What’s The Story? | 23rd March 2015

Hello everyone, welcome to What’s The Story for w/c 23rd March. I hope you’ve all had a great weekend and managed to blow away a few cobwebs.

This week’s #whatsthestory post is running a little late but do enjoy this oldie. It’s the first What’s The Story? post from almost two years ago! A morning driving racing cars before POD was even born.

How to join in

What’s The Story? enables you to share the stories behind your favourite photographs. To join in all you have to do is share a photograph and the story behind it. You can write as little or much as you like and your photo/s can be from any time. The Linky is open every Monday until the following Sunday.

Feel free to use the What’s The Story? badge or include a link to PODcast in your post and do share some comment love too. There’s a community on Google Plus so do pop over if you haven’t already. We’re at Charly Dove or PODcast.

Grab the badge!

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The B&W Photography Project | Week #37

Hello everyone, welcome to week #37 of the Black and White Photography Project. Thank you so much to those of you that joined in last week.

With only three weeks remaining of the London commute, I thought I’d share a few photographs from the City. It’s perfect for capturing the monochrome love.

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From the graffiti in the skate park to the boats on the Thames and of course the London Eye. This photograph was taken at 8am last week, Big Ben had just chimed and there was barely a soul around. A little calm and serenity before a busy working day.

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How to join in 

To join in with the Black & White Photography Project, just link up a short post featuring a black and white photograph or black and white photographs. The photograph/s can be from any time – both old and new are welcome. You’ll find a post on how to create better black and white photographs here.

Don’t forget to share on Instagram using #bwphotoproject. You can also share your posts and photos in the B&W Photography Project Facebook Group.

Grab the badge! 

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Feel free to grab the #bwphotoproject badge (you’ll find a monochrome one here).

Pinterest loveliness

PODcast now has over 2,500 followers on Pinterest. If you’re looking for monochrome inspiration, do check out the Black and White Photography board. It features some incredible photographs from artists all over the World.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: B&W Photography Project on Pinterest.



Devilish Chocolate Brownies

We recently received a wonderful book from the lovely folk at the Happy Egg Company. Totally Chocolate by Eric Lanlard includes 60 recipes using an ingredient he describes as the ‘food of the gods’. His passion for chocolate is evident with pages of indulgent chocolate drinks, muffins, mousses, gateaux and petit fours. Not to mention elaborate creations for special occasions.

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Thanks to four-year-old POD the recipe book has already been christened with chocolate chunks, flour and a Happy Egg!

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But oh my word, today we ate the best chocolate brownies we have ever tasted. We couldn’t wait until they were cool so we took Eric’s advice and didn’t overcook them but we ate them warm. They melted in our mouths.

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We absolutely had to share this recipe which takes 10 minutes to prepare. Perhaps allow a little longer if you’re making your brownies with a small person. The cooking time is 30 minutes and you’ll end up with around 16 brownies.

Ingredients 

200g (7oz) dark chocolate, roughly chopped
150g (5oz) unsalted butter plus a little for greasing
2 tsp vanilla extract
150g (5oz) golden caster sugar
3 Happy Eggs, beaten
75g (3oz) plain flour
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tsp salt
100g (3½oz) dark chocolate chips

Method

Preheat the oven to 180ºC (fan 160ºC/350ºF/gas mark 4). Grease a 19cm (7½) square shallow baking tin and line the base with baking paper – we used butter instead.

Melt the chopped chocolate, butter and vanilla together in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure the surface of the water does not touch the bowl.

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Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar, then leave to cool for a few minutes. Beat the eggs, then stir in the flour, cocoa and salt and fold in until the mixture is smooth and glossy. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and level the top. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes, or until the top starts to crack but the centre remains gooey. Turn off the heat and leave the brownies inside for a further 5 minutes before removing. Leave them to cool completely in the tin. Or wait 10 minutes or so and try a warm one!

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Thank you to the Happy Egg Company for providing us with one of the best recipe books ever #HappyEggTasteMakers 

The Alphabet Project | J is for jetty

Hello everyone and welcome to letter J of the Alphabet Photography Project. Thank you to those of you that joined in with letter I last week.

This photograph was taken near the Southbank in London. If you catch the tide out, beneath this jetty is a little sandy beach. Wandering along it en route to work is a great way to start the day. It’s just a stones throw away from Blackfriars Bridge and St Pauls too.

How to join in #alphabetphoto 

To join in with the Alphabet Photography Project, all you need to do is link up a post with a photograph that represents the letter J. It’s your call on how you interpret the theme – it might be an object, an adjective or a representation of that letter.

Your photograph can be from any time too so don’t feel you have to take a fresh one each week! You can join in every week or once in a while too, it’s entirely up to you.

If you need any hints, head over to the Alphabet Photography Project page.

You can also join the #alphabetphoto project on Instagram (PODcast is here). Feel free to link up your Instagram photo here too. You can also share your post in the Pinterest and Facebook groups or in the Google+ community.

The Alphabet Photography Project runs weekly with a new letter every Wednesday. You can link up your post anytime from that day to the following Tuesday.

Grab the #alphabetphoto badge! 

Inspiration on Pinterest 

PODcast now has almost 2,500 followers on Pinterest. There are some awesome photos on the #alphabetphoto Pinterest board.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: The Alphabet Photography Project on Pinterest.



Looking forward to Spring

This time last year we made a spontaneous visit to local woodland. The skies were blue, the sun was shining and it was so mild. It was the first time in months we weren’t wrapped up in layers of clothing and donning wellies.

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POD had a renewed sense of freedom that day, kicking leaves and running ahead with her white dress flowing behind her. It was an idyllic setting and we had it all to ourselves.

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The sky was an amazing colour and it was uncharacteristically warm for March.

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We’d been heading elsewhere that day but made a detour when the traffic was bad. What a fabulous alternative this woodland wander was to returning home.

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I remember thinking POD looked so grown up at the time but she looks small. It was an effort to climb onto that bench – now she’d be on it before you could blink!

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POD didn’t think we could see her when she had an impromptu lie down, little did she know we caught every moment. Let’s hope this Spring arrives quickly so we can enjoy more glorious days.

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Linking up with #whatsthestory on PODcast.


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What’s The Story? | 16th March 2015

Hello everyone, welcome to What’s The Story for w/c 16th March. I hope you’ve all had a good weekend and an enjoyable Mother’s Day. POD was sick on Saturday but thankfully back to herself the following day.

This week’s #whatsthestory post is a look back at a walk we had in some woods last Spring. We were supposed to be going somewhere else (hence POD being in a dress) but ended up enjoying the most gorgeous of days. It was so incredibly mild too.

How to join in

What’s The Story? enables you to share the stories behind your favourite photographs. To join in all you have to do is share a photograph and the story behind it. You can write as little or much as you like and your photo/s can be from any time. The Linky is open every Monday until the following Sunday.

Feel free to use the What’s The Story? badge or include a link to PODcast in your post and do share some comment love too. There’s a community on Google Plus so do pop over if you haven’t already. We’re at Charly Dove or PODcast.

Grab the badge!

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The B&W photography project | Week #36

Hello everyone, welcome to week #36 of the Black and White Photography Project. Thank you so much to those of you that joined in last week.

This collection of photographs were taken in London. Although I often walk from Farringdon to Waterloo at the moment, occasionally its nice to take a different route and change the perspective. From the boats, to the lit up buildings and the view across the River Thames, talking to the streets has its benefits.

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How to join in 

To join in with the Black & White Photography Project, just link up a short post featuring a black and white photograph or black and white photographs. The photograph/s can be from any time – both old and new are welcome. You’ll find a post on how to create better black and white photographs here.

Don’t forget to share on Instagram using #bwphotoproject. You can also share your posts and photos in the B&W Photography Project Facebook Group.

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Grab the badge! 

photo 4d06e438-4e6a-4f3b-88b2-0c1093350397_zps361ad0e9.jpg

Feel free to grab the #bwphotoproject badge (you’ll find a monochrome one here).

Pinterest loveliness

PODcast now has over 2,500 followers on Pinterest. If you’re looking for monochrome inspiration, do check out the Black and White Photography board. It features some incredible photographs from artists all over the World.

Follow PODcast grappling with a box of frogs’s board Photography: B&W Photography Project on Pinterest.



Glitterbelle The Sparkliest Princess Ever!

We’ve read some fabulous books from Parragon. POD is still loving The Nutcracker from A Treasury of Christmas Stories and Songs. The tale and the imagery is truly wonderful though so who can blame her!

Glitterbelle The Sparkliest Princess Ever! tells the story of a Princess who lives with her parents, the King and Queen, in a palace at the top of a hill. Along with their dog Bob. Anything sparkly, shimmery or purple is favoured by Glitterbelle. She also loves animals, playing with her friends and climbing trees! She’s not your average kind of Princess.

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But she hates peas even though they owe their kingdom to the squishy green vegetable.

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King Alfie even has the famous pea that got Glitterbelle’s great-great-great-great grandpapa and great-great-great-great grandmamma together. She had had a terrible night’s sleep because she felt a tiny pea underneath her mattress. It proved she was a real Princess though so they married and lived happily ever after.

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Glitterbelle’s best friends, Dazzlina and Angel don’t understand why she doesn’t like peas. Dazzlina is a witch and likens the green to her favourite things – frogs, grasshoppers and Kat’s eyes. Ballerina Angel agrees they’re small, sweet and round just like the bun in her hair and green like her gecko, George.

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After turning the peas into popcorn, the threesome raced around the gardens on their scooters before climbing a nearby tree.

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Glitterbelle told her chums she wanted to be a vet and look after poorly animals. She was convinced she wasn’t a real Princess and even kissed a frog to prove it wouldn’t turn into a handsome prince.

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Queen Lizzie was so concerned, that evening she left a pea under Glitterbelle’s mattress in an effort to prove she really was a Princess. It worked. She barely slept a wink and woke up all achey.

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They had a party to celebrate. Dazzlina and Angel were invited, quickly spotting the not so secret ingredient – peas! To her surprise, Glitterbelle found the pea-green cake to be delicious.

Glitterbelle The Sparkliest Princess Ever! is written by Rachael Duckett and illustrated by Harriet Muncaster. It’s a great read and the story has a fantastic feel good feel to it. POD always enjoys the story and picking out what’s in each picture. She finds it highly entertaining too especially the pea cake – apparently you shouldn’t put peas in cakes! Definitely a must read. You can purchase it from Amazon here.

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Disclaimer: As a Parragon Book Buddy we received a copy of Glitterbelle the Sparkliest Princess Ever! for the purpose of this review. Opinions are our own. 

JUST EAT’s Tried & Tasted awards 2015

There’s something to be said about having food delivered to your door, as busy working parents the Doves’ are definitely fans. We always enjoy JUST EAT who are the UK’s leading food delivery service and act as an intermediary for various food outlets in your local area. The brand can now be found in 13 countries globally and right here in the UK there are a staggering 22,500 restaurants participating.

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The concept is simple. Search for your favourite take away restaurants, place an order online and wait for your delivery or, if you prefer, go pick it up. Most recently we opted for Peking Mixed Hor D’oeuvres, Crispy Aromatic Duck and Singapore Vermicelli Spicy Rice Noodles.

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We used a restaurant we’d not tried before, Oriental Express, which had 5 stars and 229 reviews. The delivery was speedy which is just what we wanted (we were starving!) and the food was delicious.

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Having met Mr Mozzarella at the MAD Blog awards last year (and having a love for good food!), it’s great to hear JUST EAT run annual Tried and Tested Awards which are focused on quality and consistency.

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This involves food lovers across the country voting for their favourite takeaways via the JUST EAT website. Customers feed back on their experience by reviewing and rating their much-loved local takeaways. Leading on from there comes the JUST EAT Tried and Tested awards. These focus on quality and consistency – the latter recognising over a thousand takeaway restaurants out of the overall 8,000 that have won Tried and Tested for the past four years.

Out of the consistency winners, 20 of best takeaways (by ratings and reviews) were chosen from cities that had accumulated the most Tried and Tested winners overall. Winning restaurants had to have more than 100 online reviews with an average rating of 4.5 (out of 6) or above. There are several in the London area including Moon Lee, Zias and You Me Sushi.

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You can read more about the JUST EAT Tried and Tested Awards and hear what they have to say here

 Disclaimer: This post is in conjunction with JUST EAT. Opinions are our own.