With Easter hols finally over, things can revert to ‘normal’, whatever that is for you! Here are some new products I can recommend:
Stock your Freezer with Stocked
If you’re a fan of Dragon’s Den, you’ll have seen this brilliant company – Stocked – gaining investment. I’m so glad they did, as the products are great and so tasty.
The whole idea is that you buy a pack of blocks, store in your freezer, to defrost as, and as many, as needed. They’re really space saving, and offer a range of delicious meals that take less than five minutes to heat up and transform back into fresh and tasty meals.
Each pack of Stocked contains eight blocks, enough to make 2-4 meals; simply heat and eat them as they are, or use them as building blocks for a variety of meals.
With dishes inspired by global cuisines (think Italian staples, fresh flavours from Indonesia and versatile Mexican dishes), there’s quite an array. Half of Stocked’s range is plant based, so plenty for all diets and palates. Stocked Food
Clock this Fabulous Flavour Hack
Flavour Hacks pastes from Belazu take stress and hassle from prepping fresh ingredients and cut time needed to let flavours develop during the caramelising or roasting process, ‘unlocking a world of flavour, instantly’.
For example, one spoonful of the Roasted Garlic Flavour Hack adds the bold aromatic flavour of roasted garlic immediately, no peeling, chopping, or prepping. They can be used at any stage, from marinating, stirring in during cooking, as a base, or to help finish a dish. Unlike many other pastes, there is no vinegar in the Belazu Flavour Hacks range, and no compromise on taste compared to using fresh ingredients. Reducing fresh ingredients in a recipe is cost efficient, and the pastes have a good shelf life, also helping reduce food waste.
Available in Balsamic Sun-dried Tomato; Green Chilli; Roasted Garlic and Caramelised Onion. 130g jar around £3.
Brilliant Beetroot Juice
Beetroot’s on our radar as the superfood of the moment, as shown through a recent 300% uplift in sales for Cawston Press’ Brilliant Beetroot Pressed Juice.
Full of earthy goodness, Cawston Press Brilliant Beetroot Pressed Juice is a blend of 90% pressed beetroot juice, with crisp pressed apple juice for a rich, hearty refreshment packed full of Vitamin C.
It’s great, and available from most supermarkets, and online here, along with a range of other really good still and sparkling juices in cartons and cans.
Around £3 a litre – there’re some fabulous recipes on the website too.
The Apeal of ACV
The benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) are well known, and there is a delicious way of making sure you’re helping your gut health and immunity.
Apeal World’s refreshing range of drinks contain a blend of sparkling water, organic ACV, organic spices and extracts sustainably sourced and combined, creating a drink with all the functional benefits of concentrated ACV – the ACV vinegar hack made delicious.
There are now three in the range: newly launched ‘Activate’ with Lemon & Mint; ‘Defence’, with organic ginger and ‘Metabolism’ with organic clove, cinnamon and vanilla.
They are refreshing and tasty and available from independent health food outlets at £1.99 for a 250ml can.
Bowled Over by Hokan
I’ve recently discovered some unusual and useful bowls from Hokan.
These stylish stoneware bowls are oven, microwave, freezer and of course dishwasher friendly, plus, I was delighted to find, they also fit my air fryer drawer!
Stoneware is dense pottery fired at high temperatures, making it non-porous and, consequently, odour and stain free.
The bowls heat evenly and retain heat efficiently. Cooking and baking with the lid on keeps moisture in and the temperature stable. Removing it allows the top area to crust or brown.
They’re ideal for everyday use, stackable and pretty stable too, so easy to pop in the fridge with the lid on.
The volume of each bowl is determined by its height, with lids the same size, so no searching for the right one. You can use the lids as a side dish too.
In a range of sizes and colours, from £24 for the small (400 ml) to £30 (1000 ml) or £80 for a set of all three. Available from Hokan Bowls
A Little of What you Fancy from Häagen-Daz
These newly launched Bites from Häagen-Dazs are perfect for those times when you fancy a little bit of ice cream, but don’t want a whole choc ice.
Available in Salted Caramel and also Chocolate flavour, they are a bite size combination of ice cream with a delicious filling, covered in crunchy chocolate coating with roasted chopped almonds.
Available in boxes of eight little bites of deliciousness, at around £5 from Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Ocado.
For further info visit Häagen-Dazs,
A Breakfast Winner from SURREAL
When the weather warms up, I do like a refreshing, cereal breakfast but I also want a healthy, tasty kick start to my day.
SURREAL is a new range of cereals that offer high protein, zero sugar and also provide a low-carb cereal option.
Add to that, they have a nostalgic flavour profile, reminiscent of childhood breakfasts, but without unhealthy downsides.
The cereals contain 13g of plant protein, and are also vegan and gluten-free, so ideal for almost any diet.
Available in a range of flavours including: Cocoa; Frosted; Cinnamon; Peanut Butter; Caramelised Biscuit and Cookies & Cream.
Around £5 for a 240g box from Sainsbury’s, Holland & Barrett, Ocado and Amazon.
Marks & Sparks Most Loved
M&S’s recent first ‘Loved by Customers’ survey has revealed store cupboard essentials that are simply non-negotiable for many.
Coming in at number 1, were M&S Cheese Twists with over 43% of the votes and over 5 million boxes sold in 2023.
Loved By Customers is now an ongoing campaign to highlight favourite classics and hidden heroes across the M&S Foodhall.
Others to come are: Most Loved Lunches; Most Loved Desserts and Most Loved Deli Delights.
Store cupboard hero products (as seen in photo here) include tomato ketchup; granola; fajita seasoning and smooth peanut butter, to name just a few.
