What Sophie Said

Sometimes when it gets to teatime after a week of work, simplicity is the key. A few weeks ago I tried out this really simple chilli beef and bean tortillas recipe, which I originally spotted in Sainsbury’s magazine. With a couple of adaptations, here’s the meal we ate: To serve 2, you will need: 1 red onion, sliced Olive oil 1 small garlic clove, crushed 250g lean mince 400g kidney beans in chilli sauce 100ml water 4 flour tortillas Grated cheddar, and anything else you want to serve with In a large pan, fry the onion in a little olive oil for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and mince, stirring until the meat has browned. Add the kidney beans and 100ml water, turn the heat down and simmer the mince for 20 minutes. Towards the end of the 20 minutes, griddle both sides of the tortilla wraps. Serve the chilli topped with grated cheese, wrap into the tortillas and enjoy. This was beyond simple, and is so fi...

So, today is the 22nd birthday of a fabulous chum of mine, Laura. When it came to deciding on presents, she's put us all in a pickle by deciding to disappear off travelling in a couple of weeks, and isn't back properly until this time next year. I decided that meant there was no point in buying clothes/books/makeup etc, and her family are buying her the rest of her travel essentials. So what better excuse is there for a day out? Food, the hairdressers, and more food, to celebrate Laura's birthday by doing something and having a fun afternoon. And that's just what we did on Saturday. We started at Salt Bar, a Scandinavian restaurant which has recently been featured on BBC2's The Restaurant Man. It's not food I'd usually go for, so we headed to find out what was on offer. It's quite a small restaurant, with lovely little wooden tables, and simple wall hangings. There is a bar at the back, with what looks like a fairly small kitchen immediately behind i...

About a month ago now, Andy and I headed off to De Vere Mottram Hall Hotel for a night, on our five year anniversary. We stayed close to home, as it meant we could stay somewhere lovely without adding on lots of travel costs! The hotel is set out on its own, so we thought we’d have lunch in nearby Prestbury before going to check in. Although it’s near home, it’s a relatively small village, so not somewhere I’ve ever thought of popping to explore. I texted my friend Emily for food recommendations, as she used to live in Prestbury, and we jumped on the train just before lunch. We first went to the Legh Arms pub, right in the centre of the village. It’s a beautiful old building, and had a real ‘local’ feel to it. They offer a quite extensive menu at reasonable prices, and although there was some confusion at first as to whether it was table or bar service (it was half and half) we settled in to a nice tall table tucked in by a wall. Knowing we would be ha...

After a busy week, I'm finally sitting down to write up the results of my February challenge. I'll start by saying exactly what everyone else has said: where did February go?! I can't believe we're already at 11th March... February's challenge was: to drink 2-3 glasses of juice, and 3-4 glasses of water, per day Let's start with the juice. I think I was partially influenced here by the amount of people I had seen doing juice cleanses. I can see all the benefits, and the fact it adds another portion of fruit to my daily total, but I have to day the amount of sugar in them was what was at the front of my mind throughout the month. I quickly settled on one glass a day, with my breakfast, and I think I'll stick at that level. Also, I'm so fussy! I've found a few juices I like, so I think I need to branch out more, to add in different fruits and vegetables. In terms of drinking water, I've done pretty well. I upped my daily target to 6 glasses...

This is a meal I made for me and my sister when our parents were away. Kate had a fairly quick turnaround and needed something filling and quick. It has a nice kick to it, and tastes really fresh. To serve 4, you will need: 1 tbsp olive oil 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 2 tbsp mild curry paste 400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed Handful fresh coriander leaves, chopped 1 onion, finely chopped 1 tsp fresh ginger, finely chopped (we used grated ginger root) 400g can chopped tomatoes 500g fresh spinach, stalks removed and leaves chopped 250ml cold water Naan bread, to serve - we had Asda’s garlic and coriander naans, which were very tasty! Heat the oil in a frying pan over a high heat and fry the onion, garlic and ginger for 4-5 minutes, stirring until golden. Add the curry paste and fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, 250ml cold water and the chickpeas. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minute...