Freshly Squeezed

If you live a considerable distance from your family home, you miss out on certain things.

Whether it's Sunday roast, or just flopping on the sofa and watching rubbish on the telly. Since making the move across the Irish Sea, I've been looking for a juice bar to replace Elles Cafe in Galway. I even got a nutri-bullet as a present, and still couldn't properly recreate the familiar flavours.

But alas, I found one, and it was right under my nose.

Ginger & Mint, situated at the start of Park Road in Crouch End, is juice heaven. The brightly decorated café has a mish-mash of wooden furniture, pastel painted wood wall panels, and massive front windows, which makes it feel really airy.

A huge counter contains the fresh fruit and veggies, and shelves around the front of the café stock healthy snacks like Bounce Protein Balls, Proper Corn, nuts, flapjacks etc. Behind the counter, several massive blackboards boast an impressive 90 juices. If you're feeling peckish, Ginger & Mint also offer salad boxes, a choice of two different hot dishes prepared daily and served with brown rice, sandwiches and wraps, and dairy free and gluten options.

Following the success of their Covent Garden and Soho branches for over a decade, the vibrant Crouch End branch was opened in 2015.

Crouch End may have more cafés then I'm having dissertation breakdowns, and Ginger & Mint might just be off the beaten track of The Broadway, but this little café is perfect to get some of your five-a-day.

#57 on the juice list £4.15

Clucking 'ell!

London is obsessed with chicken shops. But, this January the capital got its first vegan fried chicken restaurant. Two meat eaters went to find out what all the fuss was about ...

Firstly, not only is there over 8,000 deep-fried poultry shops in London, but now we have someone who goes around and rates them too. Fried chicken isn't just a drunken post-pub cuisine or a cheap-eat for kids after school, it's an entire culture.

London is always looking for the next new thing. It's a hotspot for being the first to tap into new trends in fashion, technology and otherwise. In the last few years there has been a fitness revival, and more and more people are interested in their health and well-being - and that goes for what we are shoving in our gobs as well.

Last October, the World Health Organisation declared 50g of processed meat a day, or less than two slices of bacon, increased the chances of developing colon cancer by 18%. Whilst a bacon sarnie is not as bad as smoking, perhaps it are announcements like these along with films like Cowspiracy or Beyond the Flood, that are consequently making people give up meat?

Last May, the Guardian reported that in the last 10 years there has been a 350% increase in people deciding to eat a plant based diet, and after todays food at Temple of Hackney, it's easy to see why - vegan food packed with flavour.

The front of the vegan takeaway

Ironically situated next to a Halal butcher, the "worlds first vegan fried chicken" restaurant has a queue out the door. Arriving hungry to Morning Lane on a late Sunday afternoon, I'm slightly put off that it's not a sit down restaurant.

It's essentially a no-frills takeaway - place your order, wait and get going. What little dining furniture they do have is covered in the previous diners rubbish. But you can overlook this, as the staff are rushed off their feet, and still managing to be friendly.

After a short 15 minute wait, we find a small table outside with two stools to eat the contents within our brown doggy bag. I'm also feeling a bit dubious that my steak-loving other half is going to toss his food away on the first munch.

All this was only £21

Coleslaw and the heavenly mac & cheese

My "chicken" is crispy and has a meat-like texture, the buns are soft, the fries are perfect, the coleslaw is flavoursome and the mac & cheese is out of this world. Silence ensues, and judging by the unnoticed mayonnaise on the end of my boyfriend's nose, I think it's safe to assume he is enjoying it.

According to Hackney Gazette, Temple of Hackney owner Rebecca O'Shea used to work in KFC and had always missed her fried chicken since turning vegan a decade ago. Coming from Melbourne, she was amazed by the amount of chicken shops in the capital and a lack of vegan restaurants, and in early 2016, Rebecca set up a street-food stall in Brick Lane before launching the restaurant.

The meat-free substitute they use is called seitan, and is wheat-gluten based.

Post meal, he says: "If you were drunk, you would not know the difference."

Talking to another satisfied customer, she says: "I've travelled all the way from Canada for this."

So, if a staunch meat eater finds it a nice alternative and somebody travelling nearly 4,000 miles to try this isn't enough to convince you, I don't know what is.

Stick to your Zinger Burger, but be warned, you're missing out.

Try for yourself - 10 Morning Lane, E9 6NA

You Wanna Pizza Me?

Move over Valentines, February just got a new favourite day of the month.

For those of you not in the know, today is National Pizza Day.

Yes, that's right. Your favourite circular dish has got its own day, and rightly so - it's only be around since the bloody 10th century!

The pizza that we know and love today, first came about in Naples, Italy, with the first pizzeria being opened in 1738. From anchovies to zucchini, since its cheesy beginnings, it has gone on to inspire the many different variations that we consume around the world.

Interestingly as of 2009, pizzerias all over the world who want to make the famous "Neapolitan" pizza, will have to conform to a list of strict ingredients - and believe it or not, this is actually protected by the European Union. These Italians are so serious that there's a non-profit organisation dedicated to protect it. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana or the True Neapolitan Pizza Association has been in operation since 1984.

The recipe for a traditional and authentic Neapolitan includes San Marzano tomatoes, grown on the volcanic plains south of Mount Vesuvius, and mozzarella di bufala Campana, made with milk from water buffalo raised in the marshlands of Campania and Lazio. Genuine Neapolitan pizzas must have a raised crust and a base of no more than an eighth of an inch thick. The dough must be stretched by hand, rather than flattened with a rolling pin, and then cooked in a wood-fired oven on a stone slab.

Another slice of history with the Margherita pizza, another staple of Italian restaurants. It was first created in 1889 and named after Queen Margherita of Savoy. It is said that the Queen wanted her pizza covered in the colours of the Italian flag; Green for basil, red for the tomatoes and white for the mozzarella.

Pizza eventually made it's way to the US with Italian immigrants in the late nineteenth century and became popular again after Italian soldiers returned after WW2. In 1905, The country's first pizzeria, Lombardi's, opened. Since then, pizza has become one of America's favourite dishes, and thankfully so - they gave us deep dish and Domino's.

A pepperoni and pepper I made before

According to the American Pizza Community, there are 74,800 pizzerias in the US, of which 52% are independently owned. One in eight people in the US over the age of two eating the stuff on any given day, reported the Guardian. The National Day Calendar says that over 3 billion pizzas are sold in the USA each year - add another 1 billion on frozen pizzas.

In honour of our favourite cheesy flatbread, and if you're feeling a bit more adventurous then your standard frozen Chicago Town or local takeaway, here's my pizza recipe.

Dough

300g of flour

1 tsp of instant yeast, but I used baking powder

1tsp of salt

1 glut of olive oil

Sauce

Small carton of passata

1 tbsp of dried italian herbs

Few leaves of fresh basil

2 cloves of garlic, minced

salt and pepper

* If you have some wine, throw a splash in

Toppings and Cheese

Toppings are to your own taste

Mozzarella, preferably the balls, chops in circular slices
A handful of grated cheese
Cook for 15-17 minutes, or until the crust is golden

Lucky Dip

Have you noticed how an iPhone cover is just as much an accessory as your favourite necklace these days? It wasn't always like this.

In 2011, Skinny Dip London co-creators James, Lewis and Richard spotted a gap in the market to pimp out our bland, boring looking phones.

After winning a £120,000 investment from Peter Jones on BBC2's Dragon's Den, the trio set about carving the first steps of their brands adventure.

They spoke to product designers about making the cases a reality. Today Skinny Dip has expanded from its initial phone cover venture. They now create tablet and laptop cases, handbags, makeup bags, backpacks, purses, and makeup brushes. Items are available from £5-£45.

The Druzy 13" laptop case

I've always been a silver or gold kind of girl. However, last year my boyfriend bought me an elegant rose gold Vivienne Westwood bracelet. My first taste of Skinny Dip came when an occasion required a matching bag for said wrist accessory. It's not your average clutch - it's multi-functional. A handle is included to turn it into strap bag, or a zip down the middle which turns it into two separate bags. Talk about options!

Speaking to the Grad Diary, the three friends, who all went to Birmingham University, said they chose the name Skinny Dip because they "wanted something a bit quirky and a bit edgy. We don’t want to create a corporate image, but something a bit more fun that really reflected what we felt the brand represented, creativity and freedom".

According to Deloitte four out of five UK adults now have a smartphone, the equivalent of 37 million people. Based on this, it's hard to see the demand for these fabulous phone accessories from going anywhere but up. The Brit born brand can be found in Topshop, River Island, Debenhams, Republic, Next, Nasty Gal, ASOS and Harvey Nichols. 

Their social media channels are loud, bold and fun - just like the products.

Follow them if you haven't already!