bagladee - reviews

Organic Celery and Onion soup (well almost)

2010-06-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

OK so I'm not going to make out that I 'created' or 'invented' this soup.....no. I found it at this really cool website here, a non pretentious place where you can find lots of fab recipes. For me who is not all that clued up in the kitchen its a great way of trying something new.

Celery and Onion Soup

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs (700g) Celery

1 Onion (large)

1 1/2 pint (900ml) water or vegetable stock

Salt and pepper

1 oz (28g) Butter

1 oz (28g) Flour

1/2 pint (300ml) Milk

Method:

1. Scrub the celery and cut into 3" (7.5cm) lengths

2. Peel and slice your onion

3. Put the celery and onion in a pan with the water/vegetable stock and seasoning

4. Bring to the boil and then simmer until the vegetables are tender

5. Rub through a sieve or put through a blender to make a puree

6. Melt the butter in a pan and add the flour, blend into a paste and cook for 1 minute without it colouring

7. Gradually pour in the milk, stirring all the time and simmer for a few minutes to cook

8. Pour in the puree, stir well and reheat without boiling.

9. Serve hot with some crusty bread :D yum

It really is that simple, I chilled mine and reheated it for lunch today. Kept in a fridge its good for a couple of days, or even better freeze for later on in the week.

Interflora Hampers

2009-11-30T11:16:00.000-08:00

Did you know that Interflora do hampers? They have a huge selection ranging from as little as £20 all the way up to the more extravagant hampers. The one that I've tried and tested below is the Christmas Festivities Hamper which is priced at £70.

A beautiful wicker basket, brimming with lots of Christmas goodies....inside it contains:

Bottle of Red & White wine, box of selected teas, choc chunk shortbread biscuits, farm house fruit cake, mince pies, strawberry jam, clotted cream biscuits, box of dark and milk chocolates, sticky onion chutney, cranberry sauce, Christmas pudding, luxury fruit and nut mix, clotted cream fudge and Duchy organic rosemary & thyme Cheddar cheese nibbles.

All of the items are very good quality, the basket alone makes it worth the price and such a lovely present to give a friend or family member. I like the idea of a Hamper for me it has all the little luxuries that you buy at Christmas time all wrapped up just for me.

The website has lots of gift ideas including beautiful bouquets of Christmas flowers, plants and drinks. I'm off to see what I can buy the parents and in-laws.

Happy Shopping!! :D

....and the winner is!!

2009-09-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

Awful screen shot I know, but here you go.......

and the
is

Super Lucky

who posted a very tasty recipe for Garlic mushrooms with sherry :D

I've just spotted a tasty hamper giveaway on Emma's Bagladee Review website!
To enter, I need to concoct a recipe using Kerrymaid garlic butter and post it here on my blog - I've adapted one of my favourite Spanish tapas dishes for this! Now I feel hungry, and nothing to eat in the house except Doritos and McVities biscuits... argh!

Garlic Mushrooms with Sherry:
Take 400g of mixed mushrooms (you can use button and chestnut, or try some exciting wild ones like oyster & chanterelles) and chop roughly. Heat two 20g portions of Kerrymaid garlic butter in a pan and add one small chopped onion. Cook gently for about 10 minutes, then turn up the heat and add the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes until soft, then add 150ml sherry (fino or amontillado - not Harvey's Bristol Cream!) and a pinch of nutmeg. Finally, stir in a handful of chopped flat leaf parsley and season to taste.

Yum!

Congratulations SuperLucky, please contact me at :: emma@bagladee.com so that we can arrange delivery of your lovely hamper.

A big thank you to all who took part, keep those eyes peeled more giveaways to come very soon.

GIVE AWAY - KERRYMAID

2009-09-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first 'bagladee - reviews' give away....if its a success then it'll be the first of many more to come. There's a fantastic prize up for grabs!!

And here it is!! A gorgeous hamper full of goodies courtesy of Kerrymaid. Inside the hamper:

Kerrymaid Garlic Butter, Cabernet Sauvignon 750ml, Black Pepper Irish Cheddar Cheese Truckle, Medium Mature Irish Cheddar Cheese Truckle, Traditional Irish Oat biscuits, Rich Fruity Chutney with Irish Stout, Cucumber Relish, Belgian Chocolate Enrobed Mixed Berries, All Butter Irish Shortbread & Homemade Irish Fudge.

(contents of the hamper are subject to availability)

I was nearly drooling just typing that ;D now who wouldn't want to win this? You do? What do you need to do to be in the running to get your hands on it?

Well, Kerrymaid have launched a garlic butter product and they are looking for recipes that include their garlic butter if you check out the website here they have one example.

So all you need to do is:

1. write a post on your blog of a recipe that includes Kerrymaid Garlic Butter

2. make sure you include the words "garlic butter" which has a link to http://www.garlicbutter.co.uk/

3. pop back here and post your link to your blog post

4. don't forget to include contact details so we can contact the winner

Winner will be chosen using http://www.random.org/, the give away will close Wednesday 23rd September and the winner will be announced Thursday 24th September. Give away only open to UK residents (sorry).

So get your skates on and get posting (don't forget the garlic butter link, that's the important bit).

COMING SOON!! GIVEAWAY!!

2009-09-03T01:27:00.000-07:00

My first giveaway on Bagladee - Reviews is coming very soon!! I have a basket full of goodies to give away.....yes it is you who will be trying them this time not me.....

So dont forget to pop back and enter!!

Potted Cornish Crab

2009-09-01T06:23:00.000-07:00

Another treat from Abel and Cole......Potted Cornish Crab.

Unfortunately because I was sooooo hungry and my tummy was rumbling I failed to take a photo of the prepared meal SORRY :( But I can assure you it was totally delicious!!! Crusty loaf cut into slices and sparsely buttered, tasty slightly seasoned crab sandwiched between and a light side salad with dressing. Such a simple meal to prepare and very filling. I've had crab before but this was definitely hands down way better. And the best bit is that the crab is sustainably sourced and caught by Cornish fishermen, which is then cooked in small batches and then handpicked. Gorgeous!!!

Fish cake, mash and peas for two :D

2009-08-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

My next treat from Abel & Cole to road test are these organic Orkney Salmon fish cakes. Normally when we buy fish cakes they are a bit on the small side and would have to buy two packs so that we could have two each....these however were monster fish cakes. Just ever so slightly small than a saucer.

A perfect size for one each....

Really simple to cook - either wack under the grill until both sides are browned and cooked throughout or pop in the oven for approx 25-30 minutes. We grilled these pair and had them with mashed potato, petite pois and a generous dollop of tarter sauce :D

They were so yummy, tasty, tasty, tasty! The packet said that they might contain bones, but I think they just put that as a precaution because there was nothing other than fresh, meaty salmon with parsley.

A first for me (as I usually clean ever last morsel from my plate - I like food) they were a little on the large side for me to finish the while cake but Chris didn't grumble, he whipped it off my plate and scoffed the lot.

We were both impressed with the size and the quality of the salmon used and cant wait to try the Thai fish cakes!! :)

Abel & Cole really do source the best produce, we are very happy tasters.......go on why don't you give them a try?

Abel & Cole - Do meat too!! Part 2

2009-08-15T13:59:00.000-07:00

For all you foodies out there, do you remember this??? If not check out this post, yesterday I cooked Sunday lunch, not a regular activity for me as we normally go to Chris's parents or go out. But since we had this lovely rolled joint of pork I thought I'd give it a go. I say this because I have NEVER cooked a joint of meat EVER!! I know disgraceful isn't it, 29 years old and never cooked a joint of meat.....Ridiculous!!

So after a phone call to my Mam the night before to get some cooking tips.....Pre-heat oven, put small amount of oil in roasting tin, put in joint and cover with tin foil cook for 1hour, uncover and cook for a further 30 mins to allow crackling to go nice and crispy.

Roast some potatoes (Abel&Cole), parsnips (yes the frozen ones again :/), boil broccoli, green cale (Abel&Cole and very yummy!!) and carrots (Abel&Cole, so tasty) and serve up with a gravy boat and apple sauce.

Chris's description of the Sunday lunch was "EXCELLENT!" again he is a lover of pork and me......again was not really a fan. I really cant believe it but again I've been converted. Honestly I thought that it was quite expensive for a joint of pork but have since been reassured by at least half a dozen people that this is a really good price for this size of a joint. And I have to say again as I did with the lamb the quality of the meat was superb. Both of our plates were completely clear.......so that must be a good sign that the meat was definitely worth it.

I have promised Chris that once a month we will stay in and have Sunday lunch, and for someone who was not keen on Lamb or Pork, I cant wait to try the other products Abel & Cole have to offer. Who have thought I would have said but I just did!! Thanks Victoria and Abel & Cole.....YEY FOR ORGANIC MEAT!!!!!!!

Abel & Cole - Do meat too!!

2009-08-15T13:49:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago I wrote a review on some organic fruit and veg that I received from Abel & Cole to try. Well this is a review on some of their organic meat products.......

Again I awoke on Friday morning to discover this parcel on our back door step, it was neatly wrapped up in RE-USABLE ice packets inside a Styrofoam box. (These are to be returned to be re-used....how clever) Inside the box there were: A rolled joint of pork and some lamb cutlets.

Just look at the joint of pork, sorry if there are any vegetarians reading this :/ I have to be honest from the start I have never really been a lover of pork or lamb so this was a really good test for me, Chris LOVES lamb and pork and whines at every given moment that I never buy him any so were getting a review from both sides.

I loved the fact that they give a little info of where your meat has come from and how well the animals are treated (yes I still feel guilty that they were little lambs and piggies happily jumping/trotting around a field) anyway I am digressing....you know its going to be good if its been treated right, right?

OK so for this post I'm going to tell you all about the Lamb Cutlets (this is because we've eaten these, pretty essential for reviewing). I am noooooo Delia or Nigella, so I looked on the Internet for a simple recipe and then kinda winged it with the ingredients I had.

So:
4 lamb cutlets
Potatoes (organic)
Parsnips (not organic sorry A&C we've eaten all the last veg and ate what other stuff we had left)
Broccoli (again not organic, again sorry!)
French mustard
Garlic
Rosemary

Pealed and chops the potatoes (small enough for good little roasties), now I'm not going to lie to you, this is a review and has to be honest, the parsnips were a well know frozen variety :( sorry I did say I'm no Delia/Nigella, chopped the big trunk off the broccoli and broke into nice little trees.

I took the lamb cutlets and a knife and covered the front and back of the cutlets with the french mustard, left them to rest a little while. I crushed some garlic, picked some rosemary from my garden (no, really I did!) and put those into a roasting tin with plenty of Olive oil and put in the oven to heat up. Once hot put in the potatoes, then added the parsnips a quarter the way through. Next I cooked the lamb cutlets for approx 20 minutes, cooking the broccoli for 7 mins towards the end..........and this was the result.

For the meat lover in the house, Chris was in his element he loved them and me who cant remember the last time she had lamb loved them too. The meat was so soft and succulent, I definitely don't remember lamb being this good and Chris said it was one of the best lamb he'd had. They were so tasty, I really cant stress enough how tender the meat was it was almost melt in the mouth!

We both want to say a huge thank you to Victoria and Abel & Cole, for firstly Chris being ALLOWED to have lamb again and for me for being reintroduced to lamb and loving it. We will be having lamb again and I will be buying it from Abel & Cole, the quality of meat compared to my normal supermarket is superb and I would definitely recommend it. If you're going to eat meat, then it has to be good meat, well that's my motto.

Abel & Cole

2009-08-15T13:23:00.000-07:00

A little while back I read a review on a fellow bloggers blog about an organic produce company called Abel & Cole. I'd never heard of them before and didn't even know you could buy fruit and veg over the Internet. I left a comment and then followed the link to their website, I was amazed that they deliver right to your door by a designated delivery driver (not a courier) and that they had such a huge selection to choose from. I was over the moon when I was contacted about a week or so later asking if I would like to try some of their produce in return for a review on my blog (so here it is). Friday morning last week I found this box on my back doorstep, which was in the designated place for leaving the box if we weren't in. I thought it was very sweet of our delivery man to have left it rather than waking us up as it was early (so thoughtful!)

And WOW!!! what a box!!!

Inside there were: Potatoes Carrots Spring onions Cabbage Lettuce Cucumber Broad beans Apples Banana's Mango

I couldn't believe that I had received this fantastic box of goodies, I love fresh fruit and veg. Did you spot the soil on the spring onions!! Now that's fresh!! Already I was planning what I was going to make. I halved the carrots and broad beans and together with the cabbage sent them to Chris's Mam (as we were going round for lunch on the Sunday I thought she could use them) Whilst doing this I had already opened one of the banana's and was munching my way through it :D

In the past people have told me that organic produce tastes better than the normal stuff you get from the supermarket (and I have tried the odd thing in the past) but kinda thought, "yeah right", but after having this box it has totally changed my opinion. The banana's and apples were so tasty and the banana's (the only one left) still haven't gone that yucky brown, which really surprised me. And I did notice that the apples didn't have that awful film on the skins that you get on the ones in the shops (this would be because they were organic'y). But now for the big shock!!

I've never really been a fan of 'Green's' especially cabbage and normally given the choice I would pass on the offer of broad beans.....but I thoroughly enjoyed them. The carrots were so sweet and full of taste and the cabbage was well I can only describe it in my own words as I don't normally eat it so bare with me. It was creamy'ish, the leaves were thick and meaty and was delicious!! And as for the broad beans, I have been converted, they were tasty and very meaty and I'd love to have them again.

I've even looked a recipe up on the Internet for Broad bean Provencal, it looks so yummy!!
On Tuesday night we decided to make a salad to go with our mackerel, which was the lettuce, spring onions and cucumber. Crisp and fresh lettuce even after 4 days!!!!!!!!!! and the cucumber was so crunchy and very delicious. Even from them being delivered on Friday you could smell the spring onions, they were full of flavour and were perfect on the salad. The only thing that let us down was that the tomatoes were NOT from Abel and Cole :( Not to worry we will be trying them in our next box.

I'm planning on using the potatoes tonight, roasted with rosemary (out of my garden) and garlic and the mango with meringue nests and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
We were very impressed with the standard and quality of the produce and it has lasted so much longer than the supermarket bought stuff. So we will be ordering our next box next Tuesday.
If you're interested pop by their website http://www.abelandcole.co.uk/ and have a look at what they have to offer, they also do dairy products, fish, meat, wines, beers, bakery products, children's food and lots more all organic.

The service is great, a thoughtful delivery driver, a 'safe place' to leave the box, a courtesy call before delivery, a courtesy call after delivery, and a very lovely young chap on the phone!! :) Perfect!