Mahiki Coconut

Mahiki Coconut is a vibrant spirit made with a blend of Caribbean Rum, fine spirits and real coconut. It has the fresh, light aroma of a fine white rum, with a hint of sweet coconut and a touch of citrus and honey.

Smooth in texture, with a distinctive coconut taste, the cream and chocolate notes leave a long-lasting aftertaste, which work perfectly in this delicious coconut dessert.

Mahiki Coconut Sorbet

Ingredients :

•       Mahiki Coconut - 80ml

•       Milk - 40ml 

•       Double Cream - 50ml

•       Coconut Cream - 80ml

•       Real Coconut

Method:

Put all the ingredients into a shaker. Add 4 tablespoons of dry ice and stir until the mixture consistency stiffens ensuring the ice has dissolved. Serve inside a halved coconut and sprinkle on  grated coconut.

Mahiki Coconut Smash

Ingredients :

•       Mahiki Coconut - 50ml

•       Pink Grapefruit - 2 segments

•       Fresh Passion Fruit - 1

•       Passion Fruit syrup - 5

•       Ting - 20ml

Method:

Put the fresh grapefruit and passion fruit in the jar. Muddle gently and add Mahiki Coconut, passion syrup and scoop of crushed ice. Crunch for few second. Top with Ting, add fresh crushed ice and garnish with half passion fruit and grapefruit slice. 

  

Pink Panther

Ingredients :

•       Mahiki Coconut - 50 ml

•       Creme De Cacao White - 15 ml

•       Lime Juice - 15ml

•       Orange Juice - 70ml

•       Grenadine - 10ml

•       Coconut Cream - 30

Method:

Put all the ingredients in the blender and add a full scoop of crushed ice. Blend for 30 - 40 seconds and pour into a Hurricane Glass. 

Garnish it with pineapple leaf and cherry. 

With the summer being lovely we have had quite a few BBQ's and so quite a lot of alcohol too :)  To be honest we were a little 'boring' when trying Mahiki Coconut!  We mixed it with pineapple juice to make a long refreshing alcoholic drink.

Mahiki Coconut smells lovely, it has a real fresh coconut summer smell.  Mixed with pineapple juice it is a little sweet, so we added extra ice and a splash of lemonade, this took the edge off of it a little.

Next time we are going to mix it with diet coke to see how that tastes, with the coke being a little blander than the pineapple it may be more to my taste.

You can also drizzle Mahiki Coconut over ice cream  or even better use it to make your own ice cream/sorbet or frozen cocktails like in the above recipes.

Give it a whirl :)

Created by the exclusive celebrity paradise Mahiki, one of the world’s most famous and glamorous night clubs in Mayfair, Mahiki Coconut is a vibrant spirit made with a blend of Caribbean Rum, fine spirits and real coconut. Mouth-wateringly versatile, it makes a delicious addition to Cola, Pineapple Juice, Ginger Beer, Pina Colada or in one of Mahiki’s famous Tiki Cocktails.

With its ‘Tiki’ Polynesian inspired bottle complete with blue skies and tropical blooms, Mahiki Coconut is a splendid seasonal tipple for sipping on balmy summer evenings. 

Perfectly encapsulating Mahiki nightclub’s glowing beach and jungle settings, the relaxed Mahiki ambience can now be recreated wherever you are and is available from Tesco RRP £17.99

http://www.mahikicoconut.com/

Naked Juice

Naked Juice, the premium smoothie, has left the beach towels of Santa Monica, where it was founded, to bring bottles full of goodness to Brits across the nation. Each generous 450ml bottle is packed with a whole pound of the tastiest fruit alongside weird and wonderful boosting ingredients including wheat grass, spirulina, barley grass and blue green algae.

Naked Juice is a favourite for those with busy lives who want an easy, filling and delicious way to achieve two of their five-a-day. Naked’s bestseller is the great tasting, antioxidant-filled Green Machine, made with lush fruit including apples, kiwi, banana, pineapple and mango.  The dark green colour may look a little strange, but don’t let it put you off; not only does the Green Machine taste great, it’s packed with 10 revitalising green superfoods including broccoli, spinach, parsley and chlorella.

Accompanying the nation’s favourite Green Machine are three equally fruity, equally delicious choices. The Mango Machine provides a tropical taste packed with extra vitamins; the Red Machine targets free radicals with its radical blend of vitamins and fruit; and the berry-tasty Blue Machine is a superfood wonder with a whopping 74 blueberries in every bottle.

          

Naked Juice smoothies were first sold on the beaches of Santa Monica in 1983 and from the very first piece of fruit in the very first blender right up until this day, Naked has been dedicated to creating amazing tasting fruit juice smoothies made from bare-naked fruit, with no added sugar or preservatives – EVER!

We tried the Green Machine and Blue Machine varieties.  To be truthful the colour of the Green Machine is a little off-putting!  My Dad and I were a little apprehensive when trying it as it looked like something you find at your local pond.  We were surprised with the taste as it was really nice, the flavour was refreshing and not sharp.  You could taste the fruit but nothing overpowered the other.

Green Machine also contains Chlorella, Algae and Spirulina.  Acording to Google, Spirulina is good for your skin and hair :) where as chlorella is highly protective against toxins and helps to get them out of the body, It is a fantastic detoxifier.

I prefered the Blue Machine to the green as I love berries.  Again it wasn't too sharp yet did give you a bit of a bite.  What I do like is that neither bottle were sweet or sickly.

The smoothies do fill you up, they are quite thick and to start I thought they were quite expensive for the amount you get (450ml), on drinking, you only need this amount ... any more and you would probably feel quite ill.

Naked Juice smoothies come in 450ml bottles and are stocked in Starbucks, Sainsbury’s Local, Waitrose, Wholefoods, Boots and Ocado, RRP £2.36.

http://www.nakedjuice.co.uk/index.php

The Hunger Games Review

Emma's (and Molly's) book of the week :The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins

I am Emma (Anna's daughter) and since I am a big book reader, I have started to do book reviews.

My friend Molly decided to help me on this book review because she is awesome and has read about 2 pages- which is more than some of the people I  know!

Enough about me ... on to the book!

The Hunger Games

This is one of the best books I have ever read. I could tell you the whole story if I wanted too. Its so popular, there is a movie out and another coming out in November.

The 3 books are all in Katniss' view. Katniss Everdeen lives in Panam - America in the future, where there is 12 districts (she lives in district 12- where hunger and poverty is daily life and the main job for the men is being a coal miner) and the Capitol - where Lady Gaga would look normal in her stage costumes. 
74 years before, there was a failed uprising, because of the uprising, President Snow created the Hunger Games where 1 girl and 1 boy aged 12-18 from each district would fight to the death in an arena while the Capitol saw it as we see football or the Olympics.

The book starts on reaping day- the day where a boy and girl get picked for the games- Katniss (Who is 16 years old) and her sister Primrose (12 years old) getting ready. Katniss gives Primrose a pin with a mockingjay on for good luck, given to her by the mayors daughter (who was left out of the movie). 

When Prim gets reaped, Katniss volunteers, entering the games with the bakers son  Peeta Mellark who had been crushing on her since the first day of school.

What happens in the games could cause them life or death.

Read the books to find out what happens!

The reasons I like The Hunger Games is because there is always something happening- fights, romance, even just talking is put into a detail which is different to normal 'teen fiction' (but that does not mean my mum can't read it!!). The people are well explained, even if they are just in for a page or two, leaving a vivid image in my mind. To me, the last book is a bit more poorly written but to some, they think the last book is the best. we are all entitled to our own opinion.

If you are not a book reader then there is a movie out (and the next movie out on November 22th 2013). But there are a lot of parts and people which are in the book but not in the movie.

Trailer of The Hunger Games:

Trailer of Catching Fire:

The books:

The Hunger Games

Catching Fire

Mockingjay

Tees and Biscuits Tshirts

Tees & Biscuits is a UK based t-shirt website that sells funny, quirky and awesome t-shirts. 


With every order they also send out a pack of biscuits. Why? Why not?

They also offer Free Delivery on all UK orders.

The prices are pretty reasonable, at present they have a small selection but they have put a lot of effort into the website so I hope they get bigger with time.

Take a look as the service is great for gifts or just to be stylish.

Click the banner picture to be taken  directly to the store.

Zederna Insoles

Zederna Insoles

I have tested some odd products in the past, however these insoles are one of my strangest .
Zederna Insoles are made from cedarwood, they are very thin and smell very faintly of menthol.
The company claim that when you use these insoles inside your regular footwear that 
Foot odour disappears immediately
Athletes foot disappears after a few days
The emergence of athletes foot and nail fungus will be permanently prevented
The treatment of existing nail fungus will be accelerated by more than 50%

Ha! Yeah right I thought .......

I had to order the correct size for my shoe as you do not trim these down like foam insoles so make sure you know your correct shoe size when ordering.  Now my trainers do hum! they are bad, Andy refuses to sit near to my feet and I can smell my own feet from under my desk when I am wearing them.  These shoes will be the ultimate test!

Well, I put the insoles into my stinky trainers (that I wear day in day out) at around 4pm yesterday.  At 9.30pm last night I took off my trainer and said to Andy's friend "Look what I am testing!" then shoved my shoe into his face .... he didn't die! he didn't even gasp for air or heave! 
Looking puzzled (both of us) I gave my shoe a quick sniff and do you know what???? they smelled ok!

I did explain to Andy's mate the reason for my shoe attack, he confirmed that they smelt ok and that the insoles were 'pretty cool'.  He then avoided me like I was some demented woman, but that was to be expected.

I had a bit of athletes foot on my right foot just between my little toe and the next one too it.  I did put some gel on it on Tuesday so it was already being treated, but so far this morning I have had no tickly feeling or soreness from my toe.  However as I had already treated the area I can't really confirm if the insoles have worked to treat or prevent athlete's foot.

The insoles work by absorbing the humidity inside the shoes. The cedearwood has natural antibacterial antibodies which can decompose microorganims without affecting the skin of your foot.  Without these microorganisms smells, bacteria etc.. cannot exist and so your feet are more healthy.

Zederna suggest that you have a pair of insoles for each of the shoes that you regularly wear.  This means that you don't use the same pair of insoles and move them from shoe to shoe, when inside the shoe they start to work and will work for 3-6 months (depending on footwear and 'personal circumstances' ie... if you have ultra sweaty feet then they have to work harder).

They are comfortable, I can't feel them.  You wear them wood side up and can wear with or without socks/tights etc....    Occasionally they suggest you take them out and give them a wipe over with mild soap, then let them airdry.  This will help them work and will make them last longer.

I am impressed ... to get rid of that smell they must work!  

The company offers a 110% money back guarantee.  If you do not like them return them within 14 days and they will refund your money 110%.

RRP £9.95 per pair 
http://www.zederna.com/

Birds Eye Cod Fish Fillet Burgers

Birds Eye have brought out a new fish product Cod Fish Fillet Burgers.

To be honest I don't know why Birds Eye have never produced cod fish fillet burgers before, being the top frozen fish product brand in the world (well in my eyes anyway, I don't know if its actually fact or not!) I would have expected them to create good quality chunky fish burgers to compliment their fish and chicken range a long long time ago.

I was brought up on the Birds Eye brand, you were always sure that the food was quality and I have never ever served up a bad meal.  Ok a few times I have burnt the fish fingers but as long as you turn them upside-down on the plate - no one notices!
When I was little we went to Folkstone on holiday and would walk along the coast to the Birds Eye factory watch the vans pull up and unload the products, in this case it was garden peas and frozen vegetables but Birds Eye has always been a brand of choice in my household.

Information from Talking Retail
"Never before seen in the frozen or fresh categories, the launch of the Birds Eye Fish Fillet Burger follows comprehensive research into consumers’ fish eating habits which found a significant opportunity in children aged 11-16. With Fish Fingers loved by younger children and coated whole fillets appealing to adults, Birds Eye identified a clear requirement for a product that offers a more fulfilling meal solution to teens with bigger appetites.

Birds Eye Fish Fillet Burgers are made with flaky 100% fish fillets and will be available in both Cod and Omega 3. Whilst helping to add fish into teenagers’ mealtime repertoire, they offer a nutritious, substantial solution and more teatime choice for mums."

We tried the new cod fish fillet burgers, I presumed that they would be like other brands cod fillets, but they were very moist and had real flakes of fish (not mush like other brands).
Emma who is 12 was very impressed!  She likes fish and will order fish dishes in restaurants or on holiday abroad.  She liked the size of the burgers and that the product it white cod fish, not grey 'something' fish.

As a family we will be buying the cod burgers again, they are suitable to eat with chips & peas, or with salad or rice.  At 285 calories per portion they are brilliant for people who are watching their weight.

I swear by Birds Eye, I admit through price wars I do buy a lot of supermarket own brands, but in most supermarkets there is always at least one Birds Eye product on offer - so if you are watching the pennies you can still afford to feed your family top quality brands.

Visit http://www.birdseye.co.uk/

BFree Multigrain Wraps

WRAP UP MEAL TIME

BFree Launch Tasty Wheat and Gluten Free Multigrain Wraps

For anyone on a gluten or wheat free diet, lunchtime can be especially problematic with the usual meal deal not offering a ‘free from’ alternative.  BFree, the ‘real bread’ brand has come to the rescue with the launch of its new wheat and gluten free Multigrain Wraps, which taste every bit as good as traditional wraps.

Dairy free, egg-free, high in fibre, low in fat and containing only 99 calories the BFree Multigrain Wraps are also ideal for those who lead a vegan diet or who simply want a healthier alternative to bread.  Delicious hot or cold, the BFree Multigrain Wraps are made using only natural ingredients to replace the wheat and gluten.

Taking the hassle out of mealtime with either a lunchtime wrap or a fajita dinner with friends, BFree makes it easy to lead a gluten and wheat free diet.  The Multigrain Wraps also taste so fresh and light that no one will ever know the difference!

So why do I like BFree Wraps?  They are only 99 calories!!  As a 'rather portly' lady I do need to loose a few pounds.  I have spent hours studying labels in the supermarket and have found that trying alternatives to my regular products has helped me to loose some weight.
Other main brand wraps are around 175 calories per wrap! To swap to BFree I significantly cut down on calories but do not loose flavour or texture.  The same goes for meat alternatives too - sometimes its good to try new products even if you can eat gluten and wheat without a problem.

Available on the ‘free from’ aisle in Asda stores nationwide, BFree Wraps have an RRP of £2.80 for a pack of 6.

Learn more about the BFree and the whole product range through the BFree website www.bfreefoods.com

For more ideas, competitions and giveaways please LIKE https://www.facebook.com/BFreefood