london Archives - Page 2 of 12

saharasplash26 August, 2016

Marinade Masterclass with Heinz

Things started off pretty well this week for Yasmine and I as we made our way to the ever trendy East London for something very special. I made a bad decision to walk from Bethnal Green to Shoreditch High St in the midday heat to catch the overground but we made it on time, if not a bit hot and sticky! We were in for a real treat as we rocked up to the Berber & Q Bar and Grill for a marinade masterclass with Heinz.

We had the Berber & Q to ourselves for the duration of the afternoon, it was such a great place for the type of food we were cooking- homey but incredibly saucy which really reflected our surroundings.

We got settled in and met our masterchef Josh Katz as well as the Heinz team, the Golin team and some great guys from Unilad too. We got our very own Heinz aprons to wear as we went through everything from kitchen safety to the ingredients which looked so good!

Heinz Peri Peri & Honey Glazed Smoked Chicken Wings

For the rub- preferable to rub and marinade the day before

1tsp Smoked Paprika

1tsp Cayenne

½ tsp Cumin, ground

1tsp Black Pepper, coarse

For the marinade

60ml Heinz Peri-Peri Sauce

1tbsp Lemon Juice

10ml Maple Syrup

For the glaze- combine all together and heat on med/high before using on the wings

150ml Heinz Peri-Peri Sauce

90ml Clear Honey

30ml Lemon Juice

½ tsp Black Pepper, coarse

The Kitchen had its very own smoker so as soon as we had glazed the chicken all over, in they went! If you don’t have a smoker, here’s where the BBQ comes in. We grilled the lemons and added chopped parsley to finish this dish.

BBQ Whole Head of Broccoli, Harissa & Charred Spring Onion Aioli

The next part we got a little hotter as we went over to the grill with some fabulous veg. I learnt how to blanche and flame grill a broccoli too!

For the Charred Spring Onion Aioli

80ml Heinz Salad Cream

50g Crème Fraiche

2 Spring Onions, blackened on the grill & finely chopped

1 Garlic Clove, minced or finely chopped

15ml Olive Oil

15ml Lemon Juice

After blanching the broccoli we put them on the grill to make them lovely and crispy. To garnish we used 2 tbsp harissa and roasted hazelnuts to go with the Aioli, I cannot believe how intense and flavoursome this dish was!

We also did a duck recipe too but I couldn’t have it due to the soy sauce involved. But luckily, Josh was kind enough to create my very own duck and seasoned with a little Heinz Peri Peri, salt and pepper! All the sauces we used in the recipes from Heinz were gluten free and I think you should definitely try using some for a marinade or glaze the next time you fire up that BBQ! Thank you so much to Berber & Q, Josh, Heinz and Golin for such a wonderful marinade masterclass with Heinz, we are now fully stocked up on all the essentials for a while!

Saharasplash x

Thanks for reading my marinade masterclass with Heinz, why not check out some more great gluten free food, this time from Sainsburys!

saharasplash23 August, 2016

BeBeautiful Lunch with Beauty Expert

I’m going to take you back a few weeks now, as this is something I have been working on reviewing for a while. Not only are you going to read about a fantastic place called the Ivy London, but you’re also going to learn about some top quality brands which you can get all in one place at the click of a button. This is my BeBeautiful Lunch with Beauty Expert.

It was one of those impossibly hot July days in London as I made my way into the centre of the city to Covent Garden. There I was greeted by the team from Beauty Expert as well as some of the brands launching with Beauty Expert’s new collection- The Rose Edition.

I saw some familiar bloggers at the event and met with some new faces too which is always nice. The tables were set out for all the bloggers with personalised place names and we each had a lovely rose waiting for us too accompanied by some Ren Skincare goodies.

The Ivy London took such great care of us, and were happy to provide me with gluten free rolls and modify the dessert to make it coeliac friendly. We had the most amazing salmon starter, followed by chicken and corn purée, then strawberry sorbet and fruit to finish.

It was lovely to be sat amongst other bloggers and representatives from the brands. After lunch, we had presentations from each of the brands involved to tell us a bit more about their key products and why they were included in this first collection inspired by roses.

Here’s what you can expect when you purchase the Rose Edition from Beauty Expert, which I must add here that it’s collectively worth £134 but is priced at just £50 for the whole collection!

Pai Rosehip BioRegenerate Oil (30ml)

This BioRegenerate oil will help keep your skin looking so radiant. It is vegan and cruelty free which I just love to hear and it can help to cleanse and repair skin prone to irritation. I love using this twice a week in the evenings and I always wake up to brighter skin when I’ve used it.

Monu Gentle Cleanser (180ml)

Ths cleanser contains Geranium, Rose and Aloe Vera to make one perfect gentle product. Also cruelty free, Monu are an inspiring brand which I cannot wait to discover more of their range. The lotion glides on smoothly with a cotton pad and I like to remove with a hot cloth so that it really opens my pores up for a deep cleanse.

Ark Body Beautiful Conditioning Oil (250ml)

This conditioning oil is such a great all rounder. It comes in a very genrous size of 250ml so you will get a lot of use from this product which can be applied to your bath, body or hair. I love massaging this into my legs, hands and feet after a bath as it helps to destress and detox.

Balance Me Rose Otto Body Cream (200ml)

The first thing I picked up when using this body cream was the scent of heady violets. It took me right back to my childhood and when I used to share a packet of parma violets with my nan, so I just love this product! I’d recommend only using small amounts as it is quite rich so again, it will last you a good while. It’s also 99% natural and made in the UK.

Korres Japanese Rose Shower Gel (250ml)

Although this contains hydrolysed wheat gluten, don’t be deterred if you have a gluten allergy. A lot of coeliacs tend to stay away from cosmetics and beauty products which contain gluten but there’s no need. Unless ingested, you are completely safe to use this japanese rose shower gel, and believe me it’s so worth it.

REN Keep Young and Beautiful Instant Brightening Beauty Shot Eye Lift (15ml)

This is by far my favourite product from the range. I have recently featured this wonder shot in my latest YouTube video- my August favourites. It has worked wonders around my eye areas in the past 3 weeks and the product gets to work instantly for immediate results.

The first collection from Beauty Expert couldn’t have been better in my opinion, it has a lustful range that will be coveted by most beauty addicts I am sure. Get yours today right here and let me know what is your favourite from the Rose Edition. I cannot wait to see what’s coming next, thanks ever so much for reading all about my BeBeautiful Lunch with Beauty Expert!

Saharasplash x

If you liked my Bebeautiful lunch with Beauty Expert, you will love my gluten free afternoon tea!

saharasplash19 August, 2016

Let’s Celebrate World Photography Day

I don’t know if you know but today is World Photography Day! August 19th this year sees us welcome 177 years of taking photos- how incredible is that?! Photography is something that is close to all blogger’s hearts as without it I doubt social media would be the same, and our blogs would definitely take a hit without the beautiful imagery that defines our stories. We all spend every day looking at other people’s photos and videos so I think that it’s really important we all take a few minutes to appreciate what I’m talking about in this post- Let’s Celebrate World Photography Day!

The way we feel about photo taking

Our views and perceptions of photo taking has really spiralled outwards and literally taken over the world this past decade. Pretty much everyone you meet will have some sort of photo taking equipment, be it their phone, tablet or the DSLR camera strapped to their necks. We have taken photographing to such a place where I can’t think of a single day where I haven’t taken a photo, the evidence is right here in my iPhone camera roll! To put it another way, we are simply obsessed with capturing the image of the world around us. I think we have started to realise that life is so short and we must steal every second, every memory for later in our lives and for future generations too (who no doubt will get hours of happiness scrolling through all our selfies!).

The way we store photos

The way we store photos has also taken many turns. I don’t think we will be able to accept a photograph being stored in simply one place ever again. Gone are the days of having CD ROMS and USB sticks filled with photos- why bother when technology makes it so much easier for us with lovely clouds these days? My photo storage doesn’t stop there though; I store my photos on my phone, computer hard drive, my Google Drive, and then every 6 months I do a complete back up on my external hard drive too. I know there’s plenty of people out there who take photo storage as serious as I do- photos are precious right? I’d be devastated if a single album went missing and I think a lot of people feel the same way.

The way we share photos

So sharing photos. This can be anything these days from sending the ugliest selfie to your sister to sending your favourite photo with your nan to her on a birthday card. We have infinite possibilities when it comes to sharing photos with whoever we want, and sometimes with those we don’t want too if we’re not careful! Privacy of photos is a blurry subject, with copyrights being infringed probably every second of the day. This is a very sensitive subject for bloggers and photographers who make a living out of sharing their photos so do spare a few seconds to really appreciate each and every photo you look at today and understand that there is always a person behind that image.

Finding that perfect shot

I just wanted to say a little about finding the perfect shot. I think that the main reason behind taking so many photos is that we want each one to be better than the last. We want to somehow constantly improve on and be proud of every snap we take. Instagram really has set the bar for aesthetically pleasing imagery over the past 5 years and it’s made us look at photographs in a completely different way. We analyse, compare, edit with such ferocity that it is sometimes exhausting trying to strive for the level of perfection we see in other images. Don’t get me wrong, I love using Instagram, but make sure you are happy with your images before the filters are added!

Now to show you a wonderful innovation in taking snapshots from social media and making something new out of them, I’m going to hand you over to this short video which will explain everything:

Let’s celebrate World Photography Day today and remember to make each one count! Here’s one I took which really captures the moment!

Saharasplash X

Sponsored Post

Also this week I am celebreating National Afternoon Tea Week! Check my post on having a free from afternoon tea here

saharasplash18 August, 2016

Free From Afternoon Tea

This is a really big post which I am so excited about! Not only do I get to eat loads of yummy snacks, I can tick off one pretty big thing from my 2016 goals list, and that is to do a collaboration with Sainsbury’s! Sainsbury’s are without a doubt my favourite UK supermarket and I was so surprised to find this particular package waiting on my doorstep last week. The package in question sent to me was a massive bag filled with all the necessary equipment to have a fabulously free from afternoon tea in celebration of National Afternoon Tea Week.

For those living a gluten free lifestyle for whatever reason, I’m sure you have noticed the staggering changes in the free from market over the past 5 years. It is getting bigger and better with every launch, and Sainsbury’s have very recently revamped their entire range of free from products. I’ve tried pretty much everything out as I’m the type of coeliac who sees a new product and instantly feels like it’s my duty to buy it, eat it, and if it’s good then tell all my gluten free friends and family about it! I even went and bought the new Sainsbury’s birthday cake even though it’s not my birthday for months, no shame in admitting that one! So, onto the free from afternoon tea…

I set everything up in my mum’s back garden as it was a beautiful and sunny day.

My favourite from the range is defintiely the chocolate brownie! Before too long, the afternoon tea had a gate crasher…

As pretty as my pooch is, he wasn’t getting any of it! It didn’t stop him having a sniff and licking his lips though!

Thanks to Evie for the necklace loan for this shoot!

These fantastic new treats are just waiting for you to try at your local Sainsbury’s and are all free from wheat, gluten and milk:

Rich Fruit Cake Slices

Fruity Granola Slices

Cherry & Almond Slices

Chocolate Brownies

Mini Bakewell Tarts

What are you doing to celebrate National Afternoon Tea Week? Whether you have a food allergy or not, everyone should get to have some fun with a lovely afternoon tea this week!

Saharasplash x

PR Samples

saharasplash17 August, 2016

Lee Stafford CoCo LoCo Haircare

I’m glad I had you all guessing about today’s post and it was really great to see what you thought this post was all about from my hints on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Now that you are here and ready to read, I’m talking about some new additions to the Lee Stafford CoCo LoCo Haircare range! These include two insanely amazing products which I’m reviewing for you today plus one from the original release. I’m a huge fan of coconut and have done several blogs on coconut products from oil pulling to Palmer’s products, but I’ve never really blogged about haircare and coconuts. Until now!

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First up, the CoCo LoCo Coconut Dry Shampoo

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This is such a great dry shampoo I cannot recommend it enough. I love the smooth texture it provides when I spray this into my roots, and it’s not as powdery as other dry shampoos I’ve tried. The coconut scent is an added bonus so I can go around feeling like a tropical babe! This is available for £4.99 and the can is a good size so long lasting.

Now moving onto the CoCo LoCo CoConut Hairspray

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Again this is such a great quality product which I use time and time again, especially when I want my hair to maintain its volume and bounce! I curled my hair using a curling wand and gave my springs a quick spritz with the hairspray. 5 hours later and not a single one had fallen out!

I also need to mention that this hairspray contains silk protein to reduce any frizz and also UV absorbers to protect your hair in the sun. Now isn’t this a steal at the price of £5.99 a bottle?!

Once more product from the Lee Stafford CoCo LoCo Haircare range which I use all the time is the CoCo LoCo Conditioner

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I used this conditioner before styling my hair for the photos in this blog post and I think that my hair (although at war with my dark roots right now) is looking fabulous and so healthy. The conditioner works so well to maintain my natural oils and gives it that all important shine.

Lee Stafford CoCo LoCo Haircare products are available to purchase from Boots in store and online so get browsing and go CoCo LoCo like me!

Saharasplash x

Head on over to my latest bridal post where I’m talking fragrances!

PR samples

saharasplash11 August, 2016

Never have I ever inspired by Nerve!

Out today in cinemas, I am doing a ‘never have I ever’ inspired by the brand new film Nerve. This one is hopefully going to be quite interactive, I want to know from all you readers out there the things you don’t have the nerve to do! It could be anything like going to the cinema by yourself for instance, I want this to be fun! Keep reading to find out what inspired me about the movie to do this post as it will make a lot more sense once you find out the summary of this particular film! Ok so here it goes:

Never have I ever… ridden a motorcycle by myself

Motorbikes really scare me, and I have never even had a go on a moped! I’ve been on the back of one as a passenger about fifteen years ago and really didn’t like it. I did however have the coolest pink electric scooter which was more than enough for the adrenaline junkie within me!

Never have I ever… been drunk!

Yes I know this is a very unusual one! I don’t have the nerve to get drunk, partly because I guess I wouldn’t know what to expect from myself. I wouldn’t want to be the friend who has to be put in a taxi home at the end of a night and not know how I ended up home! Of course I have no problem with anyone else drinking around me, and I do like a cocktail at a party, but as soon as I start to feel any effects I have to stop straight away and that’s me done for the night. I am proud to say that I have never been drunk though, and I hope you will raise a glass to that with me!

Never have I ever… truly experienced being single

This is also quite unusual I think. I had my first ever relationship when I was 14, and we stayed together until I was just about 20 years old. 3 weeks later, I meet my current husband to be Paul! So I never really had any period of time to get used to a single life. I didn’t plan it this way, it was just one of those things that happened but I don’t regret it at all. I’d like to think that I would have the nerve to be happy and single, but I hope that I don’t have to find out as I love my life with Paul!

Never have I ever…eaten shellfish

By shellfish, I mean any seafood with a shell like clams or muscles. I simply don’t have the stomach for anything fishy besides cod, tuna or salmon, maybe this is one thing I have to try soon or I may not ever face my fear! It’s definitely a mind over matter thing because I like the smell of lobster in a nice restaurant, so I think I just need to man up on this one!

So now the ugly truth is out the way, I want to share a little about the film which this post is inspired by. Nerve is a social media thriller which is right up any blogger’s google map app. Set on the streets of New York City, a secret and dangerous game has gone viral, much like pokemon go has! You can pay to be a watcher or become a player to win. Either way Emma Roberts and Dave Franco find themselves drawn into the game as players, and we watch them do incredible (and stupid) things to earn a lot of money. The more watchers they gain, the higher the stakes, and it really opened my mind up to the world we surround ourselves in on the internet and on our phones. Of course I use social media for positivity and would never consider being a part of nerve if the game did exist, but we all should be more aware of the danger the web poses and try to help fight against the darkness which we all know comes with the territory.

DAVE FRANCO Q AND A

Dave Franco was kind enough to stop by after the movie to talk to us about his thoughts and views on his role in Nerve. Dave does not use any form of social media which is why he was drawn to the role of Ian. He answered all our questions with a great thoughtfulness and we could see how much he loves doing what he does- I wish him all the best and no doubt his career has only just begun! I hope you all go and watch Nerve and let me know what you think of it!

Thanks for reading Never have I ever inspired by Nerve! Comment below for me with one of your own ‘never have I ever’ confessions!