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Saturday, June 25, 2011

How to make our GirlsTravelClub Ultimate Gooey Chocolate Bushcraft Brownies


We know how important it is to keep one's sugar levels up when enjoying the Great Outdoors, which is why on our GTC Travelskills and Bushcraft courses for women we always provide a tray of our special gooey chocolate brownies for our clients.

Low-cal they are not, but they have become something of a trademark feature of our Travelskills courses and as people are always asking for the recipe I thought I would share it with you. This recipe makes a roasting tin-ful of lovely, squidgy brownies, but you can halve the mixture if you don't have to feed a wood full of hungry bushcrafters.

The key to keeping the brownies gooey is to take the tin out when the top is dry but the middle is still wobbling, as the internal heat means they will still keep cooking for a few minutes; too long and you just end up with a chocolate sponge. If you can bear to leave them overnight they will be really squidgy but much easier to cut than if you slice them straight away.

12 oz butter
18 oz dark chocolate
6 eggs
16 oz caster sugar
8 oz plain flour

Line your roasting tin with baking parchment, then roughly chop 6 oz of the dark chocolate into chunks and set aside, having pre-heated your oven to 180 degrees.

Melt the rest of the chocolate and the butter slowly in a big pan and cool slightly. Beat the eggs and sugar together, then slowly tip into the chocolate mixture and stir to combine, before adding the flour and mixing well. Lastly stir in the chocolate chunks and pour the brownie mix into the roasting tin, (before eating what is left in the bowl with a spoon until slightly nauseous).

Bake for about 20-25 minutes, but keep an eye on them after 15 minutes; everybody's oven is different so you really need to just keep checking to make sure they don't overcook.

Leave overnight and slice into squares, before devouring by a campfire with a nice cup of tea.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

How to make nettle tea


Here at GTC we are never averse to a nice cup of tea. Generally Tetley, I have to say, but sometimes we like to think outside the box a little, and indulge in a cup of nettle tea. Yup, seriously, it tastes like liquid Spring, just one sip and you can feel the sap rising, the birds singing and all those wonderful health-giving properties coursing round your veins...
Nettle tea is renowned for cleansing the body of impurities and acts as a diuretic. It is also supposed to be excellent for osteoarthritis with mild painkilling and anti-inflammatory properties, and is rich in vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants. However if you are not used to it we suggest you limit yourself to one or two cups a day, the same for children.

Wearing a pair of thick gloves, pick one cup of stinging nettle leaves (urtica dioica) for every two cups of water. Pick only the youngest tips as the older leaves can be bitter, and make sure you choose leaves that are well away from roads or well-walked paths.




Rinse the leaves thoroughly. Place them in a saucepan, cover with the water and bring to the boil, before simmering for two minutes. Strain and enjoy! I like half a teaspoon of honey in mine, and you can also eat the strained leaves with knob of butter and a sprinkling of sea salt (a bit like spinach). Don't worry about being stung in the mouth, you won't be!

If you are making this with kids, add a slice of lemon and watch the tea turn from green to pink, as the liquid turns from alkali to acid.

Thursday, June 16, 2011

-The Top 10 Tips for coming home from holiday

Even though your holiday has finished, there is no need to be down. Make the shift from holiday to home as easy as possible by following these top tips given from Vicki Copley, the founder of holiday laundry service Your Holiday Wash.

“Being super prepared for your home coming ensures the return to reality is as pain free as possible, I follow this routine each time I go away.” commented Vicki.

1. Order the food shopping - It’ll save you time when you come back and will allow you some much needed rest after your journey. 2. Clean and tidy up - coming back to a clean house will keep you in good spirits or if you are lucky enough to have a cleaner make sure you get the house spring cleaned whilst you away. Ideally put fresh bed linen on the beds, everyone loves their one bed and what a better welcome home.
3. Cancel the milk or newspapers - you don’t want to come back to a doorstep full of stale milk and your postbox crammed with old newspapers, plus this signals to burglars that no-one is home.4. Tell family or friends to keep an eye on your house - even giving them a key to check your house will give you piece of mind when you are away. If you need to ensure, they have alarm codes too. Make sure you share your holiday plans with loved ones, in case of emergency.5. Empty the fridge and sort the bins- everyone has returned home after a break to be greeted by some decaying item! If you have a wheelie bin arrange with neighbours to put it out whilst you’re away,
6. Prepare for post-holiday such as washing - think about using the professionals such as booking Your Holiday Wash. Recent research confirms that 52% of holiday makers returning home, dread getting the holiday washing and ironing done more than any other chore! *7. Back to work - make sure you are ready for the first day back – think school bags, uniforms and work clothing, have it ready in case you arrive back late and have Monday morning to contend with.
8. Green fingers - plan for someone to mow the lawn or water any house plants just in case there is a heat wave while you’re away.
9. Man’s best friend - make sure any family pets are planned for, are they also having a break. Even the goldfish needs some TLC.
10. And finally ....put a bit of bleach down the loo to ensure everything smells clean and fresh when you return!

Available for £49.90 (that’s only £4.99 per kg), Your Holiday Wash collect, wash, dry and iron up to 10kg of holiday washing which they aim to return within 3 days – all beautifully folded and in a box. The laundry is returned directly to your home, or office door, with no hidden extras. All you have to do is open the box and put the ready folded clothing away!

* Omnibus Survey in April 2011 through UK online research panel.