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Friday 14 June 2013
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It was a warm sunny Sunday when I caught up with an old friend of mine, Christine in London. We strolled through the lovely St James's Park when I thought it'd be neat to get the kids (hers and mine) even more hyper than they already are by offering them a sugary treat - ice cream from one of the many kiosks there. I'm not a huge fan of ice cream but the minute I sunk my teeth into these Purbeck ice cream, it was excruciatingly difficult to NOT snatch the cone from Lil L. Thus began my love affair with Purbeck ice creams.

This is what I call proper ice cream. None of those guar gum crap (commonly used as a thickener) mixed with a truckful of sugar. It was not sickeningly sweet but made of pure divine cream and milk with real vanilla bean seeds. Let's just say I went a little nuts and googled to find the nearest stockist. I pleaded insanity and intense craving (no, I'm not pregnant) so she reluctantly agreed to deliver a batch to me. It was, hands down, the BEST ice cream that has ever passed through my lips. Be warned, there's only approximately a few thousand calories in each tub.


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I often drop by Fortnum & Mason to pick up a few English delights for friends who are visiting from overseas. I bought this apple green tea for my friend S amongst other things. She texted back a week later to say that it was beyond delicious. Well, heck, now that she'd raved about it, I had to make another trek to the posh English institution. The service is ...... how should I describe it?

1) To excel in customer service at Fortnum & Mason, one must never ever crack a smile for fear of appearing friendly. Adopt a constipated look.
2) Rule number 2, sniff and direct your nose upwards because you're an old English institution which used to only serve the aristocracy. These days, one must deal with the general riff raff in order to survive in the current economic crisis. Ah..... the agony.

Snarky commentaries aside, there are too many delights in there to mention, namely rose jelly, handmade fudge and truffles. BUT, do try the refreshing green tea with the subtle apple flavor which will tickle the fancy of most hardcore tea drinkers.

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I've read about the goodness of apple cider vinegar for years but the idea of drinking it with just a splash of warm water just kills me. Anyway, the promise of good skin and better health won me over. The American version - Braggs costs an arm and a leg so I thought it may be a better idea to support the local economy by buying a British product. Apparently, the important thing to look for is this magical "mother" enzyme blah blah blah (yes, notice my attention to detail). I bought a bottle of Bobby Apple Cider Vinegar , dropped 2 capfuls of the liquid into half a glass of lukewarm water in the morning. The oddest thing is I felt more energetic despite the lack of sleep. The skin's brighter too. The only downside of this is, the effect goes off fairly quickly if you don't keep this up everyday. Head straight over to their website here for more info.

15 comments:

  1. And now I want to go to Fortnum and Mason!
    Do you know more about your trip to Paris in August Marlene? I'll be spending a couple of days in London in August with my mom (12th-13th).

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  2. I always love finding a good ice cream. I'm currently obsessed with Nice Cream, made with coconut cream, as I've switched from being a vegetarian to vegan.

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  3. The ice-cream sounds delicious! I wish there were more products based on quality ingredients rather than the refined junk. The tea sounds so refreshing and such a nice twist to a classic. It's really nice seeing you support your community and economy as well. My belly is rumbling for ice-cream now and is that F&M fudge I see with the tea?! Such a tease....

    - Mandi
    www.findmeamuse.com

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  4. Ice-cream looks so yummy right now. It's Friday, and I want dessert. An arm and a leg - lol. Yes, very American saying.
    Beauty Fashion Skin Care Blog -Girlie Blog Seattle | Casual Chic Style

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  5. It's funny you write about ice cream today since I had my own ice cream treat a few hours ago. Ice cream is very high up in my list of indulgence, glad to see I'm not alone!
    Great picture of your lovely tea cup. Have a nice weekend Marlene! Catx

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  6. The tea sounds lovely, yeah not sure I could gag down the vinegary stuff - though I do eat a love of weird stuff according to chums.

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  7. I love ice cream, especially chocolate ice cream, so now I'm really curious to try that. I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to green tea however, so I'm not convinced about the apple flavour. I am however, intrigued by the apple cider vinegar. Now that, I may well try. Thanks for the tip. Stunning photos as always :)

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  8. Tried that ice cream once at a food festival on the Southbank. It was very good.

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  9. I'm a major tea lover and that one sounds nice. I'll have to see if it's somehow available in the states. I want to try it! :)

    xTheresa

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  10. My sis is a fan of cider vinegar and it's health benefits. She tried to turn me on to it but I haven't the stomach for it - I need to get past the smell first.

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  11. That tea sounds really nice! I hope you had a great weekend!

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  12. Uhm, as far as the vinegar goes.... If you have some problems with the skin or any health issues etc, you need to figure out the cause first as vinegar isn't a magic cure and can make certain issues worse, plus some people may be sensitive to it. Secondly, the vinegar must be organic and sold in a glass container, never - plastic and yes, it does have to have mother thingie in it - any good company will actually specify this on either the label or product description.
    The ice-cream sounds wonderful - I am very particular about mine, too. :)
    x

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  13. Honeycomb Hash is the one for me - mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm


    Fiona

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  14. I think the green tea looks great. I bought some Twinings flavoured green tea yesterday - it was on sale for £1 a box of 20. Pineapple and grapefruit and mint flavoured. So far I have had 2 cups of the pineapple and grapefruit and it is really refreshing. They have a huge range with other flavours which I am now going to seek out.

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  15. Funny how I have been to London thrice but never stepped in Fortnum & Mason. Hmmm...next time next time.

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