Exploring Scotland: The Japanese Gardens

I love finding out about a beautiful place and the Japanese Garden at Cowden is no exception. I’m not sure how I found out about it, which annoys me but I’m really happy I found out about it. Residing in Dollar, Clackmannanshire, The Japanese Garden has a really simple history behind it, in the 20th century inspired by a recent trip she had taken, Scottish adventurer Ella Christie decided to build a Japanese Garden. She enlisted the help of a female design, Taki Handa, and the result was a seven-acre site on the grounds of Cowden Castle. As a result, the garden is the first and only garden of its size to be designed by a woman. You can find out so much about the history and more recent happenings of the garden by visiting the website. 

5 recipes I've tried and loved 2021

I know I use this blog infrequently, but I can’t believe it’s been 5 years since my last ‘5 recipes I’ve tried and loved’ post. I really thought this had been posted in the last 3 years! It was fun to look back at that post because I was able to see if I still used any of those recipes, the short answer is no. But really, it’s ‘kind of’. I hadn’t made the Roasted Red Pepper & Goats Cheese Alfredo in years, but at some point, in 2020 I did make it after years of not doing so. I’m not sure why I stopped making (probably due to my laziness of peeling the red peppers) but when I made it this time around I didn’t *love* it. Maybe I was just out of the practice of making it so didn’t adjust things according to my taste but it didn’t blow me away. I’m willing to give it another go this year though.

The other recipe that I’ve made now and then is the RicottaMeatball Sandwich, but again just the meatballs, I never bother putting it in a sandwich! I did make it recently because I was typing up this blog post and fancied them. They are truly delicious and NOT DRY, something I think a lot of meatballs suffer from. The recipe also makes so many that there's some for the fridge and the freezer, this will definitely be showing up again for my meals in 2021. As for the other recipes Mexican Beef Fajita Salad, Turkey Meatballs with a Tomato Sauce and Chicken,Broccoli and Mushroom Stir Fry, I all but forgot they existed. Well maybe not the Turkey Meatballs, I just know my boyfriend isn’t a huge fan of turkey so I don’t lean towards wanting to make it but I will try and add it into our meals at least once this year. As for the other two recipes they have fallen off my radar completely and I have to say – I don’t mind that. I have plenty of other yummy recipes that I use now and I am sharing details of them below!