Finding the Right Hobby For You

Standing back from the daily rat race can be tricky, but taking time out to do something for yourself is important for your well being. We were interested to see what's out there that doesn't fall under the usual 'socialising', going to the cinema and reading' that usually graces people's CVs - here are some of the most interesting activities we came across which are sure to prove for fun, stimulating and which may even lead you down a new career path in the future!

Learn a foreign language: For you keen travellers out there, imagine how amazing your next holiday would be if you could engage with the locals in a cafe or the supermarket without any embarrassing, broken attempts at communicating the simplest things! Learning the local lingo can enrich every aspect of visiting a country, and you are guaranteed to learn loads about the culture, food and everyday aspects of that country - plus it's really sociable!

Become a pyrotechnic... This ticks a lot of boxes - it's got the 'thrill' effect, it's sociable as you work as part of a large team, it's creative and you get the buzz of a crowd's reaction to a display... and it's as detached from 'work' as you can get!! Some companies run pyrotechnic training days.

Under the sea... If you love being in the water and are curious about life under the sea, scuba diving is great for keeping fit, it's relaxing and can be a great string to your bow as you can gain professional qualifications along the way... It clearly lends itself to discovering some amazing places; Egypt, Thailand, Venezuela... the world is your oyster (or tropical fish, dolphin, lion fish... You only need Google your local leisure centres to find scuba diving lessons and you'll be diving in no time!

Become the new Jamie Oliver...Okay not quite, but if you have a passion for food - why not experiment, and even sell your fave recipes, be it, cupcakes, sushi or chutney and see where it takes you. Why not join local craft fairs, or spread the word amongst friends - just make sure it stays fun and doesn't become extra work... maybe even combine it with our next idea...

Be a writer - Literally, why not start up a blog on something that really interests you; music, food or tiddlywinks... whatever gets you excited. Take photos, comment and invite people to share their thoughts on your chosen topic. Updating your blog means you'll be motivated to go out there and find some great new material to add to your site!

These are just a few hobbies we think would be great ways to spend your leisure time - but this is only scratching the surface! There any so many weird and wonderful things out there to spend your spare time doing (and helping your CV stand out from the crowd!) - but we hope these have given you a good kick start to finding your dream hobby!

Sandra Blakesley
http://www.galaxy-fireworks.co.uk

Jamie Oliver

Jamie Oliver is one of Britain's most popular chef's and personalities. But although his light-hearted approach and ready charm have endeared him to everybody, surprizingly little is known about this young man. Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewebank have approached Jamie's friends, family and collegues to produce a biography that shows just what makes him tick.

Price: $7.95

Click here to buy from Amazon

Jamies Peas and Beans

Quite interesting to sit and watch Jamie Oliver on his gardening programme at the moment he is showing us the peas and broad beans that he has grown. Apparently everyone thinks you have to peel broad beans but Jamie says you don't need to do that when they are fresh.

He is now using a pestle and mortar to bash up broad beans, mint and peas, busting and breaking all the skins and mint, bruising the hell out of everything. When it's a sort of mush you add about three tablespoons of olive oil and some grated parmesan cheese. This makes a harmony that you've just got to scream about, so Jamie says. Have a little taste and appreciate the fabulous colour, keep tasting and add cheese and lemon juice until you get a good flavour.

You can serve it over a piece of fish or on toast. You can add a bit of garlic rubbed on the toast if you like then get a big lob of the paste and slap it on the toast. If you want to take it up a notch, tear a ball of mozzarella in to bits and put it on top then grill it.

You can also add some pea shoots which look beautiful. Raw peas in salad are a total luxury and also small broad beans with just lemon juice and olive oil dressing. Then sprinkle with more parmesan cheese to make a pretty green and white starter on toast or luxury snack.

Brian the gardener taught Jamie to grow peas and beans by first of all working up and chaffing up the soil then add some fertiliser which gives the beans a good head start - organic is best.

Then you dig a gulley with a spade and plant the seeds about 6 or 7 inches apart, a couple at a time - they don't mind that. 16 times 50 is 700 broad beans in a row. Put water in the gulleys and then fill over the soil so they're 3 inches deep.

Peas are even easier to grow. Make a 6 inch gulley, sprinkle the peas in and then fill the dirt over, give it a good watering. You can grow two crops a year.

Pigeons like peas so it's a good idea to build a twig wigwam over them so that the pigeons can't get them, because pigeons don't like twigs in their eyes and it also looks pretty.

Toads are good for the garden because they eat all the slugs and snails which is good for an organic garden that has no pest killers. Spice broad bean fritters is a recipe that Jamie says you will love and is the tops! Pod 250g of broad beans then heat some oil and half a potato in a pan and when the potato goes brown you know the oil is ready. Nice spices for it are cumin, cayenne pepper, teaspoon of each, half a chilli, finely sliced to give the blender a bit of help. This is a falafel type of dish.

Pulse the blender until the ingredients are mushy, add a little bit of flour, just enough to bind it for a crispy outside and juicy inside. Make quenelles from the mixture and drop them into the hot oil.

One can make them beforehand and put them in the fridge. A nice dip is made from Lemon juice, Yogurt and Mint. Jamie loves them and as he takes them out of the oil he says, 'oh my lord!'

Served on a plate with some fresh lettuce, a squeeze of lemon juice and some olive oil. He loves this type of cooking as this is what he likes to eat, together with a wodge of chili.

This is the account given by those who watched Jamie Oliver's Peas and Beans programme. If you'd like to read more about their television encounters just go to

Mister and MissesO and dexter cow

Copycat Recipes Cookbook - DivineRecipes.

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The Pressure Cooker Cookbook : 100 Contemporary Recipes for the Time-Pressured Cook

Jamie Oliver is one of Britain's most popular chef's and personalities. But although his light-hearted approach and ready charm have endeared him to everybody, surprizingly little is known about this young man. Stafford Hildred and Tim Ewebank have approached Jamie's friends, family and collegues to produce a biography that shows just what makes him tick.

Price:

Click here to buy from Amazon

Jamie Does - Is the New Book Really Any Good?

Jamie Does, The new Book From Jamie Oliver

In the new television series from Jamie Oliver (UK only at the time of writing) "Jamie Does" several different locations. Marrakesh, Andalucia, Athens, France, Stockholm and Italy.

Jamie does do the business for me in the first two programmes. So much so that I went out and bought the book!

His enthusiasm for great food comes through in the book as much as it does in the television series. Traditional recipes are given due honour but Jamie also puts his own twist onto them. Reading the book you feel that he is learning from the culture rather than trying to force his own point of view.

Jamie does not have any qualms about giving us "full fat" recipes either. The healthy options are in there but so is everything else. I have cooked the "Best Chorizo and Tomato Salad in the World" (page 22) and it is really good but the fat from the sausage is not spared. A bit of self indulgence now and again does nobody any harm though in my opinion.

The recipes are easy to follow and with generally easy to source ingredients, though Jamie does give some suggestions for replacements for the harder to find items. There are several extra dishes that do not feature in the television series.

The photography in the book is superb in my opinion, David Loftus has done a cracking job (as in all of Jamie's other books) and the travelogue is very interesting. The local history and culture of each region, particularly relating to cuisine, gets good coverage.

I do realise that Jamie Oliver and his presentation is not to everyone's taste but I highly recommend Jamie Does as a great addition to anyone's kitchen bookshelf.

In the UK the book is retailing at ?26-00 BUT you can get copies of Jamie Does (as I did) for around ?9-00 if you know where to look.

Roger

I have written more information and hunted down some good prices for the book at Jamie Does

Options For Healthier Eating & Dieting Are Increasing Providing a Better Living & Lifestyle

Healthy Recipes

There are so many different food types on the market today it's hard to know what to eat and to know what is healthy. A lot of foods you find on the supermarket shelf are processed which aren't good for you. Even if you try a healthy chicken salad sandwich from Subway, there are still preservatives used to help keep the food longer before having to throw it out. And it's rather unfortunate that some healthy meals don't taste overly fantastic which instantly put people off. So what do you do? All you have to do is find the best recipe.

Healthy eating has never before been so important. So important you even have programs on TV showing people trying to lose weight (The Biggest Loser) and the government is trying to encourage kids to eat healthy and even some celebrities are getting involved (Jamie Oliver's school dinners). It's a big thing now that even McDonalds, primarily a fast food restaurant sometimes introduce the healthy option. The world has moved on from fish and chips and is now more focused on healthy eating. Supermarkets now have shelves dedicated the Weight Watcher products.

One thing you'll notice now more than ever is that healthy food products are starting to look nice and taste even better whereas before this was never the case. Years ago a diet meant pushing a leaf of lettuce about your plate with a bar of chocolate on nothing but your mind. It was depressing and extremely difficult and a lot of people tried it for a short time and gave up.

So do you buy products off the shelves or do you make your own? Well, the easiest option and likely the fastest option is to buy the pre-made meal but when it says 'only 3% fat' does that make it a great product? Not necessarily. There can be other ingredients in there that aren't good for the body but have been disguised as something else. The best way to ensure you're eating healthy food is to buy the raw ingredients and find a recipe and cook the food at home. There's a major benefit to this. You know exactly what's going into the meal and you can control the amount of sugar, salt and fat that you put into it.

Never before in the history has there been an absolute abundance of information available at hand and with the internet now readily available there really is no excuse for not making the effort. All it takes is a couple of clicks to find a recipe and maybe a ballpoint pen to jot down the ingredients. Make the effort to buy those ingredients next time you're out. You'll find you enjoy the meal a lot more because you spent your time making it.

To measure your consumption for weight loss, an online calorie counter free is a useful tool to help keep you restricted and determined. Learn how to cook frozen crab to enhance your diet with protein and low fat.