Lemon & Lime Chocolate Cheesecake

When I went to Yeo Valley for a day learning about their organic gardens, I was lucky enough to be treated to a cookery session with their head chef Jaime. One of the dishes that he showed us how to make was a cheesecake using Yeo Valley yoghurt with a very clever technique. I decided to use one of the pots of yoghurts that they sent me home with and to try and make my own version. The ingredients are simple: a pot of Yeo Valley lemon and lime yoghurt, half a tub of chocolate Philadelphia, eight amaretti biscuits, a knob of unsalted butter. You will need to do step three in advance!

Lemon & Lime Chocolate Cheesecake (serves 2)

lemon and lime chocolate cheesecake

Melt a large knob of unsalted butter (I used Yeo Valley as it is so creamy) on a low heat and stir in eight amaretti biscuits. You can use normal digestives, but I like the nutty taste of the amaretti biscuits. Spoon half into each serving dish and press down.

lemon and lime chocolate cheesecake

Melt half a tub of Philadelphia chocolate cheese on a low heat. Pour it over the top of the biscuit base. Place it in the fridge to set for ten minutes or so.

This is the bit that you need to do in advance of everything else, the night before it's needed is best. Line a sieve with a plain, clean cotton teatowel, place over a bowl and pour in the yoghurt. Over the course of the night and day, the whey from the yoghurt will slowly drip out leaving a lump of thick, solidish yoghurt inside the teatowel. You'll actually be able to pick it up it will be so solid!

Whisk this with 150-200ml of double cream to form a smoother, looser mixture. Spoon it over the chocolate and place it in the fridge to set for ten minutes.

Et voila!

Yeo Valley have a huge range of yoghurts from the traditional Vanilla and Strawberry styles, to the more exotic Lemon Curd, and Lemon and Lime. Producing approximately 10 million pots of yoghurt every week, you can see why they are so popular!

Mexican Discovery Fajita Kits (Review)

We like fajitas in this house. They're easy to cook, provide several of the five a day, relatively healthy and taste incredibly naughty! In these 'Summer' months, they're a light and fun meal befitting the balmy evenings, and we tend to have them once a week or so at the moment.

I was sent one of the new packs from Discovery (original flavour) to help us create the perfect fajitas and while I first thought, "How much can you put into a kit without providing the filling ingredients?" I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the contents. Inside you get a packet of eight really soft and thick flour tortillas, a sachet of salsa and a packet of seasoning mix.

fajitas

This is where I realised I'd been doing it wrong for all this time, I don't tend to use any seasoning on the soya chunks that I put in and as a result the fajitas don't taste very authentically Mexican. However, I did this time, and while it was a tad spicy, it was very tasty and incredibly more-ish. Which is why I forgot to take a photo of the finished product!

The Discovery Perfect Fajita Kit is available from most supermarkets priced at £3.19. I actually think that's a very reasonable price as I would normally pay £1.50 for wraps which taste nowhere near as nice and fall apart the moment the end is folded. When the pack also includes seasoning and salsa which makes it good value. Would I buy it? Yes!

More information on Discovery is available at www.discoveryfoods.co.uk where there's a good selection of recipe inspirations too.

I was sent this product for the purpose of this review, my opinion is honest and unbiased.

Meal Planning Monday #13

It's been a few weeks since I joined in with Meal Planning Monday but this week I'm back!

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  • Sunday: We were a bit full after lunch so we decided to finish off the stash of cheeses in the fridge.
  • Monday: Quorn & salad wraps with pommels frites
  • Tuesday: I'm off to Yeo Valley for the day so it will be whatever leftovers I can find in the freezer!
  • Wednesday: A long work day so Mr. TBaM will be cooking cheese souffle (Asda), salad and baby new potatoes in butter and herbs (Aldi)
  • Thursday: Work again so pizza and chips
  • Friday: Mediterranean vegetables with rice, and grilled halloumi
  • Saturday: Chinese of course! We're trying to cut down to once a fortnight, not good for our waistlines, hearts or wallets to have it once a week!

I'm joining in with Mrs. M's Meal Planning Monday

Meal Planning Monday #13

It's been a few weeks since I've taken part in this linky (because of The Boy's birthday and our holiday the week before) and for the few weeks before that I'd been lacking enthusiasm. That ended up costing us money and wasting food. Not good, not acceptable and a complete lack of effort on my part. This month is completely manic financially: our holiday, The Boy's birthday and Britmums. I need to utilise the food in the cupboards and freezer, not buy any more!

  • Sunday: red onion & cheese plait, buttered carrots & roast Charlotte potatoes (with skins). The two dads (mine and The Boy's) will be having slow-cooked brisket in beer, mango chutney and mustard.
  • Monday: slow-cooked 'pulled' vegetables in wraps, ranch salad and onion rings.
  • Tuesday: Mediterranean vegetables with rice and grilled halloumi.
  • Wednesday: (work day) Primaverdi pasta. (Mr. TBaM is reading this wondering what it is: slice courgettes and half a leek, and lightly stirfry. Add half a tub of Elmlea and a handful of parmesan, along with a grind of black pepper. Cook the pasta in hot water for three minutes, strain and transfer to pan. Mix and serve with a sprinkle of parmesan. Ta!)
  • Thursday: Quattro formaggi pizza and wedges.
  • Friday: Britmums Live.
  • Saturday: Britmums Live.

I'm linking this up to Mrs. M's Meal Planning Monday

Tilda Kids (Review)

TheBoy was recently sent the new Tilda Kids rice range to try. This new range contains four, delicious, different flavours: Cheese & Tomato, Sunshine Vegetable, Sweet Vegetable & Wholegrain, and Mild & Sweet Curry Rice.

children's rice

They all sound very exotic and exciting for the average child's taste buds, but are all suitably mild in flavour so as not to cause an explosion on the tongue! Suitable for 3 years+, the range contains no nasties with natural ingredients used throughout. The back of the pack also suggests what they can be used to go with, for example the Cheese & Tomato rice will go nicely with meatballs. And because they provide 1 of your little one's 5 a day, they are a perfect accompaniment.

Available in 125g pouches most supermarkets, they cost £1.15. As The Boy is only just three he has a half portion at a time, and for busy work days it is a perfect solution to dinner times. Even Nana approves, and you know you're onto a winner when that happens!

We were sent these products for the purpose of this review. Our opinions are honest and unbiased.

Update 19/06/12

Several people asked me why it was only suitable for 3yrs+ and so I asked the PR company. They said this:

The Tilda Kids range of products are specifically aimed at 3-9 year old children as this is where our research was focused. Therefore, this age groups taste, texture, ingredient etc preferences are at the core of the range.

However, the products are suitable for children older than 9 and younger than 3 years old provided they are fully weaned and happily able to eat solids.

Hope that helps?

Sandcastle Birthday Cake

A month or so ago I bought a silicon cake mould from Aldi in the shape of a sandcastle. At only £3.99 I couldn't not buy it, even though I had no idea what I was going to use it for; I'd already decided on The Boy's birthday cake and had no idea what this one could be used for.

In the end I decided to use it for The Boy's family birthday party today. I've never used a silicon cake mould before and was nervous. I was also a bit nervous because of the size of the mould and had no idea how much mixture would be needed. After a helpful tweet from Clare at Seasider In The City pointing me in the direction of this post, I discovered I'd need 9 eggs and 18 ounces of flour for the madeira cake!

Luckily it only took an hour and half to cook, and peeled out of the mould really easily. Today while The Boy was napping, I decorated it with some simply shell-shape chocolates.

I was sceptical that it looked ok, but The Boy was more than happy with it. Look at his little face when he saw the cake mummy made him:

Orchard Toys: Where's My Cupcake? (Review & Competition)

Anyone who has read any reviews on my blog will know that the statement above is true. I am a massive fan of Orchard Toys and think that they really are the leading producers of educational games and puzzles in the UK at the moment; long-lasting, sturdy, attractive, environmentally friendly and fun, you'd be hard pushed to find a better brand.

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Mediterranean Vegetables And Rice With Grilled Halloumi

Some of my best recipes arise from making stuff up as I go along. This is one of them!

It's an incredibly simple meal and is a complete and utter cheat from start to finish. I've mentioned it a few times on my Meal Planning Monday posts and it always gets an excellent response and a request for the recipe, so here it is.

But first of all, a picture:

Aubergines, courgettes, red & yellow pepper, onion, extra virgin olive oil, basil, garlic, black pepper, basmati rice, halloumi.

I'd like to make out that it's really complicated but it's not. Aldi sell a bag of chargrilled mediterranean vegetables for £1.45. They also do boil in the bag basmati rice. Ten minutes in a wok for the vegetables, ten minutes in hot water in the microwave for the rice and toss the two together. Lightly grill the halloumi on both sides. Shove it all on a plate.

Et voila!

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