Let's bake: Lazy Rhubarb Crumble

Happy Sunday! 

Today I wanted to share my recipe for rhubarb crumble. 

I love rhubarb and right now it's at its seasonal best. That sharp tang  is unlike anything else and it's so versatile. You can use it in savoury, sweet, hot or cold dishes. 

So without further ado, here's what you need:

500g Rhubarb 

100g Sugar

And a few tbsp of your favourite tipple I went for a lovely strawberry vodka. 

For the topping:

140g self raising flour

85g chilled butter

50g light brown sugar plus a little for sprinkling on top. 

Here's the method:

First chop up your rhubarb into one and a half inch long sections, originally the recipe said 'thumb' size pieces so use your judgement. I was making this with Sam and our thumbs are wildly different sizes so we went for a happy medium. 

Next pop it all in a pan with the sugar and liquid, if you wanted a non alcoholic version you could use water, pomegranate or I've seen grenadine used before which helps keep the pink colour. After a few minutes the pieces will start to break down. Try and catch it before it becomes a big ol' mush. Then place in a oven proof dish to cool.  

Now that's done you can pop the oven on to 200•C or 180•C fan to warm up. 

Now onto the the crumble topping. Weigh out the ingredients and place the flour and cold butter and brown sugar in a bowl.

Now using a method commonly known as 'fairy fingers' gently start combining the mixture by rubbing it between your thumbs and the sides of your index fingers until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 

Once it's ready you can put it on top of the rhubarb. You need to make sure the filling part is totally cold so the butter doesn't just melt and become a gooey mess. If it's cool and ready to go then you can start a'strewing! 

Smooth the crumble so it evenly covers the rhubarb. Once you're happy then you can sprinkle a little more brown sugar on the top. 

Now pop it in the oven for about 20-25 minutes. It should be golden brown on top and the liquid should be bubbling away, if you're lucky then you'll have a nice bit of sugary caramelisation going on. 

Let it cool for just a few minutes, it will be super hot. It's lovely warm with something cold like ice cream or custard. Sam and I are custard lovers so we went for lots of it! We had delicious tinned but you could, of course, make it yourself while the crumble's baking away. 

It was blimmin' tasty! The rhubarb by the way was bought fresh from the Southwick village D-day celebrations it went to the other day, you can see some pictures on my insta. 

Let me know if you make this and if you have any tips and tricks then I'd love to know them! 

Have a lovely day and if you are are one or are celebrating today, happy Father's Day. 

Lucy X 

 

Legacy of a Legend exhibition.

Hello there!

 

On Monday I had the opportunity to visit the London design centre with Rosie to see an amazing exhibition about Marilyn Monroe, her life and most importantly- her dresses!

I have been a fan of the 'golden era' of Hollywood for a long time, I remember watching the Saturday matinee on TV when I was younger with my Mum just completely captivated by the glamour and fantasy of the screen. There was a short period of time where I wanted to be an actress but once I got older I found that I had more joy in creating the look rather than acting the part. 

Marilyn Monroe holds a special place in my heart, watching her as a child I found her funny and beautiful, as I got older I noticed how funny and talented she actually was and as an adult I find her story heartbreaking and incredibly empathic. 

The exhibition was an extraordinary collection of items. There were some of her beautiful costumes, shoes, bags and accessories. When we were looking we became transfixed by one of her lipsticks, we must have stared at it for a good 5 minutes. The shade was 'batchelors carnation' by Revlon. The idea that she used it on her lips, that she may have talked about it, recommended it and discussed it with Alan 'whitey' Snyder (her make-up artist) about what outfit it would be pared with, when it would be used and to what effect it would give was one of the surrealist moments of my life. 

Before the Photographs, I just want to write about something I wasn't expecting from the exhibition. A large assembly of letters, cheque books, handwritten notes and paintings written and painted by her. A lot of them were extremely touching, pensive and truly sad. I feel for her.

When I was younger I'd hear people call her inspirational and I couldn't work out why. Now I know, she was smart, funny, beautiful, feeling and above all,

 human. 

I hope you enjoy these pictures but if you have the chance to go then I urge you to. 

I also have a vlog of the day up on my channel on Youtube (@Lulabellemua), which you can find just here. 

Here's the deets.

It runs until 20th June 2016 so not long left.

the DCCH  opend 9.30-5.30 Monday- Friday

The centre is closed Saturday,Sunday and Bank Holidays

The Exhibition is free 

The nearest station is Imperial warf, It took a bit of time to get to so make sure you work that into your time.  

Here's the address:

Design Centre

Chelsea Harbour

Lots road

London

SW10 0XE

Have Fun

Lucy

xx 

Recipe // Rasperry & Spinach smoothie

For today's post I thought I'd share a really nice smoothie recipe I concocted the other day. 

I love smoothies, they fill you up and it's a great way to get a few of your five a day in. 

This recipe makes one big smoothie or two littler smoothies. These would also be amazing to freeze and have on a lovey warm summer day.

For this you will need: 

1 Cup of Raspberrieeeees 

1 Cup of Spinach

1 Cup yogurt 

Honey to taste

Almond milk 

You will also need a blender, I have my wonderful nutribullet. 

Step 1. Pop your raspberries in the cup part of your blender, followed by your freshly washed spinach. Obviously if you have stick/submerging blender pop all of this in a jug. 

Step 2. Add your yogurt, have as much or little as you like but adding a cup made it super creamy. I had Greek but you could use any type. French set, low fat or soya if you don't eat dairy. 

Step 3. Time for some sweetness. I squeezed about 2 tbsp but it's up to you. You don't have to add this step if you don't like sweet things but I think it's a nice contrast to the raspberries. Once again if you could swap this out for a non animal derived natural sugar such a agave.

Step 4. Now you're ready for blending. Pop the lid on and make sure it's secured tightly. 

Step 5. BLEND THAT SMOOTHIE! 

Make sure everything is incorporated fully by giving it a little mix every so often. It should go a darkish pink. 

Step 6. Add Almond milk until it's the right consistency for you. Blend to mix. It'll look a little lighter in colour but that's ok. 

Step 7. Pour into a cute glass add a straw. I've got these pretty floral paper straws. Take a pew out in the sun and chill out. 

I hope you've enjoyed this recipe I love making smoothies. It's healthy and easy, two of my favourite things! 

Lucy X 

Lush- Guardian of the forest review!

Oh my goodness I can't believe it's June already. 

As you've probably realised a lot of things are been going on these last few months. We've moved, works been busy and and we just been generally sorting out everything we need to start living our lives how we want to again.

I thought I'd get back on the blogging horse again by doing a nice little review on Lush's lovely Oxford Street exclusive bath bomb guardian of the forest. Since being launched in 2015 this has become one of my favourite bath bombs. Rich and woody I feel like it really feels a void in the range.

If you want a super relaxing yet uplifting bath bomb that isn't packed with strong citrus scents then this may be the bath bomb for you! 

So let's talk about what's in it!

Cypress oil has been used for many years as a sedative which means it's super nice to use when you're stressed or tired. This oil also is the main ingredient in the fragrance, making it rich, earthy and comforting. 

Lime oil is uplifting and fresh. So yes there is a little bit of citrus in there but for me it's not very noticeable, it just helps to cut through the heavier scents. Normally I have a slight intolerance to lime but because it's a small amount diluted in a deep bath I had no problems with my skin. result!

Oakmoss works really well with the cypress. It mixes with the bright wood and makes the whole bath an experience. Like walking though the woods after rain. 

The Last oil to talk about is Rosewood,  one of my favourite oils, antiseptic and uplifting this oil is gently fragranced and elevates any fragrance blend into an all singing menagerie of goodness.  Lush gets it Rosewood from it's sLush fund, you can read an awesome article about it here. It's written by head of buying Simon Constantine so go check it out.

My favourite way to enjoy GOTF

This is a very pretty bomb decorated with a tree of life in two different shades of green which makes this ballistic stand out from the crowd.

 

GOTF in action

This product has loads of shimmer inside a secret hidden layer of yellow. as it fizzes around it releases the glitter. It's almost like dew in the grass. 

Everything about the bath bomb is emotive and exciting for me it's a really winner.

♥♥♥♥♥ 

Thank you for reading this and if you enjoyed it then you can find me on Bloglovin', instagram and youtube @lulabellemua.

Lucy x