Rachel's Delicious Journey

Teapigs Matcha Challenge

2012-02-01T07:51:00.000Z

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Teapigs to see if I would be interested in taking part in their Teapigs Matcha Challenge. Of course I said yes! I only started taking ¼ teaspoon of matcha per day since Monday and whilst I will provide a full report in 30 days time, I wanted to share the promotion code with you now as the offer ends on the 12th February 2012. To receive 20% off Teapigs matcha enter code: MATCHABLOG12

I was very generously sent the whisk too..

On Monday I started the challenge off with a shot - 30ml skimmed milk and ¼ teaspoon of matcha.

I anticipated needing something to take the taste away afterwards, as I strongly dislike green tea, but to be honest it wasn't too flavoursome. I can't wait to try it out in smoothies, hot teas and baked products. Do you like matcha? Do you notice any health benefits from using it?

Sharpham Park

2012-01-30T13:09:00.000Z

Did you know it was Farmhouse Breakfast week last week? I was sent some lovely new spelt cereals from Sharpham Park to try out but unfortunately I'm only getting chance to blog about them now. But every day has a time for breakfast, right? What is your favourite way to start satisfy your morning hunger?

I was quite excited to pour a bowl. I've been having porridge with a big dollop of nut butter every day for the past couple of months. Whilst I'm by no means bored of this, I feel it is definitely time for a change.

Left: Farmhouse Granola. Right: Miller's Muesli

I love ingredient lists that are full of nutritious foods. This made these two Sharpham Park's cereals an automatic winner for me but what about the taste? I tried the granola..

Of course it tasted beautiful. Deeply satisfying, not too sweet and full of different textures (which always plays a strange part with me - like I'm eating more than I am because my eyes can pick out different pieces). I added a small banana to it too which complimented the taste perfectly..

I may try it with warm milk next time with this cold weather. Do you have snow where you are? It certainly feels chilly enough to snow here in Essex but I'm yet to see it sprinkle down from the sky. Roll on spring/summer! Also, roll on my planned bowl of Miller's Muesli tomorrow morning which I am yet to try out. I'll keep you updated.

Pilates DVD Review & My Physio Assessment (Hypermobility)

2012-01-16T15:40:00.000Z

*waves* Sorry for my two week absence but a whole bunch of stuff has been going on. I'm still hoping that I can get into regular blogging again soon but for now I'm just going to write you a post on my physio assessment, plus a quick review of a new pilates DVD.

A couple of years ago I was in tremendous foot pain. After being suggested numerous named conditions, I discovered that I am in fact hypermobile. I haven't yet got it under control but I am a million times better than the girl who used to be on her feet for 20 minutes crying in agony. I have limited my exercise and general standing time.

Having started my new job at a nursery I have noticed the pain in my knees worsening. Sitting on the floor and small chairs, bending down, picking children up and cleaning has all equalled to a lot more stress on my knee joints. I attended another physio appointment this morning and it was quite helpful.

It was explained to me that as my body is unstable/unbalanced, my joints overcompensate (particularly my knees and feet/ankles taking the strain). The Physiotherapist said that once I gain core stability, balance and strength, my upper and lower body muscles will take more of the strain = less pain/clicking/aching.

I was given this exercise sheet to complete every day, with another meeting in three weeks time.

He said that restarting up at the gym would be a very good idea although to do ten minute short bursts of cardio so as not to stress my joints. The best news ever was when I was told I could eventually start running again (I miss it so much) but I need to regain strength first of all. Most importantly, I am not to do any squats. I did one in front of him and he said he could see just how weak my joints are as my knees automatically come inwards. Similarly, when I stood on one leg, he mentioned how much the foot on the ground was overcompensating the loss of balance by flipping over to one side.

This assessment came in perfect timing with a pilates DVD I was sent out to review. I know how beneficial pilates is for hypermobile people but I don't half struggle getting into it. I'm such a fast-paced cardio queen. I tried it out this morning.

If you go ahead and Google Lynne Robinson, you will see so many great reviews and praise of her pilates experience.

Pilates The Core Workout was only released on the 26th December 2011 and incorporates the Pilates principles of concentration, relaxation, alignment, breathing, centring, co-ordination, flowing movements and stamina.

For a beginner, as I am, I found her verbal instructions very easy to understand. It is hard to follow a fitness routine which focuses on posture when you're constantly tilting your head to the side to watch how it's done. I also found the first chapter of the DVD interesting where Lynne is talking about your spine and how everything lines up. Whilst learning about how your body works, it helps further when conducting the exercises.

I have yet to try out the second part to this workout, and after one try I obviously cannot yet speak of the benefits. I will keep practising and learn to be patient! Do you follow a pilates DVD or attend a class? How do you look after your joints?

Pilates the Core Workout is available to buy on DVD from www.amazon.co.uk and www.bodycontrol.co.uk from 26^th December 2011. RRP: £14.99

Happy New Year

2012-01-02T12:41:00.000Z

I hope you've all had a lovely couple of weeks celebrating Christmas and New Years! I don't know about you, but I'm sort of looking forward to things getting back to normal now.

As I'm writing, I'm gobbling up the rest of my marzipan Gluckschwein sent to me by my mum :) It's German/Swiss tradition around this time of year. It also tastes amazing. I forgot how much I love marzipan. I usually disallow myself to have it as I could polish off a block in a minute!

I'm afraid I'm really not in the blogging zone at the moment. I hate forced posts so this is another short and sweet message again xx

Happy Christmas Bloggers!

2011-12-23T18:26:00.000Z

I just wanted to wish you all a very happy Christmas!! Enjoy the festivities, eat well and laugh lots. I shall see you in 2012! ♥

Minou is totally getting into the Christmas spirit this year!

Amy's Kitchen Review

2011-12-19T10:54:00.000Z

A couple of weeks ago I was sent lots of Amy's Kitchen soup to try out..

One of my friends introduced me to this brand a month or so back when I tried her vegetable lasagne and pizza. I have been stocking my freezer up with at least one of Amy's Kitchen products since then!

Their tinned soup, however, never really took my fancy. I often buy fresh cartoned soup and make my own occasionally but since healthy eating I just totally disregarded tinned versions thinking it would be full of additives and whatnots. I was wrong.

So far I have only tried the Lentil Vegetable Soup and I was super impressed. It was packed full of wholesome ingredients (onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, spinach, green beans, diced tomatoes, tomato puree, water, lentils, olive oil, sea salt, garlic, spices and balsamic vinegar).

I'm looking forward to tasting the rest over the upcoming weeks. With my limited free-time with work and Christmas festivities taking over, heating up a bowl of this warming soup will make life that little bit easier for me.

Have you tried something from the Amy's Kitchen range? Do you eat tinned soup regularly?

[Random fact: As a child I used to have cream of tomato soup for breakfast! That, or a cheap tin of mixed peas and sweetcorn, eaten out of the tin with a big dollop of ketchup!]

Secret Santa

2011-12-05T17:47:00.000Z

Today something very exciting dropped through my letterbox..

Mari who blogs at Orange & Green was my Secret Santa, and a fabulous one at that.

I received the most beautiful card, not only for the gorgeous London winter scene on front, but Mari had filled it with words about herself and why she chose what she did as gifts. I'm so glad I am now aware of her blog (I've just added it to my Google Reader :))

These chocolates taste as luxurious as they look! I ate one within an hour of opening up the package..

..alongside my equally luxurious tea! Thank you ever so much Mari! I am thrilled with the thoughtful presents. Being such a tea lover, it's funny that I've have never tried white tea like this. It's very delicate.

Thank you very much Laura for making Secret Santa happen. I know it must have taken a lot of organising..and is still probably consuming some time whilst everyone else receives their presents and you link them all up! My lady should receive her present tomorrow or the day after and I can't wait to hear what she thinks about it. Do you prefer giving or receiving? Of course I absolutely love getting presents but to be honest, seeing the person's reaction after the time and consideration spent choosing their present is really what makes me excited about Christmas.

I thought I'd finish with a picture of my Christmas tree! The first one I've had in years due to constant moving and being unsettled. It is sparkling with lights but hard to capture by camera. A massive thank you to my gorgeous friend and her family for letting me/us have this. It feels very festive at home now :)

Have You Seen My Guest Post?

2011-11-28T18:16:00.000Z

I wrote a guest post for the lovely Jemma whilst she's away. You can check it out here :)

And speaking of which, if you would like to do a guest post for me whilst I'm snowed under with work at the moment then please let me know. I'd love to hear from you.

Short & Sweet

2011-11-27T19:15:00.000Z

I've missed you!

Things have been manic for me. It's been a shock to the system to go from basically doing nothing all day every day to 10.5 hour shifts with very active toddlers! It feels like I haven't spoken to anyone/been away from blogland for months! How are you all? Well I hope :) I'm going to try to catch-up with a few posts tomorrow. The good thing about these long hours is that I only work a four day week so hopefully can do weekly blog posts.

Apart from work there's not much to report except for some squash shopping..

Some squash meals..

And some squash loving..

I seriously cannot get enough of the Crown Prince Squash. There's some cooking in the oven as I type. I literally get cravings for the stuff. I have about 600g of it each day and that's only because I'm trying to ration myself slightly!

I've also found some new loves sent to me by the beautiful Nicky..

I was so excited to try the other flavours having only the Dark Chocolate Dreams in the cupboard. The White Chocolate Wonderful is my favourite by far, closely followed by the Cinnamon Raisin and Maple :) Feeling much love for these right now! Thank you Nicky ♥

I also received my prize from Laura's giveaway in the post this week. Thank you very much!

Have you all finished your Christmas shopping yet? I've nearly completed mine. I am getting very excited!! xx

Childhood Goat Fear & A Delamere Dairy Review

2011-11-18T20:12:00.003Z

Are you a fan of goats' cheese? Or tried other goats' products?

When Delamere Dairy emailed me asking if I'd like to do a review I was excited but a little unsure as to whether I'd enjoy everything they would send. The first time I tried goats' cheese was when I lived in France a few years ago. It took a while but eventually I grew to love it although naively thought that there was only a few types.

Delamere Dairy opened up my eyes when a huge delivery arrived a couple of months ago and I've been gradually making my way through it. I am still munching through the hard cheeses but here is what I've tried so far..

After a little internet research, I thought that the Honey Goats Cheese would go perfectly with my very first fig. It did. It was in fact amazing. I loved the subtle sweet flavour that came through in the cheese and the aroma from melting it under the grill for ten minutes was incredible.

I wasn't sure how much I'd like the Herb variety. When reading out what I had to my mum over the phone, her mouth watered over this the most but I didn't have such high hopes. In actual fact I found this to be my favourite. It went perfectly with my Wholemeal Bean Wraps. I love how the cheese logs are pre-sliced into six discs to make it easier when preparing your meal.

The natural goats' cheese is something I usually have every couple of weeks (albeit a normally a different brand ). My regular lunch for the past few weeks has been a massive pile of Crown Prince Squash ♥ some cheese, and an egg for protein and fat. I also used the cheese scattered over my pumpkin soup (as recommended to me by a friend).

As always I give 100% honesty in my reviews and can assure you that this cheese is definitely going to be a regular in my shopping trolley, especially the herb variety! As well as excellent taste, it is fantastic to know that Delamere Dairy places animal welfare as a top priority.

Want to know about my childhood goat fear? Well, I was always unsure of them as a child..

..and this is why..

..the little bugger started chewing on my favourite dress!! Whilst I was ~~upset~~ absolutely mortified, my mother decided to take a photo rather than rescuing me and my brother evidentially found it hysterical! The dress had to be thrown out and whilst I am no longer scared of goats, let's just say I always keep a very close eye on them!

WIAW - My Seventh (Plus Some Good News!)

2011-11-16T09:40:00.000Z

Hello party people! Big Wednesday love to you all, especially Jenn - the hostess with the mostess.

Total 0% Greek yoghurt with blueberry (123 calories). This stuff is amazing. I followed it shortly after with breakfast number two..

An apple (approximately 47 calories) and Organix Goodies Mini Gingerbread Men (108 calories). They had a lot of comments a few weeks ago when the poor things landed up in my porridge so just thought I'd say again - if you are looking for them then they are in the baby food aisle! I can't thank my friend enough for getting me addicted to these :)

Aww my mum who lives in Switzerland sent me one of her favourite bars which was super yummy (97 calories). I don't get to go out there often and miss her to pieces, especially with Christmas coming up.

Marks & Spencer salad with tomato basil chicken, cous cous and butternut squash (290 calories I think). Do you like my polka dot tights? A few minutes after this photo was taken a little girl got mesmerised by them and nearly fell into someone as she walked past with her head turned hehe.

This is a good new find - 3 ginger beef & 3 Asian salad wraps from Marks & Spencer (only 50 calories).

How sweet is this mini Lindt chocolate bear? I love him (60.1 calories).

Home-made bolognese with 500g of Crown Prince squash ♥ I can't get enough of this squash. It may lead to its own staring post (411 calories in total).

Graze natural vanilla seeds are so tasty. I think they're my favourite of their range! (164 calories)

Wow, what a lot of food and for not a lot of calories! All of that totals 1350.1! I hope you've all had tasty days. I've been a busy bee again so not had much time to blog catch-up. I'm going to do a little reading now and then some more over the weekend..but I'll be very quiet on the blog soon because..

I start a new job on Monday!!

Oh my goodness!! I was so excited when I heard the news yesterday afternoon. I literally jumped around the house laughing like a mad woman. I have been unable to find work since February(!!) and going from one office interview to the next felt pretty demotivating. Obviously I was awaiting something greater, something I'd been dreaming about since I left school - a Trainee Nursery Practitioner role in my town! I started a childcare course when I left school but after around six months I had to give it up as I became seriously ill with ME/CFS. I've announced it everywhere else and want to thank a lot of you for congratulating me. After sitting in my pjs for a good few months now it will be a huge shock to the system!!

Are Yu A Winner?

2011-11-15T12:52:00.000Z

As Blogger is being a bit naughty for me at the moment, this is just a quick winner announcement of my Yu! giveaway.

Sorry for the lack of photos but it's only letting me insert the one (rawrrr!) Thankfully I've been writing the names of entries down as I've gone along also as the comment section is also being very naughty.

The winners are..

Leigh at Peanut Butter Nutter

Jemma at Celery And Cupcakes

Lauren at Powered By Peanut Butter

Eleanor at Eating Like A Horse

Laura at Keeping Healthy Getting Stylish

Well done and please email me at racheledwards6@yahoo.co.uk so I can get these sent out to you as soon as possible.

Thank you to everyone who entered! If you didn't win then you can find Yu! products at Tesco, in the home-baking and dried fruits aisle. They are currently on offer at the moment 3 for 2 so make sure you pop over there and stock up :)

Rice Dream Review & Random Bits

2011-11-10T11:20:00.000Z

Happy Thursday everyone! I am in a little bit of a blog slump at the moment but there are some things I have been meaning to write about for a while.

Rice Dream was one of those things..

Whilst I am not lactose intolerant, I have had a recent interest in trying alternatives to dairy. I like trying new tastes and currently switch between skimmed milk, hemp and soya light (when my friend came to stay at the weekend she was bombarded with choice!) So when Rice Dream contacted me I was more than happy to try out their product.

I really enjoyed it. To me, the flavour and consistency was similar to skimmed milk. It's a good change if you no longer can have dairy or just want to try something new. What I would say though is that it didn't hold up too well in my cup of tea! It separated slightly at the top of my drink which despite being unpleasant to look at, the taste didn't alter. Have you ever tried Rice Dream? What are your opinions?

Whilst at a friend's house a couple of weeks ago I tried the Vanilla Rice Dream. With the same texture as the original, it gave a subtle sweet taste. I since bought it and it compliments my Alara Dreamy Oats muesli beautifully. Despite the separation it tastes so amazing in my cups of tea that I really don't care. Check out their website or Facebook page for further information!

I received another exciting package yesterday..

I recently won a giveaway over at Maria's blog! It was in aid of her charity Great South Run - well done again Maria and a massive thank you for the prizes! The baked goods look incredible. I have put them in the freezer for when my diet is going better (it's a bit of a struggle at the moment).

And that card is so super cute! The boy and I actually saw it over the weekend and fell in love. It has gone straight up onto my noticeboard..

From Maria I also won a Teapigs mug and teas..

I was smiling from ear to ear when I found out I won. You all know how much I adore tea..

Got winner envy? I have a giveaway running with Yu! Check it out my previous post here to be in a chance of getting your hands on some yummy snacks. You have until Monday 14th November to enter.

Giveaway For "Yu"!

2011-11-04T14:10:00.002Z

I spotted a new product on the supermarket shelves a short time ago and after the first bite I immediately got in touch with the company.

Have you tried Yu! Jus Fruit Pieces? These are what I'm talking about..

They haven't been out for very long so when I got in touch with Elite Healthy Foods Ltd they kindly offered me some packs to share!

Each 24g bag of Jus Fruit are less than 90 calories and make a perfect on-the-go snack. They have a chewy texture and taste very sweet with a strong flavour - my personal favourite being the cherry.

Do you want to be one of five winners to receive a package of each flavour?

How to enter: -

You have to be a follower of my blog.
Leave a comment below with which flavour particularly takes your fancy.

For one additional entry: Follow me on Twitter (@racheledwards6) and tweet the following "Have you tried Yu! Jus Fruit yet? Enter for your chance to win some with @racheledwards6 http://deliciousandnuts.blogspot.com/2011/11/giveaway-for-yu.html"

The giveaway will close on Monday 14th November 2011 and I will announce the winner shortly after. Unfortunately this giveaway is only open to UK residents.

Yu! also make yoghurt covered fruit pieces, fruit bars and granola which I need to get my hands on. If these are anything to go by, I'll be a happy bunny!

Also, if you sign up to their mailing list via their website you will be entered into their quarterly prize draw to win an activity holiday. Good luck lovelies xx

WIAW - My Sixth

2011-11-02T10:10:00.000Z

It's that time of the week again - party time!!

Thanks for being an amazing party host as always Jenn :) Let's rock on!

Aw, don't you just love gingerbread men? Dorset Cereals Gingerbread porridge made with Alpro Soya Light..with one of my favourite eats at the moment (thanks to my friend for getting me seriously addicted) - Organix Goodies Gingerbread Men (291 calories in total).

Graze New England apple and cranberries (83.5 calories) drunk down with an unphotographed chocolate protein shake (173 calories).

Boots Shapers Turkey, Stuffing & Cranberry sandwich (338 calories).

An Oootmeal bar which I picked up at Wholefoods at the weekend. Yes, I possibly first picked it up due to the name :) but it was incredible. A little like a Nakd Apple Pie bar but much sweeter and moist - I need to buy more (139 calories). Followed by an Options hot chocolate (32 calories).

Covent Garden Souper Natural soup (99 calories) with some gorgeous Delamere Dairy goats cheese sprinkled on top (72 calories).

One of my Christmas In A Cupcakes (75.5 calories) with some Peanut Butter & co Dark Chocolate Dreams (48 calories) .

Total calories of this, quite seasonal, WIAW post are 1351 :)

I have set some time aside for later when I will be looking at your eats xx

Boo..!

2011-10-31T15:55:00.000Z

Happy Halloween!!

Just dropping by for a quick scare and see what you are all doing to celebrate Halloween? I don't do anything as such (if I could trick or treat around Blogger's houses I would..) but I am getting into the spirit of things by eating for the season..

..and rocking out in my pumpkin leg warmers bought for me by my beautiful friend..

Have a good one :) and if this day isn't so special to you then have a generally good evening! Tonight I'm watching a TV show being filmed called "Hit The Road Jack"..I'll let you know if it's going to be worthy tuning in for!

Bear Picnic

2011-10-27T19:58:00.000+01:00

"Today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic!" Or rather Saturday was the day that Bear of Bear Nibbles celebrated his second birthday with a picnic in the woods :) My two friends, the fiancé and I went along for the adventure, a walk around, some childish fun and giggles..

I've been a big fan of Bear for a long time now. They are a lovely company and super generous as everyone that came along to their party received a bag of snacks!

Apart from the above outing I have pretty muchbeen sofa or bed-bound for the past week or so. It's either flu or tonsillitis, either way I have been feeling really blah so not ventured into Blogland much. Sorry for the lack of communication and blog reading. I always feel so guilty - does anyone else feel bad when going through a period of not commenting? I promise to catch up with what you've all been up to soon.
I'll leave you with a photo of the most adorable card from my other half (which obviously made me feel much better)..

It's True - They Do Exist

2011-10-19T10:44:00.000+01:00

Whilst growing up in Cornwall, I spent my youth listening to fascinating folklore tales of mermaids, fairies, giants and piskies. Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined that I would be visited by one of these mythical creatures.

A fairy stopped by to see me. Not just any old fairy, but the most famous fairy in all of Blogland - The Fairy Hobmother!

I was generously offered an Amazon voucher which I will spend in due course on something that I really want. It's such a wonderful thing for www.appliancesonline.co.uk to do, spreading some cheer and happiness around.

What do you wish for? Leave a comment below and you never know, you may just be paid a visit too!

Review: Good Hemp Shelled Hemp Seeds

2011-10-18T18:36:00.000+01:00

When Good Hemp contacted me to try some of their new Shelled Hemp Seeds I jumped at the chance.

I first heard of the brand when I entered the lovely Laura's competition and won some protein powder, oils and milk.

The hemp milk was the first thing I tested out. At first I wasn't too sure. I messaged Laura at the time to ask her opinions. She loved it so I gave it another go and after a few times I grew to love it too! I don't know why it took me a while. As I am not intolerant to dairy I tend to have that most days, occasionally alternating with soya. The hemp was a totally new flavour to me. Now, it regularly goes into my shopping trolley :) I was so suprised to read that "Just one 250ml serving of GOOD Hemp provides 50% of our recommended daily intake of Omega 3".

I didn't try out the hemp oil until the other day when I baked my Christmas In A Cupcake. It worked perfectly in this recipe, and now that the bottle is open I will try cooking my main meals with it for a change from my regular olive oil.

I'm yet to taste the Fit Shake that I won. I have had so many protein samples lately that I must use them up before starting another.

So, the shelled hemp seeds are fabulous..

As you can see, they look quite grainy, but they have a soft texture. The taste is quite nutty and you can add the subtle flavour to things like salads and cereals..

I'm using it a bit like I would with my ground flaxseed - to most things to add a little protein and healthy fats. One 30g serving gives the entire daily intake of Omega 3 which is pretty impressive huh! You can buy a 200g of this for £3.99 from their website.

When given this product I wasn't asked to do a blog review, but just to email them over a little feedback, however I was so impressed that I felt it was well worth a mention here.

Christmas In A Cupcake

2011-10-13T21:42:00.000+01:00

This evening I came up with a recipe for chai chocolate chip pumpkin muffins. It's a mouthful to say (as well as being a delicious mouthful to eat).
I adore chai tea lattes. When I was in my late teens my friend introduced me to the drink at Starbucks. "It's like Christmas in a cup" I exclaimed.

With the most important ingredient being some Drink Me Chai Spiced Chai Latte powder, I have been very busy creating.

Christmas In A Cupcake

Makes approximately 34 normal-sized cupcakes

2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp salt
165g wholemeal flour
165g plain flour
70g white sugar
130g demerara sugar
40g Chai Latte - Spiced, Drink Me Chai
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1 tin of pumpkin puree
125g applesauce
45ml mild & light Good Hemp oil (can use light olive oil)
100g milk chocolate chips (or similar)

1. Pre-heat oven to 170C.

2. In a bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients

3. In a food processor, combine all of the wet ingredients.

4. Gradually add dry to wet and mix together thoroughly.

5. Once mixed, add in the chocolate chips and stir well.

6. Carefully spoon mixture into cases. I used a variety of sizes.

7. Cook the normal sized cakes for roughly 20 minutes. The smaller ones took around 15 minutes. It's best to keep an eye on them. When you can pierce them with a knife and pull it out clean, they are done.

Spiced Chai Icing

45g icing sugar

15g Chai Latte - Spiced, Drink Me Chai

40g Extra Light Philidelphia

A tiny splash of water

Simply mix all ingredients together, adding a dribble of water at a time to reach your desired consistancy (you really don't need much water). I am unsure whether this icing will spread on all of the cakes as I have kept it separate, to use as and when. It will also depend on how much you like your icing!

I cannot describe how nice these actually taste. If you are a big fan of chai lattes then do give it a go! The calories aren't too bad either.

The nutritional bit per Christmas In A Cupcake (without the Spiced Chai Icing): -

Calories: 106.3
Protein: 2.5g
Carbohydrates: 17.7g
Sugars: 5.1g
Fat: 3.2g
Saturates: 1.0g
Fibre: 1.2g
Portion of vegetables: 0.2

The nutritional bit per 10g Spiced Chai Icing: -

Calories: 24.9
Protein: 0.5g
Carbohydrates: 5.0g
Sugars: 2.9g
Fat: 0.4g
Saturates: 0.3g

London Shine 2011 - My Half Marathon Walk

2011-10-08T13:58:00.000+01:00

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your donations, kind words of support, encouragement and congratulations! My walk has raised a total of £435.00! This amount is sure to make a massive difference to Cancer Research UK. If you wish to add a little extra to the total then my sponsorship page is still active http://www.sponsormetoshine.org/racheledwards.

Another huge thank you goes to the fantastic, generous companies that donated prizes for my competition. Weightlossresources, We Are Bear, Bounce Snack Foods, 2Pure, Clipper, Conscious and Booja-Booja - thank you all so very much for giving me some delicious prizes to help make raising money that little bit easier. All goodies have been sent off and being enjoyed :) If you haven't been lucky enough to win then all of this companies come highly recommended, please do check them out!

So, the big night..

Big Smiles! Just parked the car and about to walk to the O2 (the car park was a trek away!)

In my bag I packed a few goodies to keep me going during the walk but it turned out I didn't actually eat any of them!

Clif Bar - I love you!

The first proper view of the O2 - this is about a five minute walk from the car and see how far away we are still!

Pizza Express to fuel the walk! [Awkward pose haha..]

I adored the fact that you could buy t-shirts with everyone's name on! Can you see me? :) I didn't buy one but..

..I bought a halo!

Everyone having a laugh during the warm-up boogie!

Waiting with the other power walking in anticipation.

And we're off!

Just an average Saturday early morning sight in London.

I am extremely pleased that I chose to walk this for Cancer Research UK despite it being the hardest physical challenge I have ever put myself through.

There were three groups of walkers - the power walkers, striders and strollers. We went towards the front with the power walkers and for the majority of it, I walked as fast as my legs could carry me without my feet lifting up off the floor to form a jog. Every few minutes thought I did have to run to catch up with my friend. I couldn't seem to keep up and make my body move any faster. It was very strange!

I read most of the handwritten signs on people's backs. They were heartwarming and spurred me on. It always makes me feel emotional when a large group of strangers unite together to form something amazing, for charity.

I'd like to say a third thank you to the wonderful organisers/volunteers for making this event possible.

We finished just under four hours! We ran through the finishing line as the last few seconds were being clocked! It was such an amazing feeling! If you have never done a charity walk/run for charity, then why not make it happen next year? :)

Due to "unexpected and late changes to the route", the walk had actually been increased by 0.57 miles! Add to that roughly a mile to and from the car park (plus another half mile wandering around trying to locate the carpark) we walked a rough total of 16 miles that evening/morning! :)

I rested all Sunday and then on Monday I made some naughty cupcakes for my fiancé's workmates that sponsored me..

Apparently they enjoyed them so much that I got a few more sponsors and a few emails were being sent around the office to inform everyone that there was cake!

Another sweet moment was when I received a tweet from Alpro Soya..

..lovely right? :)

This post is of epic proportions! Thank you for reading so far, and for being part of my journey. Before I go I must ask you to check out the lovely Maria's blog. She is doing The Great South Run to raise money for Cancer Research UK and is running a fabulous competition. Please do take a look and help support the cause even further!

My Cat Is A Kabocha Lover!

2011-10-07T17:23:00.000+01:00

I tried kabocha and onion squash today for the first time.

I wasn't the only one..

"Ooooh what is that?!"

*Sniff*

"Smells alright"

"Mmm hello..I like this.."

"Rawwrrr it's mine!" [he literally growled..see the look in his eye!]

"Stupid human. This can't be a vegetable."

"Moooooooore!!"

"Thanks mum!"

WIAW - My Fifth

2011-10-05T10:17:00.000+01:00

Hello beautifuls! It's looking more like Autumn out there. Is your food relating to the weather? I need to check out your eats and catch up with blog reading. If I don't do it in the week, I'll definately have a mega catch-up over the weekend as I'm home alone. I will probably post about my Shine walk then also :)

It's party time again! Thanks for being the perfect host Jenn! This is my What I Ate ~~Wednesday~~ ~~Sunday~~ ~~Tuesday~~ ~~Saturday~~ ~~Friday~~ I'm not sure. It's a bit of a mash-up..an average day of my recent eats.

¾ banana with Peanut Butter & Co Dark Chocolate Dreams smeared inside it. The heart in the photo says it all. I am more than a little bit in love with this PB (99.6 calories).

I think this Clif Bar has become one of my favourite snack bars of all time! I think it was my last one - I need to get onto www.2pure.co.uk as soon as possible :) (188.5 calories).

I have eaten this salad three times over the last two weeks! I buy an Asda Sharing Salad which I divide into three portions. On the day I will add some red and green Jalapeño peppers, Merchant Gourmet slow-roasted tomatoes (or sundried tomatoes), chicken breast, a type of cheese (Babybel here or sometimes goat's cheese) and drizzle over 2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar (355.2 calories).

I love how these Perry Court Farm apple crisps look so much like real crisps. Definately worth buying again :) Although I bought them from Wholefoods in Kensington and I'm not quite sure where else they are available. Does anybody know please? (68 calories).

I love love love my Alpro desserts! (115 calories).

I wrote up my chilli con carne recipe almost exactly a year ago today! It has changed slightly..

Chilli Con Carne - New & Improved

Serves 6 (good for freezing)

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 onion, chopped finely

500g extra lean mince beef

3 peppers, sliced

1 tsp chilli powder

400g chopped tomatoes, canned

2 tbsps tomato puree

1 beef stock cube, made up to 300ml stock

240g kidney beans, canned

450g mushrooms, chopped

Optional: Approx 40g Total Greek 0% yoghurt to top

Dry fry the mince, chopped onion and crushed garlic until the mince has browned.
Add the sliced peppers with the 1 tsp chilli powder and cook for a further five minutes.
Add the stock, tomato puree and chopped tomatoes, cover and simmer for around 40 minutes.
Add the kidney beans and mushrooms and cook for an extra 10 minutes.
Top with a blob of yoghurt and serve with either brown rice or a sweet potato.

The nutritional bit per serving: -

Calories: 203.5
Carbohydrate: 17.4g
Protein: 27.2g
Fat: 3.4g
Fibre: 4.9g
Portions of vegetables: 3.2

(Total calories for meal above - 345.3).

Vanilla Munchy Seeds (107.6 calories) and a Drink Me Chai Chocolate (98 calories) for snackage in front of the telly before bed :)

Total calories for the day are 1377.2 for those who are interested!

Giveaway Winners!

2011-10-03T13:35:00.000+01:00

I wish I could spend this afternoon writing about my Shine half marathon but I am still exhausted/not feeling 100% so I'll save it for another day. Basically, it was the toughest thing I have ever put my body through but I do not regret it in the slightest :)

Thank you all so very much for the luck, congratulations and most of all the donations! You have all helped to raise a total of £435.00!!

Another post I have been looking forward to writing is this one :) Before I get to the winners, I'd just like to point out that before numbering the entries I went through carefully (for the past half an hour) re-writing the list in order, cancelling doubles , looking at double entries in one post etc so it was 100% fair :) I then used random.org to come up with the numbers.

Apologies to those who haven't won but I will try to host another competition for you guys very soon.

A million thank yous for your donations xx

Winner of Prize 1 is Lara at Princess Goddess Mommy..

Winner of Prize 2 is Sam..

Winner of Prize 3 is Maria at Running Cupcake..

Winner of Prize 4 is Laura at Box, Run, Eat..

Winner of Prize 5 is Laura at A Daisy Chain Dream..

Winner of Prize 6 is Charlotte at The Cheap Road To Health And Happiness..

Please would you all email me at racheledwards6@yahoo.co.uk with your address and full names :) (If you could put which prize number you have won in the title it would be very helpful!) I am just looking into the cheapest way to post the parcels, and also the quickest as the Booja-Booja truffles need to be kept in the fridge for the longest possible time. Please be patient with me for a few days whilst I sort this. If you are able to give me a work address/address in which someone will be home to answer the door to the postman then all the better xx

Two More Sleeps..

2011-09-29T21:20:00.000+01:00

..until I do my half marathon walk for Cancer Research UK! Also, my fundraising giveaway closes at midnight on the 2nd October so make sure you bookmark the page for a last-minute entry if you're awaiting to be paid! http://deliciousandnuts.blogspot.com/2011/09/competition-time-for-amazing-cause.html I am so excited to see who has won :) and I'm super excited to see how the walk goes. Have you ever walked or ran a half marathon? Would you like to?

As I've outlined on my sponsorship page, this charity is extremely important to me. I was in tears whilst writing this..

..sad and happy tears. I remember visiting my mum in hospital whilst she had treatment for breast cancer. My mum has had six children but as I am the youngest, and she was single at the time, she told me it broke her heart to think her five year old daughter may grow-up without her mum, or anyone else to look after her. That breaks my heart.

My brother was only 9 when he had a brain tumour. I hadn't been born yet as he is the eldest child. I look around at children roughly that age and cannot visualise what it must have been like both for him and the family.

My mum's partner went through a very rough patch earlier in the year when he was diagnosed with colon cancer. It just shows that no matter what age, it can come out of the blue and turn lives upside-down.

Thankfully all three members of my family are fully recovered today. A lot of people aren't so lucky. The work that Cancer Research UK does is amazing and so very important to help fund.

My lovely friend who I met through a weight loss website is doing the walk with me on Saturday :) We'll be sure to take lots of photos so I can show you how it went! We also have a Pizza Express/Nandos planned pre-walk which I'm very much looking forward to! I haven't quite sussed what snacks I'm taking to munch on during but I know a Bounce Energy Ball will definately be packed (you can win some of these in my competition!)

Do you know what has been my food highlight of the week? Alpro Soya desserts! Have you tried them? They are beautiful on their own..

..or mixed to make..

Banana Alpro Soft Serve

Serves 2

One pot of Alpro Soya Dessert (caramel, vanilla or dark chocolate)
One banana

Simply blend the two together and free for a couple of hours.

If you like, you could freeze the banana beforehand (I find it easier to chop bananas into small pieces before freezing). If you use a frozen banana then it's not necessary to freeze the finished mix.

There are so many soft serve recipes in blog-land. The variations are endless but I adore this one.

The nutritional bit per serving..

Calories: 102.6
Carbohydrate: 19.1g
Protein: 2.4g
Fat: 1.5g
Fibre: 2.9g
Fruit portion: 0.6

I hope that you have all had a gorgeous sunny day :) The weather is so stunning at the moment! I'm just about to put my feet up with one of these..

Oh, you want one too do you? You can win one of five large boxes or a small truffle box in my competition but you best enter before I gobble them all up!!

Shopping & Kale Chips

2011-09-25T16:26:00.000+01:00

I'd been looking forward to going to the new Westfield Stratford City (Europe's biggest mall) since they opened it a couple of weeks ago..

..and it certainly fulfilled my high expectations! Despite my absolute adoration for shopping, spending hours each week at either Bluewater or Lakeside, I am actually very selective with the items and stores that I really love.

A shop that I'd never heard of before named The Sting [Network Of Brands] really caught my eye yesterday. I fell in love with this jacket - perfect colour, with a hood, last one in my size and on sale for £25..

I love the lining! Can you notice something special about that unicorn?

I also got very excited when I found Forever 21. I'd heard a lot of mention about this store but didn't expect to be running around it like a little child - "that's beeeauuttiifffuull".."ooooh I want this".."no, no I really want this one". I came out with two lovely bracelets..

For lunch we discovered a new favourite place to eat - Tossed. They have a fabulous range of healthy ingredients to enable you to create a perfect meal. I was nearly going to go elsewhere. When we asked whether they had calorie information the man said no. Thank goodness for mobile internet. I went straight to their website which lays out the nutritional content of everything. It is wonderful, I have to show you, a lot of companies could learn from this.

Mixed leaves, chicken breast, oven-roasted tomatoes and brocolli with a balsamic vinegar dressing - 144 calories.

We went back there a couple of hours later for a Teapigs peppermint tea and frozen yoghurt. I had strawberry, chocolate and wild cherry..

Amaaaaziiiing!!

Saturday night I made some kale chips! Why have I never done this before? So easy. All I did was spray some chopped kale with olive oil (Fry Light) and sprinkled with salt..

Preheated the oven to 175C and cooked for between 10 and 15 minutes..

I hope you are all enjoying your weekends! Please note that there is one week left to enter my giveaway! Don't miss out :)

Blogger's Secret Santa: Edited

2011-09-23T13:47:00.001+01:00

I didn't intend to post today. My afternoon was going to be spent browsing through your blogs. Five minutes of looking at Autumnal eats and Christmassy thoughts popped into my head. I have an idea..

What would you think about a Blogger's Secret Santa?
If enough people comment below I could get something organised. Obviously Christmas is still a long way off and there's no point making proper plans until November/December but I'd really like to know what you think.

Blog giveaways always excite me as they are prizes I'd love to try out/love already. How exciting would it be to get a Christmas present from another blogger ♥ And with their blog, there'll be an easy way to find out what they are really into (personally, I think nut butter is always going to be a safe option with you lot!)

Would you be up for it?
Would you like it to be open worldwide? (Bearing in mind, a person who gets a blogger outside of the UK would have to pay more for postage)
What about the limit? £5? £10? More? (Excluding postage)
When would you roughly like me to set it up and message each other secretly with the name of the person you're buying for? (I always like to be prepared in advance..I may want extra ordering time in case I order from iherb or similar).
Or is this a pants idea..or one that has already been done?

Whilst I've got your attention, don't forget to enter my giveaway if you haven't already! Entry closes on the 2nd October at midnight!

This was Minou's last Christmas memory! Bless him. He didn't mind being wrapped up at all..he was just a little confused as to why I was doing it! (Sorry it's a little blurry - camera phone!)

EDIT: After lovely Jemma left a comment below to mention that Laura did Secret Santa last year, I just had a little chat with her as I didn't want to be stepping on any toes! The good news is that Laura is going to organise it again this year!! :) The bad news is that I am a little gutted that I wasn't the first person to come up with the idea - boo!! So make sure that you are following her for when she is ready to sort it out. I'm not sure whether she will open it up worldwide but I'm sure you could message her.

WIAW - My Forth

2011-09-21T12:27:00.000+01:00

A quick reminder about my amazing giveaway - I have my sights on breaking the £300 mark now thanks to you fabulous people. Please help me and possibly win yourself some goodies. All I'm asking for is whatever you can afford. It is open to all of you from around the world - payment is simple! Please just take a look :)

Now for the party! Thank you for hosting another exciting WIAW Jenn!!

Breakfast was a hot healthy breakfast sundae! Alara Dreamy Oats in Alpro Soya Light, topped with sliced banana, melted Peanut Butter & Co Dark Chocolate Dreams and a Go Bananas Bear biscuit (360.4 calories)!

Mid-morning snack of my last Cherry & Almond Ball (52.4 calories).

Lunch was the prettiest salad I have ever eaten. I mixed two together, both reduced down to 80p from Marks & Spencer - the Superfood Bowl and Aromatic Salad with these beautiful edible flowers (151.7 calories).

For my mid-afternoon snack I had an organic Pink Lady apple. My favourite variety by far (55.7 calories).

Dinner was a feast of Autumnal vegetables.

I did say feast!! It wouldn't even fit onto one plate. Yes, this was just for me :) Marinated chicken breast, portabello mushroom topped with Philidelphia Extra Light, garlic, roasted onion, butternut squash and pumpkin! The grains are something I picked up at Wholefoods - Sharpham Park "Speltotto" Pumpkin & Shallot. I really recommend this. It was full of taste and very filling. The packaging suggested topping with a little butter but I used Philidelphia and it worked perfectly (603.4 calories).

I love having a real treat in the evening and often munch on a Graze punnet :) (175 calories).

All of the calories from my food totalled 1398.6 :)

I wish you all a happy Wednesday! I'm looking forward to catching up with all of your food parties later this afternoon!

Win Chocolate Truffles & More

2011-09-20T11:00:00.000+01:00

Like chocolate truffles? Like Booja-Booja? I do :)

I am so excited about these little packages of goodness that are about to come through my door any day now - for you to win!

The Booja-Booja Company (an award-winning Norfolk confectioner) has just re-launched their original truffle range to feature a brand new look, new box sizes and three scrumptious new flavours. I will be giving five boxes away in my competition, along with plenty of other goodies from various companies.

The new Four Corners Collection is now available in shops but for just a small £3.00 minimum donation you could win a box, some other fabulous prizes and most importantly help a very needy cause.

Each box in the Four Corners Collection contains 9 truffles of a single flavour. All Booja-Booja products are organic, dairy-free, wheat and gluten free and suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

For stockist details and more information please visit www.boojabooja.com.

Rachel's Cherry & Almond Balls

2011-09-17T17:40:00.004+01:00

I'm a lover of healthy, raw snacks. My cupboard is literally full of them. I'm always seeking out new brands and flavours in health food shops.. Why haven't I made my own before? Because I'm a greedy cow that thinks I would just eat them all in one sitting! So why not make a small batch that are super sweet with one of my favourite flavour combinations? No reason not to..

Rachel's Cherry & Almond Balls

Makes 7

Ingredients:

40g dried pitted dates
30g dried cherries
20g ground almonds
½tsp vanilla extract
½tsp organic cocoa powder

This recipe is so simple. Even a ~~monkey~~ fiancé could do it (teehee..sorry baby ♥)

1. Place all ingredients into food processor and mix for a few minutes until broken down.

(You want the mixture to look like breadcrumbs - super sticky breadcrumbs..)

2. Roll into equal balls.

3. Store them in mini cupcake cases or wrap individually in cling film.

4. Try not to eat them all at once!

(You can add a dried cherry into the centre to give it an ultra-cherry taste as you bite into it!)

The nutritional bit, per ball:

Calories: 52.4

Carbohydrate: 7.7g

Protein: 0.9g

Fat: 1.7g

Fibre: 0.5g

0.1 portions of fruit

Please do get in touch if you try these out. Please don't get in touch if you feel sick and eat too many - I can't help you (..there should be a service for that..)

The Blogger's Equivalent To Disneyland? WHOLEFOODS!

2011-09-16T15:11:00.006+01:00

I spent yesterday in London as I had an interview for an internship (which I didn't get by the way..still, on with the hunt *paints on positive face*).

First off I headed to Borough Market..

Peckish with no money? Then this is the place to be. There are always samples galore - cheese, bread and dips, cake, biscuits..! If you went around twice I'd say you'd be well fed :) This beauty caught my eye from a gluten free treats stand - it's a white and dark chocolate brownie with fresh raspberries..

I then headed over to Wholefoods at High Street Kensington ♥ I practically skipped inside and couldn't contain my excitement as I snapped away at everything in sight.

I couldn't actually believe how large the store was. The only Wholefoods I've been to is the one in Camden which is fantastic, but on such a smaller scale. Kensington has three floors - two for shopping and the top level is a restaurant.

The fruit and vegetables looked so fresh and delicious. If I was a Londoner, I'd try to shop here for my groceries as often as I could. I'm not sure how the prices compare to supermarkets, but I just loved the sheer quality and variety of produce on offer.

Hello Autumnal display of loveliness..you have inspired me for the weekend..

I think I practically ran over to this section and soon got over my camera shyness. I had to take a photo for you guys. You can make your own nut butters right here and pot them up. Who wants a row of these in their kitchen? Hands up!

And then I hit the snack bar section. This whole snap is showing just how many types they stock. I saw many favourites and had to resist the urge of popping one of each into my basket.

After walking around for well over an hour I sat upstairs with a Super Smoothie. It contained kale, apple, date, lime and ginger. I've seen a lot of bloggers using kale in their smoothies but I've been too scared to try it. After this, I just might pluck up the courage.

So, what's in the bag?! My Twitter has been going crazy with you all asking :)

Apart from the Clif Bars, these are all new to me! (Don't forget you can win some of these Clif bars in my competition!) Look at the "Blowing Raspberries Bear" seriously cute.

Out of interest, how many of you would be interested in a London Wholefoods blogger meet up? I have zero cash at the moment so don't feel like it can be set up just yet but maybe towards the end of the year or beginning of next?

A Couple Of Beauty Reviews & Wholefoods Wish List

2011-09-13T19:39:00.002+01:00

A big thank you and hugs to everyone that has entered my competition so far :) The donations total £233.50. I need to reach that £250.00 mark so please have a look at my post here to see how you can help - and win yourself some amazing prizes at the same time!

A few weeks ago I was contacted by two lovely companies through Twitter. Although I wasn't asked by either of them to write a review, I was so impressed that I thought they deserve a brief mention.

The first one was Village Green Soaps. They sent me a sample of their Bergamot & Patchouli soap (in their basic tester wrapping), which they may be bringing out if they receive positive feedback. I say "sample"..I was pleasantly shocked when they cut it to their regular size :)

As soon as I opened the package, the aroma filled the air. It smells really beautiful.

Village Green Soaps use nothing artificial and I can tell, as after using it my skin feels wonderfully smooth. You can see the mixed herbs in there too, which give added gentle exfoliation.

I have my eye on their Lemongrass, Honey & Oats bar next :) and can see these making lovely side gifts for friends at Christmas.

In the same week I received a little package from Thea skincare..

They are a 100% natural skincare brand who sent me a Rebalance Clarity Foaming Face Cleanser and a Rebalance Clarity Creme Moisturiser.

I am pretty lucky, I have good skin 90% of the time with just the occasional breakout. My main concern are blackheads (ick..). The cleanser claims to unblock pores and after a few days, I have already noticed the results. The thick moisturiser is also keeping my skin hydrated. The dry patches around my nose (from where I've been sniffling with a cold) have healed up and feel smooth again.

In their letter to me, they suggested the possibility of offering beauty prizes for my readers (you :) - you lovely things). I will message them as soon as I finish my post to see whether they can spread the love even further.

I have to be in London on Thursday for an incredible interview ♥ With the afternoon free, what first came into my mind? Yep - Wholefoods! Have you ever been? With the help of my friends on Twitter, I have a huge dream wish list..

Peanut Butter & Co Dark Chocolate Dreams

Clif Bars (I have some of these in my giveaway but my cupboard is empty)

Dark chocolate covered mulberries

Cereals (I'll have a good look at their cereal section)

Spiru-tein protein powders

Booja Booja truffles (Some of these in my giveaway too!!)

Chocolate covered ginger

Raw chocolate Buziballs

Lemon & white chocolate cookies

Perrys Farm apple/pear crisps

..my real bank account will decline all of this but I'll show you what little things I do pick up at the end of the week! What would be on your wish list?

[P.S. Lovely Jemma at Celery And Cupcakes is hosting a big peanut butter giveaway - you must check it out :)]

WIAW - My Third

2011-09-07T12:19:00.001+01:00

Before I start, I just want to add a reminder about my competition below. It's open worldwide :)

So, thanks again to the lovely Jenn for hosting another WIAW! This isn't my Wednesday. They are my eats from a mixture of days :)

40g oats with Alpro soya light milk, 100g stewed apple and cinammon

Sweet potato with cottage cheese, cauliflower, brocolli and peas! This is a pretty standard lunch for me!

Refried Beans with Philidelphia Extra Light and Jalapeño peppers in wholemeal wraps. The link to the basic recipe is here!

Chicken snack and 100g grapes

All of this food totals 1206 calories :) I am always surprised by how much nutritional food you can eat for so little calories. 1206 calories is roughly the equivalent of 5 chocolate digestive biscuits, a bag of crisps and 100g chocolate!

Have a happy Wednesday everyone x

The Prizes!

2011-09-05T15:31:00.007+01:00

This competition wouldn't be if it weren't for the amazing, generous companies that replied back to me with some prize donations. A massive thank you to you all ♥

I didn't just contact anyone I could think of. I carefully thought about the products and companies I love the most. I wanted to share my favourites with you. Please take some time to check them out if you have never heard of them before.

Part of prize 1

This blue neon Power Ball was donated by the website I am continuously logged into - Weight Loss Resources. This is where I count all of my calories, record my stats and speak to fantastic, helpful people in the forums. They also have a shopping section where you can buy this Power Ball that they have kindly donated. I have great respect for this company, the members and the team. If you are wanting to monitor your food/exercise calories or buy something health & fitness related then do check them out.

Part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

We Are Bear products are always in my snack cupboard. They believe in 100% nature and no nonsense! These yo-yos are handy to have in my bag in case my stomach starts growling whilst out and the nibbles make a delicious, healthy morning snack. They are on Twitter (@Follow-the_Bear) and Facebook too so give them a grrowl - they don't bite!

Part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

These Bounce balls from Bounce Snack Foods are delicious and I must thank the lovely Matt for sending me some for my own use to keep me going during the walk!! They make other flavours but this is my personal favourite. They are rich in antioxidants and vitamins and taste gorgeous. They are such a satisfying snack. They keep me going during my workouts! Locate your nearest stockist here.

Clif part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6. Luna part of prizes 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

2Pure kindly provided some tasty Luna and Clif Bars! Clif Bars are a good source of protein and fibre and are ideal to munch on before a long workout. As you'll see from their website, they do other flavours but the Chocolate Chip and Crunchy Peanut Butter are my favourites. Luna bars are "specifically formulated to provide women with the nutrients that are often harder for them to get". They are so filling that I often split the bar into two :) If you need any information then please contact info@2pure.co.uk

Part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

Clipper surprised me with six boxes of their Organic Everyday Tea! The winners can relax with 80 cups of their award winning tea :) (They won a Soil Association Organic Food Award in 2010). I adore mugs of this stuff. Why did I contact Clipper when there are so many other companies out there? Because all of their products are organic and "grown in a way that preserves the environment and will help sustain people, wildlife and the land for the future". That's some goodness in a cup right there :) Check out their range online and in various stores.

Part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6. Prize 6 gets an extra two bars!

I couldn't host a competition without adding some chocolate, right? And not just any chocolate. The wonderful people of Conscious sent me all of these wonderful flavours to giveaway. It's organic, raw and handmade. It is how chocolate should be. "The organic cacao beans we use are fermented at low temperatures and sun-dried, they are never roasted so our bars remain packed full of the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, flavonoids and theobromine that make chocolate so good for you." Yes, healthy chocolate :) I urge you to try a bar!!

Mule Bar part of prize 1 and Nakd raisins part of prizes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6

To bump up the prizes I personally added in a Mule Bar and some new Nakd raisins. The Mule Bar makes for great pre-workout fuel - chocolate date flavour - yum! And these Nakd raisins are just fabulous. They taste like sweets! Healthy sweets ;)

Booja-Booja Truffles part of prizes 1, 2, 3 & 4

Brand new, amazingly tasty Booja-Booja chocolate truffles! They have literally just finished the final touches :) As there are five varieties of their new "Four Corners Collection", one winner of prize 6 will sadly be missing out. Maybe I can add something extra small? You'll see :) I will let you know when they are in the shops! Become a Boojarist and be the first to hear about new products, competitions and other exciting information!

Competition Time For An Amazing Cause!

2011-09-05T15:31:00.006+01:00

It's finally competition time and I am super excited! On the 1st October I will be walking 13.1 miles (half a marathon) through London. The scheduled start time will be at 11:30pm and I should be finished..well, in time for an early breakfast!!

It is called "Shine" and held at night because "light will be used in different ways throughout the event to symbolise bringing hope to the darkness of cancer. The light also illustrates our progress, ambition and how together, we will beat cancer".

I chose breast cancer as the type of cancer I'm specifically raising money for. This charity is extremely important and close to my heart. For all of you entering - big hugs, kisses and thank yous ♥

There are six bundles of delicious goodies to be won. Please see my previous post here for details on the prizes and about the fabulous companies that have helped me out!

Prize 1

Prize 2

Prize 3

Prize 4

Prize 5

Prize 6

How to enter

Mandatory Entry - You must sponsor me via my fundraising page (http://www.sponsormetoshine.org/racheledwards). The minimum amount the site allows you to donate is £2.00. Please give whatever you can afford/feel appropriate. Cancer Research UK does amazing work and needs our help. You can use most payment cards or PayPal. Please do not write anything about my competition in my comment section as I keep my blog separate from other aspects of my life :)

Additional Entry - You will gain an extra entry to the competition if you help me spread the word - Twitter (please add @racheledwards6 to the tweet) or via your own blog (please link to me in your comment below).

Please leave a separate comment below for each entry including your email address. Winners will be picked via random.org.

This competition is open to everyone, not just UK residents!

If you have any problems entering or donating then contact me on Twitter (racheledwards6) or email (racheledwards6@yahoo.co.uk).

Competition will close at midnight on the 2nd October 2011. I have given you a lot of time to enter this as I'm trying to raise as much money as possible :) I will contact you straight away and post the prizes out as soon as possible.

Competition Approaching - Top Secret

2011-09-02T19:04:00.000+01:00

I am hopeless at keeping secrets but I've kept this one ~~completely~~ pretty much under wraps for over a month now! I can't keep quiet any longer. Look..

Delicious prizes for six very lucky winners! Plus some Booja Booja truffles which are yet to come!!

You see, I entered the London Shine Half Marathon Walk which will take place on the 1st October. It's to raise money for Cancer Research UK. My sponsorship page is right here. I need to raise as much money as possible so I contacted some wonderful companies to help me set up a competition on my blog.

I will be posting more details and getting the giveaway up n running next week! The mandatory condition of entry will be to donate via my sponsorship page - any amount you can afford/feel appropriate. There will be an additional entry for spreading the word. I'll be opening up the competition worldwide too as I want to raise ~~£1000000.00~~ ~~£9000.00~~ ~~£600.00~~ ~~£250.00~~ as much as I can!!

Well, you've had more than a sneak peek! You'll come back next week, won't you? :)

Oh I Do Like A Plan

2011-09-01T15:18:00.000+01:00

For the past week or so I have eaten like a little piggy..

..and haven't weighed myself since the 17th August. But that's okay. Line drawn. I now have a plan to keep me on the straight and narrow until Christmas (it will be here before we know it..!)

Weigh, measure and take progress photos of myself on the 17th of each month, and not between
Stick to a 2lb or 1½lb weekly loss rate on WLR
Use my calories for nutritious food and lay off the "diet" stuff that creeps into my day more and more
Exercise three times per week - minumum

We are now in September. It's starting to get chilly. My one pair of jeans are pretty snug and the short, stretchy, forgiving leggings are due to start retirement soon. I have a humongous pile of gorgeous wintery clothes with tags on, which I need to fit into this year.

Four monthly weigh-ins will bring me to a week before Christmas.

I think I need to stop obsessing over the scales. I tend to mess up the day before weigh-in through anxiety and this may stop it. If I stick to the above, I know I will be as close to goal as my body will allow in December.

WIAW - My Second

2011-08-17T12:04:00.000+01:00

Peas & Crayons is now one year old! Happy "bloggiversary" Jenn :)

This wasn't my Wednesday (today). I try not to eat that quick :)..here are a day of eats..

30g oats, 100ml skimmed milk, some water, 15g whey protein, a blueberry Yoyo and 20g dried cranberries

[..with a cup of tea which I forgot to photograph]

Cauliflower and brocolli in a sauce of cornflour, skimmed milk, Philidelphia light and goat's cheese! With a sweet potato.

Spaghetti bolognese with gluten free organic pasta (recipe below)

A giant Earl Grey and a mini cake!! My Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffin was dug out of the freezer :) Delicious!

Can you believe that all of that totals 1480 calories? No? Nor can I :)

Rachel's Tasty Bolognese

Serves 4

4 garlic cloves, crushed

1 onion, finely chopped

1 red chilli, finely chopped

500g extra lean beef mince

3 mixed peppers, sliced

400g can of chopped tomatoes

250g mushrooms

40g reduced sugar and salt tomato ketchup

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 beef stock cube

100g slow roasted tomatoes

A handful of basil leaves

In a non-stick pan, fry the garlic, onion and chilli for a few minutes.
Add mince and peppers. Cook until the mince turns brown.
Add the rest of the ingredients (tomatoes, mushrooms, ketchup, Worcester sauce, stock cube, slow roasted tomatoes and basil).
Stir every now and then and cook for roughly ten minutes.
Add salt and pepper. Finish off with a few basil leaves on the top :)

The nutritional bit per serving..

Calories: 258.1
Carbohydrate: 19.8g
Protein: 35.7g
Fat: 4.4g
Fibre: 3.3g
3.8 portions of vegetables!

The Dog's Doodahs

2011-08-15T14:08:00.001+01:00

Last week I squeeled with excitement as I opened a package containing a personalised card and mug..

Alex from The Dog's Doodahs kindly sent them to me! I thought fellow bloggers would appreciate the humour as much as I did (bless, the boy tried to show his equal excitement but I don't think he was 100% sure how to react when I couldn't stop giggling for ten minutes).

So after a good look around the website, I will definately be ordering from it for my next friend's birthday. I love personalised cards. I think they show just that little extra bit of thought for the person.

I'm off out now for a spot of sunshine. Tomorrow shall be dedicated to house cleaning and blog reading x

Personal Catch-up

2011-08-11T12:23:00.003+01:00

How is everyone? It's been a crazy few days with the riots. I was glued to the news and Twitter. There was a bit of disorder in the next town from me on Tuesday night with things being set on fire. Nothing too serious though, and quickly resolved by the Police.

Thank you for all of the well wishes! I spent a good few days in bed and then was on the mend. All I'm left with now is a cough :) I'm glad I was better for last Friday as I had a family wedding to attend!

I was trying to cheer up my fiancé's little boy with spoon-antics. I then turned around and everyone else on the table was at it! I have a very amusing shot of them all but I'm a bit funny about publishing photos of other people on my blog who aren't aware..hence why I'm showing you these of me! And do you like my hair? I had a fringe cut last week :) I haven't had one since I was this small..

In weight related news, I lost 0.9lbs this week. This is going too slow for my liking but at least I'm back in the 12s again. If you want to look at my never ending weight progress then please check out this page which I'm updating all of the time.

[P.S. For that person that found me under the search words "Rachel Edwards porn"..ooh I bet you were disappointed. Hopefully you came away with a good carrot cake recipe though!!]

Ahhhhh..

2011-07-31T20:15:00.000+01:00

..choo!!

It's like snot central here! I've been hibernating all weekend trying to get rid of this cold/bug/bogey monster. I have been doing a very good job sleeping it away as I feel the best I have for days. Hopefully tomorrow I can get out in the daylight. I heard that the sun has had his hat on for everyone? :)

I'm basically just checking in with this post. I have been lying in bed doing a lot of blog reading but sorry for not commenting - it's difficult on my phone!

The mother-in-law to be has been extremely sweet..

..she bought me a pretty bow broach yesterday as she was sorry to hear I was a bit poorly. Today she sent around some magazines and two lemons with strict orders of "just rest and hot lemon and you'll soon be as good as new". Does anyone else have the loveliest of in-laws? I am so lucky. My fiancé and his family are wonderful. My other half's son is down to stay at the in-laws' house for a week (he stays there rather than here as there's more room) and it sucks not to be spending family time together. He made me the cutest card today..

He is 9 next week :) ~~Oh and Team Flame is top secret. I have probably said too much already. Ignore this.~~

I hope everyone has had a lovely weekend ❤

Banana, Honey & Spelt Muffins (Optional Blueberries)

2011-07-28T20:49:00.001+01:00

I have been baking cake - hurrah!!

I was a little reluctant to post the recipe up. I couldn't find a perfect recipe online with every ingredient I wanted to use so I severely adapted what I found, mixed a few recipes together and then changed it some more.

I am not a baker. I'm not one of those people who can say "I think it needs a little more of this next time". However this is what I made and I am very proud of them :) They are absolutely delicious :) Perhaps they ought to be a little fuller if anything.

Rachel's Banana, Honey & Spelt Muffins

260g spelt wholemeal flour
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon powder
1 tsp salt
75g coconut butter
300g honey
4 eggs
Approximately 4 1/2 bananas (388g)
95ml hot water
75g applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
(Optional: 280g blueberries)

(If you want the blueberries then now is the time to fold them into the mixture).

The mixture made around 27 muffins but as I did different sizes it is hard to tell for sure.

The calories have also been a bit tricky to work out too I'm afraid. 138 calories per muffin is a rough but fair guess. It's been harder than normal to add this into my database as a I only added blueberries to half of the mixture as an afterthought and a lot of sampling took place (whoooooops!)

I will definately be making these again and I'll be sure to work out the nutritional information more efficiently!

Ms J Michaels - You Crazy, Beautiful..[Rhymes With Witch]!

2011-07-23T21:31:00.001+01:00

Lady, you are a body inspiration, extremely motivating and stunning but over the last half an hour I called you every bad name under the sun.

I just completed Day One of Level One 30 Day Shred. I am so amazed I followed it through to the end. About 15 - 20 minutes in I wanted to switch Jillian off but I continued to give it my all. I alternated between my 1.13kg and 2.27kg weights.

I am so into this exercise thing at the moment I may start a new page for it. I'm getting quite a buzz and think I can endure using weights whilst they are mixed in with cardio. I have been a cardio queen of late but I know in order to really shape up I'm going to have to pick up the dumbbells from time to time! Which do you prefer - cardio or weights? And which do you do on a weekly basis?

A few wonderful Bloggers have competitions running and I thought today's post is a good chance to link them..

Celery And Cupcakes is giving away some Lusciously Raw snacks and Munchy seeds.

Eating Like A Horse has got some very tasty treats up for grabs.

Every Day's A Picnic is giving away some of my favourite snacks bars.

I'm hoping to have news of a competition very soon - stayed tuned.

Finally, I want to give all of my Bloglets a massive squeezy hug. The news has been very sad of late, as I'm sure you're all aware, and I feel the need to give everyone a big cuddle and kiss as you never know what the future holds ♥

WIAW - My First

2011-07-21T10:35:00.001+01:00

Smoothie - soya milk, 1/2 banana, blueberries and vanilla whey protein

Dried dates

Cream of mushroom soup with 1/2 slice soya and linseed bread

Earl Grey tea and a Coco Loco Nakd bar

Granny Smith apple and a snack from Graze (The Firecracker)

Chickpea curry with a sweet potato

Chocolate chai tea latte with a fudge daddy

Thank you Peas And Crayons :) I very much liked photographing my food all day! It's interesting to see it in pictures one after another. It's also good to see that for 1285 calories you can eat all of that yummy food!!

You Are Too Old To Eat That

2011-07-18T10:07:00.000+01:00

I am 25. Twenty years too old to comsume a Babymoo frozen yoghurt apparently (the clue may have been in the name and description) but that is what I wanted..

..so that is what I made sure I got! The boy ordered and as they ran out of banana for the topping he had to ask me for my second choice. This is when the sales assistant clearly spotted I wasn't in a high chair and dribbling (half true). We got off with a little tutted warning.

I don't know how many mls are in their "small" but it was too big for me - I only wanted a little treat.

A good friend of mine mentioned to me that she maintained her weight on holiday to America by eating the same as everyone else, only in kid's sizes. Okay, so you could order an adult portion and not eat it all, but could you? Really? The temptation is still looking at you and I for one hate waste.

When things arrive on a plate or pre-packaged it feels right just to eat it all, no?

When out with a friend the other week we both fancied something sweet for breakfast and shared a banana cake from Pret (Pret actually do half sandwiches - brilliant). The boy and me were peckish yesterday late-afternoon and as the sandwiches were reduced in Boots we had half each. Does it sound normal to go by the pre-packaged standards regardless of how hungry your body actually is? Or does this all sound blatantly obvious to you?

I have yet to go into a restaurant environment to order a child's meal through fear but would they rather me do that than not eat at all? Is "if I don't eat a kid's meal I will get fat" a good enough excuse? (Plus, you get a toy right?!)

Thoughts? x

Cake People! Also A Free Sample Of Pancakes/Cake Bread!

2011-07-15T18:50:00.001+01:00

I made some cake people!! Aren't they sweet?

I used the same recipe as the other day which is right here and went crazy with the purple glitter instead. I also made them far more interesting as you can see..

Naughty cake lady!

I must mention a lovely lady - Taki Love. She is just starting her fitness/nutrition business and will soon be online at ww.re-createyourself.co.uk. At the moment she's holding a few showcases with her high protein foods. She was kind enough to send me some protein pancakes (which I ate with Greek yoghurt mixed with chocolate whey protein and banana) and some cake bread..

The pancakes are only 100 calories each and the cake bread is 140. They are both delicious and really filling :)

If you would like a free sample then please drop me an email at racheledwards6@yahoo.co.uk with your details and I will pass them on. You can also find her on Facebook, just mention that you have seen my blog.

Bloom Tea

2011-07-15T15:47:00.000+01:00

A little while ago I entered Running Cupcake's fabulous competition to win some Bloom Tea - and I got lucky!

I have been using their "5-Step Tea Treatment Plan" which supports your body's changing needs throughout the day.

The Green Tea, White Tea and Rooibos Tea have been awarded gold stars by the Great Taste Awards 2011. I'm wondering why the Earl Grey didn't win - it was my favourite ♥

Writing a review wasn't a condition of my winning these teas but the lovely folk at Bloom Tea have kept in touch so I thought it rude not to.

26 Wonderful Eating Days..And Then..

2011-07-14T18:57:00.009+01:00

.
..my BED pops up out of the blue. Within half an hour I consumed 1576 calories in the morning. Five large Snack-A-Jacks, a normal sized bowl of porridge with whey protein and about 40g of almond butter (!!), three Weetabix with heaps of sugar, a slice of white toast with Philidelphia Extra Light (ha!), two of my healthy brownies and a stupid, horrible tasting Wagon Wheel (without the jam..the jam used to be their only saving grace).

Why? I don't know. What did I do? I slept it off for a couple of hours as I felt absolutely rubbish. Then? I woke up and did an hour and a half of Zumba/Dance Central on my Kinect and burnt off 646 of those calories to leave me with enough for some din dins later. Thankfully, with those extra exercise calories and a deficit over the last few days I evened the week out and all was right again in the world :) What I learnt? Messing up is okay but you must accept it straight away and try to turn it around. Do not leave it too late.

Bearing in my mind I knew all of my figures added up, by Wednesday I was a little disappointed not to see a loss on the scales but as it's my time of the month I accepted that I'll just have to wait an extra week to see how much my hard work paid off. Besides, staying the same is much nicer than a gain.

Sparkly, Chocolatey, Gooey Cakeiness

2011-07-08T09:55:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I made CCK's Fudge Daddies and man, are they good!!

I made everything according to Katie's recipe and then realised that I would need a whole lot more cake than that so doubled everything! I opted to use agave nectar but I think I'll experiment with a different sweetener next time.

I used American cups and then weighed out the quantities on the scales to get the grams. It makes it a whole lot easier for next time, and for totting up my calories on WLR.

CCK's Fudge Daddies

(Makes 20 small squares approximately 30g each)

•40g cocoa powder

•100g wholegrain spelt flour

•½ tsp baking powder

•½ tsp salt

•85g tofu, firm silken style

•110g apple sauce (homemade)

•40g coconut butter

•50ml unsweetened soya milk

•2 Tsps/8.4g vanilla extract
•200g agave nectar

Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl..

Combine wet ingredients in a blender, until smooth..

Pour wet over dry and stir..

Pour into a 4×6 tray (or double the recipe and use an 8×8 tray)..

I then cooked them at 160C for approximately 22 minutes. You can vary your cooking time depending how much goo you want to have! I posted five lots of these babies to friends so I needed to make sure that they made it on their long journies!! Katie also says that they taste ten times sweeter about an hour after they come out of the oven although I didn't check.

The smell of freshly baked cake is amazing..

I then went crazy with some edible glitter!! It's my new best friend..

..and some icing stars which I presume are also calorie-free as they are just so beautiful..

They cut up really nicely..and the taste? Oh my! You have to make these!! Thank you Katie ♥

The approximate nutritional bit per 30g..

Calories (kcal) 83.1

Protein: 1.7g
Carbohydrate: 12.9g
Sugars: 8.6g
Fat: 2.7g
Saturates: 1.7g
Fibre: 0.6g
Portions of fruit: 0.1

Did You Want A Weight Progress Post?

2011-06-30T15:34:00.003+01:00

Because I think I owe you one after hiding from the scales on and off for the last few months!!

I lost 3.3lbs this week! The week before I lost 5.1lbs. Why so much? Because the week before that I had gained 10.2lbs!! Booooo :( I'm weighing in at 13st 3.2lbs at present. I need to say goodbye to the 13s forever. Um, I know I said goodbye to them quite a while back, but poop happens.

I just ate my lovely Waitrose lunch from their new "Love Life" ranges which I was pretty impressed with..

..although the olives in the lettuce wrap I was not! I tried out the chicken lettuce wrap at the weekend and think I prefer that one. A word of caution: Do not eat the lettuce wrap in public unless you want to look pretty special by the end of it. Yes, it went everywhere. It is much better wrapped than the above photo because I wanted to show you how it looked inside (and pick out the nasty olives) but still..not a good look eating one of these on a date or something.

I'm going to be baking in the kitchen soon so stay tuned. I'm just awaiting a few bits from Ebay x

[P.S. Can't stop giggling at my ~~boyfriend~~ fiancé singing away in the kitchen "let's dance, let's shout, shake your body down to the ground" teehee]

Yummy Blondies - Part Of Your Five A Day

2011-06-28T14:42:00.002+01:00

The other day I made some Chocolate-Chip Blondies which are egg and flourless and instead include chickpeas! Fab, no? :) Thank you Chocolate Covered Katie for the recipe and thank you Porridge & Parsnips for mentioning it in your Tweet, otherwise I may not have spotted it. I am using Twitter more now by the way so please add me - racheledwards6. I will still always be more of a Facebook girl though!

The blondies came out lovely and only about 100 calories per little square. I'm now wondering why they look like brownies. Checking back at Katie's blog, hers are white..strange that.

I met up with a friend and her beautiful daughter last week, so brought some along with me..

..and as you can see, they went down very well..

..you know if a kid doesn't enjoy something! These were devoured in record speed time :)

A Happy Tum

2011-06-20T19:52:00.002+01:00

Wow..my belly is stuffed! I just ate my favourite meal - a homemade chicken tikka masala :) and finished it off with some Pod Bites..

I thoroughly recommend these babies if you've never tried them before..

They are edamame beans covered in chocolate/yoghurt. Per 30g they are 144/143 calories but I normally only pick at them a few at a time which does the trick of obeying my sweet tooth. Sadly, I have now ran out so will be looking out for some more when I have the money.

There's only enough room in my belly for my nightly cup of tea. Speaking of tea (what a cringe-worthy awful link)..the lovely Maria at Running Cupcake is holding a competition to win some Bloom Tea on her blog here.

I'm off to put the kettle on, who wants what? x

My Top Ten Tips & Some Yoghurty Goodness

2011-06-16T13:18:00.002+01:00

So, I was contacted by Total Greek Yoghurt the other day which was a nice surprise :) I only blog about products I am genuinely interested in and as I regulary eat Total yoghurt, I was intrigued as to what they had to say.

They have a new Fit4Summer webpage which shows a few exercise videos and helpful health/nutrition tips.

It got me thinking about my personal top ten tips for you..

Always be 100% honest with yourself in every aspect.
Don't deny yourself food you love, you will only crave it more.
A positive attitude works wonders.
Laugh and smile often.
Regular exercise is not only good for the body, it is good for the soul and is an excellent de-stresser.
Find a form of exercise that you like. Forcing yourself to do something you hate will not only make you miserable - it is pointless.
When it comes to calorie counting - plan, plan, plan!
Make the most of the summer weather and get active in the sunshine.
Natural food was put on this planet for a reason, eat plenty and withstrain a little on the processed man-made ingredients.
Most importantly - do what works for you!

What are your top tips? Total Yoghurt asked me to tag three bloggers to share their tips with others, and the company, so I'm tagging Lara, Laura and Lucy. But the more tips the better should anyone wish to join in!

There's also a competition page here which is open to the public where you could win a month's supply of Total Greek Yoghurt.

[Big miserable P.S..I weighed yesterday and I'm almost back to where I was last year - not cool!!]

Swiss Cheese, Mountains & A Proposal

2011-06-14T13:28:00.002+01:00

Apologies for the big gap in postings. I have been on holiday to Switzerland, with my boyfriend, to see my mum and her fella. I hadn't seen my mum in over a year so it was absolutely lovely..

I have never eaten so much bread and cheese in my life..

Was it worth it? YES! But ask me that again on Wednesday morning when I get on the scales and back to the world of healthy eating and I'm sure I'll give you a different answer!

Switzerland is a stunning country and I have hundreds of photos. The temptation of bombarding you with them all here has been hard to resist but here is a beautiful shot with the boyfriend..

..and one with the fiance..

He proposed!! :) And it was about 30 seconds before this shot was taken ♥

Cod Meets Bacon - Recipe

2011-05-24T15:14:00.003+01:00

I promised you an ultra-delicious recipe, right? Here it is..

Roasted Cod With Bacon & Petit Pois

Serves 2

320 new potatoes
70g shallots
A handful of fresh mint
A handful of fresh parsley
100g iceburg lettuce
120g lean bacon
100g peas
1 chicken Oxo stock cube made up to 80ml (more if you like it saucy)
2 cod fillets (210g total)
50g Philadelphia light, with chives

Preheat oven to 200C/400F/gas 6. Simmer potatoes until tender. While they cook, finely dice the shallot, chop the mint and parsley and shred the lettuce.
Sweat shallots in a saucepan with half of the Philadelphia until soft. Add bacon and cook for a further 2 minutes. Then add peas and chicken stock and bring to boil. Check the seasoning. Keep warm.
Cook fish by heating a frying pan with a dash of oil until very hot. Season fish and cook flesh-side down, until golden brown.
Transfer fish to oven for a further 3-4 minutes until cooked through. Meanwhile, add herbs and shredded lettuce to sauce and whisk in remaining Philadelphia.
Place potatoes in a bowl and arrange fish on top. Pour over sauce and decoarate with wedges of lemon if desired.

The nutritional bit per portion..
Calories: 396.7

Carbohydrate: 38.8g

Protein: 39.0 g

Fat: 9.9g

Fibre: 6.2g

Fruit & Veg: 1.7

(This was a recipe by Chef Andre Dupin found in Now Magazine. I adapted a lot of portions sizes and swapped the butter for Philadelphia).

Stuffage For Sale :)

2011-05-22T18:09:00.002+01:00

I have some bits and bobs on Ebay here http://shop.ebay.co.uk/racheledwards6/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p3686 which I'm desperate to sell to make a bit of cash before the holiday. I thought "why not use my blog to attract a few others" so here it is, the most undelicious post ever :) but I promise to post an amazing, ultra delicious recipe for you folks this week.

Also, not on Ebay (because they don't allow people to sell slightly used make-up) I have the following which I can give further details/photos of..

Estee Lauder eyeshadow set - 15 lovely colours. I have used one quite a bit but the others not much/at all.

No7 set - 4 eyeshadows, 2 lipglosses, 1 highlighter, 1 blusher and a mini brush. Again, mainly one colour touched.

Clinique brush-on cream liner in 03 smoke grey. Quite dipped into but well over 3/4 left.

Lancome Paris Juicy Tube in Caramel Gospel. Used a couple of times. Smells gorgeous!

Benefit Her Glossiness lipgloss. Used a couple of times.

Benefit Eye Bright pencil. Sharpened once.

Estee Lauder lipstick in Bois De Rose 118. Used more than other things but there's so much left.

L'Oreal Duo bronzer - Brunette. Barely touched

Just throw a price my way for any not on Ebay, and with a bit of cake, we'll haggle. I don't want too much. I just want them to be loved.

Email: racheledwards6@yahoo.co.uk or comment x x

I Quit The Gym!

2011-05-19T20:46:00.002+01:00

I said goodbye to beloved Gym a few days ago. I was in too much pain with my joints because of my hypermobility syndrome. I found ways around my foot pain but when my knees started hurting also, I knew I had to look after my body differently.

As recommended to me, many a time, I am going to focus on pilates. I tried out a few classes at the gym but it's really not worth £30 a month for that and a little swimming so with my membership cut it's time to get back to the DVDs.

I bought this Core Fusion Pilates Plus DVD..

..and tried it out for the first time today. As it's broken down into 10 minute sessions I thought an initial 20 this morning would be easy peasy. I was wrong. Pilates hurts. In the classes I felt the pain but I pushed myself through the moves this morning, just the easy ones mind. I will keep you updated on my progress as I couldn't hold the plank for more than a few seconds. It would be nice to write here that I'm doing the advanced techniques in a couple of months.

I followed the pilates with some X Box Kinect Zumba..

..and after 20 minutes I was in need of a rest. I need to be hard on myself and do no more than half an hour exercise on my feet per day (apart from walking) to look after my joints.