Having a Snog in Soho

There we were, Mr. P and I, in the middle of Soho (a notorious "red light district" in the heart of London). What where we doing there? We were having a snog! Oh, daaaahlings, get your minds out of the gutter LOL, I can assure you, there is no monkey business afoot (sigh). No, Mr P and I are trying out a relatively new fad to the UK: frozen yogurt.

Hard to believe right? I mean, in America frozen yogurt has been around for a really long time, but it's pretty new here. This one, was very different to anything I've previously had. In America, the taste of frozen yogurt "attempts" to mimic that of ice cream. Not so at Snog. At Snog it taste like frozen Greek yogurt. There is only a touch of sweetness, which I was told comes from Agave nectar. Despite the sweetener, its very tangy. Being that I am someone who goes through tubs of Greek yogurt like nobody's business, I thought it was fab. I'm not going to lie to you, it's not as good as real ice cream, but actually, I don't think you can really compare this to ice cream, because it is very different. It just happens to also be a frozen desert.

The people behind the counter at Snog are very friendly and helpful and willing to give out samples (yes, Soho is famous for that). There is also loads of little treats to put on your desert that range from healthy options like fruits and nuts, to more "naughty" choices of Oreos and brownies. Quite frankly though, after realising what a Snog tastes like, I don't think it would pair well with Oreos. I mean, who wants Oreos with Greek yogurt? Yuck! That being said, it does go fabulously well with fruit and nuts. Oh and they also have stuff like honey that you can have on it too.

Hmmm... should I be naughty or nice?

The venu is absolutely adorable and is very kind of Hello Kitty. The tables are shaped like little toadstools, and the whole place is just really bright and colourful.

If you are looking for a delicious fat-free low calorie snack, and you like the taste of Greek yogurt, you are just going to love Snog. I'll definitely be coming back. So if you see a fabulous Dior clad housewife with an uber large designer handbag in one hand and some pepper spray in the other, in the Soho area, let me assure you, I'm not up to no good, I'm just looking for a Snog.

Chocolate Dipped Rosemary Shortbread Hearts

The Victorian language of flowers is one which I find very intriguing. They were known for making bouquets with different flowers, and that bouquet would actually tell a message based on which flowers were given to you! Rosemary, however, has a significance which dates back even further. There is a famous line in Hamlet:

"There's rosemary, that's for remembrance”

Rosemary was used in all kinds of religious ceremonies that ranged from weddings to funerals. At weddings, a twig of rosemary was entwined in the bridal wreath, after being dipped into scented water. Individual rosemary branches were richly decorated and tied with multicolored silk ribbons. They were presented to wedding guests as a symbol of friendship and love. Rosemary was also given as a New Year’s gift.

Sprigs of Rosemary were carried at funerals, and distributed to the mourners, to be thrown on to the coffin after it had been lowered into the grave. This custom of giving mourners a twig of rosemary before leaving the house for the funeral still prevails in many parts of Wales.

You learn something new every day, right? I bet if you give these darling cookies to someone, they will remember you too. Perhaps, in return they will buy you a giant designer bag, no? Well, one can hope. I am making these for Mr P. Maybe they will jog his memory :). Aside from that, I think this would be a really yummy cookie for Valentine's Day.

So do you have any special plans for Valentine's Day this year? I'd love to hear them!

Rosemary Shortbread Hearts Dipped in Chocolate

Ingredients

• 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 90g cup butter, chilled
• 2 tablespoons sifted powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
• 100 grams of melted chocolate for dipping

Preparation

1. Process first 4 ingredients in a food processor until mixture forms a ball.

2. Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut with a 2-inch cookie cutter; place on lightly greased baking sheets.

3. Bake at 325F/160C for 18 to 20 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

4. Melt your favourite chocolate using a double boiler method. Dip shortbread hearts into the chocolate, let cool on wax paper. Do not let them cool in the fridge, however, because this will cause the chocolate to discolour.

Breakfast at Claridges

A while ago I told you guys about how Hubby and I spent his birthday weekend at Claridges and had afternoon tea there. What I didn't tell you was we also had breakfast there. It was, in fact, the most expensive breakfast we've ever eaten. The bill was very close to £100. Do you know how many McDonalds hash browns I could get for that??? So, was it worth it? Read on daaaaaahling.

Hubby and I woke up from our luxurious Claridges marshmallow bed and of course, our first thought of the day was: breakfast. I wish I had other interests besides food sometimes. I try to cultivate other hobbies, but in the end, it really is all about the food. Mr P and I went back downstairs to the same luxurious foyer where afternoon tea was served the previous day. This time, the atmosphere was different. It wasn't as buzzy or bustling. This Sunday morning, it was quite subdued and relaxed. Truthfully, I preferred it that way. When I am all dressed up (as one is supposed to be for afternoon tea) I have a tendency to be a bit self conscious. For breakfast, things are more casual. There's no need to get all dressed up (though some people were), and I felt more at ease.

Hubby and I were seated in a cozy little nook in the corner of the room. We were offered our menus, and a feeling of happiness washed over me: the feeling of knowing that I would soon be fed.

Here's what Mr P and I ordered:

Toast (which comes with little jams and honey)

A pot of English Breakfast tea for me

A pot of coffee for Mr P

We both ordered scrambled eggs with Daylesford Organic smoked salmon

A basket of assorted viennoiseries (that's just a fancy word for buttery flaky pastries)

Tidbit: Did you know that Marie Antoinette's breakfast of choice was coffee and a viennoiserie? Well, that's what it said in a recent edition of the Times.

First came the tea and coffee. It was served on the same kind of three tierd stand that was used during afternoon tea with the same Limoges green and white striped china. I ordered the standard English Breakfast, and Mr P had Claridge's house blend of coffee. My tea was nothing unusuall, but the coffeee was particularly lovely. Smooth and mellow.

Next came the little toasts. We got a mixture of white and wheat. This came with about 6 different mini jars of preserves (including strawberry, marmalade, black currant, and honey). Oh, and it also came with an adoreable baby butter dish. I am happy to say the butter was at room temperature (it is such a peeve when the butter is too cold to melt on the toast).

As for the scrambled eggs, they were lovely and creamy. Although very tasty, they weren't on the same level as my favorite scrambled eggs in the whole wold: those at Fortnum & Mason. The salmon was good, but I wouldn't expect anything less from a place like this. All in all, very pleasant, but not particularly memorable.

But, my dears... I have left the best for last. So far, Claridges had ticked all the boxes, but except for the fabulous environment, I wasn't wowed. Quite frankly, when you spend this kind of money, you really do expect food with some wow factor. That was until I partook of the veniosserie. Yes, you must include "viennoiserie" into your vocabulary, it's an essential ;). It is a word that can be included in any conversation.

Example: "Check out my new Prada bag daaaaaahling, imagine all the viennoiseries that Moi can fit in here!"

Anyways, back to the subject at hand. The viennoiseries are actually made in house. There is someone in that kitchen who really knows what they are doing. We had an almond croissant, a plain croissant, a raspberry muffin, a pain au raisin, a sugar topped baby brioche, and the best pain au chocolat I have ever tasted (and I am not really into those). This platter of goodies really was the piece de resistance of breakfast. I highly recomend it should you ever find yourself in Claridges. If, lets say you came for breakfast and just had these and a hot drink, I think it would be moderately affordable, and, dare I say it... good value for money! If I am not mistaken, I think that all of those viennoiseries, were only about £8 or so.

So daaahlings here's my recommendation: if you are looking for some of the best viennoiserie in London, in a superb environment, take yourelf and your biggest designer bag (to take stuff back home in LOL) to Claridges! Just have that and a nice hot drink and slowly savour your sweet pastries and the luxurious surrounds--leave the other items on the menu for when someone else is paying ;). Smug satisfaction awaits you!

Clementine and Olive Oil Cake

Let me start this post by saying that this is the best cake I've ever made so far... evvvvvaaaaaa! If you are looking for a taste of sunshine amidst all this winter gloom, this cake might be the one for you. Last week I went to Costco and got a box of clementines. They looked a lot nicer than they tasted. I think I landed on the perfect recipe to use them up. I must say, that the olive oil gives this cake a really lovely soft texture. The taste of the clementine itself is subtle, most of the flavour seems to come from the zest of the fruit. You can really taste the natural oils that hide inside their sunny peels. It's deliciously mellow but slightly citric at the same time. Gosh, I sound like Nigella Lawson LOL. Anyway, Mr P thought it was fab, and he can be a tough critic. I still have six clementines left, so don't be surprised if you see another clementine recipe in the near future. I am trying really hard not to be wasteful.

Notes on the recipe:

• I think this would work equally well with oranges.
• The recipe states that 2-3 clementines will make the necessary amount of zest and juice, but for me, it was more like 6!
• If you wish, I think you could make a nice glaze using powdered sugar and clementine juice to go on top.
• If you don't want to make a glaze, a teeny dusting of powdered sugar wouldn't go amiss ;).

The following recipe is copied and pasted from here.

Clementine and Olive Oil Cake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1+1/2 tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp clementine zest*
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup clementine juice*

* Depending on size, 2-3 clementines would be enough for the zest and juice.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (180 degrees C). Grease and flour one 12 x 4 inch loaf pan.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine sugar and clementine zest and rub together to extract the fragrant oil from the zest.
4. Add olive oil and mix on high speed until completely combined (preferably with the whisk attachment).
5. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix on slow speed.
7. Add half of the clementine juice and continue mixing.
8. Add another 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by the rest of the clementine juice and the remaining flour mixture and beat until combined between each addition.
9. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
10. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
11. Remove the cake from the oven, wait 10 minutes for it to cool down and then remove from the pan.

We are Amused: Happy 101 Award

I was thrilled when Sarah, from Maison Cupcake, Kristy from My Little Space, AND Lexi from Diary of a Delinquent Housewife, all gave me the Happy 101 Award. It's actually been a while since Moi has gotten one (crazy right?), so this was great. With my recent macaron mishaps, this was just what I needed to boost my confidence and to make my already big head even bigger. Well, you need a big head if you wear a big tiara my daaaaahlings.

The Rules:

1. Copy the award image into a post.

2. List 10 things that make you happy.

3. Tag ten bloggers who brighten your day.

4. Put in a link to their blogs.

5. Notify the award receivers.

6. Link back to the sender's blog.

I'd like to say that I enjoy taking pleasure in the little every day things in life. It would be wonderful to tell you that I find beauty and happiness in so many things. But because that's not really true, and because, at heart, I am a relatively shallow creature, it's not that hard for me to list ten things that make me happy:

1. Mr. P (by a mile)

2. My darling Apple Mac, my best friend when Mr P is away.

3. Sky TV, my second best friend when Mr P is away.

4. Sunny and warm weather where gorgeous housewives can walk around in a pretty sundress and bare feet… and a big fat Prada bag.

5. Harrods, but of course. Playground of the Heavenly Housewife.

6. Receiving gifts… hello, has anyone gotten the Prada bag hint already? ... Mr P????

7. Taking in afternoon tea somewhere fabulous.

8. Boxes of Laduree macarons, big boxes.

9. Trips to London when I can indulge in some of my all time favourite foods, and where I’ll bet I can out-piggy any of my fellow foodie bloggers. Wanna try me? HH is the housewife version of Takeru Kobayashi. He, along with Martha Stewart, are my ultimate role models.

10. When hard work pays of, because you know Moi is a hard worker...

As for the 10 bloggers who brighten my day, I am being 100% honest when I say that you all do. If I don't mention your blog, its not because I don't simply adore you. Since my last award, I've discovered so many new blogs and have met so many new bloggers, so I am going to pass this award on to some of my new friends.

1. Barbara at Moveable Feasts

2. Cristie at The Table Runner

3. Bunny at The Paris House

4. Lisa Michele at Parsley, Sage, Deserts and Line Drives

5. Ameena at Fancy That ... Fancy This

6. Lorraine from Not Quite Nigella

7. Sharon at Test with a Skewer

8. Sophie at Sophie's Foodiefiles

9. Sasha from For the Love of Food

10.Cristina at From Buenos Aires to Paris

When Macs Attack

They aren't French macs, but they are "killer"!

Today's post was supposed to be my newest entry for Mac Tweets, but alas, I have nothing to contribute this month. This upsets me. I had such a fabulous idea. It was going to be awesome. Still, I'm not going to tell you what it is because I want to surprise you guys with it in the future.

The reason I have nothing to show for myself is not for a lack of trying though, believe me! My most recent attempt was my 12th at making French macarons. I was SURE I was going to get it right ... absolutely positive! I was wrong. After disaster number 12, I had run out of ingredients, and because of the weather conditions outside, it was impossible for me to replenish my stock and make the macarons in time for the deadline (as the eggs need time to be "aged").

There are two ways of making French macarons. One is by using the French method of making meringue, and the other is the Italian method of meringue. All along I have stayed away from the Italian method because it involves using a sugar thermometer. For some reason, I have always found this too intimidating. At this point though, I feel like I have exhausted the French method without much success, and quite frankly I'm tired of it and ever so slightly annoyed. I am going to buy a sugar thermometer, and I'm going to restart my efforts after a short break (cause I need one).

So today I thought we could explore the other, and much neglected, coconut macaroon, which is without a doubt delicious... and a lot easier to make! I have been eating coconut macaroons since I was a little girl. I have loved them way before I ever heard the word "Laduree"! Can you believe there was such a time? Well, I have tried many macaroon recipes in the past, but this one is the tastiest. The method is slightly different than your average macaroon, as it is cooked on the stove before it goes into the oven. I think these are my favorite macaroons ever.

Servings: approximately 2 dozen

Adapted from a recipe on the Godiva website.

Ingredients:

4 large egg whites

1 1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 2/3 cup desiccated coconut

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 ounces dark chocolate, melted over a double boiler

In a saucepan, over medium heat, stir together the egg whites, sugar, salt, almond extract and coconut. Add flour and salt and mix until well combined. Cook and stir constantly for about five minutes or until the mixture begins to pull away from the pan.

Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Put mixture into the refrigerator to chill.

Roll into 1 inch “meatballs.” Place macaroons on a greased baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes. Remove from oven once golden. Cool completely, then dip into chocolate. Let chocolate solidify (but not in the refrigerator, this will cause the chocolate to discolour). Store in an airtight container up to 5 days.

La Grande Epicerie, Paris

Here you can really find everything from "snips to snails and puppy dog tails."

If Heavenly Housewife lived in Paris, this is where she would do her food shopping. At La Grande Epicerie, which is part of the Le Bon Marche department store, you can buy all manner of overpriced foods from all over the world. It is the largest food hall in Paris, and a mecca for foodies. Here, along with your oh so important Diet Coke, one can pick up the most exclusive bottles of Champagne, truffles, and exotic spices. Just be prepared to pay a premium.

At La Grande Epicerie they also happen give out loads of samples (kind of like at Costco :)). Hubby and I had fun making the rounds and collecting free nibbles. I would stop in my tracks, poke Mr P, and say, "Look! Sample!", and we would flock to the poor and unassuming sales person like a couple of vultures. Cute ones (...mais oui!).

You are not allowed to take pictures there, but of course I did. It's just a testament to how much I love you guys. So join me in a little stroll through the store daaaaaahling. Let's see if we can score some free samples!

The Produce Section.

This is about as pretty as greens get, in my book.

Fruit Display

A rainbow of olives.

Bakery Counter

... and another picture of bread, because carbs are a thing of beauty.

Exotic Fungi

A plethora of colourful sweets.

The Tea Counter

This is a good place to insert one of my all time favourite quotes:

“Love and scandal are the best sweeteners of tea.” --Henry Fielding (British playwright).

Ah, so true!

Cheese Counter

How about a little treat on the way out?

At this point, I was told no pictures are allowed. Oh well. Already took all these pictures honey! I am now posting them on my blog. Too bad. So sad. This is what happens when you tell MOI what to do!!! Let this be a lesson!

Cream Tea on the Cheap

Some people who read my blog are under the impression that I live in London. Au contraire my dears. Moi, in fact, lives in the boonies. Dining choices in my fair town, are kind of limited. There are no afternoon teas to be had... even if you are a housewife of distinction. Sad, no? Well, you can actually get cream tea. Cream tea is just the scones, clotted cream and jam with tea. Unlike a proper afternoon tea, it does not include the lovely finger sandwiches or mini deserts. Still, the cream tea part is usually my favourite part of the afternoon tea, if truth be told. So, I wondered... how does cream tea at my local shopping centre compare with those in London. In other words, how do the other half (the plebs) live? Moi is about to find out...

Druckers is a chain of patisseries in the UK. They serve slices of cakes, sandwiches and the like. It's a pleasant place to stop for a snack or a light lunch, but it is a far cry from the uber fab places I get to eat at when I'm in London. Here though, it's quite a popular place to eat. You walk up to the counter, make your order, and by the time you get to the cash register, you have your tray of goodies. Self-service daaaaahlings. Aaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! What is that about?

For £3.40 I got to choose between plain or fruited scones (I chose plain, the fruited ones weren't looking too good). I got my favorite clotted cream: Rodda's, a little pat of butter (which I didn't use-you never get butter as part of proper cream tea), and a teeny Tiptree jam. Could you believe it, they didn't have strawberry???? They only had black currant :(. I was unamused. You would never get black currant in London daaaaahlings. This is served with a tiny pot of tea and some milk.

It ain't the Ritz, that's for sure:

Sitting under the lurid lights, I assembled my scone.

And you know what? In all honesty it was really tasty. I mean, I love Rodda's clotted cream, and the jam was really good too, despite it being black currant. It wasn't as good as strawberry, but it didn't take away from my enjoyment.

It did have the fatty goodness factor. I could even feel my bum expanding as I ate that little tub of clotted cream. BUT ... and this is a big but (pun intended--LOL I kill me)... I would not have cream tea here again. Why? Cream tea is supposed to be a real treat. It just doen't feel like something special in this kind of environment. Now, more than ever, I am aware that cream tea and afternoon tea are just as much about ceremony, service and elegance as they are about the food. For this reason, I could never recommend cream tea on the cheap. It ruins the expereince, and quite frankly, a good tea is a total experience. This was just nice food in a dreary setting. If you are going out for a treat, then treat yourself properly. Stay away from the cheap stuff, life is short, and you deserve better!

Roasted Sweet and Spicy Chickpea Snack

I adore nuts. While nuts are good for you, they can also be bad for you... if you eat them like I do. I just can not eat them in moderation. I love peanuts, walnuts, pistachio nuts, hazelnuts, you name it, but most especially, I love macadamia nuts. To me, they taste like little salty, crunchy butter balls. They are quite simply divine! Once I start, I have a very hard time putting them away. I am also a total peanut butter addict. Yes, peanuts in butter form. What an invention!

The first time I saw this chickpea snack, it was on the Rachel Ray show. Rachel mentioned that these were a great alternative to nuts. Could this really be true? I was intrigued. Since then, I have seen them on many a blog, in loads of great variations. I thought I'd give them a try. I chose a sweet and spicy version (to remind you of your favourite housewife). I figure that maybe one out of twenty recipes I post here should have some sort of nutritional value... maybe.

If one of your New Years resolutions revolves around slimmer thighs, this could be the snack for you. Check this out:

100g of salted and roasted peanuts = 585 calories

100g of the chickpea recipe that follows = 390 calories

Chickpeas also happen to be high in protein and fibre.

Well my dears, I'm not going to start lying to you for the sake of a cool blog post. Despite the savings in calories, I'd definitely still go for the nuts. While there was a bit of nuttiness to them, they lacked the fatty goodness factor, if you know what I'm saying. Still, if you'd like to try them, one thing I did really like about this snack is that it is so customisable. There are so many variations of these all over the internet. You could try rosemary and sea salt, garam masala, sweet paprika, you could go for a Moroccan spice mix ... the list is endless. It's just that nuts they are not. I am also reminded why I am not a Rachel Ray fan (Martha is my homegirl daaaaaahlings).

I found this recipe on Cookin' Canuck, and I have copied and pasted it below:

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas with Rosemary & Brown Sugar

2 (14 oz) cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
2 tbsp plus 1 tsp olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt, divided
2 tbsp (packed) brown sugar
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1/4 - 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Drain chickpeas into a strainer. Rinse and drain very well. Dry the chickpeas on a large sheet of paper towel, with another sheet laid over top. Pat gently to remove excess water.

Toss chickpeas with 2 tablespoons olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Roast for 40-50 minutes, or until chickpeas are golden brown and rattle when you shake the baking sheet.

While the chickpeas are roasting, combine brown sugar, rosemary, 1 teaspoon olive oil, cayenne pepper (the amount you use depends on your heat tolerance), and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a medium bowl. Pour the roasted chickpeas into the bowl and toss with the brown sugar mixture. Cool completely. Serve. Store in an airtight container for up to one week.