Tuna Pasta Lasagne

Sounds odd, looks odd, tastes great!

I'm going to eat you... yes I am.

This creation came about after I was perusing (attempt to sound fancy) through a food booklet that I bought a while back from WHSmith's (attempt to be fancy - failed). This particular booklet is called 'Eat Right For Your Life' and is written by Lisa Middleton, a sports dietitian from Australia. Right off the bat, I knew that I was going to like it because not only is this little gem full of quick, simple and healthy recipes but the chapter layout displays what particular foods are especially good (and not so good) for different types of people at different stages of life and also lists the nutritional reasons behind these selections. I'll admit that even though I'm not a breastfeeding mother, nor a gym junkie, nor going through the menopause (gasp!), I still found this book to be a great read full of lots of helpful information about how to get the most out of your diet whatever your situation. 

I'm in prison?

Banged up in Bodmin

From Porridge at breakfast...

...To locked up by lunchtime.

It's not everyday that you get to experience life within the walls of a former old world prison, especially one that is renowned for being so full of ghosts that in 2005 Yvette Fielding and her Most Haunted team (including the girl who always thought that something ghostly was groping her bum) had to be called in. Whilst I cannot say that spending a day in a damp, Cornish prison was on the upper half of my bucket list (nor the lower half), when the opportunity to visit Bodmin Gaol arose during a visit to my parents in Devon, I simply couldn't refuse. A location steeped in tales of murder, execution, suffering and death; there was no way I could refuse my inner-macabre self this opportunity! So, after a little background reading followed by fueling up on some creamy coconut-custard porridge (see recipe below) my dad, mum, sister and I set off to see if there was any truth behind the ghostly legends of  Cornwall's most notorious prison. Was it really haunted? We had (well-under) 24 hours to find out...

Chocolate Drizzled Walnut Biscotti

Twice baked:Twice as many eaten

Dark, firm, Italian? Yes please.

Good things come in pairs right? At least, that's what people say and we're not exactly short of some prime examples to back up this claim e.g. Peaches and cream, rhubarb and custard, spaghetti and meatballs, Ant and Dec, Miley Cyrus and restraining orders, so it must be true to some extent. You see, lately, two wonderful additions have be introduced to my (ridiculously unexciting) life. The first is Italian cooking, which I've been fanatical about since returning from travelling around Europe where the majority of time was spent in Italy:

a) eating a lot of pizza

b) avoiding the overwhelming numbers of selfie stick sellers (I don't want one!!!) 

The second addition is a return of an old friend - The Great British Bake-off! If you live in the UK you will probably know that this show is the baking equivalent of upper-class porn where 12 contestants compete to bake the most delicious treats to satisfy the taste buds (and dark urges) of judges; Mary Berry a.k.a. the queen of all that is culinary and Paul Hollywood a.k.a. the male judge. Now, if you watch the show, you'll also know that last week was biscuit week and when I saw that the Italian classic biscotti was the featured signature bake, I knew I had to get involved. So whilst I fired up the oven and began talking to the ironing board as if it were Sue Perkins, I also began devising how to create a twice-baked treat that was so guiltless you could eat twice as many and not feel bad. The result ended up being my chocolate drizzled walnut biscotti. 

Warm Peanut Butter Stuffed Peach Doughnuts

Peachy keen?

Warming, juicy, sweet,  gooey, nutty and crunchy - the only descriptive phrase I can't use for these is 'still existing' due to the fact that I ate them... All of them.

Now, I suppose this really can't be classed as a proper recipe as these 'doughnuts' are ridiculously quick and easy to make but I couldn't bring myself to not share them (It would be a crime to hoard them all for myself). These little golden rings can be eaten any time of day but are particularly good as a pre-workout snack due to: the peanut butter providing some protein which will keep you fueled and full up and the peach containing complex carbohydrates and natural sugars for energy, all whilst the cinnamon helps to keep your blood sugars stable to stop you from crashing. Gobble a few of these before a run and reap the benefits and even if you're not exercising, peaches are still a great source of vitamin A and can even help to regulate the immune system, helping you to stay feeling healthy and well.