Japan revisited

It was a year ago now that myself and Eric had our big trip to Japan. Maybe it was the arrival (and departure) of the cherry-blossoms here, but I have been thinking about it a lot lately. I just had a look at our photos from our trip and remembered what a great time we had. Anyway, I decided to compile a small photo slideshow of some of the best moments of the trip, which included meeting my family, visiting Kyoto and Tokyo, staying at a Buddhist monastery and seeing our friends Kanako and Hitoshi. We did so much in the three weeks that we were there, but even then we still felt like we could have done another couple of weeks. I suppose that's the best way to leave a country, wanting more. Eric pronounced his visit to Japan his 'best holiday ever!' We will definitely be back.

Beetroot Brownies

Yes, you read right. These beauties were a baking experiment. Not my own recipe but one I borrowed from Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, the chef of River Cottage fame. Anyway, he is known for his super strange but delicious recipes and this one caught my eye. I don't know if you can tell from the photo but these came out really moist and decadent. In fact, I think that is the main thing the beetroot lent to the brownies - moisture and also a faint pink hue. They were particularly good chilled for a while in the fridge. A number of people tasted it and they all gave it the thumbs up. And no, no-one could taste the beetroot. It tells you something about the trust that my friends in Berlin have in me, when they happily munch away on my baked goods even though I tell them said baked goods have very strange "secret ingredient" with mischievous glint in my eyes. Thank you kind guinea pigs! My adventures in baking continue with your help.

Chocolate and Beetroot Brownies

Ingredients

• 250g/10oz good, dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces
• 250g/ 10oz unsalted butter, cut into cubes, plus more for greasing
• 250g/10oz caster sugar
• 3 free-range eggs
• 150g self-raising flour (can use wholemeal self-raising, I used 550 flour)
• 250g of beetroot, boiled until tender, peeled and grated

Method: How to make chocolate and beetroot brownies

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Grease a baking tin of approximately 20x30x3cm and line the bottom with baking parchment.
2. Break up the chocolate into pieces, cut the butter into cubes then mix them up a bit in a heatproof bowl. As the oven begins to warm up, put the bowl onto one of the shelves for a few minutes until the chocolate and butter starts to melt. Stir, and put back into the oven for a few more minutes to melt completely.
3. Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a bowl until combined, then beat in the melted chocolate and butter until smooth. Gently fold in the flour then the beetroot – be careful not to overmix or it will make the brownies tough.
4. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth over the top with a spatula. Bake for about 20 minutes. A knife or skewer pushed into the middle should come out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Don't be tempted to overcook them! Remove the tin from the oven and leave on wire rack to cool before cutting into squares.

Eric's new video

This is Eric's new video for his song 'Lost'. It was shot in and around Berlin on the S-Bahn. They had a great time making the video and I think it turned out great. It's already got a review from a music-blog in Ireland and has been viewed in a number of countries including Canada, Australia, Norway and Japan.

Just so you know, that is not me, as the love interest, in the video (some people think it looks like me). But, I do have a small cameo appearance at around 22 seconds standing to the left of the screen. I think my official title is Girl in Green Coat.

Hope you enjoy!