The thought of spending time in accident and emergency with my son terrifies me, being away from home and sitting on cold plastic chairs in an anxiety-filled environment is one of my worst nightmares. Pair that with the increasing levels of drink, drug and mental health cases in accident and emergency, it can be a very stressful and scary time. The Southampton Hospital Charity is currently raising £2 million to transform the children's emergency and trauma department alongside The Murray Parish Trust at Southampton General hospital and as it's something that is close to my heart, I couldn't not get involved and help raise awareness. You never know when you may need it.
During May, the Southampton Hospital Charity has been encouraging people to hold their own dinner party as part of the Dine At Mine campaign to raise money for the new state of the art Children's emergency and trauma department with the government matching every £1 donation. It's a great excuse to hold a dinner with friends, BBQ or just get together over a few pizzas while raising money for a worthwhile cause. Hopefully, it is something that is continued into the future to coincide with future appeals.
Last week, a group of food bloggers and critics spent the evening at Southampton's hottest new location to round off the end of the Dine At Mine campaign. Southampton Hospital Charity hosted a private dining event at Room2 Hometels Southampton with Masterchef winner and Southampton Children's Hospital Charity ambassador, Shelina Permalloo of Lakaz Maman. We spent the evening sipping colourful cocktails and enjoying an unforgettable dining experience. It was the perfect way to find out about the fantastic work the charity has been doing especially after the most recent charity row from Jersey to Ocean Village completed by Southampton doctors and nurses.
Having eaten at Lakaz Maman before, I knew we would be in for a treat. I adore Shelina and her zest for food and the menu reflected that beautifully. We spent the evening in one of Room 2's rooms which is also where Shelina prepared our delicious feast thanks to each room being fully equipped with a kitchen. With glasses filled and photos taken with the polaroid camera we had for the evening we settled in our seats to discover more about the charities hard work for the future department.
The menu for the evening was delicious. Starters were a choice of coconut prawns for buffalo cauliflower with a mango lime chilli sauce followed by mains of red snapper or roasted aubergine Mauritian curry with turmeric and cumin rice with a side of cucumber relish.
The showstopper for the evening was definitely the desserts. We each had a Chai Tirimisini which is a delicious mini Tiramisu adorned with edible flowers and a chai twist as well as a shared fruit platter. The tropical fruit platter looked incredible, almost too good to eat but with a salted caramel chocolate ganache, we all dived right in.
The Dine at Mine fundraising pack features a few of Shelina's recipes so I think I'm going to have a go at re-creating the coconut prawns. They were my favourite dish of the evening and I'm such a sucker for seafood.
A huge thank you to Southampton Hospital Charity, Room2, Lee Peck Media and Shelina for a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
If you would like to find out more information about the appeal and how to donate head to www.southamptonhospitalcharity.org and be part of something amazing.
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