Muse, Yarm

I've recently made a conscious effort to try more restaurants in Yarm, Stockton. There are so many gorgeous-sounding trendy places to eat that I haven't had the chance to visit so I've been trying to put that right. First of all, I went to the Purple Pig and now I've visited a place just over the road called Muse.

Before arriving at Muse I hadn't heard much about it except that looking at the menus I knew the food was pretty expensive but also that it sounded appetising. I went along with my friend Danni and I was really pleased we'd chosen Muse when we walked in to find a lovely clean, open and brilliantly styled restaurant.

We both chose what we wanted to eat pretty sharpish - I went for garlic and rosemary marinated chicken whilst Danni went for smoked duck risotto. It was served with rocket on top. Whoever thinks that just rocket is a salad is out of their mind! Grinds my gears. Once I'd taken it off I tried my chicken and it was a bit strange - not really what I was expecting but not really bad. I finished off my chips and bearnaise sauce before starting to decide which dessert to have.

We both went for the same thing - I believe it was a milk chocolate and hazelnut frozen parfait with praline cream and raspberry sauce. It was very yummy! Although it was frozen some parts had started to melt and it was so creamy and chocolatey I could have eaten ten.

If you are out in Yarm, want some pretty snazzy food and are prepared to pay the prices I'd definitely recommend Muse. They also have outside seating for the summertime.

Recipe - Chicken Paella with Schwartz Flavour Shot

Recently I came across a new subscription box in which every month you get different food products. The Degustabox can contain snacks, drinks and ingredients. In the first box I received I had two types of the Schwartz Flavour Shots, one which was for a Spanish Paella. I had always thought I didn't like paella as it was made with seafood but inside the packaging was a recipe for chicken paella so I thought I'd have a go!

This recipe is Schwartz's, I've just made the effort to type it up for you!

1 Schwartz Spanish Paella Flavour Shot
1 Onion
100g (4oz) Chorizo, diced
450g (1lb) boneless chicken breasts, diced
325g (11oz) paella or risotto rice
1 litre (1 3/4 pints) water
1 red pepper, diced
100g (4oz) frozen peas

1. Prepare all your ingredients - dice the onions (or use frozen like me), the chorizo and the chicken.

2. Heat the pan and add your Schwartz Flavour Shot.

3. Add the onion and chorizo and gently fry for five minutes.

4. Add the chicken and fry for a further 2-3 minutes.

5. Add the rice, stir and fry for another minute.

6. Add the water, peppers and peas. Bring to the boil whilst stirring. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the rice is tender, stirring occasionally.

This was a lovely spicy dish which I think would have been hard to achieve without the amazing flavour shot. I hope I can use the other shot that I got which is the Italian creamy herb tagliatellle.

The Diner and a birthday cupcake

In the early days of Gingerbread Smiles, I blogged about the Diner but it’s been a while and I've had a lot of new followers since then so I thought I’d tell you about my most recent venture there. We've actually been their three times now always tending to venture there when we are down in London. Mum has become obsessed with their ribs so we had to go back for her birthday.

We went to the Diner with my friend Jess, who came down with us, her friend Gemma, from Liverpool but down with Jess for Taylor Swift, and my friend Sophie, who lives down South but I met her through our love of the Jonas Brothers and we've since kept in touch. So as you can imagine a gaggle of girls all chatting about Taylor Swift, who we've met and who we want to meet.

When we were all finally there we decided to order going straight for our main meals. Now I never go for chicken on the bone, I'm always a boneless kinda gal, but for some reason I really wanted chicken and the chicken wings appealed to me. I was very confused at myself for getting them, it was almost like an out of body experience eating them, but I actually quite enjoyed them. They were fried in a crispy batter and then sat in some sort of spicy sauce which was a bit hot but I kept eating them. They came with a blue cheese sauce which I didn't enjoy; it was very tangy and didn't seem to go. I also devoured a huge bowl of wet fries, a.k.a gravy and chips, but I left some chicken wings. I'm not an animal!

Earlier in the day at Primrose Bakery, I failed at getting a candle for mum to blow out on her birthday so my next chance was at the Diner. I had Sophie bring a cupcake and a candle, which I was very grateful for, and she handed this to the restaurant staff as she walked in. The problem came when we were paying and the cake hadn't appeared. I had to fain a need for the toilet and ask the staff WHERE IS THE CAKE? They swiftly brought out the cake and we all sang happy birthday. She was pleasantly surprised.

If you need somewhere easy and yummy to eat I would suggest the Diner. They have seven locations of which we visited the Soho one just off Carnaby Street so very accessible.

Have you been?

Chilli Cake Deli Review - Baker Street, Middlesbrough

I love eating out, probably just as much as I love cooking. It is so easy, and fun to try out new places and new foods. A few weeks back myself and Jen decided to check out Chilli Cake Deli on Baker Street in Middlesbrough.

Chilli Cake Deli is located at Zero Baker Street and sells a collection of yummy deli treats!

Jen had the grilled halloumi and giant spicy couscous salad whilst I had a sandwich called the truffle man including hot chicken, watercress & mustard mayo drizzled with truffle oil (it does come with Doreen's black pudding but I passed on that).

The place itself is very easy to find, small inside but lovely and cute. There are four stooled seating areas and one sofa area with the deli counter at the back of the room. You can see the kitchen over the deli which is a nice touch.

We ordered our food and sat down and they brought our food and drink to the table. I thoroughly enjoyed my sandwich and I believe Jen really liked her salad too.

I don't really have a bad word to say about this place as they have a quaint location, lovely staff and a great selection of food. If you fancy some lunch in Middlesbrough then I would suggest trying out the Chilli Cake Deli!

Have you been before?