I was delighted to hear from the lovely people at The Derbyshire magazine who asked to do a feature on the website.  The feature is in the current (September issue) of The Derbyshire magazine and can be found on pages 43-45.

The article takes you through why I decided to launch the website, includes a selection of the places and producers and also includes some great pics, most of which were taken by the lovely Claire Sutton (click here to visit Claire’s blog).  I was also really pleased to see that they have used one of Claire’s photos for the front cover too!!

It was fantastic that a Derbyshire publication wanted to feature fabulousplaces.co.uk…I feel incredibly flattered that something I started as a hobby has now become a valuable resource for so many people.  If you see a copy of The Derbyshire magazine flick to page 43 for a read!

The feature also mentioned the upcoming fabulousplaces.co.uk Autumn Fair at Makeney Hall (Belper) on Sunday 26th September 2010.  The event will bring together a great selection of places and producers featured on the website, giving you a unique opportunity to browse some truly fabulous gifts and food.  The flyers for the event will be making their way around Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire from next week.

Hope to see you there!

Debs

Here are a handful of events I’ve spotted and some other things, which, if you’re looking for something to do in August, might just be your cup of tea!

fabulousplaces.co.uk Search Page!
If I’m going to promote what’s going on around Derbyshire, then of course I’m going to promote the places featured on the website! August is a great month to head out and enjoy independent shops, cafes, delis, farm shops…sounds like a perfect day out to me! Click here to visit the search page.

Summer at Chatsworth
Up until the 2nd September.
I love Chatsworth and what could be better than lots of summer activities to take part in around the Estate.
Click here for full information.

Bluebells MegaMaze
Brand new to Bluebells is the MegaMaze, a truly wonderful activity for the whole family.  I can’t wait to borrow my niece to go play and eat ice cream.
Click here for full information.

Crich Tramway Museum
Saturday 14th & Sunday 15th August 2010
Like lots of others, I’m sure Crich Tramway Museum brings back lots of great childhood memories.  A visit on any day throughout Summer is perfect, but if you’re looking for an event then they have a 1940s Weekend at Crich Tramway Village Crich, Derbyshire.
Click here for full information.

Wednesday Night is Pizza Night at the Loaf
I love the Loaf in Crich and I love pizza…enough said!
Click here for full information.

Ashbourne Show
Saturday 21st August 2010
A great family day out. Click here for full information.

180th Bakewell Show
Wed 04 Aug 2010 to Thu 05 Aug 2010
Perfect family day out – champion livestock, delightful dogs, horses, mammoth vegetables, fantasic flowers, delicious specialist food. This year’s attractions include Titan the 8ft talking robot and The Flying Gunners.
Click here for full information.

Picnics and Walks in Derbyshire
We are blessed to live in a county of stunning landscape…why not pack a picnic and head off with some friends.  Some of my favourites are Black Rock, Shining Cliff Woods (links to a 6 mile walk), Carsington Water, Ladybower Reservoir and Castleton.

Hopefully there’s some inspiration here for you to head off into Derbyshire this month. Oh, and to see the absolutely gorgeous ducks in the photo above pop along to Caudwells Mill in Rowsley.

It’s that time of year when we spend more time enjoying our gardens and here’s the perfect opportunity for you to win some outdoor entertaining goodies from the Jamie at Home range.  The prize includes a Jam Jar Lantern, Ice Bucket & Scoop and BBQ Skewers.  A prize worth £50!

For your chance to win these fab Jamie at Home goodies simply answer this question:
Where in Cornwall is Jamie Oliver’s restaurant ‘Fifteen’?
Click here to submit your answer (this will take you to the website’s contact page where you can submit your answer and it will be sent directly to me).
Closing date is midnight on Thursday 10th June 2010.  Good luck!

Would you like to find out more about Jamie at Home?
If you’ve attended a fabulousplaces.co.uk event, you’ve probably spotted the lovely Adele there selling lots of gorgeous Jamie At Home goodies.  Adele is a Local Team Manager for Jamie at Home and she’s holding an open evening for anyone interested in finding out more about Jamie at Home:

6.30pm, Wednesday 9th June
Middle Wild Park Farm
Brailsford, Ashbourne, Derbyshire  DE6 3BN

Alternatively, if you have any questions about hosting a Jamie at Home party or becoming a consultant you can contact Adele directly by email at adeledavidson@googlemail.com or call 07980 212533.

I am over the moon with how the fabulousplaces.co.uk Summer Fete went last Sunday at Shottle Hall, what a truly wonderful day and…it didn’t rain!!

A huge thank you to all the fabulous shops and producers who kindly gave up their Sunday to sell their lovely wares…there was an array of tempting goodies of offer including locally made ice cream, farm produce, delicious cupcakes, crafts and cards.  Thank you to everyone who joined us, I hope you enjoyed the day!

The idea behind the events I run through fabulousplaces.co.uk is to offer you an opportunity to enjoy local, independent crafts and produce.  I couldn’t have imagined it to be in a more appropriate setting…Shottle Hall is a stunning venue and I hope you all had a good look around and enjoyed the setting.  I’m sure you’ll agree the grounds are beautiful and the picturesque views made the Summer Fete a truly wonderful event to wonder around.  With over 4,500 visitors throughout the day I really can’t wait for the next event!

A huge thank you to Carol and her team from Polly’s List for the fabulous Polly’s Corner.  The games, bouncy castles, face painting and stalls were full of nostalgia and put a smile on so many little faces!

Thank you again to everyone who helped make the event a huge success!

Here are some photos taken by lovely Twitter friends @clairetweet and @dawn_e .  Thank you for taking the photos…they’re fab!

With the sunshine comes the urge to get out into the garden and what’s better than getting family and friends together for a garden party…vintage style!

fabulousplaces.co.uk features a great Derbyshire based company called Vintage & Cake who offer you the opportunity to hire stunning vintage crockery in addition to having scrumptious homemade cakes made just for you.  Julie from Vintage & Cake has very kindly offered her advice, and a yummy cake recipe, to help you enjoy your own garden party.

The Perfect Afternoon Tea

Requirements:  flowers, vintage china, vintage cutlery, vintage vases, bowls and vintage cake stands plus some pretty bunting… its essential!

Traditional Afternoon Tea…
A selection of freshly prepared finger sandwiches.
Warm scones with clotted cream and preserves.
A variety of home made cakes.
Your choice from a range of teas.

Here are some of the more common teas, but of course there are so many to choose from out there:

Darjeeling
An aromatic and astringent tea from India, with a hint of almonds and wildflowers.
Earl Grey
A blend of black teas scented with oil of bergamot named after Charles, 2nd Earl Grey, who was Prime Minister from 1830 to 1834.
Lapsang Souchong
A Chinese tea fired over smoking pine needles, which produces a striking smoky odour and flavour.

A recipe for the perfect Coffee & Walnut Cake

Sponge
250g butter
250g soft light brown sugar
4 eggs
300g self raising four
200ml strong coffee
50g walnuts chopped (roughly)

Buttercream
100g unsalted butter
225g icing sugar sieved
3 teaspoons strong coffee (dissolve the coffee in just enough water to make a paste)

Method
Beat the butter and sugar together for 5 minutes.
Add the eggs and flour in one go and mix well.
Add in your walnuts and half of the coffee and mix until completely even.
Pour into 2 8 inch round tins and bake for 25-30 mins at 180c (160c fan oven).
Leave the cakes to cool in the tins for 5 mins, then empty them out onto cooling racks.
Mix the remaining coffee with 4 tbsps of light brown sugar and sprinkle 2 tbsps each over the sponges.
Leave to cool further

Buttercream
Cream the butter, icing sugar and coffee for 5 minutes until it resembles a whipped creamy texture.
Spread liberally inside your sponges and then on top.
Decorate at you please with walnuts
NB:  Always lick the bowl
You will be left with a ridiculously light and delicious cake to share with friends and family!

Here’s some information about the fabulous Vintage & Cake…

Julie, the owner of Vintage & Cake, says the company was borne out of a love of ‘doing things properly’ like her gran always did.  It’s about indulgence, enjoying life’s treats and celebrating a bygone era.  Vintage and Cake hires out beautiful vintage tableware for tea parties and tea dances and bake delicious cakes for all occasions, from lovely classic Victoria sponges to elaborate wedding cakes and cupcakes.  Individuality is very important to Julie, so each of her customers are more than welcome to pop round for a consultation, where you can eat cake, drink tea and chat about your ideas.  Click here to go to their page on fabulousplaces.co.uk.

Vintage & Cake will be exhibiting at the upcoming fabulousplaces.co.uk Summer Fete.

I’m delighted to announce the next fabulousplaces.co.uk event…the Summer Fete will be taking place on Sunday 16th May at Shottle Hall Country House Hotel.

11am-5pm, Sunday 16th May 2010
Shottle Hall Country House Hotel
Shottle, Derbyshire

I’m taking a traditional Summer Fete and adding a fabulous twist to bring you a perfect day in the countryside.  There will be scrumptious local food in the marquee, shops and producers selling their fabulous wares in the House and Polly’s Corner (Supported by Polly’s List) of fun for the little ones.   My aim is to bring you an event celebrating the most fabulous places and producers from fabulousplaces.co.uk and somewhere you can visit with friends and family and spend a few hours in the countryside.

Click here to go to fabulousplaces.co.uk Summer Fete information. The full exhibitor list will be added to the website in the next few days.

Please note:
Not all exhibitors will have the ability to accept card payments.  The nearest cash machines are in Belper…there will be lots of fabulous things to tempt you!
Dogs are welcome, but will not be allowed in the House and marquee.
There is a picnic area on the lawn, but this is only for use with food purchased at the event only.

Recipe time…FP Club member, Claire, has very kindly donated another recipe for you to try.  This time is courgette soup and I’ve had the pleasure of trying it during the week were taking part in the BBC Radio Derby’s Ed to Head Challenge…which we won!  Claire grows her own veggies and the courgettes are from her own garden, along with many of the other ingredients.

Courgette Soup is a very simple recipe, which makes a pretty, creamy pale green soup:

• Slice and gently sauté an onion, a stick of celery, 2 cloves of garlic
• Slice and add 5, or more, courgettes of the 6” or so size
• When all are softened and starting to brown add a pint or so of chicken or vegetable stock
• Simmer for 20 minutes until the courgettes squash easily on the side of the pan
• Take off the heat and blitz up with a hand blender
• Add a handful or two of freshly grated parmesan and a glug of garlic olive oil
• Add plenty of salt and pepper to taste and blitz up again

We serve it with crispy pancetta on top and a drizzle of garlic olive oil and some parmesan shavings.

To speed this up even more use a few shallots which are quick to slice and cook, a stock cube instead of fresh stock and a big slice from a fresh green garlic head instead of cloves.  Here’s a link through to the recipe on Claire’s blog, Things We Make.  Here is a link through to the post where Claire shows you how to make the bread bowls.

Growing your own courgettes is pretty easy and this weekend is ideal to plant seeds.  Here’s a link to the BBC website where there is some useful information about growing courgettes.

Click here to go to fabulousplaces.co.uk.

I am delighted to welcome the following fabulous businesses to fabulousplaces.co.uk:

The Studio, Mickleover
Portrait & Wedding Photography…click here to find out more.

Jackie Thompson Couture
Wedding dress designers with a difference…click here to find out more.

Win a year’s subscription to Country Living magazine!

Buy your fabulousplaces.co.uk Derbyshire Card before 11th December 2009 to be entered into the draw.

If you love fabulousplaces.co.uk, you’ll love the Derbyshire Card!  The Derbyshire Card is your perfect companion when shopping at many of Derbyshire’s independent places and producers featured  on fabulousplaces.co.uk.

Derbyshire Card holders will also be invited to exclusive fabulousplaces.co.uk events held throughout the year.  Be part of it…exclusive events, special offers and promotions!

A Derbyshire Card costs just £10 and can on fabulousplaces.co.uk by clicking here.