Thursday 18 October 2012

Cooking à la Rosie.

Hello my lovely readers!
I hope you are having a lovely week, despite this bitter cold weather we are having!

I thought today I'd share a recipe with you. I take no claim in inventing the recipe (it's from the Tesco Real Food website) but I made it for tea this week, and the mister said that it tasted like Wagamamas! So it was a definite hit! And I think it will be a definite hit with you too, as it warms you through-and-through and tastes very luxurious (although it's a cinch to make!)

Click here for the recipe or read below:

Thai Red Chicken Curry:



Ingredients
1tbsp vegetable oil
500g (1lb 2oz) skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into chunks
1 stalk fresh lemon grass, bashed with a rolling pin My local supermarket didn't have any, so I didn't use it! But my jar of Thai red curry paste contained lemon grass and coriander in it, so I think the flavours were still there!
2tsp fresh ginger, grated (or use ready-prepared)
400ml can reduced-fat coconut milk
1 chicken stock cube, dissolved in 150ml (¼ pint) hot water
2tbsp Thai red curry paste
1tbsp fish sauce or light soy sauce
2tbsp fresh coriander, chopped, plus extra to garnish

Method
  1. Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan and add the chicken. Cook the chicken until it's browned.
  2. Add the onion and the garlic, and cook for a further two minutes.
  3. Add the red pepper, ginger, coconut milk, chicken stock and red curry paste. Mix together.
  4. Stir in the soy sauce.
  5. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes.
  6. Serve with rice or noodles! 
Unfortunately, I didn't take any pictures of the end result as we were too busy tucking into our tea! However, I can verify that it looked exactly like the picture off the Tesco Real Food website! 
I hope you enjoy making this dish, it's really easy to do!

Tuesday 9 October 2012

Tomorrow.

You know how just the other day I wrote this blog post on how much I love Kate Middleton?
Well, she's going to be in the North East tomorrow! (Prince William was supposed to be coming too, but unfortunately he's attending a funeral).


I am so excited! It has been announced that she will be at Newcastle Civic Centre at 10.30am tomorrow. I am definitely going to go to get a glimpse of her! Anyone going to be there too? If you are wanting to see her elsewhere, here is a link detailing the different places in the North East that she is visiting.
Hopefully, the Geordie nation will not embarrass itself and she will love us as much as we love Greggs and stotties (an awful lot!)

Sunday 7 October 2012

This weekend.

This weekend is a little bit different from most weekends. Most weekends I spend Saturday however I want and then on Sunday I go to my local church in Gateshead for 3 hours of church. After that I either go to my parents' or my parent-in-laws' house for a scrummy Sunday dinner.

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(image © AMK Photography)


This weekend is General Conference. There is no 3 hours of church at Gateshead. Instead, I have the opportunity to listen to 8 hours worth of talks (broken up into four 2 hour chunks over Saturday and Sunday) from a prophet of God and inspired leaders.
I love church. I couldn't imagine doing anything better with my time this weekend.
I hope you all have a fantastic weekend whatever you're doing!

Saturday 6 October 2012

Downton glamour.

I absolutely adore Downton Abbey. I can't wait for Mondays to roll round so I can catch-up with it online (and skip the adverts in between!) I love the gorgeous dresses the Crawley sisters wear and wish that I lived in that era. They are so elegant, poised and feminine. I tried to copy their gorgeous 1920's curls the other day - and it all looked rather good until I went outside and got drenched by the rain and my hair went totally frizzy!
Instead of showing you pictures of my frizzy post-curled hair - here are some gorgeous pictures that I love of the Downton Abbey cast!


Aren't those dresses to die for? I love the embellishments, sequins and floaty material! I must say, I loved Edith's wedding dress more than Mary's! Give me that fashion era over chinos and peplum tops any day! Roll on The Great Gatsby this Christmas when we can see more 1920's glitz and glamour! 

Do you watch Downton? What do you hope happens in this series? I hope Edith meets the man of her dreams!

Friday 5 October 2012

Crispello.

There's been a big hoo-ha in chocolate world recently because Cadbury's are launching a new chocolate bar aimed at the female demographic.



Chocolate is just one of those things that can't be totally aimed at just one gender. Yes, we know Yorkie's are aimed at the male population - but it's not only males who eat it (and Cadbury knows this too!).
I think this is a clever campaign. It intrigues the women, but also the men. When we are told not to do something, we usually do it. As soon as we say "don't look over there because....." we immediately turn around to have a good nosy at whatever induced the conversation. By repeatedly advertising a chocolate bar at women, it makes us want to eat it to see what all the fuss is about - regardless of our sex.
Apparently, it's aimed at women as it's resealable - so we can eat one piece and that save the rest for later. Who has that much self control with chocolate? Not me! Especially since Crispello (that's the name of this new chocolate bar) only has 3 chunks.

So, basically, I think by Cadbury's deliberately stating that this chocolate bar is aimed at women they are just bringing more advertising and media to the chocolate bar to help promote it. So, it's not really about what gender eats the chocolate bar: just that the chocolate bar gets attention, bought and eaten.

...and it seems that I have fallen for their ploy, by writing a blog post on this. Thereby drawing more attention to the Crispello. Also, I will most likely buy this; to see what all the fuss is about!

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Listen.

Listen, and enjoy!



1. Gabrielle Aplin - Please Don't Say You Love Me.
I just discovered this song this morning and really like it. The lyrics are good and her voice is lovely and British.
link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxNYvk_0Onw

2. Nina Nesbitt - Boy
I really like the rhythmic style of this song. I think you will either love or hate this song, fortunately for me, I like it!
link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8bMODpjy1M

3. Naya Rivera - Mine
This song is off Glee, but it's not cheesy - it's soulful and beautiful. I love the original, but dare I say, I love this one more? (Sorry T Swizzle!)
link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESmo-nHhbcg

4. Sara Bareilles - Bright Lights and Cityscapes
You probably know by now that I love her voice, and her songs feature on these lists more times than any other artist. This song has a sad but haunting melody.
link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJycDeZqtdc

5. Taylor Swift - We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.
This is so cheesy. The lyrics are pretty rubbish too. But, it's so catchy! I hear the chorus on the radio and it's stuck in my head for the rest of the day.
link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gcMn_Eu-XTE

What do you think of all these tracks? Got a favourite?