My second project this year is the vegetable garden Hannah and I are slowing cultivating.

This all started back at Christmas when I bought Hannah a gift box from ALLOTINABOX. We patiently waited and watched the growing guide until sufficient time passed and we could begin planting our seeds, not long after we had little shoots of Spinach, Leeks, Chives, Spring Onions & Carrots slowing growing on our window sill. It was amazing to watch.

We quickly migrated them into larger containers and began to wait what felt like a life time before the British winter lifted and the little vegetables could be moved outside into the planters we built from scrap wood I'd collected at work. We just enjoyed our first batch of Spinach, freshly picked and rinsed then cooked into a Frittata. All that from a little seed I planted 2 months ago. I can't wait to see what Part 2 will bring!

This project has a lot to do with my desire to reach optimal health and I know you're probably thinking I'm too young to worry about that, but I've already had the unhealthy phase of my life and I never want to go back there. Not because I was unhappy, but because I wasn't capable of doing what I wanted.

Food is a huge part of my life and with this Paleo nutrition thing growing like a weed into every inch of my day to day thoughts I can't see it stopping. You see Paleo is all about enjoying real, natural foods that lend themselves to our hunter gatherer past. This means I eat mostly meat, eggs, organic veggies, some fruit, plenty of nuts & seeds and get to enjoy all the health benefits of doing so. Hello insulin sensitivity! Why did you leave when I was 11 years old?

AN EVENING WITH MONDOMULIA - #FRD2013

Hannah and I were lucky enough to attend Giulia's first cooking masterclass in honor of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Day, and with the promise of freshly made Italian pizza using only the best ingredients we did the typical English thing and arrived early! Thankfully, we were greeted by Sandy as he prepared the recipe cards for the evening.

After Wendy had arrived and the first bottle of red was open, Giulia began describing the importance of ingredients in food and made sure we understood why she had selected each ingredient for the evening, including where she had found such wonders in London. I loved hearing about real honest food and especially enjoyed learned about Olive Branch Olive Oil and how acidity determines the grade of oil. Once we had been through each ingredient Giulia began preparing the dough showing us each stage before kneeding it and leaving it to prove.

As we waited, the best Bruschetta I've ever had was prepared and eaten whilst we chatted about all things photography & blogs, the fact that Hannah and I should move to London and our future plans including #frenchiepicnic and a Canadian Thanks Giving. Bring on summer!

Unfortunately our dough was not to be trusted and hadn't risen as Giulia had hoped, but we all had a great laugh forming our pizza bases including hitting the roof and dropping the dough more than once! After we handed our base attempts over to Giulia she expertly topped them and baked them into some of the best tasting pizza I've ever had.

I had another wonderful evening and hope we get the chance to cook with friends more often.

BLUEBERRY BANANA BROWNIES (PALEO)

These brownies are fantastic, in fact I think they are some of the best I've ever had - George of Civilized Caveman isn't lying but I've modified the recipe slightly through some tinkering of my own:

Ingredients:
170g Almond Butter
2 Eggs
40g Honey (Melted)
1 tbsp Vanilla Extract
30g Cocoa Powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp Salt
200g Blueberries
100g 90% Dark Chocolate (Lindt) Broken Up
1 Ripe Banana (Mashed)

Method:
Pre-mix the almond butter to get it nice and creamy then add the eggs and mix well.
Add the honey & vanilla followed by the salt & baking powder.
Add the cocoa powder & mix into a smooth paste.
Add the blueberries & broken up chocolate followed by the mashed up banana & mix until smooth.
Bake until a knife comes out of the brownies clean then remove them from the oven and cut into squares.
Place the brownies on a metal cooling rack and put them back into the oven for 5-10 minutes to double bake the edges. It makes them much more chewy!

My Paleo Experience (so far):
I first became really interested in nutrition in April last year after I saw Tim Ferris on Chase Jarvis Live talking about his new book The 4 Hour Body (4HB). I proceeded to read the book front to back and applied the diet side to my already dialed in training regime helping me to drop about 6kg of weight in few months, but the problem with 4HB is its a diet, not a lifestyle and so I slowly began looking elsewhere and started to hear about Paleo.

I've been eating a pretty strict Paleo since January and I'm just getting away from that pesky cheat day thanks to a 21 day stint after our last trip to Exmoor. During that time I've been playing with making the occasional treat to help satiate my cravings for baked goods and these brownies are part of that effort!

I'm hoping to bring more of this side of my life to the blog over the coming months including more of my journey and some of the amazing food & training I'm enjoying as a result.

TERRONE

My highlight of the London Coffee Festival was by far the True Artisan Cafe pop-up. The premise is simple, three bars, each one held by a different Artisan for each session over the course of the festival - 3 bars, 3 Artisans, 3 hours, with a live DJ to keep everybody jumping (if the free coffee wasn't enough).

Terrone had the afternoon slot at bar one on Sunday and after a few months of following them on Twitter thanks to a recommendation by Giulia during our very first brunch, I knew Hannah and I had to be there.

As the slot began we were greeted by a display of Terrone's branding thanks to the talented team behind Apple&Pear who were also on hand to help with the preparations (thanks to Giulia for another introduction). As you can see from the photographs they've produced a wonderful aesthetic & brand around an equally wonderful & driven company in the form of Terrone's team.

Its very refreshing to see small, independent companies working closely together to create a lasting impact, and I'm hoping this blog post will inspire others to check out these burgeoning companies before they blow up.

PS. Seriously, thanks to Giulia for all these introductions. I'm very happy to call her friend and even more happy she made me carrot cake! Thanks Giulia!

HAPPY EASTER

I feel I should share a few photographs of these wonderful white Tulips Hannah and I picked up for our Easter break in Combe Martin. We're having a wonderful time getting away from life for a few days.

I hope you're having a lovely Easter Break filled with anything and everything that keeps you content.

OZONE COFFEE & PHOTOWALK IN SHOREDITCH

Back in February (oh dear, I'm a terrible blogger) Hannah and I met with Guilia aka Mondomulia & Charlotte Hu aka, well, Charlotte Hu for a spot of Brunch at Ozone and a photowalk around Shoreditch, where every shop is also a cafe.

It was a bitterly cold February day, with a wind that cut straight through every layer you wore before uncomfortably settling in your bones and residing there without remorse. But still we braved a walk from the tube and soon found ourselves warm & cosy in a booth watching the hustle and bustle of a busy kitchen whilst perusing a menu filled with all kind of wonderful brunch dishes. This is what we came for, and I couldn't wait to get started.

I opted for the baked eggs thanks to the high praise Dave Cox gave them, unfortunately I was a little disappointed as the dish ended up being a slightly runny affair and the overall service slower than I'd expect for even the busiest brunch service. The coffee however, was fantastic and I happily bought a bag of beans for home before having a look at the roasting equipment and the large communal area downstairs.

As we departed Ozone the February wind picked up right where it left off, leaving us huddling for warmth and dropped in and out of shops to escape the chill, forcing us to pause and enjoy the quaint corners of Shoreditch, the multitude of shops selling interesting wares and the seemingly exhaustible amount of cafes bolted onto every shop.

Eventually we found ourselves in the strangest Nike shop I'd never heard of, hidden below a bridge in a gated courtyard with no discernible link to the multi-national super power that is Nike. I'm convinced it was Nike's version of the Troll Market from Hellboy.

All in all I had a wonderful afternoon with some wonderful company. A trip I hope to make again and again and again with many grand plans of picnics during the summer and any other brunch opportunities that come my way.

Technical: Ozone with the D600 & 50mm. Minolta 7 & Portra 160 for everything else

EGGS BENEDICT - ONE YEAR OLD

I'm very happy and proud to say Eggs turns one today. The last post I did was after seven weeks with him when he was truly a tiny puppy, unsure of the world and his place in it. After another 35 weeks I can't imagine life without him and he has turned into a wonderful companion for Hannah and I.

I've really enjoyed photographing him every week as he goes about his life and I feel as though I've learnt a ton from simply picking up my camera everytime we go for a walk, its definitely helped me with hitting focus, quick composition and looking for interesting spots or light that would make for a good capture.

So, thanks Eggs. Just keep being the little gremlin you are.

p.s - We've not missed a week on his blog yet! http://tinyeggs.tumblr.com/