Farmersgirl Kitchen

Friday, 1 August 2014

July in Review at Farmersgirl Kitchen

I thought I'd have a look back at what I had posted during July and was surprised by just how many posts I found. Some of the events took place earlier but all have been written and posted in July, here is a little reminder of the food and the fun!

Berrytastic Strawberry and Blueberry Cake; Peanut Butter, Oat and Chocolate Chip Cookies, The Slow Cooker Cookbook Giveaway, Crab Cakes by the Ocean at Pictou Lodge.

Hugh's Honey and Peanut Butter Flapjacks; At the Royal Highland Show with Quality Meat Scotland (and Chef Jacqueline O'Donnell); Appleby and Ullswater Staycation: On My Kitchen Table.

Super Simple Chicken Curry from Dhruv Baker's new book Spice; Mexican Chicken in the Slow Cooker and Courgette and Hummus Pizza.

Fruity Iced Tea made 'Cold Brew'

The Slow Cooker Challenge Round Up - Summer Slow Cooker

Labels: chocolate chip cookie, curry, flapjacks, Hotel Chocolat, iced tea, July, Pizza, Round Up, slow cooker, strawberries, Ullswater

Wednesday, 16 July 2014

Chocolate Cocktails, Popcorn, Sauce and Business Cards on my Kitchen Table

On my Kitchen Table is a post to share with you some of the products I've been sent to review over the last month, it's a rather eclectic mix this month so let's get stuck in!

First up are some summery chocolates from Hotel Chocolat. The Tropical Cocktails are sweet and fresh with a little kick of alcohol. There are four different 'cocktails' : Peach Bellini, Pina Colado, Hurricane and Caipirnha. We both really liked the Hurricane with dark Jamaican rum truffle blended with zippy Valencian orange and passion fruit, they were all very tasty but the others were a little sweet for our taste. I was a pack of Choc Fudge Sundae chocs, little chocolate pots filled with a sticky toffee and fudge sauce with intense praline and a sprinkle of crunchy cereal, absolutely delicious and a nice treat at at reasonable price.

Tropical Cocktails £10.00 for 115g 7/10
Choc Fudge Sundae £3.85 for 75g 9/10

Julian Metcalfe is obsessed with delicious and healthy food. Back in 2009 he was fed up of stodgy snacks that weighed him down and he wanted to create something that was light yet tasty to replace the bog standard crisp. Popcorn was the perfect fit and Metcalfe’s skinny Topcorn was born. There's a new flavour of Metcalfe's skinny topcorn it's white cheese and it's really really addictive! There are lots of other cool flavours too, from the simple salted popcorn to spicy and sweet flavoured popcorns. 8/10

75g Metcalfe's Skinny Topcorn - White Cheese £1.00 - £1.49

I remember my Mum had a little bottle of Tabasco Pepper sauce which she would use to add chilli heat to her cooking, fresh chillies were not easily available in my childhood and there was only one kind of Tabasco. Now Tabasco have launched a range of sauces to Transport Your Tastebuds, Louisiana Style

Now Tabasco® brand Pepper Sauce, the iconic kitchen staple for over 140 years, has created four vibrant new recipes that capture the essence of the Deep South, bringing those true American flavours to the UK.

Introducing Tabasco® brand Sauces and Marinades. Brand new and brilliantly different, these are table sauces with a twist. Add a dollop on burgers, drizzle over chargrilled skewers or marinate baby back ribs to bring the real American diner scene to your kitchen. From hot and tangy to smokey and subtle, experience the four great flavours and three different heat levels across the range.

The Chipotle and Smokey Bourbon sauce is inspired by the jazz clubs and bar scene of New Orleans. The subtlety of smoked chipotle peppers blends perfectly with the Bourbon to create the ultimate sauce for authentic American ribs and pulled pork - sweet and finger licking sticky.

Sweet Chipotle and Cola is the ultimate sauce for traditional American burgers. Tabasco® has taken the sweet flavour of cola soft drink and combined it with the smokiness of Chipotle peppers to create a deliciously rich sauce, that’s incredibly moreish. Try it on hotdogs too! I used this sauce with pork leg steaks cooked slowly in the sauce with a little water added, I added the chickpeas at the last minute and really enjoyed the rich flavours.

The Peppery Deep South Creole sauce transforms chicken wings and veggie burgers. Rich tomatoes and bell peppers are brought to life with a vibrant blend of herbs and spices to reflect the diversity of flavour in Louisiana.

Fruity and Fiery Habanero is an exotic infusion of hot Habanero peppers, sweet mango, banana and papaya. It delivers a blast of hot chilli that’s great for dipping or marinating and brings Deep South sunshine to seafood or veggie skewers.

The full range of Tabasco® brand Sauces and Marinades is available from Asda, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose, RRP £2.29. Enjoy them as a dip, use them as a condiment or as a marinade, each flavour will transport your tastebuds, Louisiana style. 8/10

Vistaprint have a range of great products at reasonable prices which transform your photographs into books, calendars, mugs, t-shirts, phone cases.... in fact just about anything that will hold an image! I was going to make a photo book as I have done previously and found them to be excellent, but I simply ran out of time. As I needed some new business cards, I used the simple step by step instructions to create these cards featuring a recipe I made last summer.
250 Premium Glossy Business Cards : £26.81 including VAT 9/10

Many thanks to the PRs and companies for the samples to review, I was not paid for these reviews and all opinions are my own.

Labels: Business Cards, cocktails, dipping, Hotel Chocolat, marinade, Metcalfe's Skinny, Popcorn, sauce, Tabasco, Topcorn, Vistaprint

Wednesday, 26 March 2014

Hotel Chocolat Easter Egg Giveaway

Do you remember that gorgeous creamy brown chocolate called Caramac? It was one of my favourites, I've tried it again recently but didn't enjoy it, whether my tastes have changed or the recipe of the bar has changed, I don't know. What I do know is that I've never found any of the Hotel Chocolat chocolates disappointing. Always high quality chocolate and some real fun items.

The Splat Egg - Caramel is 150g of caramel milk chocolate egg with a colourful white chocolate splat. I have one Hotel Chocolat, The Splat Egg - Caramel worth £12.50 to GIVEAWAY to one lucky reader (UK only).

Just complete the answers on the Rafflecopter Widget below to enter

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Labels: caramel, Easter, Easter Egg, giveaway, Hotel Chocolat, The Splat

Sunday, 16 March 2014

On my 'Mother's Day' Kitchen Table

Mother's Day is nearly here, it's later this year on 30th March so you still have little time to choose and buy your gifts. The gift you choose for your mother will depend on some key factors including price, availability but most importantly the gift should be something that your mother will like.

That got me thinking about different kinds of mothers and what they might like to receive so here is my little guide to gifts for different mothers.

Chocoholic Mum

Image - Last Door Down the Hall

Along with flowers, chocolate is probably one of the most common gifts to buy for Mother's Day and it's an absolute must for the Chocoholic Mother. This is a time to look for something a little different and special like this Hotel Chocolat Hazelnut Spread.

Oh my, this is a delicious spread. It's richer and more chocolately than similar spreads that are available and, as well as making the perfect 'tartine' for breakfast or tea, it would also be delicous warmed and poured over ice-cream or baked into a muffin, or for the true chocoholic eat it straight from the jar with a spoon!
At £6.50 for 150g, Hotel Chocolat Hazelnut Chocolate Spread is a luxury product at a reasonable price. Hotel Chocolat have a wide range of different chocolate treats you are bound to find a special chocolate gift.

Eco-Friendly Mum

If your mother likes to buy organic and eco-friendly products she is going to love receiving a gift subscription to the Flow Box.

The monthly rolling subscription that you can cancel at any time costs £21.95 per month but by using the code GOFLOW13 at the checkout you can get your first box for £16.95. I tried out a Flowbox and was pleased with the range of products (not all food) and the quality of the contents. What I really liked about the Flowbox scheme is that there is also an online shop. This means that if you find a product that you really like then you can buy the individual items.

Bake-Off Mum

Image: Last Door Down the Hall

Everyone seems to have taken up home baking. As well as being fun, it's a real skill to learn how to bake different types of cakes and cookies and there are always plenty of things that you can buy the Bake-Off Mum without breaking the bank.

Dunelm Mill have a great selection of silicone moulds suitable for oven and microwave use, prices in The Silicone Collection range from 75p for a silicone heart shaped mould up to £8.99 for a chocolate house mould. The 6 Flowerpot Silicone Cupcake Cases are £3.99 and the Macaroon Baking Set is £4.99.

Tea-Jenny Mum

Masterchef Mum

Image: Millie Motts

As you can imagine, I have no trouble at all thinking of gifts for Masterchef Mum! One idea that will appeal to the the gadget lovers is this simple but effective whisk.

The Nova Multi-Quirl is simple to use and requires no batteries and no cables, you just push the handle down and it twists and whisks. I found it to be well constructed and particularly liked being able to put it in the dishwasher. You can see how it works HERE
The Nova Multi-Quirl is available from G3 Direct Ltd for £12.95

Foraging Mum

Image: The Graphics Fairy

Foraging Mum likes to make the most of the food that can be gathered for free, whether it's blackberries in autumn or wild garlic in the spring. Rosehips on a Kitchen Table is delightful little book full of hints and tips about foraging and recipes to make the most of your foraged goodies. Now is the time to forage for fresh, young leaves, and I'm sure Foraging Mum would love to learn to make Wild Garlic Pesto or Nettle Risotto. Elderberries, Blackberries, Rosehips and Sloes all feature with their own recipes. Tipsy Sloe Fairy Cakes: dainty fairy cakes with a hidden tipsy heart sound so tempting especially when served with clotted cream, as suggested in the book.

In addition to the foraging chapters author, Carolyn Caldicott writes about how to Grow your Own fruit and vegetables and includes information about how to deal with the inevitable gluts! Some of the recipes that stood out for me were: Broad Beans Baked with Asparagus, Eggs Baked in Passata, Pepper and Chorizo Sauce, Parsnip Gnocchi and Rosemary and Honey Roots.

The final chapter is entitled 'What on Earth do I do with This?' and is a chapter devoted to the more unusual vegetables which might turn up in your veg box. Celeriac Champ looked good and I can't wait to try Beetroot Leaves with Walnuts, Raisins and Orange. Convert the most ardent Brussels Sprout hater with Brussels Stir Fry with Ginger Cumin and Chilli.

Rosehips on a Kitchen Table by Carolyn Caldicott
Photographs by Chris Caldicott
Published by Francis Lincoln Limited

To order Rosehips on a Kitchen Table at the discounted price of £7.99 including p&p* (RRP: £9.99), telephone 01903 828503 or email mailorders@lbsltd.co.uk and quote the offer code APG97.

Alternatively, send a cheque made payable to:

LBS Mail Order Department, Littlehampton Book Services, PO Box 4264, Worthing, West Sussex, BN13 3RB.

Please quote the offer code APG97 and include your name and address details.

*UK ONLY - Please add £2.50 if ordering from overseas.

Labels: Carolyn Caldicott, Chinese Tea, Dunelm Mill, Flowbox, foraging, Francis Lincoln Ltd, gifts, Hazelnut and Chocolate Spread, Hotel Chocolat, Mother's Day, Nova Multi-Quirl, silicone bakeware, Tea Vivre

Friday, 6 December 2013

Come to a party - At my kitchen table

Hello and welcome to my virtual Christmas Party! Come on in to the kitchen, I've prepared a delicious Winter Cocktail for you...

What's in it? Well it's made with maple syrup infused with rosemary and thyme and topped up with applejack or Calvados and cider, I can highly recommended it, the herbs help to cut through the sweetness of the maple and apple flavours. I'll give you the recipe before you go, if you'd like?

So who is driving? Oh that's a shame, but never mind, I have a drink that you can enjoy. It's a lovely Spiced Winter Red Tea from Tea Pigs. I'm not usually a fan of rooibus tea, but I really like this tea, the balance of spices is just right.

Now that you have a drink, can I offer you some nibbles to go with it? These 'Wonderful' Pistachios are very good and they come in a variety of flavours: Sweet Chilli, Roasted Salted, Salt and Pepper or No Salt.

Come and let me introduce you to a few people...I don't think you two have met before. I'll leave you to get to know each other and I'll be back in a minute with some canapes.

Ah here you are, would you like to try one of these little bites? These fun pastry cases are made by Pidy, they are so handy because you can keep them in your cupboard and rustle up a party whenever required.

The vol au vents? They are filled with Crushed Pea and Ham. Or you might enjoy one of these little Veggie cups, the red colouring comes from dried beetroot, no artificial ingredients, they are so pretty. I've filled them with an 'All Day Breakfast' of egg, bacon and tomato on shredded lettuce.

I see you are eyeing up the Spoonettes, they are really great for little bites. I've filled them with rice pudding sweetened with Clarks Maple Syrup and topped with spice plumped raisins and chopped almonds.

Ah I see you have a sweet tooth! I can also offer you a homemade mince pie served warm with some smooth and creamy, Clotted Cream Cornish Ice Cream from Kelly's of Cornwall, how does that sound?

Don't tell me you are full! You must try a few chocolates, this Classic Christmas Selection from Hotel Chocolat has so many glorious flavours, there's bound to be a festive flavour that grabs your attention. What would I recommend? Well I really enjoyed the Caramel Supernova and the Marzipan and Amaretto Truffle was pretty good too. But really? They are all good.

Thank you so much for coming along to my kitchen party and sharing a few party treats at my kitchen table. What did you say? Oh you'd like the recipes, but of course, here they are:

First the cocktail

Orchard Fete is the cocktail I served at the party, it comes from the book above "Winter Cocktails" by Maria Del Mar Scasa with photographs by Tara Striano. Winter Cocktails is published by Quirk and distributed in the UK by PGUK RRP 17.99

Orchard Fete Serves 24 (but you can cut it down for smaller gatherings)
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
8 sprigs rosemary, plus more for garnish
8 sprigs thyme, plus more for garnish
4 cups applejack (Calvados)
2 cups apple cider
2 750ml bottles alcoholic sparkling cider

Combine maple syrup, rosemary and thyme in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and leave syrup cool to room temperature. Remove and discard herbs.

Stir cooled syrup, applejack and apple cider together in a punch or other serving bowl. When ready to serve, stir in sparkling cider.

Garnish cups/glasses with rosemary and thyme sprigs and serve.

As this remarkable recipe contains rosemary and thyme, I am entering it for Cooking with Herbs the blog challenge run by my dear friend Karen.

I used Clarks Original Maple Syrup for the cocktail. it's the UK's best selling maple syrup. It is a blend of pure maple syrup harvested from the Quebec region of Canada, carob fruit syrup – made from the sugars of the Mediterranean carob fruit – a low glycemic ingredient that has, gram per gram, 25% less calories than sugar.

Spiced Winter Red Tea is naturally caffeine free combination of rooibus, orange, cloves and cinnamon form Teapigs. It's a well balanced combination which convinced me to have another try at rooibus! A pack of 15 tea temples costs £4.49.

Nuts are great for snacks and nibbles and I was very impressed with Wonderful Pistachios we liked all the flavours and cracking the nuts from their shells is fun and stops you eating too many at once! They are available at most of the major supermarkets and health food stores. 150g on sale for between £2.29 - £1.79.

Pidy have been creating a wide variety of ready to fill puff pastry, short crust, fonçage dough and choux pastry for over sixty three years. Pidy is very well known in the foodservice and catering industry and now they want to launch their most innovative pastry ranges to the home cook!

All the Pidy products are made with their award winning pastry recipe that the Pidy family initially created in their little patisserie shop in Ypres, Belgium back in 1952. I have attached two release and two images on two of their newest retail ranges, the first one is their vol au vent and award winning spoonettes range. The second release is on their very innovative veggie cups range which are canapé cups that come in four flavours beetroot, carrot, spinach and celeriac. They are made with 30% real vegetable juice extract and no E numbers or artificial colours. Pidy have a wide range of retail pastry products that are available through Pidy UK or through fine food retail distributors such as Hider Foods. Pidy manufacture a huge variety of products, including a specialist range of ready to fill pastries that cater for every event or occasion. Pidy products are available through Amazon

You can find my recipes in printable form here: Printable Canape Recipes

Thanks to food PR agency CLIP Creative and PR for the Pidy samples.

I'm entering this post for Four Seasons Food (Winter) the blog challenge run by Anneli at Delicieux
and Louise at Eat Your Veg

Made with locally sourced milk and Cornish clotted cream, you can enjoy Kelly’s delicious ice cream in a cone when you’re out and about or from the comfort of your own home Kelly's of Cornwall

Perfect to serve with warm mince pies or with hot chocolate sauce in winter. There are loads more great recipes on the Kelly's of Cornwall website.

The Classic Christmas Selection from Hotel Chocolat is the perfect way to end your meal, perhaps with a liqueur or a cup of coffee, But to be honest, I could eat them anytime.

This particular selection contains chocs some with alcohol, some without, dark, milk and white chocolates. In fact, something for everyone.

The Classic Christmas Selection costs £12.50 for 14 chocolates.

I hope you've enjoyed my virtual party, I received these products for review and was not paid for this post. All opinions are my own.

Labels: Christmas, Hotel Chocolat, icecream, Kelly's of Cornwall, mince pies, Pidy, rooibus, spoonettes, Teapigs, vol au vents, Winter Cocktails, Wonderful Pistachios

Monday, 4 March 2013

The best chocolates you can afford for Mother's Day

I don't know about you, but I would far rather have a small box of high quality, gourmet chocolates than a huge box of standard chocs. This little 'For my Mum Pocket Selection' is exactly the sort of thing I mean. Hotel Chocolat have created an irresistible selection especially for Mum to enjoy with her feet up! It's Mother's Day on Sunday 10th March, but you can click and collect from your nearest the Hotel Chocolat store.

There are eight delicious heart shaped chocolates in a cute little box, two of each flavour. My favourite was the Lemon Berry Tart, I've had this before in the Valentine Heart I reviewed in February, and loved it then too. It's that combination of sharp lemon and creamy, sweet white chocolate. My husband's favourite was the Salted Praline, which was nicely salted, just enough to give a contrast. The Caramel Praline and Dark Mousse were also very good.

When you have sons you are lucky if they remember about Mothers Day at all, then they get girlfriends or wives and things definitely start to improve.

Here is a message to any young men (older men too!) out there:

"BUY YOUR MUM THE BEST CHOCOLATES YOU CAN AFFORD"

And the "For my Mum Pocket selection" is only £8.00, so there is no excuse!

I was provided with a "For my Mum Pocket Selection" for review, I was not paid for this review and all opinions are my own.

Labels: Caramel Praline, Dark Mousse, For my Mum, Hotel Chocolat, Lemon Berry Tart, salted praline

Sunday, 3 February 2013

Heartbroken Valentine - A Hotel Chocolat Review

"Open your HEART to me. Feel the rush of true love as our milk chocolate heart opens up to reveal the dreamy chocolates hidden inside"

The subtle and chic charcoal box decorated with graceful white feathers, revealing beneath a glimpse of pillar-box red base, hinting at the passionate contents...I raised the lid with great anticipation and - sharp intake of breath - my heart was shattered in a thousand pieces (gross exaggeration, but it was pretty smashed up) I was so disappointed, indeed heartbroken.

You may have noticed that some of the the chocolate is missing, there certainly isn't enough there to make up the two halves of the heart. In my heartbroken state there was only one thing I could do...EAT IT! In my defence, you wouldn't have been able to see the cute little chocolate hearts in the photo if I hadn't: Dark Mousse, Lemon Berry Tart, Strawberry Swoon and Caramel Praline. My favourite would have to be Lemon Berry Tart, lovely tart lemon taste against the sweetness of the white chocolate, it was just divine.

The milk chocolate shell
The milk chocolate of the heart shell was okay, but not the best milk chocolate I've tasted, and given that this little baby costs £25 for 255g of chocolate, I think it's time Hotel Chocolat upped their game on the quality of their milk chocolate. Generally I prefer dark chocolate and any Hotel Chocolat dark chocolate products I've reviewed in the past have been excellent.

About the breakage
I was genuinely very surprised to find this chocolate was broken. As I said, I've reviewed a few different chocolate products for Hotel Chocolat and never had any problems with breakages. The box was well packaged and there were no obvious signs of the package having been damaged in any way. However, if I was disappointed when I opened the box and found the heart all broken, just think how unromantic it would be to receive a damaged gift for Valentine's Day.

Overall
I think this chocolate gift is overpriced, the milk chocolate shell does not make me swoon and although the heart shaped chocolates are very nice, you could find similar quality for a lower price or more chocolates for the same price. If you do like Hotel Chocolat milk chocolate and are determined to 'give your heart' to your loved one, I would suggest you buy it from the shop rather than online, ask to check that it is intact before leaving the shop, to be sure that your lover 'feels the rush of true love' and you don't end up with a broken heart on Valentine's Day.

I was sent these chocolates for review, I was not paid to give a good review, my opinions are my own.

Labels: chocolate, Hotel Chocolat, Mousse, Praline, review, tart, Valentine's Day

Saturday, 17 March 2012

Serious Dark Fix - Extra Thick Chocolate Egg

Do you like dark chocolate? Because if you do, you just have to have this Hotel Chocolat Serious Dark Fix Extra Thick Egg Creation on your wish list for Easter!

How could you or your partner resist this amazing 'hat box' packaging? So luxurious and tempting, just waiting for you to pull the ribbon and uncover the contents.

Lid off and the golden egg is revealed, nestling on it's own little moulded throne, are you excited yet?

The 'Menu' reveals that this is not just a dark chocolate egg, oh no, it also contains some delicious choccies.

Each chocolate egg 'shell' holds one each of the following chocolates:

Black Cherry Truffle: I love black cherries and this chocolate doens't disappoint, not too sweet with enough tang to cut through the white chocolate interior.

Raspberry Liqueur Truffle: definitely something alcoholic, but not a huge raspberry hit.

Salted Soft Caramels (Dark): I'm a sucker for a salted caramel and the dark chocolate works well with the sweet and salty caramel.

Chilli Pralines (Dark): This was the first chocolate I tried as I love chilli and chocolate, but I was a wee bit disappointed there wasn't much in the way of chilli bite, I suppose they don't want to frighten off those unused to chilli in their chocolate, but I would have liked a bit more.

Espresso Truffle (Dark): My husband pronounced that this definitely tasted like Espresso!

Rum Truffle (Milk): The rum takes a moment to hit, but there is enough there to give that lovely warm sweet taste.

No pathetic thin chocolate egg shell, but a thick and luscious one, it's not quite as thick as the edge all the way through (thank goodness, or you would never break it!) but a lot thicker than most chocolate eggs.

I have to say I was very excited when the postie drew up in his van this morning and I saw him emerge with an egg sized cardboard box. I've reviewed a few Hotel Chocolat chocolates, but this has to be my favourite, not only is the egg thick and delicious, the chocolates varied and plentiful, but you get that fabulous box which, to a crafter, just calls out to be altered into something that will last forever!

Don't worry if there is no Hotel Chocolat shop near you, you can buy online and I can certainly vouch for the eggs arriving beautifully packaged and totally intact. If you are not a fan of dark chocolate there are lots of other delicious eggs and novelty Easter chocolates to choose from.

Labels: chilli, chocolate, espresso, Hotel Chocolat, liqueur, rum, salted caramel, Serious Dark Fix, truffle

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