Rainbow lollipop class

Posted on December 11, 2018 by myeye1

My sister and I recently went to a candy making class, something that we both have wanted to do. We arrived for the class and excitedly looked around the shop at the wonderful sweets as we waited for the candy to be heated to the correct temperature. Once this was done we made our way to the workshop with our instructor. It was only a small class with another woman, my sister and me and the instructor who was going to lead the class. Today we were making rainbow lollipops.

The mixture of glucose, water and sugar was really hot, and so it was only safe for the instructor to use. The instructor poured the mixture onto a specially made table that was heated to enable him to keep working with it. The flavour of the mixture was tutti frutti and it smelled great. Once the mixture was on the table our instructor started to add colour, made with natural flavourings and were vegan, vegetarian and halal which was great to know.

First the primary colours were made, and then our instructor used these to make the secondary colours. The white was stretched to add air which would then bring out the colour. All the colours were then laid out in rainbow order and wrapped around the white candy to create a long, colourful tube. We were now able to start making our rainbow lollipops.

Our instructor stretched the candy tube to make it thinner and then gave us a piece each to create our shapes. Working on heated tables and with gloves on we made a simple shape first, the swirl, and adding a wooden stick our lollipop was complete. We then made a few more shapes; starts, hearts, flowers and butterflies. I think my favourite was the duck which came out quite well. We had to work quickly with each piece of candy as it would become difficult to mold as it cooled, hardened and turned glass-like.

The class was about 1 hour long, but the time went quickly, as it always does when you’re having fun. Our instructor was friendly, and very knowledgeable, and the candy making process was almost scientific when it came to understanding the way the ingredients interacted with each other. And the best bit; we all got to take our tasty creations home with us, which was a lot more than I expected. I would definitely recommend doing a class like this, as it’s not every day that you get to have a hands on experience that involves such tasty treats.

Afternoon Tea on the Thames

Posted on October 15, 2017 by myeye1

Afternoon tea is quintessentially British, and it seems to be a big craze at the moment in London. I’m not particularly keen on it (how in-British of me, I know) as I don’t particularly drink hot drinks and I prefer a big tasty lunch to sandwiches and cake, but when I was came across afternoon tea on the River Thames with a guide that would inform me of Muslim history in London, I thought it would be quite fun. As a cruise linked to Eid I decided to buy myself and my mum a ticket hoping she’d enjoy it too. My sisters, my sister in law and her mum also joined us.

The meeting point was at Tower of London and after we were all checked in we were able to get on the boat. Once we were in our seats we had tea to start with and then the some delicious looking food.

As we enjoyed our food and the view, the guide started telling us about some of the connections of Muslims to the city of London, which was quite interesting. When we reached Westminster Bridge the boat turned around to go back towards the port. By this point I’d had enough to eat so I grabbed my camera and went above deck. The sun was out and with the cool breeze it felt so refreshing. We passed some iconic landmarks that sit on the banks of the River Thames.

Blackfriars Bridge and St Paul's Cathedral

Leadenhall Building, 30 St Mary Axe, 20 Fenchurch Street aka Cheesgrater, Gherkin, Walkie Talkie Tower

Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast museum ship

After spending some time above deck taking in the sights and some photos we headed back downstairs. The organisers held a competition that my sisters and I (and it seems no one else) entered so we won a big box of chocolates, as the odds were definitely in our favour!
As we docked back into the port we gathered our things and headed for the exit. It was a lovely afternoon that we all really enjoyed, and I thought it was a real treat to actually go on a boat down the River Thames instead of just watching the waves from the shore.

Birthday bash

Posted on July 16, 2017 by myeye1

My younger sister threw her daughter a birthday party recently, making the creative cake and cupcakes herself. There were sweets, a giant bouncy castle and good company, and to top things off, the weather on the day was great too . Here’s some of the photos I took. Can you guess the theme?

We all had a lovely day and my niece had lots of fun and was exhausted long before the party’s end. I hope she has a long healthy life ahead, and that I get to spend lots more time with her.

Sweet Art

Posted on June 22, 2017 by myeye1

I heard about a promotional Sweet Art Gallery not too far from my workplace last week so one lunchtime I decided to go down and see what was on show. The gallery was quite small with some fun art pieces on display, but what was really interesting was that they were all made out of sweets!

My favourite was the take on the Mona Lisa painting, and you could eat the sweets it was made of as they had a sweet machine nearby. There was also an alternative tube map and a section where you could unleash your creativity using sweets and pipecleaners.

At the back of the gallery there was a pick and mix section, which had all the sweets that the brand sells, and the best bit – it was free! Although I couldn’t eat most of the sweets due to them containing gelatine I did scoop up some to take back for my work colleagues, which they thoroughly enjoyed.

It was a fun, well spent lunchtime, and I hope to see more of these fun pop ups throughout summer.

Eid party

Posted on August 21, 2015 by myeye1

My older sister decided to throw an Eid party to celebrate the end of Ramadan and on this occasion she asked the guests to bring along a dish so we could all share something with each other, which was a nice idea. The guests who came were good cooks and really generous which meant we had lots of delicious foods to eat and sweets treats to tuck into.

There were a wide variety of savoury and spicy dishes which went down well; kebabs, rice, chicken curry, samosas and many more.

The desserts that were bought along were just as delicious, my younger sister made a tasty chocolate cake, jelly shots for the kids disappeared in minutes, and the healthier options of a fruit platter or fruit with custard and whipped cream, which looked great, was thoroughly enjoyed. There were also mini gingerbread men and muffins and sweets.