January is a strange old month: the weather is miserable, and to make things worse, we’re encouraged not to eat any meat or dairy for Veganuary… and give up alcohol!
To cheer us up a little, here are some new food and drink products I’ve recently discovered.
Oato – Oaso Good
Oat Milk is usually ‘long life’ and, in my opinion, not that great tasting, but one company – Oato – is producing fresh oat milk that even can be delivered by your milkman. Because it’s made fresh, you can really taste the difference.
Oato oat milk drink is creamy and fresh, produced to barista-grade standards for a good coffee – that doesn’t split. Delivered in a traditional glass bottle that can be reused, it keeps environmental impact to a minimum.
Oato Fresh Barista Oat is also now available at Sainsbury’s in litres (£1.75) or pints (£1.10). The litre pack is also available at Waitrose. More information at www.oato.co.uk.
At the moment it’s mainly just the oat milk available, but I was lucky enough to taste the company’s delicious oatshakes (strawberry, chocolate and Caffè Latte) and I very much hope they’ll be widely available too, before long!
Porridge – a Great British Breakfast
Porridge is the perfect breakfast at this time of year, and the newest flavour from The Great British Porridge Co is Apple & Cinnamon.
It’s very tasty, and perfect for a quick warming breakfast on a chilly winter morning. It’s 100% natural, with no added sugar, vegan and gluten free, and can be whipped up in just one minute. With real apple pieces, the rest of the sweetness comes naturally from dates. Simply add hot water, or some of your favourite hot milk, stir and serve.
Apple & Cinnamon joins the seven other flavours in The Great British Porridge Co range: Classic Chocolate, Red Berry & Pumpkin Seed, Strawberry & Peanut Butter, Caffe Latte, Blueberry & Banana, High Protein & Low Sugar and Oatrageously Original.
All seven flavours are available in 385g fully recyclable pouches containing seven servings, RRP £3.20, from Amazon, and some flavours also from Ocado
Irish Granola from The Happy Pear
If granola is more to your taste, check out The Happy Pear. They are twin brothers who are now making it even easier for people to follow a healthy and vitamin-packed plant-based diet with their granolas.
There are three to choose from: Dave’s Cocoa Crunch – a healthier take on traditional sugar-laden chocolate flavoured breakfast cereals with a mix of oats, sunflower seeds, coconut and cocoa powder. Steve’s Dreamy Granola – the ultimate high fibre, low sugar version of granola with oats, seeds, nuts, coconut and raspberries. Cool Jim’s Granola – a flavoursome mix of oats, seeds, sultanas, coconut, goji berries and cashews.
£4.99 for 400g or eight packs for £35.99 All three granolas are loaded with fibre and all-natural ingredients, with no added sugar, and they’re free from artificial preservatives or colours. Available via The Happy Pear website www.thehappypear.ie (be sure to click on the tab for UK delivery), and from Amazon. Apparently it will be coming to UK supermarkets and independent retailers very soon!
Tasty Little Pots
The Coconut Collab, makers of those creamy pots of coconut deliciousness, have launched two new desserts:
Choc & Caramel is smooth chocolate, with Belgian dark chocolate and a swirl of silky caramel for this classic combination.
And the small White Choc Pots are smooth pots of white choc ganache, with creamy coconut to pack a punch, and at only 115 calories a pot!
Both are plant-based, gluten-free, palm oil-free and suitable for vegans. The Coconut Collab ensures that 100% of the coconuts sourced to create its range are used within its supply chain, resulting in zero waste.
Choc & Caramel (£1.50, 110g) from Tesco, Morrisons & Ocado and White Choc Pots (£2.95, 4 x 45g) from Tesco, Morrisons & Sainsbury’s
Matcha Goodness from Whittards of Chelsea
I love Matcha – it’s such an unusual flavour and very versatile. As well as drinking it in the conventional way as a green tea, I like to sprinkle it on desserts, and include it in baking. One of my favourite winter breakfasts is porridge, cooked with blueberries so that they ooze into it tastily, and then sprinkled with matcha – try it, it’s delicious and so good for you!
Whittards of Chelsea has just launched a selection of hot drinks to help meet wellness goals including its selection of ceremonial grade Matcha powders. Each tin contains 30 servings, so you can enjoy your favourite matcha drink at home, perfectly paired with any milk of your choice. They’re the ideal pick-me-up, packed with health benefits, to get through these cold, dark months. You can also take your matcha moments to the next level with Whittards tools. Whether you’re a matcha expert or just starting out, the right equipment makes a difference. A bamboo whisk creates the smoothest froth, and precision scoops give the correct measure. With the kits you can make everything from traditional matcha tea, to indulgent lattes and matcha-inspired treats.
Matcha – RRP £22 Vanilla Matcha – RRP £20 Coconut Matcha – RRP £20 The Must Have Matcha Collection – RRP £32.20
Bonne Maman!
We’ve recently become rather addicted to Bonne Maman’s new Petits Muffins. Available in two flavours: Petits Muffins Vanille, with natural vanilla from Madagascar, or Petit Muffins Chocolat with 14% chocolate. Each tempting little cake is soft, fluffy and tasty. They are just perfect with a cup of tea or coffee. With 17 little muffins per bag, they’re good value and just perfect for sharing.
They contain no artificial colours or flavours, and the Petits Muffins are available in 235g bags at Tesco, Waitrose and Ocado at £2.50 rrp.
Cheers!
And last, but by no means least, even if you’ve been trying to do Dry January, the end is in sight, so here’s the perfect red wine to indulge in to celebrate your success at the end of the week. This is the Paul Mas Reserve Merlot from Jean-Claude Mas’s vineyards in the Occitanie region in the South of France. Conas vineyard is located on the hillsides of the Hérault Valley, around the Château Paul Mas, the cradle of Domaines Paul Mas. The wine is vinified with traditional methods, long maceration and then aged in oak barrels, resulting in a quintessence of red and black berry flavours evolving towards plum and cocoa notes. It’s a stonkingly good and refined wine, velvety and rich.
What’s more, Tesco has it on offer for clubcard holders at just £8 a bottle,until 14 February, instead of the usual £10.
