French Onion Soup on a Windy Hill

[@awatt]

If that hillside wasn't windy before the onion soup I'm sure it was after.

[@WC21UKProductionsLtd]

Loved the sound of the wind - I love it up there. Feel a bit jealous, as I have watched this atop the treacherous Hard Knott Pass, from whence I am settling off to bag my final Wainwright. I should be full of joy, but it feels more like dread! Lovely video of a lovely area.

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thank you! I had originally thought about about covering all the wind noise with some jaunty French accordion music to go with the theme of the meal, but when I was editing I realised I actually quite liked the sound of it. I'm now going to pretend my general laziness around finding fitting (and royalty free etc) music for videos is actually an act of artistic purity! There was a recent discussion with Allotment Fox on the risk of vanity creeping into our videos, which I am no doubt guilty of, and as I think he put it "the landscape should be the star". I think that adds further weight to that contrived argument covering up my laziness around using music!

[@WC21UKProductionsLtd]

@@tweedyoutdoors I had seriously never considered that making these videos might be about vanity until Allotment Fox mentioned it! I think we have to worry when we start using those filters to make ourselves look slim! The wind filtered through the wind slayer conveyed how remarkably wild Ivinghoe Beacon can feel - despite its proximity to huge conurbations.

[@tweedyoutdoors]

@@WC21UKProductionsLtd I think I may have mentioned before, on the pubs channel there's a cantankerous chap who has now twice commented on those videos that he wishes I wouldn't show my face so much, and just keep the camera pointed at the pubs instead. I don't consider myself to be the world's most sociable person - I really enjoy time alone - but even I quite like seeing a human face in videos on just about any subject. As I think I also commented in that recent discussion with Allotment Fox, a huge part of our brain has evolved to recognise human faces and interpret the minutiae of facial expressions and body language. It's a very effective communication mechanism! I can't pretend there isn't at least a bit of vanity though, I do often watch my own videos back, and there's something comforting / uplifting about seeing myself having a nice time. I suppose this is a bit like the emergence of the concept of "selfies" in amateur photography. There was a time, perhaps before mobile phone cameras became so ubiquitous, when people visiting famous monuments like the Eiffel Tower would probably just take a photo of the monument itself. Nowadays they're more likely to take a photo of the Eiffel Tower with themselves in the foreground. You could call that vanity, or you could say it's about creating a more personal image, which will resonate more with the person who took it in the years to come.

[@WC21UKProductionsLtd]

@@tweedyoutdoors I mentioned to Allotment Fox the other day, I see these videos as a wonderful visual diary that one can look back on in years to come. I’m leaving my KZbin logins to the family in my will - so in a way, I will achieve immortality!

[@davidberlanny3308]

Hi, that looked a whole lot of fun!! Soup looked great, just as well you brought those receptacles along with you, for the wine and the bottle, they were made for each!! I came across your channel from the Wessex Ways Podcast and from Mr WC21. The first video I watched was the paella on the downs from some time ago, I left you a comment there the other day, this one like the downs is an area I know well. My grandparents lived nearby so we often came to Ashridge, Tring and Ivinghoe. I was born nearby but we moved away when I was very young. The sunset was really well captured and the audio not affected by the wind at all. I'm glad you made it to the station in the dark ok. Have a great Sunday!!

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thanks David! It is a beautiful area and a surprise to me every time just how remote it feels considering how close it is to London. I hope the video brought back fond memories for you!

[@hedleythorne]

Will pop a comment in here before I watch this, as I am heading up to Ivinghoe tomorrow with The Ridgeway Trail Officer and 50 of my chums to make a big "50" and film it from the air, to celebrate 50 years of The Ridgeway as a national trail! Right, now to delve into your culinary adventure here...

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Sounds exciting - I look forward to watching the video!

[@CathrineH]

A wool hat and a scarf are nice when it is cold!

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Yes I definitely could have done with a scarf today - alas my scarves have been in storage since last winter and have a slightly off-putting musty smell to them!

[@PeterUrpeth]

Very enjoyable watch

[@Hagthorn]

Love it! Well done, it does make me laugh the way you casually get a blow torch out in the middle of a hike 😂 And I agree with your usage of boots doubling up as very fine bottle and glass holders.

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thank you! I'm surprised I don't see hiking boots used as wine glass / bottle holders more often on KZbin - it makes perfect sense to me... but perhaps other people don't consider a bottle of wine to be an essential thing to take along on a walk in the first place? Wine and being outdoors are two of the things I love most, and each one makes the other better.

[@Coconut_Head]

Sometimes KZbin wins by giving me a nice random video. Thanks! I like the suit and be wine in the boots

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed the video.

[@garrymartin6474]

French Onion Soup with cheesy croutons is a Winter favourite of mine too , but I have never tried it outdoors . A matching tweed deerstalker may keep you warmer in the chillier months and perhaps add a certain comedic tone to your videos !

[@juleswombat5309]

That looks really Yummy for such a simple receipt. Very Nice to get out into the country, despite the dreary weather. I enjoyed my own brewed coffee on my Sunday Morning walk, only 12 Miles around Epsom.

[@ysgolgerlan]

Thanks for a nice video, glad you enjoyed yourself this time and not being grumpy, that French onion soup looked very nice. Bon Apetweedy ! 👍

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thanks Ysgolgerlan! Yes I definitely seemed to be in a much better mood this time, and everything worked out very nicely.

[@salan3]

Sounds like the soup and wine went down VERY well! lol

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Yes I did feel in quite an upbeat mood on the way back.

[@salan3]

@@tweedyoutdoors Just got my xmas order from Fingal Rock. Happy bunny here.

[@CUBIERTOSDESABOR]

Hermoso trabajo 👍94❤💐Espero te encuentres muy bien, Nueva suscriptora, dejando mi apoyo 🔔🔔🙋💯💯 Bendiciones 🙏🙏❤

[@Oscartherescuedog]

Lovely video! I too am a fan of the wind noise, the scenery is stunning and I’ve never had French onion soup but will give it a try after watching this! If I can just throw in a cheese pun; I recently heard about an explosion at a cheese factory in France. The police had to get through a lot of de-brie to find the remains!

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thanks Seán! As I was also saying to Mr WC21 in the comments here I considered putting music over the top to hide the wind noise, but decided in the end I preferred to just let nature speak for itself. It is a surprisingly beautiful area of countryside considering how close to London it is. Of course you can just buy tins of French onion soup! A lot quicker / easier, especially if cooking outdoors. I don't know if Baxter's is sold in Ireland, but I remember their French onion soup was decent, although I haven't had it for a few years. I do think putting some bread with grilled cheese on top is really key to making it a much more satisfying dish though. Cheddar would work just fine if you can't find Emmental. I thought I had a comprehensive knowledge of cheese puns but I hadn't heard that one before. 😂

[@Hagthorn]

Lol 😁

[@hedleythorne]

What a super video, and it has mademe even more excited about being up on Ivinghoe tomorrow! I am rather jealous of the fact you had a lovely bottle of red, a sunset and a rather nice meal up there. Please don't ever stop making these videos, you really are taking your viewers with you.

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Thanks Hedley, really appreciated! It wasn't a very ambitious expedition but sometimes they can still be great, and I really enjoyed this trip.

[@johnhiscott-walsh5198]

...well that French onion soup looked surprisingly very tasty!

[@tweedyoutdoors]

I think I was as surprised as you were!

[@deirdrenone5234]

Cheers!

[@hedleythorne]

Any plans for a merch store, perhaps Tweedy "#LeaveNoTrace" t-shirts?

[@barryconway]

I like the idea of that soup, but my local Co-op doesn’t carry that wine, so I’m scuppered. (o; Do French phones say: Tring! Tring! ? (hashtag: askingforafriend)

[@tweedyoutdoors]

I think any French wine would do!

[@awatt]

The way you are holding those onions and baguette is a bit suspicious. Just saying

[@tweedyoutdoors]

Yes on re-watching I see what you mean!

[@bucal53]

I love your videos. One comment if I may- with the excellent wines you partake , it seems your glasses {wine]} are a bit dirty .Just a gentle reminder to clean them

[@tweedyoutdoors]

It is clean, but it has gone a bit foggy over time. It's actually a kind of plastic (Tritan). I used to take proper glass glasses along for al fresco wine appreciation but on a windy day I managed to smash one, and although I spent a solid 15 minutes hunting around in the glass for every last shard I could find, I still felt very guilty about it. I would love to find a better solution to this! Perhaps there's some tougher wine glass actually made out of glass out there, and then I could get some kind of padded case for when it's in my bag?