A BVF Personal Story: Friendship, Family, and Dessert-A Perfect Trio

Visiting Di in her hometown of Lymington,UK, has become a cherished tradition of its own and I consider Lymington a home away from home. Its a lovely place to spend time and a quaint town with easy to walk quarters, gorgeous views, friendly faces, the stunning New Forest, walks along the seawall, Saturday markets, and so much more!! Look for our future blog posting on our BVF Favs in Lymington!

 During our annual adventures for over 10 years, getting to our destinations have been adventures of their own. In 2008, Di and Phil picked me up from Gatwick Airport and we went straight to Brighton for traditional British food and a stroll along the boardwalk. Clearly, I had not learned from previous visits abroad and for some odd reason, I thought an order of fish and chips would be tailored to the American palate. What do you mean there is skin on the fish and mint in the peas?...I still giggle when I think of that day. 

Fast forward to 2010, due to extreme weather we had to adjust our travel plans back to the UK and said goodbye at the airport in Prague, Czech Republic and a year later we reunited at the airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Our travel adventures have truly been a gift, even unexpected bumps along the way, like the time we missed our morning train to Paris proved to be memorable-we laughed uncontrollably and enjoyed breakfast while we waited for the next train. What better way to start a morning and journey, than by laughing? Set aside catching planes, trains, and automobiles for our adventures-spending time in Lymington is always delightful, the warmth from Di and Phil's families make me feel so welcome and I never feel as though I am just visiting-I adore them! Experiencing unfamiliar environments is important for the full travel experience, being comfortable far away from home is extra special and I am so blessed to feel as though I am a member of the fam.

One of my absolute fav activities while visiting Lymington, are the wonderful family dinners. In 2012, we spent our annual holiday in Paris and returned to Lymington with countless stories to share about our Paris photo session with Pierre (oh yes, another future blog entry). Since I was already on that side of the world, it was good timing to travel to Belgium to visit my friend Mike, for a few days. On the train ride back to the UK, Di e mailed me to let me know we were going to her in-laws for dinner, that evening. I insisted on making dessert to bring over, my mom would frown upon me ever showing up without a present for the hosts. But what to make? I could have bought dessert from the store, but bringing homemade dessert was more meaningful to me. I had just made an American version of trifle a few days prior and was delighted when it received positive reviews! Di got out her cookbook and we began to strategize (what would we do without e mail?!) and voila- cream puffs and eclairs. 

As soon as I arrived back to Lymington, I started baking and was so excited to share these tasty treats with everyone. As Di knows, I love to bake and prefer baking to cooking, any day!! The cream puff recipe was identical to the recipe I have used in Las Vegas, which was perfect so no modifications from the norm had to be made. Since the batter for eclairs is identical to cream puffs (just a different shape), I thought I would just go by memory for the chocolate glaze recipe-I’ve made it several times before, not a big deal. Hmmmm, that was almost as good of an idea as ordering fish and chips in Brighton. The consistency of the chocolate was not right and I used all of the semi-sweet chocolate. Di to rescue! Although we were cutting close to the time we had to leave for the family dinner, she went to the grocery store to get more chocolate and butter. Such an amazing friend, she’s always there for me!!

 The cream puffs and eclairs were a success! What a compliment for the purveyors of fine desserts and delectable treats to fancy the pastries I made. Success!! Although these pastries look difficult to make, with some added patience and time, they are a simple pastry to create. We hope you enjoy the recipe below.

In closing, regardless if we are having a cuppa, climbing frozen steps up to the St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, missing trains, celebrating Alfie's Christening, going off the beaten path, or having family dinners- these moments are a testament to the special bond of sisterhood and friendship we have. Each year we pick up right where we left off from when we said goodbye and continue our journey of friendship and adventures. May you be blessed with fabulous friendships, amazing food, and wonderful memories.  Bon Voyage and Bon Appétite!

Cream Puffs & Eclairs

Ingredients 

Makes 10 medium cream puff or 8 eclairs

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
4 eggs
Filling:Whipped cream or ice cream 
Eclair Chocolate Glaze 

1. In medium saucepan melt butter. Add 1 cup water;bring to boiling. Add flour and salt all at once;stir vigorously. Cook and stir til mixture forms a ball that doesn’t separate (step 1). Remove from heat; cool about 10 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating with a wooden spoon about 30 seconds after each addition.

2. For large puffs, drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls 3 inches apart onto greased baking sheet (or use Reynolds Wrap foil). Bake in 400° oven about 30 minutes or till golden brown and puffy’ split puffs in half with a sharp paring knife, remove any soft dough from the center. Cool on wire rack. For eclairs: Spoon dough into a pastry or plastic bag, pipe dough about 5 inches long and 1and 1/2 inches wide. Same temperature and baking time.

3. Filling: Fill with sweetened whipped cream: 2 cups heavy whipping cream, 2 tsp vanilla, 4 tablespoons powdered sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Fill cream puffs and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Variation: if serving immediately, try vanilla ice cream. 

4. Filling: Fill with sweetened whipped cream: 2 cups heavy whipping cream, 2 tsp vanilla, 4 tablespoons powdered sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Fill cream puffs and sprinkle with powdered sugar. Variation: if serving immediately, try vanilla ice cream. 

5. Eclairs Chocolate Glaze: Melt 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate and 2 tablespoon unsalted butter. Remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup sifted powdered sugar and 2 to 3 tablespoons of hot water to make a glazing consistency. Cool and dip the top portion of the eclair for an even coat, fill with sweetened whipped cream. Recipe from the 1980 edition of Better Homes and Gardens:Gourmet Recipes Made Easy.  

5 BVF Favs in Sedona, Arizona

Our 2007 Annual Adventure was in Sedona, Arizona. Di traveled from the UK to Las Vegas for our first holiday in the States. We visited Sedona in October, perfect weather for our inaugural road trip! We selected this destination for its tranquility and beauty. As always, we had a fabulous time and now cherish the wonderful memories from our adventures. Here are our top 5 BVF Favs. 

1. Jerome: This quaint town is located approximately 40 minutes from Sedona. Jerome is a historic small town with big personality-imagine Bohemian meets country. Its tucked away on top of Cleopatra Hill and is known as America's largest ghost town. It must be the liveliest ghost town too. With unique finds, handmade jewelry, and art- it's at the top of our favs! 

2.  Picazzo's: Our fav place to eat at! Long before the organic movement started gaining popularity, Picazzo's was already offering their customers farm to table freshness. We enjoyed their food so much, we went multiple times- a BVF rarity! Picazzo's was the inspiration for our yummy strawberry spinach salad. Check out the recipe from Di's kitchen  http://bit.ly/1j8mdob

3. Holistic healing and relaxation: Sedona is known as a great destination to retreat away to for rest and relaxation. With countless spas at your hands, be sure to book a relaxing treatment to unwind.  Also,check out the variety of crystal shops offering healing products. 

4. Buck Thornton's World of Jerky: We found this delicious jerky store while we were wondering the shops. From traditional beef jerky to gourmet flavors such as venison and ahi, they offer a wide range of treats. Your taste buds won't be disappointed! 

5. Red Rocks of Sedona: If just one word could be used to describe this landscape, it would be Majestic.

The beauty surrounding Sedona is just breathtaking. Be sure to save enough time to truly enjoy soaking up the tranquility Mother Nature has to offer. 

Savoury Saturday recipe!!

5 Tips for Hosting a Themed Party

A BVF fav is bringing together friends and family to celebrate special occasions. We love entertaining, creating, and hosting themed gatherings. Recently, Monica hosted a “Welcome Baby McKenna” party to celebrate the birth of her friend Angela’s newest addition to her family-the beautiful McKenna Michele. It was a delightful afternoon to welcome baby McKenna and introduce her to excited friends and family.

1. Select a theme add accents: Pick your theme and design the special occasion around it.  For welcoming baby McKenna, pink was the perfect color to accent an afternoon of bubbles and sweets. To add a special touch of color, pink bows were glued to the plastic champagnes glasses. 

2. A variety of options: For the "bubbles and sweets" gathering, we served champagne and an alcohol free sparkling pomegranate cranberry drink. We had almond lacey cookies (look for the recipe in a future Thursday Treat recipe), creme puffs, chocolates, fresh fruit with a vanilla yogurt dip, and a candy bar. Give guests a variety so there are options everyone can enjoy! 

Personalize: To make the event extra special, we had a cake made with a  welcome "Princess McKennna" message. 

Party favors for the guests: A candy bar is super easy to put together, select a few types of candy and display the candy in a variety of dishes. Guests enjoyed the candy throughout the gathering and made to-go bags for later. 

A special memento for the guest of honor: Special wishes for McKenna were a success! We all wrote down warm thoughts on pre printed sheets of paper to send home with Angela. A nice touch to end the gathering!! Make your own template for guests to use, simple and thoughtful! 

Family Day Out!

Whether it's once a week or once a month having quality family time is important and helps to form special memories. Here are 5 tips to help you put this into practise: 

1. Agree on a day of the week that suits your family, for example Sundays. 

2. Divide the responsibility and ask for ideas. In our family, my partner and I each chose six activity ideas. 

3. Set the date, just as you would for meeting up with friends or going on a date night. That way you all have something to look forward to. 

4. Look for special offer or money saving deals with websites such as groupon or voucher codes. 

5. Pack for the day- camera, sunscreen, lunch, wet weather gear, etc. 

Oven Roasted Mixed Vegetables

We luv cooking at BVF and experimenting with new creations. Try this recipe for a perfect accompaniment for a main course of fish, chicken, or beef. Use a variety of vegetables to bring together color and texture!

 Side dish, serves 4-6

Ingredients 

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 bunch peeled carrots
• 2 cups broccoli
• 2 medium sized purple potatoes
• 2 zucchinis 
• 1 small red onion
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions 

Preheat oven to 400 F

Cut vegetables to 1’’ chunks or desired size
Combine veggies in a bowl, drizzle 1 tbps olive oil and mix in spices to coat the veggies.
Coat a glass roasting dish with the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil, to prevent sticking.
Pour vegetables into the roasting dish. Cover with Reynolds Wrap Foil and cook for 25 min, this maintain the veggie's moistness and aids the cooking process. Uncover and cook for an additional 10 min or until tender.

Bon Appétit 

Heart peanut butter Hershey kiss cookies

Valentine's peanut butter kiss cookies 

110g unsalted butter 

125g smooth peanut butter

110g granulated sugar 

1 medium egg 

2 tbsp whole milk

1/2 tsp vanilla extract 

175g plain flour 

1/2 tsp salt 

18 Hershey's almond kisses 

Preheat the oven to 180C 

1. Cream the butter & peanut butter together

2. Add sugar, egg, milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Beat until fully blended. 

3. Stir in flour. Mould mixture into a ball, cling film and refrigerate for an hour. 

4. Form one inch balls and place on a greased baking tray. If you're feeling festive use a heart shaped cookie cutter to shape dough before placing on baking sheet. 

5. Using your pointer finger make an indent in the middle of each cookie. 

6. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. 

7. Once cookies are out of the oven immediately put kisses in the centre of each cookie and leave to cool on a cooling rack. 

Sending Love from Around the World.

I love you in 10 languages!

French: je t'aime

Italian: ti amo

German: Ich liebe dich

Spanish: tea mo

Jamaican: mi aime jou

Polish: kocham Cię

Swedish: jag älskar dig

Chinese: wǒ ài nǐ

Russian: ya tebya lyublyu

Danish: jeg elsker dig

Happy Valentine’s Day from Bon Voyage Friends!

Oreo Truffles

Some of the best recipes are shared by friends. This yummy sweet treat came from my friend, Harriet. We hope you enjoy this simple yet delectable combination of favourite ingredients. Bon Appétite! 

St. Lucian Tuna Sandwiches

Di's spicy tuna sandwiches, inspired by her flying days with Virgin Atlantic! 

Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni

Spinach & Ricotta Cannelloni 

Serves 4 

180g baby spinach leaves 

250g ricotta cheese 

150g cheddar cheese, grated 

12 sheets fresh pasta 

Olive spray 

600g tomato & basil sauce

100g fresh Parmesan

Salt & pepper to taste 

Preheat oven 190C 

1. Put spinach in a dry non-stick frying pan & stir fry until it wilts, then roughly chop. 

2. Mix spinach, ricotta, 2/3 cheddar cheese, and season to taste and roll into tubes.

3. Line the cannelloni in an oven proof dish (can stack if necessary depending on dish size) 

4. Cover with sauce and sprinkle remaining cheddar and Parmesan on top. 

5. Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes, then remove foil for the last 10 minutes until the top is golden. 

Serve with garlic bread & green salad 

Notes: Allow 3 cannelloni per person. Finely chopped mushrooms taste delicious too. 

Valentine's Chocolate Truffles

Makes 34

300ml double cream 

100g dark chocolate 

2 tbsp butter 

100g chopped almonds 

Powdered cocoa (I use bourneville) for coating truffles 

1. In a pan heat double cream over medium heat until just starting to boil. 

2. Break up chocolate & add chunks to cream, stirring constantly until the chocolate is fully melted. 

3. Add butter and mix until smooth, then add the almonds. 

4. Put mixture in fridge to cool for 2 hours. 

5. Teaspoon out mixture and roll into little balls. Place eat ball on a plate sprinkled with cocoa. 

6. Once all balls are made sprinkle cocoa over the top & roll until fully coated. 

7. Place in petit four cases & serve with coffee. 

Note: this recipe also works well with raisins! 

Travel Tuesday: Belgium, a Tour of Brussels & 5 BVF Favs to do

Belgium is a BVF Fav! Brussels is a vibrant, eclectic, and exciting city. As the capital of the European Union, the city is filled with nationals from throughout Europe. Sitting at a cafe nearby the EU headquarters and listening to the chatter from patrons, one can easily feel they are in multiple countries at once. 

Although we traveled to Belgium on separate occasions, we have wonderful memories from our visits!  Mon's friend Mike has lived in Belgium for a few years and has embraced the beautiful city as his second home. He participated in a team building retreat for works and each team had to blindly taste chocolates and identify which chocolatier made them. Yummmmy!! 

Prior to Mike's fam visiting Brussels, he created a simple and enjoyable tour that covers a mix of food, culture, and history. Mike shared his custom tour and we hope you get the opportunity to try! 

See Mike's walking tour at the end of this post.

It's always wonderful catching up with friends and extra special when it's far away from home. Mike and Monica toured the city and had a delightful dinner at Nuetnigenough. The ambiance and food were equally amazing.

Fast forward a few months later and it was Di's first visit to Brussels. The trip was even more meaningful with her dad and brother (extra bonus, Di was an expectant mum at the time). They also enjoyed a delicious meal at Nuetnigenough. Delicious!!

We love going to places recommended by locals and sharing fab places with others. 

BVF's Top 5 Favs in Brussels

Mike's Mapped Walking Tour 

Nuetnigenough Restaurant
Bakeries 

Elisabeth Chocolatier 

Brussels Mainsquare

Bon Voyage! 

Mike's Mapped Walking Tour 

Inspiration: Motivational Monday.

During our annual adventures we have stumbled upon a plethora of culture and history in the various cities we have visited. Traveling is inspirational in countless ways. Its fascinating to learn about the local historical figures and how they left a mark on their country and the world. Here are some quotes from notable historical leaders that have had an impact on the world and made the places we have visited even more special.  

2008 Annual Adventure: Tour  of England 

2011 Annual Adventure: Atlanta, USA 

2012 Annual Adventure Paris, France 

Feel inspired? Visit these websites for motivational quotes. 

www.motivational-monday.com 

www.ageofquotes.co.uk

www.inspirational-quotes.info 

Cheers! 

Warm Turkey, Chorizo & Spinach Salad

Serves: 4 starters or 2 mains

250g left over roast turkey 

100g chorizo (I used the antipasti sliced because it's thinner) 

2 squirts olive oil 

Splash lemon juice 

50g frozen peas 

100g baby spinach leaves 

30g pinenuts, toasted 

Pepper, seasoned to taste 

Raspberry vinegarette to drizzle

1. In a dry frying pan toast pine nuts until slightly browned. Set aside to cool. 

2. Then spray olive oil into pan and Stir fry the turkey and chorizo until heated through. 

3. Cook the peas in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain and rinse in cool water. 

4. Arrange spinach leaves in the serving dish (I plate up to save on washing up!) layer turkey & chorizo, peas and sprinkle pine nuts on top. Drizzle with vinegarette and serve. 

Note: great served with fresh bread or toasted pitas. 

Bon appetite!