Sunny Side Up #18: A Timeline of My Perfect Friday Night

Ft. my fave pasta recipe 🍝

This was a busy week. You know - Thursday, Nobu. Vegas, Friday. It was no wonder that I needed a rest on Friday night! Here’s how it went. In real time!

5.14pm | Arrived home from work. In a slightly bad mood because I left the house wearing a great outfit, was definitely in the running for office best dressed, and then I got a blister and had to change my trainers which meant I was wearing red and pink trainers with an orange jumper. Faux pas. Terrible. Obviously this was a trauma so I needed to relax immediately.

5.18pm | Straight in the shower because my hair is greasy and I can’t cope with it any longer. I sing to JLS while I’m in there because my life is a party.

5.25pm | I don’t like to stay in the shower any longer than I have to because I hate when my fingers shrivel up like raisins. I slip into some comfies (oversized jumper, cycling shorts a la Princess Di) and head to the kitchen. I haven’t towel dried my hair properly so every so often there’s a cold drip down my back that I regret but can’t be bothered to do anything about. I turn on the TV and try not to overthink what I’m going to watch because I actually don’t want to spend my whole night flicking through Netflix. Tonight’s pick is Nobody Wants This because

Madeline Paige

and my sister have both said how good it is, and they must be right!

6.00pm | Episode one, so far so good. I start preparing my dinner!! Best part of the night, and I’m making a uni throwback. I first made this when I was trying to get rid of things in my fridge and it turned out pretty good. I’ll put the recipe here, it’s for one serving but you can just multiply it by however many you need.

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Ingredients
1 chicken breast
Handful of cherry tomatoes
Handful of tenderstem broccoli
2 tbsp creme fraiche
Juice of half a lemon
Parmesan, to taste
75g pasta
Salt & pepper, to taste
Handful of pine nuts, toasted

Method

You can probably tell how easy this is going to be. Also, you can make this veggie by substituting the chicken, or it works well with salmon too.

I start by toasting the pine nuts, just throw them in a frying pan and prod them until they’ve darkened in colour, then put them in a separate bowl while you cook the rest of the dish.

Drizzle some oil in the pan, then fry off the chicken on a medium heat and season. If you’re anything like me, you’ll cook the chicken until it’s bone dry, but at least that way you know it’s cooked the whole way through.

Meanwhile, boil the pasta for 11 mins or whatever your packet suggests. This pasta works best with fettuccine or fiorelli, I think. Make sure you save a bit of the pasta water, you’ll need this for the sauce later. I also tend to throw the sprigs of broccoli in with the pasta with four minutes to go because I don’t want to wash up an extra pan.

As the chicken starts to brown, add the tomatoes and creme fraiche, lemon juice, and parmesan. Add a splash of the pasta water to loosen the sauce.

Drain the pasta and broccoli, and mix in with the sauce. Leave it to bubble for about five mins before serving.

Garnish with the pine nuts and an extra sprinkling of parmesan. I promise it’s good. I’m writing this while it’s simmering so hopefully the pictures don’t make it look completely unappetising.

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6.45pm | I’m now thoroughly enthralled in Nobody Wants This so I call my sister to tell her how far through I am and ask about her day while I wash up the dishes. She’s watching Nadiya Hussain’s new series on BBC iPlayer - can confirm it’s a good one.

6.46pm | My fingers have shrivelled up like raisins. Why don’t we have rubber gloves? This is my least favourite part of cooking. I will forever appreciate dishwashers.

7.00pm | I collapse on the sofa and unbox my parcels like a 00s YouTube beauty guru. All my skincare ran out at once which means Space NK is incredibly grateful to me this week. I also bought a new bottle of the Rhode Glazing Milk which is my favourite skin thing. I’m not even really sure what it is but it’s just nice. I feel like if you have it yourself, you’ll know what I mean.

7.10pm | I have never seen Adam Brody before but I think I would marry him.

7.30pm | I text my friend Claire. She’s an artist and I’m buying one of her paintings. I keep going backwards and forwards between two but I think I’ve settled on one. I love it because it looks like a whimsical sunset. I tell her to watch Nobody Wants This and she replies saying that she used to live in that part of LA and the apartments aren’t that big in real life.

7.33pm | Just Googled Adam Brody and turns out he’s married to Leighton Meester?! Love that!! Good for you, Adam Brody.

7.46pm | I pause the TV to sing a karaoke rendition of Only Love Can Hurt Like This by Paloma Faith.

7.50pm | I press play again.

8.12pm | It’s time for a little treat. My mum got me some profiteroles because she loves me ❤️ It’s too late for caffeine now so I’m having a sleepy tea. The ones by Clipper are the best.

8.14pm | Amazing news, there’s a surprise chocolate mousse at the bottom of the profiterole pot. Could the night get any better?!

8.35pm | Update, yes it can! I’ve just caught up on a couple of Substacks. Anyone else having one of those weeks where time just runs away with you? I felt so guilty this morning because I didn’t have time to write something for today. Fortunately, I am not the only writer on Substack. Good to see there’s plenty of others holding down the fort!

9.00pm | I’ve just read a post by Katie Morley which makes me remember I have voice notes from my friend Beth so I reply. I need to do it now because otherwise messages will build up and I’ll be so overwhelmed that I just don’t, then three months will pass by and I will feel so bad about it that I am unsure whether to continue the friendship whatsoever. Dramatic and unnecessary, but texting is potentially the most overwhelming thing to come out of modern friendships.

9.10pm | Who styled Nobody Wants This? They did such a good job. Also the actress that plays Joanne’s sister, I love her hair.

9.12pm | Back upstairs now to sort my hair out. If I straighten it tonight, then I can sleep in a bit longer tomorrow. Sounds like a good deal to me.

9.20pm | I fear we are heading towards the cold snap in the UK so I’m making a hot water bottle. I love hot water bottles, if you’re not making one every night, what are you doing? Don’t you like feeling snuggly?

10.10pm | My parents are back home after abandoning me for the evening. I catch up with them about their fun night out, because their social lives are more exciting than mine at the moment. No hate, just facts.

?? pm | This is where it all becomes a blur. I think I fell asleep soon after this because I woke up at about 1am with my TV on auto-standby and my twinkly lights still on.

1.00am(ish) | I get up to fill a glass with water to put by my bed. I get into bed and excitedly rub my feet together like a little cricket because I had a really lovely night to myself and I’ve got a fun day ahead of me. Life feels happy and mellow. It doesn’t always, but it does tonight.

• A bubble bath on Monday evening. For some reason, Love At First Sight on Netflix is my go-to bath movie. I’m not sure why. I think maybe because they’re on a plane, although I’m not sure what that has to do with baths. Enclosed spaces?

• This was my fave outfit of the week, which I then destroyed with red trainers. Faux pas! Faux pas!!

• It’s Ugg szn ladies & gents.

• I caved and bought the New Balance x GANNI trainers. Did I need another pair? No. Will I love them until they have holes in the soles? Absolutely.

• This is the painting I chose. She’s so pretty. Thank you Claire <3

• What if you’re the magic? by

  Julianna

• What if I want to be like the other girls? by

  Soph Coombs

• Me vs WhatsApp: A tale of ghosting, guilt, and group chat muting by

  katie morley

Eighteen weeks of Sunny Side Up, who’d have thought I’d stay committed for that long? See you same time next week! x