Recently, I was invited along to the Waitrose Test Kitchen to create my ultimate super smoothie recipe for the John Lewis website. Images courtesy of Charlie Richards. Smoothie styling by Cynthia Blackett. Recipe by Ren for John Lewis. Find out how I got on… Move over clean eating, the new kid on the block is…
Uncategorized
The Secrets to Successful Food Blogging
This is the first post in a new series from Bloom by Ren – which I’ll be adding to a bank of resources for food bloggers. I wanted to kick things off with a post full of really great tips. Thank you to all my food blogging friends for their words of wisdom below. Do…
Ren Loves: January Foodie Picks
Welcome to January’s foodie picks featuring a hand-picked selection of lovely things that have caught my attention in the last month. From good reads to gin, popcorn to brownies, there are some great things to hunt out or explore. Whether you fancy a bit of indulgence, or need some inspiration for foodie-related gifts, you’ve come to…
![A Happy Heart at Busaba Eathai St Albans [Review]](https://i1.wp.com/www.renbehan.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Busaba.png?resize=200%2C200&ssl=1)
A Happy Heart at Busaba Eathai St Albans [Review]
Who said you have to be blue, on blue Monday? I’m not sure I really believe that one day in January in particular needs to be marked officially as the UK’s most depressing day of the year, because that’s depressing in itself. However, if you believe the hype, the big blue day is tomorrow, Monday 16th…
Merry Christmas + Open Sandwiches with Turkey {Recipe Video}
Hello there, I just wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. Our house move has proved quite time-challenging and I’m only really just getting ready to start cooking our traditional Polish Christmas Eve meal, called Wigilia. I’ll also be hosting on Christmas Day and Boxing Day – so it’s going to be a…
Recipe: Chicken Soup Two Ways
Two ways to serve comforting chicken soup – with coconut cream and courgetti or with brown rice and spinach. Hello my friends. It’s officially chicken soup season. I know this because it’s November, it’s cold, dark and we’ve had coughs and colds. This is the time of year that chicken soup comes to the rescue….
Recipe: Cardamom, Ginger & Cinnamon Spiced Banana Bread
Recently, I wrote about trying out the Holy Lama Spice Drops® Collections – you can read my post here. This Banana Bread was one of my favourite recipes using the drops within the Baking Collection, which included cinnamon cardamon, ginger and rose. I had used the rose drops in a Gin Cocktail, and decided to…
Introducing the Holy Lama Spice Drops® Collections
Recipe suggestions using the Holy Lama Spice Drops ® Collections We’re all familiar with cooking with dried spices, but have you ever used spices in liquid form? My local friend Gouri is the oldest daughter of the founders of a fascinating business called ‘Holy Lama Naturals’, who produce award-winning Spice Drops® created from natural extracts, as…
Recipe: Organic Red Miso Roast Chicken with Onions, Courgette and Potatoes
This month has been a whirlwind of organic loveliness. You may have noticed a bit more of an emphasis generally on organic food as part of Organic September. Earlier this month I also enjoyed a trip to the Bio Bazar in Warsaw – a whole area of organic markets within the city within a set…
Recipe: Welsh Lamb Steaks Wild Mushroom Sauce and Dill Mash
A comforting recipe for Eat Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef Hello September! My goodness, August just flew by. I’ve had a slightly longer break from the blog than I anticipated, though if you’ve been following my instagram feed you may have followed my adventures to North Wales, East Devon and then Warsaw, which in part explains my…
Recipe: Kasza and Lentil Salad with Griddled Courgette and Halloumi
A super-quick store-cupboard/fridge-raid supper – Kasza and Lentil Salad with Griddled Courgette and Halloumi. Hello! It has been a long time since I have sat down to share a simple recipe, without the pressures of looming deadlines. I am pleased to say that despite possibly the busiest six months of my entire life – renovating…
Cruise Notes: On Board Harmony of the Seas – the world’s largest cruise ship
You may remember a few weeks ago that I wrote about attending the ‘Dry Run’ of a brand new dining concept at sea called Wonderland Imaginative Cuisine by Royal Caribbean. Shortly after this event, I jumped on board the world’s newest and largest cruise ship and into the real Wonderland to preview Harmony of the…
Recipe Box: Lamb Steaks with Mint Ajika Sauce by Olia Hercules for Marley Spoon
This week I’ve been cooking from a recipe box from Marley Spoon, including a recipe by Olia Hercules for Tender Lamb Steaks with Mint Ajika Sauce and Grilled Potatoes. Recipe below. Recipe boxes are soaring in popularity at the moment and there are now plenty of choices and options available to suit all our ‘at-home’…
Recipe: Creme Egg Cupcakes
How is your Easter going? I hope it’s been a fun filled weekend full of good food, family time and Chocolate! I’m sure you are all quite sick of creme eggs, but in case you aren’t, or perhaps you have some visitors coming over, I’m sharing my Creme Egg Cupcakes, which I hope may inspire…
Review: Wonderland on Harmony of the Seas – the Dry Run
Review: Wonderland Imaginative Cuisine – a preview, or dry run, of the restaurant to be launched on board Harmony of the Seas by Royal Caribbean. Wonderland concept on board Harmony of the Seas ™ Cruise holidays…cool, or not cool? I have to admit, I had previously categorised cruise ship holidays as something that my mum…
Recipe: Healthy Noodle Pots and a look at Hungry Healthy Happy by Dannii Martin
Hungry Healthy Happy – isn’t that a perfect trilogy of words? It’s one of the reasons I have always been a fan of Dannii Martin’s thoughtfully-named blog and now, the mantra has been perfectly encapsulated into Dannii’s debut cookbook, of the same name, published by Jacqui Small. This book has been a very welcome addition…
Recipe: Healthy Beef Ragù with Puy Lentils and Spinach
Goodness it’s cold here in the UK, we even had snow at the weekend. It’s so hard, I find, to keep up with any kind of January ‘healthy eating regime’ when all you want to do is curl up with a blanket and eat mounds of warm comfort food. So, I’ve devised a plan, which…
My Secret Quick-Fix Dark Chocolate Lime and Chilli Pudding
In case you haven’t been alerted – it’s Chocolate Week here in the UK. This is the one event in the foodie calendar that I do love to mark – not that I need any excuse when it comes to chocolate. There are a number of events going on, with the chocolate-themed celebrations reaching melting…
Market Experience Food Photography, Oktoberfest and the St Albans Street Finale this weekend!
If today’s news of the giant sinkhole in St Albans hasn’t caught your attention, then I hope this weekend’s St Albans and Harpenden Food Festival activities will! As I type, there are just two spaces left on our market experience food photography workshop this Saturday – take a look at Stephanie’s site to book if…
Simple and in Season July and August – 65 summer recipes
Ren’s got a poorly household at the moment, and she’s not feeling too great herself, so Feeding Boys is staging a temporary blog takeover to give her a bit of a break. Don’t worry, she’ll be back very soon! So if you’re not quite ready to let go of summer just yet, here’s a bountiful collection…
Join me for a ‘Market Experience’ Food Photography Class
There are just five spaces left on my very first food photography class on Saturday 3rd October 2015 in St Albans with the award-winning photographer, Stephanie Belton. Book here now to join us! This year, the St Albans and Harpenden Food and Drink Festival is embracing food photography! I’m excited to announce that I shall be…
Recipe: Seattle-Style Cream Cheese Hot Dogs with a Quick Pickled Cabbage Salad
It’s been two years since my last visit to Seattle, which means two years since my first taste of a Seattle Dog – cream cheese adorned hot dogs sold by street vendors around Seattle. A little stand in Pioneer Square called ‘Dog in the Park’ sold me my best-ever Seattle Dog…in case you are ever…
Recipe: Rainy Day Pizza Pasta Soup
So, another summer season is over and it’s back to school for the children after a fairly rainy few weeks. Rather than craving summer salads, we’ve been seeking out cold weather food – scrambled eggs for breakfast, soups for lunch and pasta bakes for dinner. The children have also been requesting their favourites; pizza, pasta with…
Fresh Cherry Crumble Cake
We were lured by the huge crates of English cherries at St Albans Market over the weekend. By the time we arrived home, the children had eaten a whole bag of cherries between themselves – in the back of the car – and yes, there were cherry juice stains everywhere. The second bag I had…