Savoury Saturday: Smoked Mackerel Salad

Yummy! Try this delicious and simple recipe, perfect for a light summer meal.

Chewy Banana and Date Granola Cookies

If you are craving something sweet, healthy and simple-this is the perfect recipe to craft in the kitchen. With just four ingredients, you can create these yummy cookies in under 30 minutes.

Chewy Granola Cookies

Makes 20 cookies 

2 cups uncooked rolled oats

8 pitted and chopped medjool dates

2 yellow ripened firm bananas

1 tablespoon liquid vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 250 Fahrenheit 

Using a medium size bowl, peel and mash bananas with a potato masher or fork

Add the vanilla and dates, mix

Gradually mix in oats, its easiest to use your hands to ensure the moist ingredients evenly cover the oats

Using two spoons, form a ball and press it down into the shape of the spoon to create a cookie

Bake on parchment paper or lightly greased baking sheet for 15 minutes

Enjoy! 

Savoury Saturday- bank holiday recipe: Smokey Prawn Cocktail

Whether your living stateside or in the UK this weekend we get to enjoy an extra day off! BBQ season has commenced and this lovely Smokey Prawn Cocktail recipe compliments most BBQ menus. It also makes an easy and impressive starter for a dinner party menu, just multiply recipe as needed. I hope you enjoy this quick & tasty recipe as much as I do! 

Festive Friday: Memorial Day Traditions

We love traditions at Bon Voyage Friends. With the start of Memorial Day Weekend, we wanted to share a great article from PBS about traditions for this special holiday. The picture below is a BVF original and was taken outside of the Historic Old Post Office in Washington, D.C.  

       Discover and Share Memorial Day              

               Traditions and Activities

http://www.pbs.org/national-memorial-day-concert/memorial-day/traditions-activities/

Treat Thursday: Blondie Bars with Chocolate Chips

If you love the taste of chocolate chip cookies and the texture of brownies, try this delicious recipe for Blondie Bars! This recipe is courtesy of Anne Thorton at the Food Network. 

Get creative and use a variety of baking chips such as white chocolate or caramel, and add in some nuts or dried fruit. The varieties are endless. Enjoy! 

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pan

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch fine sea salt, if desired

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons fleur de sel

Directions

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch jelly roll pan with softened butter or cooking spray. 

Beat your butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until it is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the brown and granulated sugars a little bit at a time, pouring them in on the side of the bowl. While you're adding your sugars, stop the mixer occasionally and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure that everything is fully mixed. Cream the butter and sugar mixture until it is light and fluffy, about 8 minutes. (Creaming creates air pockets in the dough, and therefore these blondies have a light and delicate texture.)

Whisk your flour, baking soda and sea salt, if using, in a bowl. (Add the salt only if desired because there is plenty on top of the finished bars.) Add your eggs 1 at a time, adding the second only after the first is fully incorporated. Once the second egg is fully incorporated, add your vanilla. Turn your mixer down to low speed and slowly add the flour mixture. Once the dry ingredients are fully incorporated into the wet ingredients, add in all those chocolate chips. Your machine will seem to be struggling to mix in the chocolate chips because there are so many of them, but don't turn it up, leave it on low and allow it to fully mix the chips in. Spread your cookie dough into the prepared jelly roll. Evenly sprinkle the top of the dough with the fleur de sel.

Pop the blondies in the oven until they are golden brown on top and not wobbly in the center, 30 to 35 minutes. Allow the blondies to cool in the pan on a wire rack or on a dishtowel on your counter.

Cut the blondies, still in the pan, with a sharp knife into bars, about 48 pieces. Remove with a spatula and serve. (Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 1 week, but they will not last that long!)

Yummy!!! 

Travel Tuesday- Granny Day Out

I'm very lucky to still have my Granny around and we try to make up for the years of living continents apart. Last year we had a monthly outing visiting all the National Trust properties within a two-hour radius. I'm not sure what the theme will be this year, but we've started with a day to Exbury gardens. 

Our first attempt to visit was scuppered through misunderstanding...Granny thought I had all day to wander round the gardens and I thought it was just a well known garden centre she wanted to have lunch at- two hours isn't enough to enjoy Exbury gardens and have lunch, so we aborted the idea, went for lunch and rearranged a full 'Granny Day Out'. Check out their website www.exbury.co.uk so you don't make the same mistake! 

Friday was a beautiful day to visit the gardens- 24 degrees C of clear skies & sunshine. Dogs are welcome all around the gardens, the trails are buggy friendly (both baby & Granny) and there's lots of areas for kids to run around and burn off steam. I was all set for a super long walk all around the park...forgetting this is a 'Granny outing'! 

We started the day by taking a guided buggy tour on a 12-seater golf cart that gave us a 40 minute overview of the entire gardens. There are over 200 acres of beautiful flowers and trees and 40 different walks you can do, so you can visit at different times throughout the year and have a different experience. Being springtime the azaleas were in full bloom and lots of other plants were coming into bloom. 

There are coffee shops and picnic areas available at different locations throughout the gardens. We brought our own picnic blanket and lunch and found a quiet spot amongst the trees for Alfie & George to run around while Granny and I had a little rest. 

It is such a beautiful and tranquil location that you can enjoy flowers, trees, fish ponds, or a view of the boats going down Beaulieu River- something for everyone! I would highly recommend visiting Exbury Gardens- why has it taken me so long to discover such a beautiful area on our doorstep?! 

Treat Thursday! Easy Scone Recipe

My mom has used this recipe for many years and they remind me of the yummy scones I have enjoyed in England. I made these scones for Mothers Day and added macaroons for a touch of color!! 

Bon Appetite!!

Simple Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ cup plus 1 tsp sugar

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted, frozen butter

½ cup sour cream

1 large egg

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix flour, ½ cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Grate butter into flour mixture on the large holes of the box grater; use your fingers to work in butter (mixture should resemble coarse meal), whisk sour cream and egg until smooth.

Using a fork, stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until large dough clumps form. Use your hands to press the dough against the bowl into a ball. (The dough will be sticky in places, and there may not seem to be enough liquid at first, but as you press, the dough will come together.)

Place on a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7-to-8-inch circle about ¾ inch thick. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp of sugar. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 triangles; place on a cookie sheet (preferably lined with parchment paper), about 1 inch apart. 

Bake until golden, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm or at room temperature.

 Yield: 8 scones.

Credit: Recipe from a USA Weekend Edition

Savoury Saturday! International BBQ tips.

Yummy! We luv cooking at BVF, here are some great tips from Food Network Canada for grilling.


CLICK HERE FOR GREAT BBQ GRILLING TIPS 

Festive Friday~ Happy Anniversary!

This is a very special year, not only for the travelling sisters- aka Bon Voyage Friends, but also for my husband and I; 2014 celebrates 10 years of our commitment to each other and 5 years of marriage! 

Five years traditionally represents 'wooden gifts' and P made this a reality. This morning I was presented with a Canadian maple tree to represent my nationality and the solid foundation we've built together and will continue to grow- such symbolism for a rough & rugged guy topped off with this homemade sign, very thoughtful! 

Enough of the mushy stuff, the reason I'm focusing on 'anniversary' as the topic for festive Friday is to highlight the importance of significant dates in ones lives. They represent milestones of achievement and deserve recognition. Make sure you take the time to celebrate them, whether it's with a gift, travel adventure, or special meal. 

! 

Motivational Monday

Motivational Monday: Words of inspiration from Mother Teresa. This photo was taken during a sunset walk in the UK's New Forest. The New Forest is one BVF's favourite places to go to for a nice and tranquil walk. 

Treat Thursday: Sticky Toffee Pudding

This Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe is from The Great British Book and Baking and credit is given to Francis Coulson and Brian Sack, the original creators of this gourmet recipe. It was a Christmas gift from Di and is the gift that keeps on giving!  It’s a delicious treat and brings back travel memories of time spent in England. Bon Appétite!!

 

Sticky Toffee Pudding

9 servings

For the Sponge Cake:

175g stoned (pitted) chopped dates

1 teaspoon baking soda

300 ml boiling water

75g unsalted butter, softened

175 caster (granulated) sugar

2 medium free range eggs, at room temperature, beaten

175g self-rising flour

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

 

For the Sauce:

200g soft dark brown muscavado sugar

100g unsalted butter

150ml double cream (heavy whipping cream)

1 vanilla pod

 An 18cm (9x9) square cake tin or pyrex dish, greased with butter.

 

Directions

Put the dates and baking soda in a medium pan. Pour over the boiling water-the mixture will foam up. Set the pan over a medium heat and simmer for 1 minute, then take off the heat and leave to cool for 15 minutes.

 

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180°/350°. Put the butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy, using a wooden spoon or an electric mixer. Gradually add the eggs, beating well after each addition. Gently stir in the flour (switch to a spoon if you’ve been using a whisk), followed by the date mixture and vanilla extract. Pour the mixture into the greased tin and bake for about 35 minutes, until springy to touch.

 

While the pudding is baking, make the sauce. Put the sugar, butter, and cream into a medium pan, preferably non-stick. Split the vanilla pod down its length and add to the pan. Heat gently until the butter has melted, then bring to the boll and simmer for about 5 minutes, until thick and toffee colored.

Spoon a little of the sauce over the cooked pudding to coat the surface, and return it to the over for a couple of minutes more so the top turns sticky. Remove from the oven, cut the sponge into squares, pour the rest of the hot sauce into a jug and serve immediately.