Poptastic Afternoon

Wednesday saw me spending the afternoon in a kitchen in Hackney with Molly Bakes making pop cakes.
This was my birthday present along with the book from my brother & co..
Due to the recent unrest in London the evening workshop had been postponed to two afternoons. Unbeknown to me this meant that when I arrived I found out that my afternoon was going to be a 1:1 with M.
M launched Molly Bakes a couple of years ago and now provides Selfridges with its cake pops for their bakery.
the concept is simple... cake on a stick covered with chocolate coating!!.... if only... biggest lesson on cake pops is planning as there are a lot of stages to take a ball of cake to the finished product!... with some not always making it to the finish line....

What I loved about M was that she wasnt precious, she answers all questions, shares secrets and tips, and signed my book...I had a fabulous afternoon, not all was perfect, but that just added to the learning!... I now know what to do when the coating refuses to set... hold arm in fridge with said pop cake!... made over 24 pops, tea pots, tea cups, ice creams & donuts, which were a huge hit at work in the office next day!...

Thanks M for a great afternoon, good luck with the wedding and hope to see you at Netil Market soon....
check out M's website here... the book is delicious too..

Treats from Toulon..

Situated beneath out hotel in Toulon was a small shopping complex, which also housed a Carrefour (France's equivalent of our Tesco)... I couldn't pass the opportunity to pick up a few baking bargains whilst there.
I'm sure if Ryan Airs luggage allowance wasn't so strict I would have purchased much more!

I fell in love with the table decoration aisle!... how could you not love all the bright colours. I picked up some spots & stripes!...my friend K will be fighting me for the lime green ones! Also picked up some fabulous chocolate: Patisserie chocolate from Nestle, Praline, Caramel & Dark and Cote D'or dark with pistachios and Carrafour White with coconut!... yum yum...

also falling into the basket were 3 baking books!... (I can hear my friends groaning that I've managed to bring home 3 books from a weekend away!) especially as they are written in French ( it may take me some time to bake)...

Creme de Marrons plus a box of creme de marrons to assist with the baking!(chesnut spread.. fantastic for autumn)  Loving the mini maron madelines.

Whoopies (it seems the whoppie pie has reached France as well).. loved the Nutella recipe in this book and finally Macarons...

well I couldn't go to France without picking up a Macaron book...fallen in love with the Macaron charlotte... this is on my list to make!

T in Toulon.....

after an eventful Rugby match on the Friday night, a day of calm and relaxation was required for the Saturday... I met friends for breakfast and then headed out for the day on my own to explore. Toulon is predominately a working harbour/port town so Saturday morning was market day.... with cobbled streets lined with fresh fruit, veg , and fish it was a feast for the senses.... escaping from the hustle and bustle I jumped on one of the little Ferry's and headed over to one of the small islands just off Toulon.
The views were stunning, especially looking back at the Naval Port....

berthing in a small marina the ferry has several stops just like the bus!... it was funny seeing islanders using the ferry to hop over to Toulon with their shopping trolleys and then heading back to tranquil island life... as you can see the weather was glorious, warm, blue skies & sunny!....

A meander around the little market, loved the lavender bundles on the flower stall and the martini glasses of macarons. The smell of the mussels and escargots cooking in the market were amazing...

I picked up some fruit, followed by some bread from the local Boulangerie and headed down to the little beach where I sat and whiled away a couple of hours reading my kindle....

An evening dining in the harbour with friends, sampling the local delights...

couldn't come to the South of France without having Moules Marinieres & Pommes frittes...

rounded off a near perfect day!

A delayed flight home the following day was brightened by the company of David Morrissey....its amazing who you see in the South of France!

Sarries in Toulon!..

A couple of weekends ago I headed down to the South of France to watch Saracens play a pre-season "friendly" (I use the term friendly loosely after watching the game!) against Toulon. Flying into Toulon airport (square building in the middle of a field!) and a scenic bus route (bargain at 1.40 euros) I arrived at the hotel lunchtime. Hotel, great location,  also housing the squad was sited adjacent to the RCT Stade Mayol ground and a stones throw from the harbour. Met up with friends before heading off to the game.

Game kicked-off at 6.45 and was amazed to see it practically sold out, and as discovered during the evening the French are very passionate about their rugby!... the whole town comes to a grinding halt for the game.

With trys by Andy Saull and Ernst Joubert and Owen Farrell on target Sarries led the 1st half.... the french were never going to take a defeat lying down and the 2nd half was hostile both on and off the pitch!

Things got very feisty in midway through the second half with several scuffles breaking out and yellow cards for both sides... with Toulon driving the pack in the final few minutes and a breakaway try, Toulon were the victors 26-17....

Defeated but not dejected the celebrations back at the hotel were lively with much needed refreshment.... there were some weary boys at breakfast on the Saturday morning...

Ditto....

for any Ghost fans out there, they will know instantly what the title of this blog refers too.... Ghost is in my top 10 films, and never fails to make me cry!... so it was with much trepidation and armed with tissues that I went to see the stage version of this hit film recently.... hoping that it would live up to my expectations of the film, I wasn't disappointed and yes I did cry!.. with Dave Stewart (Eurythmics fame) writing the score & songsand accompanied by a relative unknown cast, (other than the gorgeous Richard Fleeshman) the stage show is unlike anything I have seen before ( and as you all know I may go to the theatre a little!)...the majority of backdrops are set to huge interactive videos & graphics, its very clever how it all mixes together, especially the subway scene....

The lighting and staging is exceptional, it really captures the 'ghost' essence from the film.... all the best bits are there if a little adapted for the stage.... potters wheel, righteous brothers singing unchained melody and the beautiful ending, Richard Fleeshman is amazing.... this is a must for fans of the movie.... you will laugh, you will cry and you will believe!