superstitions surrounding Hot Cross Buns and Easter:

• Sharing a hot cross bun with another is supposed to ensure friendship throughout the coming year, particularly if "Half for you and half for me, Between us two shall goodwill be" is said at the time.
• Another encourages keeping such a bun for medicinal purposes. A piece of it given to someone who is ill is said to help them recover
• If hung in the kitchen, they are said to protect against fires and ensure that all breads turn out perfectly.
• Eggs laid today will not go off
• If a child is born today & baptized on Easter Sunday they will have gift of healing

The Hot Cross bun has very contested origins, with Pagan claims, some claiming a connection with Eostre (a Germanic god, the namesake to Easter), some to the Ancient Greeks but the most widely accepted seem to be the Christian origins, with the cross on the buns representing the Crucifixion.

Awesome fact: the London Clerk of Markets issued a decree forbidding the sale of hot cross buns and other spiced breads, except at burials, on Good Friday, or at Christmas. The punishment for transgressing the decree was forfeiture of all the forbidden product to the poor.

If you fancy joining in next year, the pub address is The Widow's Son, 75 Devon's Road, Bow, London, E3 3PJ.

I hope you are having a lovely Good Friday!



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Toastie Pies - Kiwi Cooking

Disclaimer: These are really moreish - and health-wise, pretty well just the same as your average sandwich.

I try not to eat too much bread anymore, trying to subscribe to the theory that White Bread is the devil, tempting you with it's delicious softness whilst providing very little nutrional goodness, but I have to make an exception for these babies. And not eating it often makes it oh-so-much scrummier. The golden crust of the bread, the melty cheesy-ness of the inside combined with whatever bridge ingredient you fancy to accompany your sandwich with - ahhh, carby heaven.

Quite a few people I know have toasted Sandwich makers which they prefer - it gives you more of a sealed in 'pie' but I like them a little more melted-cheese-on-toast style. We make ours in the frying pan - you just need to be careful when flipping them over not to spill out the insides.

My 'technique' is to lift the sandwich with a cooks' slice slid under the cooked side, lift the pan up, turn it over the uncooked side of the sandwich and then flip them both. Possibly an overly complicated method, but it works for me!

Method:

1. Heat your pan as high as you can, but not smoking (oh Gas, how I adore thee)
2. Butter a slice of bread - I prefer a medium slice, hubby prefers a thick (10mm) slice, and place it butter side down on your chopping board
3. Add topping, then cheese evenly
4. Butter a second slice, then add to the sandwich butter side out (this is important)
5. Take by the diagonal corners to the pan
6. Turn when the butter on the top begins to melt slightly/the underside is golden brown and the cheese is melting. I like mine slightly over golden as you can tell by the above photo
7. Try to resist a second, I dare you

Ok, so it's best made with Cheese somewhere contained providing the golden melt factor, but if you also add another filling, a flavour 'bridge' if you will, it's a whole other level;

Kiwi Classic: Creamed Corn
The Italian Job: Tinned Spaghetti (found in the baked bean aisle)
KISS: Ham
Hawaiian Special: Ham & Pineapple or just Pineapple
Mouse Trap: Ketchup
Ye Olde English: Ham & Chutney or just Chutney
Orchard: Sliced Tomato

Peppers, cooked onion, cooked chicken, chilli... (I could almost list my entire fridge here, you get the idea)

Weird Tropical: Peanut Butter & Banana (sans Cheese). Don't laugh, it's actually delicious.

What's your favourite guilty secret snack/meal - pizza, dessert, fish & chips, curry?

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The Shard - Epic Fail

Sometimes London is a brat. Most of the time she is lady; elegant, amusing, enticing, busy, and, let's be honest kinda dirty in some respects. She does occasionally like to show her more tempestuous side, possibly just to prove that we are mere mortals inhabiting her shores and to treat her with the respect she deserves.



We tend to wax-lyrical viewing London in a rose-tinted spectacles manner (a bit of a love-in), sharing what we've enjoyed recently, until it goes wrong. Through our adventures, we try to share some of the delicious oddments and corners that we've found on our wanders, for instance the Worlds Biggest Egg Hunt (now back in London until Easter, be quick!) a 900-year old oak stump carved with elves, the Great Christmas Pudding Race and the fact that you can actually see Big Ben.

We do like to keep it real though. 

 

We planned a trip to the Shard about 6 weeks ago, thinking that weather in late-March should be pretty ok and if we were lucky, we might even get a little bit of blue sky.

The Shard is London's most recent addition to the fold of skyscrapers, and is currently Europe's tallest building. On a good day from the 68th and 69th floors you get the most amazing view over London for around 35 miles.

Ummm, snow, in late March?

Honestly, it wasn't an entirely wasted trip - we got to experience the Shard, get a taste of the view and be amused by their crazy lifts.

At £25 a pop, London's 'most eagerly awaiting new attraction' was a bit disappointing beccause of the murky London weather but we will re-book and go again.

Moral of the story? Don't trust the weather, and always have a back-up pub to go drown your sorrows in the worst case scenario.

 

What is your worst experience of bad holiday weather? Does it upset you, or because you are in more of a 'holiday mode' do you find that you can roll with it?

 

Ps. Instead of dwelling too much on the weather, check out my giveaway.

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GIVEAWAY: Foodie Festival NOW CLOSED

I have something to brighten your day. With the dank, dark and snowy weather unrelenting, I think we all need something to cheer us up, and get us all through the rain/snow/wind/rain/rain/hail weather pattern we are having and it's a thank you for reading my little corner of t'internet. The organisers of the largest UK Foodie Festivals have kindly offered 2 of my readers a pair of tickets (each pair worth £30) to their London Foodie Festivals - meccas of delicious food, lovely drink and a chance to meet the people behind their products. 

We went last year (as independent paying, escaping from the office, excited-to-enjoy-the-sunshine customers) so how would you like to try a little of the below (obviously I can't guarantee the sunshine though!).

Did I mention the New Zealand wine stockists who exhibited last year? See, Kiwis ARE taking over the world.



 

Now in its eighth year, new highlights will include:

• A Chocolate Theatre to showcase the world of chocolate and confectionery demonstrations
• A Wine Village, bringing together international producers and wine regions, including English producers
• The extensive Producers’ Market sells a vast array of artisan produce from the local area and incorporates the Guild of Fine Food Great Taste Market’s award-winning British produce.
• New dining and VIP area serving signature dishes from top local restaurants including pop-up versions of Ed Baines’ restaurant Randall & Aubin, Jamie’s Italian Kingston and Masala Zone, run by Veeraswamy, the oldest Indian restaurant in the UK. 
• City Beach where families can chill out on deckchairs with an artisan ice-cream or an afternoon tea whilst children build sandcastles.
• This year’s Children’s Cookery Theatre will be operated by local cook school Kiddy Cook who will run a series of workshops incorporating gastronomic experiments. 
• Specialist tea, coffee and fresh juice vendors can be found around the site.
• The entertainment stage features live music acts including Gloria Miller performing every day
• A spectacular Bake and Cake Theatre in association with Electrolux incorporating a ‘bake-along’ with members of the audience invited to participate.
• The new market section Homeware Village offers visitors the chance to shop for kitchenware and gadgets

Thank you to Foodies Festival for providing these tickets for the readers of Adventures of a London Kiwi, and for inviting me to the festival this year.

 I can't guarantee you will get these abs by attending, but the smile I can!

How To Enter:

• Simply complete the Rafflecopter widget below to verify your entries
• Entries can be via blog comment, Facebook, Twitter etc
• This competition is open to UK residents only. Please read the rules below .
• Leaving a blog comment is mandatory and failure to do so will void any other entries.
• Closing date -  12th April 2013 12.00 pm 

*Terms and conditions

1. This offer is only open to UK residents
2. Complimentary tickets are valid for one day only at your chosen venue.
3. Tickets are non transferable. One pair of tickets per winner only.
4. Complimentary tickets obtained through this offer may not be duplicated.
5. All tickets will be scanned on entry to the show
6. You may enter for both venues but will be required to complete the entries through both rafflecopters separately.

How Entries and Rafflecopter works:

• You will need to complete the mandatory entry first by making a blog comment. Click 'leave a comment' at the bottom of the post and leave your reply. The comment won't show immediately as it needs to be moderated, however rest assured it will appear on the site, so carry on with rest of your entries.
• Go back to Rafflecopter and click the green button to tell me you have made a comment, this will unlock all the other options. All entries are checked to see that the mandatory question is answered, if its not all bonus entries will become void.
• Rafflecopter will tweet, like and follow on your behalf.
• For information on how to find the URL of your tweet click here.
• For bonus entries you can return to this page and enter the daily bonus entries.
• If you are still unsure as to how Rafflecopter works please do check out this short video.

Enter here to win tickets for

Hampton Court Palace – Saturday 25, Sunday 26 and Monday 27 May 2013

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

London Clapham Common: Friday 7, Saturday 8 & Sunday 9 June 2013

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Ozone Cafe: Restaurant Recommendation



It was that good I kind of don't want people to know about this place. You see, what I think will happen is that it'll get hugely busy then I won't be able to go, or have to queue for hours. Does that make me a bad person?

 

The service was excellent; funny, helpful, laidback but there when you needed them, the smell as you enter was enticing, the coffee ridiculously good and the food top standard. First in, so I could have a good nose, I was greeted warmly (then they jokingly threatened to throw me down the stairs) and seated in their front window area to wait for the rest of my party. Served a delicious flat white by their quietly-grooving-to-the-background-music barista, it was nice to watch the rhythm that only a busy hospitality spot has. I do miss the friendliness of working in restaurants.

 

 

Seated downstairs (near the coffee roasting machine!) we all opted for the Eggs Benedict (our favourite) with either Bacon or Salmon (our choices, they have other options), served a-top bubble and squeak cakes and the richest béarnaise I've had the pleasure of trying. We were barely a few forkfuls in before we were planning our next visit - that's how good it was. The bubble & squeak cakes especially - soft fluffy potatoes encased in a golden crumb was a lovely balance to the rich oozy eggs, savoury smoky bacon and béarnaise. 

 

 

We also decided to spoil ourselves, and have a brunch dessert (bressert?) which was shared - the daily special of brioche French Toast, Strawberries, citrus couli and cream fraiche. Light, decadent with the soft top-notes of strawberry. My mouth is watering all over again.

 

 

Upstairs there is also a variety of less mischievous brunch items - croissants, kiwi & choc-chip muffins, snow-balls (another kiwi sweet treat) and loads of other items. These came served on enamel plates which we squealed over - childhood memories of camping holiday food served on enamel plates.

 

 

  

Great atmosphere, quick hot food, relaxed service (they let us sit on our downstairs table until we were ready to leave) funky surrounds and delicious creamy coffee all a stone's throw from Old Street tube station. Ahhh, heaven. 

 

The ladies with whom I brunch (all lovely Kiwi lasses) unanimously declared this our top favourite Kiwi brunch location in London so far. And there are a surprising amount of them dotted throughout the UK capital.

 

For further information, check out their website. They also wholesale their coffee - sadly I didn't have enough bag space to get any, but I really need an excuse to go back. The only problem is I want to try everything and would like to go back and maybe people-watch the hipsters from their booth seating.

I'd get there fairly early though - it's a popular place already (*sigh*). You don't even have to have the full menu, there are perch-y seats that you can order a coffee and a muffin and have a gossip on.

Just to be clear, I was in no way comped for this, they had no idea who we were and we paid for everything ourselves, we just loved it.

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Guest Blog - Foodie Penpals February

Foodie Penpals doesn't just connect bloggers with other bloggers, but also connects us with the other half of the coin - foodie blog readers. This month I sent to Allison, a reader who uses the moniker ChocVeg. (I love the order of her nickname with chocolate taking precedence - definately a lady after my own heart). She has been vegetarian for 30 years and I really enjoyed looking for Allison's parcel, and having to think outside the 'meat & 3 vege' box.

Foodie Penpals is a hobby that combines shoppping + foodie-ness + contacting nice people definately =  a winner (here are a few past boxes).

She kindly did a round up for me.
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Here is my February #Foodiepenpals selection from the lovely Kiwi Emma in London.
I hadn’t spotted that the postman had left the parcel sitting on my logs, safe and dry until I came back from a neighbour’s after a glass of wine!  What a lovely surprise and thank you so much Emma!

The box was bursting with goodies, most that I had never seen before in rural Surrey!!
These are very interesting single slices of special breads made in Germany – great for me as I am a keen sourdough bread maker and experimenter, a bar of salt chocolate which is lovely, especially late at night! And Franks flapjack bars. 

These are just the best and are made in Camden in London apparently!  I am not sure if they are widely available, but they are more than a snack, are healthy and lovely with chocolate in them – and so delicious I need a local supplier! Chocolate and dates mmmm! [Emma: Here is the website, I should have sent it to you!]

So onto the healthy things….!  Lovely mango slices – great to snack on during the day, and caramel coffee crackle popcorn which I am waiting for someone to share it with me! (oh yes and rice chips that disappeared very quickly that evening!)

And then even more healthy snacks!  Lovely dried mushrooms which I love, wasabi peanuts which I haven’t ever seen or tried, so another first, and then a popping corn to go in the microwave!  Never seen this before either so will pop it in the microwave when I’ve got a friend round for film night and hope for a laugh!

And to finish, some very useful garlic and chilli cooking paste to keep in the fridge – always useful, and some blood orange and ginger marinade for roast veggies!  Great for vegetarians like me, and can’t wait to try it.

So thank you so much Emma, for this very generous and delicious selection of lovely things!  I hope you also received some great goodies, and maybe some things you have never seen or tried before!

Best wishes,
Allison/chocveg

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I'm so glad you enjoyed it Allison, and I love your backsplash! Definately needed in the dready winter-time!

Vegetarian options are getting so much better these days, in fact I bought a few doubles, especially the blood-orange and ginger marinade.

It got me thinking again about being a vegetarian. What is your favourite vegetarian dinner?So, the downlow: Foodie Penpals was created by Lindsay at theleangreenbean in September 2011, and administered in for Europe by Carol Anne from thisisrocksalt every month, you are assigned a person to send a thoughtful foodie parcel to and a different person will send one to you. It's a lovely way to try things you've never tried before, match up with some awesome bloggers (and readers too!) and it's so nice to receive something in the post that's not a bill. Join in today!

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Transatlantic Foodie Penpals - Special Edition

The highlight of the end of the month for me is opening a carefully picked foodie package from a fellow Foodie somewhere in Europe (this month the East Midlands of England), so imagine my delight in addition this month, upon opening this baby, all the way from the United States of America (is it just me saying that in my head in an American drawl - no? Good).

 

 

I tried to resist even opening it until after Dinner the day it arrived, hoping to negate the damage we'd do to our waistlines whilst sampling the box. I managed to leave it alone for at least the duration of Dinner, with only a quick peek. Thankfully Dinner was quick - Everything-in-the-fridge soup takes no time to eat!

Julie(who blogs at What Julie Eats - check it out here), thank you. Thank you thank you thank you. Thank you for the time, the thought and the effort you took to send this little piece of America trans-Atlantic to my little patch of Old Blighty! It is fantastic.

Right, where do I begin? (sorry the post it sounds a little hyper, Julie like me leans toward a sweet tooth - yes!)

These 3 held the most fascination in the box for me I think. Us Brits read a lot of American blogs, and everywhere Trader Joes is mentioned, and it always seems to be in connection with really interesting items - don't these Butterscotches (which I love) look delicious? Look, I've got my own Trader Joes stuff now (I'm such a nerdizzle). Julie also send me Taco. Skillet. Sauce. A little bit of a Yank-flavoured swoon - it's proper Mexican sauce, by Rick Bayless, a celebrity chef who specialises in Mexican food. My hubby even licked his lips in anticipation. I'm also renaming my saucepan a skillet. It just rolls off the tongue. And then, a cinnamon & sugar grinder - how clever! I've been enjoying using this to season my morning porridge.



How much did I end up enjoying the butterscotch you ask? That much. Mmmm, perfect, especially warmed slightly.

These Cherries are deliciously tart and the cashew brittle - oh the brittle. Both are really lovely - the Cherries I've been eating at work as a snack and the brittle I've been rationing out to myself. As Julie points out, it's very American (this particular kind made by the Amish(!) it's also very moreish. The chocolate chips - well, we do have these over here too, you can settle the bet with your Gentleman, but I totally agree that one can never have too many chocolate chips, and in the great American tradition, these are earmarked for Chocolate Chip Cookies. How could I not?

Lavender is such a strong childhood smell for me, it's my Mum's favourite scent and we always had Lavender plants whilst growing up. The nonpareils we are set to enjoy, and the fruit slice Candies (hehehe, so American to be called Candies, funny that) are fascinating, and probably destined for cupcake decorations. So cute.

I LOVE mango - it must be the Foodie Penpal psychic vibe hitting off again, I've just run out of the ones in my desk stash, and these will hopefully last a little longer. The Jelly Beans have some cool flavours - pomegranate - and come with Julie's personal recommendation. It's really fun the idiosyncrasies that we appear to have in common - as kids we adored fruit strips (though we called them by another name) and I still buy these today...

I'm sad to report one small casualty during the journey (or possibly my excited tearing open of the box) plus a candy bracelet (not pictured). I loved candy bracelets as a kid.

Aren't these Candies cute, AND patriotic? The peanut chews are a particularly Philadelphia candy, and are delicious.

I can feel my waistline expanding as I type.


Last but not by any means least, two Theo bars of chocolate. As you can see, one of them didn't make it very far out of the box. I can confirm we enjoyed it's minty deliciousness. I love fresh mint, and the bar had the same pungent earthy-ness as fresh mint, a nice contrast to the Dark Chocolate. Isn't the wrapper of the second cute?

 

 

So far in my explorations of the box, my favourite items are the Chocolate, the Cherries, the Cashew Brittle & the awesome off-piste New York highlights map Julie kindly drafted for me.  Julie, you are an absolute legend. I actually don't know what karmic waft has lucked me in so well.

 

I think I've discovered a new sweet partner-in-crime, and a new obsession, nut brittle. My Dentist will be thrilled!

Fly Royal Mail, fly! [Edit: the parcel has now arrived on US shores & Julie is itching to crack it open, whew!]

We went a bit off-piste - thank you Twitter - and arranged our swap privately, but if you are interested in joining in;

 

 

So, the downlow: Foodie Penpals was created by Lindsay at theleangreenbean in September 2011, and administered in the UK by Carol Anne from thisisrocksalt every month, you are assigned a person to send a thoughtful foodie parcel to and a different person will send one to you. It's a lovely way to try things you've never tried before, match up with some awesome bloggers (and readers too!) and it's so nice to receive something in the post that's not a bill. Join in today!

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