Balance Festival

Here at The Amazing Blog we understand how difficult it can be to maintain the motivation needed to lead a healthy lifestyle. That is why we thought we'd let you know about the Balance Festival: The perfect place to find like-minded individuals who are joining together to embrace a healthier lifestyle.

Balance Festival is the largest fitness and wellness-focused event in the UK. It brings together the best foods, classes, and the most knowledgeable nutritionists, trainers, yogis and chefs; all of whom will share their expertise to help you kick-start your journey to a better self. There is never a dull moment with over 150 food, fitness, wellness, and travel brands to explore. Workshops will include talks and cooking demos, plus there is the option to attend over 200 fitness classes from £6 per session, perfect to sweat out some of those toxins. 

You can try out numerous cutting-edge workouts on the main stage and then relax in The Sanctuary to recharge or practice mindfulness. It is impossible to leave the festival without feeling inspired and ready to take on a new healthy lifestyle. The buzzing atmosphere will keep you coming back year after year to discover new brands, workouts and recipes; ensuring that your health regime is never dull.

The Balance Festival takes place 11th-13th May 2018 at The Old Truman Brewery. Super Early Bird Tickets are available here starting at £24.50 for a standard pass, £45 for VIP, and £75 for a weekend VIP. See you there!

Embassy Gardens Market opens

This Saturday, the Embassy Gardens Market will be opening at Embassy Gardens’ New Union Square in Nine Elms Lane London SW8 5DA. The market is brought to us thanks to Shepherds Markets and EcoWorld Ballymore, two companies looking to bring a colourful, vibrant market to Embassy Gardens. Here at The Amazing Blog, we discovered the first Embassy Garden Market last November which was a huge fun, and we can’t wait to attend again this spring. This springtime market will include a selection of local food and drink products from some of London’s finest (and tastiest) vendors.

The first Embassy Gardens Market of 2018 will take place on Saturday April 28th from 10:00am to 5:00pm. If you cannot make it to opening day, do not stress; the market will be open again on Saturday May 26th and Saturday June 30th from 10:00am to 5:00pm. The closest tube and overland stops to the market are the Vauxhall or the Battersea Park.

The vendors in attendance at the market will include; La Ferme, L’Amuse Bouche, Finest Fayre, Cookies n Cream, Goko, Rao Deli, Pequod Fish Burgers, Pippin Doughnuts and Chelsea Flower Gin and Tonics/Prosecco. These stalls offer a wide selection of cultural cuisines to choose from and we are sure that you will be able to satisfy whatever taste you are craving. In particular, we are especially eager to try out Goko’s Chinese Dumplings and La Ferme’s crepes.

In addition to all of the wonderful food options provided at the market, there will be live musical performances. Guests can look forward to seeing Swedish singer songwriter Axel Janson and beatboxer/singer Dana McKeon perform live at the market. We can’t wait to watch and listen to the live music while snacking on some tasty market finds. We think that this market is the perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon with friends or family. After all, nothing brings people together like sharing food.

Mozambican Street Food from African Volcano

We love to explore all of the wonderful food markets that London has to offer. And at The Amazing Blog, are excited to share with you London’s first ever seven-course street food tasting menu featuring a variety of different Mozambican food options. Starting this April, every Saturday 9am to 4pm and Sunday 11am to 4pm at the Maltby Street food market in Bermondsey, London you too can try out the Mozambican menu for yourself.

This extensive seven-course menu is brought to us by Chef Grant Hawthorne, the owner of African Volcano. African Volcano offers a variety of hot Mozambique-style marinades and peri peri sauces. These products are based on an original Mozambique recipe and have been developed by Chef Grant Hawthorne since the mid-1990’s. Hawthorne even travelled to Mozambique last year to perfect his menu for this market.

The menu includes homemade Portuguese bread (one of our personal favourites), crab and prawn rissois, chicken livers, trinxado prawns, baby chicken and the delicious Pastéis de Nata (Portuguese custard tarte). These unique food options allow for you to see just what is possible when it comes to peri peri sauce. Often times when people think of peri peri sauces they only think of using them on chicken dishes. However, these spicy sauces can be used in a variety of different dishes, as seen in this menu. Mozambican food is definitely an unusual cultural cuisine here in London. However, after this market that may quickly change, as these dishes are sure to satisfy all of your spicy cravings. Our mouths are watering at the very thought of tasting these peri peri dishes!

While you’re at the market, we also recommend pairing the delicious Mozambican dishes with beer and wine provided by other traders in the market for the full Maltby market experience. Don't miss it!

Bread Angels - Baking Courses

If like us, you cannot get enough of good fresh handmade bread and often thought about making your own, then please read on. In the past few years, we've seen the rise of micro bakeries that sell delicious, artisan bread. We at The Amazing Blog wanted to explore this a little bit further to discover more. There is a network of micro bakers in the UK called the Bread Angels. These are a group of like-minded people who work from their home kitchens (or in one case, a sea container in the garden) in order to produce excellent quality bread that benefits their local communities.

Many of these bakers run Bread Baking Classes too, we think that this is the perfect fun activity for your weekend or a day off.  Classes are small, anywhere from 2-6 people maximum which makes them friendly and informative. The great thing is that you'll leave the course with a new found confidence as a baker along with several warm loaves to take home.

The range of classes that Bread Angels offer is really quite impressive.  There are basic, Italian, flat, sourdough and speciality rye bread making. Not forgetting the buns and sweet bread courses too.  Another interesting course on offer is their micro-bakery course.  This teaches the basic skills required to set up and run a small baking business, including how to bake a huge range of breads.

Feeling ready to hone your baking skills? Then you too can take part in any of the Bread Angel Courses nationwide. Book a spot here and experience the mastery and knowledge that the Bread Angels bring to their classes. Course fees start at £75 and include a light meal, tea and coffee and all ingredients.

Trapped in a Prison Van

If like us at The Amazing Blog you prefer your challenges to be slightly more hardcore and with a greater sense of jeopardy, then Trapped in a Prison Van could be just the ticket for you … You must be a group of at least 4 (maximum 8), and your mission, should you wish to accept it, is to escape from the prison van which is taking you for sentencing (likelihood of life imprisonment) and head for freedom somewhere warm and away from all those pesky law abiders who would do you down!

This is the latest offering from Trapped - the team who have brought various immersive escape adventure games, from fleeing the clutches of a zombie, to the potential horrors of a 90s club, but each with the authenticity of staging and props to give each player a true sense of the drama. The premise we have here is that you and your gang have been found guilty and are en route to your final moments of freedom before being 'sent down' … for good. Can you work together and escape, or do you prepare for handing everything over for a less than flattering outfit, gruel for nosh and a mattress of straw?

You can book tickets from £30 here but it is worth keeping an eye open on the website for possible discounts on offer and the relevant codes. Timings run from Monday through Saturday. It’s also worth checking on the terms and conditions, as they do offer the option of joining a larger group if you are a total of 4 - perhaps an interesting way of making new friends or indeed cellmates, should you fail in the whole point of the mission!