Happiness

What is happiness?

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16 April 2015

Today and yesterday, as part of our Nature Guide course, we were sent on a South African First Aid Training course.

It was interesting for me, in that it was more or less identical to the St John’s Ambulance First Aid course I did in London a few years ago but with one exciting addition… Snake bites!

It also covered when not to perform CPR, which you may think is obvious but I suppose you should never assume. Such scenarios included when a person has been decapitated, or has clearly been dead for a long time eg. 2 weeks…

Anyway, I’m pleased to report we all passed with flying colours!

But more importantly, we made a fabulous restaurant discovery!

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Feeding Time…

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2nd April 2015

Today began as something disgusting, horrendous and just generally upsetting but later grew into something unforgettably special.

This morning we were taken as volunteers to help feed the lions living on the game reserve. The meat is loaded onto a truck, then driven round to where the lions are kept and thrown in. It was good fun! They do love it, and you finally get to see their natural instincts come out!

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THE SPANISH HAVE INVADED!!

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My TASTEBUDS, that is!!

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Recently, a Spanish influence has stepped into my life and introduced me to a whole new world of flavour.

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This weekend, Diana gave me the perfect gift of a book to record my favourite (and some more secret) recipes. I immediately knew what the first recipe in this book was going to be.

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Salmorejo!

There aren’t the words to express how much I love this dish. Even looking at that picture now makes me go crazy for not having it in front of me. The combination of tomato, garlic, oil and bread may seem simple enough, and frankly I don’t understand all the magic behind the deliciousness. I also know the concept of raw garlic in anything will be enough to make my fellow Brits VERY nervous, but please PLEASE I beg you to put what you think you know to one side and try this dish. When I eat this, I feel absolutely invincible and satisfied beyond belief. I’ve never actually made this myself, but the last time Diana whipped it up, I monitored her activity with a tediously close proximity. Here’s how to do it…

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Lewes Bonfire- Tips and Tricks

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If you haven’t heard of Lewes Bonfire, then you’re missing out on one of the most strange and memorable nights in the British calendar.

A series of impressive, amusing, albeit highly controversial effigies are marched through the usually twee and quiet small town before being burnt at the stake in designated areas through-out. Your job as spectator is to enjoy and cheer the fire parade before charging off to see one of the many burnings followed by a Fireworks Display to rival that of Disney, Universal Studio’s and London NYE.

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It really is an incredible experience, and to my mind the last of its kind in England. I implore anyone to see it at least once in their life, but before you do take note of the following advice:

LEWES BONFIRE TIPS AND TRICKS
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Pork, chorizo and Couscous Tagine

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IMG_3606Sometimes, the best meals are the ones filled with ingredients and elements that remind you of the people who make you smile. Now frankly, I don’t think I could make just one dish that reflects ALL the people in my life who make me happy, but this tagine is a good start!

First, tagines will always and forever remind me of my dear friend, Stephen Swinnerton. They are his signature, his territory. The first one he ever made for me was beef and the tenderness blew me away. The most recent one he made me was pork, at which point I sussed this tenderness was no fluke, but a delicious result of the patience and care that goes into tagine cooking! He bought me my own for Christmas and it’s been kicking around for a while. Finally, the time arrived for me to give it a go with a few special ingredients of my own!

Within the ingredients list are the other special elements that remind me of people who make me smile. There is the chorizo and oregano, given to me by the fabulously Spanish Diana Requena, and the chillis, carefully grown to an adorable size here in our home by my father! Finally, I experimented with a little chipotle paste… Chipotle will always remind me of Eric Cartman.

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Ingredients

  • 2 pork steaks
  • A friendly amount of chorizo- sliced or diced
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, diced
  • 2-3 carrots, chopped
  • 2-3 chillis, chopped
  • 500g tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 2 tomatoes, quartered
  • About 100g of couscous- plain or flavoured, the choice is yours!
  • 2 peppers- red and yellow- diced
  • 1 chicken stock cube
  • Salt, pepper, oregano and paprika
  • Chipotle paste
  • 1 more carrot, shreddred

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Let’s get cooking!

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