British Traditional Food

As I saw the other day that most of you are excellent cooks, I would like to post a traditional English recipe which is absolutely delicious... and very typical. It's called "Apple Crumble with Custard" (I will publish a picture so you can see how it looks like). Now that you will have time at Easter, try to do it and send me the pictures of them...

Ingredients:

For the crumble:

- 300 g plain flour, sieved

- a pinch of salt

- 175 g unrefined brown sugar

- 200g unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature

- a knob of butter for greasing



For the filling:

- 450 g apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1 cm pieces

- 50 g unrefined brown sugar

- 1 tablespoon plain flour

- 1 pinch ground cinnamon



How to do it:

1. Preheat the oven to 180º

2. Place the flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Take a few cubes of butter at a time and rub into the flour mixture. Keep rubbing until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.

3. Place the apples in a large bowl and sprinkle the sugar, flour and cinnamon. Stir well, being careful not to break up the fruit.

4. Grease a 24 cm ovenproof dish with butter. Spoon the fruit mixture into the bottom, then sprinkle the crumble mixture on top.

5. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the crumble is browned and the fruit mixture is bubbling.

6. Serve with thick cream, custard or any ice cream you like... it's absolutely delicious!!!!

And "el Duque" is finally dead...

Yes, the popular TV serial "Sin Tetas No hay Paraíso" has finally come to an end. But unfortunately, not to the end most of us had wished, who would have preferred the happy ending, where Duque and Catalina escape and live happily ever after.

I remember when "STNHP" started. Many people criticised it because they said that it attempted against women's rights, that it was too cruel and a model not to be followed... but after two seasons, no one can deny it has been a TREMENDOUS SUCCESS. Every single person in Spain knows something about it, has seen any chapter or has surfed the net looking for information related to Miguel Ángel Silvestre. Every Thursday many of you awaited eagerly the beginning and on Friday morning, all of you have always commented on what happened yesterday. Next week, this won't be possible as there is an end. A tragic end. The main character has died and won't appear again, all his mates have also passed away and sweet Catalina is in prison.

Don't you think that this is the end they deserved? Don't you think that people who play with fire finally get burned? They have been somewhere punished for what they did.

Would you have preferred another end? What would happen in the next season?

WE LOVE VERSIONS, DON'T WE?

In this entry, we are going back to music, but I have chosen a different way. Versions (or cover songs as they are known in English). Do you know what a version is, don't you? In any case, I am sure that many songs that you have listened to so many times are versions of older ones... we can mention some such as Madonna "Miss American Pie", Enrique Iglesias "La chica de ayer", the typical "I will survive" by Gloria Gaynor that we have sung in the disco when the night is about to finish, the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Elton John, U2... among others.

And my question is: who or what makes these songs come to life again? Programmes such as "Pop Idol" (Operación Triunfo in Spanish) which take the songs and adapt them to more modern rhythms, more lively and according to what is fashionable at the moment...

I have decided to focus on one, Soraya's "Self-control". You are going to see three different videos of the same song, completely different fashions, looks and dancers...

Which one do you like the most? Anything that caught your attention? Tell me soon...

Lyrics | Raf lyrics - Self Control lyrics

Bell'Italia

Many people love Italy and I am one of them. The reason is easy: nice people, nice weather, nice culture (very similar to ours) and even better food.

Italy is quite big and there are many famous cities that are worthwhile visiting, for instance, in the North we find Milan and Venice. In the Tuscany region (la Toscana), one of the most beautiful cities is Florence (Firenze per gli italiani) and Pisa, famous for its tower; in the South, Naples (Napoli) and the absolutely stunning island of Sardinia (with its crystal clear beaches) and last but not least, Rome, the capital city.

As I know many of you are going to Italy on the school trip, here are some "musts" (things you must do):

- Visit as many museums and churches as possible: you must see the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican City, Romulus and Remus being fed by the wolf, St. Maria Maggiore...

- Monuments you will like: the Colosseum, the Fontana di Trevi, il Foro, le Terme di Caracalla, the Pantheon...

- Squares and streets: Piazza Navona, Campo di Fiori, Via del Corso, Via dei Condotti, Piazza del Popolo, Piazza di Spagna...

- Italy is the home of pizza: there are so many different ones, try all of them. Also pasta: spaghetti, ravioli, penne, lasagna, tortellini... Ice-creams are incredibly tasty: lots of flavours, colours and textures... Limoncello and Fragolino are the typical liqueurs as well as the national beers Moretti and Peroni.

- Listen to the radio and Italian singers singing in Italian: it sounds so nice!!!

- And finally, try to speak... Italian is very funny! Buongiorno, buona sera, arrivederci, ci vediamo, mi piace, che bello!

By the way, any idea of the whereabouts of the picture??? It was taken in Italy... guess!

Here, in the video, some Italian music:

Travelling

As you already know, travelling is one of my favourite hobbies. Why? It's very simple. It's a way to get to know other people, other cultures, other ways of thinking and other places which are different to your hometown. If you haven't visited a place, you cannot say that you don't like it. First, visit it, then you can build up your own opinion.
I can say that every country and every city, and even every little village has something special. And of all the places I have visited, I have no favourite: I like all of them and I would visit them again.
In the following entries, I will write something similar to a quick travel guide of some fascinating cities in the world with some pictures and some advice to follow in case you decide to visit them.
Do you like travelling? What places would you like to visit? Why?

Successful black women

In this entry I'd like to talk about three women, or girls, because they are quite young -absolutely popular for the same reason: music. Guess who they are? Rihanna, Leona Lewis and Alicia Keys. Each one, although they look similar, are a bit different, at least when talking about musical styles. Let's see why.

Rihanna, born in 1988 (she's 20 years old), is a Barbadian singer who has become widely known for her last album "Good girl gone bad", a mixture of dance and pop which has made us dance more than one Saturday night. Who doesn't know "Umbrella", "Don't stop the music" and "Hate that I love you" with David Bisbal?

Leona Lewis is a bit older, but with only 23 years old, she is one of the most valued R&B singer -songwriter in the UK and beyond. Did you know that she was the winner of the third series of the talent show The X Factor? Of course, she has a beautiful voice and many of her songs are incredible. Just remember "Bleeding Love"

And last but not least, Alicia Keys is an American neo soul singer and songwriter, pianist and cellist. Born in Manhattan, this 27-year-old girl has sold more than 30 million albums, won 11 Grammy Awards, 17 Billboard Music Awars and many more prizes. The song "Fallin" is one of the most recognised songs.

And now your turn has arrived. Below, you can find one video of each singer, let me know your opinions about them.

Disturbia



Lyrics | Disturbia lyrics

Better in time (sorry but the official video is not available unless you watch it in YouTube)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWwYj6vf3c8

Superwoman (live for 40 Principales)



Lyrics | Superwoman lyrics

YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE

Time has arrived to talk about football. To tell you the truth, I'm not very keen on football, but as I know you are, I will try to do my best.
The title of the post belongs to Liverpool anthem, the song that all the fans always sing at Anfiend Road, the mythical Liverpool stadium. But what's so characteristic about this football team? What makes it special?

They are the most successful club in the history of English football because, among their trophies, we find 18 First Division titles, 7 FA Cups, 5 European Cups and 7 League Cups.

Liverpool FC is also known for their traditional colour: RED and ANFIELD, which will be substituted by a new stadium in Stanley Park by 2011. There is a quote which says "Anfield -the name alone conjures up a million and one memories; be they good or bad, happy or sad, tragic or triumphant". But did you know that between 1884 and 1892 it was the home of Everton? As Thierry Henry says: "It's the atmosphere that I love. It's unbelievable. I've played in a lot of stadia, but for me there is nothing like playing at Liverpool"

Important players have been Steve MacManaman, Fowler, Michael Owen and at the moment, Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and the Spanish Torres, Reina and X. Alonso.

Liverpool also hosts Rafael Benítez, former Valencia C.F. coach, with whom they have won several titles

Here there is a video of Liverpool history and some of the goals. Hope you enjoy it!!!