The Cookery School at Little Portland Street

Still on our mission to hone and enhance our culinary skills, at The Amazing Blog we have been searching around for baking lessons, to make all your dreams of baking that perfect soufflé come true, which is when we found  The Cookery School at Little Portland Street. It is one of London’s leading and most sustainable cooking schools.

Founded In 2003 Rosalind Rathouse, who even prior to the inception of Cookery School, she has been fervently passionate about sustainability. Cookery School has the highest possible rating for sustainability from the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) and has been virtually plastic-free since the beginning. From sourcing top quality, seasonal, mostly organic ingredients, to running the kitchens on renewable energy, what we like is that the school does everything possible to minimise its impact on the planet.

With a focus on the sustainability and education, they endeavour to demystify cooking, removing jargon and celebrating good home cooking skills. Their kitchen is run with the environment in mind, so they only use high quality, sustainable, primarily organic ingredients and equipment that can be found in most home kitchens

Cue The Ultimate Baking Course this takes you through the key principles of cakes, pastry, breads, macarons and meringue making, plus cake decorating. Quite simply, they will teach you the skills required to bake well. They have three options i.e. either the weekly course which includes 8 sessions, the intensive course which is a 4 day course or the Sunday course which takes place on every Sunday of the month thus giving you the option to best suit your schedule.

Priced at £880, The Ultimate Baking Course runs throughout the months of February, March and April and is worth both the time and the money as you will leave with the skills and knowledge of a professional baker. Browse through their official website to find a course best suited for you here.

Balance Festival

Here at The Amazing Blog we understand how difficult it can be to maintain the motivation needed to lead a healthy lifestyle. That is why we thought we'd let you know about the Balance Festival: The perfect place to find like-minded individuals who are joining together to embrace a healthier lifestyle.

Balance Festival is the largest fitness and wellness-focused event in the UK. It brings together the best foods, classes, and the most knowledgeable nutritionists, trainers, yogis and chefs; all of whom will share their expertise to help you kick-start your journey to a better self. There is never a dull moment with over 150 food, fitness, wellness, and travel brands to explore. Workshops will include talks and cooking demos, plus there is the option to attend over 200 fitness classes from £6 per session, perfect to sweat out some of those toxins. 

You can try out numerous cutting-edge workouts on the main stage and then relax in The Sanctuary to recharge or practice mindfulness. It is impossible to leave the festival without feeling inspired and ready to take on a new healthy lifestyle. The buzzing atmosphere will keep you coming back year after year to discover new brands, workouts and recipes; ensuring that your health regime is never dull.

The Balance Festival takes place 11th-13th May 2018 at The Old Truman Brewery. Super Early Bird Tickets are available here starting at £24.50 for a standard pass, £45 for VIP, and £75 for a weekend VIP. See you there!

Vbites Vegan Food and Cookbook

Vegan food has had a bit of a bad reputation in the past. When people think of vegan food, they only think of salads and tasteless fake meats, but bland vegan food is a thing of the past. Due to the bountiful health and environmental benefits of veganism, we here at The Amazing Blog have put a lot of thought into the idea of starting a vegan diet. When we learned the story behind Vbites founder, Heather Mills, we were inspired to try out veganism for ourselves. After enduring a devastating motorcycle accident, Heather discovered that the best way to heal her body was from the inside out. Which meant using a holistic approach rooted in a vegan diet. This story helps to explain why she was determined to create delicious foods that satisfy every craving, while nourishing the body. After learning her story, we were even more thrilled to receive a sampling of the Meat-Free products from this pioneering and award-winning plant-based brand at Vbites.  

Eating less meat or cutting it out completely can be daunting for many individuals, which is why Vbites products are perfect for anyone who needs a little help getting their foot in the door when it comes to becoming a vegan. Vbites offers a wide array of vegan products including meat-free, dairy-free, and fish-free products. To help with meal preparations, we would suggest using The LoveBites recipe book. This cookbook from Vbites comes with each of their Plant-Based Kits, which offers 60 new easy-to-follow recipes to try out and fall in love with. You can whip up delicious alternatives to some of your favourite meals like shepherd’s pie or asparagus quiche that are all completely vegan. From starters to soups, salads and main dishes, these recipes have definitely inspired us to cook more hearty meals that make us feel good from the inside out.

Our personal favourite of the Vbites selection that we tried was the Meat-Free Duck Hoisin (£2.99 for 150g). We added it to a veggie stir-fry and were licking our plates clean. We had some friends over to it try out and they were amazed to learn what they thought was a duck hoisin stir fry was in fact 100% vegan! Coming in a close second was the Meat-Free Lincolnshire Style Sausages (£2.69 for 295g) which we plated up as Bangers 'n Mash for a quick Sunday night supper (with a dollop of baked beans). They truly did taste like savoury sausages and certainly satisfied one very hungry male guest! 

So whether you are already practising a vegan lifestyle or you are considering starting, these Vbites will help you to incorporate some seriously tasty and healthy meals into your diet. You can check out the wide array of Vbites vegan products on their website here. 

Eat and Drink Festival 2018

Self-professed foodie or not, The Eat and Drink Festival has a little something to satisfy every taste bud. We here at The Amazing Blog have to admit that we can never turn down an event that brings together mouth-watering cuisines from around the world all into one place, so when we found out that the festival was returning for its second year at Olympia London; we had to let everyone know.

Now we all love going to the outdoor market to get lunch or a snack on a regular basis, but what makes The Eat and Drink Festival a unique experience that’s worth your while has to be The Foodie Stage; a live cooking demonstration from renowned chefs and food experts. Get ready to up your own skill set as they let you in on their own culinary secrets and their top tips to impress at your next dinner party.

Their Late Night Thursdays boast the country’s top street food vendors and music from up and coming local musicians until 9pm, so you can dance a bit before indulging on more delicious treats. The irresistible aromas from each vendor will make it hard to resist going back for seconds or thirds. Of course every good meal needs a drink to compliment it, so head on over next to The Drinks Station to find your signature cocktail, while you pick up some tips on how to pair a meal with the perfect drink. You can also take home some fresh produce and handmade products at their Artisan Producers’ Market to try your hand at crafting a food masterpiece of your own. 

 The Eat and Drink Festival comes back to London from the 17th of March to the 2nd of April, so don’t miss out! They’re open daily from 10am to 6pm (except on Late Night Thursdays). Tickets are available here starting as little as £14 for adults on weekdays, with free admittance for children 15 and under. 

Cookbooks Special

Here at The Amazing Blog, we don’t just enjoy eating great food, we love feeding our culinary skills in the hope of creating some delicious dishes ourselves. In the run up to Christmas there are a plethora of cookbooks out there to buy, but we've picked a few of our favourites to share with you. Some are inspired by a range of cultures, others inspiring you to spice up your favourite meat. The countless mouth-watering recipes will have you running to the kitchen to try them out for yourself.

The Nomadic Kitchen Spices & Spandex is a charming cookbook following Tom Perkins and Matt Chennells on a cycling adventure with a difference.

Part travelogue and part recipe book, the book features 65 recipes inspired from the 26 counties which the boys travelled to in 501 days. Starting their journey in England and ending in South Africa, the book thoughtfully documents the entire journey and the food inspiration found along the way. This is no ordinary cookbook, we felt fully engaged in the narrative and loved the diverse global recipes, cultural observations and stunning photography. Enjoy recreating dishes from Egyptian Falafel Pittas to Zimbabwean Oxtail & Okra Stew, and begin your own culinary journey by purchasing Spices & Spandex here for £25.

Our next cookbook will transport you on a culinary journey through the different China Towns found around the world. Chef Jean-Francois Mallet travelled to different Chinese communities in an effort to understand the reason behind the diversity in East Asian cuisine within the western world. China Towns explores his journey and gives us 100 delicious recipes to try out for ourselves.

We loved the vivid and vibrant photography that really brought the book to life. There are dishes influenced from different Asian cuisines, some Vietnamese, and even hints of Thai. Open your mind to a world of stunning East Asian cuisine from all over the world and get your own copy here for £20.40.

For something a little closer to home, Louise Searle and Hayley Spurway have brought us the Saltwater Kitchen Cookbook.

The book brings the taste of Cornwall, a beautiful gastronomic hotspot on the English Coast, into your very own kitchen. Saltwater Kitchen flaunts a simplistic, back to nature method of cooking, heavily influenced by fresh foraged and saltwater ingredients. We loved the real food for real people aspect of the cookbook, and not only do they include fresh and simple recipes, but also recommendations for the best places to eat and drink. Expect recipes for many exciting foodie festivities like beach barbecues and fine dining feasts that will have you wanting to book a stay in Cornwall right away. If you want to learn recipes using fresh and sustainably grown ingredients, then this is the book for you, get yours here for £17.99.

Last but certainly not least, we have found a particularly useful cookbook to bring excitement back into poultry. Paul Gayler has brought us Chicken & Other Birds, which contains a bounty of delicious poultry recipes that employ a whole range of cooking techniques.

Gayler doesn’t simply stick to chicken; he introduces us to a variety of birds including Turkey, Goose, Duck, Guinea Fowl and even Pigeon. We were astounded by the wide array of mouth-watering recipes, ensuring us that meal times never have to be dull again. Whether it is curry, casseroles or roasts you're looking for, this cookbook will have a recipe for you, with a choice of 100 classic and contemporary dishes. Pick up your own beautifully illustrated copy here for £19.99.