Went
March was a quiet month for international travel. Having already taken 9 flights in the first 2 months of the year, I can’t say I was too unhappy about having a more relaxed month.
If I had to describe March in one word it would be: Sickness. And on top of this I had to struggle through the sickness whilst still working on an intense project. I spent half the month suffering with a throat infection and then just I recovered from that, the whole house went down like dominoes with the Norovirus. The sickness of March will not be missed. But in the end I was glad we didn’t have any trips planned as no one was completely well at any point in the month.
Ate
March, however, did treat me to a number of gluten free eating highlights!
At the start of March I attended a supper club hosted by the herb and spice producers, Schwartz, at a private members club in Soho. The event celebrated the launch of Schwartz’s new gluten free herb and spice mix. I was lucky to be invited to an exclusive meet before the main event in which we were introduced to representatives of Schwartz who’ve been working for 2 years to develop the mixes.
I always find these types of events utterly fascinating. Schwartz have put some real effort into producing these mixes. This includes changing supplier for cumin and setting up a dedicated production line at the factory to ensure the herbs and spices are gluten free. We were treated to a supper of huge platters of food which had been made with the various mixes.
The standouts for me were the blow your head off peppercorn sauce and the very versatile gluten free cheese sauce, both of which I’ll be buying.
Did you know Schwartz have been producing herbs and spices since 1887? Nope, me neither!
After attending another lecture as part of the Royal Academy’s Russian Revolution series, we went to Burger & Lobster for dinner. Not sure how I’ve not been here before!
No lobster will ever top the taste of the soft shell lobster I enjoyed sitting on a rickety wooden deck in Maine on a foggy night, but this meal was tasty nonetheless.
March also saw a lovely afternoon tea date at Brown’s hotel with Carly & Kelly.
I’ve posted previously on gluten free afternoon tea at Brown’s hotel but since the menu has changed, it’s time to refresh that one so it’ll be on the blog soon.
Loved
At the end of March I attended the presentation to the winners in the annual Free From Food Awards. You can read about my favourite finds and who won in this post.
Blog posts I’ve loved this month have been:
Matthew has been sharing his highlights from a road trip around California. I’ve really enjoyed reading these posts as I’ve done a similar road trip and it’s one I’d like to take the twins on, but perhaps not right now.
This blog post to the best finds in Milan (of which there are many!) is well timed for me as we’ll be heading back there in June and I’m very much looking forward to it. The post is in Italian but you can use Google Translate. I’ve enjoyed some of my favourite gluten free pizzas in Milan and I hope to go back to Be Bop where they paired wine with my pizza last time!
I really enjoy reading how visitors from other parts of the world enjoy their time in the UK and I absolutely loved Adina’s post on her trip to Scotland and the Lake District. There are some beautiful photos in this post so I highly recommend you settle down with a cup of tea and have a read! I only wish she’d managed to visit Snowdonia on this trip – I think she’d love it!
Finally, this post on gluten free dining on The Big Island of Hawaii. Another place I’ve visited previously but I would love to go back. And perhaps even persuade my sister who lives in Tokyo to meet us there…..I’m guessing that might not be too much of a hard sell…!
