Tasty Tomato Soup

How many allergy parents can relate I wonder. You grab your Heinz tomato soup and the big eyes across the table widen and the famous “ Can I have that? Is asked. The disappointment can be felt all around the room when my answer is “ No it has milk in it”.

Well I went on a mission- to recreate a soup that is allergy friendly AND tastes like the famous red tinned variety. It’s taken a bit of trial and error but we’ve got there, and there’s a big bonus. It is amazingly easy to make, free from a lot of allergies and very easy on our wallets. Ladies and gentlemen I present to you my tomato soup.

The main reason I love this soup is because it’s comforting on those chilly days, incredibly easy to make, syn free for those of you following Slimming World and free from dairy, gluten nuts and soya. Remember we talked about keeping a few good basic items in stock? Well we will be using them in this recipe.

Ingredients

• One tin baked beans ( own brand is fine) 28p-75p
• One tin chopped tomatoes 30p
• One tin carrots ( or 2 fresh cooked well) 28p
• Vegetable stock cube dissolved in 500ml boiling water 20p
• 3-4 silver skin onions around 20p
• Salt and pepper to season

Method

The method couldn’t be easier.

If you are using fresh carrot cook them thoroughly first.

Put the beans and tomatoes in a pan and heat gently.

Add you cooked or tinned carrots.

Add the stock dissolved in boiling water and the silver skin onions.

Add salt and pepper and simmer for around 20 minutes.

When cooked blend thoroughly and serve. This can also be frozen down into portions.

This makes around 4 portions.

There we have it, super easy, super tasty and around £1.30 for a batch.

Cheese and Ham Carbonara GF NF

Free From Carbonara

Hello there, how are you all? The first week of April has not been pretty, and I think everyone’s wallet has groaned at some point this week. So my mission continues- to bring you all hints, tips and recipes as part of my #FrugalFreeFrom series and I thought I’d start with a simple one a carbonara but this one is gluten, nut, and very easily adapted to dairy and egg free. The other bonus is that it costs a total of £1.81 ( serving 2-3 people). This raises to £2.21 fir the dairy free version.

Now I love a pasta dish especially when it’s a bit cooler, come back spring all is forgiven. Pasta is filling, and even in the free from world is fairly easy on your bank account.

The sauce for this is also creamy and comforting, I add peas for a bit extra and to get some veg into the mini human, you don’t have to but I recommend it. I also have used ham here only because I had some that needed using up, and I’m trying to reality cut down on food wastage. You however can also use bacon if you prefer. I’ve discovered “ cooking bacon” in the supermarkets which is around 75p and brilliant to use in dishes.

I’ve gone with this tagliatelle pasta from Morrisons, it’s free from all allergens and was 85p for a box, I recommend Asda and Morrisons if you can get there. Their pasta is the cheapest free from versions on the market.

Ingredients

• Pasta 75g per person 43p
• 1 onion 10p
• 1 egg 20p
• Ham or bacon 6 slices 75p
• Cream cream 23p ( or df cream cheese 62p)
• Peas ( a good handful) 10p
• Pepper to season

Method

• Get a pan of water starting to boil ready for your pasta
• In a frying pan put in some oil or fry light and gently fry the thinly sliced onion for around 5 mini until it has softened.
• Add your chopped bacon ( or ham in my case) and fry over a low heat for a further 5 minutes.
• When your water is boiling add the pasta and cook ( around 5 -7 minutes).
• I like to add 1 / 2 ladles of the starchy pasta water to your carbonara as it helps to make the sauce silky.
• Add a spoonful or 2 of your cream cheese of choice and stir into your ham/ onions.
• Add your peas and let cook for a couple of minutes.
• Drain the pasta and add the sauce to it. Take everything off the heat and add a whisked egg and give everything a good mix together.
• Again you don’t have to add the egg, you can leave it out. ( I’d add a bit more cream cheese in this case).
• Serve and eat

And there we have it, a delicious pasta dish, that’s easier on the purse strings. I hope you like it. There’s more recipes on the way. Stay tuned and have a good week.

Frugal Free From

It’s a bitter sweet blog series I’m starting. It’s sad that it’s 2022 and millions of us are really starting to feel the pinch of the ever increasing costs of living.

As all of us are aware many free from items are already much dearer than their “ muggle” counterparts but I’m seeing these items cost more and becoming harder to find….. so welcome to my frugal free from series.

I now aim to post tips and recipes that are looking to bring you delicious free from things but on a budget. It’s something I’ve been messaged about and my social media followers all seem very keen on the idea. Incidentally always feel free to message me if you want me to try and recreate something in a free from way.

So where to begin? Well from the beginning I guess. My first tips are to have a good store cupboard full of ingredients. What I don’t do is go for the most expensive.

Tinned tomatoes for example- free from lots of allergens and great for a base of many a meal. I use Tesco own and they are 28p a tin. You don’t need the high end tins that are 85p + Stock cubes are another staple. I use Knorr they are all gluten free and around £1.45 for 8 cubes. Other tinned items I keep in stock are kidney beans ( around 55p), baked beans (35p from Tesco and gluten free), tinned sweetcorn, chickpeas and butter beans.

Dried pasta ( Morrisons and Asda have the cheapest free from at the moment), bacon lardons or off cuts, mince and lots of dried herbs etc are all good staples to try and keep in.

Always look for those famous yellow stickers as well. Gluten free bread freezes well and is often found with a reduced sticker on it. let’s also remember that if it’s getting to a stale point, whizz it up and freeze the breadcrumbs- they are so useful.

So this is my short intro, I will add lower cost finds when I see them and the recipes will be starting very soon. I hope this will be helpful to you all, as always if there’s anything you’d like to see then just let me know.

Gradz Bakery – Gluten Free Review

It’s been a while, life was hectic for a bit. It can all get a bit too much sometimes can’t it? A message from the lovely people over at Gradz Bakery got me back into blogging mode, and got my creative ( and taste bud) juices flowing.

They kindly sent me some products to try, and I couldn’t wait.

The first I reached for was the Turmeric Loaf. The colour alone of the bread is incredible, that golden turmeric hue really comes through- and it is delicious. I had it toasted with butter, and as croutons on my spiced parsnip soup ( recipe coming soon). It worked so well, and I was very impressed.

Look at this colour!!!

There was also a huge Family loaf. Again I was so impressed, not only does this taste great it also resembles an actual proper sized loaf. That’s a little victory for coeliacs everywhere I think. There other huge thing was…. Wait for it. No holes in the loaf. Followers over on Twitter will tell you this is a huge gripe of mine. Gluten free is expensive compared to the muggle counterparts so having a full loaf with no holes is a massive positive for me.

It is a pricey loaf at £4.54 currently on Ocado but because it’s pre-sliced it does freeze well and does allow for no wastage. I will add it made a great bread and butter pudding to boot as well. Bare with me though, I will add the recipe link asap.

The next I tried was the dark loaf with seeds. I loved this, it had a tang of sourdough and a crunch of seeds, it was particularly good toasted, the butter and marmalade are a winning accompaniment, I always find it a comforting kind of breakfast.

I will add more ideas to this post when I get chance to write them up, but I can honestly say I’m impressed with this brand, and look forward to seeing what new lines Gradz Bakery brings out in the future.

Notice- This is a list that contains gifted items. As always my views and opinions are completely my own.

I’m back

I’m back

Coeliac Awareness Week

Yes it’s that time of the year again. 10-16th May is coeliac awareness week. This year the message is to #ShineALightOnCoeliac but what does that mean?

This year they are focusing on young people with coeliac disease. This is close to my heart I’ve been diagnosed for nearly 20 years ( quite possibly older than some of my readers ) and kiddo is also gluten free. They are looking to raise funds to help support young people with coeliac disease. No one should feel isolated or alone because of their condition. It’s difficult at the best of times, but can be especially for young people. This campaign is helping to address this.

So how can you help? You can donate Here or take part in a challenge, to help raise £50,000. Get creative and see how you can incorporate ‘50’ into your Challenge target. Whatever you do, shine as brightly as you can! You can set you challenge for whatever you like: get your glow on doing 50 star jumps, dazzle your friends with 50 gluten free bakes, whatever you come up with, it will be fun and for a great cause. If you tag me in my social media I will give you a plug as well.

Now I usually get excited around Coeliac awareness week. There’s usually some great new products launched… I shall be keeping my eyes open and informing you all of them as I find them.

So there we have it, short and sweet today, but important. Join in, have fun and raise some pennies if you can. X

My Favourite New Things in April

Hello to you all, I’m sorry I’ve neglected my blog, life has been hectic and time seemed to disappear. I lost my blogging mojo for a bit, it deserted me and I sat many an hour scratching my head wondering when it would return. Fear not you lucky readers, it’s back and I thought I’d start with my round up of my favourite new free from finds in April.

My most exciting is the new iced finger buns in Morrisons. They are a good size, have generous amounts of icing, perfect with a cup of tea and taste a bit like a vanilla donut. The best thing is they also have no nut warnings. Naturally they are now L’s new favourite. £1.50 for the 2 so reasonably priced as well I think. Definitely a thumbs up from us.

I also spotted a couple of new things last month in Tesco. We love the gingerbread men decorating kit ( again no nut warnings) It has been fun over the rainy bank holiday and the gingerbread as a great flavour.

The Oaty bakes are great to. Very flap Jack like, but not too sweet and sickly. I think they are great for lunch boxes etc.

Tesco have also released a birthday cake which looks amazing but I’m yet to spot it in our store. When I do I will update this post.

Over to co-op and a new vegan ice cream. There is actually 2. The chocolate brownie version contains wheat but this salted caramel is vegan, gluten free and no nut warnings again. It is delicious, I could nearly tell it was dairy free and the swirls of caramel work well against the ice cream. Definite 9/10 from us, and great with summer ( hopefully) on the way.

I’m going to mention a great product from a smaller company. Nono cocoa are an amazing company, always 14 allergens free and doing incredible work with autistic people. This month they have released the most beautiful chocolate bars, it is part of their AWA AUTISTIC WOMEN ARTISTS project spreading a ‘Diversity’ message and an artwork by Jade Boylan, an autistic artist from the Isle of Man. Have a look for yourselves. They are by far the prettiest chocolate I’ve seen.

Lastly my other exciting find is the new tiger loaf by Genius, which I found in Sainsburys. It’s really good, and toasts very well. If I were to be held over a barrel then the Warburtons tiger loaf has the edge for me ( the texture is softer) but I will absolutely be buying this bread again.

So there we have my round up, from April. Keep your eyes peeled for May’s post. May is always an exciting month for new products. Coeliac awareness week runs from 10th-17th May and means lots of new goodies available.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. I’ve purchased all items myself, opinions are my own, and kiddo’s and honest as always.

Pancakes Galore

Hello to you all, it’s been a while I know. I needed time away, lockdown and family life have been a difficult struggle-I’m sure some of you can relate?

However my mojo is back and I’m here with my favourite free from pancake recipes. Now you can cheat and buy them if you prefer. My top buys would be Marks and Spencer Made without scotch pancakes ( pop them in the toaster and they’re delicious).

Morrison’s also do an amazing pancake maker it’s £1.50 and you get a fair amount of proper tradition pancakes. They are delicious with maple syrup or the classic lemon and sugar.

My simple recipe for gluten free, dairy free pancakes is as follows…

100g gf self raising flour

150ml of milk of choice ( oat works well- I use glebe farm)

1 egg

Mix it together to form a smooth batter. I use a balloon whisk for this.

Heat your pan with either butter, fry light or a little oil. Spoon small circles of the mixture into the pan.

When the batter forms holes it it time to flip them over. They should be golden on each side

Stack them up and too with what ever you fancy and enjoy.

My Round Up ( so far ) of Christmas Free From Food

There we go, I said it , right there in the title the C word. I’m not sorry either. Hear me out before you all shout “ it’s too early woman, calm down”. This year, in many ways has been a shocker. Covid has rocked the world and it’s not taking away Christmas. I made a vow to make it as special as I could this year. That in mind naturally I was going start with my favourite early finds for free from treats and eats.

I’ll be doing a separate post for advent calendars so keep an eye out for that as well. Also regular readers might have thought I’d been a bit quiet- I had. It’s been a tough few months, I lost my mojo and needed to step back, however I’m back now. Back to writing, back to enjoying life and back to Christmas. Thanks for sticking with me.

First up is these beauties from Schar

These are Spekulatius the gluten free version of the Biscoff Lotus that coeliacs have yearned for years. They don’t disappoint either. They have a great crunch, kick of cinnamon and don’t crumble when dunked. I cannot stress how important this is. The best thing is they are £1.40 grim Sainsbury’s and Asda so far.

My next find is the Christmas pud that is actually labelled “Nut Free” from Sainsbury’s. At only £4 as well it has naturally made its way into my trolley

Also from Sainsbury’s and Tesco are these from Nomo Chocolate

Cute little drops of gooey caramel goodness. So good we may have eaten a box already * We have eaten a box already.

On the mince pie front I’ll put it out there again to say my favourite is Marks and Spencer’s made without pies. They have a wonderful buttery pastry that just works hot or cold. They are gluten free and this year have no nut warning on them with. ( I’ll take a pic when I get to buy another box) They also have a very fancy iced Christmas cake for £10 which I’m sure will make it’s way into our house at some point.

I’m aware it looks like I’m a chocoholic ( I am) but I really need to tell you about these from Kit Kat. At £3.50 a bag you get lots of mini Christmas figures inside that are like those Easter bunnies we had. Either way they are amazing and well worth it.

That’s it for now, I’ll keep adding to this post when I find more free from Christmas goodies.

Stay safe everyone and you’ll be hearing from me ASAP xx

Review -Bee Rested Sleep Support

It’s no secret that I suffer from insomnia. I’ve suffered for years and in comes in peaks and troughs.

Currently it’s hit a peak, I attribute this to the current Covid pandemic, uncertainty for my business and keeping my family safe. Talking to a lot of my friends there’s a lot of us feeling the same. And dreams… is it just me but dreams are really vivid at the moment? I suspect another side- effect of the current situation.

Long story short the lovely people over at Unbeelievable Health contacted me and asked if I wanted to try their sleep support capsules. Now I’ve tried meditation ( I’m just not there yet), hypnotherapy ( I laughed as it didn’t work) and I’ve upped my exercise so I thought “ Why not” and decided to give them a go.

On their website Unbeelievable describe these supplements as : “Bee rested sleep support blends 9 effective ingredients which have a soothing effect, helping to decrease tension and to promote good sleep including Griffonia seed extract (5-HTP), Chamomile extract, bee propolis, royal jelly, lavender, hops extract, Montmorency cherry, saffron and more.”

They are suitable for vegetarians and are gluten, nut and soy free. Incidentally I’d had a call from my GP ( about something else) I’d mentioned them to try for insomnia and the gp agreed. As with all supplements if you are unsure then do check suitability with a health professional first.

I love these little guys

Anyway they are easy to take capsules that are coated and I found do not leave a funny aftertaste ( always a bonus). I started to take them 1 hour before I wanted to go to sleep. The first night I didn’t notice much- still lots of over thinking for me, but by night 3 I admit I got 5 hours. That might sound like a dismal night for most but usually 3-4 is average for me.

After a week I was getting 6+ hours. Now this could be coincidence, but I do think they are definitely helping. I’ve noticed my skin incidentally has improved as well ( no break outs ) which I think is an added bonus. Anyway I’m that impressed I’ve purchased some more and will continue on them for the time being.

You can purchase these from Boots, Holland and Barrett , Amazon and Planet Organic amongst other places.

Disclaimer: This Post is a review of gifted items. All views are my own and truthful.