Meal Planning Monday #3

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My third week of meal planning and it's going well! I'm finding that I'm actually considering the food that we already have in the freezer more, debating the easy days, making more of an effort with my cooking and am less consumed by the whole concept of food. And I've stuck to it so far!

  • Sunday: slow-cooked pork (which I'd picked up the night before in Tesco in the reduced section!) in a honey and mustard sauce, with mushroom, carrots and leek. This was only for Mr. TBaM as The Boy doesn't like proper meat at the moment, and I'm veggie. It took three hours to cook on high and he informs me that it was cooked to perfection. I added some cornflour to the juices left over to make gravy. I had a red onion, leek and cheese plait (Linda McCartney in Asda) and The Boy had codcake and peas.
  • Monday: Pea and mint risotto cake (Asda have expanded their veggie range lately) and what I call 'Bulgarian salad' (feta cheese, tomato and cucumber chopped. It was the regional dish when I stayed in Bulgaria on an educational programme a few years ago. In 4 days I ate 9 portions because there was nothing else for a veggie in rural Bulgaria to eat!)
  • Tuesday: Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie. I'll be doing the mince and vegetables for this in the slow cooker. I'm told that veggie mince needs a lot of liquid in a slow cooker, which makes sense. I haven't cooked veggie in there before but I'm guessing that as the mince is reconstituted mushrooms and par-cooked anyway it won't need more than a few hours to cook. It'll mainly be the vegetables that will need the cooking. It might be counter-productive but I'll be doing the potatoes as normal.
  • Wednesday: slow-cooked vegetable soup. It's a work day so I'll prep all the veg the night before and then ask mum or hubby (home on garden leave) to turn the slow-cooker on mid-morning. Hopefully it should be cooked nicely by the time I get in. I might try some red lentils in it, any tips welcome.
  • Thursday: A work day so an easy meal needed: meatballs and spaghetti! Unsure whether trying this in the slow-cooker would be pointless? Maybe I'm getting over-excited.
  • Friday: Butternut squash and spinach lasagne. Not sure if I've got any portions left in the freezer, if not I'll make a new one.
  • Saturday: Chinese! This will be my last Nearly New Sale as the co-ordinator because I don't have the time or the inclination for it anymore. The Boy is coming up to nursery age and if I don't have another child then my time in the toddler group will be coming to an end. Aside from that I've now co-ordinated four sales and they are all encompassing and tiring. There's new blood in the group, they can do it! I'll be out from 10am to 6.30pm and will be shattered, so a take-away is in order. The Chinese we used to use had a 0 rating on food hygiene, and I can't find another one who makes dee-fried tofu like I like it, so last weekend I made up a batch for the freezer. Mr. TBaM can go and get the remaining egg fried rice, chips, crispy seaweed and spring rolls, yummy!

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I'm linking this up to Meal Planning Monday over at At Home With Mrs. M.

Meal Planning Monday #1

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I've never taken part in this before but have long read the contributions of The Five Fs and GeekMummy with interest and a note to try it the next week. However, this week I'm doing it. There are a number of reasons for this:

  1. I have recently lost my imagination and my desire to cook, therefore beginning to eat a great big pile of stodge and take-aways as a matter of course. This is not healthy for my body, my wallet or my fridge. The food waste bin is happily consuming the good food that I'm buying and can't be bothered to cook. I think this stems from being shattered when I come in from work and not having the brain-power to concoct something. If I plan it then I have no excuse (and neither does my husband! Hint, hint).
  2. As previously mentioned, I'm wasting food and money. I don't like wasting food, it goes against what I was brought up to do, is wasteful of the Earth's resources and, at a time when Mr. TheBoyandMe and I are trying to save money, is incredibly wasteful. On Saturday, I threw away; half a brie, a bag of salad, three carrots, a cucumber, five vitality health drinks, a block of goat's cheese and some leftover baked beans. That's ridiculous!
  3. I need to lose weight, and rather than diet (which never works for me), I'd rather take control of the content of the food we eat and monitor the fats and sugars going in. I need to eat more fruit and vegetables, this will help.
  4. Final point, my mother's complaining that she doesn't know what to give The Boy for lunch (when I work) because she doesn't know what he's had the night before or is going to have. Now she has no excuse, especially as I've written it on the blackboard in the kitchen!

I know that this plan should probably start on a Monday, but for me the week starts on a Sunday so that's when mine does. Work days are italicised. For those who can't read my 'teacher's whiteboard handwriting', it says:

Wish me luck at sticking to it!

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I'm linking this up to Meal Planning Monday over at At Home With Mrs. M.

Marks Out of Five

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Crispy seaweed should not have sugar in it. Crispy seaweed should be salty and you should need a glass of water after every mouthful because of it.

Today in work, one of the LSAs told us about the hygiene ratings of various take-aways and restaurants in our home-town. Our favourite Chinese take-away had a rating of 0. 0 out of 5, 5 being the highest, 0 being the lowest.

So yeah, our favourite Chinese is a bit scummy.

Therefore when Mr. TheBoyandMe suggested Chinese for tea, I relayed the story to him and we found the highest rated Chinese in town to have take-away from.

It cost £5 more. The crispy seaweed had sugar in it. The fried bean-curd was tough as old boots, and it had vegetables mixed in with it! The spring rolls were incinerated and the chips were like french fries.

If that's what hygiene does for you, give me rats' tails anyday!

Shake Up Your Wake Up!

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I am a firm believer that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I can't cope and feel nauseous if I haven't eaten within about half an hour of waking up, and enjoy the traditional cereal and toast with a glass of milk (or coffee if it's been a bad night) most days. On weekends, we may indulge with a cooked breakfast or a maybe some naughty chocolatey cereal, but on the whole we do eat a sensible breakfast.

Or so I thought.

That was until I received a hamper from the people behind the Farmhouse Breakfast Week campaign who are encouraging us to shake up our wake up!

In the basket are a whole range of goodies including porridge oats, sesame seeds, mixed fruit, mixed seeds, jams and Marmite. There's also a rogue orange which is a little alien to me if I'm honest. Bananas yes, but oranges?

It made me realise that possibly the cereal I have isn't the best and most-filling cereal, especially to last me 'til lunchtime. And possibly I shouldn't be trying to persuade Mr. TBaM to buy white bread because it's not actually very good for you. We were also sent a loaf of granary bread which will make Mr. TBaM feel like he's won points, and a box of home-made,  really yummy breakfast energy bars. Now I get what the seeds are for.

I must just add that the breakfast energy bars are delicious and if you'd like to know how to make them, then pop over and check out the Shake Up Your Wake-Up breakfast idea recipes. And this weekend when I would normally provide Mr. TBaM with a cooked breakfast, I shall do him a breakfast hash with bacon and eggs instead, the saturated fat content will be a lot lower than normal!

Check out the Shake Up Your Wake-Up campaign over on Facebook. If you take part in their breakfast challenge this week, then you could be in with a chance of winning £1000 in holiday vouchers! What are you waiting for?

I was sent a breakfast hamper to try out the challenge this week. It's healthy and I need wishing good luck! My opinions are honest and unbiased.

Culinary Christmas

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What festive foods will you be exploring over the Christmas period? I'm going with the following items, see what you think.

A meal is not a meal without crusty bread as either an accompaniment or a starter. Imagine crusty bread, balsamic vinegar and rich, fruity olive oil. I love dipping and swirling the bread, and the contrasting taste and textures is fantastic. There is no better olive oil than Filippo Berio with its rich, fruity taste and Italian heritage.This Christmas they have released a special, limited edition 1L tin which features one of Italy’s most iconic landmarks, the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The unique, limited edition tin is stunning and going to be well used over the Christmas period along with crusty bread for dipping, on the roast potatoes and honey-roast parsnips, and along with some honey and lemon juice for salads.

Available for £6.49 (RRP)

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Most cooked meals in this house during Winter are accompanied by cranberry sauce. I adore it, to the point where five years ago my dad bought me a picnic hamper packed full of jars of the red, fruity sauce and I managed to get through every jar before the expiry date!

At Christmas time, the humble cranberry deserves the special treatment and that is what Owen Potts has done:

This cranberry sauce has been blended with honey to create a sweet and delicious accompaniment to the traditional Christmas meal. Made with over 40% cranberries and over 10% honey, you know that you're going to be getting a quality sauce on your plate on Christmas day.

Available from main supermarkets for £1.89 RRP

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As far as my dad is concerned, the Christmas Day buffet tea is not complete without a jar of pickled onions. He's not the only one now either. I thought I'd managed to not marry my father but Mr. TheBoyandMe and he agree on this requirement.

Garner's Pickled Onions are a tad more special than the regular jars on supermarket shelves. The traditional pickled onion is marinated in an exclusive new blend of rich spiced vinegar with whole mustard seeds, something that my dad will enjoy immensely. The spices make the onions more seasonal while the mustard seeds provide that additional burst of flavour to waken up tastebuds after the dullness of turkey and stuffing. All presented in a beautiful Kilner jar which helps to seal in the flavour and freshness during the Christmas period.

Available from most supermarkets.

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I get a bit bored with the usual Christmas pudding, Stöllen cake, yule log etc. at Christmas time. I love cheesecakes and a New York style cheesecake is my most favourite. The English Cheesecake Company have a range of sumptuous cheesecakes which are a perfect addition to the Christmas dining table.

Feast your eyes on this baby:

This is a Brandy Snap Cheesecake. Isn't it a thing of beauty? Seriously! Look at the depth of that base and the curls of the brandy snaps! And trust me, they were gorgeous and crunchy, sweet and smooth. The thick vanilla, cream mix of the cheesecake is completely luxurious and laced with a hint of brandy butter. It is smooth and leaves the most amazing after-taste. All on a thick digestive base which is sweet and crunchy and a delicious contrast to the thick cream.

If you're after something different for a Christmas dessert, then you really should investigate their range. Why should the most important meal of the year be let down by a Value Christmas pudding?

Available for £26.50 from The English Cheesecake Company

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Christmas is not Christmas in our family without a tub of biscuits, and which better biscuits to go for than Fox's? This Christmas, Vinnie the gangster panda has put together a selection in a Limited Edition tin.

It's got all the traditional favourites in there: Choc Fudge, Original Ambers, Party Rings, Jam & Cream Rings and Butter Crinkle? But if anyone goes anywhere near the Golden Crunch Creams, then I shall harness my inner Vinnie, and there will be a war!

Available for £8.00 in Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrison's

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I'm not a fan of nuts, I think they taste like wood which amuses Mr. TheBoyandMe greatly. However, he adores nuts and every Christmas we have bowls of different types lying around on surfaces. His favourites are pistachios and this year he'll be trying these from Wonderful Pistachios.

With four flavours out (Roasted & Salted, Salt & Pepper, Sweet Chilli and No Salt) there is a flavour to suit everyone. As Mr. TheBoyandMe likes nuts and spicy flavours, I gave him the Sweet Chilli to try out. "Sweet Chili isn't precisely a traditional flavour, but it's not excessive; after the first mild kick, it settles into a very pleasant spicy feeling that lingers for a while afterwards and gives a certain more-ishness that makes it difficult to stop eating them!"

Available in most supermarkets now.

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There's now't better to accompany a cheeseboard for Christmas Day supper than a lovely selection of pates.

These scrummy pates and terrines from Castle MacLellan in Scotland are divine and very high quality. Between the pair of us we've sampled the crab terrine, the salmon pate and the oven-roasted mushroom pate. There are some imaginative flavours which would suit the Christmas dinner table well.

Keep an eye out for these in supermarkets.

I was sent samples of these products to try for the purpose of this review. Our opinions are honest and unbiased.

Cooking with The Gruffalo

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I realised this morning that it's been nearly a month since The Boy and Me (ha!) have done any baking together, and so I cracked open the plain flour and the weighing scales. We'd had a Gruffalo apron set sent to us from Dunelm so I decided to follow the recipe on the recipe card given in the pack to make Woodland Cookies.

Woodland Cookies

Ingredients:

  • 170g plain flour
  • 1tbsp baking powder
  • 57g rolled oats
  • 113g butter
  • 113g caster sugar
  • 57g chocolate drops
  • 2tbsp golden syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. Put on your unbelievably cute, wipe-clean Gruffalo apron and smile at mummy, while not falling off the chair.

3. Mix the flour, baking powder and rolled oats together.

4. Rub in the butter to make a crumble mixture.

5. Add the sugar, chocolate drops and golden syrup and mix to a stiff dough.

6. Roll out the mixture onto a floured surface, using the cute little rolling pin included in the set.

7. Use the cutters to cut out some cookies and place on greased and floured baking tray.

8. Cook for 20 minutes or until pale brown.

I was sent the Gruffalo cooking set in order to review. My opinion that it's excellent value for money is honest and unbiased.

The Crazy Kitchen

Review: Mrs Tinks

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I like to ensure that all three of us eat home-made foods where and when possible. However, the curse of the working mum (albeit part-time) means that I don't tend to have the energy on a Wednesday or Thursday to prepare a meal from scratch. As Wednesday is a later than normal night, Mr. TheBoyandMe is in charge of dinner. Bless him, this can only comprise of getting a pre-made food out of the freezer and heating it; his favourite at the moment is quiche and chips for us. Therefore I need to make sure that there is a supply of nutritious, near-enough home-made meals for The Boy.

A lovely lady by the name of 'Mrs. Tinks' contacted me and asked if I'd like to try her meals. Ok, she asked if The Boy would, but I agreed on his behalf. A few days later, we took delivery of these:

There are four meals in the range:

  • Salmon & Cod Fish Pie: Luckily Mrs Tinks sent us two of these, because he adores fish, and this meal was no exception. The potato is light and fluffy, the fish is soft and tender, and there's added carrot! Bonus!
  • Chicken Curry: I've not ever shied away from giving The Boy spicy food, I used to mix a little curry powder into his cauliflower cheese on stage two weaning. Therefore I wasn't worried about giving him this. Combined with the sweetness of butternut squash, the mildness of coconut milk and the perfect mix of fresh ginger and additional spices, it's a mild and scrummy curry that he really enjoyed. Gluten Free.
  • Butternut Squash & Spinach Lasagne: I'm not ashamed that I pinched the other half of this one, I'm vegetarian and wanted to taste one of the meals! He was a little outraged that I was helping myself to his food, but it was so scrummy that he soon forgot about it. Layers of sweet butternut squash and steamed spinach, combined with the delicious cheese sauce made this one a definite winner, with both of us! Vegetarian.
  • Beef Lasagne: The Boy hates beef, yet I am desperate for him to eat it to ensure he's getting red meat in his diet. I normally have to smother it with either a tomato-based sauce or a cheese-sauce. This was the only beef meal that he has eaten willingly and with complete and utter enjoyment, that I have given to him as was. He wolfed it down and I can understand why; as a vegetarian it goes against the grain to say this, but it smelt divine. Plus there's added carrot.

The meals are available in both child sized portions, and (with the exception of the chicken curry) available in family-sized portions for 4-5 people. What I would say is that the children's meals are a really good size. I split each meal in half because The Boy wouldn't get through a whole one and I didn't want to waste it.

More information can be found on the Mrs. Tinks range here and on Facebook.

I was sent samples of the meals for the purpose of the review. My opinion is honest and unbiased.

Recipe Shed: Butternut Squash (& Blue Cheese) Risotto

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When I saw that this week's Recipe Shed theme was 'vegetarian', I knew it would be rude of me not to take part. This recipe is one of our favourite meals, we don't normally have it with blue cheese but I have some in the fridge which is in danger of being more blue than cheese, so I'm bunging that in too!

Depending upon which degree of vegetarianism you subscribe to, this may need altering to suit your requirements. For example, I have a Bachelors in Vegetarianism: I don't eat meat or fish, but don't sift through the cheeses to find rennet-free types in the supermarket. Life's too short to stuff a mushroom, ya'know. If you have a Masters in Vegetarianism, then you may want to substitute the single cream for something like Alpro Soya, likewise the cheese. If you have an HND in being a Veggie, then you need to realise that eating fish makes the rest of us have to say "no, I don't eat fish because I'm a vegetarian!" so thanks for that!

Ingredients

  • handful of mushrooms
  • one leek
  • 2 handfuls of arborio rice per person
  • half a butternut squash
  • a stock cube
  • 2 (ish) pints of hot water
  • 100ml of Single cream
  • blue cheese
  • Parmesan
  • unsalted butter

1. Cut the butternut squash up into small chunks and cook for ten minutes in 2 pints of hot water and a stock cube.

2. While that's bubbling away, thinly slice the mushrooms and leeks. As The Boy is sharing this with us, I cut the leeks up very small. As neither of us like the texture of mushrooms then these also go very small. Sweat them down in a generous knob of butter.

3. After five minutes, add the rice to the pan of butter, mushrooms and leeks. I can't remember why, I think it's something to do with coating and sealing each grain of rice with the butter, but I could be making that up! Leave it for a minute or two, stirring halfway through.

4. Transfer two ladles of stock (not the butternut squash though) into the pan with the rice and stir through. This initial water will disappear quickly so give it a stir and add some more.

5. This is the bit which requires constant attention and judgement. The risotto will need stirring every minute or two to stop it sticking, and the second the water has been absorbed into the rice, you need to add another ladle of stock. This is why I am typing this up on the iPod Touch while I'm busy watching the rice (in fact, I was so busy explaining then I forgot to stir and my rice stuck in one section!). This will take about twenty minutes on a low heat. You might need all the stock, you might not. Transfer the butternut squash across at the end.

6. When the risotto has plumped up and absorbed most of the liquid (apart from a small amount around the sides), taste it to check. It should have a small bite to it and not be slushy. However, chewy risotto isn't right so possibly add a bit more water and cook it for a few minutes longer.

7. Add the single cream and the cheese and stir through. Keep on the heat for a further minute to make sure the heat has melted the cheese.

8. Serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan on top.

Pop over to Reluctant Housedad's Recipe Shed to check out the other veggie delights by pressing this linky doo-dah malarky!


Recipe Shed

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