Now that Christmas day is over with all of the attention goes to new years eve.
New years eve it a fantastic excuse to have a good get together with friends and family. Any get together needs good food but not a big sit down meal like on Christmas day. On new years eve a buffet, picky meal is so much better. If you have ever tried making canapés you will know how fiddly they can be not to mention time consuming. Thankfully Aldi are here to help and they have some delicious treats that will really impress any guests that you may have. Even better they are at a price that will certainly make you happy!
This is what I am planning to serve up to welcome in the new year...
Anyone that has cooked a Christmas dinner will know how stressful it can be if you have not got everything planned out in advance. But I thought that I would share with you a few ways to make it easier and how you can prepare a lot of the food before the big day. This will not only make it less stressful but it will give you back some valuable time that can be spent with your loved ones instead of slaving over a hot stove!
This week Aldi are certainly making it more affordable this Christmas. Their fantastic 'Super 6' fruit and vegetable offer is for 6 must have vegetables for your Christmas dinner. This week the 'Super 6' are priced at just 19p for the following:
Broccoli
Maris Piper Potatoes
Parsnips
Brussels Sprouts
Carrots
Little Gen Lettuce
So, depending on how many people you will be serving you could potentially buy your Christmas day vegetables for just over £1!
In this post I am going to tell you how to make the perfect roast potatoes in advance, carrots, parsnips and a way to serve up the sprouts that will make you want more!
Now that we are getting closer to Christmas I have started to get stocked up with as many foods for Christmas day as possible. This definitely helps the budget and makes the Christmas shopping trip quicker and easier.
During my shopping trip last week my focus was on desserts for Christmas day! It is the perfect time to allow yourself to indulge in some sweet treats. In true Aldi style they have a wide variety of desserts that are perfect for Christmas and are at a fantastic price.
Before I tell you about the desserts that I will be serving on Christmas day I have to show you the latest addition to our household!
Finally I have managed to get a Kevin the Carrot! Kevin the Carrot is the star of Aldi's Christmas adverts and also their fundraising star. This soft, plush carrot toy is being sold both in store and online and 100% of the profits are going to Barnardo's to help vulnerable and disadvantaged children across the UK. So if you do see one while out shopping, pop one in your trolley!
Christmas is a great time for bakes. I would love to have the time to bake more for Christmas but life simply gets in the way and I am not able to bake everything that we love. Thankfully Aldi have got a deliciously tempting range of Christmas bakes this festive season. Whether you are looking for tempting sweet bakes or some savoury baked snacks you can be sure to find what you are looking for. Today I am going to show you my top Aldi finds of sweet baked products and share with you a healthier Christmas cake recipe.
Before I tell you all about the sweet treats let me tell you about a little bit of news. You may have seen in the media how this year Christmas dinner is going to cost more, that everything is more expensive, however if you shop at Aldi this is not going to be the case. Yahoo recently published an article how this year, thanks to Aldi, your Christmas dinner will be the cheapest in 8 years! The Good Housekeeping Institute have conducted a comparison survey of the main supermarket retailers and found that Aldi was the cheapest, coming in at just £22.03 to feed a family of eight! That is just £2.75 a head! This is yet another reason to go to Aldi and save money!
Now back to the sweet treats!
Here are my top sweet baked treats from Aldi this Christmas...
This weeks is a fun week! Today I am going to tell you my top drinks and bargains from Aldi. In true Aldi fashion they have great, top quality drinks at a price we have come to expect from Aldi.
Today I thought that I would showcase a bit of all sorts. I have got some wines, gins, liqueurs, beers and even champagne. They really do have something for everyone and to suit all budgets!
But you do not need to take my word for it. In a recent study by Which? Aldi champagne, malbec and even their turkey has been voted by the experts at Which? as their best buys!
When we think of Christmas dinner we all immediately think about turkey. But there are so many other options for Christmas dinner. This year I will definitely be cooking a turkey but I am also planning on cooking a second meat. After sitting and looking through the meats that Aldi will have this season I was tempted by so many other meats. Unfortunately the fresh meats are not available until nearer the time but Aldi do have some frozen meat dishes in store that can even be cooked from frozen!
So far I have narrowed it down to the four delicious meats pictured.
Goose - The fresh British goose from Aldi is free range and from the fields of East Anglia.
Beef - This Specially Selected beef rib joint is from herds that have been reared in the great outdoors. They have been grass fed and slow grown to give the meat a high level of marbling.
Venison - From 19th December Aldi will be stocking fresh venison haunch joints. Raised on open pastures of New Zealand this premium lean meat is complimented by a juniper berry jus.
Lamb - Lamb is often associated with Easter but it is a versatile meat that can be enjoyed all year round including Christmas. This whole leg of lamb will be available from 19th December.
The Christmas adverts are on the television, shops are putting up the trees and the shelves are now being stocked up with Christmas goodies. Instead of my regular Aldi recipe post, this week I am going to be telling you all about the Christmas foodie posts that I have got planned, showing you this years Christmas advert from Aldi and show you some fantastic foodie gifts!
But first check out the star of the their advert this year Kevin the Carrot...
Back in July I was invited down to London to experience Aldi's Christmas in July event. At the no expense spared event Aldi showcased the best of their products this Christmas season. While I was at the event I had the opportunity to speak to some of Aldi's chief buyers. Being able to speak to them in person helped me to understand the ethos of the buyers. They clearly stated that what they look for when hunting out products is for the items to have a high end supermarket quality but one that they are able to provide for their customers at a bargain shop price. This is just what customers want. When shopping at a budget shop you do not want to compromise on quality and Aldi are able to allow us to get both!
Whilst I was at the event I was able to taste many of their outstanding Christmas products and over the next 5 weeks I am going to be showcasing my favourite high end products alongside recipes and ideas to make your Christmas table truly spectacular this year.
In just over 10 weeks it is going to be Christmas. I do not know about you but I have a habit of leaving things until last minute. This includes saving money for the big holiday. We all love Christmas time. It is a real family affair and we always splash out. We buy lots of foodie treats and drinks and of course plenty of presents. As much as we love to give on Christmas not going over our budget is a must. Nobody wants to spend months paying off the credit card due to over spending. Today I thought that I would share with you my top saving tips.
At Christmas time we all indulge in food and drinks. This includes alcohol. It is the ideal time of year to treat yourself to an extra special bottle of wine and to get out the champagne or prosecco. But we all know that this can often be the most expensive part of Christmas. But thankfully with Aldi this is not the case!
Along with their cut price food you will also find cut price alcohol. I have found some fantastic bargains and today I am going to share them with you!
This week has to be my one of my favourite weeks. This week I am focusing on desserts and sweet treats. Christmas foods would not be complete without some delicious sweet treats. I always say that for the week over Christmas and new year the diet gets put to one side and I enjoy eating all of the sweetness that Christmas has to offer. I am delighted to say that Aldi are certainly not short on the sweet treats and desserts! They stock your regular mince pies and Christmas puddings but also have so many of the traditional European breads and cakes too, and all at a great price.
As you can probably imagine I was spoilt for choice when it came to deciding which desserts and sweet treats to feature this week, there were so many! But I did manage to narrow it down. Here are the desserts and sweet treats that I would recommend!
This week for Thrifty Christmas Thursday I am focusing on the vegetables. Vegetables can often be forgotten, but on any Christmas dinner they also take centre stage.
We all know about the traditional Christmas vegetables and have all seen the Christmas cook spending all Christmas morning in the kitchen preparing the big meal. So today I am going to give you my top tips on how you, the cook, can leave the kitchen and enjoy Christmas day with your family safe in the knowledge that all of the food is prepared and will be easy to cook.
The vegetables which I am going to feature today are...
From now until Christmas, Thursdays are now officially called #ThriftyChristmasThursday. Every week I will be telling you how you can save money this Christmas. Working with Aldi and I will be showing you my top foodie finds which will be perfect for Christmas. Best of all you will find all of your favourite food and drink at a price that will not break the bank!
For me, and I am sure many of you, food plays an important part on Christmas day. I have fond memories of sitting down with my family enjoying a big traditional roast turkey dinner with all of the trimmings. It is only now that it is now my turn to prepare this all important meal that I realise how much time and effort goes into it. I have also discovered how expensive it can be to cater for everybody on Christmas day. That is why I am going to share with you my own 'specially selected' dishes which I think are perfect for the big day and will not disappoint anyone. I will also be sharing ways to make cooking the all important meal a little easier so that on Christmas day you are not stuck in the kitchen cooking while everyone else is having fun. You, too, will be able to spend quality time with your family safe in the knowledge that the food has been prepared and you will all enjoy a fantastic meal!
Today, I am focusing on the main course. Today is all about the meat, fish and vegetarian options.
The one thing I love about Christmas is the food, especially the mince pies. However I will admit to being quite fussy when it comes to mince pies.
Only the best will do!
So when Aldi asked me if I would like to try their mince pies I was curious to see if we would be able to tell the difference. I decided to get the hubby and my parents involved and asked them to do a blind taste test, just like they do on the adverts.
We tested the Aldi Specially Selected mince pies against my usual favourite Tesco Finest mince pies, Tesco regular and value mince pies as well as Mr Kipling mince pies.
Top left - Mr Kipling
Top right - Tesco Finest
Bottom left - Aldi
Bottom right - Tesco
I knew that Aldi were facing a tough challenge as I adore Tesco Finest mince pies. As soon as they come out in the shops you can guarantee that a box will end up in my trolley!
