#Magazine Mondays

An idea came to me recently that could solve all your recipe hoarding problems (although there's nothing wrong with that!) We all do it. We all have a box/bookmark/folder full of magazine/newspaper cuttings and ear-marked recipe books waiting to be looked at. I don't know about you, but this often frustrates me; there's just too many scrummy recipes going around to cope with. I find it all too overwhelming! This is why I have had the idea to create a food link up for every Monday where we can all cook and share our recipes chosen from our over-buldging folders etc, freeing up some space for more (does anyone else get that guilty feeling of hoarding more cuttings when you haven't cooked from any?? Please say I'm not the only one!) The link up, even though being called Magazine Mondays, won't be limited to just magazines. 

How will it work?

• Choose a recipe from: magazine, newspaper, recipe book that you've been dying to try
• Share  your recipe on your blog and use the hashtag #magazinemondays on Twitter, and tweet me in the process (@fessjarmer) - I will retweet and comment on all 
• Each month I may include yours as apart of my favourites in a round-up post
• Share the love on your post by adding the Magazine Mondays board - use the html below and copy into your post
• Add your link by using the button below, and this will appear as a collage on my page
• Spread the cuttings love and comment on at least one person's post - you may get one back!

<a href="http://www.jesscantoni.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x371/fessjarmer/magazine%20mondays_zpshm7mdu4q.jpg" alt="Jess Cantoni" /></a>

So what are you waiting for - spread the cuttings love!

An InLinkz Link-up

Get to know me.

Today has all been about planning, planning, planning. I've been writing several lists on posts I want to do and basically organising my blog (will hopefully share these once I get organised). It's been a lot of note-taking and I've been glued to either my phone or my laptop. My eyes feel dry like the desert and I'm a little bit frazzled (My chocolate Shaken Udder Milkshake has been giving me a tiny boost), therefore I've decided today's post is going to be an easy one, to ease me back into the routine and also because I won't have to think too much, I hope!

I saw the Get To Know Me Tag first on the beauty and lifestyle blog Thirteen Thoughts, which you should all check out. 

I haven't been 'tagged' to do this, but hey ho, i'm sure no-one cares! I will however be tagging someone at the end. Mwaha.

Get To Know Me Tag

1. Are you named after someone?

Ha, well funnily enough I am strangely named after a baby in a TV Series called Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em. My parents used to watch it and thought Jessica was a cute name. 

2. When was the last time you cried? 

That's a hard one. I'm usually quite an emotional person. Probably during some movie..I definitely cried during Big Hero 6. Please no judgement. 

3. Do you have kids?

Nope!

4. If you were another person, would you be a friend of yourself?

I hope this doesn't sound big-headed, but I think I would. I see myself as a good friend to others (friends, please let me know otherwise haha).

5. Do you have a guilty pleasure?

Sweeties, and lots of them! (Not often though). 

6. Do you like handwriting? 

Not really as mine is basically a scrawl. I do admire others though, especially my sister's! 

7. What is your favourite cereal?

Kallo Wholegrain Breakfast Puffs! 

8. What is the first thing you notice about people?

Their facial expression and how they are feeling. I love to see a smile. If they look unhappy, I generally notice it or even sense it. 

9. What colour are your eyes?

Blue!!

10. Scary movie or happy endings?

Happy endings for sure. I am not a lover of anything horror. They will give me nightmares and freak me out for a long while after. 

11. Favourite TV show?

Oooh this is hard. I've recently been liking The Middle and also Modern Family. I love all those American family type shows. 

12. Summer or Winter?

Summer! I love the heat. I do like the idea of winter but it generally gives me the blues, unless it's December and Christmas! 

13. Hugs or Kisses?

Depends who! Hugs for friends and distant family. Kisses for my hubby, parents, sister and my cat :p 

14. What's the further you've been from home?

New York! I'm guessing in miles this is the furthest. 

15. Do you have any special talents?

Knocking drinks over. My nephew can explain many a story for you. 

16. Where were you born?

Cornwall, in the deepest South of England :p

17. What are your hobbies?

Blogging, vlogging, reading and baking. Oh and I do love travelling but don't do it as often to call it a hobby.

18. Do you have any pets?

I have a 3-legged cat named Tinker, which we got from a animal shelter. You can read more about her story here.

19. Favourite movie? 

It's really hard to pinpoint my favourite movie of all time, but the films that I can watch over and over again, have to be the Harry Potter Series. Loved it as a kid and still do. Oh but I must say, another film that has come into my head is Pitch Perfect 2, another which i've seen countless times already! 

20. What colour is your car?

Please don't mention driving.. the bane of my life. 

21. What did you want to be when you grow up?

I always wanted to work in the media. Ever since watching The Devil Wears Prada and The September Issue, I was hooked. I did pursue a publishing degree and have worked for magazines, however it hasn't always worked out. Something is always dragging me back into though. This blog I guess counts! 

So that's the end of this tag! Hope you enjoyed this random and somewhat lazy post. And as I said before, i'm going to tag someone, and that someone is going to be my good friend and fellow blogger, Rachel Pattinson. 

If you've done one of these tags before, be sure to link them below in the comments as I'd love to get to know all you guys! 

Fitness Update #1

I thought to do this post this evening for several reasons:

1. To stay motivated

2. Log my fitness activities weekly in order to see my progress

3. To share any tips I may have (although don't count on me for this straight away!)

So my husband and I joined the gym on April 11th and have been going at least once each week since. 

I like to engage in a variety of activities such as swimming and classes, whereas my husband prefers to use the fitness suite. 

We're both not really cardio lovers (we find running quite boring!) and I don't really like to use the cycle machines as it seems pointless cycling to nowhere (although I do use them just because).

I like activities that work on flexibility and stamina. The husband likes exercises such as weights and martial arts (although he has not practised this in a while).

We both love trampolining!

Exercise Regime so far... (I'll have to log 3 weeks worth here)

Week 1

Monday April 11th - Use of fitness suite for an hour

Tuesday April 12th - Swimming for an hour

Friday 15th April - Pilates class (1 hour)

Week 2

Monday 18th April - Swimming for an hour

Tuesday 19th April - FitSteps class (45 mins)

Saturday 23rd April - Trampolining for an hour (Jumptastic in Gloucester)

Week 3

Tuesday 26th April - FitSteps class 

Thursday 28th - Swimming for 45 mins

So all in all it's been a good start when it comes to keeping it up! I've noticed, looking at this, that we don't go consistently in the same days, but that's life I guess. 

Maybe I need to do more cardio, and definitely try and go to Pilates more often (one problem is that it's only on in the daytime).

Next Month's GOAL: Definitely go 3 times a week, consistently.

Do you go to the gym? If so, how do you stay motivated? 

Also if anyone writes something similar to this, let me know as I'd love to read someone else's regimes for tips and inspiration.

Spaghetti Milanese

I love a good pasta dish, especially when you can tell a lot of care and time has been put into the sauce. A sauce made with love!
The following recipe was taken from the book Leon, of which I had bought for me second-hand (although it's practically new) for my Birthday from this most amazing second-hand book shop in Stroud. 

I chose this recipe to celebrate International Dining Week, which was set up in order to raise funds for those less fortunate, but also to raise awareness of the diverse cuisines and cultures that we have in Britain today. 

You can see me cooking it on my most recent vlog. 

Serves 2

Ingredients
4 bacon rashers
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
A splash of olive oil (1 tbsp) 
350g passata
1 tsp sugar
A cup of water
1/4 of a wine glass of red wine
Dried herbs of your liking and added to your liking - I used basil, mixed herbs and marjoram.
200g Spaghetti (or more if you think you'd like more)
Handful of basil, chopped
Parmesan for sprinkling

Method

1. Remove the rind and fat from the bacon.

2. Cut bacon into postage stamp-sized squares.

3. Heat a large saucepan on medium heat.

4. Fry bacon rind and fat until brown and remove from pan.

5. Thinly slice your onion and chop your garlic.

6. Fry onion and garlic in the same pan that had the fat, until light brown. (This helps give the sauce a nice flavour. Add a tiny bit of olive oil if it's sticking).

7. Add a splash of olive oil (about 1 tbsp) and add your bacon squares - fry until cooked.

8. Pour in your passata (if using a jar, try and get all of it out by pouring in a tiny bit of water and shaking to get it off the sides).

9. Add a cup of water and a 1/4 of a wine glass of red wine.

10. Sprinkle in some dry herbs of your choice. Try not to add too much though. It's best to do this and taste as you go.

11. Boil for 5 minutes.

12. Turn the heat down to a simmer and half cover with lid. Leave to simmer for 2 hours. 

13. Before the 2 hours is up, boil water for your pasta and cook your spaghetti for around 8 minutes or until how you like it.

14. Chop the basil and throw into the sauce. 

15. Drain pasta and mix in half of the sauce in a bowl.

16. Serve in bowls topped with the rest of the sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan. Enjoy!

Let me know if your try this dish! Are you joining in with International Dining week? What are you cooking?

Chocolate, Coconut, Banana & Coffee 'Milkshake'

This week is UK Coffee week! I know, I had no idea either until recently joining with the Food Year Link Up (links below). I'm not the person to turn away coffee, so I thought in aid of the celebration of this wondrous bean, I would make something a little bit different for you. In keeping with the warmer weather (she says) and my love of coconut, a chocolate, coconut and coffee milkshake, minus the milk, sounded appropriate... and extremely yummy, and slightly healthy (one count of your five a day!)

Firstly, a bit about UK Coffee week:

1. A nationwide fundraising initiative in aid of supporting coffee growing countries

2. All funds go to Project Waterfall in order to raise money to bring clean water and sanitation to coffee growing countries, such as previously in Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia. 

3. This year's donations will be going towards the Oromia region of Ethiopia. 

4. Most of the coffee growing regions come under what is known as the 'bean belt', meaning water is scarce. 

Don't you agree that if we want to continue enjoying coffee, we should support those countries that are growing it, especially when it comes down to clean water.

To donate, go to www.projectwaterfall.org

Also visit www.ukcoffeeweek.com for more information

THE RECIPE!

Ingredients 

200ml Alpro Coconut Original

Large shot of espresso coffee (I used Lavazza)

1 tbsp cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp coconut cream

1 tbsp porridge oats + 1 tsp for sprinkling

1 banana, chopped

A squeeze of runny honey

Method

1. Add all the ingredients into the blender (I used a Nutri Bullet) and blend until smooth.

2. Pour into your glass of choice and drizzle honey on top, and add a sprinkle of oats for decoration. Serve!

Do let me know if you try this recipe and what you think! What other ways do you like to enjoy your coffee? And have you been celebrating UK Coffee week? Link me down below if you have, i'd love to see!

Here is the link for the Food Year Link Up for April, in case you are interested!