Nature's Path Gluten Free 'Nice and Nobbly' Granola - Review

Nice and Nobbly Granola comes in two delicious flavours - Pumpkin Seed, Almond, Coconut and Raisin with a hint of cinnamon and Raspberry, Strawberry and Blueberry with chunks of yogurt.

Clusters of organic crunchy oats

The cereals can be served for breakfast with milk and a dollop of yogurt, layered with berries or poured into a container for snacking (I am typing this and snacking at the moment!).

Tried and Tested:  The clusters of oats are crunchy, the freeze dried raspberries and strawberries are a taste sensation. The pumpkin seeds, almonds and raisins are excellent quality and a dash of cinnamon makes the granola perfect for autumn/winter, although I am happy with cinnamon all year round. I also like the fact the cereal isn't too sweet.

'Nice and Nobbly' is available from Sainsbury's, Tesco, Waitrose and Ocado and independent health food stores £3.49 RRP (312g pouch size with a serving suggestion of 30g).  Nature's Path are organic cereal experts and all their products are endorsed by Coeliac UK.

Thank you for the review samples.

Good Heavens! Drinking Yogurt - Review

Good Heavens! Drinking Yogurts contain real fruit, are bursting with flavour, tasty, creamy, and an added bonus, they are good for you too. The low fat live probiotic yogurt drinks are a perfect way for adults to start the day. These new cute bottles are beautifully presented in a small eye catching carry case - I kept my bottles in the case until the last one had been drank, they look so lovely and I couldn't bring myself to throw the box away........

I have been sent Good Morning! Raspberry, Oats and Honey yogurt drink - a zing of raspberry, oats for fibre and lightly sweetened with honey - this one is a slightly thicker yogurt drink. I was concerned the oats might be a little annoying to drink, but 6% finely milled oatmeal was absolutely fine and an easy way to get extra fibre into my diet. This is the perfect start to the day, or for those days when you can't find time for breakfast, can't face breakfast, need breakfast on the go or had an early start to the day.  Also available in Blueberry, Oats and Honey.

Next I tried the heavenly Luscious Strawberry Drinking Yogurt, this is a taste of summer past and perfect for those of us who love fruit. Not just for breakfast but anytime of the day, and if you find yourself beginning to feel weary mid afternoon these are the perfect pick-me-up.  Available in Refreshing Apple & Pear or Succulent Blackcurrant too.

The 125ml bottles of yogurt come in a 4 pack carry case. RRP £2.50 and available at Tesco and other supermarkets.

Good Heavens! are a Boutique Dairy based in Hayes, Middlesex.  They make their yogurt slowly and in small batches. Completely natural, free from additives, packed with real fruit and contain over 25% of an adult's calcium RDA.

Thank you to Martin and Good Heavens! for the review samples.

Fruit and Nut Granola

I am always trying muesli and granola recipes, mainly because I've got a cupboard full of various oats, and so I tend to adapt recipes to use them up.

This recipe is by John Torode and unusually it uses pine nuts in the mix, I have adapted the recipe by adding some dried sour cherries and barley flakes, I didn't have any maple syrup and so used all honey.

I added some large chunks of 70% dark chocolate, this idea came from a box of granola with added chocolate chunks and it was very, very delicious. My chunks of chocolate would have been better if they had been cut smaller, it is a wonder though any chocolate made it to the mix. Buy decent chocolate otherwise I think it would be best to forget the chocolate....

This granola is so good and tempting it seemed a shame to only eat this at breakfast, it was very easy to eat from the jar! Not so great though if you are dieting....

The recipe can be found here on the BBC GoodFood website.

FUEL Chunky Breakfast Granola

FUEL is the UK's first natural energy cereal and comes in two varieties - 70% Cocoa Chunks and Fruit Loaded. It is a blend of both slow release and fast release energy to get your day off to a good start.

FUEL is aimed at time-starved people pursuing busy active lives and contains only natural ingredients, FUEL, whose brand strapline is "One Life - Live It", is rich in Vitamin B and E, high in fibre and contains guarana extract (a tropical energy booster).

Let's see what I like about this product:

First off, I have to admit I have been dipping my hand into the boxes whilst sitting at the computer they are irresistible.


Fruit Loaded Chunky Breakfast Granola - has large chunks of dried apple, peach and strawberry. A colourful and good mix of cranberries, redcurrants and blackberries also grated coconut and pumpkin seeds. It is loaded with dried fruit and is so colourful and tasty I could eat these all day. Good sized chunks of granola clusters and not too sweet, sunshine in a bowl the perfect way to start the day.


70% Cocoa Chunks Breakfast Granola - granola clusters in both chocolate and toasted oats, 70% cocoa chocolate chunks, grated coconut and pumpkin seeds. Is this the first breakfast granola with 70% cocoa chocolate chunks? I bet you will fill the bowl and then pick out all of the chocolate chunks and eat these first! There is a recipe on the side of the pack for a Power Packed Fuel Bar, I would have made this but alas, there has been too much dipping of the hand into the box and not enough left to make the recipe! The 70% cocoa is for taste, the guarana extract for energy and it is packed with vitamins for an active lifestyle.

The breakfast granola is described as the chunkiest, crunchiest most delicious baked muesli granola on earth and they certainly get my vote.


When these two granola's are tipped out from packet to dish you can immediately see a lot of research has gone into getting the product exactly right. These granola's are a feast for the eyes. For breakfast, pour over your usual milk and top with yogurt (that's how I like to eat mine) or put some into a bag for Pocket Rocket Fuel to snack on.

The aspirational packaging tells customer's to: "Throw off the shackles, sail away from the safe harbour, climb to the peak of your ambitions. Whoever you are and whatever you choose to do in life, be it jumping for joy, trekking the Amazon or chasing that business dream, you need the right FUEL to give you the boost that will get your day off to a great start."

FUEL retails at £3.69 and comes in 400g packs and has launched exclusively in 459 Tesco stores. It's launch comes at a time when sales of granola are booming in the UK with all sales up by more than 6% and Tesco seeing an increase of more than 20% year-on-year.

Thank you Lucy and FUEL.

THREE RECIPES USING MORNFLAKE OATS

Mornflakes have sent me some of their oat based cereals and asked if I would do a posting using some of their products.

The weather will soon be turning colder and we can now turn our thoughts to eating porridge for breakfast and also making a few recipes using oats.

It's a great time of the year to make Apple and Blackberry Crumble and as I have been given lots of wild blackberries, I couldn't think of a better way to use some of them.

The crumble was made in the usual way but I added about three tablespoons of oats to the topping, along with some demerara sugar, to give extra crunch. I lightly toasted some flaked almonds in a pan, and sprinkled them over the crumble once it had cooled down a little. A dusting of icing sugar and then a few raspberries from my garden for decoration.

Blackberry and Apple Cranachan to use up some more of these delicious wild blackberries and also for some indulgence.

I also chose to make Anzac biscuits because I had some fresh desiccated coconut in the freezer and I am trying to make room now for my Christmas baking. Also, I can't remember the last time I made biscuits!

I have mentioned in the past about making desiccated and shredded coconut, but making your own is so much better than the coconut you buy in a packet. It's definitely something to make on a rainy day though.

APPLE AND BLACKBERRY CRUMBLE


Serves 6

3 large cooking apples, 2 to 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon water, 200g blackberries(fresh or frozen).

For the crumble topping: 175g plain white flour, 75g butter, 75g Demerara sugar, 3 tablespoons of oats.

1. Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C/fan 350/Gas 4.
2. Place the apples, sugar and water in a saucepan and cook over a gentle heat, stirring from time to time, for 10 minutes until the apples soften and become pulpy.
3. Place the cooked apples in a large ovenproof dish to cool and sprinkle over the blackberries.
4. Rub the flour and butter together, until large flakes form, stir in the oats and demerara sugar.
5. Top the apples and blackberries with the crumble and bake for 30 to 45 minutes.
6. Toast a handful of flaked almonds and sprinkle over the cooked crumble. Decorate with more blackberries or some raspberries, if you like.

BLACKBERRY AND APPLE CRANACHAN


Serves: 4 people

You will need: 50g butter, 75g rolled oats, 50g caster sugar, 50ml whipping cream, 115g Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons each of honey, whisky and light muscovado sugar, 200g blackberries, 2 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced, Creme de mure or creme de cassis to drizzle.

1. Melt half the butter in a small pan, add the oats and cook for 1 minute, then add half the caster sugar. Stir for 4-5 minutes until the oats are lightly caramelised, then tip onto a piece of baking paper and leave to cool.
2. Lightly whip the cream, then fold in the yogurt, honey, whisky, muscovado sugar and oats. Stir in the blackberries (set a few aside to decorate), crushing them slightly.
3. In a pan, melt the remaining butter and saute the apples for 3-4 minutes. When the apples begin to soften, add the remaining caster sugar and cook until caramelised. Put on one side to cool.
4. Layer up the cream and oats with the apples in 4 glasses. Top with the reserved blackberries and drizzle with a little cassis.

ANZAC BISCUITS


Makes 20

You will need: 85g porridge oats, 85g desiccated coconut, 100g plain flour, 100g caster sugar, 100g butter plus extra butter for greasing, 1 tablespoon golden syrup, 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda.

1. Heat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/Gas 4. Put the oats, coconut, flour and sugar in a bowl. Melt the butter in a small pan and stir in the golden syrup. Add the bicarbonate of soda to to 2 tablespoons of boiling water, then stir into the golden syrup and butter mixture.
2. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the butter and golden syrup mixture. Stir gently to incorporate the dry ingredients.
3. Put dessertspoonfuls of the mixture on to buttered baking sheets about 2.5cm apart to allow room for spreading. Bake in batches for 8-10 minutes until golden.

Mornflake Cereals - A Lovely Surprise!

A wonderful array of very tempting breakfast cereals from Mornflakes arrived in the post this week - eight different ones, ranging from muesli to porridge oats. Also in the parcel there was a hessian shopping bag, a brochure containing recipes, product information, photographs and a press release.

To celebrate Mornflakes 333rd anniversary, this Cheshire based family business are relaunching their range of oat cereals. Not everyone has heard of them, including myself, but they are trying to spread the word. Their products should be on the shelves nationwide, anytime now. The company pride themselves on being the UK's oldest milling experts.

I taste tested a sample of the products Kate from Mornflakes sent to me, and not one of them disappointed. Thank you for this introduction to your products, I know when I have eaten my way through them, I will certainly be looking out for Mornflakes in the supermarket.

All of the cereals were crispy, crunchy and full of excellent quality ingredients. I poured milk over mine, and just for good measure put a dollop of home made yogurt on top! Well, how else would I eat them?

Here are samples of some of the products I taste tested:

Mornflake Very Berry Oatbran Flakes: Crunchy oatbran flakes with freeze-dried cherries, raspberries and strawberries.

Mornflake Extra Crispy Muesli with Date, fig and apple: Toasted wheatflakes, wholegrain, oatflakes, toasted rye flakes, mixed seeds, pumpkin and sunflower seeds, also roasted hazelnuts and almonds.

Extra Crispy Muesli Swiss-style with apple: Toasted wheatflakes, wholegrain oatflakes, raisins, roasted hazelnuts and almonds and dried apple








Mornflakes Superfast Oats: I made rhubarb crumble with this product from a recipe sent to me by Mornflakes and picked the rhubarb fresh from my garden. This healthy recipe was a winner and will definitely be one I make again in the future.

Breakfast at the Wolseley

Yes - that was me! Did you see me in there a couple of Saturday's ago?
I chose the one decent Saturday in January when the sun shone all day, to take a trip to London from the West Midlands.
Every year in late January I go to London for the day and have a mother and son day.
Our birthdays are just four days apart, in what must be one of the most miserable months of the year.
This year our plan was foodie experiences.
We started the day at The Wolseley for breakfast . Neither of us are fans of 'The English Breakfast' and so we opted for Smoked Salmon, Scrambled Eggs and Toasted Brioche. This was beautifully presented, although as you can imagine it was quite rich. Fruit juice and then one of the Wolseley's fabulous coffees. We decided at this point that neither of us were feeling full but as the breakfast had been quite rich, that it would be sensible not to order any more food, but to stop off a little later for further sustenance!
If you click here and here you will be able to savour a little more about The Wolseley.
A few years ago, I went with my daughter and her new baby for Afternoon Tea at the Wolseley and I can highly recommend that too.
As we were in Piccadilly, we then walked along to see the revamped Fortnum & Mason.
I have been to this store a few times and have always felt in awe of this beautiful department store. We both felt sad at how clinical it felt. My son commented that there wasn't any love in the store. For me, it had lost its soul. Perhaps you would like to read this article by Guardian Unlimited on the Fortnum and Mason revamp.
The revamped sweeping staircases are breathtakingly beautiful as is the decor. I would love to revisit Fortnum & Mason again, now that I have overcome my shock at the revamp. After having had time to reflect, maybe the time had come for them to move on. Change is never easy and it just takes a little getting used to.
A sustenance break and then onto Divertimenti on the Brompton Road. We were both a little disappointed with the shop, I guess that's where sometimes you expect too much after looking at the online store. That said, where I live all of the kitchen equipment shops have disappeared and it was, therefore, a real treat looking at all the kitchen goodies.
Along the road we stopped at Patisserie Valerie to see all of the wonderful cakes that were on display in the window. Incidentally, there is also a shop more or less next to the Wolseley at Piccadilly.
We then came to Harrods (I've been a few times before). It was ridiculously busy and so we decided to move on!
Next stop was WholeFoods Market. By now we were very very weary and thought we would be able to get a decent meal here. Unfortunately, that wasn't our experience.
It was so busy, we found it difficult to get around the store to have a look at the food on the shelves. I guess next time, we would need to go first thing in the morning.
After all this, I said a fond farewell to my son and headed home, happy but worn out!
Now what shall we do for our Mum and Son day next year? Any suggestions anyone?