A zero waste town?

I saw this video and thought I had to share it - particularly given how much I've been indoctrinated into sorting all my rubbish (we had all sorts of different bins at LSE and now I get really annoyed at my new work when they throw all sorts of things into the compost bin) and also how much I thought Mum and Dad would like it given how well they recycle at home!

I've also been learning more about the concept of a circular economy which really seems like it's becoming a very popular idea and I definitely think it's the way forward. An old idea really but one that's really important - if only to have a better sense of how much "stuff" we really use in our day to day lives.

I like how they realise that it wasn't easy - imagine sorting your waste into 34 categories! But it's also great how they show what things get recycled into, and talk about reducing the waste that gets made in the first place. An inspirational town for sure - good luck to them becoming 100% zero waste!

Beeeen busy baking

I must be missing my bees because when I found out we were having a charity bake-off at work, this cake was the first thing that came to mind:

What do you think? It's a chocolate honey cake by Nigella Lawson (original recipe in metric here, with some modifications from here (extra ingredients and swapping up a honey glaze for a chocolate ganache) that I also followed). It's rich and delicious - and super easy to make with everything just getting whizzed up all at once in a food processor. Now, while the marzipan bees might take a little longer, they're still pretty simple and look pretty good if I do say so myself!

Sadly I wasn't the bake-off winner - I got pipped by someone who made a Barbie Christmas fairy cake (her skirt is cake and her bodice etc. is all icing). Can't compete with that! But I had a lot of fun making my bee cake and will definitely pull it out again should be occasion arise!

LSE Bees

As you all know, I've been very lucky to be involved with LSE Bees. I went from complete novice who had never even seen a beehive in person, to completely fascinated and in love with beekeeping.

Recently the society asked me to participate in an interview for their blog and it's been posted - and I'm completely blown away and touched by all the lovely things they've said. It also feels really great to know that I've encouraged other people to get involved and become apiarists in their own right!

I also talk about my favourite hive at LSE, what I've learnt from the bees and the most fun thing I've ever done as part of the society. So, if you're interested head over to LSE Bees and have a read!

Jacob's Ladder and Kinder Scout - walk #4

Our final walk was an absolutely stunning circuit from Edale, onto the Pennine Way, up Jacob's Ladder and onto Kinder Plateau.

The day started off a bit grey but after a windy drive to the heart of the Peak District we arrived at Edale and to the beginning of the famous Pennine Way which goes all the way to Northumberland.

We started off on a path through the trees towards paddocks where the way was marked with large flagstones. After walking for a few kms up through the Edale Valley we reached the bottom of Jacob's Ladder. It was a hard 22 minutes up to the very windy top but very rewarding once we got to the end!

Here's a (very noisy - so don't have the volume up too loud!) video of us at the top:

Then it was right across the Kinder plateau (also known as Kinder Scout) where we walked across very springy black peat to the gritstone tors of the Kinder Edges which was like walking through a moon scape of giant rocks. The view out over Edale valley was just spectacular and the silence was something quite unusual for us city dwellers! We did encounter other walkers (or ramblers as they're known here) but it was nowhere near as busy as I imagine such a famous walk would be during summer or on the weekend.

We made it through the tors back onto the moors where the light was stunning over the heather. Unfortunately I must have been overly distracted as it was on the (mostly flat) flagstones that I toppled right over, spraining my left ankle and right shoulder and putting a massive bruise on my left knee... Very annoying but after accepting the very kind offer of some paracetamol from a passing Duke of Edinburgh leader, commandeering Adrian's Lesothan walking stick and taking his helping hand, we finally made it down to the end of the walk just as it started to rain. Pretty perfect timing all in all, and then off home to relax with plenty of ice (including in my G&T) on the couch.

Despite the mishap it was a brilliant walk and well worth doing if you're in the area. We had a fabulous time up there and it was just the thing we needed. Now I just need to get this swelling down before my new job starts on Monday!

At the official start of the Pennine Way

Don't think we'll be going all the way to the end this time!

The very pretty Edale valley

At the bottom of the ladder

Nearly at the top!

Made it! At the top on Kinder Plateau

Heading off across the peat

The tors on the Kinder Edges behind a pair of very squinty ramblers

Jump!

Pretty mountain stream

Can you see the two faces of the dog?

Such pretty heather (and lethal - to me - flagstones)

And the unfortunate end of the walk - should be right soon though!

Pemberley (Lyme Hall) - walk #3

Today we ventured all the way across the national park to Lyme Park to see "Pemberley" - (aka Lyme Hall) as made famous in the BBC's version of Pride & Prejudice with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle.

After driving through Buxton and failing to see any of the springs to get their famous (in the UK) water, we made it to Disley and Lyme Park. It's a National Trust property (and therefore not the cheapest place to visit) but after getting the iconic photos in order, we joined a free guided walking tour of the gardens. The work they do on the gardens, which is mostly done by volunteers, is quite astonishing and there was lots to see, including a painting being restored in an anteroom to the hot house, an awesome playground and an art installation which involved banging drums to make lights on the faraway folly change colour.

We also walked through the deer park and walked up to the "cage" - a building that was used as a hunting lodge. The local inhabitants of the fields - Highland cattle - were either very friendly or hostile depending on your perspective!

As they say, the building is very favourably situated and the reflective lake is quite gorgeous. I'm very glad we visited!

Bit of a change after 600 years...

Beautiful! (and very aptly named "reflection lake")

Could I pass for Miss Bennet?

The famous view

The side of the house and the hot house gardens

Painting restoration

Very cool art installation - the lights on the far away folly change colour when you bang the different drums

View out over Derbyshire

The cage

Friend or foe?? Let's just walk around in a big, wide circle to make sure...

Awesome digger!

Sun setting over Pemberley after a lovely day

Eyam & Abney - walk #2

Today's walk was one of our "strenuous" category walks - 14km up and down the moorlands and cloughs (anyone know what those are??). [Edit: it's a steep valley - although can't quite work out what the difference is between a clough and a dale now!]

On our way to the start in Eyam (pronounced Eem) we passed Chatsworth House - Pemberley in the most recent Pride & Prejudice movie). It had extensive grounds with loads of deer.

Eyam is known as the "plague village" where 260 people died over 18 months between 1665-1666. But it is most well known for the fact that the rector asked the villagers to quarantine themselves so as to not spread the disease. People were buried in their own gardens and food and medical supplies were left at the points marked by plague stones on the village boundaries.

We started our walk from Eyam up through farmland into Eyam moor. The wind was whistling across the moor and during the walk we saw all sorts of sheep, rabbits and a lovely red fox. I really liked the heather and bracken on the moor as well as the fantastic stone walls everywhere.

There were a lot of ups and downs so it was a good thing we'd decided it classified as a two sandwich walk - and we stopped in at Bakewell on the way home and got both a Bakewell tart and pudding (the first has shortcrust pastry and the latter has flaky pastry). Adrian doesn't like marzipan so neither rated very highly in his book. It looks like it'll be almond desserts for me for the next few days! 

View towards Chatsworth House

Beginning of the walk - looking back towards Eyam

Onwards over the moor

Couldn't be moor excited!

Surveying the landscape

Nearly at the end

Typical autumn colours

Bakewell tart on the left and pudding on the right

Monk's Dale - walk #1

Today we had a glorious sleep in (any time we encounter a bed larger than our "small double" it makes for an epic night's sleep) but made it out of the house just before midday for our first walk - a three to four hour circular walk from Tideswell through Monk's Dale.

We drove down the very windy roads from our place through Matlock and Bakewell (didn't stop for a tart this time but did scope out some places for a future stop) to Tideswell. After minor uncertainty on my behalf regarding the gps (where we have ascertained that Adrian is probably better at directions than I) we headed out across the fields.

We encountered some cold-looking cows ("freeeesians"), lots of stiles and various breeds of sheep. Then it was down into Monk's Dale which was a lovely valley between limestone cliffs. It was chilly but when the sun came out it was lovely and the autumn leaves were out in full force. We crossed the River Wye and then circled back up to Tideswell after spending a bit of time on the Monsale Trail - a cycling and walking path on a disused railway track which had very cool hand-cranked storytelling stations where you could hear tales from the local area.

So, one walk down, many to go!

Walking across the fields

In Monk's Dale

Emerging from Monk's Dale towards Miller's Dale

You shall not pass!

Listening to the stories on the Monsale Trail

Looking out over the hills from the Monsale Trail

A new friend!

A little break

So, as most of you know, I finally finished my PhD (!) so it's time for a short holiday before I return to the "real world" and start my new job.

We're spending a week in the Peak District based in Matlock Bath. We've just arrived and check out the view from where we're staying! What a stunning vista.

We're going to be doing lots of walks and just hanging out. Hopefully we don't get too lost...

PhD lockdown

Posting has been light lately, and will continue to be so as I enter into the final phase of the PhD. It's due on the 30th of September and there's still an awful lot of work to be done. I'm starting to spend quite a few late nights and weekends at uni, but I'm confident it will all be finished on time! (It has to be...)

Adrian's also in the final month of training for Challenge Roth (3.9km swim, 180km bike ride, 42km run) which looks like it's going to be a lot of fun (for the spectators, maybe not so much for the competitors). He's working hard - although once that finishes and he becomes man about the house to look after me while I finish, it might not be any less work!

There are lots of things to update on the blog, but here are a few photos from what's been going on lately:

Watching NZ vs England at Lords

"Making it Work" at the Sciences Po climate change negotiation simulation in Paris

My team's tomato plants for our 2015 Green Impact summer challenge - we've got to keep these guys healthy and grow as many tomatoes as we can!

Dumpling making to stock up the freezer

Our delicious strawberry plants - we get fresh strawberries on our breakfast every morning. Can't get any more local than that!

So wish me luck as the PhD lockdown continues. I'm planning to emerge victorious on the 1st of October!

Gluttony Friday

While Good Friday was definitely a good day in our house, it was also most definitely a very gluttonous day (irony much? Seven deadly sins and all...). Health warning: do not attempt any of this unless you are actually training for an Ironman.

We started with a delicious panettone for breakfast that we'd been saving from Christmas. It provided vital sustenance for our epic morning of baking that followed. That's right, we had a Great British Hot Cross Bun Off! In the red corner was Adrian who was making the classic Edmonds cookbook recipe, and in the blue corner was me, Amelia, who was making the new-fangled recipe by bake-off judge Paul Hollywood.

Notable recipe differences included Hollywood's one including an egg and not much in the way of spices (which I decided to double, based on other reviewers' suggestions, as well as ignoring the apple and just doubling the regular fruit mix), and the Edmonds one requiring an hour less proving and kneading all the fruit etc. in at once. I also made Hollywood's recipe in our amazing KitchenAid - got to get that price per use down!

Adrian's batch: the classic Edmonds recipe

My batch: new-fangled Paul Hollywood's recipe

Mine on the left, Adrian's on the right

As you can see, they were a lot of fun to make and turned out very differently! Adrian's were much more like scones and mine were puffier, much more like bread rolls. His have a really delicious, dense taste and the kneading with the fruit meant it broke up and was more dispersed around the bun, but he reckons next time they need more kneading and he'll try them in the mixer. I'm really glad I doubled the fruit and spices in mine as without I think they'd be a bit bland. Adrian generously gave me the winner's crown and I like winning too much not to take it, so el champione is me!

But, gorging ourselves on hot cross buns (I think Adrian had at least five or six straight out of the oven) was only the beginning. We then cycled up to Shoreditch to try out Fryhard, a pop-up food stall which was frying (practically) anything and everything. Adrian's long wanted a pie, wrapped in bacon, then deep-fried. Sadly all the pies were sold out so he had to make do with a quiche. Just don't think of the calories!! I decided to have a cream egg which the whipped cream topping really added to surprisingly - very sweet but disappeared in an instant!

Goodies being queued up for the fryer

A batch of deep-fried cream eggs ready to eat!

Mmmmmm... Deep fried cream egg in all its glory.

Deep fried quiche ready to eat!

Finishing there would have been for wimps. (Notice I'm completely disregarding the health warning at the top of this blog myself). The final step on our odyssey was a white chocolate strawberry cronut. Mmmmmmm...

And then, because we were in Shoreditch (the western-most extension of London's hipster paradise) we topped it all off with a tiny bottle of freshly pressed juice goodness for £5. Delicious!

So there you have it. How to put on 5kg and double your cholesterol in a day. Let's also not talk about the Easter egg we ate in its entirety on Easter Sunday shall we... Luckily spring has arrived and it's fresh veges and salads for the rest of the month!