having a whale of a time

So, this is the first of those, ahem, weekly travel posts I loosely you promised a while ago :P apologies for the tardiness - I've been really busy the last while baking spelt scones, writing scenes for a panto and most recently, watching some of my classmates get half-naked on stage while wearing nipple tassles. But that's a story for another day ;)

Earlier in the blog I shared a picture of the moon that I took during my trip to Mexico in summer 2013. I spent four weeks in the Sian Ka'an biosphere reserve, located just south of Tulum, monitoring coral as part of a marine conservation project. The Sian Ka'an reserve includes a section of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef.

I'm just HOOKED on diving...

All going well, we dived 8 or 9 times during the week, with weekends free to travel to local sites and cities. I could probably dedicate a whole blog to stories and photos from this trip - from diving with sting rays, barracudas, turtles and more, to guzzling tacos, to partying in Playa del Carmen (an excellent place to celebrate your 21st birthday, I'll have you know) - but for now, I'm just going to concentrate on one stand-out experience that remains to this day unlike anything else I've done.

Shark-diving was never something that had featured prominently on my extensive and ever-growing bucket-list. It wasn't that I found the idea daunting, or that I'd decided I wouldn't do it under any circumstances - the idea of being lowered into the sea in a confined space, unable to swim around, just didn't particularly appeal to me. So when fellow volunteers at Pez Maya (our camp in the Sian Ka'an) started recommending a trip to Cancun to dive with whale sharks, I was hesitant at first. However, they recounted a very different tale to what I had imagined. No cages, no barriers, but instead, the opportunity to actually dive in and swim freely alongside these amazing, colossal fish - I was sold. Jaws, here I come. 

The waters off Cancun play host to migrating whale sharks from mid-May to mid-September. Myself and another volunteer, Ali, went swimming with the sharks on our last weekend in Mexico. We booked with a company in Playa, and on the morning of the trip, travelled from there to the port in Cancun, where many tour companies convened to have breakfast, distribute life-jackets and rent out wetsuits. There were underwater disposable cameras for sale or Go Pros for rent, which usually I would dismiss as money-making gimmicks - however, this is one occasion when it's worth spending the money. You're deFINitely going to want pictures of this. Luckily, we were already equipped with a Go Pro, on loan from a fabulous Pez Maya buddy :)

It was a one and a half hour bumpy boat ride from the shore to where we would find the sharks, during which our anticipation and excitement continued to grow. The same could not be said for the grumpy German girl sitting across from us, whose face suggested that each bump drove the figurative stick further up her - ;) 

We were rEELly excited..

So it was to her relief and our delight that we arrived at the whale sharks' feeding area and joined the throng of boats already there. The 8 of us on our boat were divided up into 4 pairs, each pair having three opportunities to swim with the sharks. Our Mexican instructor fired off some rapid instructions - "Go when I say go swim ahead of de shark don't touch de shark don't get hit by de tail ees very painful" - wait, sorry; what was that last one?! "Ok, go go GO!"

I don't think I will ever forget that first moment when I stuck my head under the water and saw this 25-foot creature advancing towards me, its gargantuan mouth wide open and ready to swallow me up. The National Geographic profile on whale sharks comments on how "the beast.. passively filters everything in its path" - I still believe that if I hadn't gotten out of the way, that shark would have just gone on swimming and obliviously sucked me into its depths.

I'd ROD-ther not be eaten, thanks.

It was absolutely exhilarating. Our instructor would tell us where and when to look, and we would stick our heads under and fin furiously in an attempt to stay alongside these gentle giants. More than once I had to scramble to avoid being hit by a massive tail sailing serenely in my direction.. 

I'm not CODding you, I was struggling to keep up..

Ali and I couldn't resist swimming as close as possible to them, snapping away with the Go Pro at all times of course - here you can see the shark feeding on some small fish, and below you can see two remoras hitching a ride on his back!

If you need an idea of SCALE, there's me up in the corner - 

these guys are roughly the size of a bus!

We ended up getting to swim with them four times - grumpy German girl didn't want to take her last go, surprise surprise - and still it wasn't enough. It was surreal to be so close to such a huge creature, and for it to be completely unphased by our presence. If you ever need to be reminded of your insignificance in the world, I can assure you a whale shark is the creature to do it ;)

The boat ride back to the shore - and the rest of the day, for that matter - was spent reliving every second we'd spent in the water - they were "actually so big like" ;) It truely was an unforgettable affair and something I would recommend to anyone (bar maybe those with a fear of fish. I don't think any of you ichthyophobics out there would be too keen on it). The SOLE problem I had with it, much like a safari in Africa, was the potential disturbance casued to wild creatures by the sheer volume of tourists and the noise of the vehicles. It's hard to believe that this doesn't bother the sharks in some way - how great of a disturbance this is, I'm not sure. If you do ever find yourself in Cancun though, and you decide to swim with the whale sharks, make sure to do 3 things; 

1. Rent a Go Pro.

2. Get on the boat with the crabby European lady, in the hope that you can steal one of her turns later. And

3. Remember the phrase "passively filters". Ain't nobody want to end up like Jonah.  

(PS - I hope y'all noticed my none-too-subtle fish puns dotted throughout this post ;P )

spelt for choice :-)

I headed down to Athlone this weekend to visit my parents and avail of some lovely home comforts - the fireplace, the fridge, the fully-functioning shower.. One of my favourite things to do at home though is to take advantage of my mother's well-stocked cupboards and proper kitchen equipment - things our student house is definitely lacking - to bake and cook!

I'd planned on making coconut scones this weekend, after tasting a delicious one in Le Petit Parisien during the week. When I opened the press to get out my ingredients, an unfamiliar bag caught my eye. Wholewheat spelt flour. Hmm. I'd heard of spelt flour but had never used it in baking before. So I decided to experiment!

This is the flour I used - available in Holland and Barrett for €3.99!

I didn't have a recipe for these, so I was a bit nervy about how they'd turn out - but they got a warm reception from my trusted tasters :) Using frozen fruit does means they don't rise as much as other scones, so just have your oven really hot and don't have your mix too wet. 

Wholewheat spelt coconut and raspberry scones

Slurp.

Ingredients
- 200g wholewheat spelt flour
- 140g self-raising flour (***originally I said white flour and 1 tsp baking powder, but after further experimenting, I decided self-raising is the way to go!)
- pinch of salt
- 50g caster sugar
- 50g dessicated coconut
- 150g butter (I use Flora)
- a handful of frozen raspberries (or fresh blueberries)
- 1 egg, beaten
- 120ml buttermilk

Method
1. Preheat oven to 220 degrees. Sift your flours and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add the coconut.
2. Stir in the sugar.
3. Add in the butter and using your fingertips, rub it into the flour until the mix resembles dry breadcrumbs. As always, handle as little as possible!
4. Add the raspberries
5. Pour in the buttermilk and egg, retaining a little bit of the mix for a glaze. 
6. Bring everything together with your hand.
7. Flour a work surface. Turn the mixture out onto your surface and roll it out to a 4-5cm thickness. Using a scone cutter, cut out your scones and place on a floured baking tray. Brush the tops with your remaining egg-mix.
8. Bake for 15-20mins, until golden-brown.  

a turkey's not just for christmas..

I've always been a huge fan of meatballs, even in my highchair days.

Who needs a fork when you've got hands? Now, pas-ta garlic bread..

During my school years, one of the best answers I could receive to the question of "What's for dinner today?" was "Mamma mia, it'sa meatball day!". (The Dolmios of Athlone, we were known as. ;) )   

One day I came home to find meatballs already on the table, nestled in a steaming swirl of spaghetti and doused in a rich, glistening tomato sauce, with a dusting of fresh parmesan on top. I was salivating before my schoolbag had slipped from my shoulders.

I approached the dinner table with the gusto of a hungry heifer hurtling her way to the trough - but then I stopped. Something was awry. These were not normal meatballs. They smelt different. They were pale. And when I finally worked up the courage to sever a small morsel away with my fork and eat it, they tasted nothing like the succulent beef I had expected. 

I was confused. Disorientated. I almost felt betrayed. But I kept eating, and soon I began to enjoy this alien alimentary affair. Really enjoy it. Before I knew it, my plate was as clean as it is in the above picture, and I was asking for seconds.

This was my first introduction to turkey mince, and I've been a fan ever since. It's a great source of protein and is lower in fat, cholesterol and calories than beef mince. Plus it tastes delicious! I use it in burgers, chillis, stir frys, meatballs and, most recently, I experimented with a turkey lasange.

Let me put modesty aside for a minute. IT WAS UNREAL.

I wasn't thinking ahead as I was cooking, so I'm afraid this Insta-hun pic is the only photo I have. I think it captures the tastiness pretty well though :D
It's a really simple recipe, so no excuses - get going!

Tur-rific Turkey Lasange

Ingredients

 - 450g turkey mince

 - 1 onion, finely chopped

 - 2-4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped (depending on how much of a garlic fiend you are)

 - 1 courgette, diced

 - 1 pepper, diced

 - 1 can of chopped tomatoes

 - 1 tbsp tomato purée

 - 1 bay leaf

 - A handful of fresh basil, chopped

 - A sprinkle of each of cumin seeds, paprika, chilli flakes

 - 200g feta cheese

 - 1 egg

 - 50-100ml of milk

 - 150g spinach, washed

 - grated cheese of your choice for topping
 - wholewheat/gluten-free pe-cooked lasange sheets

 - oil for frying

 - salt and pepper

Method

1. Place 1 tbsp oil in pan and fry your onion and garlic over a medium heat for about 5-7 minutes until the onions have softened. Add a sprinkle of cumin seeds - around half a tsp.

2. Add your turkey mince and fry until it is fully cooked. Make sure there are no sneaky pink bits - break it up as necessary. Once cooked through, remove this mix from the pan and set aside.

3. Fry your courgette and pepper until softened. You made need to add a little more oil.

4. Add the turkey, onion and garlic mix back into the pan and stir everything together. Pour in your can of chopped tomatoes and 1 tbsp tomate purée. Then fill the empty tomato can one-third of the way with water and add this into your pan. Add in your bay leaf, basil, some paprika (I do it by sight, so I'd guess around 1 tsp) and a quarter tsp chilli flakes and season with salt and pepper. Mix this all together and bring to a simmer. Leave it simmering for around 10-15 minutes until reduced.

5. Meanwhile, make your white sauce. Break up the feta into a medium size bowl and soften with a fork. Crack in the egg and mix it in with the fork. Then add enough milk to bring it together like a sauce - you want it quite thick, not runny. 

6. Put the spinach in a frying pan over a high heat and stir until wilted down. Add this into your feta mix and stir together.

7. Time to assemble! I used a square dish that was roughly 10" x 10", and only used two pasta layers to make it lighter. First place a layer of meat in and spread it out well. Top with your lasanga sheets, making sure all the meat is covered and none of the sheets overlap. You may need to break a couple of sheets to do this. Next, spoon in enough of the feta-spinach sauce to cover all of the lasange sheets, making sure all the pasta is coated. 
Repeat - meat, then lasange sheets, then feta-spinach sauce. Top with your grated cheese and some black pepper. 

8. Bake in an oven pre-heated to 180 degrees (160 degrees fan) for 35-45 mins, until the top is golden-brown. If you feel it's cooking too quickly on the top, cover it with a layer of tin foil so it doesn't burn. 

So there you go - proof that there are other ways to eat turkey than a dried-up roast on Christmas Day. Enjoy ;)

r'n'b vibes

Nothing quite like the R'n'B of the 90s..

All my fellow '92 babies out there, this song is the same age as us!