Wine, Chocolate, Green Tea, Noodles and Nuts on My Kitchen Table in September

Welcome to my kitchen table, if you haven't visited before then let me tell you that this is where I review a variety of different products that have been sent to me and I'd like to share with you.


So let's start with a nice chilled glass of wine.  I wasn't able to attend the Matua Sessions launch, but I was offered a bottle to try in the comfort of my own home!  Matua are a New Zealand Winery and the Matua Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is fresh with a real citrus zing, reminiscent of grapefruit and perfect for a warm summer day, an ideal match for fish and seafood. 7/10


Ever thought you might like to be a Chocolatier?  Well you can design your own chocolate bar without all the hassle of tempering with Chocolat Chocolat.  The website is easy to navigate and you can choose both the base chocolate for your bar from different types of chocolate, dark,  white  and caramel chocolate, then you choose from a variety of toppings.  Here is what I chose:

Bar 1 - 70% Dark, toppings - apricots, pecans and amaretti biscuit crumble
Bar 2 -  34% Caramel , toppings - Cappucino Buttons, Honeycomb and caramelised almonds
Bar 3 - 55% Dark, toppings - cinnamon, cardamom and chocolate coffee beans

I usually prefer dark chocolate, but I also loved the caramel bar with it's sweet and crunchy toppings.  This would be a perfect gift for a chocolate lover, or a special treat for yourself.

One custom bar costs £5.95, two custom bars cost £10.95 and three custom bars cost £14.95

As well as ordering online you can visit the Chocolat Chocolat shop in Cambridge for the full range of glorious chocolately goodness.  9/10



It's no secret that we are lovers of really good tea.  Brian is particularly keen on chinese green teas and he was so impressed with the Emperor Sampler Set from Adagio Teas.  This Sampler contains generous portions of the following:

• gyokuro - Deeply sweet, aroma of freshly buttered greens - no grassiness or harshness. Soft with a balanced, delicate finish.
• jasmine chun hao - Sweet perfumy cup, notes of warmed sugar, slightly toasty like a fresh biscuit. Light, refreshing and not overwhelmingly floral.
• jade snail - The tightly rolled fuzzy buds unfurl to deliver intricate notes of roasted nuts, soft smokiness and a hop-like crispness. Delicate yet bold.
• dragonwell - Inviting, toasty aroma and sweet rounded flavour. Nutty, buttery texture, pleasantly dry finish.

We loved them all, but the dragonwell was probably the one that came out top in our tasting test. the Emperor Sampler costs £13 for four teas 62g , Dragonwell costs £15 for 85g which works out at 40p per cup  8/10


I must now declare that I have NEVER eaten a Pot Noodle in my life!  So when I received a pack of Itsu Crystal Noodle Cups  I was somewhat sceptical.  However, I was pleasantly surprised as the broth, which comes as a paste in a foil pack, was really very delicious and had not artificial flavours or after-taste.   I adored the 'spork' which was really necessary to drink the soup and fish for the noodles,even better each cup is only 171 calories.

Itsu Crystal Noodle Cups are available from Ocado at £2.29 per cup (currently on special offer for £1.75) 7/10


Nuts are such a great ingredient in recipes and also a delicious snack on their own.  Jumble Bee nuts are available through Tesco stores with 175g packs retailing for £2.39.  I decanted a portion of nuts into a small plastic box and took it to work to keep me going through the day.  The nuts were lovely and fresh and the fruit soft and sweet, absolutely delicious.  8/10

I hope you have enjoyed my eclectic mix of foodie treats this month.  I'll be back with more in October.  

I was supplied with these products for review, I was not paid and all opinions are my own. 

Labels: adagio teas, Chocolat Chocolat, chocolate, designer, Green Tea, Itsu, jumble bee, Matua, noodles, Nuts, On my Kitchen Table, Reviews, Round Up, wine

posted by Janice @ 20:54 8 Comments

Chocolate and Banana Nut Cake

I'm entering my Chocolate and Banana Nut Cake for Bake of the Week at Casa Costello

I'm also entering this cake as my afternoon tea delight for The Great Denby Cake Off


And now for a new blogging event Cake Club at Kerry Cooks

Labels: banana, cake, chocolate, cob nuts, hazelnuts, Kent, Nuts, Potash Farm

posted by Janice @ 19:45 10 Comments

The Nutribox - Healthy Snacks Delivered

I was  particulary excited to try the Mulu Raw Chocolate as I've heard about raw chocolate but never tasted it. I'm afraid I was not impressed, the taste of the chocolate is okay, but not a strong, dark chocolate taste that I would expect from the colour of the chocolate.  What really put both me and my husband off was the texture, it was like cooking chocolate and there was none of the chocolate mouth feel that makes it...well chocolate.   On the plus side, it's free from diary, refined cane sugar, gluten and soya.

The Nakd Apple Crunch is gluten, wheat and dairy free.  It's made up of dates, soya crunchies, cashews, raisins, apple, apple juice concentrate.  It was a tasty furit bar, full of fruity flavour, I would recommend this snack bar.

The Beetroot from Rude Health has no added salt, no refined sugars is a source of fibre, gluten free and non GM. This was a tasty little bar however, the 'beetroot' seems a bit superfluous and a gimmick as the bar is 69% Dates and 20% Almonds with only 7% ground beetroot.

The Energy Bomb is a vegetarian, gluten free bar with no added sugar, no transfats and it is non GMO.  I'm not sure I would choose this one again, it tasted a bit worthy and reminded me of some of the snacks I used to buy in 1970s Wholefood shops, filling though.

The Bounce Natural Energy Ball in Peanut Protein Blast tastes very much like peanut butter, it's not oversweet but not one I would rush back to try.
The Double Chocolate Snack Bar from Frank Honest Snacking is 100% natural, gluten, nut and diary free.  It's 47.2% fruit, mainly dried dates, plums and fruit juice concentrates, it also contains coconut blossom sugar and coconut cream which gives it a lovely texture and a natural sweetness.  A big hit in our house.

The Happy Kitchen, Pecan Brownie was dense and very tasty indeed, I shared it with my friend and it got us through Friday afternoon!

Tropical Mix - a handy packet size, an awful  lot of coconut but it is a Tropical Mix,  but I enjoyed the almonds and banana chips.

The Brazil Nut Mix was a similar handy sized packet to the Tropical Mix, I find if the pack is too large, I just keep eating!  I'm not sure the name is very accurate, I had about 4 half Brazil Nuts, a lot of sultanas and banana chips.  Very tasty though.

Overall I would say The Nutribox is a good deal if you eat a lot of healthy snacks or would like to eat more of the healthy type of snacks.  They are a nice size and there was a good variety.

The first 10 Farmersgirl Kitchen readers to order a Nutribox will  receive 35% off their first box which you can claim by entering FARMERSGIRL35 in the discount codes box on https://thenutribox.com/join.

Labels: bars, box, Delivered, free delivery, Healthy, Nutribox, Nuts, Pecan Brownie, Raw Chocolate, seeds, snacks

posted by Janice @ 11:00 2 Comments

Paprika Spiced Mixed Nuts

This is a very quick and easy recipe to make some lovely spicy nuts to nibble with your drinks on Christmas Eve or before dinner on Christmas Day.  They are also perfect for a last minute gift.

Paprika Spiced Mixed Nuts

500g mixed nuts
1 1/2 tbsp coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp smoked sweet Spanish paprika or hot paprika (Pimenton)
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1.  Preheat the oven to 200C. Place the sea salt and paprika in a mortar and grind with the pestle to a fine powder. 
2. Place the nuts on a baking tray and toast in the oven for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden and giving off a tasted aroma.  Watch after 7 minutes because they burn quickly.  Pour into a heatproof bowl.
3. Drizzle over the olive oil and stir to ensure all the nuts are lightly and evenly coated.  Add extra oil if necessary.  Sprinkle with the salt and paprika mixture and stir again.
4. Transfer to a small bowl and serve at room temperature.


I used the hot Pimenton and the nuts are not too spicy, just nicely piquant!  Perfect with a nice chilled glass of Fino Sherry, red or white wine or even a beer.

Labels: almonds, brazil nuts, hazel nuts, homemade gifts, mixed nuts, Nuts, paprika, pimenton, smoked paprika, snacks, walnuts

posted by Janice @ 12:09 8 Comments

Banana Muffins - No Waste Food Challenge

 This recipe may look a little familiar to regular visitors to my blog. I'm reposting it for the No Waste Food Challenge on Kate's blog 'Turquoise Lemons'.

 This month Kate is asking us to come up with creative ways of using up spotty bananas. Here is what I said in the original post in November:

"I needed a little sweetness in my life yesterday and didn't have a lot of time, so thought that muffins would fit the bill.  There were bananas in the fruit bowl, looking nice and ripe and calling out to be used before the grocey delivery arrives (today).  I thought I'd look and see what Betty Crocker had in the way of muffin recipes and sure enough there is a nice quick recipe for Banana Muffins."


Banana Muffins (makes 12)

2 ripe bananas (1 cup mashed)
1/3 - 1/2 cup milk (I put in 1/3 then needed to add more)
1/4 cup of vegetable oil
1 large egg
2  cups plain flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt


For topping
30g butter
1 tbsp brown sugar
30g finely chopped walnuts

1. Heat the oven to 200C.  Grease the muffin pan or line with paper cases.
2. In a large bowl beat milk, egg, oil and banana with a fork or wire whisk until well mixed.
3. Mix the dry ingredients together and add them to the milk mixture and combine just until the flour is moistened (batter will be lumpy)
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
5. Make the topping:  melt the butter, add the sugar then brush the mixture over the warm muffins.
6. Put the chopped walnuts on a plate and dip the sticky top of the muffin in the nuts.

I can thoroughly recommend these muffins, they are quick and easy and taste delicious.

Labels: banana, cake, Muffins, No Waste Food Challenge, Nuts, Toffee, Turquoise Lemons

posted by Janice @ 08:00 7 Comments