A Proper British Braai

So after I discovered certain readers felt my blog posts were inaccessible (Mark Mills you know who you are!) I have been reticent to post (it means put off Mark...by you!) I finally felt the blog had suffered long enough without me. But I also decided to make this post a homemade braai number to prove my roots weren't lost. So we had a saffer BBQ to celebrate what I hope isn't the last of summer.
We had expertly spiced chicken, giggly pig ribs, sausages (no boere wors the saffer shop was out, so we went for pork numbers #terriblesubstitute). For sides I whipped up a mothership tomato and mozzarella salad, fennel and rocket salad, French/ Jewish potato salad and farmers market fresh grilled asparagus.
It was a effing triumph, excuse the language, but it would have made any South African braaier proud. And for pud home made ruhbarb crumble with home grown rhubarb. And a whole post to come on that. So stick that in your pipe Mark Mills.
Over and out Stoffers.

An Italian Birthday Feast

To to celebrate the soon to be Father in Laws 60th we decided to upon a modest affair involving 17 of us spending a week in Italy.

Birthday celebrations lasted 3 days (milking it much?) and were kick started with a 5 course meal in a posh Tuscan restaurant.

Unfortunately surprise guests (members of the women's Olympic rowing team) were unable to make due to other 'commitments'. Pathetic.

Anyway we didn't need em and the meal commenced with canapés and prosecco, two of my favourite things. Sorry no pics - I was over excited.

Now time for the food. We started with a selection of antipasti that just kept on coming.....



Parma hams, sausage meat wrapped in leaves, mini fritattas and other things that tasted good but not entirely sure what they were.


Oh and of course fresh bread in case you thought you might go hungry.

So after the first two courses I was full already and the prosecco was slipping down nicely but who could resist the next course of pesto pancakes?! Not me



Next up suckling pig and chestnuts. Pic taken halfway through due to being pretty pissed by this stage



Major LOLZ at the dinner table




We finished up with Mille Feuille and just when the day couldn't have been improved (except possibly by rowers and/or chickens) Jake and Adam convinced their Grandma to do Moonface.



Good time had by all. Happy birthday Jeffer!
Andrews x

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Submission Of The Week - Get Involved!

It's here - our brand new interactive feature: Submission of the week! We love hearing from you guys about what you're having for tea - in fact any meal and all the snack times in between, and here's your chance to get involved in whatdidyohavefortealastnight! Send us your pictures and recipe ideas, and each week we'll pick our favourite and feature it on the blog! All we ask is you share it via social media once it goes live. Sound good? We thought so! Email us at whatdidyouhavefortea@gmail.com, tweet us @whatdidyouhave, and follow our amazing writers @kateandrews82, @petrostofberg, @hannaheichler @dangerdownie @zoeaird for food and fashion musings straight from LOOK Magazine's fashion desk. We look forward to hearing from you!

Guac-A-Marco

So- after eating super chef marco's guacamole I asked for the recipe for a Sunday summer BBQ.
I asked for his instructions:
(he's been living in English speaking countries for probably longer than Italian... Yet his English is shall we say ... Questionable.
My favourite is when we were in NY in a Pub called the 'penny farthing' which he continued to call 'pussy farting' confusing and yet waayy more embarrassing!)
The instructions were as follows:
'I Sanjsbury sell a packed with basic ingredients in then organic avocado some cherry tomato salt and peper.
I didn't smash the avocado I left it chopped and leave one or two pit in the serving bowl to avoid avocado becoming dark!!
4 avocado
1 red onion
1 jalapeño chilly
1 all squeezed lime
Salt
Pepper
Oil of oil to your test'
Good luck with your translation...
But anyway here's my version and it was deeeeelish




I recommend you give the Italian way a bash and by that I mean in the kitchen, not chariots.
Nellist

This isn't just any breakfast...

New fave breakfast joint alert! The lovely Kerry Porter from M&S took me to the Grazing Goat for brekkie today, and because it was sunny (and all in the name of research) i went all Americana with pancakes. Served with blueberries, vanilla chantilly cream and maple syrup, with an orange, carrot and ginger juice, and obligatory flat white, (well i do work in fashwan), this brekkie was heaven - and with a bit of artistic licence its kcal count is almost angelic compared to my usual eggs beni. Get me to NYC quite frankly, i'd fit in better than a catwalk copy feature in look magazine.

Thankyou M&S, thankyou Grazing Goat. X

N.B as a result of this post, if any USA based restaurants would like to be featured on this blog i would be happy to oblige a review. All i ask is for first class/business flights, 5 star accommodation, free food and some spending money.

Yours Sincerely, Eichler

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Maize Snacks

Not to be confused with Maze of Gordon Ramsey fame - after a day of hard graft including a whole High Street Hottest shoot as well as getting filmed for national TV (what of it?!) me and my crew were in need of light refreshment in the form of maize snacks.

We hit the Red Lion roof gardens. No not 'a poor mans Shoreditch House' before you say owt, but a fine establishment that specialises in plastic cups and gourmet foods.




We opted for fiery hot Monster Munch salt and vinegar Pringles.

What? We were keeping it real.





Spicy foods weren't the best after I'd drank the pub dry of bloody Mary's (who the f has more than one?!) but who's complaining when they come with a stick of celery? That's posh for ya. Plus, as any fashion journo knows, you burn more kcals munching em than you do consuming them so by the time I'd necked a few of those and climbed those bastard Red Lion stairs I left 3 stones lighter. Talk about rexorama.


Who needs Shoreditch House?
Or models for that matter?

Big up the London sun
Andrews x

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Machu Picchu chow down

Now on the start of the trek, me and Downs were more than a bit concerned about the camping menu.
She's a Wheato.
I only ate marmite and cheese til I was about 21.
However we must say we were pleasantly surprised, Florentino the resident chef, who I actually thought was fit #onlyinperu whipped us up delightful dishes that not only catered for Downies intolerances #stillthinkshesfakingit but also manged to fulfil my fussy demands.




Just chilling in the mess tent, apologies for the state of me and downie, turns out they'd not heard of touché éclat in the andees or straighteners for that matter. WTF. Imagine mygdals fro, that's worth the trek alone.
Mario, his son (yes we know they look the same age, turns out people age differently here) and hot stuff 'You can warm up my tent anytime' Florentino cooking up a storm in the kitchen.








Day 1- avocado, tomato and Andean cheese salad.. Best dish by far.





Asparagus soup.. Think it was out of a tin but whatevs




Garlic bread.. Totes delish, waaaayyy better than pizza express




Think it started to go a little downhill from here (get the gag) but we still ate it. Mash potato with rice with some red stuff, carb on carb but whatevs if you can't do the double when trekking when da f**k can you?!




The mess tent at lunch, to be Hons this was an all time low and when we got offered the chance of a siesta in a wind tunnel as if it was a Chanel discount card.. The tears almost began to flow








Downies luxurious siesta.. I'm not
Sure this is what is what the spaniards had in mind




Day 2- afternoon tea, Now I know sketch is supposed to be good, but after 5 hours trekking I'm
Not sure there is much better than salted popcorn, hot choc and digestives #marrymeflorentino #istillloveyou
#imsureavisaisnotthathardtoget




Vegetable soup #vomvom




Pasta, chips, potatos and chicken. Gotta love them carbs




Fire time- in an attempt to be warm, we suggested a fire, we went all Bear Grylls but smelt like smoked haddock and the warmth omitted was about zero, but hey at least we looked fit








That hair conditioning would put Aussie to shame
Day 3- final breakie before the trek








Ham and chive omelette and banana bread
Downs Wheato version of omelette and sweet potato
cake




Oh and then we saw this thing.. I mean I'm sure Mile End skate park is of similar interest but thought I should post anyway




Everest- get ready, here we come.




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Adios Cusco

Me and Nellist's final brekkie in Cusco -aka the town that style forgot, aka the town where time passes slower than a snail on vals
We decided to brave the market with the locals for every Peruvians favourite dish - the egg and cheese combo, it's as if they knew we were coming! elbows at the ready?! What's not to love?! Take note Roast: Peruvian breakies are on the up.
We finished it off with another local spesh, hot choc. After coca leaves this is the shit that drives the locals wild. And at -10, yes- 10 this stuff is a much of a human necessity as an Isabel Marant wedge trainer or the latest Stella McCartney pyjama suit.
Child optional, unless you're Angelina Jolie and in that case I'd get it snapped up quicksharpe!

Peruvian Pick Me Up

Now on the gruelling trek a sugar hit is necessary so me and Downie picked up some of Peruvians finest for the long haul
It comes in the form of Machu Picchu chocolate. Now Let's be hons it has F-all to do with the place, but with such a cracking tourist attraction it'd be a crime not to brand the shit out of it...... I wonder when they'll coin the 'Mile End Madras' maybe it could be the best seller sanger in our new local subway #housepricesontherise








The pieces were the size of my hand, seriously, Like the size only Kate Andrews could get through after she'd been nibbling bits off like a door mouse for days.
I had to abandon my half to the local mutts, turns out they're a big fan of cheese Pringles too.. Who knew?!
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Get Me To the Greek Sky Cafe

Never mind the 11th floor, the blue sky cafe has gone through the roof in my estimations. In the 2 years and 8 months that I have been LOOK's finest fashion assistant, todays lunch offering was the best I've experienced. I was so impressed I didn't even bother tasting the flour/salt based soup and spent £4.90 of my hard earned money on Greek mezze. Prawns, chorizo, chick peas, stuffed vine leaves, flat bread, cous cous, olives, falaffel, feta salad and numerous dips...I felt so much like I was in Greece that instead of putting my empty plate in the washing up area, I threw it off the 10th balcony to smash it instead. More of the same please, Blue Sky. Eichler.

Keeping it herbal

Although we're all big fans of prescription drugs and lets
Be hons we've spent more than a couple of hours peru-sing the local pharmacys (will this gag ever get old?) turns out the locals tend to hit it up herbal...

Forget diamox (anti altitude sickness tab) the Peruvians chew on coca leaves, taste disgusting but open a bag of these around the locals and they'll be on you quicker than Peter Doherty on crack.

Do as the local do and chew don't swallow,
Note to self stoffers

Post Prosecco Dine

We celebrated Jess's birthday in style last night by hitting Balham aka yummy mummy town. After numerous glasses of prosecco/vodka/gin/obligatory jaeger bombs we were/are feeling a bit worse for wear this morning, so we sent jess's bf to the common room (cafe not 6th form) to pick us up some breakfast. This sausage and egg sandwich was excellent - soft white bread and ketchup made it quite a council breakfast but delicious nonetheless. I need a boyfriend of my own to run such hangover based errands for me, but Mitchell will do for now. Eichler appreciates.

Andrews does Shakshuka

Inspired by the Shakshuka I had for brunch at Nopi (true blog fans will remember it well - amazing toilets?!) I decided to make my own but for tea instead.




Shakshuka is a Turkish dish of baked eggs (so yeah, apparently they don't just make kebabs? Who knew?!). Can't say I tried it the time I visited Bodrum mind. Back then I was more of a McChicken sandwich kinda gal.
Fry off 2/3 onion with garlic and 1/2 a red pepper til soft. Add paprika, cumin, chilli and salt and pepper then a jar of chopped tomatoes (couple of fresh cherry toms for poshness) and tomato purée. Leave, stirring occasionally til it thickens.
Now at Nopi they used smoked labneh cheese but the local Budgens doesn't sell that (FFS - it's a f'ing staple surely????) so I improvised with feta. A couple of recipes online called for feta anyway so i didn't get my knickers in a twist about it.
Anyway add a few chunks of feta then make a couple of wells in the sauce and crack in a couple of eggs. Stick under the grill for a few mins til your egg's done and voila!
Meal for one. Yes that's correct it may look like a meal for two but I ate the whole thing myself.




There you have it, a carb free, tasty Turkish tea without a donner in sight.
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