Bacon and Avocado Sandwiches...

Today my husband and I went for an early morning country side walk. The sun was shining brightly, birds were singing, we even saw a large hare bounding up the path. It was the perfect start to the day. All the walking and fresh country air got our appetites going. By the time we got back we were more then ready for lunch. As a treat we had bacon and avocado sandwiches. This is a dream combination and goes wonderfully well with a big mug of tea.

Luna Raye’s Bacon and Avocado Sandwiches (for two)

Ingredients

4 slices of really good quality smoked streaky bacon (we buy ours from our local butcher)

1 ripe Hass Avocado

Mayonnaise

4 slices of thick whole wheat bread

A pinch of salt

Generous amount of freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Cook the bacon in a frying pan until just crispy (but not burnt)

While the bacon is cooking spread some mayonnaise on 2 slices of bread that will serve as the bottom half of each sandwich

Cut the avocado in half and remove the stone

Scoop out the flesh of the avocado and layer it over the mayonnaise on each slice of bread

Add a pinch of salt to the avocado

Once the bacon is cooked layer it on top of the avocado (I don’t drain the bacon on paper towel but you can do so if you wish)

Add a generous amount of black pepper before placing the other slice of bread on top

Cut in half and serve with a big mug of tea

Enjoy!

Blueberry Pancakes and Country Walks...

Shorne Woods Country Park

This weekend the sun finally came out providing the perfect opportunity for a country walk. My husband and I decided to go to one of our favourite places – Shorne Woods Country Park. It’s a beautiful place for a walk and has a good mixture of trails from gentle and easy going to slightly more rigorous ones including the infamous Cardiac Hill. It really was a joy to be outside in the fresh air listening to the bird song and watching dogs happily retrieving sticks for their owners.

After a lengthy hike our appetites were in full swing. What better way to ‘celebrate’ our walk then by going home and having freshly made blueberry pancakes with a generous helping of Canadian Maple Syrup. A pot of freshly brewed Kicking Horse Coffee on the side made this a real North American treat.

Here is the Blueberry Pancake recipe I used courtesy of the BBC GoodFood website.

American Blueberry Pancakes

Ingredients

• 200g self-raising flour

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 1 egg

• 300ml milk

• knob butter
• 150g pack blueberries

• sunflower oil or a little butter for cooking

• golden or maple syrup

Method

1. Mix together the flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Beat the egg with the milk, make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and whisk in the milk to make a thick smooth batter. Beat in the melted butter, and gently stir in half the blueberries.

2. Heat a teaspoon of oil or small knob of butter in a large non-stick frying pan. Drop a large tablespoonful of the batter per pancake into the pan to make pancakes about 7.5cm across. Make three or four pancakes at a time. Cook for about 3 minutes over a medium heat until small bubbles appear on the surface of each pancake, then turn and cook another 2-3 minutes until golden. Cover with kitchen paper to keep warm while you use up the rest of the batter. Serve with golden syrup and the rest of the blueberries.

Enjoy!

Shorne Woods

Canadian Maple Syrup

Blueberry Pancakes