Chocolate and ginger brownie cake – spare me the details!

Do you like food blogs which interlink stories about the writer's personal life alongside their cooking...or do you just read them for the recipes?

Do you answer questions that foodbloggers post as part of an article...or are they just hypothetical…?!

#Project366 – week 23

Compared to the vast swath of royal recipes overflowing from every cookery magazine and foodblog in recent weeks, you will notice a distinct lack of patriotism in this #project366 roundup post from the period covering the June Bank Holiday.  This isn’t because I’m vehemently opposed to the monarchy - most of this week was spent banqueting in Bavaria as part of my boyfriend’s 30th birthday celebrations, which I’m afraid took a higher priority in our #littleflat than toasting her Majesty’s 60 year anniversary! 

Day #155 - Griddling avocado for an indoor burger BBQ on the first of many rainy days

#Project366 – week 22

When I started my #project366 challenge I was a total photography novice. I’m certainly not claiming to be an expert now, but as the year is progressing I do at least feel that my camera skills are improving. Looking back on these photos from the tail-end of last month, I’m struck by how you can capture the atmosphere of a particular moment through the lens…the vibrant colours and bright lighting instantly bring me back into the summertime mood!

Day #148 – Fresh raspberries and Oat Crunch granola purchased at the new Wholefoods Market in Piccadilly and served for breakfast in our sunlit garden

#Project366 – week 21

I wish the weather was as glorious right now as it was during this week in mid-May! Making the most of the sunshine with plenty of delicious food during my numerous birthday celebrations in the capital…

Day #141 – Taking a deep breath and making a wish…Happy Birthday to me...!

English afternoon tea with Joy the Baker, American foodblogging royalty

It's been just over a year now since I started recording my favourite food experiences online. As a naturally sociable person, I'd assumed it would be easy to put down onto paper the pride I feel after successfully cooking a new recipe and my enthusiasm for top-quality produce.

However, it turns out that I'm not the wordsmith I thought I was, and that blogging is yet another part of my life where a lot of hard work and determination is required in order to succeed. I've now realised that I need to stop feeling so anxious and pressured to make every sentence fitting of a literary masterpiece, and just focus on the personal satisfaction that comes from publishing a post for anyone in the world to enjoy.

One person who understands the complex emotions involved in blogging and has always inspired me to continue is Joy Wilson, aka Joy the Baker.

#Project366 – week 20

Here’s a flashback of my culinary highlights in the week preceding my birthday (20th May, make a note for next year…!)

Day #134 – Preparing for a 90 minute cardio / strength circuits session in the beautiful bluebell woods at Green Farm Fitness with an energising breakfast smoothie…definitely a recipe I’ll be recreating back in my London flat!

Banqueting in Bavaria

Most Brits headed to London last week to commemorate the Queen’s Jubilee, but instead my boyfriend and I escaped the capital to celebrate his 30th birthday in Germany. Despite his newfound status as a “mature and responsible adult”, he is still an enormous rollercoaster fanatic, so I treated him to a trip to his favourite theme park Europa-Park.

#Project366 – week 19

A few snapshots from a week of simple homely pleasures, plus one decadent dinner out…

Day #127 – An unexpected train trip up to the Midlands (it’s all North for a Dorset girl like me!) meant an emergency takeaway lunch. I was impressed with Camden Food Co's Omega3 salad packed with prawn, avocado and edamame – with only 276 calories it fitted well into my daily number-crunching and still kept me full for our whole journey

#Project366 – week 18

I’m so annoyed that I’ve let these updates on my #project366 challenge slide. I had genuinely (perhaps naively) hoped that I could get to a stage where I was reporting back every Sunday on the previous week’s food photos, but the truth is that those plans have been scuppered thanks to the day job and life generally. I’ve been away most weekends during the past month, so opportunities to blog have been few and far between.

So I’m afraid that yet again I’m going to have to take you on a whistle-stop tour of the past few weeks’ most memorable gastronomic moments. Hopefully you’re already following my #project366 Pinterest board or Twitter feed so have still had a regular dose of my food photography, but one day I’d like to stop making excuses and apologising and just show you my snapshots on a weekly basis! I live in hope…

Day #120 – Combining red pepper & pecan pesto from my L’atalier des Chefs pasta-making class (see Day #112) with gnocchi, spinach, sweet corn & Comte cheese into a quick vegetarian dinner baked in the oven