Gin and Apple Fizz

Christmas time is a time for being cosy, in front of the fire, Christmas tree lit up and lights and candles festooning the house. It’s also the time to indulge in too much food and some festive cocktails. Here is a refreshing and easy to make cocktail for those winter nights, warmed with a touch…

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The Classic Snowball

The Snowball is, I guess a classic cocktail, not one I had tried until recently mind you! I have frequently passed that retro looking bottle of Advocaat so many times, wondering what on earth does it taste like! The Snowball was created in the 1940’s, but it wasn’t until the 1970’s it really took off,…

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Mary Berry’s Cottage Pie with Dauphinoise Potatoes

There is nothing more comforting than cottage pie. Simple, tasty and not particularly healthy, unless accompanied by a side of vegetables. It’s no secret that I am a fan of Mary Berry, and the queen of all things comforting has this pretty tasty and artery clogging cottage pie. Rich meaty mince sauce topped with a…

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Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup

Winter is definitely coming. So, it is time to get the soup pot out and start to make lots of warming tasty soups to get through these chillier times. Soup is great, warming, nutritious and great to make in bulk and freeze for those soup emergencies. This easy Roasted Tomato and Red pepper soup is…

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Braised Beef in Red Wine

With more time on my hands because of the lockdown and the winter nights drawing in, my slow cooker has been getting a lot of use. I received my slow cooker years ago as a wedding gift, it sat in a box for about 5 years before one day I decided to give it a…

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Fonab Castle Hotel & Spa, Pitlochry

I’m always on the hunt for a wee night or weekend away from city life, somewhere comfortable, with good food and preferably a spa (though the latter is not a deal breaker)! It’s just nice to get away from the norm, particularly in these more challenging times we find ourselves in. So, a friend and…

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Apple Cinnamon Bread and Butter Pudding

As we are now in Autumn, and the weather gets colder it’s the perfect time of year to turn to the more comforting robust foods. Salad for me certainly belongs in summer, it’s now the time for hearty soups and stews, as well as comforting sweet brunch treats, perfect for lazy autumn weekends. I’ve seen…

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Tigh-an-truish, Isle of Seil

Trying to make the best of this semi-lockdown situation, we found ourselves on another road trip. This time to the Isle of Seil (more on that in another post!). The Isle of Seil is about 25 minutes south of Oban, on Scotland’s West Coast. It’s also famous for its ‘Bridge across the Atlantic’, a small…

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Haar at Home

I previously wrote about the fantastic meal we had at the beginning of the year at Haar in St.Andrews, it seems like a lifetime ago now with all that has been going on! During lockdown, particularly early on, I took the opportunity to use the free time I now had to do more cooking from…

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The Fife Arms, Braemar

After a lovely weekend up on the Moray Coast (more on that later!) we stopped off in Braemar on the way back home. I haven’t been in Braemar in years (about 15 to be precise, when I was doing research for my Masters’ dissertation!) and in general it hasn’t changed, except for one place –…

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