Wednesday 14 May 2014

The Stone Earth Ozeri Review

I am such a lucky girl as I was asked to try a lovely product out this week. It is really exciting for my husband Kevin as he is the main cook in the family. He is a really great cook and recently won a cookery show in the UK, so he was ideal to try out this item.
The stone earth pan by Ozeri arrived and I was impressed by the way it arrived all packed up safe.



Utilising a natural stone derived coatings from Germany called Stonehenge. The stone Earth Pan by Ozeri is one of the worlds first pans to achieve non stick perfection while remaining absolutely free of PFOA, cadmium, lead and other harmful chemicals. PFOA stands for Perfluorooctanoic /acid which is known as a pollutant to the environment and has been under investigation by EPA .
With the stone earth Pans Stonehenge coatings no harmful toxic substances are every released.

We were very impressed with the pan, it had a nice weight but it wasn't very heavy to use. Excellent quality product and very nice to cook with. It needed no oil and was non stick and very easy to clean. I would like to have a set in different sizes as it would be a great addition to the kitchen. It even came with a nice little foam pad to protect the surface which I thought was a brilliant idea.





We would say we loved this product. From a health point of view it has got to be good and from a cooks view its also good. You can buy the Ozeri range at :


Please note we were not paid for this review only receiving a sample of the product

Sunday 11 May 2014

Silent Sunday:11/05/14




Tuesday 6 May 2014

Magic Moments :06/05/14 Cat Love

Well its Monday again and Magic moments time. I am a bit late today as it is a public holiday in the UK. I have been having a lazy day,  and catching up on bits and bobs.
I have no idea what my magic moment was going to be. I hope you will forgive me when you as i am sure you will agree, these bank holidays make you all chilled lol.

So my magic moment today is a little bitter sweet. It is full of happy memories and smiles but sad also.
Those among us that have pets know how much a loved pet can bring to your life. As a child we always had a dog and one cat. I wasn't sure I would want pets as I knew I would love them so much, it would be such a responsibility. Well life had other ideas and Cagney, Cefer, Daisy and Mia arrived , although not all at the same time. Except for Mia, who I should say is my daughters cat , the others found me.
Sadly I couldn't find you a picture of Cagney but this is our today cat Daisy, who is fast asleep as I type.


She is very laid back and calm, but totally obsessed with food lol. The above picture shows her trying to get me out of bed !
My daughters cat is called Mia, and she had spent a lot of time with me. She is full of energy and loves to wake you up at dawn. She is very very clever and likes to play fetch with you, just like a dog lol.


I have to finish with the sad part ! The cat that left great big, huge paw prints on my heart was Cfer.
She arrived in my life just as my dad left, and I think she was sent to help me through that loss. She was such a lovely cat who would be waiting for you when you come home, ready for a cuddle . My husband worked away a lot so I was often at home alone, and she was my company. She would sleep with me at night , all cuddled up against me.
Then she got sick and sadly the vet told me it was cancer. I asked if she could be cured and no was the answer, I had to let her go.
The day she died broke my heart and I truly felt like I had lost a human member of the family. I was so sad when a friend said " its only a cat"! She couldn't be more wrong. It took me awhile to get over losing her, and now I can look at pictures and think of her without getting upset. I still miss her everyday and please please if you know someone who has lost a pet, be nice to them and be understanding.
I'm hoping I get to see my cfer again and shes up there with all my relatives having a great party.




Monday 5 May 2014

Morrisons Review

It's the May Public holiday in the Uk. Most people are lucky to get a long weekend and an extra day off work or school. Its normally a time to get together with family or friends, either to eat or have a day out. For some like myself its a day to relax and have a P.J's day!

I was very lucky this bank holiday to get the chance to be a #MorrisonsMum and get to do some shopping and tell you all about it. So my husband and I set off on a wet May 2nd to see what bargains and goodies we could buy.


The first thing that impressed me was how clean the store was. Everywhere was tidy and smart, and that included the staff. These ladies were the first staff member's I came across and their happy smiling faces were great on a wet day.


I love to have lots of fresh vegetables as I am on diet . I loved the  way the fruit and vegetable's were displayed, under jets of steam to keep them fresh.



I was  also impressed with the meat , and the fresh fish. It all looked really good quality and fresh. The staff were very helpful and it was nice to have staff to get advice from.


I found in general the prices were good and my trolley filled up fast with lovely products.


 My husband was in planning mode lol. He is a very good cook and recently with his friend Dan, became the first winner of Sky Living My Kitchen Rules. I am lucky as he really enjoys making lovely food, and also trying to help me with my diet.



So as it was a bank holiday he came up with some yummy things to eat.

Fish cakes

300g  Haddock, Smoked Haddock and Salmon
250ml Milk
250g Potatoes.
1/2 teaspoon Thyme
1/2      "           oregano
Panco Breadcrumbs
Morrison Fresh Green Beans
Fennel
Little amount of flour
1egg
serves 4 cost around £2.50 per person.

Method

Place fish into milk and bring to boil. Allow fish to shimmer in the milk for 8-10 mins.
Peel and boil potatoes to make mash. Use a little of the fish milk to cream potatoes.
Allow the fish and potato to cool and then mix with herbs.
Shape into cakes. Beat the egg and the dip the potato in the flour, then egg , then bread crumbs .
Shallow fry until golden brown.
Cook the green beans
Cut fennel into small fine chips and shallow fry.



Roast Pork with jacket baked new potatoes.
Vegetables and Yorkshire pudding

3-4kg Pork shoulder
Morrisons Fresh carrots ( 4 large) sliced
Morrisons Fresh Leeks   (2)              "
Two cloves of garlic
4 Star anise
I glass white wine
2 Knorr chicken stock pots
1 cup water
I pack of Morrisons new potatoes
1 pack fresh broccoli
1 cauliflower
1 pack fresh green beans
Pre made Yorkshire puddings
1 bulb of garlic

serves 6 cost per person £3.15

method


Place pork shoulder into a baking tin on a bed off sliced carrot , leeks , two cloves garlic , 4 star anise. Add a glass of white wine, 2 knorr chicken stock pots, 1 cup water, salt and pepper.
Cover with silver foil cook approx 3hr , 180 degrees or until tender.
Take off foil and cook for a further 1/2 hr.


Then part boil potatoes in skins drain and oven bake. Cook broccoli , cauliflower and green beans in salted water. Cook pre made Yorkshire puddings as per packet instructions.
Remove meat and allow to rest before carving. Remove carrots from the baking tin to serve. Strain the remainder through a sieve . Shimmer stock to reduce to use as gravy.




It was really lovely and made even better by the lovely Morrisons food. I am converted to them as a store and I think I will be shopping there in the future.I do think they have cut the prices, but not cutting cornors. You can check our prices at  www.Morrisons.com/pricecuts.  So a big thank you to Morrisons and BritMums.

Please note I was given gift vouchers to spend at Morrisons for the purpose of this review.

Friday 2 May 2014

The Gallery:Faces

This is me and my friend Heather. Its not a great picture as we look like aliens lol. I love it anyway as we were having a great time at Cake International . We had a wonderful day and I think you can see from the picture we had loads of fun.



This

BelVita Breakfast Biscuit Reveiw And Morning Stories

A couple of weeks ago I thought I would sign up for @BritMums #MorningStories Challenge . Mornings in my house a peaceful in general.  My children are grown-up and living in their own homes so its just my husband and myself. I miss those mad and hectic times when they were little. I remember being stressed out and my mum saying " enjoy these times , they grow-up so fast in a flash they will be gone" wise words indeed.
The best part of this challenge was the chance to try the new flavours of belVita breakfast biscuits. You can find out more by going to facebook.com/belVitaUK
I had three flavours Yogurt Crunch, Milk and cereal, Fruit and Fibre to try and they were all yummy.


I am dieting so was pleasantly surprised to be able to fit them in with my diet if I am careful. I think they are fab if you are in a rush and if you can include some fruit it makes a great breakfast. I keep a single pack in my bag so I have something on the run. They are very tasty and I love the new flavours and would hard to say one flavour over the next as they all taste good. I am getting my husband to try them next ..... if I can ever wake him up lol


I was not paid for this review only receiving a sample of the product