Using Leftover Easter Chocolates

I don't know about your house, but here, each and every year we end up with leftover chocolate from Easter. It is usually down to me to use them in bakes and desserts.

So when Aldi challenged me to come up with a way to use leftover chocolate, I knew it would be fun. Today I will be sharing my ideas for how to use up some chocolate decorating cakes. After reading this you will be looking for leftover chocolate to use!

Iceland #PowerofFrozen - Honey and Mustard Red Snapper Recipe

As long as I can remember there has always been an Iceland on the high street. But I will admit to not shopping there a great deal. That is until now!

In 2015 Iceland kicked off their #PowerofFrozen campaign working with Holly Bell, Great British Bake Off finalist and blogger at Recipes from a Normal Mum. They created a PowerofFrozen cookbook containing 45 recipes to celebrate 45 years of business. Since then they have worked with bloggers such as Emily Leary from A Mummy Too and Vicki Psarias from Honest Mum. So when they contacted me and asked me to write them a recipe, I could not wait to get started!

It has been a few years since I have shopped in Iceland so I really was not too sure what to expect. I knew that I was guaranteed of finding family favourites such as fish fingers and potato waffles but I was surprised to find them alongside superfoods, rare meats and Slimming World meals. I was amazed by the wide variety and choice they had to offer. When choosing frozen food from Iceland you know that you are going to be buying food that has been carefully selected from around the world. Modern freezing techniques ensure that the nutrients are locked in the product, unlike fresh products that loose nutrients as the edge closer to their best before stage. Thanks to these new techniques you can be guaranteed to have the same taste and quality of fresh food, but with the valuable nutrients kept inside. Selecting frozen food also inevitably reduces food waste. I feel guilty every time I throw vegetables that are past their best into the compost pile. Using frozen produce allows you to use exactly the amount that you require, leaving what is left in the freezer for another meal.

When it came to selecting what food I would like to show you from Iceland, I really was spoilt for choice. They had the usual fish that I was expecting to see like cod, haddock and tuna. But alongside it I was surprised to see red snapper, squid tubes and whole sea bass.

Top Baking Kits from House of Fraser

Now that the children are enjoying the Easter holidays it is time to have some activities lined up for any rainy days. In our house, one of our favourite activities has to be baking. Baking is the ideal way to introduce the children to food preparation, cooking and kitchen safety.

When I was taking a look on the House of Fraser website I found some perfect baking kits that are going to be great to use with the kids over the holidays. Today I am going to tell you about the kits that I got and give you an ideal, quick recipe for the kids to try over the holiday!

These are the products that caught my eye...

#CookBlogShare Week 13

It feels like such a long time since I have been writing a CookBlogShare post! The last few weeks have seemed like an eternity. Before I go on, I just want to say a big thank you, for your patience and support over the last few weeks. They have been hard and the blog did get put on hold, but now I am back and raring to go. I will admit to missing my blog and missing reading and checking out all of the recipes shared in CookBlogShare.

This week I am writing my round up with the linky, but from next week everything will be back to normal again. When I looked back on last weeks CookBlogShare there were so many deliciously naughty sweet treats! I could have chosen so many to feature. But I have decided to steer away from the sweet treats. After a weekend of chocolate over load I thought that a savoury round up would be needed!

Here are my four favourite recipes...

Weekly Meal Plan - Week Commencing 28th March 2016

Last week I did not get round to writing a meal plan and I will admit to feeling lost without one. It is the weeks that I have not meal planned that I remember why I write them. Having a meal plan gives me the organisation that I so need.

This weeks meal plan will be starting from Tuesday as we are going to be having a meal at my mum and dad's house this bank holiday.

Last week I bought some new cookbooks for my spring time reading so I have got a lot of new inspiration for meals and will definitely be having some of the delicious recipes that are in them.

This weeks meals will be either quick, easy meals or ones that can be slow cooked in the oven. As the children are now on their school holidays I know that my days are going to be busier!

This is what we will be enjoying this week...

Healthy Spring Reading List Shoppertunity

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SoFabUK #CollectiveBias

When I was challenged to write a spring time reading list I immediately knew what I would be going for. Spring time is the perfect time to kick start the healthy eating regime. I find that making new years resolutions for diets a waste of time as we are all more likely to over indulge on comfort foods during the cold and miserable winter months. Whereas once spring time arrives along with the longer days and nicer weather we are all in a better frame of mind to stick to a healthier diet. That is why my spring reading list is all about healthy eating. Summer is not too far away and there is no better inspiration than dreaming of hot summers days and holidays!

Selecting which books was the hard part. I was challenged to buy one, maybe two books. As usual I simply could not decided. I went to my local Tesco Extra to look for some health inspiring books. We usually buy our books from there as they always have a great selection at a really competitive price. Plus the convenience of being able to pick up a book while doing the weekly shop is definitely a plus point!

As you can see there a lot of books to choose from. In the end I narrowed my choice down to three books. The books that I selected varied in price from just £3 to the most expensive being £8. I also decided to go for books which are not as well known as some of the other popular authors. I am going to tell you a bit about each of the books that I chose and also share with you the recipe for the breakfast pot below that I have made from one of the books.

I chose the following books...