Sushimania

I am just going to start this by saying I LOVE SUSHI, it never used to be something I was bothered about but now I have literally become obsessed, it is my favourite choice for food so I was very excited to hear that there was an all you can eat in Reading.

I’ve lived in Reading pretty much my whole life and had never heard of this place but it is towards the Hexagon and away from the main strip of restaurants which is probably why. 

The way the all you can eat works is - you are given a piece of paper with all the dishes on at your table, you circle which ones you want to eat (maximum 6 dishes at a time) and they bring it freshly prepared to your table, very easy!

We started off with the shrimp tempura and the chicken teriyaki, the tempura was light and crisp and came with a side of soy sauce. 

The chicken teriyaki (we ordered two because we’re greedy and it was all you can eat soo) was possibly my favourite, huge chunks of chicken came with a sticky sauce which generously covered it and left plenty of dipping sauce for our other choices.

Next we ordered four different types of sushi: California Roll, Prawn Katsu with avocado, chicken Katsu and duck with cucumber. The California roll contained crab, avocado, cucumber and mayo expertly wrapped into a Futomaki – a long roll of rice, my only critique was trying to fit the whole thing into my mouth in one go!

Next up the Prawn Katsu with Avocado, a clear favourite for both of us, this had the perfect balanced of fish with the creaminess of the avocado. Definitely worth getting a couple of portions!

The Duck and Cucumber was a little more unique, I am not a huge fan of salmon or tuna so I was quite excited that this menu had slightly different offerings. This was probably my least favourite dish as the plum sauce overpowered the duck and cucumber, so it was a little disappointing.

The Chicken Katsu came with avocado (notice a theme) and a generous splash of mayo, it was delicious. Crispy chicken in sushi form has to be one of my favourites.

After the sushi we decided to try the noodle dishes on the menu, I went for the Grilled Chicken Ramen in Soya Soup. It came with a dollop of noodles, chunks of chicken in a warm and tasty clear broth. The broth itself was full of flavour and I could easily have eaten a whole bowl of just that, but the noodles and chicken added a little more texture – a tasty dish overall.

Suzie ordered the Yaki Udon with beef, thick and chunky noodles with chicken and beansprouts covered in a sticky soy sauce. I’m not a huge noodle fan but this had a really rich taste and was the perfect main course if you’re not a huge sushi fan.

Overall I would definitely return to Sushimania when I fancy a sushi feast! 

Royal Citrus Mojito

Mojito’s are such a classic cocktail and they are actually my favourite one to create, so it is always harder thinking of fun variations that haven’t been attempted before. This one is quite sharp, so if you’re sweet toothed (like me) it might not be for you!

What you’ll need:

• Sugar
• Lime Juice
• Lime wedge
• Rum
• Lemon vodka
• Prosecco
• Ice
• Cocktail mixer
• Shot measure
• Jam Jars

How to create them:

1. Place 2 spoons of sugar into the glass and add the squeeze a lime wedge, stir.
2. Put 1 shot of lime juice, 1 shot of lemon vodka and 2 shots of rum into the cocktail mixer and shake.
3. Pour the mix into the glass and give everything a stir. Fill the jam jar to the top with cubed ice.
4. Pour the prosecco over the ice and enjoy!

Salted Caramel Dessert Cocktail

This cocktail is slightly more specialist as the main ingredient isn’t something which is available everywhere. I got mine from Hotel Chocolat but a similar salted caramel vodka would also work.

This recipe makes two cocktails.

What you’ll need:

• Salted Caramel Cocoa Vodka
• Vanilla Vodka
• White chocolate chunks
• Milk
• Cocktail mixer
• Shot measure
• Dessert glasses

How to create them:

1. Melt 30g of white chocolate chunks with a splash of milk in a microwave for 10-20 seconds.
2. Take the stem of the glass and gently dip the rim into the white chocolate mix until the whole rim is coated.
3. Add two shots of the salted caramel cocoa vodka and two shots of the vanilla vodka to the cocktail mixer. Pour in the rest of the melted white chocolate and shake vigorously.
4. Pour the mixture in the dessert glass and enjoy!

Haribo Fizz

Who doesn’t love Haribo Tangfastics? I’m a huge fan and thought what better way to enjoy them than in a boozy cocktail? Hence the Haribo fizz.

I went with the cherries but you can make this cocktail with any of the sweets in the mix, the trick is to make sure they have soaked in the vodka long enough to give it the Haribo flavour.

These are a great cocktail for when you’re looking for something fun and playful for a catch up or dinner party.

What you’ll need:

• Vodka
• Prosecco
• Haribo Tangfastics
• Sugar
• Gomme (sugar syrup)
• Blue curacao
• Cocktail mixer
• Shot measure
• Martini glasses

How to create them:

1. Pour half a bottle of vodka into a sealable container and add a packet of the Tangfastic cherries, give a stir and let sit for minimum 3 hours.
2. After the 3 hours are up, strain the vodka back into the container minus the cherries, and leave to one side until you’re ready to use. For 2 cocktails, you will only need four shots of vodka.
3. Pour the gomme onto a plate and gently dip the rim of the martini glass into the mixture. If you do not have gomme, you can use water it will just be harder to stick the sugar.
4. Pour sugar onto a plate and gently tap the edge of the martini glass into the rim of the sugar, swirl the glass around until the whole rim of the martini glass has a sugar coat.
5. Add the soaked cherries into the martini glass.
6. Place the vodka and 2 shots of blue curacao into the cocktail mixer and give it a good shake.
7. Pour into the haribo filled martini glasses and top with prosecco until full.
8. Enjoy!

Garden Gin

So my boyfriend Greg is the biggest fan of gin and is always challenging me to come up with new and quirky ideas. As he is a chef he gave me some garden herbs to see what I could create and voila the Garden Gin was born.

What you’ll need (makes 2):

• 2 sprigs of parsley
• 2 sprigs of Sage
• 2 sprigs of Rosemary
• 4 shots of gin (I like to use Hendricks or Bombay Sapphire)
• 2 small bottles of tonic water
• Ice
• Cocktail mixer
• Shot measure
• Jam Jars

How to create it:

1. Fill the jam jar with cubed or crushed ice and set to one side.
2. In the cocktail mixer add the gin, then rub the sprigs of herbs between your hands to release the essence of them. Add these into the cocktail mixer and give it all a good shake.
3. Once shaken take the herbs out of the cocktail mix and place to one side.
4. Pour the rest of the mixture into the jam jar and top up with tonic.
5. Add the sprigs into the glass as decoration.
6. Enjoy!

Chocolate and Banana shake with a twist

This one takes me back to my childhood (minus the alcohol!) Chocolate and banana milkshakes have always been a favourite for my sister and I when we were on holiday, so I thought it would be fun to recreate them with a boozy twist!

This recipe makes two cocktails.

What you’ll need:

• Banana Liqueur
• 60g Chocolate Chunks
• Milk
• Biscuits
• Cocktail mixer
• Shot measure
• Martini glasses

How to create them:

• Melt 60g of chocolate chunks with a splash of milk in a microwave for 10-20 seconds.
• Take the stem of the glass and gently dip the rim into the chocolate mix until the whole rim is coated. Take a spoonful of the chocolate mixture and gently swirl around the glass to coat it in a layer of chocolate.
• Add four shots of banana liqueur to the cocktail mixer. Pour in the rest of the melted chocolate in and shake vigorously.
• Pour the mixture in the martini glasses and crumble the biscuit on top.
• Enjoy!

Celebrating getting a degree in Sin City

Writing this and seeing all of the pictures really makes me want to book another girl’s trip to Vegas, I had the best time with my bestie (Suzie). We went the summer after we had both finished our 3 years at University before I got a proper job and she started her masters. We were both finally 21 and we thought we deserved a holiday after finishing university life. Let me fill you in on our weekend of fun in Sin City.

I’m going to just put this out there, Vegas was expensive. We managed to get our accommodation fairly cheap (we stayed at the Excalibur) and the location was absolutely perfect as we were on the strip; but everything else came with a pretty hefty price tag so book it knowing you will be taking a lot of spending money!

Hopefully that hasn’t put you off because Vegas is such a good laugh especially when you go for a girls holiday. We went in June and it was pretty hot but the majority of hotels have pools and there are lots of pool parties to go to!

One of my favourite parts of the holiday was visiting the different hotels on the strip, we were really close to the New York hotel but my personal favourite was the Paris hotel. We had this amazing guide who showed us how to take some incredible photos from the top with a birds eye view and was incredibly knowledgeable about Vegas in general. Oh and the pancakes are unbeatable here...obvs.

Of course Vegas wouldn't be Vegas without playing on the slot machines and at the tables. To be honest we had a bit of fun playing on the slots but as soon as we went on the tables we were rubbish and ended up losing straight away. It was enjoyable for a bit but we soon got bored and headed to the bars!

I’d also recommend heading out to the Stratosphere which is right at the end of the strip (don’t worry there is a type of train which runs to all hotels on the strip so you don’t have to do the really long walk. This provides something a little different in Vegas as it has some amazing rollercoasters! Now I am a huge adrenaline seeker, I love going to a theme park but even my palms were sweating when we went on the insanity rollercoaster. The ride moves out so it is above the sights and sounds of Vegas with nothing underneath, you are then tilted in your seat so that you are essentially looking down at the drop, it is definitely one of the scariest rides I’ve been on but I would highly recommend if you are a bit of an adrenaline junkie!

My final recommendation is to get your dancing shoes on and go to the Coyote Ugly bar in the New York New York hotel, I love the film and getting to experience something similar was amazing, a must see in Vegas!

Last but most certainly not least, the fooood! Vegas is full of dining halls with unlimited buffets, I recommend getting a big lunch, it is far cheaper and just as good quality as the evening meals.

Have you been to Vegas? What were your favourite spots? Let me know.

Indulgent Brownies with Lotus Biscoff

This recipe is perfect for those days when you feel like treating yourself, I like to eat healthy don’t get me wrong but I also have a massive sweet tooth and this is the perfect recipe for when you feel like really indulging.

Featuring Lotus Biscoff spread (best spread in the world if you ask me), the brownies are decadent and fudgy with just the right amount of biscuit spread. Plus they are pretty damn easy to make, what more could you ask for!

What you’ll need:

100g white caster sugar

200g brown sugar

100g butter (softened)

4 eggs

2 teaspoons Vanilla extract

120g plain flour

200g Lotus Biscoff spread (I like crunchy for texture)

15g cocoa powder

150g chocolate chips

How to create them:

1.       Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and line a baking dish with parchment paper.

2.       Place the white and brown sugar into a mixing bowl and set aside.

3.       In a microwave proof bowl melt the chocolate chips and the butter together. Once melted and combined pour the melted chocolate mixture in with the sugars. Mix to combine.

4.       Once mixed add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix.

5.       Add 60g of flour into the mix and combine. Once fully mixed, add the remaining flour and mix until combine.

.       Pour half of the brownie batter into the prepared pan. Melt the Biscoff spread in the microwave for 15-30 seconds. Pour half of the spread into the batter mix in the pan and use a butter knife to mix the spread into the batter.

7.     Add the remaining brownie batter into the pan, then repeat the same step with the rest of the spread, adding dollops and swirling into the mix.

 Bake the brownies for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Czeching out the views in Prague

So I have to be honest and say that Prague has never been on my bucket list to visit, I’ve always heard good things but there were always other places that I wanted to visit more. So what changed? Well my best friend in America was going to Prague for a trip and as it is a lot more accessible than Colorado I thought I’d take a trip out to see her. It turned out to be one of my favourite weekends away!

Unlike other city breaks, Prague is a more chilled destination where we were able to explore the local area at a more leisurely pace. One of the must do attractions is the Prague castle, not only is the castle itself beautiful and full of history, it also gives the most amazing views of the city and the perfect Instagram picture…

The Charles Bridge is also a popular tourist destination and it is easy to see why, we preferred to go during the evening when it wasn’t so busy and it was beautiful. The architecture is outstanding and it gives views of both sides of Prague, it is a must see that you shouldn’t miss.

I would also recommend spending time in the Old Town Square which has lots of restaurants, horse and carriage rides, and the infamous Astronomical Clock (which was sadly under construction when we went). 

It was where we had our first taste of the trdelníks, also known as chimney cakes: a hollow cyclindrical Czech pastry that is lined with Nutella or berry compote and topped with soft serve ice cream, it was the dessert of dreams.

This was the first of many amazing foods, we weren’t too adventurous and similarly to England there are plenty of other cuisines in Prague which we were more tempted by. My favourite was served to us on a boat which was stationed on the river and had the most amazing views.

 It is called Marina and is definitely somewhere that needs to be booked in advance. A converted riverboat, it offers some of the best Italian food I have ever eaten, we saved this for our last night as it is a little more expensive than most restaurants in Prague. I had homemade pasta which melted in the mouth with an arrabiata style topping and we shared a side dish of risotto (also incredible).

We also had a tasty meal at Kobe restaurant, it is a steak and grill sushi restaurant and the chicken teriyaki sushi is a must get! Both of these restaurants were a small walk out of the centre square and I would recommend trying a little further out as you get a much better deal for your money, Old Town Square restaurants are a bit of a rip off!

We also had some incredible breakfasts at a couple of local cafés, the pastries were to die for!

If you're looking for drinks, Prague has plenty of clubs and bars but the iconic Absintherie was a favourite for me. (Located in Old Town Square).

I would also say the best thing about venturing out a little bit is that you find great things completely by accident! We found a food festival in a park which we happened to walk past. As you can see from the picture we took complete advantage and stuffed our faces with some tasty street food!

If you visit in the summer (or it happens to be warm when you are there) take a pedalo out on the river, we saw quite a few sights that we had completely missed on foot and it is just really fun and a great way to get a tan!

Finally I couldn't write this without mentioning the most amazing sweet shop called Captain Candy, there were about four in the area we were staying in and I have the biggest sweet tooth so I was in candy heaven - well worth checking out.

Hopefully I’ve convinced you to take a trip, for me it truly was a jewel in the heart of Europe.