Christmas at ZSL London (London Zoo)

Even though we’re nudging into December, some of us need a helping hand to get into the festive spirit. Don’t tell anyone but there still are a few ‘Bah Humbugs’ amongst us at The Amazing Blog. When we heard about Christmas at ZSL London we decided it would be a perfect chance to encourage some ‘festive cheer’!

At Christmas at London Zoo there’s something for everyone to enjoy. With spectacles such as the iconic penguin pool dance, the illuminated trail, a vintage carousel and a number of hidden surprises, getting into the festive spirit is almost a given. While the animals are tucked up in bed, you can also hop aboard their special train, where you’ll experience both fantasy and fairy-tale; soaking up mesmerizing voices of Singing trees and playful projections of Magic Mountains.

This is the first ever Christmas event at London Zoo, and is being launched in partnership with Raymond Gubbay Limited. The site has been designed by Culture Creative - so expect the unexpected, with sky high animal sculptures encircling the 36 acre zoo site! Cleverly they make sure you circumnavigate the animals so you don’t disturb the habitat of the nocturnal animals; although you might catch a fleeting glimpse on your train ride.

Of course the evening would be incomplete without indulging in a glass of mulled wine or hot chocolate. You will find these in the Zoo’s Christmas village, alongside a plethora of other festive treats such as toasted marshmallows and roasted chestnuts. You can also start your Christmas shopping at ZSL gift shop. For full details visit the gift shop website here.

Don’t miss this magical illuminated trail - it opens from Thursday 22nd of November until Monday, 1st of January 2019. Tickets are available here from £16.50.

Friday Favourites: Cookbooks

Cooking is something we're divided on at The Amazing Blog. Half of us are avid chefs, and the rest, well they would prefer never to turn an oven on again. What we do agree on though, is that a good cookbook can ease the battle of turning everyday ingredients into delicious meals, helping even the most unenthusiastic of cooks to rustle up a tasty dish. We have discovered the following cookbooks, each one guaranteed to contain a vast amount of recipes that will make your cooking restaurant worthy in no time!

Firstly, we came across Eating Well Everyday, the brainchild of chef Peter Gordon. Originally from New Zealand, Gordon's extensive knowledge of cooking has stemmed from numerous culinary travels, through which he has gained inspiration to use Asian, Indonesian and Indian flavours. His passions have also led him to receive an ONZM (the equivalent of an OBE), notably awarded as a result of having organised a "Who's Cooking Dinner" event, which raised over £6.3 million for leukaemia research. We are therefore safe in the knowledge that this cookbook has been written by someone who truly knows how to cook (and has a passion for it).

Written for "home cooks everywhere", this book contains 170 recipes, covering everything from breakfast to dinner party meals. Self-proclaimed to contain “tasty and daring, yet simple and straightforward" dishes, this is something we can vouch for. Even the most inexperienced of chefs amongst us were able to follow these recipes with ease (and perhaps even enjoyment). Our favourite dishes? The Chicken and Peanut Coconut Curry (page 166) and Pumpkin, Ginger, Chickpea and Cheese Soup (page 50) - both guaranteed to warm you up on a cold winter's evening. We also love the Peanut, Pecan and Chocolate Cookie recipe for a sweet after-dinner treat. To purchase Eating Well Everyday for £22, then click here.

Secondly, we came across The Lazy Weekend Cookbook, a firm favourite amongst the less enthusiastic cooks of the office. Written by chef Matt Williamson, this book contains over 150 pages of delicious recipes for weekend cooking. Williamson explains that the goal of the book is to provide recipes that can be cooked leisurely, as opposed to the usual mid-week rush to get anything on the table. His advice is to choose a particular few meals to focus on, meaning you can rustle up some exceptional dishes, without spending all weekend in the kitchen.

The book is structured into mealtimes and moments, ranging from breakfasts and brunches, to easy dinner party meals, and bakes. Each meal is designed for 4 people; however, we found it easy to scale this up or down, dependant on the situation. There are too many favourites to share, but the Quick Sesame Flatbreads with Honey Butter (page 29) and Moroccan Spiced Chicken Pie (page 54) are two stand out recipes that we couldn't not mention. We also like the weight and temperature conversions at the back of the book, meaning we have less chance of cremating our newfound recipes! To ramp up your weekend cooking, then you can purchase a copy of Williamson's The Lazy Weekend Cookbook here for £20.

Finally, we discovered MOB Kitchen by Ben Lebus. Known for his online presence, Lebus' YouTube channel has grown a strong following, with an empire of over 250,000 social media followers in just 18 months. His niche? Providing meals for four people that are under £10. More recently, Lebus has extended this knowledge into a cookbook, aiming to encourage people to cook delicious and nutritious meals, that are still affordable. This concept is particularly popular among students and young professionals, proving that delicious meals don't need to cost a small fortune. By creating a cookbook, Lebus' new mission is to educate all ages, whether that be people who choose not to use social media, or those of us who simply like to have a physical copy at hand.

The cookbook is segmented by time and goal, ranging from Brunch MOB to Speedy MOB and Flashy MOB. These contain over ten different recipes, amounting to 140 pages of recipes and visual guidelines. Each page has key symbols, with Spotify Codes on each recipe page, allowing readers to listen to the corresponding playlist/song. This is something we found interesting, tapping into the active social media tie Lebus has. We particularly enjoyed making the Chocolate Chilli Con Carne (page 94), and the Crunchy Vegan Aubergine Katsu (page 122) both of which stopped us from shelling out on unnecessary and expensive takeaways. To purchase your own copy of MOB Kitchen, click here, where you can find ideas to get the mob fed for £14.99.

These cookbooks have certainly helped us to eat better this November, with warming and comforting dishes that are easy to make, and reasonable to rustle up. Try them for yourself or we think these cookbooks would make a great Christmas gift for someone in need of spicing up their mealtimes. Happy cooking!

Benecos - Konjac Sponges

We’re halfway through the week, and back with another Benecos product. Regular readers of The Amazing Blog will remember that we featured their Natural Lip Gloss back in a March, and we were therefore thrilled to try their Konjac Sponges. Created by Silke and Stephan Becker, Benecos was established to provide makeup, skincare and haircare for both men and women, all with the ambition to encourage more environmentally conscious choices.

Their Konjac Sponges are no exception, made with 100% konnyaku root, aiming to encourage people to use natural exfoliants, as opposed to those containing harmful micro beads. These sponges are a gentle exfoliant, and can be used with a mild cleanser or on their own. We tested all three Konjac Sponges, the first being the Bamboo Black Charcoal. After soaking this sponge in water for a couple of minutes (as you must do with all three), we found that this sponge rid our faces of the day’s dirt. Black charcoal is ideal if you’re looking to rid the skin of common impurities, such as excess oil and bacteria. If you have sensitive skin, then the Red Clay Sponge is the best choice for you. While it exfoliates, this sponge is very gentle and calming. Lastly, the Green Tea Sponge is great for combination and dry skin. While balancing your complexion, the Green Tea Sponge also detoxifies, hydrates, and soothes irritation to the skin.

Thanks to these Konjac Sponges, our skin is so much softer - goodbye dry and flaky skin. An added bonus? These sponges last for two months, and are subsequently compostable and biodegradable. Guilt free skincare! To try a sponge for yourself, then click here, where each one can be purchased for £6.95.

Blackbook Winery

Battersea was not the first place that sprung to mind when we heard about an exciting new winery at The Amazing Blog. However, that is precisely what Sergio Verillo and his wife Lynsey have done, underneath one of the many railway arches in the area, lining the commuter routes into London. Working with a select group of English vineyards, based in East Anglia, Essex and Oxfordshire, this entrepreneurial couple have introduced a range of wines of superior quality … but don’t just take our word for it - ‘Chez Bruce’ in Wandsworth is just one of the Michelin starred restaurants to carry their bottles of magic. 

Blackbook is part of a dynamic and growing wine scene in London. Urban wineries are fast becoming commonplace in major cities around the world. An urban winery sources its grapes from a variety of growers, and produces all wine on its site. Blackbook source their grapes from carefully selected English growers, in order to produce still and sparkling single vineyard English wines. Although their concentration is on pinot noir and chardonnay, they include some additional varietals each year. Blackbook follows a traditional winemaking approach with low sulphur wines, and indigenous ferments as a means to preserve the varietal character.

Blackbook’s inaugural wine was a 2017 English Rosé, made from pinot noir grapes from Clayhill Vineyard in Essex. This was awarded a silver medal at the Drinks Business Global Rosé Masters, and is now listed within a number of high end wine bars and restaurants across London. Following hot on the heels of the Rosé, comes a 2017 Pinot Noir, and a 2017 Chardonnay - all of which stem from the soil in our very own country. Nurtured by the micro climate which East Anglia enjoys, this is particularly good for the high sugar content in the Pinot Noir and Bacchus grapes, and similarly, the sandy loam soils of Oxfordshire are ideal for sourcing theur Seyval Blanc.

Sergio and Lynsey are justifiably proud of Blackbook, and are allowing us all the chance to go along and find out more from the founders themselves. They are currently running winery tours twice weekly: Wednesdays at 6pm and Saturdays at 4pm. The tour lasts for an hour and costs just £15 per person; all aspects of the wine making process are covered by Sergio himself, and each guest receives an exclusive ‘Cellar Door Discount’ on the wines available. Gift vouchers can also be purchased, and redeemed against any available date through their shop here.

The Blackbook wines are also available online with the 2017 Rosé priced at £17.50, and both the 2017 Chardonnay and Pinot Noir at £18.50 each. For further details, contact Blackbook directly - understandably all visits are by appointment. You’ll find them located at the following address: Blackbook Winery - Arch 41, London Stone Business Estate, London, SW8 3QR, and the nearest station is Queenstown Road. Enjoy!

Ellactiva Collagen Chews

Our mothers have always encouraged us to take our vitamins, and here at The Amazing Blog, we take that advice very seriously! We recently came across, Ellactiva, a UK based company who provide Collagen Soft Chews that are easy to take on-the-go. These chews are boosted with 2.5g of bioactive collagen peptides, improving your skin from the inside, and making it feel as smooth as ever, in just four weeks.

With three different flavours (blended with minerals and vitamins), the Collagen Soft Chews not only make you look great, but you will also feel healthier. They give you all the energy you need from within, strengthening your immune system, and improving your bone health simultaneously. Additionally, the three different flavours provide benefits that go beyond skin depth.

The first, Collagen & Energy, contain bioactive collagen peptides that help improve the skin's structure and elasticity. They also include high levels of vitamin C and chromium picolinate, which maximise collagen synthesis, as well as prebiotic fibre and resistant starch, reducing hunger cravings and supporting energy release. What makes these chews even more irresistible, is that they come in a sugar-free orange flavour, to enhance our taste buds and boost our energy levels at the same time.

The second superpower is the Collagen & Healthy Bones pack, which comes in a sugar-free caramel cream flavour. With a base of bioactive collagen peptides, they help to give a younger look to our work loaded faces. Additionally, vitamin C maximises collagen synthesis, and with the help of calcium and vitamin D, we are packed with all the good stuff and are ready to take on the day.

The last powerhouse is the Collagen & Immunity package that helps to maintain the skin’s structural integrity and firmness, due to its blend of bioactive collagen peptides and prebiotic fibre. With the aid of zinc, selenium and vitamin C, our immune system gets the boost it needs to keep us healthy and fit, even on the coldest of days in the UK. The best part? These chews have a fruity blackcurrant flavour.

The elegant and light packaging makes it easy to take your vitamins on the go, helping you to live a healthier and more balanced lifestyle. The collagen infused chews give us back what we have lost over the years, allowing our skin and bones to strengthen, reversing the degenerating collagen process. If you want to take your mother's advice seriously, and treat yourself to some vitamins, then the three packages (including 60 sugar-free soft chews) can be purchased here from £29.99.