A foodie journey round Edinburgh

My daughter and I had lots of fun today. We both had things to do in the morning, but arranged to meet up in the centre of Edinburgh in the middle of the day with a view to doing something... we weren?t sure what the "something" would be. Sometimes it's good just to go with the flow.

First of all we headed for some lunch at the Edinburgh Larder - a little deli and café tucked away down Blackfriars Street which I discovered due to a chance 'Tweet' by someone during August, and which I'm liking even more every time I visit. I had suggested to my daughter that she 'compare and contrast' with Foodies at Holyrood as she's a particular fan of theirs, loving their Mozzarella and Sun-Dried Salad.

There was a little disappointment when she found that the equivalent salad was only available on the evening menu, but it was quickly overtaken by enthusiasm for a Hot Smoked Salmon and Lemon Mayonnaise Sandwich. This is one 12-year old who isn't swayed by a quick visit to a fast-food joint! She also discovered an exotic tea blend 'White Peony' from eteaket which was to her liking. I opted for the soup and half sandwich special - with Lentil, Chorizo and Tomato soup and Roasted Pepper and Hummus sandwich. The soup was particularly splendid.
Over this tasty repast, we hatched a plan.

I've been banging on about food issues all week, having attended the Fife Diet AGM last Saturday and having spent many hours since then trying to work out how to apply some of their principles to our everyday lives. My dear daughter suggested a way to make a fun game of the afternoon, with the end result being a meal for the family.

Armed with our Lothian Buses Day Tickets (£3 adults, and the kids' ones now back to £2 again), we hopped on and off buses all afternoon, visiting the Manna House in Easter Road (via the 35 bus), Clarks Fishmongers in Musselburgh (via the 26 bus), walking to Luca's in Musselburgh then (via the 30 bus) to Peckham's Deli in Newington, and home again (via the 41 bus).

Our 'haul' became a menu of:

Mussels (from Clark's in Musselburgh) - the spent shells of which are my blip today
Trout with dill and orange marinade (from Clark?s in Musselburgh) with potatoes, green beans (from our garden) and peas [optional Sausage option for the non-foodie (yet) member of the family]
A selection of cakes from the Manna House
Wine: Silver Birch Wine (from Peckham's - produced by Moniack Castle Wines)

We had great fun making a Scottish gourmet feast for the family and circumnavigating Arthur's Seat by bus. It's not quite along the lines of the Fife Diet - but we used public transport and bought Scottish food, so we're listening!