So yesterday I visited this little cafe that I'd read about on the internet- as you do. It's fairly new and completely different to your average cafes.You don't pay for the food and drink that you want but instead, you pay for the time that you spend there. It's a strange concept really, you make your own drink (coffee, tea, juice, water, whatever you want really) and then take as much as the food as you like from the selection on the table.

I admit that this is fairly dangerous, I mean unlimited access to cakes and biscuits.. it's never going to end well. It wasn't anything particularly fancy though, just a selection of store bought treats. However, I loved the atmosphere, it was really chilled with couches and games- we played Jenga and Chess, and it seemed like you could just treat it as your own home.

It is 6 pence per minute and we were there for just over an hour, charging around £4 each. I enjoyed the experience as it was different, but I think I'd rather just get a Starbucks and not have to do my own dishes afterwards, plus I tend to like to sit there for quite a while and the price could have gotten a little ridiculous if you were there too long.

Nevertheless, it was definitely something I wanted to try and I'm glad that I did. There are two of these from what I know of, one in Manchester and one that I visited on the Albert Dock in Liverpool. So you could try it out for yourself if one is near you!

Emma :)

Today I visited the Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh - The Caledonian Hotel and Restaurant to have Afternoon Tea. It was a little on the pricey side but oh my, it was delicious! They met our dietary requirements too and nothing seemed a  hassle. With a lot of choice and alterations to the food served to meet our needs, we couldn't have been happier.

I've never experienced afternoon tea before now and I really enjoyed it. The bottom plate consisted of finger food, such as sandwiches and a tart. This was then removed and replaced with scones, cream and jam (yum!) I don't really want to remind myself of all the cakes and treats on the top and middle plate so I'll just let you observe that yourself!

Edinburgh is a really nice city and I have loved it so far.

Emma :) 

I've said it before but I'll say it again, I have a really bad sweet tooth. Although I try to live a healthy lifestyle, a treat is simply necessary in order to function! But if you're after a 'healthier' treat, then you should check out chocolatecoveredkatie. It is a blog that shares loads of recipes!

I decided to share one with you as I tried it out and really enjoyed it, so why not! I made the Frosted Peanut Butter Snack Cake. It is dairy free, gluten free, sugar free, low fat and just generally.. not that bad. It's an advantage that it tastes so good too.

It's pretty simple to make, all you need is:

2 cups spelt, white, or Bob’s gf flour (265g)
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup granulated sugar of choice OR xylitol (200g)
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp yogurt (such as So Delicious coconutmilk yogurt) (90g)
1 cup plus 2 tbsp water (270g)
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp peanut butter or almond butter, OR allergy-friendly alternative (90g)
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract (15g)

I'll leave the link here, if you want to follow the instructions and make it for yourself. I'd suggest that you do, because it's so soft and is just amazing. It's nice to not feel too guilty too.

I'm hoping to start my own recipes soon so I'll be sure to share them- if they work out well that is..

Emma :)