Banana porridge with blueberry compote – creamy banana flavoured oat porridge topped with a tangy blueberry compote; get two of your five a day in with this healthy, delicious and easy to make breakfast! Post sponsored by Arla.
Milk is one of the main staples of grocery baskets across the country and it is easy to see why; it is such a useful product that is consumed for so many different reasons throughout the day. …
Chocolate berry smoothie – a rich, chocolatey smoothie that feels like you are drinking dessert but it is totally healthy!
I always feel like a bit of a cheat when I post a smoothie recipe because they are so simple that it almost feels wrong to even call it a recipe; I mean, the instructions are only one line long for goodness sake! Nevertheless, I having been making this chocolate berry smoothie a lot recently so thought that I would go ahead and share it as I like it so much….
It feels like an age since I last posted, and I was planning on putting this post up last week but life (and my seven month old niece who I was babysitting for the week – how does anyone get anything done while looking after a baby?!) got in the way so it’s taken me an awfully long time to get this done! I’m also going to Bloodstock festival (heavy metal) tomorrow so will be away until next week; I’m hoping for a warm, sunny weekend but doubt I’m going to get it so I’ve got my (black, naturally) wellies packed just in case; I say packed, but currently I just have piles of stuff to take dotted around the house and haven’t actually packed anything yet…I am not very prepared!…
Welcome to my review of the January 2016 Degustabox. If you’re not familiar with the Degustabox then in brief it’s a subscription service whereby each month you’re sent a box full of goodies to try; most are either new brands or products and it works out far cheaper than buying everything individually in the shops. It is a bit of a lottery however as you have no idea what you will be sent, some products you may love, and others you might not be so keen on; the surprise element is quite fun though, and it encourages you to try products that you wouldn’t normally think to buy. If you fancy giving a box a try yourself then simply enter the discount code BLDEG15 at the checkout and you’ll get £6 off your first order!…
Lately I have been feeling like time has been rushing past me at an unbelievable rate, I’ve been struggling to find enough time to get everything done and I have to admit that I have let things like cleaning the house slide a little as I struggle to fit everything in… I’m not even particularly busy, there are just so many little tasks that all add up into an overwhelming mass and I have been tired and inefficient. I always make sure I find some time to fit in a bit of baking though!…
When I was sent an OXO Good Grips non stick frying pan (£50 from Lakeland) to review I knew exactly what to make in it to test it – pancakes! they are one of the best (and tastiest) ways to test just how non stick a pan is, if you can flip a pancake cleanly then it’s a goodun. The Good Grips frying pan was perfect for pancakes – I only had to use the teeniest smidge of butter to cook them in and they didn’t stick at all. It felt very solidly made, with the kind of non-stick coating that isn’t just going to flake off after a couple of uses (I’ve bought some very cheap and crappy cookware in the past…always a false economy) and I was impressed by the addition of a silicone handle in place of the usual plastic which means that the pans are oven-proof up to 200°C, a bonus for me as I didn’t actually own a single frying pan that could go in the oven… And if you are lucky enough to own a dishwasher, it is dishwasher safe and suitable for use on induction hobs….
Summer is the perfect time to stock up on jam and preserves; yes jam may not be the first thing that comes to mind when there is so much beautiful fresh fruit around that is delicious just as it is, but if you happen to have some that is a little less than perfect or past it’s best then making jam is one of the best ways to use it up and make the most of it. …
I think I may have found a new favourite bread; this muesli bread is hearty, satisfying, delicious and it’s healthy! It is also a great way to use up some of that half eaten packet of muesli forgotten about at the back of the cupboard for 6+ months… (just me?). It stays soft for a good few days in a airtight container and makes fantastic toast; I’ve been enjoying it for breakfast slathered with butter and jam. The flavour is slightly sweet from the dried fruit and a little maple syrup and there’s a hint of warm cinnamon. Because it is full of oats, fruit and nuts it is very filling, so it makes a great breakfast or snack….
One of the worst parts of being a regular home cook and baker is the mountains of washing up that I produce…and seeing as I am not lucky enough to own a dishwasher I have to do it all by hand, which I hate…It is staggering how much washing up builds up so quickly when you have people round for dinner, and the last thing that you want to do after an enjoyable dinner party is piles of washing up. So for those of you who are luckier than me and own a dishwasher, Finish are giving away a bundle of dishwasher products worth £25 to help keep your dishwasher in tip top condition especially in hard water areas; simply complete the Gleam widget at the bottom of this post to win….
Galettes, also known as free-form pies or crostata, have to be just about one of the easiest things to make, it is in their nature to be rustic, so there’s no need to worry about trying to make it look neat and pretty; when it comes to a galette it is all about the flavour. They lend themselves well to pretty much any kind of fruit, so are the kind of thing that can be baked all year round; but are particularly good in Summer when there is an abundance of stone fruits and fresh berries. I opted to use nectarines, though peaches or plums would work just as well; and I couldn’t resist adding a bit of marzipan to the topping as almonds pair so well with stone fruits. I like to use cornmeal pastry for my galette crusts, as it adds a nice bit of extra crunch and deals better with the juice from the fruit. A perfectly crisp, golden crust, filled with juicy, sweet nectarines topped with marzipan crumble – heavenly….
