Sunday lunching had become a bit of a thing of late and pasta has been playing a huge part in that. A few weeks ago I discovered La Tua. An authentic Italian pasta home delivery service that deliver nationwide. I have ordered twice now and can’t fault the ease of purchase from start to finish. The website is easy to use and delivery is quick. Above all, I think it’s really reasonably priced. You seem to get a lot for your money and it’s the highest quality.
Being a long time fan of all things Italian; the food, the wine, the weather and the culture, having a little slice of that for Sunday lunch in the form of home delivery has really lifted my lockdown mood. I don’t know about you but going into week 52 of a pandemic is a little despairing. I long for travelling beyond my city boundaries and experiences new sights, tastes and smells. As we can’t do that legally right now I guess bringing my favourite country to me in the form of yummy pasta, burrata and breads is the next best thing!
Last Sunday I served alongside my La Tua beetroot gnocchi some roasted garlicky courgettes with cherry tomatoes and my homemade tomato and Rosemary focaccia.
To start I made a few canapés to go alongside our fizz from Hush Heath Estate. I used Peter’s Yard sourdough crackers as the base for crunch and topped them with horseradish and dill creme fraiche and smoked salmon. So easy, and so tasty.
Serena made a tiramisu to top off our Italian feast. A dreamy dessert and one of my all-time favourites I have to say. We served it with extra coffee liqueur for pouring and topped it with fancy gold leaf! I mean why not?
Mother Root
My love affair with Mother Root is well established here on the blog. For those who haven’t come across Mother Root yet you really should check it out. It’s an alcohol-free aperitif that really hits the spot in the taste-stakes. It’s made with ginger, honey and apple cider vinegar and it’s well and truly my go-to drink of choice for when I want to have a pre-dinner drink but without the alcohol.
Of course, you can mix it into a spritz if you like with Aperol or Campari but it’s equally delightful mixed with tonic or soda.
Mother Root are offering my readers 10% off with the code TARA10 until the 16th April so now is your chance to try it with a little discount.
Friends
Now we are officially able to sit down with our friends in parks and open spaces for a coffee I have met up with a couple this week for just that. Some friends I haven’t seen for months and months. So Tegen and Jo it was lovely to see you in the flesh and not just on Zoom!
Regular readers will know I have been meeting my friend Emma on a Thursday for the last few weeks. We started off mooching around with our hot chocolates to abide by the lockdown rules of the moment but now we are allowed to sit down together it has meant that we can spend a little more time together which of course has been lovely. We always get in a little photoshoot too. Partly because Emma has a vintage clothing boutique on Etsy and she needs images and partly because it makes us laugh. The outtakes are hilarious, rib-tickling you might say. It’s definitely worth freezing outside for. It won’t be long until we are allowed to sit indoors together. What a treat that will be.
80’s Night At The Lyngarth
Saturday night was 80’s night at The Lyngarth Arms. The Lyngarth Arms being the pub that Steve created during lockdown 2.0 in our garden shed. We listened and danced away to some wonderful music and ate foods reminiscent of that era. A massive prawn cocktail platter and cheese and pineapple on sticks being the stars of the savoury show with butterscotch and strawberry Angel Delight helping us to walk down memory lane on the flavour front.
The next themed night at The Lyngarth Arms is planned and we will be listening to all things Indie; a favourite music genre from my youth alongside grunge. I was one obsessed with Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder for quite some time!
Next Week
It’s the last week of term for me which means a small break in teaching is ahead. I am so looking forward to taking a few well deserved days off over the Easter weekend. I haven’t had consecutive days off since Christmas so I am so, so ready.
I am excited to plan my Easter menu and share time with my family. By Easter weekend people in England will be able to have gatherings of 6 people in their gardens so Steve and I have purchased a gazebo so we can make the most of our time outside despite the weather. That and our patio heater should create a relatively comfortable outdoor experience despite the weather. I do pray for warm and sunny weather but this is England so it’s unlikely!
Disclaimer: This post contains gifted items from Peter’s Yard and Mother Root. All views are my own as always and I never promote things that I don’t like or believe in.