Notice

Just a quick note to keep you updated - English Girl is no longer in BC, I graduated in May and moved back to the UK and therefore I felt that I should move on from this blog as well. I won't delete it, this is a great (if a little patchy) memento of my time at college, however I won't be updating anymore. I'm very grateful to everyone who visited my blog, I hope you enjoyed it!
This isn't the end of my blogging attempts, however. I have made a fresh start somewhere else! If you feel like checking out my new project, you can find me at jumakesandbakes.wordpress.com.
 I hope to see you there xxx

Even more music!

Another quick little Bat For Lashes and Bellowhead update - both have tracks streaming on the Guardian website. I've been listening to them almost non-stop for the past couple of days!

Bat For Lashes is here

Bellowhead is here

A Quick Recommendation

Just a quick post to bring your attention to a bit of lovely music! My favourite radio station, BBC 6Music, have been having a week of live sessions at Maida Vale. Today they had one of my absolute favourite artists, Bat For Lashes, performing. To my immense pleasure, I have just discovered that as well as the audio session on the Lauren Laverne show, (which I listen to on the iPlayer very often) there is also a programme that was shown on the red button on TV. The big news is, that programme is available to watch outside of the UK for once!
The programme can be found here http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00z9tp2, and I thoroughly recommend watching it! There are other sessions available from earlier in the week too, and more coming up - I'm particularly looking forward to Primal Scream on Friday!

UPDATE
I've found another nice bit of music  - performances from Bestival can be watched here http://www.beatclash.com/bestival/ from many bands, including a set from one of my favourites, Bellowhead!

University Life

Just wanted to show you that I do actually do work and go to class, I'm not always procrastinating!
My favourite class this year, and of my whole university experience (yes I know this only 3 weeks in) is Ornithology. I was worried for a while that I wouldn't get on the course, which, as anyone who knows me can guess, was rather stressful. You see, I love birds. Birds are my "thing". The subject I can bore my friends to death with. So, any class where I get to do this:

is a total winner as far as I'm concerned! This was taken in my lab this week, when we went to the botanic gardens where someone was banding as part of a research project. We took advantage of her mist nets and got to handle some birds! That one in the picture is a black-capped chickadee. The labs alternate between indoor sessions that use the museum specimens to help us learn the different taxa, and trips to spots close to campus for birdwatching. Perfect.

Ginger Cake

You know how whenever they interview chefs they ask them about their guilty pleasures? You know, the processed or pre-prepared foods they aren't supposed to like, but secretly love? Things like ketchup or baked beans. Well, if you were to ask me that question, there would be far too many to mention, but near the top of the list would definitely be Jamaica ginger cake and Bird's custard.

food of the gods

It ain't classy, but then neither am I! Unfortunately I have never seen it here. I expect you could buy it in a special shop for some extortionate price, but that isn't my style. So you can imagine I was intrigued when I came across this recipe that claimed to turn out like the packaged version. It is also vegan, if that matters to you.

So, I made it! I made it without a food processor, because we don't have one, and just mixed it with a wooden spoon. Even so, it took no time at all to throw together. The batter was a very strange texture, thanks mostly to the lack of eggs and the hot water, I think. I ended up cooking it for longer than the recipe said because I made it in a loaf tin.

Never mind that though, how did it taste? Really good. It tastes just like a ginger cake should - moist, dense, caramelly and warming - but with the (delicious) addition of a chewy, crispy crust.  I had it warm (with custard of course) last night and cold today, and I think it improves with age.

 In less than 24 hours, the 3 of us have managed to eat over half of it. I think this is a good sign!

Here's the recipe again: Easy Peasy Ginger Cake