Childs Farm - Natural Toiletries for Kids!

Thansk to the lovely peeps at Luvit!, we had the opportunity this week to try out some great bath and hair products for children.  Childs Farm is a lovely and unique company who produce and sell products which are organic, paraben-free, sulphate-free and mineral-free!

My daughter (8... nearly 9!) has very sensitive and dry skin (especially her scalp) and we usually stick to a shampoo of the "no more tears" variety; without mentioning any names, Mr. Johnson does very well when you look in my bathroom cupboard!  BUT, my daughter insists that it's "baby shampoo" - which she is actually correct about!  And, although she has quite fine hair, her hair is getting thicker as she's getting older, so this shampoo is becoming more and more unsuitable for her lucious locks!  So, we tried Childs Farm as an alternative and..... great success!

Firstly, the scents are fantastic!  The strawberry and mint shampoo & conditioner actually smells of strawberries and mint!  Real ones....not the fake sickly smell that you can get with some bath products.  And with the tangerine bubble bath, you can actually sense the citrus zing that it contains!

Secondly, the products in the "Cleaning Kit" come in 100ml bottles, so your first instinct there is that they will only last a couple of baths.  Well, that's where you're wrong!  We put a decent "squirt" of the tangerine bubble bath in our (rather large) bath and there were bubbles galore!  The "squirt" was about a sixth of the bottle, maybe less, so gone are the days when you use half a bottle of bubbly to achieve a feeble attempt at a bubble bath!  The shampoo and conditioner are the same - just a 10p sized squirt of each was enough to wash and conditioner my daughters (long) hair!

Thirdly, Childs Farms should make a big deal about the fact that the conditioner left my daughters hair (almost) tangle-free!  No matter how many times I tell her not to "scrub" her hair in the bath...it still happens!  But after using the Childs Farm conditioner, her hair just simply combed straight down without a knot in sight!  Smiles all round from us!

And lastly, (the sciency bit), as I previously mentioned, my daughter has really dry skin.  When we have tried different products in the past, the effect is almost instant, as she can fell the tightness and itchy skin straight after using something different.  And we can honestly say, these products did not have any adverse effects on her skin!  So the organic nature of the products and lack of unecessary chemical interference shows that there are great-smelling, kind to nature and kind to us products out there!  Childs Farm were unknown to me before working on this campaign but I hope they become known to every household out there!  And, you don't have to have sensitive skin to use these products - they're just extra-friendly if you do!

You can buy Childs Farm products online here or instore at various retailers including Barmouth's very own Luvit!  The company and their products have had some great press coverage; from The Guardian & The Telegraph to Tatler magazine, there's lots of positivity out there!

Definitely a thumbs-up from us!

Also, if you have an explore around their website, there's some free colouring sheets for your children to colour (not in the bath though!) and lots more information about their products and the charity work they are involved with - so good news all round!

So, why not pop over to their Facebook page, say "hello" and look out for these great products next time you are stocking up the bathroom cupboard!

Barbequed lamb chops - Recommended Recipe!

Barbequed Lamb Chops

Using a sharp knife, cut a few slits into a lamb chop, thinly slice half a clove of garlic and poke into the slits.  Spread 1 tsp mint jelly or mint sauce over the chop, repeat with enough lamb chops for everyone.  Cover and chill until you are ready to cook.  Throw a few rosemary stalks, if you have them, onto the barbeque and sit the chops on top of the herbs.  Cook the lamb to your liking – the chops should only take a few minutes on each side.  Serve with extra mint jelly or mint sauce and a fresh salad.

Per serving: 210 kcal, 13.5g fat, 6.2g saturated fat, 7.3g sugars, 0.1g salt.

Source: The Co-operative instore magazine.

Summer berry fruity jelly - Recommended Recipe!

Summer Berry Fruity Jelly - serves 8, takes 30 mins plus chilling

Ingredients

500g strawberries, hulled and quartered

300g raspberries

200g blueberries

175g caster sugar

1 ½ tsp lemon juice

9 sheets fine leaf gelatine

75ml elderflower cordial

Method

1. Put 200g strawberries, 125g raspberries and 80g blueberries in a medium pan with the sugar, lemon juice and 700ml cold water.  Warm gently until the sugar dissolves and liquid starts to simmer. 
2. Cover and simmer until the fruit is very soft (5 mins). 
3. Meanwhile, put the gelatine leaves in a bowl and cover with cold water.  Leave to stand for 5-10 mins until soft. 
4. Strain the hot juice through a sieve into a bowl – don’t press the fruit through the sieve as this will turn the jelly cloudy. 
5. Squeeze any excess water from the gelatine and add the leaves to the hot juice.  Stir until completely dissolved then mix in the cordial.  Leave to cool at room temperature. 
6. Pour 1/3 of the jelly mixture into a 2 litre jelly mould.  Scatter with 1/3 of the remaining fruit.  Cover and place in the fridge for 30 mins or until lightly set. 
7. Pour over half of the rest of the jelly mix; scatter with half of the remaining fruit.  Chill for 30-60 mins until lightly set.  Add remaining jelly and fruit, cover and chill overnight or for at least 6 hours.  Serve with ice cream or single cream.

Per serving: 150kcal, trace fat, trace saturated fat, 35g sugar, trace salt.

Source: Tesco instore magazine.

Sizzling Jamaican beef skewers - Recommended Recipe!

Sizzling Jamaican Beef Skewers - serves 8.  Makes 24 sticks.  Takes 25 mins.

Ingredients

1 kg beef mince

8 salad onions, trimmed and finely chopped

3 tbsp jerk seasoning

Olive oil spray, for cooking

Mixed salad, to serve

Method

1. Place 24 wooden bamboo skewers into a bowl of cold water and leave to soak for at least 30 mins, or overnight if possible – this will stop the wood from burning on the BBQ. 
2. Place the beef, salad onions,  jerk seasoning and a pinch of salt into a large bowl.  Using your hands, mix the ingredients together until really well combined. 
3. Shape a fairly large tablespoon of mixture around the end of one of the prepared sticks to make an oval shape about 4-6 cm long – dipping your hands in cold water first will make shaping the meat easier.  Set aside and continue with the remaining mixture to make 24 beef skewers. 
4. Spray the meat with olive oil to give it a light coating, then cook on the BBQ for 12 minutes, turning occasionally, until well browned and cooked all the way through.  Serve with the mixed salad.

Per skewer: 130kcal, 1g fat, 2.8g saturated fat, 2g sugar, 1.3g salt.

Source: Tesco instore magazine.

Tefal Fresh Week 2013 Update

Well, we're nearly at the end of the Tefal Fresh Week for 2013.  To be honest, I did think that we eat pretty well as a family but this week has shown me that sometimes, we do reach for the fish fingers, chips and beans at least once a week (especially on evenings where the children have after-school activities and my house seems like Euston Station!)

But, we did it, although we had a little slip-up on Friday after school!  A packet of Quavers and a handful of marshmallows invalidated our efforts throughout the week!

Aside from this faux-pas, here's our final menu for the week that we used and hope will inspire others to have their own Fresh Week in the weeks to come!

Monday Breakfast
Shredded Wheat or Weetabix cereal & milk
Monday Lunch
Poached egg on homemade toasted bread, piece of fruit, glass of water
Monday Tea
Spahetti Bolognese - recipe here.  Make double the sauce and use the leftovers for Lasagne on Wednesday
Homemade sponge cake and homemade custard
Fruit juice
Monday Supper
Piece of fruit, glass of milk

Tuesday Breakfast
As Monday
Tuesday Lunch
Quick pasta salad - pasta, boiled egg, salad, drizzle of olive oil
Tuesday Tea
Homemade chicken curry - no particular recipe!  Chicken, onions, red & green peppers, garam masala, cumin, chilli powder, fresh tomatoes, garlic.  Fry the chicken until cooked through, add all other ingredients, simmer for 10 mins & serve with boiled rice.
Piece of fruit, fruit juice
Tuesday Supper
Piece of fruit or homemade toast, glass of milk

Wednesday Breakfast
As Monday or porridge (for my kids, I hate porridge!)
Wednesday Lunch
Leftover chicken curry on pitta bread, salad
Wednesday Tea
Homemade lasagane with leftover sauce from Monday, salad
Fruit salad - melon, strawberries, grapes with a drizzle of single cream
Wednesday Supper
Piece of fruit, glass of milk

Thursday Breakfast
Scrambled egg on homemade toast, glass of milk
Thursday Lunch
Ham salad with pitta bread, piece of fruit
Thursday Tea
Sesame beef stir fry - recipe here.
Thursday Supper
Homemade toast or sugar-free cereal, glass of milk

Friday Breakfast
Sugar-free cereal or porridge, fruit juice
Friday Lunch
Prawn salad with garlic mushrooms - recipe here.
Friday Tea
Smoked haddock with rice & peas (onions & garlic too) - my own "drier" version of risotto!
Friday Supper
Homemade toast, glass of milk

Saturday Breakfast
Poached egg, toast, fruit juice
Saturday Lunch
Ham salad with crusty roll, fruit, glass of water
Saturday Tea
Homemade meat pie, mashed potato & cauliflower/broccoli  (Mum's "flat" meat pie - recipe to follow!)
Piece of fruit

Sunday Breakfast
Boiled eggs & homemade toast soldiers, glass of milk
Sunday Lunch
Homemade leek & potato soup, bread roll (Leeks & onions from the garden!)
Sunday Tea
Roast lamb dinner, carrot/turnip mash, peas & sweetcorn, homemade gravy.
Fresh fruit salad & cream
Sunday Supper
Piece of fruit, glass of milk

And that's it!  Snacks in between meals (usually just after school) we're fruit or carrot sticks and drinks were fruit juice, milk or water (however hubby & I snuck some tea & coffee in there too!)  My children have school lunches, so throughout the week, they ate at school.  I would include here what they have eaten too, but whenever I ask them what they have eaten, the answer is always, "I don't know" or "I have forgotten"!  I trust that they have eaten and that they have eaten well!  I'm sure if they weren't fed, they would definitely have something to say about it!

So, I hope we have inspired you to have a go at eating fresh for a week.  We will definitely do it again but will still rely on some "convenience" meals such as fish fingers and pizzas when we're really pushed for time!

Tefal Fresh Week 2013

From May 13th until May 19th, we've taken the Tefal pledge to "eat fresh", committing to give up processed foods for one week.  One of the aims of Fresh Week is to discover easy ways to get more fresh fruits and vegetables into your family's diet.

Generally as a family, we mostly eat meals cooked from scratch but do eat some processed foods so we're taking this opportunity to make fresh food alternatives to the processed foods that we may usually eat.  It will also be interesting to find out whether cooking from scratch is cheaper and quicker than the "convenience" alternative.

I'll be posting each day what we've eaten and the recipes that we've used so you can keep an eye on me!  Lunches and evening meals will be pretty easy as well as snacks throughout the day, but I think that the biggest challenge will be breakfast time!  We'll have to incorporate a bit of flexibility when it comes to this meal; we won't be eating highly processed cereals but will be allowing cereals such as Shredded Wheat, Weetabix and mueslis!  Eggs (scrambled, boiled, poached and fried!) will all be OK, but I think I'll be sick of eating eggs and toasted homemade bread by the end of the week!

Throughout the week, there'll be lots of social activity via Twitter (use the #freshweek hashtag), Facebook and Pinterest, so join in the conversation and maybe win some great prizes!

You can sign up to the pledge here and join in the fun!

Good luck to anyone else joining in - link your blog in the comments below and we can share tips and boost support if we run out of steam half way through the week!

Silent Sunday 5th May 2013