Eden & Abi carry on ‘Missed Mother’s’ memories with their recipe book for Breast Cancer Care

Happy Friday everyone! Please take 5-10 minutes out of your day to have a read of this.

Written by Eden Humphreys.

In February 2016, with only a month before Mother’s Day here in the UK, we noticed countless adverts, posters and shop fronts that were reminding everyone of the day where we celebrate the woman who gave us life. As fantastic as it is to dote over our own mums for the day, what about those who don't have mothers to celebrate with? We wanted to create something that would make Mother’s Day slightly easier for those who are in this position, by making the day a celebration rather than a day to dwell. After many discussions and anecdotes we noticed there was a reoccurring theme; baking. 

Some of the fondest memories we have not only revolve around mums and family time, but also the delicious sweet treats we’d all wait impatiently for. We decided to create a recipe book filled with dessert recipes from mums who have passed away to keep their memory alive through baking. All these recipes, unchanged and passed down through the years are ways of connecting the past with future generations and sharing memories, and so Missed Mothers was born. Mother’s Day sparked the idea, however our project continued to snowball and our ambitions grew to be bigger than just one day a year.

Something that was so important to us was making sure our efforts went to a good cause. Abi’s mum, Sandra Williams, went through breast cancer in 2015 and Breast Cancer Care were a huge support for her and her family. So together we decided that all profits from this cookbook will be given to Breast Cancer Care; a support charity dedicated to helping women and families, including our own, when they need it most. A year later, Abi’s mum has been given the all clear, and as a family they are closer than ever before.      

And so we set out to create our first book. Slightly naive perhaps, but optimism and determination were at the forefront. On the recipe pages we’ve included the beloved recipe, method, an illustration of the dessert, a tribute from the mother’s children and a photograph of the mother, so the whole world can put a face to the cake!

After hundreds of emails were sent to friends, family and strangers, we began to receive recipes from children excited to share their mother’s recipes with the world. Some were written on a scrap of paper, other adapted from books and some completely from memory, but all were once made with love by mums all over the world. We also went on BBC Lincolnshire radio to gain more recipes. We received recipes from high profile pastry chefs such as Benoit Blin and Claire Clark who featured in BBC’s Bake Off Creme De La Creme. Also, the hugely talented William Curley. William is a British patissier chocolatier who’s chocolates are sold in Harrods. He first found his passion whilst baking with his mother when he was young, and we’re lucky enough to have one of his mother’s recipes in Missed Mothers.

  

After curating the 47 recipes, and of course tasting a few along the way, we began editing and illustrating the book. We wanted each recipe page to reflect the mother by including how the mother would serve the biscuits for example, and what kind of bowl the trifle would be dished up in. After ordering two proof copies and meticulously scanning the pages for spelling mistakes, along with the website being up and running, we were ready to self-publish. 

We are delighted to be able to bring the cherished memories of mothers everywhere, from Illinois to the Philippines, into your kitchen. Our goal is to encourage more people to create special memories with their families, along with raising awareness for breast cancer and money for Breast Cancer Care.

Share your memories and desserts using #MissedMothers. If you have any recipes from a missed mother that you would like to be in the second edition, please get in touch at abiandedencreatives@gmail.com, thank you!

There’s the story so far, we’re now officially open for business! You can get your copy of Missed Mothers at MissedMothers.co.uk for £9.99 + P&P with all profits going to Breast Cancer Care.

Royal Parks Half Marathon 2016

Sunday 9th October I ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon with some of my colleagues from work! 

Nath had just returned from completing the 3 Peaks Challenge, which I did earlier this year and we had an early start to drive into London with the race starting at 9am. 

It started in Hyde Park, passing Wellington Arch on the East on the Park, then through Green Park getting a glimpse of Buckingham Palace, around the South of St James Park, through Admiralty Arch down past Downing St, past Charing Cross up the strand. We then reached close to Somerset House and back past Trafalgar Square and back through St James and Green Park and then all the way around Hyde Park. So I'm sure you can imagine it was pretty spectacular and not having to worry about cars and tourists was an added bonus.

Here's the route! 

Just before Hannah and I started...

Waiting at the start.

One of Nath's pictures trying to catch me at mile 9.

Despite a returning groin injury (which only seems to pop out during half marathon races) I managed to run the entire time with no stops which is a first! It wasn't comfortable but I was so happy not to walk and I completed it in 1 hour 58 seconds with limited distance training! So plenty of room for improvement, bring on my next one! 

Post race team picture at The Queen's Arms in Kensington where we had a well deserved drink.

Xoxo

New York, New York

Can you guess already that I love holidays!? This was my final (probably) holiday of the year and the first with mum, dad and Adrian and Nathan came along too!

We were heading across the pond to the home of Yankees, bagels, NYPD and cawfee! You guessed it folks, the one and only Big Apple; NEW YORK CITY 🇺🇸🗽🍎

After an early wake up call (it's only acceptable to be awake at this time for holiday or getting in from a particularly spectacular night out) we arrived at the airport which coincided with my oldest best friend heading out to Detroit as an air hostess for Virgin Atlantic! Proud moment!

We had minor delays due to having to change planes to which Virgin gave every passenger a £5 food/drink voucher for our troubles - great service!

It was a great flight, with pretty good food and films and before we knew it we had arrived! It was early afternoon by the time we arrived in the city and our shuttle bus dropped us at Grand Central, not a bad first stop for the holiday.

Please note the weather was obscenely hot and sweaty so it was high time we headed to our apartment to freshen up up and get exploring. Mum had booked a great apartment located in the Upper East Side, being a huge Gossip Girl fan (if you know, you know) this was my little slice of heaven and to put the cherry on top of the cake we were just a few blocks from the beautiful Central Park and by the time we left the apartment we managed to catch an amazing sunset by the lake inside. 

Now this is where my blog deleted itself, and I just cannot bring myself to rewrite the whole thing, so I'm just going to caption everything.

First stop on our first official day - Times Square for a family selfie.

We picked up bikes from Pier 71 and cycled along the dedicated cycle path on the West coast of Manhattan towards Brooklyn Bridge.

We headed over Manhattan Bridge and into Broolyn to Dumbo for a spot of lunch and we came across a cute little food market and I indulged in skin-on fries with truffle and lemon aioli and with a view like this... This is what dreams are made of.

We saw 3 seperate weddings in the prime spot for photos so we took advantage too.

Look at this amazing view of Manhattan and we were so lucky with the amazing weather.

Before cycling over Broolyn Bridge back into Manhattan.

We stopped by the city and had a quick look at the 9/11 memorial, but it was only quick stop as we had plans to head back and spend more time there another day.

On the way back to Pier 71 we stopped for a quick drink with a fantastic view of Jersey. 

Day 2; I kick started the day with a Central Park run and I was spoilt with an amazing lake to run around. And as I#m sure you can imagine by this point all these beautiful views are going to my head.

Adrian, Nathan and I headed off early to find a breakfast stop in the Park, whilst mum had to answer some emails quickly.

We stopped at The Boathouse Cafe, where we treated ourselves to pancakes and fruit salads and it was cheap as chips and exactly what we were looking for.

We later took a pit stop at The Flat Iron, can you imagine being in one of those corner rooms? 

That evening we went back to the apartment to freshen up before going to the Rockafellar, a.k.a Top of The Rock to indulge in a sunset view of the city and it was pretty spectacular.

For dinner we consulted my trusty Lonely Planet and found a dinner spot a few blocks away and it was great. Full of locals and great food - Charlie's (can't find a link to the restaurant).

Another day meant another morning run around the lake in Central Park and doing a bit more exploring to make it a decent 7km run.

Before heading off to the US Open near Queens - ticking off one of mum's tennis bucket list items.

It was a real scorcher and we hoped for any bit of shade we could lay our hands on.

Mum was in her element and she managed to lay her hands on some evening tickets to see Andy Murray and Adrian and Dad also stayed on but Nath and I just watched some play on the outdoor courts before before making our way back.

We headed back to Pier 71 on the West side to take a boat tour around Manhattan. We picked up lunch beforehand and over-indulged on the salad bar, failing to realise it was priced on weight versus size of container. Only a measly $17, it was great but safe to say I won't make that mistake again.

We got to see the pretty lady, The Statue of Liberty in all her glory.

Manhattan from the Hudson River.

This giant C, started back in the day by Colombia University rowers, where their initiation was to paint this and each year it has to be topped up by Freshers.

Nathan being all candid.

Me being all candid.

Arriving back with a great view, I can't remember the name of this building but it was awesome.

Where the boat stopped off, we were ideally located close to the start of The High Line. Which is an old rail track that has been developed into a walk way between buildings and has loads of plants, flowers and seating areas to watch the world go by.

After a quick freshen up that evening, we headed for dinner at Ellen's Stardust Diner as recommended by Tash and Eden. A totally different experience and great before going to see a Broadway musical. To explain a little, all the waitresses and waitors are trained in performing arts and have either being on Broadway or aspire to. As well as delivering your food with a smile, you also get treated to singing and Mum got a song from Greese sung to her.

That evening we went to see On Your Feet. A musical about Gloria Estefan and despite the fact the audience wasn't full it was fantastic, so go and see it! I haven't been to a show yet in my lifetime that I haven't loved. There were plenty of songs I recognised and we even had a bit of a dance at the end.

Afterwards Mum, Dad and Adrian headed back and Nath and I went back to Times Square to experience it at night. We sat on these steps where we had a great view of everything, it was a great spot for people watching.

The next day was the first day we woke up where it wasn't sweltering outside and it was overcast. We spent the morning at the 9/11 memorial area, the family heading to the museum and Nath and I visiting the Tribute Centre for a walking tour and afterwards a talk from a survivor. It was fascinating and I learnt so much as I hadn't really understood the actual turn of events and it also makes you sit back and appreciate your life and everyone in it. If you are in NYC I would really recommend visiting.

We walked uptown, browsing China Town and then seeking cover from the rain in Little Italy, where we had a cracking Italian lunch feast.

5th Avenue was our next stop, where there was plenty of window browsing as we daren't set foot in a store because there probably wasn't even price tags. We did however stop in Macy's.

Nathan had his flight home early the next morning as he had a friend's wedding to attend. Mum, Dad, Adrian and I went back to our favourite spot, Central Park for breakfast, stopping to get a picture of Alice in Wonderland fountain on the way.

We had breakfast at Kurb Boathouse (Le Pain Quotidien); waffles, fruit and green smoothies. 

We spent the day exploring some more, Mum, Dad and Adrian went to the Intrepid Museum. And I enjoyed views of Jersey and had a snooze. We cycled Central Park in the afternoon all the way up to Harlem. My phone died which explains my lack of photos.

Following Instagram recommendations that evening we glammed up and headed to Le Bain at The Standard located at the end of The High Line within the Chelsea/Meat Packing district and we were treated to a view that looked like this.

Can you spot the Empire State Building?

Have you seen better sunset views? This was the jacuzzi inside.

A great final evening as a family to end a fantastic holiday to New York.

Before finding somewhere to eat, we happened to visit the Samsung store, which was an experiential store where we took a selfie and it collated together all photos taken on that phone to make up the picture of us and here's out portrait.

For dinner we had Mexican and it was great. 

Mum and Dad had an early morning flight to Nashville so they left us at the crack of early. Adrian and I started the day with our final run of Central Park and we ended up getting lost but we did get this picture.

After dropping off our luggage at a dodgy luggage store 10mins walk from Grand Central as we had to vacate our apartment at 10am. We made our way to Union Square food market downtown where I have never seen as many tomatoes.

And you'd definitely only see this in America.

After lunch at Wholefoods we made our way to the airport for our flight home, where might I add we did get upgraded to Premium Economy.

New York was so much better than I expected and I think I will be making a return in the next few years to experience it all again in winter time.

Next stop; Berlin for Christmas Markets.

Xoxo