Make! Smoky beef burgers

We made some gorgeous beef burgers with this BBQ glaze which gave them a spicy, smoky flavour. When making burgers, the quality of your mince makes a big difference, so it's always a good idea to visit your high street butcher and get your meat freshly ground if possible. Our glaze consisted of roughly 2 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tbsp honey, 1 tbsp garlic oil, 2 tsp chipotle (smoked) chilli paste, half tsp dried oregano and half tsp smoked paprika. Just mix the ingredients then use as a marinade for the burgers before frying/grilling. Serve in buns with tons of salad!

I'm linking up with Honest Mum's Tasty Tuesday, and I'm just heading over there now to have a look at all this week's lovely recipes!

What I Wore: A Saturday night out

Yayyy! We had babysitters (husband's parents) on Saturday night so we were able to head to the West End for a friend's 30th birthday night out. It was great to do some catching up with friends over a few gin and tonics. It was a pubby, not a dressy affair and here's what I wore:

Top from ASOS, jeans from New Look, bag from H&M, cuff from F21, shoes from Oasis.

Close-up details: my bag almost got pinched before I went out.

Bright lips are MAC's 'Insanely It' lipstick.

New cuff I got in Forever 21 the other day - I like their accessories!

This cocktail was a far-too-strong one ordered at the end of the night. TAXI!

I'm linking up with Transatlantic Blonde's What I Wore Wednesday :)

...and Mummy's Got Style's Fashion Friday!

Homegrown jam

Aren't homemade gifts the most lovely and heartwarming things to receive? Not to mention delicious! My sister's homemade jam is extra special because it contains the redcurrants harvested from her very own garden. I love the labels she has made too!

On family traditions and using everything

In my husband's family, there is a generations-old tradition of taking a roast chicken to each of your grown-up children every Saturday. And now when my parents-in-law visit us at the weekend, they always bring a lovely warm rotisserie chicken for us to eat. Obviously I approve of this tradition and that chicken always goes down well!

Once we've devoured most of the meat, I often boil up the chicken carcass to make stock. Throwing it out feels like such a waste and there isn't much effort involved in just leaving it to simmer away in water, plus you end up with a wonderful base you can freeze or use right away in a soup or sauce. 

After the weekend is over, and before I've done a big weekly shop, I often find myself with a fridge that is rather forlorn and bare-looking, apart from a few odds and ends that need to be used up. Today with my chicken stock at the ready, I found myself with the perfect opportunity to make my husband's favourite soup: Minestrone. A classic dish of leftovers! This one contained red and brown onions, courgettes, tinned tomatoes, the end of a bottle of red wine, a little bit of pesto, tomato puree, dried herbs and of course my tasty chicken stock. I also added some of the meat from the chicken to the soup, which made it extra-hearty. Not to forget the last strands from a packet of spaghetti, snapped into little bits. I topped it with some grated cheese (Manchego left over from our Sunday cheeseboard) and it was a good Monday night tea with some toasted crusty bread and butter. 

I really enjoy the satisfaction of making a proper meal out of leftover things! Do you have any favourite dishes that you make from leftovers?

Hannah x

I am linking up with Honest Mum's Tasty Tuesdays. Have a look at the lovely recipes over there!

A Friday in Edinburgh

Today we had an outing to Edinburgh, one of my favourite places for a day trip. We had a picnic on the meadows and frozen yoghurt from my new obsession, Frisky Froyo. I am a bit addicted! The Edinburgh Festival is getting into its swing, and Edinburgh's such a buzzing place to be in the summer. I'm linking up with Mummy's Got Style's Fashion Friday today, so here's what I wore:

Top from Bershka (Spain), skirt by Beyonce for H&M, sandals from F21, Marc by Marc Jacobs Hillier handbag, D&G sunglasses.

V wore: Hat from H&M, Shirt from Baby Gap, Shorts from M&Co, Sandals from BHS.

Click above for the link so you can check out, or even join in with the Fashion Friday fun!

Hannah xxx

Summer Refreshments

It's been a while since I had a beer! But today at The Glad Cafe we enjoyed these lovely summer editions of Brooklyn and Anchor Steam. Both very nice but I'd most likely go for the Brooklyn again - it was so refreshing. And such appealing packaging could not fail to catch my eye! Head to the Glad if you're in Glasgow for lovely drinks like this and much more. I have to note my bias towards this establishment as it's my own dear Mum's cafe ;)

Novel and nails

'The Buddha in the Attic' by Julie Otsuka has been sent to me for review thanks to the Britmums book club. It arrived this morning and I am excited to get stuck into it! On my nails today is Essie's Play Date. What are you reading right now? Do you have a pretty colour on your nails?
Hannah x