It’s been a rather exciting time for my family. My brother and sister-in-law’s new addition to the family arrived last week. My new nephew is gorgeous and a very special little boy.

So I felt this week was a perfect time to give back to our wonderful blogging community by writing up an award. I’ve been nominated for a couple of awards recently and today I’d like to thank the lovely Rini from Yes! All Roads Lead to Food (what a fantastic name for a blog, don’t you think?) for nominating me for the Real Neat Blog Award. Not only was I surprised and grateful but felt privileged to be named among her other nominees – a selection of fantastic blogs.

Rini’s blog is all about her gastronomic journey and is a joy to read so you definitely need to click on the link above and give her a follow. Her culinary adventures are such a great read. Every post is certain to put a smile on your face.

The Rules of the Award are as follows:

• Thank and link the person who nominated you.
• Answer the seven questions your nominator has provided.
• Nominate 7 other bloggers and create 7 questions for them

Here are the answers to Rini’s questions for me:

1. What is your most favourite dish in the world? Now that’s a tough one because I love food so much. But if I had to choose it would be Italian. I’m going with Seafood Linguine. And I’m talking about linguine cooked al dente with a rich tomato and white wine broth and the freshest of seafood.
2. If you were an animal, which one and why? I think possibly a bird. I’ve always thought it would be incredibly cool to be able to fly. It would have to be an elegant bird though (not a vulture!)
3. What’s on your top 3 countries to travel to bucket list? Canada (I want to have a white Christmas in Quebec) and Morocco (imagine the food!) My last pick isn’t a country but a collection of cities in close proximity: the Baltic cities – Stockholm, Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, etc. Amazing!
4. If you could make one change in the world, what would that be? That every person had enough to eat. What a different world it would be if no one had to go hungry.
5. Why did you start blogging? I have such a love for travel and food and had so much to share but no outlet through which to do it. Until I decided to start a blog. I love to write also – seemed a great way to combine all three of my passions.
6. What advice would you give to other bloggers about blogging? I think the biggest mistake I made when I started was not having a clear enough idea of how it all worked. I would write my blog each week, post it and then see what happened. Once I started taking a real interest in the community and my fellow bloggers it made such a difference. So that would be my advice – don’t just write a blog but immerse yourself in the world and connect with other bloggers.
7. What inspires/motivates you in life? I get so much inspiration from those who do what I love to do but have taken it to the next level. My food and author heroes are my very own rock stars. What motivates me is simply the fact that it makes me happy to do the things that I love. And travel will always inspire me – the world has so much beauty in it, I can’t imagine ever tiring of seeing it.

My nominees:

Below is a selection of blogs that I am loving at the moment. There are many more, but as Rini said, we can only choose seven!

Feast Wisely – Laura and I share a love for Italy and food. She also coined a wonderful phrase that I personally live by: “feasting wisely means moderation not deprivation”. I second that!

Ellie Bleu – Ellie and I share a love for writing and food. Her posts are beautifully written and her Mediterranean inspired recipes are absolutely delicious.

Farminista’s Feast – Karen’s passion for farm-to-table food is shown in her delicious recipes and gorgeous photos.

Hackney Kitchen – a fabulous blog full of delicious baking recipes and tips.

The Cooking Spoon – Myra is so talented and creative. Her recipes are beautifully recorded and photographed. Absolutely love her blog.

Frugal Hausfrau – Mollie’s blog is about frugal shopping and cooking but her recipes are just sensational.

Recipes by Chefkreso – Kreso lives in beautiful Croatia. He always manages to put an interesting and imaginative twist on his fantastic recipes.

My Questions:

1. What are five favourite ingredients that you couldn’t be without in the kitchen?
2. Do you have a favourite cuisine of the world?
3. Are you a morning or a night person?
4. If you had the chance to meet someone famous who would it be?
5. What’s one thing you’d love to try that you haven’t got around to yet?
6. What’s your idea of the perfect holiday?
7. How long have you been blogging and what do you love most about it?