Spring has sprung and everything’s looking brighter!
Gosh! These are so good
We’re great fans of falafels – they are delicious, and can be eaten cold, or popped into the air fryer and served in a wrap or with a dip for a quick lunch.
Our favourite brand is Gosh! Gosh! offers a range of nourishing plant-based food, packed with protein, vegetables and no nasties, Its range includes Moroccan Spiced Falafel, Mediterranean Falafel, Beetroot Falafel and Sweet Potato Pakora.
Gosh! is available in Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and ASDA, RRP from: £2.20
Healthy Salt – with Herbs
Herbamare® Herb Sea Salt is unrefined sea salt, infused with 13 fresh organic herbs and vegetables.
It’s unique in the way it’s traditionally harvested by hand, from unique salt marshes in Aigues-Mortes, an area of France known for its rich agricultural land. Organically grown herbs and vegetables are then steeped with the sea salt for many months to capture the distinctive quality and flavour. Herbamare® Herb Sea Salt combines the following vegetables and herbs: celery leaves, leek, cress (water and garden), onion, chive, parsley, lovage, garlic, basil, marjoram, rosemary, thyme and kelp.
It contains 94.9% sea salt and 5.1% herbs and vegetables. Available in herb, low salt or spicy, it’s really great and healthy too.
From around £3 in health food shops and chemists
A Healthly Addition
My breakfasts have improved immensely recently with the addition of flaxseeds.
Adding Linwoods organic, cold-milled flaxseeds to your daily routine is a smart move for your heart, waistline, and even (men please note) your prostate. The fibre in flaxseeds binds to cholesterol in the digestive tract, helping your body flush it out before it causes problems. Lowering cholesterol is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of heart disease, and flaxseeds offer a simple, natural addition to your diet.
Flaxseeds are packed with fibre, which can keep you feeling fuller longer, stabilise blood sugar levels and may reduce cravings… a simple way to feel full without overloading on calories. With their unique combination of soluble and insoluble fibre, they may also help prevent constipation, regulate bowel movements, and support a healthy gut microbiome.
Quite the superfood! I’m particularly partial to the mix of Organic Flaxseed, Sunflower, Pumpkin & Chia & Goji Berries – fabulous with yogurt and fruit.
Around £4 a pack from health food shops.
Tea Time and Tim Tam
One of Austrailia’s iconic and favourite chocolate biscuits is now available in the UK, exclusively in Waitrose.
Tim Tam Extra Chocolaty has officially now landed and it’s rather special! It’s extra chocolatey, with an additional layer of milk chocolate coating. It’s crunchy, with a velvety cream filling… and if, like me, you’re a fan of that well-known British biscuit that you can ‘ppppick up’, you’ll be on cloud 9!
Tim Tam Extra Chocolaty is £1.85 for a pack of nine biscuits in Waitrose.
Original, Chewy Caramel and Dark variants are also available at other supermarkets including Ocado, Sainsbury and Tesco.
Spice up your Ketchup Collection
Are you partial to ketchup and hot sauce? And are you trying to avoid added sugar? Now you can keep it fresh with Vadasz’s recently launched range of table sauces, made with all natural ingredients.
The range includes Kimchi Ketchup, Hot Pepper Sauce and Hot Jalapeno Sauce, made by harnessing the natural and health preserving benefits of pickling and fermenting.
According to founder Nick Vadasz, “With the average bottle of ketchup containing 78 grams of sugar, it’s no surprise that people are looking for healthier, vegetable based fermented sauces.” These are lower in sugar than traditional ketchup and contain probiotics, for gut health and immunity.
These sauces are great with eggs, in a sandwich, drizzled over fries or in a burger and will add mild heat and a savoury tang to all manner of recipes.
£4.50 – £4.75 for 250g, available from the chiller section at selected Waitrose and Sainsbury’s stores nationwide
Crackers about these Crackers
I know I’ve written about Pep & Lekker crackers before, but I wanted to let you know that these delicious functional snacks are now also available in packs of pocket-size savoury biscuits.
Bound with olive oil versus planet-unfriendly palm oil or vegetable oils, this gluten-free treat has no added sugar, (securing its natural sweetness from apple puree and chicory inulin)
There are two varieties – Rosemary and Original – and they are also high in fibre and beneficial omega 3’s (plus beneficial protein and magnesium.)
Available in 110g boxes, containing approximately nine crackers, they are available for around £2.75 from Amazon
Travel the World – Slowly – with M&S
You can add spontaneity to your slow cooked meals now with a great new range from M&S.
Forget the planning needed, and that cumbersome slow cooker, and check out the options for a quick and easy, but really delicious slow cooked meal.
There are family-sized packs, as well as meals for two, which take just 60 minutes or less (compared to hours of cooking). M&S has travelled the world for this range, one that includes Middle Eastern Chicken Shawarma, Beef Chilli, Fajita Spiced British Chicken, Carolina BBQ British Pork, Lamb Massaman Shanks, Salt Beef and Teriyaki Beef to name just a few.
They give maximum flavour with minimal effort, and prices start from around £9 for two.
And of course M&S also sells all the ideal accompaniments, such as guacamole, salsa, naan and tortillas.
Well Dressed!
And finally, a range of superb salad dressings, just in time for the better weather.
Born out of a desire to be different, All Dressed Up is the brainchild of Leith’s trained chef, Tess Reed, who wanted to create a brand that not only looked and tasted great, but was good for you too.
Using all natural ingredients, and never UHPFs, the dressings are all refined sugar free, gluten free and dairy free. There are four: Everyday House (classic French); Miso & Sesame (zingy Asian style) Tahini & Lime (zesty Middle Eastern) and Spicy Harissa (fiery style to pack a punch).
They come in squeezy bottles and will liven up a whole range of dishes, not just leaves.
Available from Ocado, Wholefoods, Bayley & Sage, DELLI and alldressedupdressings.com £5.99 for a 250ml bottle
