Tag Archives: food and drink

The Little Cake Boutique Pokemon Cupcake Review

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Last week we had a delivery from The Little Cake Boutique of the most amazing Pokemon cupcakes! Oscar was over the moon as you can imagine as he loves Pokemon! He sat there and went through the cakes to teach me all of the Pokemon names.


The attention to detail of the toppers is amazing and every character as you can see looks like the characters from the television show and the new Pokemon Go app that everyone seems to be obsessed with! We’ve had to give Oscar one of our old iPhones so he can play it like his friends. They taste amazing too! 


The Little Cake Boutique is based locally to us in Watford, 17 miles northwest of Central London. The kitchen operates a delivery service with their delivery charges being very reasonable. 

Using techniques self taught over the years, Cathy and her team produce delicious biscuits and cupcakes for all occasions. We actually had some beautiful biscuits from Cathy at Christmas which finished off my Christmas table perfectly.


Whether it’s a small intimate function, a birthday party,a baby shower, a corporate event or a wedding. The Little Cake Boutique will without doubt be able to produce beautiful cakes/biscuits/giant cupcakes for you with a high attention to detail.

Not only do the cakes look so artistically presented. But the quality of the ingredients used is notable. These cannot be compared with your regular supermarket cupcakes. The finest of ingredients used, coupled with the creative designs have won over some of the world’s leading brands. Of whom have provided such high praise testimonials on the business’s website: www.thelittlecakeboutiquelondon.co.uk.Their online photo gallery showcases a vast selection of cakes and cake flavours that the Little Cake Boutique can offer. 

The Little Cake Boutique produce 12 cupcakes/biscuits as a minimum order as the cakes are baked fresh in batches. They produce giant cupcakes which have become such a popular craze as they are bring used as cutting cakes at parties. At only £36.50 each, it is significantly more reasonably priced than competitors however there is certainly no compromise on quality. The giant cupcakes look as if they should be priced much higher.  
Orders can be placed through the online contact form, whereby a member of the boutique will contact you very efficiently. Or you can phone the boutique directly on: 07501 211488. The boutique have a Facebook page which I strongly recommend ‘liking’ as you will be kept up to date with all the new product launches and new ideas. I have been told that a very special christmas range (including Christmas gift boxes) will be launched in September, so keep your eyes peeled! 

If you have an event coming up,  give the Little Cake Boutique a call. They offer such a personal and bespoke service that you would expect to pay such a high premium for. If you want your event to have a showstopper, the Little Cake Boutique’s cupcakes will fulfil your expectations in every way possible. 

Archie’s Birthday Competitions – Day 8, A Stocking Full Of HIPP Organic Goodies

Baby and Toddler Products, Christmas, Competitions, Food and Drink, Reviews, , , , ,

A few days before Christmas I received a gorgeous personalised Christmas stocking for Archie full to the brim of delicious HIPP Organic goodies. Inside was 8 pouches for 4 months plus even though Archie is passed this weaning stage he really enjoys them and they are great to put in your bag for lunch when out and about. We had parsnip, sweet potato and broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and peas and sweet squash, sweetcorn and peas. It is also a really easy way of getting good healthy food into your little ones! In Archie’s stocking was also 4 125g jars which were red fruit and apple compote and apple and cranberry breakfast. Archie absolutely loves them and can get through two jars at breakfast now, the little piggy! We had 4 190g jars in scrumptious Sunday lunch and parsnip, potato and turkey casserole which was perfect for the festive season. Last but not least we had 2 of the age 1-3 toddler meals which was perfect timing as Archie was one last week and is now munching his way through these. He loves the hearty vegetable and beef casserole and they are really easy to prepare. We don’t have a microwave so I simply warm it up on the hob, it couldn’t be simpler.

HIPP Organic make only organic food for babies and toddlers. As a Mum I wanted to give both my boys the best from the start and when I started weaning I chose HIPP Organic five years ago when I weaned Oscar and have used them again with Archie. HIPP only use the very best organic ingredients to create wholesome & nourishing and really tasty baby foods. HIPP grow their own organic fruits & vegetables naturally on dedicated organic farms, where they are left to ripen naturally and harvested at their plumpest & sweetest. These extra special ingredients are then gently steam cooked to protect the nutrients and keep every ounce of flavour.


HIPP also sell a range of fruit pots, baby juices and cereals as well as their huge range of pouches, jars and tray meals. They have everything to see you through your baby’s weaning adventure and you also know they are getting the very best too. To help you on your weaning journey you can join the HIPP baby club and get advice online as well as receiving a free welcome pack full of goodies to help you on your way. This includes:

  • Personalised baby calendar
  • Exclusive offers and competitions
  • Regular baby development emails
  • FREE prints from Snapfish
  • Expert advice at every stage
  • A-Z of pregnancy & baby health
  • Chat to other mums and health experts on the HiPP Facebook page
  • FREE HiPP Organic samples and money off coupons

HiPP Baby Club free material

HIPP have kindly given the chance for one of my readers to win their own personalised stocking that you can put away for next Christmas full of HIPP organic food. Enter below and good luck!

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Tips For Hosting Christmas Day

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Every year everybody comes to us on Christmas Day and I love having all the family with us. One side of our family come for lunch and then the other half come around at about 4pm for presents and a buffet dinner. We rotate it each year. Next year when we have finished building our new house we will be able to have everybody for lunch as we will have much more space. I have a little notebook that I look back on each Christmas with my food shopping list in so I never forget anything. I thought I would share it with you in case you too are hosting Christmas and are not sure what to buy.

I always get my Turkey, Sausage meat and pigs in blanket from Waitrose and book a collection slot back in November to pick up on Christmas Eve. I also book a Tesco delivery too. I also get a lot of bits from M&S. Here is my full shopping list:

  • Turkey (serves 10-12) from Waitrose
  • Duchy of Cornwall sausage meat from Waitrose
  • Duchy of Cornwall pigs in blanket from Waitrose
  • Yorkshire puddings (M&S)
  • Carrot & Swede mash (M&S)
  • Red Cabbage (M&S)
  • Bread sauce (M&S)
  • Roast potatoes (home made using M&S duck fat & Maris Piper potatoes)
  • Veg: Peas, Brussel sprouts, carrots, honey glazed parsnips all from Tesco
  • Stuffing balls (M&S)
  • A large orange, lemon, and cooking apple to put inside the Turkey, streaky bacon to put on top of the Turkey and butter to put under the skin – Tesco
  • Turkey Gravy – Tesco
  • Cranberry sauce – Colmans
  • Christmas pudding, brandy butter, brandy – Tesco
  • Home made chocolate fudge cake and cream – ingredients from Tesco
  • Sugar free Jelly – Tesco
  • Cheese and Crackers – Tesco

Drinks

  • Coke
  • Diet  Coke
  • Tonic water
  • White wine
  • Bottled water
  • Apple juice
  • Tomato juice
  • Lime and soda

As it is Archie’s first Christmas he can try a bit of our Christmas dinner but I have also brought some Kiddie Cubes from Waitrose in hearty chicken and veg hot pot for him to have as well. Oscar will eat his Christmas dinner but his favourite are the pigs in blankets!

Like I mentioned above I also do a buffet for everybody at about 7pm. I get cold meats from Waitrose, make a fish platter with prawns, poached salmon and smoked salmon, crusty bread, salad, dips, crisps and cold Turkey. I also keep everything we don’t eat at lunch and my Mother in Law uses it all in the Turkey soup we always have on boxing day. Nothing goes to waste! I also brought Christmas disposable plates, napkins and cutlery from M&S so after the buffet everything can go straight in to the bin.

 Oscar’s Stokke Tripp Trapp always gets used at Christmas. 

I love hosting Christmas and this year my friend Cathy who makes gorgeous cupcakes and biscuits is making me a personalised gingerbread biscuit for everyone. My theme is gold and I have brought gold crackers and use my white table cloth and gold runner and plate chargers that I brought from Next a few years ago. Oscar and I are also going to make his gingerbread train next week for him to have as a treat.

All my Christmas shopping is done as Oscar broke up from school last Friday, I have to make sure everything is brought and wrapped before he is around to find anything.

I hope my lists have been helpful and have a wonderful Christmas. Hosting is actually really easy, just make sure you have all your cooking timings written down to follow. Don’t forget Turkey foil and I also cook everything in foil disposable trays so I can throw them all away afterwards and it minimises washing up just to plates, dishes and cutlery.

Have a lovely Christmas with your family and friends!

Merry Christmas!

Fruit Heroes Competition

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Oscar loves Fruit Heroes and I often take them as an after school treat for him when he comes out of class. As well as tasting great to kids they have no added sugar, have a naturally high fibre content and no added preservatives. A parent’s dream snack for the kids! Made from only natural ingredients the 20g bars are great lunch box or on-the-go snack!

Fruit Heroes

We have teamed up with Fruit Heroes to offer you the chance to win a delicious and fruity prize!! 3 lucky winners will receive one set (4 boxes) of Fruit Heroes. Creating products that have natural and healthy ingredients at their heart, Fruit Heroes fruit bars are the perfectly delicious snack, which celebrate the fresh flavours and goodness of fruit.

JordbærBlåbærBananÆble & Hindbær

Dedicated to quality and taste with a big love for fruit, Fruit Heroes source only the best natural ingredients from around the world for its inspiringly delicious and nutritious recipes. The delicious taste and sweetness of Fruit Heroes comes from the natural content of fruit sugar (fructose) in the fruits making them a healthy snacking alternative for children and families.

Good Luck!

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Kiddie Cubes, Frozen Baby Food That’s Just Like Homemade

Baby and Toddler Products, Blog, Food and Drink, Reviews, , ,

A couple of weeks ago we ordered some Kiddie Cubes on our Ocado shop for Archie to try. Before purchasing lots of different flavoured meals I read up on how great they are and how they are the closest shop brought baby food to your fresh, home cooked meals that can come straight from your freezer. I like to make Archie home made meals when I can and finding a quick alternative that was as close to what I can make was defiantly the most important factor to me when I came across Kiddie Cubes. The packaging is really fun too!

There are 14 tasty dishes in the range using only organic, wholesome ingredients that are suitable for babies aged from four months upwards. They are perfect to have in the freezer to give your baby a variety of different flavours when you are first starting to wean your baby. When you start weaning it is important for your baby to try lots of different flavours rather than sticking with the same meals over and over again. I learnt this massively with Oscar who can be quite a fussy eater as I stuck to basic flavours. Where as with Archie he eats everything as I have given him everything from all different fruits to curries. He loves all food!

Kiddie Cubes couldn’t be simpler to prepare you simply open the re-sealable bag tip how many cubes your baby requires into a bowl to heat in the microwave or saucepan to heat up on the hob. I cooked them on the hob and have a organic yummy meal ready for Archie to eat in well under 5 minutes. This has been a god send for days when we get home later than usual. Oscar has a swimming lesson once a week that it is from 5-5.30pm so having Kiddie Cubes that I can cook quickly for Archie when we get in late is just brilliant.

So why are Kiddie Cubes so fantastic?  After being cooked, they are immediately freeze into little cubes of goodness. They do not use any unnecessary heat treatment, which makes sure all the good things are kept locked in. They have no nasties. They are simply all natural and carefully balanced meals straight from the freezer that are vitamin and protein rich with no added sugar, low in natural sugars and produced for your baby as nature intended. What more could you want as a parent that is concious of what sorts of foods your baby is eating.

Each Kiddie Cubes pack contains 12 x 25g cubes (each cube is the equivalent to one heaped tablespoon) so you can control the portion size and have no waste left afterwards. Archie is now 11 months old and will easily eat 8-9 cubes as he loves the taste so much. I have tried them too and they taste really good. There are a range of yummy flavours over two different weaning stages:

Stage 1
Eat Your Greens – Spinach, Broccoli, Courgette, Pea
Really Rooty Veg – Sweet Potato, Carrot, Swede
Purely Apple and Pear Puree
Purely Mango and Apple Puree
Purely Peach and Pear Puree
Purely Apple, Blueberry and Apricot Puree

Stage 2
Veggies and Lovely Lentils – Lentils, Butternut, Swede, Parsnip, Celery
Cauliflower and Broccoli Cheese – Cauliflower, Broccoli, Cheese, Milk
Hearty Chicken and Veg Hotpot – Chicken, Celery, Carrot, Broccoli
Very Veggie Lamb Casserole – Lamb, Parsnip, Sweet potato, Sweet corn
Creamy Leafy Fisherman’s Pie – Salmon, Cod, potato, pea, spinach, milk

Breakfasts (Stage 2)
Creamy Porridge
Go Bananas Porridge

Easy as 1, 2, 3!    

One Happy Boy!

The Kiddie Cubes are available nationwide through ASDA, Ocado, and in Cook stores and are £3.49 for a bag of the 12 squares.

Disclaimer: We were sent a voucher to purchase the Kiddie Cubes, but all opinions are honest and my own.

Cravendale…. The Milk Drinkers Milk

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We were recently given the chance alongside other great bloggers to join in with the #MilkDrinkersMilk challenge thanks to Britmums and Cravendale. The project was to share our favourite ways that we enjoy having a glass of milk. I have always been a milk drinker and my favourite time for a nice cold glass of milk is after a chocolate bar, it tastes delicious! In our house milk is used a lot. Whether it be on my cereal, in my cup of tea or to make some scrambled egg, between myself, Greg and Oscar we get through two large bottles of semi skimmed a week. This will only go up when Archie moves on to cows milk.


Oscar’s favourite is a glass of warm milk before bed or added to a hot chocolate. With the dark and cold evenings he loves a warm cup of milk always in his mug and it makes him feel nice and warm.


I love milk and cookies too and we always leave a glass of milk and cookies out for Father Christmas and apparently Cravendale is his favourite 😉

Another fab thing about Cravendale is how fresh it takes even with an amazingly long shelf life. I buy my milk usually on a Friday and with normal milk by the Wednesday is going off and I have to buy more. With Cravendale  it is filtered for freshness and will last at least two weeks, problem solved!

Cravendale have a fun website too full of great photos, information and fun questions. where you can make your very own #MilkDrinkersMilk personalised poster. Here is mine:

Lady of taste

 

What is your favourite way to enjoy a glass of Cravendale?

 

This post is an entry for BritMums #MilkDrinkersMilk Linky Challenge, sponsored by Cravendale

 

Feel “Good Inside” With The New Hovis Loaves

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Last week we were kindly sent three of Hovis‘ new loaves of bread to try out and see what we thought. We are all different in our house of which types of bread we eat, Daddy and Oscar always eat brown bread or best of both where I still haven’t been converted and still think white bread is best. The three new loaves in the new “Good Inside™” range are made with added Omega-3 from seeds, wheatgerm and fibre which is a unique trio of ingredients providing extra goodness for all your family.


Bread remains one of the UK’s favourite foods with 99% of households buying bread and the equivalent of nearly 12 million loaves are sold each day. As we prefer different bread in our house and Oscar has jam on toast for breakfast every morning we go through 3 loaves a week ourselves. By switching to Hovis Good Inside™, parents can serve up a healthier loaf for their family, providing them with naturally sourced omega-3 from seeds, wheatgerm containing 14 essential vitamins & minerals and fibre. I remember when we thought that Oscar was consuming to much white ‘unhealthier’ bread and moved him over to best of both or brown. He made such a fuss so I made fun things out if his bread to encourage him to eat it and still make him one of his favourites batman bread and tomato soup. He absolutely loves it now and I feel so much better that he is eating a healthier alternative that is full of goodness.


With Hovis’ new loaves he can have white bread too as only 2 slices of their Good Inside™ Soft White Medium Sliced bread contains 10% of the recommended daily fibre intake and nearly half (42%) of the beneficial 2g/d requirement of Omega 3 as ruled by EFSA. Fresh analysis of data from the National Diet and Nutrition Survey has shown that a staggering 79% of British children are missing out on the recommended intake of oily fish, the main dietary source of Omega 3 and as a result they could be lacking vital nutrients, known to play a key role in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. Luckily Oscar loves fish and his favourite sandwich is smoked salmon and he would eat prawns until he popped! Omega 3 is so important for children to have as it is great for their little brains. If your little ones aren’t as enthusiastic about eating fish as Oscar then there are other ways for them to consume omega-3s without having to eat fish. Omega-3 is commonly found in walnuts, flaxseeds and olive oil too. Hovis has added Omega 3 sourced naturally from seeds, to their new Good Inside™ range making it easier and tastier to consume this essential nutrient. Hiding goodness in a yummy sandwich is a godsend for parents!

All three loaves; the soft white, brown and best of both all taste great and are so soft that they taste like they are freshly baked even after a few days. Oscar likes them too and even Archie who is now 10 months old has had his very first bit of jam on toast and loved it. We already brought Hovis bread but we are now converted to the Good Inside™ range and once you try it I am sure you will too!

 

         

Disclaimer: We were sent the loaves from Hovis as part of this review. All opinions are completely honest and my own. Yum!