Taking a well-earned rest by the fountain in the village square (Cerdanya, Catalunya).
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Competition: Win a Gaggia Baby Class Coffee Machine with Betta Living!
For those of you who love nothing more than enjoying a cup of coffee in your kitchen each morning, we’re offering you the chance to win your very own Gaggia Baby Class coffee machine - courtesy of Betta Living - worth £350.
The art of coffee making is becoming increasingly popular and having the ability to create your favourite flat white or cappuccino in the comfort of your own home is even better.
Your coffee kitchen personality
A Betta Living kitchen provides the perfect backdrop for a morning coffee; sipping a latte within the rustic charms of an arts and crafts kitchen, its romantic style and vintage themed interior making for an ideal afternoon in.
If you can’t get through the day without an espresso moment then a more contemporary setting can be found in the form of a New York style kitchen, with all the gloss and glamour of being in the city that never sleeps.
Italian heritage can be found within a Cranford charcoal and chalk mix; just like a cappuccino, this kitchen incorporates classic style with a sprinkle of modernity for a delightful weekend brunch with all the family.
Closing date: Sunday 5 July, 23.59pm
June's The Simple Things is available from all good newsagents, supermarkets and our official online store. Sold out? Download it from Apple Newsstand or subscribe now.
Moments that matter
Savouring lunch with a view – amid the clear mountain air of Switzerland’s Engadine Valley.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Moments that matter
Gazing on lush, rolling fields as they’re illuminated by warm, Tuscan sunlight.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Moments that matter
Making it to the market on time: “Fortified by a delicious breakfast, we arrived in the main square to find Provençal life laid out before us: cheeses and meats galore; piles of fresh fruit and vegetables; and cafés full of coffee and Pastis-sipping locals. It was a Monday morning like no other.”
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Turn to page 68 of May's The Simple Things for more.
Moments that matter
Making it back before sundown: “An invigorating day’s yomp in the summer sunshine led to a final, undulating stretch that was mainly downhill. Just out of sight lay our welcoming guesthouse, a glass or two of something chilled, and another tasty, home-cooked meal.”
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Moments that matter
Deliciously Danish: “Cycling along the Danish Riviera was wonderful, as were the mouthwatering open sandwiches – piled high with juicy prawns and creamy mayonnaise. One came from a simple café in Gilleleje harbour that has been in the same family for generations… absolut lækker!”
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people
Find out more on pages 74-75 of April's The Simple Things.
Moments that matter
It was an exhilarating descent, from the foothills of the Picos Mountains to the beach of La Vega on Spain’s rugged north coast. Once there, we were greeted by miles of golden sand and a beach bar selling luscious grilled sardines. A paddle in the sea was the icing on the cake.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
Moments that matter
Finding the perfect place for lunch: This morning’s walk ended in the medieval Catalan village of Santa Pau. We wandered its flower-filled streets; and, on reaching the 13th-century, arcaded square, came upon the Restaurant Cal Sastre, with a table ready and waiting. As far as lunch venues go, this was just about perfect.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
Moments that matter
Cresting the brow of a hill on two wheels... Meandering the back-roads and byways, the track carved its way gently uphill through fields of gold. Beyond the immediate horizon is nothing but a cerulean sky wisped with cloud. It’s tantalising, teasing, as we anticipate that glorious moment when, freewheeling and free, we head down the other side and into the view beyond.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
Recipe: Tea smoked trout with horseradish and yogurt sauce
Just in time for the start of the trout fishing season, and with a nice garnish of seasonal watercress, we asked Yeo Valley for their favourite February recipe.
Ingredients
10 tea bags
175g demerara sugar
175g long grain rice
4 trout fillets
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
Foil
For the Horseradish & Yogurt Sauce:
100g Yeo Valley Natural Yogurt
1 tbsp of hot horseradish
Juice of a lemon
Small sprig of dill
Method
Cut the tea bags open, shake out the tea into a bowl and discard the bags. Add the sugar and rice and mix together.
Line a deep, heavy roasting tin with silver foil.
Spread the tea mixture over the base.
Cover with either a cooling rack or another layer of foil. Place the roasting tray on top of the stove and heat up.
Once the mixture is smoking slightly place the trout on the rack or on top of the foil, skin side down. Drizzle the trout with 1 tbsp olive oil and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Cover the roasting tin tightly with foil or a tightly covered lid, and leave to smoke on the stove over a moderate heat for 15-20 mins.
Mix all ingredients for the sauce together, season to taste, then spoon over the smoked trout and serve with fresh watercress.
Thanks to Yeo Valley for the recipe.
Moments that matter
Taking time out to admire the view - Eysturoy, Faroe Islands. “After an energetic jaunt up the steep clifftop path from the tiny village of Gjógv, views opened up over the aquamarine Atlantic all around. As I collapsed to the grass to gather my breath, a lone seagull hove into view and squawked its airy hello.”
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
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Moments that matter
Wandering through the souks of Marrakesh, I savoured unfamiliar sounds and scents. Crossing a quiet courtyard, my eye was caught by a shaft of light, illuminating a tranquil figure set in the shadows, ladling bowls of aromatic soup. Exchanging smiles and a little money, I was welcomed to this oasis, frequented by Moroccan artisans. Space was made at the wooden bench and we ate.
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
Moments that matter
Squeezing out every last drop of daylight on the final cross-country ski trail of the day.
Next stop: the cosy bar at the Fefor Hotel (Norwegian Highlands).
Moments that matter… brought to you by Inntravel, the Slow Holiday people.
Fancy heading to the snow? There's still time to enter our competition to win a week-long holiday in Norway. Enter now.
Sponsored post: Five ways to make your bed cosier
Believe it or not, we spend a third of our lives sleeping and while most of us may be thinking that our 7-hours-a-day is the best we will ever get, there are some small changes that can make a big impact on the quality of your sleep.
Here are five ways to make your bed cosier.
1. Manage your sheets
Although tightly tucked sheets and blankets have long gone (replaced by the marshmallow loveliness of the duvet), sheets still have their place on the modern bed. And that place is on top of the mattress (and possibly the mattress topper, see below) not on top of you – top sheets that lie below the duvet may keep it clean but always, always, get tangled around your legs. But what sheets to choose? Thankfully the days of brushed nylon are over, replaced by easycare, no-iron cotton polyester but, really, breathable natural fibre is what you want. Cotton with a long staple such as Egyptian or Pima (grown in the US, Australia and Peru and sold under the name Supima) is considered best for strength and comfort. Sheets made from organic cotton, grown using methods and materials that have a low impact on the environment, are becoming increasingly available and worth looking out for. But linen is the queen of bedlinen. Spun from the fibres of the flax plant and repeatedly laundered in the manufacturing process,it is especially soft and becomes more so, the more it is used. It is also stronger than cotton, stays cool in summer and requires no ironing – if you are happy to live with rumpled sheets, which is part of the appeal. The downside is its price, which can be prohibitive, although H&M sells a linen double duvet cover and pillow set for £60.
Martha Stewart, who gets her bed changed almost daily(!), recommends replacing cotton and linen sheets with flannel (brushed cotton) sheets as the nights get colder. We’re with her on that, though not on the daily change thing. A word about thread counts: all bedlinen comes with a thread count. This is the number of threads per square inch or centimetre, which indicate how closely woven a fabric is. Finer threads produce smoother or softer fabric so a higher thread count is considered better quality: luxury bedlinen can have a thread count of 350 to 500 or higher. PS: Don’t even think about satin sheets.
2. Don’t ignore your pillowcases
Square pillowcases (65x65cm) have begun to appear on more beds as the ‘boutique hotel’ effect is aped by an increasing number of us. Too bulky for actual sleeping on, they are mostly decorative and sit behind the more conventional pillowcases: the Housewife, a plain fabric envelope (50x75cm), and the Oxford, which has a wide fabric border. It’s easy to forget to change pillowcases but considering the amount of time we spend with our faces pressed up against them, it’s worth doing so every couple of weeks. If you don’t, you face the grim prospect of facial oil, dead skin and residue from shampoo and general grime, clogging up both pillowcase and facial pores. A pillow protector prevents all of this besmirching the actual pillow (Marks & Spencer has some quilted ones). Some people swear that silk pillowcases make hair shinier and less static and skin less creased, and it’s certainly true that are lovely to lie against. Worth giving a go.
3. Create a pile-up
Propping pillows against the bedhead, magazine-rack style, gives the bed an extra dimension and prevents it slumping into limp student grunginess. Chuck a few cushions in front and you’re pillowscaping. Consider square pillows, too – they look good piled up in front of your regular pillows – and come with the added benefit of being a reading-in-bed prop (a bolster is also good for this). Whatever you do, avoid pulling a bedspread over the pillows unless you want the unwary to think they’ve stumbled across a dead body. Bedspreads look best folded back to frame your pillowscaping work and reveal your lovely linen sheets.
4. Chuck on a throw
A throw or blanket in a co-ordinating colour or pattern, draped over the duvet, is an easy win in the bed-styling game. Keep it folded at the foot of the bed and it will also keep toes toasty, or higher up within grabbable distance for shoulder-wrapping warmth when TV-in-bed watching.
5. Go for extras
Anyone bitten by the bedlinen bug will know that it’s hard to stop buying it, once you start. Fortunately, there are no end of options to pimp your lie-in. Mattress toppers come filled with down, cotton fibre, topped with merino wool or made from memory foam, and add a layer of softness and ease to the bed (although an old duvet makes an adequate substitute). Bedspreads and quilts are handy for dragging over everything else when bed making really is too much to contemplate, and of course they bring colour and pattern. Valances, ra-ra skirts for divan bases, are good if you like flounce and can’t bear the sight of an undisguised bed base. And finally: if you have never considered an electric blanket, now might be the time to do so: a whole world of snuggly winter warmth and luxuriant comfort awaits you.
The design and sleep experts at Hästens can advise on the best bed buys that will have you waking up bright eyed and bushy tailed every day.
Wordless Wednesday
El Golfo, Lanzarote. By Linda Lashford for Inntravel.
Wordless Wednesday
The wild and beautiful landscape of Asturias, on Spain's northern coast. Photograph: Inntravel, the Slow holiday people.
Sponsored post: September's cut flower patch planting diary
Louise Curley, author of The Cut Flower Patch, shares this month’s planting diary.
'I always think there’s something very reassuring about the cycle of gardening. As one element fades there’s another coming into its own and just as summer merges into autumn it would be easy to become melancholy about the approach of winter but the task of planting spring bulbs reminds me of the year to come.
'Bulbs might seem like a bit of an extravagance for the cut flower patch as most will only produce one flower stem, unlike your cut and come again summer flowers. But after a long winter it’s a real delight to be able to go out and pick a few bunches of your own daffodils and tulips. And now is the time to be ordering and planting your cut flower bulbs for next year.
'Plant up a patch of bulbs purely for cutting and you’ll have a much wider choice of varieties for cutting than anything you could buy from the shops. For me, scented narcissi are a must. The fragrance is incredible and you’ll only need a few stems in a jar to scent a whole room. My must-have daffodil varieties include ‘Geranium’, ‘Winston Churchill’ and ‘Grand Soleil d’Or’.
'Tulips come in so many stunning colours and forms, not just the single coloured goblets you’ll find in the supermarket. Conjure up arrangements inspired by Dutch Masters’ paintings with flamboyant Parrot tulips like ‘Rococo’ and plant double flowered varieties such as ‘Angelique’ with it peony-like blooms for dreamily romantic displays. For me, the discovery of scented tulips has been a bit of a revelation – the cream-flowered ‘Verona’ and ‘Ballerina’ with its vibrant red/orange petals and orange jelly scent are my own favourites.
'Think small too. Grape hyacinths and dwarf narcissi such as ‘Tête-à-Tête’ might produce flowers no more than 20cm tall but they look incredibly pretty in small glass jars and are perfect for edging your cut flower beds where they take up very little space.'
Louise Curley is the author of The Cut Flower Patch, published by Frances Lincoln.
Sponsored post: August's cut flower patch planting diary
Louise Curley, author of The Cut Flower Patch, shares this month’s planting diary.
'There are bountiful harvests of blooms at the moment and my home is chocked full of vases but it’s hard to ignore the sense that autumn is not far away. As this year’s cut flower patch slowly fades it’s time to start thinking of next year. There’s a short window of opportunity to have bigger, stronger plants which will be more floriferous next year. By sowing certain hardy annuals now they will germinate and form small plants which are able to withstand the winter weather. Then, when the ground warms up next spring, they will romp away. Don’t sow too early as they may be encouraged into flowering prematurely if we get a mild autumn but likewise don’t sow too late as they won’t form large enough plants to cope with winter. The optimum time is mid-August to mid September.
'You could sow direct into a dedicated patch of ground, moving plants in spring to their final planting place or you could sow into pots and overwinter in a greenhouse or cold frame. The best plants for autumn sowing include cornflowers, larkspur, calendula, nigella, ammi and euphorbia oblongata. Autumn sown cornflowers and larkspur on my own flower patch can be a third taller than spring sown plants and produce flowers 3 to 4 weeks earlier.
'There are a few things to bear in mind if you fancy a spot of autumn sowing. If you grow them under protection you’ll need to keep an eye out for fungal problems such as botrytis, a grey fluffy mould that thrives in moist conditions and low light levels. Keep plants slightly on the dry side and ventilate your greenhouse or cold frames on milder autumn and winter days, but remember not to leave them open at night. If you’re growing them directly in the ground and winter turns out to be very cold your little plants will benefit from the protection of fleece or cloches. And, just because it’s winter it doesn’t mean you can forget about those pesky slugs. Check over your plants regularly and use organic slug pellets if necessary. It might seem like a bit of effort but when you’re picking your flowers next may it will all be worth it.'
Louise Curley is the author of The Cut Flower Patch, published by Frances Lincoln.