Candid Article 46

Markus Lupfer

Markus Lupfer’s contribution to fashion week this season came not in a traditional catwalk style like some of the more conventional fashion houses decided upon, but in the form of an interactive presentation. Set on a stage made to look like a greasy spoon café in the 70s, complete with signs displaying the price of a cup of tea, plastic chairs and tables set with menus, models walked around and stopped to chat whilst the audience munched on chip-shop chips and sipped G&Ts.

It wasn’t just the set that was 1970s themed. Girls wore two piece skirt suits and mod-style pinafore dresses reminiscent of the era, paired with tartans, florals in dusky pinks and navy blues and two-tone turtle necks. The overall colour palette was quite dark, enlarged polka dot prints were used in black and grey, much suited to the winter months the collection is aimed at. Designs were also fairly simple - fabrics were classic wools and cottons, patterns were minimalistic, and plain black pumps or kitten heels were used along with centre parted straight hair to complete the look.

The slogan jumpers that made Lupfer a household name are not completely absent though, this season exclaiming ‘Golly Gosh’ along with other well-known British sayings. Lupfer has obviously decided to stick with inspiration close to where he studied in London, revealing "I wanted to do something quintessentially British”.

New Tastes...

Ask, Headingley

Last Thursday, I went to Ask whilst visiting my sister Jasmine in Leeds. We had been given £30 in vouchers by our mum to spend there, which rather than meaning we got a free meal, just meant that we both splashed out with 3 courses and paid what we would have done for 1!

We ordered a bottle of the house white wine between us (my last drink for a month!) and got two starters to share - the new pepperoni filled Panzerottini (dough balls) with olive oil and balsamic for dipping, and battered calamari, a family fave. Both were piping hot, really good sized portions and perfect for sharing.

We both opted for seafood pasta for main; mine was one of the specials - angel hair pasta with king prawns topped with crispy ham in a light lemon, garlic, chilli and tomato dressing, and Jasmine had the ravioli stuffed with crayfish, crab, salmon and ricotta in a creamy tomato sauce. Mine was nice, but I prefer sauces that are a bit more substancial and the dressing made the meal feel more like a warm pasta salad. I loved that it was with angel hair pasta though, as it is one of my favourite varieties. Trying Jasmine's I understood why she has gets it every time she comes to Ask, as it was amazing, stuffed full of seafood and the sauce was deliciously creamy and indulgent.

We both still had room for dessert (just!), so I got an almond, plum and pistachio tart with vanilla ice cream, which was sort of an Italian twist on a traditional English bakewell, and Jasmine went with simple lemon tart with creme fraiche, a great palate cleanser with a bit of zing.

The bill altogether with a tip came to £65 - a bit pricey for a high street chain Italian in my opinion, but the food and service were very good, and we did both have a lot to eat! At least we had our Tesco vouchers to knock half off.

Weekly Update!

Food, Food & More Food!

This week was half term, so I've had a busy one filled with fun activities and lots of yummy food! Monday was a restful one as Aum had a busy weekend, we just chilled out at home and didn't do very much. On Tuesday we took two of his friends to the Trafford Centre to play Laser Quest and for some lunch. We bumped into two more of his classmates whilst we were there so all went to Zizzi together, which was lovely. I had the Calzone Pollo Spinaci, which was filled with chicken, spinach, mushroom, thyme and bacon in a mozzarella and bechamel sauce topped with ham, it was worth the 1500 calories!! 

We still ate at the country club in the evening, but as I had such a mammoth lunch I opted for a small plate - deep fried duck egg with cauliflower mousseline, caviar and micro herbs. It was a really good combo - the egg was gorgeous and runny and the cauliflower mousseline had a surprisingly strong flavour which went well with the caviar. On Wednesday we ate at Cafe Gourmand before travelling to Pontefract where Aum was staying with his grandparents for a couple of days. I had simple scrambled eggs on a wholemeal bagel, followed with an amazing honeycomb cheesecake, it had lumps of Crunchie, Malteasers and Daim in it. In the evening I was pretty tired from my drive, so watched the Brits and made some white chocolate 'cookies' that turned out like rock cakes!

On Thursday I had a lie in before doing a gym class, and then I travelled to Leeds to see Jasmine to break up my trip to collect Aum the following day. We went out for dinner at Ask (see next week's post) thanks to Mum as she gave us some vouchers, and then watched the first Hunger Games as I'd never seen it before. I picked up Aum on Friday at 2pm, and finished as soon as I'd dropped him at home.

That evening I popped to see Mum and then went for dinner at the country club with Tasha, Emily and Smeed. Em and I got two lots of sushi - the dragon roll which I have had before, and the Country Club Roll which is 'Hot black sesame reverse roll with tuna, barbecue unagi, baked scallop and prawn delight'. We got the broccoli and asparagus as a side, and I was stuffed afterwards!

Yesterday I did an awesome yoga class and then went to Ikea with Mum in the afternoon, and in the evening a few of us went to James and Kelly's for drinks and nibbles. I have given up alcohol for a month, so was very good and stuck to soft drinks - and still made it to 1.30am!

Today I had a surprise treat from Mo, so we got ready and set off at 3pm. Turned out we were going for afternoon tea at Harvey Nichols which was very nice! We had finger sandwiches on the bottom layer (cucumber and cream cheese, salmon, prawn mayonnaise, ham and mustard, and beef and horseradish) big raisin scones with jam and clotted cream in the middle, and then a selection of mini pastries on the top. It varies from day to day, but we got pear and apple crumble, a belgian vanilla slice, a purple macaroon and a chocolate truffle. There was so much we had to take a goody bag home with us, and finished it this evening after a yummy roast pork joint. Such a calorific week!

Candid Article 45

Vivienne Westwood Red Label

Another LFW article, this time of Vivienne Westwood's Red Label collection. View it here:

http://candidonline.com/lfw-vivienne-westwood-red-label-aw14/

Candid Article 44

Sophia Webster LFW A/W '14

Following London Fashion Week, I have a few short articles in Candid, the first of which is on shoe designer Sophia Webster's collection. Read it here:

http://candidonline.com/lfw-sophia-webster-aw14/

Weekly Update!

Jazzy Veg & Marshmallow Icing!

This has been another quiet week, though this weekend has been fun. On Tuesday at the Country Club I had teriyaki lamb rump medallions with a ginger and spring onion dressing, accompanied by chargrilled broccoli and asparagus in a peanut-sesame dressing. The veg was amazing, I would just have that as a snack on a lunch time, the dressing really perked it up. The lamb was deliciously tender and again, the dressing complimented it nicely.

On Wednesday Mum came round during the day to finish my wardrobe off so I finally have all my clothes hung up and looking lovely! I took Aum to the Cake Gallery that evening as he skipped drama and I was babysitting - I had a raspberry and white chocolate sponge with raspberry pieces in the cake and marshmallow in the icing, it was amazing!

On Thursday I had a chilled one, caught up with some writing and jobs around the house. Friday was Valentines Day (see previous post) and on Saturday I spent the day testing out my new curlers (slight fail, but not too bad) and writing an article for London Fashion Week. In the evening Mo and I went out for dinner with friends at a place in town called Dogs N Dough (see previous post) and today has been spent recovering and writing a few more Fashion Week articles for Candid. They will be up next week for you to look at!

New Tastes...

Dogs N Dough

Last night, a few of us went to a diner in Manchester called Dogs N Dough. I had never heard of it before (it was our friend's suggestion) but went online to check out the menu and was immediately excited!

The premise, for those that are familiar, is similar to Almost Famous, a burger bar in the Northern Quarter that does huge, stacked burgers with everything from candied bacon, to doughnuts to steak in them - and are hugely calorific! The difference with Dogs N Dough is that, as the name suggests, it is hotdogs and pizza which they specialise in - and considering I am not a huge burger fan, this seemed like my ideal replacement.

We had a table booked for half 7, and eventually managed to find it, as it is tucked down a tiny side street off St Anns Square. Down some stairs leads to a big room with green lacquer tiles on the walls and low over-table lighting, so it has the effect of an old fashioned snooker hall. We ordered some drinks whilst we waited for the other members of our group to arrive, and perused the impressive (read: huge!) menu.

I decided to go for pizza, whilst everyone else in the group opted for a hotdog. Mine had macaroni cheese and bacon on the top, carb overload! I managed 5 out of 8 slices which I was pretty happy with, and the boys were willing to finish it off! Other things ordered were the 'Philly Cheese Steak' which was topped with steak, shallots, barbecue sauce, peppers and cheese, the 'New Yorker' with pastrami, swiss cheese, jalapenos and horseradish mayo and the 'Burrito Dog' topped with salsa, guacamole, chilli, peppers and cheese, and we also got a few portions of fries, some loaded with chilli and cheese. The boys were on pitchers of Budweiser which worked out as a good deal, and I shared a bottle of wine with one of the other girls, as one of our party was a designated driver.

The bill came to £24 each (we split it for ease, except the driver) which included a tip, and as I'd had near enough a full bottle of wine as we ordered separate glasses afterwards, I thought it wasn't too bad. The service was good, and it had a really cool atmosphere, and decent music; I'd love to go back to try something else off the menu next time!

Homemade Recipes...

Valentines Day!

Yesterday was Valentines Day, and though I am not a huge fan of the holiday, I thought seen as I have a boyfriend this year I might as well celebrate it somehow. I decided to cook for us both, as I enjoy cooking and it's cheaper/ less slushy than going out on the night!

For starter I just did a homemade platter, which had french bread, brie, pate and olives. I find that the simple dishes are often the nicest, although I was pretty full after eating it all! 

For main course I made slow cooked beef bourguignon and dauphinoise potatoes. I was well prepared, as I chopped the 4 rashers of bacon, 3 onions, two handfuls of mushrooms and 2 carrots the night before, so that I just had to pan fry them in oil the following morning before adding them to the slow cooker. I covered 400g beef cubes in flour and then lightly browned them, before adding them too to the mix, and then poured half a beef stock cube, 150ml of red wine, a chopped garlic clove and 1/2 tbsp tomato puree over the top and gave it a stir. I then left it bubbling all day for about 6 1/2 hours. (Recipe from the Good Food Channel). 

To make the dauphinoise, I peeled and par boiled the potatoes for a couple of minutes, before thinly slicing them and placing them into an ovenproof dish so that they slightly overlapped. I then grated 2 garlic cloves, and added them to 175ml double cream and 100ml skimmed milk (this can all be cream if desired, I just wanted to lower calories slightly!) and poured it over the potatoes before topping with some grated cheese and baking them in the oven for approx 1 hr at 175c. (Recipe from BBC Food).

For dessert I made a tarte tatin, served with the remaining double cream. I peeled and cored 6 small apples, and sliced them in half before placing them to one side. I then heated 100g sugar, seeds from a vanilla pod and 50g butter until it was a bubbling caramel and tossed the apples in the mixture before pouring into an ovenproof dish. I then placed shop-bought puff pastry over the top, squashed the edges around the apple mixture and trimmed the edges before baking at 190c for 25-30 minutes. (Recipe from Jamie Oliver). When it was finished, I flipped it over onto a plate, and though mine was a strange shape due to using a dish that was too big to cook it in, it tasted delicious and was surprisingly easy to make.

It all went down a treat with red wine for me and Coronas for Mo, and there was plenty of dessert left for the day after!

Weekly Update!

Sushi, Steak & Cake!

This week has been a build up to my housewarming really, so I haven't done a great deal. On Monday I met up with Tasha and Abi and Dave the guy Abi is seeing, and we went to Gastronomy for some lunch. I had a bacon and brie panini (seem to have it every time!) and a few cups of tea. I had to dash off to get Aum from school, but it was nice to meet Dave and chat to the girls albeit briefly. 

On Tuesday I went to the country club and had peking duck sushi, which given that I don't normally like duck (I find it a bit too dry) was delicious, though I think Aum was a bit gutted he didn't get it! On Thursday I went round to Mum and Dad's for squash stuffed with cous cous, feta and pine nuts for tea and then stayed back at mine.

On Friday Geoff and Brian arrived for the weekend, and Rick came as he lives nearby so we went out for a few drinks and some dinner at The Flying Horse at the end of my road. What was supposed to be quiet drinks turned into a 3am drinking session, typical when us uni lot get together!

Yesterday I spent the day prepping for the party with Mum (see previous post) while the lads went into town and met a few others before heading back. Today I've been hella hungover, but feel a bit better now, so Mo is making steak for dinner and I've cooked a Betty Cocker chocolate orange swirl cake for dessert - yum! 

Flatwarming!

A Good Christening!

Last night was my long awaited flatwarming party, and what a party it was! 

After 'sending out' invites (Facebook of course!) to over 50 people, I expected about 20 to turn up, if that. I put this mainly down to the usual, other commitments, too far to travel, difficult to get home afterwards - HOWEVER. Upon checking around with people, I had 28 confirmed, which quickly multiplied on the day to 31 in total; we struggled to fit in! In fact, by the end of the night, people had spread into my bedroom and the spare room lounging on the beds, creating a proper house party vibe which I loved.

The first of my guests arrived on Friday, having travelled from Newcastle and Exeter, hence wanting to prolong the visit as much as possible. A couple of Mo's uni friends that I have got to know came for dinner on Saturday, which was nice, definitely the calm before the storm! My mum was an absolute star helping me with last minute preparations, buying breakfast and snack stuff and cooking a spaghetti bolognese (the carbs were appreciated later on!) before leaving us to it. 

More uni friends came on Saturday evening, including a friend from my course who I haven't seen since we graduated, followed by all my friends from home, my ski rep from last year and his girlfriend, more of Mo's friends, and later on, even a few who had been at a gig in town and made it - I was so chuffed at the effort everyone made! Mo managed to break down, but made it for 9pm, so not too shabby!

All the food got eaten, I got bought some beautiful cards and presents, (including a miniature orchid, booze, chocolate and a candle in a glass jar that smells like heaven!) and everyone genuinely seemed like they had an awesome time. With a sore head today, it has been lovely getting so many texts commenting on a great night, and asking when my next party will be... soon I hope!

New Flat Part 5!

The Final Chapter

So this is it - my final 'New Flat' instalment, as most thing are now done, and those that aren't are not worthy of a post! From time to time I'm sure I'll include things in my 'Weekly Update' posts about items I've bought etc, but for now, here are the last few photos of things that have happened this week in my lovely abode.

The first major development, is that I now have gorgeous floor-to-ceiling wardrobes, with enough space finally for all of my clothes (or very nearly!). They are high- gloss grey and were £450 from Ikea, this included the frame, doors, 3 clothes rails, 3 shelves, two wire baskets with hinges and home delivery. It may seem a lot, but it is great to be able to make your own package with whatever configurations you want inside, and to be fair, wardrobes are always a bulky investment anyway. The only other thing that has changed this week, is that the shelving unit in my hallway is in place, and I have put lots of knick-knacks and pictures on it, to make it a bit more homely. 

Moving out and sorting and furnishing a whole new flat has been a very long, stressful, tiring draining and expensive process, but I am so thrilled with how everything has come together, and I wouldn't change a thing... at least for a few years!

Weekly Update!

First Week At Home!

So this has been my first week 'living' in the new place; said in inverted commas as I have actually only stayed here for three nights, and two of those were shared (with Mo on Tuesday and my friend Claire on Thursday). On Monday I had a chilled evening and then went round to Mo's for his homemade macaroni cheese (perhaps the best thing he makes, it is amazing!) and on Tuesday he came to mine and I made us Ikea meatballs with roasties. 

On Wednesday I finally got the internet, and Mum came to mine for liver and bacon casserole for tea, mainly as we are the only two people I know who like it! Thursday was Claire's visit (she stayed as she had an interview in Manchester on Friday) we managed to sneak in a glass of wine and a chat before we went to bed despite her flight not landing until 9pm.

On Friday I had my nails done and dyed my hair before going out for a meal at Danilo's in Hale for Abi's birthday (see previous post). Afterwards we went to Suburbia where we had lots of free drinks after scoring a place on someone's table, and danced until we could dance no more! Yesterday I stayed in bed until 12pm, and then went to the flat to do some housey stuff with mum before going to Cafe Gourmand for some late lunch with Smeed and the girls. I had the special which was chorizo, pea and mint risotto topped with a poached egg - it was awesome, and warded off the last of my hangover.

I babysat in the evening, though not until very late, and played taxi driver ferrying the rest of the family back from an Egyptian themed murder mystery night, which they all looked brilliant for! Today Mum made gorgeous blueberry pancakes for breakfast before I left. I have spent the rest of the day pottering around the house, and am currently at catching up at Mo's as he has been away in London since Thursday. Pretty quiet first week, though I am sure after my housewarming party next weekend I'll be grateful of a quiet one!

New Tastes...

Danilo's, Hale

Yesterday I went to Danilo's Italian restaurant in Hale with the girls, to celebrate Abi's birthday. It was very busy when we arrived so we sat upstairs for a while and had a bottle of the house white until a table was ready. We were a group of five, so not huge, and after forty minutes we still hadn't been seated, so we went downstairs to be told it was indeed ready for us then, so we took our seats. As Abi has been visiting for years with her family, they gave us a free bottle of prosecco, though I think it was partly to compensate the wait as well!

For starter we all shared a garlic bread with cheese which was lovely, and then for main Emily and I got a dish each and shared so we got to taste two off the menu! We got the Penne Primavera with chicken, and another pasta that was creamy tomato with salmon flakes and parmesan. I have had the first meal before, and was sad to see that the presentation (and possibly recipe?) had been changed; it was still delicious, but not quite as good as its former self. The salmon dish was gorgeous though, I would definitely have it again.

We didn't get any desserts, although Abi got some pistachio and vanilla ice cream on the house which we all dug into, and we had another bottle of prosecco. We were then lucky enough to be some of the last diners in, so managed to get free sambuca and tequila shots and Jaeger bombs courtesy of another guest who was feeling generous! We each paid £24 including a tip, not bad for all the booze and food we consumed, and then we went on to continue the night in Suburbia!