I love February.The 14th is a lovely day to spread around some love. Here at Bread and Butterflies we ensure we have the guys and the gals covered with a whole host of gifts that are sure to impress!  Bath bombs and hand made soaps from Nottingham Soapbox, beautiful aromatherapy products from Cherry's Essentials and our own range of hand drawn wares.

We also have a line of new products from Dorothy Plater. Something for everyone's budget and taste.

If you want to treat them to something sweet you can either get them gift vouchers to spend on our delicious cake menu or you could order a cake especially for them.  Let us know what flavour they like and we will sort it.  We can even bake gluten free and vegan cake too!

We'll also have some delightful cards for you to send anonymously if you want to impress someone and be their best secret admirer!

Up for discussion this month in Lady Bay is the new diet that a group of 37 scientists from around the world were brought together as part of the EAT-Lancet commission.

There is a Facebook page called Lady Bay Cuts Carbon that offers great tips from locals on how to lead a life that contains less plastic, recycles more and is better for the environment. Recently they have shared the news covered by The Guardian, the Independent and the BBC. It seems that scientists have been trying to figure out how we are going to feed billions more people in the decades to come. The answer seems to be to eat far less meat and to be more plant based with our diets, to eat more nuts and legumes to get our protein.

Although the recommended diet does not cut out red meat all together it suggests only eating a burger a week or a large steak a month and that's your lot.You can still have a couple of portions of fish and the same of chicken a week.

​So this is what, according to researchers our daily food should look like:

A great time to try out veganism, or indeed a more flexitarian approach; trying to cut out meat on most days and eat a vegan diet instead. Any move we can make to reduce our consumption of meat from what we currently consume can only be a good thing.  Not only for the environment but also for the growing population and the welfare of animals.

On Thursday 1st November we will be letting anyone have a free taster of a variety of plant based milks as an alternative to cows' milk.  We will then make your coffee or tea with whichever you fancy!  We will be offering soya milk and oat milk as we always do but will also have on offer coconut milk and almond milk too for you to try.  Did you know that there are lots on the market, super healthy and delicious.

On November 1st we will be launching a brand new menu with lots of vegan options. It will still have all the old favourites but the added extras are all vegan and we can't wait for you to try them.  Vegan ham and cheese panini anyone?

On Saturday 3rd November we will have vegan jack fruit pasties, vegan eccles cakes, croissants and pains au chocolat, vegan sausage rolls, vegan cheese and tomato focaccia and delicious vegan sourdoughs, loaves and tins.  Why not come in and see what you're missing!

And let's not forget it'll soon be time for Christmas shopping and why not start at Bread and Butterflies to support 4 small businesses at the same time, all vegan, all cruelty free!

We stock deliciously smelling gifts from The Nottingham Candle Co, Cherry Essentials and The Nottingham Soapbox.  All very good value for money and excellent Christmas gifts.

It has been an amazing Summer this year and we have enjoyed the lovely, warm weather at Bread and Butterflies.  We certainly were able to put our beautiful, new awning to excellent use.  For many of you it might have been a shame we couldn't fit more outdoor furniture under its shelter! 

Linsey and I feel extremely lucky to have been able to remain part of the Lady Bay community and hope to do so for many more summers with your continued support for a small business.  We hope to expand the menu further with more vegan options after having trialled some specials which have proven very popular with vegans and meat eaters alike!

There have been so many fantastic sporting events this year with more and more customers for Bread and Butterflies.  For next summer we are hoping to try out picnic hampers for 2!  You can collect a packed picnic hamper with a range of delicious sandwiches, cake and drinks from Bread and Butterflies to enjoy at any of the sporting events that take place in the area; the Rugby Club, the Watersports Centre or the Cricket Ground.  Let us know what you think by commenting on this blog or sending us a message via Facebook.

We hosted the wonderful artist Jackie Ward from Treehuggery.

Please note that we will be open from 10 on Monday 28th May.

At Bread and Butterflies Linsey and I pride ourselves on a menu that suits everyone.  Being vegetarian for over 15 years means that we have a lot of experience eating out and being limited to just one or two choices.  When we were planning the menu for our tearoom we knew we wanted there to be as many vegetarian options as there were meat options.  There's nothing like personal experience to make you realise when there is a need for a more balanced choice of sandwich fillings.

Last year on National Vegan Day we put out a special for vegans and it proved very popular in Lady Bay, even with non vegans.  We made the vegan sausages a permanent fixture on the menu.  But, along with our falafel sandwich the vegan choices have struck us as being rather limited at just two.

I became vegan last November and have really begun to experiment much more with ingredients and cooking.  I have also learnt that many foods are vegan that you might not necessarily have thought of as being vegan.  I am finding it surprisingly easy to cut out animal products.  It has helped me to lose the weight that I had gained since opening the tearoom (so. much. cake.) and I feel so much healthier due to a more diverse diet.

Obviously I also disagree with animal testing and before you buy your next bottle of shampoo or mascara think about how easy it would be to check if your favourite brand tests on animals.  If they do you can download a list of animal friendly cosmetics on line.  You might be surprised to read that Tesco's own brand do not test on animals nor do Superdrug who do a great make up range as well as all the shower gel and conditioner you'll need (their coconut water conditioner is really good!)

At Bread and Butterflies we stock a lot of vegan friendly gifts that you can buy guilt free as they have not been tested on animals.  All of the products from The Nottingham Candle co are made with soy wax and smell amazing.  None of Cherry's products have been tested on animals and are completely vegan.  The Nottingham Soapbox are animal friendly too (although their Bee the Best soap contains honey and bees wax)

For any of you thinking of giving veganism a go I hope I have helped you see that it isn't as difficult as you might think, that there are plenty of delicious food choices still open to you and due to my own experience watch this space for hopefully more vegan options to be added to the menu at Bread and Butterflies.

As we approach our 40th birthday we feel extremely lucky to be running Bread and Butterflies in Lady Bay.  Without the amazing support of the local community and our customers we would not be able to continue.  We have had a fantastic run so far.

We left teaching two years ago hoping that we would be able to make a success of our own business and with a lot of hard work and some super busy days we're on track.  And that has to go with a big thank you to anyone who has supported us along the way so far.
We hope that we will also be celebrating our 50th with you all too!  Here's to the next ten years!
Cheers!

Here at Bread and Butterflies we are getting ready for Saint Valentine. We have been busy drawing unique cards so you can say it simply on the 14th February.  From just £2.50 you can have a cute little card to say "I love you"

If you want to spend a little more we have a great range of gifts for you to choose from for all budgets. If we don't have what you want in stock simply have a chat with Linsey or Lisa and we will be happy to produce a gift especially for your loved one. 

If the way to their heart is via their stomach we can help with this too! Why not get something sweet for your sweet. We can make a delicious cake for you to enjoy on Valentine's. We're putting together a specific pricing structure so pop in to discuss your needs. Don't forget we can cater for vegans and those with dairy and gluten allergies too!

If you're a regular customer you'll know we bake all our own cakes and that they are delicious! We recently made our carrot cake for a customer's birthday party and here is what she had to say:

And don't forget on Christmas Eve, as well as the Christmas sandwich, we will have special American style pancakes served 4 ways.  

After all this, Linsey and Lisa are going to deserve a long break!  We will be open on Christmas Eve from 10 til 2 then closed until Thursday the 4th January.

On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love sent to me twelve cappuccinos,
Eleven carrot cakes,
Ten Cherry Essentials,
Nine breakfast baps,
Eight espresso cups and saucers,
Seven take out cups,
Six soapbox soaps,
Five gold scones,
Four tea towels,
Three American pancakes,
Two tote bags 
​And a pet cushion for the settee.

For each coffee you buy from Bread and Butterflies you will receive a loyalty stamp.  Fill your loyalty card and your next coffee is on us.