Cooking with The Gruffalo

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I realised this morning that it's been nearly a month since The Boy and Me (ha!) have done any baking together, and so I cracked open the plain flour and the weighing scales. We'd had a Gruffalo apron set sent to us from Dunelm so I decided to follow the recipe on the recipe card given in the pack to make Woodland Cookies.

Woodland Cookies

Ingredients:

  • 170g plain flour
  • 1tbsp baking powder
  • 57g rolled oats
  • 113g butter
  • 113g caster sugar
  • 57g chocolate drops
  • 2tbsp golden syrup

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

2. Put on your unbelievably cute, wipe-clean Gruffalo apron and smile at mummy, while not falling off the chair.

3. Mix the flour, baking powder and rolled oats together.

4. Rub in the butter to make a crumble mixture.

5. Add the sugar, chocolate drops and golden syrup and mix to a stiff dough.

6. Roll out the mixture onto a floured surface, using the cute little rolling pin included in the set.

7. Use the cutters to cut out some cookies and place on greased and floured baking tray.

8. Cook for 20 minutes or until pale brown.

I was sent the Gruffalo cooking set in order to review. My opinion that it's excellent value for money is honest and unbiased.

The Crazy Kitchen

Review: Photobox

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A few years ago I did something for the first time.

I used online photo printing services rather than using our printer. I registered on three or four different sites and used their free prints. It was actually quite useful because it was a good way to compare the quality of the prints. My favourite was Photobox and that has been my photo printing service of choice ever since.

Therefore when they offered me the chance to review one of their diaries I was more than happy to accept and try it out. I've had a small spiral bound diary before which was incredibly useful, but this time I was trying out their large photo diary with the premium black leather-style cover.

So, here's the product description: the large diary is 5x7inches and based on a week-week layout with a photo on each spread. The week-week layout has a line per 'waking' hour to allow for appointments, etc. Each page is good quality, printed on 140gsm premium paper. There is a year planner for that year and the forthcoming year, and seven blank pages for notes at the back.

It has everything that I need in it for school: space to write deadlines, hard-wearing, durable, adaptable and plenty of space for frantic scribblings when I suddenly realise that something applies to me (this often happens). And the best bit? That every time I despair of a class of children who just won't listen, or another impossible task lumped on me, I can look at my son and my husband, and smile knowing that there is something more to the drudgery.

The standard large diary is £14.99, spiral bound with an elasticated fastener, and a hard, matt, plastic cover front and wipe back. The premium, leather-style cover, which has a magnetic catch, has a pen loop and spaces for cards and additional loose papers.

One of the things that I love about Photobox is its simple uploading procedure, and the design process that is easy and straight-forward. The checkout is simple and without the need for a ridiculous amount of steps in order to pay; they accept the main credit cards and paypal.

This is a perfect gift for those that need their lives organised for them and can't be without their schedules. Photobox gets the thumbs up from me!

I was given a voucher code in order to purchase this diary. My opinion is honest and unbiased.

Review: Mrs Tinks

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I like to ensure that all three of us eat home-made foods where and when possible. However, the curse of the working mum (albeit part-time) means that I don't tend to have the energy on a Wednesday or Thursday to prepare a meal from scratch. As Wednesday is a later than normal night, Mr. TheBoyandMe is in charge of dinner. Bless him, this can only comprise of getting a pre-made food out of the freezer and heating it; his favourite at the moment is quiche and chips for us. Therefore I need to make sure that there is a supply of nutritious, near-enough home-made meals for The Boy.

A lovely lady by the name of 'Mrs. Tinks' contacted me and asked if I'd like to try her meals. Ok, she asked if The Boy would, but I agreed on his behalf. A few days later, we took delivery of these:

There are four meals in the range:

  • Salmon & Cod Fish Pie: Luckily Mrs Tinks sent us two of these, because he adores fish, and this meal was no exception. The potato is light and fluffy, the fish is soft and tender, and there's added carrot! Bonus!
  • Chicken Curry: I've not ever shied away from giving The Boy spicy food, I used to mix a little curry powder into his cauliflower cheese on stage two weaning. Therefore I wasn't worried about giving him this. Combined with the sweetness of butternut squash, the mildness of coconut milk and the perfect mix of fresh ginger and additional spices, it's a mild and scrummy curry that he really enjoyed. Gluten Free.
  • Butternut Squash & Spinach Lasagne: I'm not ashamed that I pinched the other half of this one, I'm vegetarian and wanted to taste one of the meals! He was a little outraged that I was helping myself to his food, but it was so scrummy that he soon forgot about it. Layers of sweet butternut squash and steamed spinach, combined with the delicious cheese sauce made this one a definite winner, with both of us! Vegetarian.
  • Beef Lasagne: The Boy hates beef, yet I am desperate for him to eat it to ensure he's getting red meat in his diet. I normally have to smother it with either a tomato-based sauce or a cheese-sauce. This was the only beef meal that he has eaten willingly and with complete and utter enjoyment, that I have given to him as was. He wolfed it down and I can understand why; as a vegetarian it goes against the grain to say this, but it smelt divine. Plus there's added carrot.

The meals are available in both child sized portions, and (with the exception of the chicken curry) available in family-sized portions for 4-5 people. What I would say is that the children's meals are a really good size. I split each meal in half because The Boy wouldn't get through a whole one and I didn't want to waste it.

More information can be found on the Mrs. Tinks range here and on Facebook.

I was sent samples of the meals for the purpose of the review. My opinion is honest and unbiased.

Websites I Visit The Most

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The jovial Jenny from Mummy Mishaps has tagged me in a meme started by excellent Emma from Mummy Musings showing the websites that I can't live without.

It's quite apt for me because the second that the laptop has finished firing up, the second Firefox has loaded I'm opening up new tabs; one for each of the following and in this order:

  • Gmail

The e-mails at the moment are bananas. Obviously I run a fair amount of competitions and so I get a lot of e-mails from entries, alongside the lovely comments on my original content posts. In addition to the notifications for blogs that I read, are the review requests. And at the moment there's a fair amount. I am inordinately fortunate to be receiving them but reading through take a little time.

  • Twitter

At the time of writing this, 58,999 tweets show that I'm an addict. Nearly 60,000 tweets in a year. God, I talk a lot of crap. Now, is the time to disagree with me and say that every one of my 140 character statements are profound and worthwhile. Come on, 1,807 of you follow me so it can't all be crap?

Can it?

  • TheBoyandMe

Of course, it should probably be first but hey-ho! Approving comments and writing posts. Do I need to explain anything else about it?

  • Facebook

Why? Why do I still bother with it? It's a pile of pants nowadays, but I'm a bit rubbish at letting things go. Besides, the TRU discussion group is a fab little community and I'm addicted to playing Words With Friends with Carole and Kate.

  • Picnik

It is, without a shadow of a doubt, the best photo editing facility that I've come across. I've subscribed to the premium functions and I use it daily. Love it!

And so I tag:

A Man's World?

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I have issues.

For the sake of clarification here (because quite frankly I have a lot of issues ranging from an intense dislike of the colour orange to why I can't pull the plastic wrap off microwave meals) I feel it necessary to point out that my issue in particular is about men and ICT.

As an ICT co-ordinator who has just led her school through a successful assessment of our capabilities, I find it infuriating that the male (in theirs 20s) staff are assumed to know more than me. I'm very competent in this area and when I was on maternity, I am told that it was tough without me.

I really do think I'm quite astute when it comes to technology, it's partly my downfall in my job. I should just co-ordinate the teaching of the subject but because I understand infrastructure, hardware, software, etc. I am called upon to help like a technician.

This morning, my shadow co-ordinator (male) and I were on separate ICT courses. Mine was hard-core, brain-blowing infrastructure stuff, his was to do with Apple products. We sat down in the staffroom at lunchtime, alongside the other young bloke and started chatting with others around us. Another male teacher walked in and talked to the pair of them about technologies and ICT, ignoring me who was slowly cogitating and stewing in the corner. That was until I was asked an ICT question by my shadow.

My response?

"I'm sorry, I can't possibly talk to you about technology as I don't have a penis!"