A specially curated guide to help you enjoy the next 48 hours (or more) in Bristol

MOTHER'S DAY JOY  |  SEND SOME LOVE

It's Mother's Day on 14 March, so don't forget to order your gifts online in plenty of time. Here are a few ideas to take your fancy, all local companies who need your retail support:

Why not celebrate Mother's Day with HN@HOME from the Second Floor Restaurant, Bristol. 

Nothing beats a good hearty Sunday lunch. Whether you are celebrating together or remotely let the restaurant team at harvey Nichols do the hard graft in the kitchen so you can relax. They have a four course menu with the option to add on a choice of wine.

Using the Harvey Nichols chefs’ easy to follow step-by-step instructions, you are invited to cook a four-course meal, with all the trimmings, from the comfort of your own home. Four courses, £40 (per person)

Find out more and book here: harveynichols.com

A VISIONARY PROJECT  |  BRISTOL'S GREEN SPACES

A year on from the visit by Greta Thunberg to Bristol and the successful crowdfunder that followed, the anniversary (28 February) was marked by the launch of a visionary rewilding project on College Green as part of the reimagining of this iconic public space. 

Last year’s rally organised by Bristol Youth Strike 4 Climate and led by Greta Thunberg was a call for action on climate change. The event was held in pouring rain that left College Green muddy and damaged from the footsteps of 15,000 people who attended. The resulting crowdfunder to repair the Green, initiated by local resident, Jon Usher, raised a total of £15,575 with an additional contribution of £5,000 from Good Energy.

Bristol and Bath Parks Foundation have been acting as custodians of the fund and co-ordinating an innovative partnership between the Foundation, Bristol Cathedral, Bristol City Council, Bristol Youth Strike 4 Climate and the Avon Wildlife Trust to begin re-visioning the space. With lawn repairs completed in April 2020 and the majority of the raised funds remaining, the next stage of the project alongside the Cathedral will significantly enhance this green space for nature, providing a new habitat in the heart of the city.

This will include an area of meadows running alongside the Cathedral building and the planting of 500m2 of wildflowers and small flowering trees specifically designed to complement the Cathedral’s architecture together with a new hedgerow of native flowering species. Meadow planting will begin this spring followed by tree, hedgerow and bulb planting later in the year.

bristolbathparksfoundation.org.uk

GET COOKING  |  A GNOCCHI GEM

Serves 2–3; vegetarian

This speedy, one-pan dish turns store cupboard/back-of-the-fridge ingredients into a satisfying, intensely flavour-laden supper with a complexity that belies the short preparation/cooking time.

Sautéing the gnocchi rather than cooking it in boiling water adds texture and bite to the dish, the mushrooms and spinach add silkiness, the sun-dried tomatoes add an inherently savoury/sweet edge to proceedings and the chilli flakes add a lively little kick. But if you don't have sun-dried tomatoes to hand, use 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes instead, holding back some of the juice in the can for another dish. If you don't like mushrooms, omit them and add another can of white beans instead. And while we're on the subject of making this recipe your very own, add a handful of black olives and a sprinkling of capers while you're heating the dish through and prepare for a full-on Mediterranean flavour party.

Ingredients

1 x 500g pack gnocchi
1 large red onion, peeled and chopped
1 large red pepper, deseeded and sliced
1 clove garlic, crushed
200g button mushrooms, preferably chestnut (sliced if large)
200g fresh baby spinach leaves
50g sun-dried tomatoes from a jar, roughly chopped
1 x 400g can white beans (eg, cannellini or butter beans)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
Dried chilli flakes, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to serve

Method

1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan or wok over a medium heat. Tumble the gnocchi into the hot pan, season well, sprinkle with dried chilli flakes to taste and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the gnocchi is golden and slightly crisp. Remove the gnocchi from the pan with a slotted spoon and set to one side.

2. Add a little bit more oil to the pan and sauté the red onion and red pepper until the onion is just turning translucent and the pepper is soft (around 4-5 minutes), adding the crushed garlic for the last minute or so. Add the mushrooms and cook for a further 3-5 minutes until soft. Return the gnocchi to the pan and add the sun-dried tomatoes, white beans and spinach. Sprinkle with a little bit of boiling water and cook together, stirring often, until the spinach has wilted and the beans have heated through. Season to taste (you might want to add another smattering of dried chilli flakes) and serve in warm bowls sprinkled with plenty of black pepper and a generous dusting of freshly-grated Parmesan cheese.

WEEKEND WINE  |  ROSÉS TO NOTE

Pretty Gorgeous Rosé – Pretty Gorgeous
A delightful and dainty rosé, ideal during the warmer months. Intense lychee and strawberry notes are greeted with hints of violet and good acidity.
£8.85

Côtes de Provence – La Vidaubanaise
Classic Provence rosé, and not only because of its distinctive skittle shape bottle. Packed full of strawberry and peach fruit character, this wine is thirst quenching - it's fruit is laced with a fresh citrus acidity, ideally suited to hot summer days. Even better, at this price you won't mind opening a second bottle!  £10.95

Las Fincas Rosado – Chivite Family Estates
From Spain, this food friendly rosé wine was created by Julián Chivite and is made up of a blend of 54% Garnacha and 46% Tempranillo and has been aged on its lees for six months prior to bottling. Featuring an intense nose and very fruity aromas of berry and pomegranate, notes with rose petals at the end. On the palate it is smooth and tasty. £16.95

Rose de Léoube Organic – Château Leoube
This is very much a rosé of elegance rather than power. The delicate aromas reveal scents of honey and soft red fruits. There is an unmistakable scent of mint, evoking the herbs that grow wild around the vineyards. Even the nearby sea seems to have left its mark in the appetising, lightly salty finish. A very complx wine, balanced , fresh and sheer in perfect provence style.£19.95

Pinot Noir Rosé – Lyme Bay
From England, the Crouch Valley Vineyard is a consistent producer of top quality Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. A serious Rosé made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes. This wine is a single-vineyard designated bottling and its complex aromas of cherries, rosehip, strawberries and cream, and tight acidity and length, make it a great food wine. £19.95

Explore these and many more at The Great Wine Co

ON THE BOX  |  THE LATEST RELEASE

In the trailer for Amy Poehler’s Moxie, her character Vivian tells her daughter that before she was a cool mom, all she used to care about was “smashing the patriarchy and burning it all down.”

Poehler’s second directorial outing follows her cast of fresh-faced teens who, inspired by the rebellious days of Vivan’s youth, they take on sexism in their high school — and start a zine.

Starring Josephine Langford, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Hadley Robinson.

Watch it on Netflix today

CENTRAL PERK  |  BOOSTING THE CITY

Bristol’s much-loved Castle Park is to be revitalised as part of a five year infrastructure investment for the city. Improvements including to safety, connectivity, seating and accessibility at the popular city centre green space will be the subject of consultation and engagement with local people, organisations and businesses following approval of a £24.5 million investment in the city.

Proposals for the money, from Bristol’s strategic Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), to go towards the growth and regeneration of Bristol over the next five years were included in the budget approved at the full Bristol City Council meeting on 23 February.

The Castle Park modernisation would also include the revamping of biodiversity and landscaping of one of the city’s most iconic and popular green spaces. A masterplan of options will be put together this year before the views of citizens, organisations and businesses are sought as part of a formal consultation later in the year.

ANNOUNCEMENT  |  FESTIVAL DATES

Following the government announcement and the ongoing success of the vaccination programme, Love Saves the Day festival is feeling more and more positive that we can dance together again later this year.

The festival announced: "Whilst we all have to keep doing our bit to fight the pandemic, this update has left us feeling confident that well-organised outdoor events will be able to take place towards the end of Summer 2021.

"So, we're excited to announce that Love Saves The Day will look to take place on the 4 and 5 of September 2021, with tickets back on-sale next week on 4 March. All non-refunded 2020 tickets will of course remain valid for 2021.

"We are working hard behind the scenes to secure a brand new musical line-up from the UK's most exciting talent which we cannot wait to announce. We also will have a brand new location to share with you very soon indeed."

Read more about Love Saves the Day here

FASHION  |  THE SUSTAINABLE TRAINER PROJECT

TAKE FOUR  |  WILD GARLIC RECIPES

Spring has sprung, and all manner of seasonal superstars are poised to make their way onto our shopping lists. But don't allow yourself to get distracted from one of the UK's most overlooked seasonal treasures, growing freely (literally) in a hedgerow near you from now until very early summer.

Wild garlic grows plentifully in and around areas of mature woodland, and is especially abundant around Bath. At first glance, it's easy to mistake the clusters of tiny white, star-shaped flowers for some variation on snowdrops, but close up, you'll notice slender, spear-shaped, vivid green leaves and a pungent, garlicky aroma that belies the milder flavour of the plant itself.

Pick the leaves (and the flowers, to use as an interesting garnish) but leave the bulbs alone; they won't mature for at least three years yet (if at all) – at this stage, their gift to you is a strictly topsoil treat.

Use rinsed raw wild garlic leaves to add a subtle garlicky backdrop to salads , risottos and wilted spring greens, or chop finely and sprinkle over warm pizzas, hot soup, pasta/gnocchi sauces or an omelette. It makes a lovely pesto (processed with olive oil, pine nuts or walnuts and parmesan cheese), loves lamb, is fabulous with creamy mushrooms on toast and has a natural affinity with spring onion mash.

OBJECTS OF DESIRE  |  BIRTHSTONE OF THE MONTH

The birthstone for March is aquamarine, the name comes from the Latin for seawater and legend has it that the stone would help calm waves and keep sailors safe at sea. It's also thought to bring happiness to marriages.

Like emeralds, aquamarine is a colour variety of the mineral Beryl, the best gemstones have good, flawless clarity with a strong blue to greenish hue and can be cut and facetted in many ways by the craftsperson to make the best use of light and brilliance.

As well as many fine designer pieces, bespoke and new creations we found this truly beautiful antique bracelet created by Mallory and dating back to around 1940, it features eight crystal-clear rectangular cut aquamarines (approx 30ct) set a yellow gold bracelet with a box tongue clasp and safety chain.

Search aquamarine at Mallory-Jewellers: mallory-jewellers.com

FOOD REVIEW  |  DIY MEALS

Restaurant Kits was created in 2020, by the founders of Mac & Wild, Andy Waugh and Calum Mackinnon. Their aim: to bring unique cooking experiences directly to diner’s living rooms. With a collection of fellow independent restauranteurs and chefs at the helm of the project, the exciting new platform has grown exponentially over the last year. It now includes some of the very best restaurants that London has to offer. What we love the most, however, is that Restaurant Kits is now delivering nationwide and, naturally, we had to try it.

With kits from the likes of Biffs, Kricket, Neat Burger, Fanny’s Kebabs, JUMA Kitchen, and Flesh & Buns up for grabs, the menus change monthly, seasonally and in response to special dates.

After scrolling through Restaurant Kits' handy listicle of meals on offer, I opted for Berber & Q’s Cauliflower Shawarma kit. The dish boasted a whole cauliflower roasted in shawarma spiced butter, drizzled with tehina, pomegranate molasses, green chilli, pine nuts, and served alongside hummus, zhoug, crispy chickpeas and warm pita. It also had a prep time of just five minutes!

The kit arrived at my doorstep in a well protected, very well packaged cardboard box, bursting with wonderful aromas. The easy-to-follow recipe card made the entire process a highly enjoyable experience and helped even the most amateur of chefs produce the real deal. Berber & Q attends to the details, and this kit is full of them. The pack came with everything I needed to prepare the dish, excluding a drizzle of oil. Priced at £27, the kit is recommended to serve three people but fed two extremely well.

Without a doubt, Restaurant Kits’ service, delivery and quality is all worth writing home about but, ultimately, the kit helps transport you elsewhere, even just for dinner, and that is always warmly welcomed.

Note: deliveries can be arranged for Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays nationwide and Restaurant Kits require three days notice.

restaurantkitsuk.com

INTERIORS  |  COLOURS OF THE YEAR

The four images below show interiors with colours that have been nominated by different paint companies as summing up the spirit of the year. It all feels a bit confusing: Pantone chose two colours, yellow and grey; Little Brown chose Epoch (plum); and Benjamin Moore chose Aegean Teal. Which one is for you? Get to the bottom of this colour conundrum in our interiors feature in our March issue, just published this week.

MARCH ISSUE  |  A MESSAGE FROM THE TEAM

ON THE BOOKSHELF  |  CELEBRATING MOTHERHOOD

BRISTOL PROPERTY  |  ON THE MARKET

A spacious five double-bedroom, three-storey detached house, with off road parking/garage and stunning views over the rooftops to Clifton.

Much bigger than first appearances suggest, this beautifully finished family home, has well-proportioned rooms and offers the possibility of creating a separate apartment/granny annexe on the ground floor, with its own independent access. £1,100,000

For further information contact Ocean Estate agents: oceanhome.co.uk