Back to the 80s and Spinach and Ricotta Tortellini

This week has been a whirlwind as it's now the 2nd of the three performances of Back to the 80s.  Today is my planned day off from being in uni, but I also unexpectedly ended up being at home for quite a lot of yesterday too.  Yesterday's time at home was spent watching an episode of Red Dwarf, reading Ally Sheehan's blog and making final prop preparations for the show, while this morning has also been spent reading Ally's blog as well as taking Rent quizzes, and thinking about who I would audition for if BUSOM were to do Rent for our main show (I want to take a chance and go for a main part, but the only role I can think of that would suit me and who I am is Joanne).  Here's my diary of the last few days of show week!


Monday 7th March 2016 - 3 days left

Tonight (Monday night) marked the tech rehearsal and the start of show week. I spent the first half backstage being quiet, trying not to be in the way, having a solo party whenever nobody else was backstage, and waiting for my scene (Act 1 Scene 5). However, during the second half, I was at the audience side of things (which I can't do after now) and was laughing and clapping and singing along. I love the energy that everyone is putting into it, and I know that they can bring even more energy to it over the next few nights. I'm so proud of everyone. Tomorrow (Tuesday night which is technically now today) is the dress rehearsal, where I get to see all the costume ideas I had with each cast member come to life.

 

Showtime is nearly upon us!  http://www.bradfordplayhouse.org.uk/box-office#loveBUSOM #backtothe80s #mainshow #musicals #musicaltheatre #teambradford
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Monday, 7 March 2016

Tuesday 8th March 2016 - 2 days left

This evening, we past the 48 hours before the show mark and also had our FINAL rehearsal! I've now finally seen everyone's costumes brought to vivid life and they all look amazing and there's plenty of tie-dye T-shirts made at our fundraising event a month ago. Apart from my singular scene in Act 1 and the finale, I was backstage for the entirety of the dress rehearsal, but it all sounded really amazing. Once again, I'd like to say that I'm really proud of the cast and the rest of the production team, and tomorrow's night off is very well-deserved!

We got through cue-to-cue yesterday in one piece! But tonight everyone is in costume for our dress rehearsal - bright...
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Tuesday, 8 March 2016

Wednesday 9th March 2016 - 1 day left

It's now just over 21 hours until we start our first performance of Back to the 80s! We've had a night off from rehearsal today, so I'm going to go to sleep early for once and then I'll be around RamAir tomorrow (although not promoting the show on air myself unless someone asks me to), before going to the theatre. During shows on RamAir today, I have heard songs from the show including Video Killed The Radio Star, Kids In America and I'm Gonna Be 500 Miles, and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, as well as plenty of other 80s hits! I'm pretty sure other BUSOMites listened in to these shows and sent messages to our shoutbox for requests.

 

Our Mr Cocker can't believe it!We can't believe it! Tomorrow is our opening night for Back to the 80s! There's still...
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Wednesday, 9 March 2016

Thursday 10th March 2016 - IT'S TODAY!!!

IT'S TODAY!!! Tonight we start Back to the 80s for the next 3 nights and all our hard work over the past 3 (or 6-10) months will actually be seen by people. I'm both really excited and super nervous. I've unexpectedly ended up at home today, so I'm going to watch a couple of episodes of Red Dwarf before lunch, watching some TV, then heading back to Bradford for the show.

 

It's here! Opening night is tonight! We hope you're as excited as we are!#loveBUSOM #backtothe80s #openingnight...
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Thursday, 10 March 2016

Friday 11th March 2016

Last night's opening performance of Back to the 80s was pretty fantastic, and I can't wait for tonight's and Saturday night's performances, especially with even more people I know coming!

Saturday's performance is sold out, but if you're EXTRA SUPER-QUICK, you can still buy tickets for tonight's performance HERE.  Tickets are £10 in full or £8 for concessions (including students).

Spinach and Ricotta Tortellini

One of my favourite meals after a BUSOM rehearsal is spinach and ricotta tortellini (otherwise known as "BUSOM pasta"), so I found this recipe at The Vegan Word to make a vegan-friendly version of the dish.

Ingredients

2.5 cups flour or preferably '00' grade pasta flour
1 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 recipe vegan ricotta (see below)
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove garlic
125g spinach

Instructions

1. To make the tortellini dough, form a mound of flour on a clean workspace.
2. Form a well in the flour and fill with the oil and some of the water.
3. Mix the water into the flour, and repeat step 2 (forming a well, filling with water, and mixing the flour and water together) until all the water is incorporated into the dough.
4. Knead the dough for a minute or two and form into a ball.  Cover in cling film and leave to rest 30 minutes.  In the meantime, you can prepare the spinach and ricotta filling.
5. To prepare the spinach, heat a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil over medium heat in a frying pan or wok.  Once the wok is hot, add the minced garlic and sauté until just browned.  Add the spinach and stir, stir frying until it wilts, then remove from heat.  Squeeze out the water and mix the spinach into the ricotta recipe (which follows).
6. To roll out the ravioli dough, divide the dough into 3 sections.
7. Sprinkle some flour on a clean counterspace.  Put the first third of the dough on the counter, sprinkle some more flour on top, and roll out the dough with a rolling pin, as thin as you can roll it.  If you have a pasta machine, follow the instructions on your machine to roll out the dough.
8. Place 12 spoonfuls of the spinach-ricotta filling on the dough, stopping half along the length of the piece of dough, and keeping it as evenly spaced as possible. You’ll probably want two rows of 6.  Now, fold the piece of dough in half, so the half without fillings on is resting on top of the piece with the fillings.
9. Press down and around each dollop of filling, pressing the air out and sealing the two pieces of dough together, creating pieces of ravioli.
10. Now, with a knife or ravioli cutter, cut out squares of ravioli along each piece of filling.
11. Repeat steps 7-9 with each other piece of dough.  Cook the tortellini in boiling water as soon as possible after cutting them.  If you're not going to cut them immediately, you can freeze them.
12. To cook tortellini, place in a pot of boiling water.  It will be ready when it floats to the surface of the pot (which should happen in 2-3 minutes).  Serve.

Vegan Ricotta

Ingredients

1 package (approx 1 lb) firm tofu, drained and pressed
1/2 cup cashews
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1 tsp tahini, optional
1 tsp white miso, optional
10 fresh basil leaves, chopped
fresh black pepper to taste
Italian dried herb mix to taste

Instructions

1. In a spice grinder, grind cashews until fine.
2. In a food processor, blend cashews, tofu, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, nutritional yeast, tahini, miso, basil, black pepper, and Italian herb mix until it forms a thick paste.
3. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Chunky Oven-Baked Ratatouille and Pasta

It's now 13 days until BUSOM's production of Back to the 80s starts (and 10 days until we start rehearsing in the theatre itself).  Last Sunday, I cut a cursor out of cardboard on my bedroom floor for the one scene that I will be appearing in and will soon be learning the choreography for.  On Tuesday, we had our first full run-through with members of the tech team coming to watch us and take notes for the set of the production, and I heard and saw some of the songs that I hadn't heard being rehearsed before and I was very impressed by the sound and choreography.  Yesterday's main focus was Act 2, from which the choreography to Dancing On The Ceiling, the line delivery of "The only difference between you and a bucket of crap is the bucket", and the choreography of a fight scene between two characters.  I've now also seen most of the costumes, including a black sparkly dress and a few of the tie-dye T-shirts made at the fundraiser event we held a few weeks ago.  I'm getting more and more nervous about this every day, but I'm also very excited and very proud of the cast and the rest of the production team.  Tickets are on sale at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/event/EFFFMM!

Get your tickets now for our main show 'Back to the 80s'.Be sure to get them before they're gone! ...
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Wednesday, 24 February 2016

Getting closer every day!⏳http://www.bradfordplayhouse.org.uk/box-office#loveBUSOM #backtothe80s #mainshow #countdown #musicals #musicaltheatre #teambradford
Posted by Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM) on Friday, 26 February 2016

Meanwhile, my final project group development plan was submitted today, meaning that 15% of the marks have now been accounted for.  The main areas that I wrote were the competitor analysis of the other websites that have similar features to what we are going to provide with the website we are developing, and the industrial budget for the project, for which I was constantly updating the final totals after changing one figure after another.  The next 15% is for my 2000 word individual reflective report which is due next Friday.

I've heard some people say that they think a plant-based diet is too expensive for them, but it's been proven to be possible.  There is the Live Below The Line initiative in which participants fed themselves on £1 (or Australian $2, seeing as I followed agirlnamedally's Live Below The Line journey) a day for 5 days to gain an insight into the amount of money that those who live "below the poverty line" are able to spend each week on food.  There are also plenty of blogs by vegans who have a lower budget, including students.  I found this recipe in a little booklet called "Meat-Free: Feed four for under a fiver!" that I picked up at a stall at my university's volunteering fayre promoting volunteer work with animals, anti-animal testing and veganism.  What I like most about this recipe is that it's full of delicious vegetables!

Ingredients (serves 4)

1 large red onion - peeled and cut into chunks
1 large courgette - cut into chunky pieces
1 large aubergine - cut into chunky pieces
2 red peppers - de-seeded and cut into chunks
2 yellow peppers - de-seeded and cut into chunks
8 garlic cloves - peeled
juice of half a lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
400g can plum tomatoes
several sprigs of fresh basil
Your choice of pasta

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius OR 350 degrees Fahrenheit OR Gas Mark 4.
2. Put all the vegetables into a roasting tray or large shallow casserole dish, and sprinkle with the lemon juice, oil and pepper.
3. Mix so that all the vegetables are coated.
4. Bake, uncovered, in the oven for 20 minutes, giving the vegetables a stir after about 10 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes and cook for a further 15-20 minutes.
6. Cook the pasta according to packet instructions whilst the vegetables cook for another 10-12 minutes.
7. Season the vegetables with more pepper if necessary, tear the basil over the top and serve with the pasta.

Also, I'll be posting soon about my weekend in Newcastle over Valentine's weekend (it was for a 21st birthday party and had nothing to do with Valentine's Day though)!

Simple Tomato and Mushroom Pasta

This is now the first food post of 2016, following Wednesday's post on This Is Not A Book.  I'm going to start the year with a main course that I found on plant-based, dairy-free and gluten-free food blogger Deliciously Ella's website.  I've chosen to look at a Deliciously Ella recipe because I noticed that she has a book signing event in Leeds in just under two weeks at a Waterstones store which I think is near the Trinity Centre, so I might ask my dad to take me to Leeds with him on that day (I don't have lectures on Wednesdays and we won't have had groups assigned for our final project yet).  I'm a big pasta person, so this recipe for tomato and mushroom pasta sounds perfect.

Ingredients (serves 4)

300g of pasta (four 75g servings) - brown rice pasta is suggested
1 packet of cherry tomatoes (about 250g)
1.5 packets of chestnut mushrooms (350-400g)
1/2 a packet of spinach (about 100g)
5 cloves of garlic
3 heaped teaspoons of tomato puree
2 teaspoons of brown miso paste
1 teaspoon of chilli flakes
1 teaspoon of paprika
salt and pepper
1/2 a lemon (optional)

Instructions

1. Chop the tomatoes into quarters and the mushrooms into slices.  Put the pasta on to cook.
2. Peel the garlic and crush it into a pan with a glug of olive oil, salt and pepper. Let this heat for a few minutes until it’s bubbling.
3. Add in the tomatoes, mushrooms, chilli and paprika and let this cook for about five minutes, until it’s all soft.
4. At this point stir in the spinach, tomato puree and miso and let the spinach wilt.
5. Once the pasta has cooked and been drained, then stir the sauce into the pasta
6. Squeeze the lemon on top, if you’re using it, and add a little salt and lots of black pepper to finish.

Tomato & Basil Fusilli

Last week, being the last week of the uni year, ended up being quite busy.  From the Student Leaders Awards and a friend's final year project screening on Wednesday evening to the BUSOM social to Nando's and the bowling alley on Thursday evening, to Party on the Amp throughout Friday, the only day that I managed to come home in time for tea last week was Monday (Tuesday was the BUSOM inventory).  Party on the Amp ended up being quite good.  As a non-drinker (personal choice as I don't really like the taste of the alcoholic drinks that I have tried, but as long as others are responsible, I don't mind them drinking around me) and someone who isn't always comfortable in large and noisy crowds, I'd expected to be overwhelmed by such an event.  The fact that I was quite busy during the day with helping with media coverage of the event could have been to contribute, but other than feeling a bit tired and like I'd talked far too much (because I had talked far too much), I didn't feel all that overwhelmed by having a few friends who had drunk too much.  Additionally, on my slightly longer breaks, I went to sit with a good friend who I don't think had drunk that much, so I felt comfortable and fairly safe.  I also interviewed most of the bands playing, including previous Coffee House Session acts Lew Rey and Samantha Durnan, as well as The Voice winner of 2014 Jermain Jackman and X Factor contestant Concept (who I have a picture with here).  Back to the food though ... Something I've noticed is that I don't post recipes for main meals often, so here's one I found while looking in a cupboard in the kitchen for some more marmalade (Paddington and marmalade toast fan here) when I stumbled across a carton of Napolina Tomato Passata with a recipe on the side.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 finely chopped onions
1 crushed garlic clove
500g tomato passata
1 tablespoon tomato puree
handful of basil leaves
375g fusilli pasta
100ml dry white wine

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan, add onion and garlic then saute until soft.
2. Add the passata, tomato puree and wine and simmer until the mixture is thick and reduced.
3. Add most of the basil leaves and seasoning to the sauce.
4. Drain the cooked fusilli and serve into a dish.  Top with the tomato and basil sauce and serve adding the remaining basil leaves.