The Rockit - Wow! #gamechanger

I've been childminding for 14 years now, and many a day I've been rocking a little one off to sleep and dreaming of inventing "something" to make me my millions.  Never occurred to me to invent something to rock the buggy for me, but so glad someone did, and I wish them all the best, because this is sheer genius!

I first saw it on This Morning when they were reviewing baby products, due to the impending new Royal baby due to William and Kate.   It caught my eye straight away (forgive the dodgy video), ordered it from Amazon - John Lewis had sold out at that point, and having used it successfully since, am declaring it a game changer!

For less than £40 it helps get a little one off to sleep whilst letting you deal with other ones hand free.  You are still there next to them, but better equipped to deal with other necessities.

Meh, I'll go write that award winning book instead ha (another daydream), but well done to The Rockit team, I'll be praising this from the rooftops.

I would say that I do like kids to settle themselves, which is easier when the kids are older, but when they are younger, in my instance 9 months old, it's absolute genius!

Just Wow!
Annie x

Grenglish - Slow Cooker "Roast" Lamb with Tesco Cypriot New Potatoes, tomatoes, feta and tsatziki............Raki Optional!

With Spring loitering around the corner, and looking out at the drizzle on a lazy Sunday morning, thoughts turn to Summers spent hopping around Greek islands, and a recipe to capture all that is great about Greece, keeping it simple, but totally tasty......

Last year we went to Mykonos, Paros, Anti-Paros, Naxos, Tinos and Crete.....and yet so many more islands to explore.

Chris and I got engaged in Cyprus in 2001, it's a beautiful country, with an amazing though sad history. With two very different sides to the island, we only saw the South, where these Cypriot potatoes are grown, but would love to go back and experience the North Turkish side of the island.

Available in Tesco Stores Nationwide

So, to go with my Cyprus potatoes it had to be lamb, and it had to have oregano.   The potatoes had to be roasted with Paprika, and it had to be served with feta, tomatoes and home made tsatziki.  In Crete we've seen Lamb on the menu as Lamp regularly - this is because in the Greek alphabet there is no letter "b"!

I guess roast potatoes aren't particularly Greek, so using Cypriot potatoes roasted, kind of makes it Grenglish!   I was also going to use the more Cypriot Haloumi cheese, but it doesn't crumble as Feta does, so that's an experiment for another day.

Perfect Cypriot New Potato Roasties
1 pack Tesco Cypriot New Potatoes 750g
Paprika
Oregano
Olive Oil
Salt

Cut potatoes in half and par boil in a large saucepan for around 10 minutes.   When draining swirl them around so that they "bash up" a little, as this helps the roasting process.

Sprinkle with paprika and oregano, and move around to make sure covered (doesn't have to be precise).  Add a little salt - this helps to draw the moisture out and gets them to crisp up.

Pre heat the oil in a roasting pan until hot.  Add the potatoes and move the potatoes around to ensure covered in oil.  Roast for around 40 mins.

Slow Cooker "Roast Lamb"
Half leg of lamb -
bring to room temperature before cooking.
Rosemary (I have some in my garden)
Garlic - sliced, as much or as little as you want
Olive Oil
Seasoning: oregano, rosemary, white pepper

I have used the slow cooker regularly for roasts, and lamb works beautifully.  Make little slits in the lamb joint, and fill with sprigs of rosemary and slices of garlic.  Drizzle with olive oil and cover with seasoning.

Put into the slow cooker, and cook slow for 8-10 hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the tsatziki.
1/2 a cucumber
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 tbs of good quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil
500g Greek Yoghurt - I use 0% fat
Snall bunch of fresh dill, chopped
1 tsp dried mint
squeeze of lemon

Peel and grate the cucumber, drain and combine with the rest of the ingredients.

Crete last Summer *sighs*

Serve the slow cooker lamb with the Cypriot New Potatoes, tomatoes with feta and oregano, together with fresh crusty bread, and maybe a glass of Raki if you like.  Memories of that blue sky and ocean.....beautiful!

Enjoy
Annie


Disclaimer, Tesco paid for the ingredients for this post.

Levi Root's Caribbean Smokehouse, Westfield, Stratford

I grew up in West London, which boasts a thriving afro-Caribbean community.  Caribbean street food, including curry goat, was always widely available.  Travelling regularly to Shepherds Bush, to see my beloved QPR, means access to the same,   I love it, and often cook it myself

Levi Roots burst onto our TV screens on Dragons Den, and his Reggae Reggae sauce was backed by Peter Jones and Richard Farleigh.  You cannot say Reggae Reggae sauce without a smile on your face.  It was clear that Peter and Richard were as enthralled with Levi's enthusiasm and charisma, as well as his sauce, Sainsburys were quick to list the product, which has grown into a great range since - I had the fab crisps recently too

Today, we were invited to Levi Roots Caribbean Smokehouse, his new venture which is due to open on the 30th November in Westfield, Stratford.  We were met by very friendly staff, who directed us to our booth - gotta love a booth!   The interior is kinda beach-housey, with interesting decor, pictures and quotations on the walls, but the first thing that hits you is the beautiful smell coming from the open smokehouse kitchen, the reggae music playing and the total calmness and warm ambience.

We initially ordered some "popcaan" for nibbles - just beautiful. Would have had more but the kids inhaled them!!!!!

Regarding the kids, there is a fab, well thought out kids menu, which has hot dog, fish fingers etc., but also offers curry goat, great to see!

For starters, "street food",  we ordered the jerk mushrooms, bajan fish cakes and jerk chicken wings.   It was all fabulous, but I have to say the fish cakes were just outstanding, and nothing like anything I've had before - an absolute winner!   The kids ate all the chicken wings, fair praise indeed, and the mushrooms had a subtle flavour, with a slow heat coming through them.   Portion size was good, so excellent value for money.

For mains Chris had the lamb, I had the jerk chicken and the kids both had the short ribs.   They all came with 2 sides, so we had roti breads, rice and peas, sweet potato fries, slaw and a green salad.   The meat and sweet potatoes all came out together on one tray, which I thought was kinda sweet, with the other sides coming separately.  I would have liked to have seen a bigger portion of the chicken and lamb, but I have to say the ribs, breads, rice and sweet potato fries were huge portions! Way too much for us to finish, so again, as a meal, excellent value for money.

For desserts the kids had brownies with ice cream, Chris had the pecan and ginger brownie with ice cream and I ordered the rum and raisin brownie with ice cream for everyone to try.   I have to say, at this point of the meal it went very quiet as everyone tucked into their sweet treats.   Again, portion size was pretty large, hardly a complaint, but dare I say that they could afford to offer smaller portions and still have satisfied customers?

We didn't make the most of the drinks menu, which was pretty extensive, but I noted that the wine started at £15 per bottle, which is very good for a restaurant, or should I say #rastaurant!  There is also a good range of cocktails, smoothies, and of course Red Stripe!

We will certainly be back, as I'd like to try the one pot curries (including goat) and also the wraps which would make a fabulous lunch.   They also have burgers etc. to choose from, so something to please everyone's palate.

Good luck everyone, and thank you!
Annie x

Disclosure: Our food was complimentary

That Design Store, St Albans

On Saturday I was having my hair done, and Apollo and I were chewing the fat about the changing High Street, and obviously blaming the loss of a lot of our individual shops down to the influx of discount shops, and the slippery slope from there.   After my new "do" I wandered into town, only to discover the opening of a new Shop, where the old Whittards used to be, called That Design Store.

I had to have a look see, and I wasn't disappointed, it was full of lovely designer goods, from gorgeous lighting, champagne buckets, candles (that I NEED in my life), and other kitchen accessories (can never have enough)!

 

It reminded me of a scene from my favourite all time show "Absolutely Fabulous".......

Eddie: I'm opening a shop, Pats.

Patsy: Ooh, what are you going to sell?

Eddie: Oh, just gorgeous things, you know.

Patsy: Ooh, lovely.

Eddie: Gorgeous, tasteful, little stylish little gorgeous things.

The candles I was particularly drawn to, as they were made out of recycled wine bottles, and they smelled beautiful!  I love wine, I recycle everything I can, and I love candles.   These will definitely be on my Christmas list!

This is an unsponsored post, but I thought I'd share the love, as definitely some great Christmas present ideas in there, so go have a look!

Some more of this back in our lives would be fabulous! IMHO, though I wouldn't say no to a Primark - fickle thing that I am!
Thanks for reading!
Annie x

Vietnamese Food, with Kids, Easy Peasy lemon Squeezy! #pancakes

So we had the best holiday in Vietnam, kids were amazing and then some.  We came home last Tuesday and people were very interested in feedback, and guarantee the 2nd question was about he food.  Well Marks and Spencers have launched a Vietnamese food range, so that shows its "bang on trend", and I will be trying it tomorrow, but thought I'd let you see what we ate first hand.

Firstly, it's not spicy food.  The food is amazing and flavoursome, but they offer chillies and sauces for you to add heat if you wish.  The Pho is a principal dish in Vietnam, and can be eaten at any time. We saw a lot of the locals eating it for breakfast too.  It is pretty simplistic but absolutely beautiful. Considering I don't like soups, or wet food(!) even I loved it.  A lot of the mums from home were concerned about food for the children, but there was rice and pancakes on most menus, so if they didn't want to try anything else, they could still eat well.   Personally, when dragging kids around museums and stuff and they are happy to do so, interspersed with rice or pancakes, I'm all over that! Having said that, they also had spaghetti bolognese a couple of times, which also features in my Vietnamese cookbook!

Pho Ga (chicken noodle soup) I added the chilli myself!

Vietnam is renowned for its street food, and we were actually staying in what they called "food street" in the "Old Quarter"of Hanoi (incidental not planned)!  If you stayed in an all inclusive or a posh hotel in the City, and wandered into the old quarter, you might turn your nose up at the street traders, but!!!!!!    We were staying in an apartment overlooking "food street" and they washed and scrubbed everything to within an inch of its life, and could not have been cleaner - food, surfaces, pots and utensils.  We ate locally every night and we had the best food, without any "tummy" issues, another question I was asked!

We also loved it when eating local clams, to die for, to see a pizza delivery guy turn up at a hotel which overlooked "food street"..... no words!

White roses

street food, you picked it and they cooked it and brought to your own hot plate, see below

Spring rolls and chilli dip

Squid in banana leaves

Clams to die for - from food street, you ate what they had basically!

Cao Lau a favourite for Chis, local to Hoi An - includes pork rind!

Our bungalow in Hoi An, they cooked for us on Saturday night, as an offering and a thank you!

Spring rolls, on every menu, but delicious

Wantons, a favourite of mine, if not too greasy!

Steamed spring rolls

Stuffed squid

Morning Glory and garlic (a type of water spinach)

Sticky rice, Scarlett couldn't get enough of it (thankfully)!

double-banana-tastic!

Jasper had his own method of eating with chopticks, but it worked!

Trying some new fruit

My initial worry was that we would end up eating dog.  On the contrary most traders and locals had dogs as pets.  We were told that you could definitely get it in Hanoi, but we didn't go looking.  We had a book with us to translate the menus, but to be honest we didn't need it.

I will have a go at trying my own, it will never match up as it won't be in the location, in the heat, and deserved after a long day out in the sun or on the water, or up a mountain!

Will keep you posted!
Annie x

Moshi Monsters Moshling Blind Bags reviewed by Scarlett Age 6 (Part 1)

Zelf Review by Scarlett aged 6 and a Half!

Domino's Carnivale Pizza Party

As I write this, we have of course been eliminated from the World Cup 2014, after the worst performance in over 50 years.  Having read the title of my blog however, you can probably work out that I am a huge QPR fan, and having gained promotion to the Premiership last Month, via the play-offs, I shall continue to smile this Summer!

We have however been enjoying the Brazil World Cup for other reasons.  Experimenting with International fayre, and the odd Brazilian tipple.  I was therefore delighted to be asked to host a Domino Carnivale Pizza party, to coincide with the England game.

So, friends invited, house decorated, Caipirinha's mixed and Domino's ordered - I love their website where you can track your order through prep to delivery status, the kids were sat watching it progress too and getting very excited!

The new additions to the menu, as part of the Carnivale range include:

Fiesta Pizza - chicken breast strips, red onions, green and red peppers, seasoned with a fajita spice, with a drizzle of Mojito style dressing.

Rio Pizza - Pulled Barbacoa Beef, punched up with a kick of chipotle sauce, red onoins, green and red peppers.

Nachos - with Domino's secret recipe tomato sauce, topped with mozzerella cheese, with or without jalapenos, served with a tangy salsa dip.

Fajita Wedges - the favourite potato wedges baked with fajita seasoning, served with a tangy salsa dip.

We all had a bit of everything and everyone agreed that the spices were just right!  I particularly loved the nachos with jalapenos, and both pizzas were fantastic - it's a shame they may be only appearing for the World Cup?

The kids also had a bit of everything which was a turn up, but I also got them some little choccy bits for afters.

Shame about the result, but we still had a great party, with great company, food and drink :)

For more information you can read the Dominos Blog or follow them on twitter @dominos_uk - a proper account with real people yayyy!

So to France 2016 for the Euros then, Go Engerland and
Come on You Super Hoopserssssssssssssssssssssssss
Annie x

Portuguese Piri Piri Pork Burger with Aioli

I was very excited to be asked to put together a football themed burger for Waitrose.com, and having been given a choice, I chose Portugal as my country to represent.  There are some fab recipes on the page, and I will certainly be having a go at some of the others!

When you think of tastes for Portugal, Piri Piri chilli springs to mind, along with other herbs and spices, and definitely pork over beef,  Also, my lasting memory of Portugal was a garlicky mayonnaise they served with bread with each meal.  So I settled on a Portuguese Piri Piri Pork Burger with Aioli.

Armed with my shopping list I popped down to Waitrose to get said ingredients.  My first problem was that I couldn’t find any Piri Piri chillis.  However, I did find a pre-prepared rub in the Waitrose Cooks’ ingredients” section, which saved me from buying all the spices individually.  I did consider one of the many sauces you can get, but settled on the rub as it had the perfect blend I was looking for. 

I was also going to make my own Aioli, but again Waitrose already produce a garlic mayonnaise, so didn’t feel the need to re-invent the wheel.

Ingredients – makes 4 good size burgers

500g Waitrose lean, minced free range pork

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 free range egg yolk (we have our own chicken)

2 tsp Piri Piri Rub

(salt and pepper is already incorporated in the rub, so didn’t add any further)

Iceburg lettuce leaves

Vine tomatoes

Crusty rolls

Waitrose Garlic Mayonnaise

Small Portuguese flag – optional!

Method

With your hands, combine the free range pork with the onion, free range egg yolk and Piri Piri rub.  If you’ve time to marinade then I would, but will still taste delicious if not.

When you are ready to cook, pre-heat your grill, or fire up the BBQ, and cook for around 6 minutes each side, depending on the thickness of your burger.

Load your roll with the burger, lettuce, tomato and garlic mayo, and serve with some spicy wedges and salad.

Will of course be cheering on England, but will also look out for my new second team Portugal.  Força Portugal!!!!!

Thanks for reading.

Annie

Schwartz Chicken Curry Recipe Mix for Slow Cookers

I was asked to review a Recipe Mix for Slow Cookers.  In my head I heard "packet sauce" which is not really my thing, but was willing to give it a try.  It was a real eye opener, as the "sachet" contained all the spices etc. required for a beautiful chicken curry.  Although I have a lot of spices to hand in my cupboard, it was simple, and a great idea to have in reserve.  For 80p (at my local supermarket) Schwarz has saved you the faff of buying in all the spices individually, and requires a lot less storage space too!  It also says mild, but it had enough of a kick to it to satisfy our taste.

Recipe
1 packet of Schwartz  Slow Cookers Chicken Curry Recipe Mix
1 onion, diced
1 red pepper, cut into chunks
450g potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
450g chicken, diced - I used thigh
400g tin chopped tomatoes
175g fresh spinach (I actually used a 200g pack)

Method
1) Place onion, pepper, potatoes and chicken into the slow cooker pot.
2) Mix sachet contents with the chopped tomatoes and add to the slow cooker pot.   Stir through.
3) Cover and cook for up to 4 hours on High, or up to 8 hours on Low, or until meat and potatoes are tender and cooked through.
4) Remove lid, stir spinach through and stand for 5 minutes before serving.

They do say you can brown off the meat first if you like, but I was happy to put mine in knowing that it will be well cooked after 8 hours, and using chicken thigh works perfectly for a slow cooker curry.

Chris and I thoroughly enjoyed it, and obviously made too big a deal of it as the kids, who had already eaten, decided to come and steal some of ours too!

My eyes have been duly opened.   I have also bought a Hot Chilli Con Carne recipe mix to try too - it wasn't required for this post, but after the success of the curry, I'm going to try a few more (it was fab by the way)!

Have also discovered a great new recipe website - you can never have enough right?

Thanks for reading!
Annie x

Disclosure:  This is a featured post, but written by myself after cooking the recipe up yesterday.

The Real Greek - We Are Dining in W12!

 I was set a challenge, to take on a Westfield London restaurant's signature dish head to head. Had lots to choose from, and was torn between Mexican Wahaca, Brasilian Cabana and The Real Greek.................I settled on The Real Greek in the end, as I am more familiar to Greek food, (we have a Villa Annie in Crete that we frequent).

We headed to Shepherds Bush for the day (home to the mighty Super Hoops), and picked up my mum on the way.  The signature dish here was the Souvlaki, a popular dish across Greece, and served slightly differently depending on where you are.

In Crete the Souvlaki would simply be skewers of BBQ's meats, and if in a wrap it would be known as Gyros - which translates as "plate" i.e. it is a meal in one.

Souvlaki

Here the Souvlaki was served in a flatbread wrap, with their own home-made tstatsiki, red onion, tomatoes, sweet paprika, and a choice of meats, haloumi or falafel.  I opted for the chicken.   It was truly scrummy, the flavours transported me straight back to the little shop in Kalyves where we often stop for lunch..........I must go back to W12 and try the other fillings too, I love haloumi/squeaky cheese as we call it  (though I would say this is more a Cypriot ingredient).

Anyhoo, I digress.  I have since produced my own version of this dish.   It was every bit as yummy, and I enjoyed making it, as much as I enjoyed watching the kids devour it.  We are off to Crete in April, and this has just served to make my heart pine for my little piece of Greece.........bring on the sunshine!


Annie's Chicken Souvlaki with Tzatziki, red onion and tomatoes in a flatbread wrap!

2tbs olive oil

2tbs lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp dried oregano
Pinch of salt
500g chicken thighs (skinned & boned) and cut into squares.

Combine all the ingredients and marinade for a minimum of 2hrs, but longer if you have time.

For the tsatziki (this makes plenty)!

170g plain Greek Yoghurt (I use the Total 0% fat)
1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and grated
1 tbs olive oil
2 tsp white wine vinegar
1 glove garlic, crushed
Pinch of salt

Again, combine all the ingredients and put in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

You will also need flatbreads, skewers, tomatoes and red onion, or whatever other fillings you like.  I also added grilled sweet peppers.

When you are ready to go, thread the marinated chicken onto skewers - if using wooden ones, make sure you have pre-soaked in water for at least 15 minutes.  Put under a medium grill for around 8 minutes a side, until no longer pink in the middle.

Load the flat bread with the chicken, a couple of spoons of Tzatziki (to taste), tomatoes, onion etc. wrap and eat.

In Crete, when you order the Gyros, they put chips in it too, the kids and Chris like it, but I always take mine out - a carb too far in my mind, but hey as you like it!

Thanks for reading!
Annie x