Sweet potato fries are one of my all time favourites, and whenever I go to the states I can't get enough. I don't know why the Sweet Potato isn't something we use much in the UK when it is so tasty and better for you than a regular potato.

1 baked sweet potato has your daily intake of vitamin A... so remember that next time you are out shopping.

Ingredients:

* Sweet Potato (at least one per person)

* Olive Oil

* Salt (optional)

Method:

* Peel the potato and slice into slices/chunks.

* Line a baking sheet with foil and lay out your slices of sweet potato

* Drizzle in olive oil and place in a pre-heated oven (200 Degrees)

* Bake for 10-15 minutes on each side. Leave for a further 10-15 minutes or until golden. 

* Serve on a place and add salt if needed.

I love this as a snack, and due to their great vitamin A content, and that they are a complex carbohydrate, means you can pretty much eat these guilt free (although the salt is going to make them slightly less ok, so hold back on the salt if possible).

Enjoy!

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Over the years I have often had many questions about becoming a blogger. The internet makes it so easy for you to have your say, document something and share your world with others.

As humans we're naturally interested in what other people are doing and the blogosphere is a great way to read about new topics, share others lives and get ideas to implement into your own life, whether it be a thought, a quote, a recipe or a DIY project.

I've put together a list of questions people have asked me over my years of being a blogger (and in the periods where I have taken time off) and I hope they will help someone, and inspire you to sit at your computer and start your own blog.

1. Why did you decide to become a blogger?

This is the most asked question, from people online and offline. I decided to become a blogger way back in 2006, it was the next logical step for me having spent a few years running and co-running forums, and meeting some wonderful friends, and getting engaged in good discussions. 

I had been online, reading blogs, viewing videos on youtube and decided that I wanted to start my very own beauty blog. It was slow going at first, social media wasn't what it is now, and soon enough my first blog "Beauty & the Make up Bag" was born. Soon enough I started getting regular views and comments, and the buzz kept me pushing for more. 

2. What was it like running a beauty blog?

My blog, Beauty Chic, was one of the hardest yet exciting times in blogging. After serveral years of running Beauty & the Make up bag I was finding it a challenge to blog, work full time and run a home, so I joined forces with my wonderful friend Ellie (from Ellie Squared) and Beauty Chic was born. It was easier with us both posting, 2 brains are always better than one.

3. How did you make a blog a success?

Now that is the million pound question. I firmly believe a good blog is friendly and approachable, makes you feel welcome, intrigued and desperate for more. But also, it doesn't have to be something you visit every day, every week or even every month. Its something thats there, and you can pop in and out when you are free.

I was lucky with Beauty Chic, we had an amazing run with an incredible amount of support; 2.4 Million hits, 56,000 unique views and over 15,000 subscribers. The support for Beauty Chic and the interact was amazing. It was a brilliant time of my life, but as all good things it had to come to an end.

4. Why did you stop blogging about Beauty?

The honest answer? I had nothing left to say. Don't get me wrong, I love beauty products and fashion and everything inbetween, but I started finding it hard to blog about it all the time. I wanted more variety and I wanted to be able to write about things I wanted to write about outside the niche, I wanted to write about things I was passionate about.

I also wanted a break, I had been blogging since 2006 (Its was 2012 by this point) and I needed some time off to relax and recuperate. We both needed time off, had our offline lives to focus on and things to be getting on with.

As you can see, Beauty Chic was incredibly successful, but for us, it was time to let it go.

5. How can I make my blog a success?

The honest answer is really hard work. You start from nowhere and you have to just keep going, even when it feels like you're just writing to yourself, keep going. Its not easy and you'll feel like giving up. Don't! If you work hard, persevere and keep producing top notch content it will all come good.

If you have a blog and are looking for exposure, why don't you join the Love, Amybecca Bloghop, you might even find some great new blogs to follow too.

6. What was it like starting over?

Starting over was exciting. I had nothing, no readership, no followers, nothing, but I was still excited to be back blogging and writing about what I wanted. It wasn't something I was used to having built up beauty chic into a successful blog with a strong readership. 

This blog is my baby, I love the freedom I have to blog about whatever I want, from crafts to food recipes, controversial topics to lipsticks. If I want to blog about it, I can.

Starting from the bottom isn't easy, and all the hard work from Beauty Chic is flooding back. But I love it, if you ever see me out and about, the minute I sit down I will either be writing blog posts in my notebook or tweeting my latest article.

I have never felt more alive with my blogging and never so excited about the future.

7. How has your blogging changed over the years?

I think its been a natural progression as I have grown up. I started blogging fresh out of University, a young women with no idea about the world. Now I like to think in 7 years I am slightly older and a bit more wise, and I think that is reflected in my writing.

My life is also a lot different than it was, I am getting older and my own perceptions of my own life have changed. Things that were important to me when I was 21 no longer are, and in their place others have grown. Its exciting, as I feel like I am right at the very beginning of a new chapter.

8. Is it hard work?

Yes, incredibly hard work in the sense that if you're anything like me 99.9% of your time your mind is on your blog. Its frustrating being at work and having great ideas and not being able to get them down. Like I said earlier, blogging is hard work but equally its rewarding. And its so rewarding you don't even realise you're working hard because you love it so much.

9. What would you say is the hardest part about blogging?

Writers Block. No joke, or maybe we should call it Bloggers block. If you're a blogger you have been there, you're sitting infront of your computer, new post page layed out before you..but its blank. You sort of have a title and you vaguely know where you want the post to go, but nothing comes out. Also, I work my day job, co-run a craft business & blog (so yes, even more blogging!) so sometimes getting the time is tough.

10. Where do you see your blog in the future?

I just want to keep doing what I am doing, build up the blog, network, meet new people and if I can be even half as successful as Beauty Chic was, then I will be a very happy woman.

Thanks for taking the time to read this blog post. If you have any questions, tweet me @LoveAmybecca or leave me a comment and maybe your question will be featured next time :)

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Hey folks!

How are we all on this lovely Bank Holiday?

Today's blog post is going to be all about my own personal fitness routine, and how I keep as fit as I can. I am not an expert, not even close, this is just the way I like to look after myself.

I will start by saying that I am not a fan of exercise, and I don't buy into the whole muscle image. All I want is to be healthy and enjoy some level of fitness.

So, what do I do to keep healthy & fit?

Firstly, lets start with fitness!

I don't know if I exercise enough, but its enough for me (considering I bloody dislike it) and I agree with the train of thought that some is better than none.

Skipping
Every day (mostly) when I come home from work I skip using a jump rope in the garden, I usually do between 50-100 jumps using the forward motion and then 50-100 using the backwards motion. I love skipping, it is so easy to do, cheap (all you need to do is pay out for the cost of the rope) and is an absolutely brilliant all over work out, sculpting your arms, legs, shoulders and chest, as well as being a great cardiovascular exercise, therefore helping you keep your heart healthy. Its a workout that is so easy, and the fitter you get the more you can increase your routine. I usually do mine as soon as I get home from work and do my jumps before dinner, and you certainly feel like you've had a workout once you have finished this one!

Cycling
I will be the first to admit that this is my spring - autumn activity, I do not cycle in Winter. I finish work at 6pm and its too dark throughout Winter to come home and cycle. I love to cycle along the river and its not really a place I fancy cycling in the darkness of Winter. Also, its too bloomin' cold out on the bike in Winter ;) Cycling is great for people who can't take part in high impact work outs, is great for lower body fitness and great to help keep your heart healthy. Also, if weight loss is what you are after it is a great way to burn those calories.

Walking
I think a lot of people underestimate the power of walking. Its free, its easy, and a brilliant way to keep fit. I walk all year round, and will often opt to walk (if time permits) rather than using the car. I also love to walk down along the river where I live, and walk a few towns along and then back again. This is brilliant all year round and is a brilliant. Although it might feel like you're not overly exerting yourself, walking is great for your cardiovascular fitness, therefore helping your heart stay healthy.

Wii Fit
Not really a normal form of exercise but I do around 1-2 hours a week on the Wii Fit. Me and mum do it together and its a great way to get a bit of exercise and also have a bit of fun at the same time. I try and mix up the routine a bit, we do the long running, all the aerobic exercises, the push ups & side stands, rowing squats and many of the yoga exercises.

Ballet
I am a long time Ballerina, I started when I was 18 months old and have pretty much danced my entire life, although I officially left my dance school in my teens, I went back again at 19 and danced into my 20s. I don't go to classes now, but thats only because after so many years of Ballet I find the classes are all aimed at beginners and as enjoyable as it is, there is no progression there. So I do what I can from home. I have the New York Ballet School exercise DVDs which are wonderful no matter what level you are. I also have enough experience to do Ballet exercises by myself at home. I am lucky, that I started so young and danced doing Ballet, Jazz, Tap and Modern well into my teens, so I developed that body shape easily from a young age, and because of that I carry myself like a dancer would. Its more difficult the older you start, not to mention the dances and exercises are difficult, and going en pointe is very difficult for a ballerina starting even as late as there teens. But it can be done.

I love Ballet, and I only gave it up because I went to a very good dance school and the choice became be a dancer or focus on your education (not that they said that but classes became too much), and I decided to focus on my education.


Secondly, lets move onto eating healthy!

Eating healthy is one of the things I try and do. I love food, I love cooking and I love making things. That being said, just because you love food doesn't mean you can't be healthy with it.

First off, I am Lactose intolerant so I cannot tolerate cows milk at all, however I am getting better at working out my diet and what I can and can't tolerate - up until now I had cut out cows milk completely but now I am seeing what I can and can't eat by reintroducing into my diet. I have no problem with

(FYI: an intolerance is different to an allergy. An intolerance is something that can over time go away or be managed - so for me I can tolerate some lactose in my diet, but not as much as you get from Cows Milk or Cheese. However an allergy is something that is a lot more serious.)

Getting my 5-a-day

One of the most important parts of my day is trying to get my five a day. Its not always easy to get in your five a day, especially if you aren't really a huge fruit and vegetable fan. I generally sit on the fence when its to do with fruit & veg, I don't dislike it, however I can always find something more exciting to eat, therefore I have to make a conscious effort to make sure I get my 5 a day, or more if possible.

I usually have one portion by having a big glass of orange juice in the morning, or if not, sometime throughout the day.

Sometimes I pick up another 2-3 portions from having a smoothie, but that isn't something I do every day.

I also have around 2 portions a day in in vegetables.

In the afternoon at work I always snack on a banana and either a plum or nectarine.

In the evening I usually snack on 1-2 Medjool Dates - and the wonderful benefits of dates cannot be argued. If you're interested, take a look at this article: Why dates are good for you!

As you can see, depending on the day I usually vary between 5-8 portions of fruit & veg per day.

Saturated fat - Keeping it low

I am a complete sucker for checking what is in my food, and wanting to know just what level of saturated fat is in something. I went on a course learning about blood not too long ago (for work), and that coupled with wanting to learn more about my diet, has made me really look into what I am eating. I try and keep the levels of saturated fat in my food down as low as possible, but as with everything, you do need some fat in your diet.

No takeaways - not a fan anyway

This one isn't too difficult for me, as I am not a takeaway kind of person. I can't have pizza because of the cheese, I only used to like the cream based curry's from the Indian so they are now out due to my lactose intolerance. I don't like Chinese, Mcdonalds, KFC or any of those other dreadful fast food chains, so that keeps me on the straight and narrow.

Sugary foods

I don't really consider sugary foods to be a big deal for me, I don't really have a sweet tooth, and although its sometimes difficult to stop snacking on sugary treats at work (so I've replaced that with fruit now - so its a little healthier for me), I don't really ever have sweet stuff.

Everything in moderation & a varied diet

At the end of the day, for me, what it comes down to is eating in moderation and making sure I have a healthy and varied diet. I don't avoid any particular food group. I am not trying to loose weight, I just want to be healthier. So I make sure my meals contain everything I need to keep myself healthy.

And last but not least - A Healthy Mind!

Fun

Make sure you have fun. Take some time out, listen to your favourite music, play your favourite game, laugh with your friends/family/spouse. 

Meditation & Exercise

A form of meditation and/or exercise helps pave a way to a healthy mind. Pilates and Yoga are brilliant forms of exercise which is great for both mind and body.

Social

Taking some time with your friends/family/spouse can really help you stay social and keep a healthy mind.

I hope you enjoyed this blog post. I am not a professional and everything written in this post is just my routine, nothing more.

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Last weekend, me and my boyfriend, made this scrumptious Vegetarian dinner and I wanted to share the recipe with you. We got a few ideas off the internet and then cobbled this together ourselves to make our own yummy dinner.

Flatbread

For the flat bread, we used the bread maker to make it from scratch.

• 1 1/2 C. warm water
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbs. sugar
• 4 C. flour
• 1 1/2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 tsp. yeast

This recipe makes kind of a lot of dough, we only really needed half the amount for this dinner, and the bread maker only just managed to fit this in (remember to account for the fact that it needs to rise!) so I would definitely half this recipe unless you have a BIG bread maker. 

Add the ingredients to the bread maker in the order you see above, and put it on the dough setting. Then go away and let it cook.

When the dough is ready, sprinkle some flour on the kitchen worktop and roll the dough into a long strip (think french bread) and cut into 9 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and then using a rolling pin roll out into small circles.

Pop in the oven and cook on each side for a few minutes. Do not overcook or your flatbread will become very hard and impossible to use as a wrap.

Halloumi & Pepper

First, start with the Halloumi. Cut into thick slices, place in an ovenproof dish and sprinkle Oregano over the top. 

Bake at 200 degrees until browned. 

Turn over and sprinkle Oregano on the other side and again, bake until brown. 

Using a Red Pepper and an Orange Pepper place in oven at 200 degrees until roasted, and skin pulls away easily.

Remove from oven and gently remove skin.

Remove stalk and seeds and chop into small pieces. 

Slice the Aubergine long way and place on baking tray.

Lightly drizzle some extra virgin olive oil over the slices and season with a sprinkle of salt.

Roast both sides in the over at 200 degrees until cooked.

Remove from oven and cut into squares. 

Greek Salad

For the Greek Salad, mix the follow ingredients in a bowl.

• Cos Lettuce
• Vine Tomatoes
• Olives
• Sweet Orange Pepper
• Crumbled Feta Cheese
• Sliced Onion

Place everything on the table on plates or bowls and invite the guests to choose what they want and make up their own wraps.

They are absolutely delicious!

If you do make this recipe, do let me know, I would love to hear from you!

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For a long time I have suffered with what we termed in our house as 'a dodgy stomach'. It all seemed to come about when I was about 19 years old and after a heavy bout (and also my first bout) of food poisoning.

It came on due to a particularly dodgy meal at Wagamama's, it involved chicken and it made me very poorly for the best part of a week. Ever since then I had numerous problems with food and my tummy. I couldn't eat chicken at all for about 3 years, and despite trips to the doctors they assured me that Chicken was not an intolerance people had.

After many years of having stomach problems when eating and not really being able to pin it down to anything in particular, I decided to go and get it sorted. And soon enough it was found out I have an intolerance to dairy, or more importantly a lactose intolerance.

The NHS give this definition of lactose:

Lactose intolerance is a common digestive problem where the body is unable to digest lactose, a type of sugar mainly found in milk and dairy products.

You can find out more about Lactose Intolerance here: NHS Choices: Lactose Intolerance

For me, I lived for Dairy. I've never been much of a milk fan in that I wouldn't drink a glass of milk, but I would often make a milkshake. But more importantly for me was I LOVED cheese. I could not imagine not being able to eat my beloved cheese again. How crappy!

For a while I cheated, and I cheated a lot. I would still eat cheese, although not as frequently, but I would do it. I was avoiding milk but I wasn't always avoiding puddings and cheese. And even still choosing the creamy curries I like when I was going out for a meal.

I soon realised (and after being told off by my mum and boyfriend for cheating) that I really needed to be sensible about it. A good friend who also suffers from food allergies told me that soon enough I would get used to it. She was right.

At first it seemed like a massive change, and it was. Milk is in everything, even things you never expect milk to be in, there it is. Obviously cows milk is off full stop (and having read up on cows milk, that's not a big loss, but that is for another blog!) and cheese is off too (Sadface!). But with a few changes my diet changed, Almond Milk instead of cows milk, Lactose free cheese instead of regular cheese. Puddings are largely off, but Tesco do a dairy free pudding and I also have some vegan ice cream.

Now I don't miss things. I don't miss chocolate at all because I've never really been a fan and largely I am not bothered about pudding (and I have lactose free yogurts). I absolutely love Almond milk and really like the health benefits it gives too. I think even if I could have cows milk I would still opt for Almond milk. Cheese wise I miss cheddar a little bit but now not having it for so long that when I sneak a slice every now and then I find it too rich. I eat Lactose free cheese now, which is lovely especially when its melted! Yum!

Lactose intolerance can come in many forms, I, for example, can tolerate goats milk and ewes milk, and cheese that is made using these (such as feta!).

If you think you might have Lactose intolerance, or any food allergy/intolerance, the best thing you can do is go to your GP and get tested and not try the exclusion diet on your own.

Its big dietary change and it seems like you will never get used to it, but you do and one day you'll realise you no longer miss the things you once thought you wouldn't be able to live without.
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A few weekends ago I had the great honour of not only attending a beautiful wedding but doing so as a bridesmaid. It was the most wonderful of days, the weather played nice for once and the wedding was beautiful and a true representation of the happy couple, their beautiful children and their wonderful life together.

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How can I host my own Tea Party?

So you liked the look of my tea party and want to host one of your own, but don’t know how?

Trust me, its really very easy!

Firstly, decoration!

Decide where you’re going to hold your tea party, if its a nice day and held during the summer season you might want to consider holding it outside, under and gazebo or just inside at your dining table. Wherever you decide to hold it, table decoration is key. Lay out a nice table cloth, I used a pink table cloth and then laid a lace table cloth over the top. I then got out our chintzy table mats to match the theme of the event.

We gave every guest a tea plate (For their sandwiches and cakes), a cup & saucer (for their tea), a knife (primarily for their scones, and spreading the clotted cream & jam), a cake fork (for their cakes, obviously!) and a napkin, which was also in a chintzy pattern.

On the table we had our cupcake stand, the sandwich stand, a selection of teas, sugar pots, milk in jugs, a plate for the scones, mini pots of jam and some clotted cream in tiny pots.

As a little extra we scattered a little confetti over the table.

Next, The Food!

Lets face it, the food is the main reason for the afternoon tea, and while the pretty looking table certainly helps, the food is the place where you can really shine.

The sandwiches should be small, dainty and not overfilled. They should be small enough to eat in 2-3 bites.

What you fill them with is totally up to you, try and cater for everyones tastes. Here are a few suggestions:

·         Cream Cheese & Cucumber

·         Salmon

·         Egg Mayonaise (with or without cress)

·         Chicken Salad

·         Ham (with or without Mustard)

·         Tuna

One suggestion I do have for the sandwiches is make sure you don’t have too many fillings if you have just a small group. A big group would be fine for all six fillings, but with a smaller group maybe just pick 4 out of those six.

The scones were an idea I came up with to incorporate a West Country tea with an Afternoon Tea (I am half a West Country girl afterall), and of course we had to serve them with a selection of jams and clotted cream, just to get that real Cream Tea vibe.

Now, to Dessert!

Mmmm, my favourite part!

For dessert, as tempting as it may be, don’t go overboard with the options. I decided I largely wanted cupcakes, and then one other main cake. So we had two types of cupcakes (Lemon and Toffee Apple) and then for the large cake we had a beautiful Red Velvet cake. We also had a chocolate pudding which was made for those with wheat and gluten intolerance.

The look of your cupcakes and the way you display them will really add to the look of the table.

There are so many different types of cupcakes that you really can pick a few flavours which you know will go down well.

The Tea!

The tea we offered was a selection, and my best advice is to buy the Twinnings selection box. If you buy the boxes of tea individually the cost can really soar, but Twinnings do a selection box of 5 different teas (Assam, Lady Grey, Earl Grey, Ceylon and English Breakfast) and you get 5 of each, and that is more than enough for a small tea party, and gives everyone a varied choice.

Also I put little jugs of milk and little sugar pots on the table.

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Continuing with the theme of Tea parties this week, I thought I would give you an inside look into our Jubilee tea party.

We decided fairly early on in the year that we would have a proper English Afternoon Tea party for the Queens Diamond Jubilee, it seemed like the right thing to do.

I made these little signs to sit on the plates with the tea bags. We served English Breakfast, Assam and Ceylon teas at our tea party.

I got creative and made these little Union Jack flag signs for various things at the tea party.

Our little sugar pots

 

Getting in the spirit with the napkins and the plates.

Part of our garden all laid out for the tea party.

The selection of teas, including another small selection.

We had lots of fun with some Royal Family masks that one of our guests bought round.

Our finger sandwiches.

Sandwiches for our younger guests.

More finger sandwiches.

A jam jar candle holder I made for the tea party.

Love, Amybecca x

(P.S. Stay tuned later this week for a blog post on how to host your own tea party)

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In February this year I turned 27, and rather than the usual birthday antics (a meal and then drinks) this year I wanted to try something a little bit different with just my closest girls. So after umming and ahhing about what exactly I was going to do, I settled on the idea of a cutesy tea party for me and the girls.

Planning was easy, and my best friend offered to help with the cake making (her cakes look & taste amazing – and I for one totally think she should set up her own mini business!) which helped me out massively! I decided Tea would be served at 3pm, with finger sandwiches, cups of tea (in cups & saucers), then scones with jam and clotted cream, and then the gorgeous cakes for pudding.

I took many pictures on the day, so I am going to share them below!

Its not easy to prepare a tea party, even for just a small number of guests!

One of our many stands, this V&A collection stand was used for our finger sandwiches.

We all had gorgeous cups and saucers to drink our tea from.

Every guest had a beautiful napkin within a napkin ring.

Each guests place setting; a tea plate, cup & saucer, napkin in napkin ring, tea spoon, knife and cake fork.

Mum took care of the table arranging, and I think you’ll agree that it looks pretty stunning.

These were the scones that we served, they are a Weight Watchers recipe that my mum found, and they are a very small and cute sized and they taste delicious. Perfect for a tea party.

 Here is a selection of Jam we served, with clotted cream (tut tut) on our weight watchers scones.

We offered our guests a selection of teas.

We served finger sandwiches, with a few different fillings, on white and brown bread. We also had a small selection (you can see in the background) of sandwiches made with wheat, gluten and dairy free bread, for those in the group with allergies and intolerance’s.

These are the beautiful cupcakes which were made by my best friend. The top ones with the sprinkles were lemon flavoured, and the bottom ones were toffee apple flavoured. Both were absolutely amazing, but I think my favourite ones were the toffee apple ones.

My best friend also made this gorgeous red velvet cake.

Love, Amybecca x

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