New Year...New Holidays!

Bring in the New Year with one, key, resolution: get out to the coast more often!

Whether it be a long walk along the beach, a swing of the golf club by the coast or eating seafood from some top quality establishments then get yourself over to the East Neuk.

This is the best time of year to be planning your holidays and family get togethers.
Crail is the ideal place to base yourself, whether you are a young family or just young at heart.
Golf holidays in Fife are some of the most special in the world, where you can just feel the history of all the rounds that have been before.

Family holidays in Fife are magical too, beaches galore, woods and fairy houses to explore and some of the best ice cream in the country, make your memories here.

Don't forget for larger parties Neuk Hoose and Tappit Hoose can be rented together to sleep 6 plus 2 infants.

The new Hoose on the block

We would love to introduce you to  Tappit Hoose  the new little sister to Neuk Hoose. Nestled in a quiet back street almost directly behind Neuk Hoose precisely 8 steps diagonally accross from the back door lies Tappit Hoose.

Formally known as Tapsalteerie, we just felt that it was too much of a mouthful and settled for Tappit  Scots for Topped as it is a ground floor apartment. The house was converted from the Old bake house in Crail and it was once where the bread was taken to cool. It is now a very comfortable one bedroom apartment with a spacious Kitchen, dining/living room with a comfy sofa, BT you view TV/DVD player, gas stove and all the equipment you need in the kitchen.
The large bedroom has a luxurious king sized bed, sumptuous carpet and space to relax.

Tappit Hoose is ideal for anyone wishing to explore the East Neuk, whether walking the
Fife Costal Path, playing Links Golf, or attending one of the many festivals in Fife.

Due to the Hoose's close proximity to one another they are ideal for larger family or friend groups. Just think if you would like to go on holiday with the kids and the grandparents but everyone needs their own space, you are on to a winner. Golfing groups too as the houses combined sleep 6 people which makes it considerably more cost effective than staying in a hotel (the perfect way to sell a golfing weekend to your non golfing partner!)

Tappit Hoose is also a wonderful winter getaway, as it's nestled in a back street it's sheltered from any wild sea winds. Picture yourself windswept from your bracing walk along the beach, a cup of freshly brewed coffee, feet up, fire on and relax........

More delicious meals with no mess....!

We love a frittata! You can literally throw anything in it and it still tastes delicious. So if you are thinking of what to use up on the last night of your stay, a frittata is you go to meal. The extra bonus is if you make more that you need you have an excellent picnic for the car on the way home!
The key to success with your ingredient choice is some veg/meat or fish and some cheese, herbs are fab too but by no means essential.

Here is a list of my fav combos:
Goat's Cheese and Spinach
Roasted Red Pepper and Feta
Pea, Mint and Feta
Smoked Haddock and Leek
Roasted Leek and Goat's Cheese
Potato, Bacon and Cheddar
Roasted Vegetable and Goat's Cheese

Serves 4
6 Free Range Eggs
1-2 tbsp Milk
Salt & Pepper

-Pre heat oven to 180c
-Take a non stick oven proof pan, big enough to hold all the ingredients (check it fits in the oven first!)
-Fry/Roast off anything you need to first, e.g. bacon, leek, onion. Decant onto a plate
-Let the pan cool then break your eggs into the pan and whisk gently with a fork, don't worry if the pan is still a bit hot and it sticks but do be careful not to scratch the pan.
-Turn the heat up to high and add all your other ingredients and give it a good mix with a wooden spoon.
-Turn the heat down to medium and let the bottom of the frittata cook until its a nice golden brown colour. I like to swirl the mixture round after loosening off the edges so that the liquid mixture goes down inbetween the cooked mixture and the pan.
-Put your pan into the oven and check after 12-15 mins to make sure the middle is cooked, you can happily put it back in for another 5 mins with some foil loosely covering the top if the middle is wobbly but the top is brown.
-It is also best to leave it out of the oven for at least 10 mins to help the flavour develop after cooking.
Enjoy

Crab Linguine

The first of our season of one pot wonders, what better than something that is readily available in Crail and its easy to prepare in our holiday let kitchen. Locally sourced crab can be found in either the lobster shack down at the  harbour or from Green's the Grocer on the High Street, both less than 5 mins walk from Neuk Hoose. We won't bother with measurements as who wants to weigh things on holiday!

Crab Linguine

serves 2

2 Dressed Crab
Any pasta will do but I love it with Linguine or spaghetti
Double Cream or Creme Fraiche
2 Cloves of garlic, squashed
1 red chilli, finely chopped
squeeze of ½ a lemon
Green herb, any really that you can find Coriander, parsley or basil would be best but dill could work too.

-Cook pasta according to the packet instructions, leave to drain reserving a bit of the cooking liquor (just under an egg cup full)
-Pour a good glug of cream into the now empty pasta pan with the reserved cooking liquor, add the garlic and chilli and let this bubble a bit, reduce and thicken, then add the lemon juice and if you can bear to spare any a wee splosh of white wine.
-Now add your crab, give it a good stir and then add the cooked pasta, green herb and lots of salt and pepper, if it looks too dry you can add a splosh more cream or wine.
-This is literally a 15 min meal, the pasta won't thank you for sitting cooked for too long so make sure all your ingredients are chopped and ready to go.
-Enjoy with a large glass of dry white wine and some yummy crusty bread to mop up all the juices.

One Pot Wonders.

While we love the chance to cook in a new-to-us kitchen, the last thing we want to do on holiday is prepare a meal that creates a lot of extra work and dishes. That's why we gravitate toward one-pot meals. Not only do they cut down on cleanup time (time which could be better spent enjoying family and friends), but they are also easier to execute — even if you aren't familiar with the utensils and equipment you'll find everything you need in the Neuk Hoose kitchen to whip up a one pot wonder. Recipes to follow.....

2016 East Neuk Festival

Neuk Hoose, Fife's best holiday cottage is proud to endorse the 2016 East Neuk Festival.

"Wide open to the world, rooted in Fife."

What better way to describe the magical and romantic East Neuk Festival. Celebrating music from around the world from Mendelssohn, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, to the golden age of Jazz and Nizam Rohana's Oud all to be enjoyed from our wee neuk of East Fife.

Starting on Saturday 25th June in Crail there will be the opening night suitable for all ages celebrating music from around the world ending with some classical Jazz.

Sunday 3rd July sees the finale of the festival in Crail and Cambo with Comedy, tragedy and fairytales and ending with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra playing Schumann, Mendelssohn and Shostakovich.

This promises to be a spectacularly magical week long event with something special for all music lovers and although our accommodation in Crail is already booked it is so worth a visit.

Essentials for your summer holiday.

What do I pack, what do we need? Will the kitchen sink even fit in the back of the car.......!
A wee handy guide to packing your holiday essentials from Fife's best self catering holiday cottage.

All linen and towels are provided however beach towels are a really good idea to pack if you are planing on hitting the beach. The Beehive store sells buckets, spades and the all important crabbing nets.

There is nothing worse than arriving at your holiday cottage to find no cooking equipment in the kitchen. We have all the pots and pans you need as well as some baking equipment, cafitiere, egg cups, sharp knives and baking trays. You don't even need to buy up the supermarket on your way either as Crail boasts its own butcher, fishmonger, fruit and veg shop, whole foods/organics shop, bakery as well as the trusty Coop.

Sturdy shoes! Even if you are not much of a walker normally, Crail draws you in to exploring its charming winding back streets. For the seasoned walkers the Fife Costal Path combined with the number 95 bus is an absolute winner. Have a goal in mind or just walk for as far as your legs can manage then  hop on the bus to take you back to Crail,  it's a Scotland walking holiday dream.

And finally a good book, our wee bench outside the house is the perfect spot to sit in the sun, watching the world go by or to forget the rest of the world is even there, page after page.

The Fabulous Crail Food Festival 2016

Well the weather wasn't great but it didn't stop a good turn out for the 2016 Crail Food Fest. We started at the chocolate tent, well where else would you start? Delicious macaroons, sumptious brownies and hot chocolate all went down well.

The harbour was the place to be for lunch and although I am in love with Puddledub pork it was the pulled venison bun that won the day for me. Others voted for the arbroath smokies and the queue spoke for itself.

We still have a couple of weeks free at the beginning of July if anyone is still looking to book their
self catering holiday in Fife, our holiday cottage in Crail sleeps up to 4 and is the perfect place to
holiday in the East Neuk

Post Office reopens in Crail

Happy days for the residents of Crail and lovely guests at Neuk Hoose. The post office has reopened in the Beehive shop. 

Aptly nicknamed "the pocket money shop"'in our house, the Beehive is a treasure trove of penny sweets, kids toys for under a fiver, Luvians ice cream, cards and lightbulbs etc. 

Now when you're staying in our holiday cottage in Crail you can post a wee postcard and share the fun.