Take a sneak peek at Asda's Christmas food offering

Whilst it's perfectly true that the school summer holidays might just be starting, but Asda is reveal a sneak preview of what customers can expect to see this Christmas. 

Asda's spent the last eighteen months working very hard on its product development for Christmas 2023, tasting literally thousands of products to curate a top-quality offering, at prices people can afford, no matter what their budget might be.

Asda’s Christmas range will provide something for everyone and for every occasion, big or little. From eating the first mince pie whilst watching festive films and putting up the Christmas tree, to the main event itself and right through to the New Year’s Eve celebrations.

A focus on amasing taste at excellent value is the foundations of this year’s range. When it comes to the big day, the retailer is launching Extra Special Porchetta, providing indulgent centrepieces at affordable prices. 

With a rise in the grazing trend, customers can create really showstopping party tables without the price tag with Extra Special Speciality Cheeseboard which comes ready to serve on a slate board and Extra Special Charcuterie Ultimate Grazing Platter. Not forgetting desserts, Asda’s Extra Special Chocolate & Honeycomb Avalanche Dessert creates theatre to wow guests right from the freezer.

All dietary requirements have been well catered for with 57 new vegan and 35 new Free From products launching for this Christmas. For the first time, the Vegan Society approved OMV! range will have a very special festive makeover. New innovations will include OMV! Whole No Turkey, OMV! Mushroom Pigs in Smoky Aubergine Bacon and OMV! Strawberry Trifle.

Asda’s Signature Flavour Christmas 2023 trends and flavours

For Christmas 2023, Asda is excited to launch its first signature flavour, Brown Butter and Spiced Dark Rum. This has come from extensive trend tracking and hunting by the Asda Innovation Team, led by Senior Director of Trends and Innovation, Jonathan Moore. 

The team noticed an abundance of brown butter being used globally across patisseries. Brown butter is created by cooking the butter slightly past its melting point, just long enough to toast the milk solids in the butter. By doing this, butter magic is formulated by releasing a deliciously nutty flavour profile.

After the celebration of all things gin, the team was on the hunt for the next ‘it’ trending spirit. They arrived at spiced dark rum after seeing the growth in use by mixologists across the globe. Spiced dark rum has a deep and instantly recognisable flavour from the use of warming spices, which instantly compliments winter foods. By combining these two key flavours, Asda’s 2023 winter signature flavour was born and infused across a selection of hero products.

This year’s signature flavour will be brought to life in various products throughout the range, with Extra Special Brown Butter & Spiced Dark Rum Mince Pies and centrepiece, Extra Special Slow Cooked Turkey with Signature Spiced Dark Rum & Brown Butter Stuffing offering a sweet and warming flavour.

As well as the signature flavour, customers will see a return of the retro favourite, Black Forest, appear in a series of sweet treats. Extra Special Black Forest Yule Log, Extra Special Black Forest Stollen Bites and a showstopping Extra Special Black Forest Woodland Cake are filled with the memorable rich chocolate and sour cherry flavour.

Sam Dickson, who is Asda's Interim Chief Customer Officer, said: “The festive season is a time for joy, comfort, and a sprinkle of indulgence! There's no better way to celebrate Christmas with loved ones than sharing delicious food and drinks.

"This year, our really incredible colleagues have been busy innovating, sourcing, and creating our most impressive and extensive range to date. Whilst 2023 has been a tough year for everyone across the UK, we want to ensure we can provide lots of opportunities for great tasting food and drink, and our customers don’t have to compromise on quality. We have hundreds of innovative new products as well as improved favourites meaning even more Christmas magic for your dinner table or party spread.

"I'm really thrilled with the improvement we've made in our quality this year, whilst keeping customers and value at the forefront of our minds. There is a tendency to think that to get the tastiest food you must spend more - but at Asda, that simply isn’t true.

"We believe that amazing, tasty food and drink is a pleasure everyone should be able to enjoy. Asda, that’s more like it”.

Hero Lines and Festive Favourites at Asda include:

Extra Special Cured Salmon Edged in Signature Pastrami Spice Bend

Asda's Scottish salmon is cured with a traditional salt and sugar blend. Hand garnished with a signature spice blend including hints of cracked black pepper, smoked paprika, star anise, cinnamon, and ginger.

Extra Special Sundried Tomato Stuffed Monkfish wrapped in Prosciutto

Looking for something a little different to serve to your guests? This meaty British monkfish tail is infused with a tangy sundried tomato and lemon stuffing. Wrapped in prosciutto and complimented with rosemary and sage basting butters. A spectacular centrepiece to impress guests.

Extra Special Porchetta

Made using expertly butchered British, Yorkshire bred pigs. In true Italian style, the meat is hand rolled in a bespoke seasoning of fennel, garlic, olive oil and lemon zest for a deliciously succulent roast with a perfect crackling top.

Extra Special Ruby Port Drenched Sirloin

A luxurious option for your Christmas dinner centrepiece, our 21-day matured sirloin is soaked in Ruby port for 9 days and accompanied with a port drizzling sauce for extra juiciness.

Extra Special Chocolate & Orange Panettone

Our panettone is made at a second generation, family-run bakery in the Piedmont region of Italy with an all-butter recipe, made with a mother dough nurtured since 1964. This Italian sweet bread is made with Belgian milk chocolate chunks, candied orange peel, butter and injected with a chocolate and orange sauce. Finally, the dessert is topped with dark chocolate and decorated with milk and dark chocolate flakes.

OMV! Strawberry Trifle

A great alternative to a dairy based trifle that does not compromise on flavour.

A tangy strawberry compote is made from whole strawberries. Topped with hand placed egg free sponge then a dairy free custard. Finished with a lentil and coconut cream.

Extra Special Chocolate & Honeycomb Avalanche Dessert

This frozen dessert is a real showstopper! Salted caramel semi freddo filled with salted caramel sauce, milk chocolate shavings and honeycomb pieces. Finished with milk chocolate sauce and hand placed honeycomb pieces. Customers are invited to remove the collar at the table allowing the sauce to flow down the dessert, creating a real talking point.

Extra Special Chocolate Espresso Martini Cream Liqueur

Cold Brew South American Arabica coffee is combined with triple distilled vodka, double cream, cocoa bean extract and sugar syrup. Shake over ice for 30 seconds and pour into a chilled Martini glass to create the most luxurious crema foam top.

To find out more information and view our look book visit: https://asda-pr.co.uk/ASDA-Christmas-2023/flipbook.html

(Only six months to go!)

Tiktok Mum shows £1 per meal is all it takes to feed a family. If you shop at Aldi

Social media influencer @budgetingmum reveals five summer holiday dinners for the whole family made with under £20 of ingredients. Wow! That’s less than £1 per meal!

The budgeting expert has also shared her top 10 hacks to lower the cost of the weekly shop during the holidays

The post has boasted plenty of praise, with one follower declaring: “this will really help reduce the cost of my food shop!”

Social media budgeting guru @budgetingmum has revealed her five go-to recipes for keeping the whole family fed during the school summer holidays and they all come in at under £1 per meal.   

Beth Turbutt-Rogers, known by her 185k loyal social media following for her innovative budgeting hacks and handy parenting tips, has unveiled she uses less than £20 worth of Aldi ingredients to create five tasty dinner recipes that the whole family enjoy whilst the little ones are off school.

The video shows Beth whizzing together five dinners including an uber-healthy three bean chilli and a mouth-watering Wagamama inspired katsu curry, complete with hidden veggies for fussy little ones, all for under £20 at Aldi.

The handy recipe guide has already proved popular with her followers, gaining likes and comments in their thousands. One follower stated “this will really help reduce the cost of my food shop!” and another said, “get me to Aldi – now!”

Beth, who lives with her husband and two youngsters,  commended her Aldi shopping experience saying: “Aldi is the best place to get everything you need without breaking your bank.”

Beth also went on to say: “As the summer holidays arrive, lots of families will feel the pinch when it comes to food shopping. Having the children at home might mean routines are completely different and for this reason you might start to see a rise in the weekly cost.  But don’t fret! With a little planning and opting for low-cost ingredients, you can get through the summer holidays on a budget and still enjoy tasty, nutritious meals.”

As well as putting together this helpful school holiday dinner guide, Beth's also shared her top 10 hacks when budgeting for the weekly shop during the school summer holidays:

Overlap: Plan meals with overlapping ingredients. EG, if you’re buying potatoes, buy a larger pack which you can use to make jacket potatoes one night and a potato pie the next. Or if you’re buying bacon lardons, buy a two pack which you can use for two meals! 

Meal plan: This is a guaranteed way to save you money as you’ll have well thought out meal ideas for the week. This is especially relevant during the holidays when the food shop needs to feed the whole family all day, every day!

Go frozen or tinned: Consider buying frozen or tinned vegetables for a great way to inject nutrients to food on a budget.

Go plant based: Swapping to plant-based alternatives can often be cheaper than meat products, and more sustainable too.

Buy in bulk: Bulk buying certain items, EG, buying a larger pack of toilet roll, will work out cheaper in the long run. This is especially vital during the school holidays when we seem to go through household items far more quickly than usual.

Cook from scratch: Cooking from scratch – learning how to make things like sauces from basic ingredients such as milk, butter and flour can save you money. This is a great one to pick up during the holidays when we’re not so time poor!

Divide and conquer: Try buying a whole chicken and dividing the meat into several meals throughout the week to make it go further.

Batch cook: Batch cooking can not only save you time, but it can also save money if planned properly. This means more time to spend playing with little ones during the holidays!

Freeze it: Using your freezer to ensure food doesn’t go off before you have time to eat it can reduce food waste and save you money, too.

Enjoy family time: Eat together as a family! Doing separate meals for children can be costly, so make meals that are suitable for all the family will help cut your costs, too. Particularly during the holidays, this is a great time to make the best of having everyone at home and enjoy eating together.

Beth’s innovative dinner recipes have been created to please fussy children while ensuring parents get something delicious and nutritious for dinner, too. The full shopping list for these dinners comes in at less than £20 – so that’s £1 per meal for a family of four:

Recipe 1: Cheeseburger pasta bake with vegetarian mince

Recipe 2: Cheese and bacon potato pie with beans 

Recipe 3: Three bean chilli with rice 

Recipe 4: Katsu chicken curry and rice

Recipe 5: Bacon potato bake with egg and beans

Full step-by-step guides on how to create these tasty recipes can be found via Beth’s blog.

Aldi shopping list:

Nature’s Pick Brown Onions (£0.95, 3 pack)

Oakhurst Smoked Bacon Lardons (£1.99, 200g)

Nature’s Pick Spring Onions (£0.50, 100g)

Nature’s Pick Salad Tomatoes (£0.85, 6 pack)

Ashfields Breaded Chicken Steaks (£2.99, 505g)

Everyday Essentials Penne Pasta (£0.41, 500g)

Four Seasons Taco Mixed Beans (£0.72, 395g)

Everyday Essentials Chopped Tomatoes x2 (£0.35, 400g)

Everyday Essentials Baked Beans x2 (£0.56, 420g)

Asia Specialities Chinese Style Curry Sauce (£0.99, 500g)

Emporium Mature Grated Cheddar Cheese (£1.99, 250g)

Ready, Set…Cook! Chilli Powder (£0.59, 40g)

Plant Menu Meat Free Mince (£1.35, 400g)

Everyday Essentials Long Grain Rice (£0.52,1kg)

Merevale British Medium Free-Range Eggs (£1.29, 6 pack)

Nature’s Pick Marris Piper Potatoes (£1.59, 2.5kg)

Four Seasons Mixed Vegetables (£0.99, 1kg)

Four Seasons Black Beans in Water (£0.59, 390g)

Total: £19.57 (approx. 97p per meal, based on five meals for a family of four).

To shop Aldi’s full range of affordable groceries, shoppers can head to stores now or browse the Aldi website for Click & Collect options. https://groceries.aldi.co.uk/en-GB/

Check out Budgetmum here https://www.budgetingmum.co.uk/

Sustainable and delicious. New Cocktail ideas

Now, more than ever, sustainability is at the forefront of the minds of many of us, especially in the kitchen, and as the cost of living crisis continues to put a strain on our finances, many of us are looking to reduce our food waste and squeeze out the most of our weekly shopping trips. 

But! There are many tips and tricks for utilising your leftover food scraps including turning them into delicious cocktail ingredients. (What? Cocktail ingredients? Yes, cocktail ingredients. We'll explain more, here.)

The team of top drink experts at online drinks retailer, The Bottle Club, have put together some handy tips for utilising your leftovers and transforming them into tasty summer beverages.

Blend fruit pulp, peels and zest into syrup

Adding a fruity syrup to your homemade cocktails in an ingenious way to add a delightfully delicious extra fruity dimension to your drink, whilst simultaneously reducing your food wastage. 

Leftover fruit pulp, peels, and zest can all be used to create a sweet and delicious syrup. Making the syrup is simple, all you need do is add the fruit pulp, peels, or zest into equal parts water and sugar, simmering in a pan until the solution resembles a syrup-like texture. 

Use your leftover fruit as garnish 

A great alternative to using leftover fruit in syrup is to use them as garnish for your summer cocktails. Dehydrating your leftover fruit is an ideal way to make them last longer, as they can last up to a full year when stored properly in a proper airtight container. 

If you don’t own a dehydrator or an air fryer, this can also be achieved by oven-cooking your fruits for 30 minutes. Leftover orange peels go well in a classic Old Fashioned, whilst grapefruit peel is the perfect addition to the iconic Negroni cocktail.

Create syrups with leftover herb stems

If you’re a kitchen whizz, you’re probably no stranger to cooking with herbs. But herbs aren’t just used to add a little extra flavour to your dishes, they can also be used in your drinks, too. 

The leftover stems of your everyday herbs like parsley, thyme, and basil can also be brewed into a syrup that will add a nifty extra kick to your summer cocktails. 

Start by simmering your herb stems in equal parts of sugar and water. Simply allow the solution to cool in the fridge and then add to your cocktails. To maximise the flavours, leave the solution to chill in the fridge for several weeks. 

Herbal syrups are particularly effective when used in gin and vodka-based drinks. 

Save coffee grounds to be used in coffee-based cocktails 

If you’re partial to a coffee-flavoured cocktail, try saving your leftover coffee grounds to make a delicious after-dinner drink. From a classic Espresso Martini to a Calypso cocktail, there’s plenty of delicious cocktails for coffee lovers to indulge themselves in. 

To create a coffee liqueur to be used in cocktails, just add 100 grams of coffee grounds, 4 tablespoons of white granulated sugar and 2 parts of spirit (preferably vodka!) to a sealed container. Leave this to mix for around 24 hours before you start crafting your homemade cocktails.

Use leftover mint stems to add a refreshing kick

When using mint leaves to add extra flavour to your cooking, you probably throw out the leftover stems. However, mint stems can be used as the perfect garnish for cocktails like the class Mojito and Mint Julep, to give a real minty kick to these cocktails. 

Spearmint is the most common type of mint used to craft these delicious and refreshing cocktails to be enjoyed on a summer's day. 

Create an infusion with your leftovers 

There is a wealth of possibilities and combinations when it comes to infusing alcohol with leftover fruits, spices, and herbs. Light-coloured spirits like gin and vodka are the most common spirits used, as the mild flavours will infuse more easily than darker spirits like rum and whiskey. 

When you are creating an alcohol infusion at home, add the chosen ingredients to an airtight container along with your chosen alcohol, shake it up and let it sit. Leave the solution to settle for 24 hours to give the flavours time to infuse and strain before drinking.

Popular infusion combinations include: 

Grapefruit, rosemary and vodka

Apples and gin 

Pineapples and whiskey 

Coconut rum 

Lemongrass, ginger and tequila

To learn more visit https://www.thebottleclub.com/blogs/thedrinksjournal/cocktails-to-make-the-most-of-fresh-seasonal-produce

(Image courtesy of Radosław Kulupa from Pixabay)

Callum Graham's Summer Fruit Tart

Callum Graham is the Head Chef at Jersey restaurant, Bohemia. And he has created a Summer Fruit Tart recipe.

Serving size: Individual tart – serves 1 (Adjust quantities to serve more diners.) 

Overall prep and cooking time: approximately one hour.

Prep for pastry/ tart case: 10 minutes

Cooking time for pastry/ tart case: 15 – 20 minutes and then allow to cool for a further 20 minutes whilst making the lemon curd

Ingredients for the pastry:

225g plain flour

110g butter, cut into cubes

80g caster sugar

1 large free-range egg

Method:

Crumb together the plain flour and the diced cold butter, once a fine crumb has been produced, mix in the sugar. Next, fold in the egg. If the dough feels too dry, merely add a tablespoon of water.

Cover the dough in cling film and leave it to rest in the fridge for an hour.

Pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees centigrade. 

After the dough has rested, roll it out on a flour dusted work surface until it is about half a cm in thickness. Place over a greased tart mould then place in the fridge for a further 10 mins.

Next, remove the pastry from the fridge and place it on a sheet of baking parchment inside it, then cover with rice (for blind baking).

Place it in the oven for 15 mins. Remove from the oven and carefully remove the baking parchment and rice.

Turn the oven up to 180 degrees and then egg wash the bottom of the tart case. Bake for a further 6-8 mins until the pastry is golden brown.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool, totally.

Ingredients for the lemon curd:

4 large lemons - juiced

4 large lemons - zested

200g fine caster sugar

100g unsalted butter

3 free-range eggs and 1 egg yolk

Method:

Mix the lemon juice, zest, sugar, and eggs together and place into a small saucepan.

Dice your butter into small cubes and have on the side (you will need this at the end).

Take a whisk and start to whisk the mixture together, then place onto the heat and keep whisking until the mixture starts to thicken (this will take 5-6 mins and it is very important to whisk vigorously) 

Once the mixture starts to form soft peaks, take off the heat and slowly whisk in the diced butter.

Mix well until fully combined and then pour into the cooled tart case.

 Place in fridge and leave to set for at least 2 hours.

Finish off the tart by decorating with whatever fresh fruit you have at home,  Callum says "I love to use an abundance of strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. It’s the most refreshing summer treat."

To learn more about the restaurant and hotel visit https://www.bohemiajersey.com.

SKIPPY® Peanut Butter Choc Chip Swirl Pots

(Uses 6 Small Ramekins)

Ingredients

130g SKIPPY® Peanut Butter Choc Chip Swirl 

300ml fresh whipping cream

1 tablespoon sifted icing sugar

Half teaspoon vanilla extract

Extra 2 tablespoons SKIPPY® Choc Chip Swirl Peanut Butter to drizzle

Directions

Spoon the SKIPPY® Peanut Butter Choc Chip Swirl into a small bowl.

Pour the whipping cream into a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk the cream until it begins to thicken but is still somewhat loose. At this point, stir in the vanilla essence if you are using vanilla. (Why wouldn't you use vanilla?)

Using a fork gradually work a spoonful of the SKIPPY® Peanut Butter Choc Chip Swirl into the double cream until it's combined, repeat with the rest of the Peanut Butter until it's all blended. At this point, it should have the texture of a mousse.

Next, gently fold in the icing sugar.

Spoon the mixture into the ramekin dishes and level each one off.

Put the extra SKIPPY® Peanut Butter into a small bowl and blast for 10 seconds in a microwave on the lowest setting then drizzle on top of the mousse and then chill.

New Crème Desserts from Bonne Maman

Europe's leading desert experts Bonne Maman has introduced two new exciting crème desserts featuring a luscious topping of whipped Chantilly cream.       

Inspired by the traditional French dessert: Liégeois, new Bonne Maman Coffee Crème dessert is a sumptuous, aromatic creamy café au lait style dessert with a rich and creamy coffee crème, generously topped with a light Chantilly cream.  

Bonne Maman Dark Chocolate Crème dessert is made with the finest quality dark chocolate, simply blended with cream and milk to make a delicious and silky smooth crème with a contrasting top layer of lightly whipped Chantilly cream.

Enticing and utterly, absolutely delicious, both the new Bonne Maman crème desserts offer a truly and intensely satisfying finale to a lunch or dinner at home. And, indeed, make a wonderful treat for chocoholics and coffee lovers at any time of the day. No matter where they are! (Actually, I can picture my wife and I taking these with us in a cool bag as part of a nice picnic.) 

Bonne Maman Desserts are made with simple, all natural ingredients and contain no artificial colours, flavours or sweeteners whatsoever. 

They are presented in packs of 2 x 90g pots, the new Dark Chocolate Crème and Coffee Crème Desserts are available, at least initially, at Sainsbury’s and Waitrose stores nationwide at a recommended retail price of £2.55.  Also suitable for vegetarians. Packaging can be widely recycled. 

For further information, tips and recipes see www.bonnemaman.co.uk, like on Facebook @BonneMamanUK and follow on Instagram @bonnemaman_uk

(Image is copyright Bonne Maman UK)

Lizi's Granola Cheesecake

Tasty and delicious sweet treats don’t have to be laden with sugar and fat! This decadently creamy cheesecake recipe is perfect for indulging in and is packed chock full of protein rich ingredients and a large helping of Lizi’s original granola. (yummy!)

Ingredients

For the creamed cheese topping

500g quark or 250g fat free cream cheese combined with 250g fat free Greek yoghurt

100g vanilla protein powder

1 serving of gelatine

For the biscuit base

200g Lizi’s original granola

25g coconut oil

50g apple sauce 

To garnish

2 teaspoons cinnamon 

1 tablespoon butter

50g apple sauce

Method

Prepare your ingredients and set ingredients for the cream cheese filling and garnish to one side

Using a wooden spoon and a large mixing bowl combine the quark (or alternative filling) with vanilla protein powder and a serving of gelatine.

Take 200g of Lizi’s original granola and whizz for 30 second intervals in a food processor until it's  completely ground

Add 25g coconut oil and 50g apple sauce to the ground granola mixture in a separate bowl and combine into a pastry base

Pack the base into a lightly greased cake tin ensuring this is evenly distributed throughout 

Spoon the protein mixture on top and pop it into the fridge whilst you prepare the topping

Whilst this is setting, chop up an apple and fry lightly in two teaspoons of cinnamon and one tablespoon of butter gently stirring in 50g of apple sauce to the mixture

Once this has cooled down enough, spread over the top of the cheesecake and then place it back into the fridge again for a further 2-3 hours or until you are ready to serve them.

Time

Preparation time 15 minutes, Setting time 2-3 hours.

https://www.lizis.co.uk.

Incidentally, it's possible that vegans could try to swap the gelatine for the vegan-friendly equivalents that are available in most free from sections in supermarkets, health shops, etc. 

This is really the cherry on the top from Driscoll's!

Yes, folks, British cherry season is here, and to mark this year’s extra-flavourful crop, Driscoll's, the UK’s foremost supplier of berries, have created a selection of absolutely delicious new recipes, which we are featuring below. 

‘Pickled Cherry Bruschetta’ - an Italian twist packed with healthy vitamins and bursting with flavour!

‘Cherry French Toast Sandwich’ - a quick and easy take on the more traditional French toast.

‘Cherry and Cacao Fro-yo’ - a super refreshing, healthier alternative to ice cream

Please find a link to hi-res imagery here/full recipes below.. 

Recipe 1: Pickled Cherry Bruschetta

A jar of jam and food on a white surface

This Pickled Cherry Bruschetta is packed full with healthy vitamins and uses ricotta, walnuts and olive oil to provide a source of protein, calcium, fibre and healthy fats.

This year’s British cherry harvest is extra sweet, making for a delicious contrast with the tart pickling and creamy ricotta.

The dish contains 250g of fresh cherries, full of nutrients, with 3% of your daily requirement of iron, 7% of your daily requirement of copper, and 8% of your daily requirement of vitamin C. 

Serves: 8-10. 

Makes 2 x 250g jars of 1 x 500g jar of pickled cherries

Time: 30 minutes prep plus pickling time.

Ingredients for the pickled cherries:

100ml white wine vinegar

85ml water

50g caster sugar

2 bay leaves

250g fresh British cherries, de-stalked and pitted

2 crushed juniper berries

5 peppercorns

Ingredients for the bruschetta:

1 ciabatta loaf, sliced

200g ricotta or a plant based alternative 

50g walnuts

Fresh thyme

Salt and pepper

1 tbsp olive oil for brushing and 1 tsp for the walnuts

Method for pickling:

Firstly, start with pickling your cherries. It is best to do this around a week in advance at least, and once made they will keep in sterilised sealed jars for months – meaning you can hang on to cherry season for even longer! (Once opened, store in your fridge).

To sterilise your jars, wash with hot soapy water then put in a low oven for around 10-15 minutes.

Pour the white wine vinegar, bay leaves, peppercorns, juniper berries, caster sugar and water into a pan and simmer for around 10 minutes.

Whilst this is cooking, de stalk and pit your cherries. Pack the cherries into the sterilised jar/s and pour over the vinegar mix, ensuring all cherries are covered. Tightly seal and leave in a cool dark place for at least a week.

Method for making the bruschetta:

First, preheat the oven to around 180c.

Spread the walnuts out on a tray lined with baking paper.

Toss in a tsp of olive oil and toast for around 10-15 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Next, slice your ciabatta at a slight angle, into 1cm slices. Lightly brush with olive oil on each side and place under a hot grill until evenly golden.

Put the ricotta in a bowl with a pinch of salt and whisk until light and fluffy. 

Spread a teaspoon over each of the ciabatta toasts and top with the pickled cherries, crumbled walnuts, fresh thyme and black pepper.

***

Recipe 2: Cherry French Toast Sandwich 

This Cherry French Toast is a quick and easy brunch recipe that makes the most out of fresh juicy British cherries and is a healthier take on the breakfast classic.

With lots of extra sweet cherries available this season, there is no better time to add an extra flavourful punch to your french toast this summer. 

This recipe can be also made with any bread or milk you choose, so you can give it your own individual twist. 

Serves: 1.

Time: 20 minutes.

Ingredients:

2 slices of bread (stale bread works especially well)

1 egg or a vegan egg alternative 

50ml milk or plant based milk

5-6 British cherries, de stalked and stoned

1 tsp brown sugar

2 tbsp lighter Crème Fraîche or a  plant based alternative 

1 tbsp agave

Spray of oil for cooking

Method: 

Roughly chop your cherries and add to a pan with a teaspoon of brown sugar.

Briefly stir and heat on a medium heat for around ten minutes until they are broken down and syrupy.

Allow to cool slightly.

In a shallow bowl, crack in your egg and pour in the milk.

Whisk well and dip each side of your bread in the egg mix.

In a separate small bowl add your Crème Fraîche and agave syrup and stir in the cherries.

Heat a pan over a medium heat and cover with a little spray oil

In the heated pan, lay down one slice of the bread before topping evenly with the cherry mix and placing the second slice on top, and pressing down gently.

Cook for 3-4 minutes, then flip the bread over and repeat. 

Remove from the heat and enjoy!

***

Recipe 3: Cherry Cacao Fro-Yo

Our Cherry and Cacao Fro-yo is a delicious, yet healthier summer treat that you don’t need an ice cream maker to produce!

The sweetness of the cherries with the smooth acidity of the yoghurt creates a perfectly balanced alternative to ice-cream.

You can even improvise with a cake or la oaf tin to freeze in, so there’s no fancy equipment necessary and minimal prep time, too!

All you need is freeze time!

Serves: 10.

Time: 50 mins - 1 hour prep time, 3-4 hours freezing time.

Ingredients:

175g British cherries, de-stalked, pitted and roughly chopped

1 tsp brown sugar

Juice of half a lemon

750g natural or Greek yoghurt, or a plant based yoghurt 

125ml milk or plant based milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

30g sugar (this can also be substituted for the equivalent in stevia for an even healthier treat)

1-2 tbsp cacao nibs for sprinkling

You will also need a small loaf tin or 7-8 inch cake tin

Method:

Put your loaf tin or cake tin into the freezer.

In a medium bowl add your yoghurt, milk, sugar or stevia, vanilla and stir well.

Chill in the freezer whilst you complete the next steps.

Empty your cherries and brown sugar into a pan and simmer on a medium heat for 10-15 minutes.

Stir in the juice of half a lemon and leave to cool.

Remove the tin and yoghurt mix from the freezer and pour the yoghurt into the tin.

Stir every 20-30 minutes and when it’s starting to thicken considerably, swirl through your cherry mix.

Leave to freeze for at least 3-4 hours before serving

Sprinkle your fro-yo with cacao nibs for a crunchy topping!

https://www.driscolls.eu

How to Eat like a Celtic Druid with a Celtic Boar Stew

I follow a number of different YouTube channels that cover cookery matters. One of these is called Tasting History, presented by historical cooking expert Max Miller.

In this episode viewers will learn how to cook as if they were making a feasting meal for Celtic Druids, cooking a Celtic Boar Stew.

Two great dessert recipes from Julienne Bruno

We have two great recipes from Julienne Bruno, the creator of truly original plant-based products that are  designed to cleverly take home cooking to gastronomic levels. 

Its debut range, Collection 01, features BURRELLA®, CREMATTA™, and SUPERSTRACCIA®, is perfect for conscious eaters who want to participate in gastronomy but are limited by the standard of plant-based products. From salads, pizzas, pastas, or desserts, Julienne Bruno can complement any dish you can rustle up.   

First recipe:-

Rhubarb Galette w. Sweetened Crematta™

Cook Time: 2 hours (including baking and chilling)

Servings: 2 

INGREDIENTS 

1x 175g tub julienne bruno crematta™

50g wholemeal flour

75g plain flour

25g caster sugar 

¼ tsp salt

65g vegan block butter, chilled and chopped into cubes

½ tsp apple cider vinegar

3 tsp icing sugar

160g forced rhubarb stalks

20g caster sugar (+ 4 tsp extra)

¼ lemon zest, and squeeze of the juice

demerara sugar

METHOD

Step 1: combine flours and sugar in a mixing bowl or the bowl of a food processor, stir well to combine. add the chopped butter, then if doing this by hand, cut the butter through the flour until there are no larger bits of butter left. gently then rub the flour and butter using your fingertips and thumbs until everything is evenly combined. if using a food processor, gently pulse the mixture until the butter is evenly incorporated.

Step 2: add the vinegar and 50g of crematta™ then mix through with a spoon before using your hands to bring the dough together into a ball. do not knead the dough, just bring it together.

Step 3: weigh the dough, then divide into two even pieces. gently flatten each piece into a thick disk before wrapping in cling film and chilling in the fridge for around an hour. mix the remainder of the crematta™ in its pot with the icing sugar, lid, and then place in the freezer. 

Step 4: whilst the dough is chilling, make the filling. wash the rhubarb, trim the ends and then cut 1 inch long pieces on the diagonal. in a bowl, toss the rhubarb with the lemon zest/ juice and sugar. allow to sit and macerate gently until ready to use.

Step 5: heat your oven to 180c fan, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. remove the pastry from the fridge, unwrap then place on a well floured (second) sheet of parchment paper ready to roll out. making sure the rolling pin is also floured, gently roll each piece of dough out, one by one, into a rough circle approximately 6 inches in diameter.

Step 6: drain the juices from the rhubarb bowl into a small dish, set aside for later use. sprinkle 2 tsp of caster sugar over the centre of each pastry disk before then arranging the sliced rhubarb over, ensuring to leave approximately a 1.5 inch border all the way around the edge. gently fold the pastry over the filling, place onto the baking sheet before lightly glazing with the juices and then finally sprinkling with demerara.

Step 7: bake for 35-40 minutes until the filling is bubbling and the pastry is golden. set the baking tray on a wire rack and allow the galettes to cool for at least twenty minutes to half an hour. remove the crematta™ from the freezer and place in the fridge until ready to serve spooned on top of the galettes.

Crematta™ Crème Brûlée

Cook Time: 20-30 minutes + overnight chilling

Servings: 4

INGREDIENTS

350g JULIENNE BRUNO Crematta™

250ml unsweetened non dairy milk 

75g fine caster sugar

1 tsp nutritional yeast

40g cornflour, sieved

¼ tsp sea salt flakes

1 vanilla pod, split, beans removed

2 tsp vanilla extract

60g demerara sugar (to caramelise tops)

4x 9 cm brulee ramekins

METHOD

STEP 1: Combine milk, sugar, nutritional yeast, cornflour in a small pan. Heat gently whilst whisking constantly until the mixture no longer feels grainy. This is a sign that all the sugar has dissolved. Add the salt, vanilla pod, seeds and vanilla extract to the pan. Increase the heat, bringing the mixture to a gentle simmer (again whisking constantly so that it does not burn or stick) until it begins to thicken.

STEP 2: As soon as the mixture thickens, remove from the heat and transfer from the pan into a large mixing bowl to cool. Remove the vanilla pod.

STEP 3: Using a large spatula, fold through both tubs of Crematta until fully combined before pouring the custard into the four ramekins to cool completely. Once cool, cover with cling film then transfer to the fridge to set overnight.

STEP 4: Before serving, evenly sprinkle a tablespoon of demerara sugar over the top of each ramekin to completely cover the vanilla custard. Caramelise the sugar using a kitchen blowtorch, or place under a very hot preheated grill until the sugar is golden brown. Serve immediately.

Enjoy both of the recipes.

You can learn more by visiting their website, here: https://www.juliennebruno.com.

Wow! Sweet Bao: Heavenly Desserts launches Itsu Bao Buns

Worldwide dessert franchise, Heavenly Desserts, has joined forces with Asian-inspired grocery brand, itsu, to launch its TikTok-famed sweet chocolate bao buns directly into its stores all over the country.

Having launched in Heavenly Desserts' 50 restaurants UK-wide, the vegan, warm and delightfully fluffy bao buns are filled with a smooth, melt-in-the-middle chocolate filling and are served alongside a delicious caramel dipping sauce.

This addition to the Heavenly Desserts menu results from itsu’s continual efforts innovate ranges with new flavours that excite modern audiences with trending ingredients and with unique concepts.

The bao buns created by itsu will be available at Heavenly Desserts’ restaurants, and will also become a core item on its ‘dessert tapas’ menu. 

Ravinder Faguraha, who is the project support manager at Heavenly Desserts, said: “Partnering with itsu to bring these sweet treats into our menu was such a genuine joy. It’s the largest partnership we’ve embarked on so far, which holds true to our unrelenting commitment to innovation. 

“After a lot of consumer research and flavour profiling and following on from the popularity of our mochi desserts which we announced last summer, we learned bao buns are setting a trend in the dessert sector as itsu has become the go-to brand in the UK market for this recognisable Asian dish. 

“Most Brits are aware that bao buns come with a savoury filling like duck and hoisin sauce, but they can be made differently by using a sweet middle. So, it was a no-brainer that these would attract new customers familiar with the cuisine to Heavenly Desserts."

As a pioneering Asian inspired restaurant and grocery brand, itsu is based within the UK. The global company was founded in 1997 by Julian Metcalfe, who was co-founder of sandwich chain Pret A Manger. 

Yousif Aslam, co-founder and MD at Heavenly Desserts, said: “Partnering with household brand names like itsu is such an exciting step for us. We're always drawing inspiration from other cuisines and recently launched our springtime drinks range which were crafted from authentic Japanese flavours like matcha and yuzu. 

"These have been really popular, so alongside the bao buns we're also announcing our Strawberry Daquiri mocktail and extending our springtime drinks into summer for the perfect refresher.”

Julian Metcalfe, itsu's founder said: “Sweet Bao is really an historic breakthrough, -every now and then, the team hits a real bullseye; this is one such lucky example. After in excess of 50 failed trials, we managed to get rich quality chocolate to flow, molten warm, from inside the fluffy bao bun. It's the result of our dedicated 10-person strong NPD team who have worked tirelessly for a whole year to create this phenomenal first-to-market, brand new product.”

For more information about Heavenly Desserts and its menus visit: https://www.heavenlydesserts.co.uk.

Strawberry and raspberry ripple Eton Mess

There's nothing like a nice Eton Mess. This recipe has a different twist on it, as it uses strawberries and raspberries in the recipe.  

This is how you make it:-

Make up the strawberry swirled meringues and fruit puree the day before, then just layer with whipped cream and extra fruit in recycled jam jars and screw on the lids, take out to the garden in a basket or pack into a cool box for a picnic pud.

Serves 6

Preparation time: 35 minutes

Cooking time: 1¼ -1½ hours

225g (8oz) strawberries, hulled

100g (4oz) raspberries

Meringues

2 egg whites

100g (4oz) caster sugar

To finish

300ml (1/2 pint) double cream

200g (7oz) 0.1% fat fromage frais

225g (8oz) strawberries, hulled, roughly chopped

50g (2oz) raspberries

1      Preheat the oven to 110oC (225oF), Gas Mark ¼. Line a large baking sheet with non-stick baking paper.

2      Puree the strawberries and raspberries in a liquidiser or food processor then press through a sieve.

3      Whisk the egg whites in a large clean dry bowl until they form stiff moist looking peaks and you feel confident that if the bowl was turned upside down the egg whites wouldn’t fall out! Gradually whisk in the sugar a teaspoonful at a time then continue whisking for a minute or two until really thick and glossy.

4      Add 2 tablespoons of the berry puree then very briefly mix until marbled. Spoon into a large piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm (¾ inch) plain piping tube, pipe small rounds on to the lined baking sheet. Bake for 11/4-11/2 hours or until the meringues may be easily lifted off the paper. Leave to cool.

5      To serve, lightly whip the cream until it forms soft swirls then fold in the fromage frais. Crumble the meringues then layer in jam jars or plastic containers with the remaining berry puree and diced strawberries. Decorate with the raspberries.  Add the lids and keep in the fridge until ready to serve or transport to a picnic in a cool bag with a frozen ice block to keep them cold. Serve within 1½ hours or the meringues tend to lose their crunch.

This recipe is courtesy of Love Fresh Berries and you can find more delicious berry recipes here https://www.lovefreshberries.co.uk

Ultimate pudding pairings courtesy of Charlie Bigham and Remeo Gelato

I have a confession. There's a supermarket my wife and I visit. But the only thing we buy there is Charlie Bigham's delicious meals. And maybe some wine and some real ale to accompany it!

So you can imagine our joy when we received some news that we want to share with you. Charlie Bigham is now working with Remeo to bring you pudding perfection!

You might say these are the ultimate puddings pairings, and it's all down to Charlie Bigham’s proper puds and Remeo Gelato!

Everyone knows how much work goes into hosting a dinner party, so next time you’ve got your friends or family members round to your place for a spot of evening dining, or even if you’re the one being hosted, why not allow Charlie take care of dessert?

If you are a fan of Sticky Toffee Pudding, moon over a Cherry Bakewell or if gooey Molten Chocolate Pudding is what gets you going, Charlie has partnered with Remeo Gelato co-founder Jacopo Cordero Di Vonzo, who has you covered with the perfect gelato pairings to have alongside Charlie Bigham’s puddings, for a final course that is sure to wow your guests without any added stress.

Molten Chocolate Pudding + Stracciatella Gelato…

For a choc-lovers dream, pair Charlie Bigham’s Molten Chocolate Pudding with Remeo’s velvety Stracciatella.

Cherry Bakewell Pudding + Raspberry &

Mascarpone Gelato…

Get your fix of fruity decadence with oozing cherry compote and tart raspberry sauce, delicately balanced with mascarpone and a sprinkling of flaked almonds. 

Sticky Toffee Pudding + Salted Caramel Gelato…

If caramel and toffee are what will satisfy your sweet tooth, a classic Charlie Bigham’s Sticky Toffee Pudding never goes amiss, and is made all the more seductive with Remeo’s delectable, smooth, sweet and slightly salty gelato, layered with caramel and an added peanut crunch.

Bread & Butter Pudding + Madagascan Vanilla Gelato…

For the perfect way to round off a summer evening in the garden when the sun is dipping toward the horizon, enjoy Charlie Bigham’s indulgent Bread & Butter pudding with a generous helping of Remeo’s signature vanilla gelato. A true classic, or ‘classico’?! 

Charlie Bigham’s ‘Proper Puds’ are carefully crafted to give you exactly what you need to round off a tasty meal and are all made with the same care and attention as all the other Charlie Bigham’s meals. 

Summer is all about enjoying quality time with friends and family and the puds allow you to do exactly that, by saving you from being caught up in the kitchen! The range isn’t just for autumn or winter months, with the puds making for a delicious end to a summer evening when paired with some gelato, too.

Says Remeo Co-Founder Jacopo Cordero Di Vonzo: ‘‘Remeo is all about bringing the authentic Italian experience to the UK, and nothing epitomises this more than these Italian-English pairings that work so well not only during the summer months but all year round, too! 

"‘La Dolce Vita' is all about sharing simple pleasures, and not only do these pairings taste truly ‘delizioso’ but the Charlie Bigham’s trays and Remeo Gelato jars are the perfect sharing sizes.’’

All puddings and gelato can be purchased on Ocado, details below:

Charlie Bigham’s Cherry Bakewell Pudding -  RRP £5.

Charlie Bigham’s Bread & Butter Pudding - RRP £5.

Charlie Bigham’s Molten Chocolate Pudding - RRP £3.95.

Charlie Bigham’s Sticky Toffee Pudding - RRP £5.

Remeo Raspberry & Mascarpone Gelato - RRP £6.

Remeo Madagascan Vanilla Gelato - RRP £6.

Remeo Stracciatella Gelato - RRP £6.

Remeo Salted Caramel Gelato - RRP - £6.

https://www.bighams.com

https://remeogelato.com

Graze Launches Decadent New Sticky Toffee Flavour Inspired by Britain’s Beloved Dessert

Those clever chaps and chapettes at graze, -the UK’s top healthy snaking brand, has just launched a delicious new product, Sticky Toffee Oat Boosts, which is aiming to provide us Brits with a nostalgically tasty yet healthy snack that pays homage to the taste of the nation’s much-loved pudding.

The indulgent new Oat Boosts are bursting with decadent flavour and combine rich treacle, sticky dates and rolled wholegrain oats into an easy on-the-go flapjack. 

The bars join other ultimately moreish flavours in the Oat Boost range like Lemon Blueberry, Cocoa Vanilla, Cherry Bakewell and Peanut Butter. 

The delicious snacks are available in packs of four and can be enjoyed on their own, as an accompaniment to a hot cup of tea, coffee or hot chocolate, or as a post-workout treat.

graze firmly believes that no one should ever have to compromise on taste, and the new Sticky Toffee Oat Boosts reflect this. As their chefs have expertly combining simple, wholesome ingredients to recreate the household famous, mouth-watering flavour.

Each Sticky Toffee Oat Boost is 122 kcals per serving and has 45% less sugar than the average cereal bar. Like the rest of the graze Oat Boost range, the delectable bar is high in fibre and free from artificial flavours and preservatives.

Healthy snackers lovers will be able to pick up the new graze Sticky Toffee Oat Boosts at Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Waitrose, WHSmith and via Amazon, with more stockists on the way soon. Sticky Toffee Oat Boosts are priced at a RRP of £2.75 (120g) for a box of four.

Eleanor McClelland, who is the graze Head of Food at graze said: “We know many Brits feel it’s hard to find snacks that both taste good and are also healthy, with recent research showing 20% of us struggle to find healthy and tasty snacks when we're out shopping. Our new Sticky Toffee Oat is first  in spontaneous awareness for healthy snacking brands."

Juicy! The tasty new art exhibition from artist Florence Houston

Juicy! will run from Wednesday 1st  to Tuesday 7th November 2023 at the J/M Gallery, 230 Portobello Road, London W11 1LJ

It's an amazing show, combining food and art, nostalgic objects and the ultimate fetishes, Juicy! is the inaugural solo exhibition by classically-trained contemporary artist Florence Houston. Hosted by the J/M Gallery this November, Juicy! will be set to spark an interesting conversations about the intersection of art, history, and gastronomy.

Juicy! offers an experience that engages all of the senses, showcasing a collection of monumental and dramatic paintings centred around the enchanting theme of Victorian jellies. Mysterious yet captivating, Juicy also features a selection of still life paintings depicting pills, flowers and plastic bags filled with colourful fruit.

Taking place in the heart of London for a limited time only, this unique exhibition will transport viewers into a bygone era through a contemporary lens. 

Celebrated for her whimsical paintings, Florence Houston’s array of luscious and elaborate jelly designs capture the essence of Victorian elegance and extravagance. Through vibrant colours, intricate patterns, and nostalgic charm, Juicy! explores the fascinating history and cultural significance of these gelatinous delights.

Both comic and monstrous, giant and miniature, these painted jellies were specially designed with food stylist Lou Kenney to capture the different characteristics of each jelly based on its size, colour and shape. With extremely meticulous attention to detail, Houston’s series of stunning paintings will be paying homage to the Victorian era's obsession with jellies as both a culinary delight and a symbol of social status and standing.

Connoting something sexy in today’s pop culture, “jelly” in Victorian times had a very different meaning. From the opulence of royal banquets to the creativity of home cooks, Victorian jellies were not only a culinary delight but also a symbol of sophistication and status. 

Victorians created these incredible wobbling, gleaming jelly sculptures that they used as centrepieces on a table. By exploring this unique aspect of Victorian culture, Florence Houston invites viewers to reflect on the ways in which food and art intertwine to shape our collective history and identity.

Commenting on Juicy!, Florence Houston says: “Juicy is a word I’ve always used to describe something that excites me as a painter, its a colour or a texture or a brush stroke, even the paint itself as it comes out the tube. It’s a primal feeling that guides me from subject to subject and that unites this body of work. 

"I really enjoy taking something that feels disregarded or unimportant and painting it seriously, really cherishing it. There’s something comedic about it but I also want to show how beautiful those things can be. It’s very satisfying painting a plastic bag or a jelly using exactly the same material and technique that’s been used to paint centuries of Kings, Popes and other pomp and glory. All my work focuses on beauty, I feel very sensitive to it, finding it and recreating it in my paintings feels like my ultimate goal”.

Juicy! will continue online until the end of November via www.florencehouston.com

Shock new figures from Asda reveal UK regions outside London suffering most with cost-of-living struggle

Most recent data from Asda’s Income Tracker show the squeeze on household disposable incomes is much more severe for families living in certain parts of the UK than others, with households in Northern Ireland living on average weekly disposable income of just £95.

The decrease in disposable income has been particularly evident for low-income families, with 40% of UK households in negative income last month, so their take home pay didn't cover spending on bills and essentials. 

Families in Northern Ireland, the North East and the West Midlands struggled the most during the second quarter, when average weekly disposable incomes were at £95, £133 and £163 respectively, well below the UK average of £208 across the quarter to 30 June.

In addition to these regions, other areas of the UK that also saw a decline in disposable income during the quarter were the South East (excluding London), East of England and Wales.

Those regions faring worse than others during the cost-of-living crisis tend to be characterised by a greater concentration of spending on consumption categories that have seen high inflation recently. They also have lower employment rates or a higher concentration of employment in lower paid or low wage growth occupations than other parts of the UK.

In contrast, many families living in London fared better with rising living costs and have seen disposable incomes rise by 5.8% year-on-year to an average of £272 per week during the same period. A key factor behind this rise is the strong labour market and concentration of higher paying jobs in the capital city.

While family disposable income as a whole across the UK rose by £5.74 a week in June to an average of £210 per week, a 2.8% increase compared to the same period last year, rising living costs continue to outstrip wage growth for the majority of households that are outside our capital. 

Asda continues to support families across the UK and last week announced it was cutting the prices of in excess of 200 own-label lines by an average of nine percent. Products include a host of fresh fruit and vegetables, frozen meat and fish products, cupboard staples and popular ready meal options.

Kris Comerford, who is Asda’s Chief Commercial Officer, commented: “We know families are continuing to feel the pinch financially, especially as they head toward the long summer holidays, and so they're looking for help to make their grocery budget stretch a bit further. Whenever there's a chance for Asda to help them make their money go further by lowering prices, we'll continue to do this.”

Asda's also extended its massively popular ‘Kids Eat for £1’ café meal offer until the end of the year. Since launching this initiative last July, Asda has served 2 million meals from its cafes and invested £1.3m subsidising the offer to keep the meal prices at £1. 

Asda recently added a selection of half priced adult meals to the menu, thus giving a family of four the chance to enjoy a meal in any Asda café for as little as £8.50 in total.

www.asda.com

Tesco makes food bank donations a little easier for customers

Food banks and charities see demand rise during the summer months. And Tesco is helping its customers make donations to food banks by selling Food bank donation bags in 300 Tesco stores.

The bags are pre-filled with items that are most needed by families.

The donation bags, which customers can pick up as they enter the store, will contain the items most needed by foodbanks and charities, likes pasta, pulses and pasta sauce and will typically cost around £3.50.

The bags make it a quick and easy way for shoppers to give a helping hand to food banks and charities feeding people in their local communities this summer. 

Last year, the total amount of food donated by Tesco shoppers to the Trussell Trust and FareShare was the equivalent of 12.5 million meals.

The donation bags will be available in Tesco stores until Sunday September 3, alongside every Tesco store’s permanent collection point where customers can donate long life food items all year round. 

Over the summer, customers can also round up their bill to the nearest pound at the checkout to make it even easier to offer financial support to those who are in need. This will be available to 6th August and 28th August to 3rd September.

Tesco Head of Community Claire de Silva said: “We’re very proud of our partnerships with FareShare and the Trussell Trust and we are keen to continue to find ways to help them. With more people using food banks we wanted to make donating as easy as possible for customers who want to support their local community. The donation bags will be available throughout the summer holidays so it allows a real focus on families and children who need support.”

Polly Hoffman, Head of Retail at FareShare, said: “The need for FareShare food has been rising quickly as a result of the cost of living crisis, and will continue to do so throughout the summer holidays when more families rely on these vital local services to feed themselves and their loved ones.

“At a time when millions of people are going hungry across the UK, the donations we receive from generous Tesco customers is really vital for the charities and community groups we provide food to.  That’s why we’re thrilled Tesco is making it even easier for people to support FareShare by introducing donation bags in store this summer.”

Emma Revie, CEO at the Trussell Trust, added: “We're extremely grateful to Tesco for again providing innovative new ways for their customers to support our network of more than 1,300 food bank centres. Over the last year, food banks have faced record levels of need and, while donations have increased by 18%, our network distributed 37% more emergency food parcels than in 2021/2022. 

“The generosity of Tesco and its customers plays a vital role in ensuring that food banks can continue to support people who cannot afford the essentials, as we continue working towards our vision of ending the need for food banks.”

(EDITOR: Other supermarkets such as Morrisons also offer food bank bag donation points in their stores.)

Green first for Morrisons as it becomes first UK supermarket to introduce coffee pod recycling points

There's some exciting news for ecologically-minded shoppers as Morrisons is becoming the first UK supermarket to introduce coffee pod recycling points at its stores.

The return bins from coffee pod recycling scheme ‘Podback’ is launching in 29 stores this month. 

Used aluminium and plastic pods will be turned into new products including drinks cans, plastic crates and garden furniture.

The move which is being trialled in 29 stores is in partnership with Podback, the specialist pod recycling service. 

In an effort to make coffee pod recycling even easier and more convenient, Morrisons is trialling a new drop-off service which allows customers to collect their Podback recycling bags, fill them up with their used pods, and recycle in a dedicated bin which will be sited at the front of the store.

Last year, Morrisons announced it was the first supermarket to support Podback and remains the only one to provide free coffee pod recycling bags for its customers to collect in all of its stores. The recycling bags can be filled at home and be taken to one of 6,500 Yodel drop off points around the UK with all postage covered by Podback. 

Over the last year, it's estimated 800 million coffee pods were bought in the UK, making it even more important than ever for customers to have an easier route to recycle their pods.  

Morrisons is also set to become a dedicated Podback member, meaning Morrisons own-brand pods can all be recycled through the scheme, besides 24 other pod brands across the coffee sector. 

Customers need to use correctly colour coded bags, there's one for aluminium pods and one for plastic pods. This is because pods are separated and sent to different recycling processing plants in the UK.

Through Podback, used aluminium pods are turned back into aluminium ingots for new products, like beverage cans, and the used plastic coffee pods are turned into other plastic items,  including building products and plastic crates. And there's more! The used coffee grounds go through a special anaerobic digestion process, which makes useful biogas and soil improver.

Natasha Cook, who is the Sustainable Packaging and Plastics Manager at Morrisons, said: “We’re excited to be launching this trial with Podback as we look to make it even easier for our customers who want to brew fresh coffee at home to recycle their used coffee pods. Now they can grab a Podback bag, fill it at home and just drop it off on their next store trip.”  

Rick Hindley, the Executive Director at Podback, said: “Morrisons was the first supermarket to become a supporter of Podback and we’re thrilled that they’re now set to become a member; enabling their own brand pods to be recycled through the service and working with us to further improve access to coffee pod recycling by trialling a new drop-off system. 

"This is another exciting step forward towards providing consumers with easy and convenient ways to recycle their used coffee pods. We also welcome and encourage other retailers to join Podback and make it even easier for consumers to recycle pods in the future.”

Morrisons stores across the UK currently offer soft plastic, battery and inkjet recycling facilities. Since 2017 Morrisons has reduced its own brand plastic packaging in its 499 stores by over 10,000 tonnes a year.

The following Morrisons stores now offer Podback drop off points with more stores to follow:

Aldershot

Letchworth

Aylesbury

Melton Mowbray

Banbury

Milton Keynes

Basingstoke

Northampton – Kettering Road

Bedford

Northampton – Victoria Promenade

Bracknell

Reading

Carterton

St Albans

Corby

Shefford

Farnborough

Watford

Fleet

Wellingborough

High Wycombe

Welwyn Garden City

Hoddersdon

Weybridge

Houghton Regis

Woking

Kettering

Wokingham

Leighton Buzzard

Support local charities by helping collect ‘Tonnes of Tins’ for UKHarvest

UKHarvest is excited to be a part of V2 Radio’s ‘Tonnes of Tins’ once again. 

V2 Radio, KMFM, Awaaz FM, and Fiesta FM are working together to collect as many food tins as they possibly can across Hampshire, Sussex and Kent to donate to local foodbanks, communities, and charities, like UKHarvest! 

Last year V2 Radio collected an amazingly impressive 4.8 tonnes, but this year they're looking to beat this number in the six weeks of collections until Friday 11th August. More and more people and charities are struggling now more than ever so, every tin really does count!

How does your donation help?

Every donation is added up to a grand total and distributed between local foodbanks, communities, and charities, including UKHarvest.

Their mission is to prevent food waste and food insecurity by enriching and educating our communities. We regularly support a network of over 350 local charities with quality surplus rescued food to benefit their communities.

Click here to see who else your donations would be supporting https://www.v2radio.co.uk/tonnes-of-tins-2023/

How can you get involved?

Donation Points are placed across the county at supermarkets and libraries to make it really easy and convenient for people to help support local foodbanks and charities. 

A spokesperson said: "Just pop your tins into the donation points & V2 Radio will do the rest! For a full list of donation point locations please click here https://www.v2radio.co.uk/tot-donation-points-list/?_=18848

Or check out the map here https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?hl=en&mid=1kJDh5TNhJ4PxUC0Ljt26L0lAPqQR-h8&ll=51.122607874877694%2C-0.2873121642578047&z=8

Order an online food shop via a supermarket and have it delivered to the V2 Radio studios. Please ensure that the delivery is booked during office hours, so that someone will be there to receive the order!

Address: V2 Radio, Downlands House, Drayton Lane, Chichester, PO20 1EL

If you can't get to one of their  donation points or do an online shop, but you'd still like to support the appeal, you can do so by donating to V2 Radio’s Just Giving page. They’ll use the money to purchase the tins on your behalf and add them to the tonnes of tins donated. Donate here https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/Tonnes-of-Tins-2023

You can help spread the word by tagging @V2RadioSussex and by using the hashtag #tonnesoftins.

Co-op and Starship Technologies expand robot delivery service across Leeds

Co-op and Starship Technologies have confirmed the expansion of autonomous online grocery deliveries across more neighbourhoods in Leeds in collaboration with Leeds City Council.

Following a successful pilot launched last November, with 20,000 residents within the Adel and Tinshill area of Leeds have access to Starship’s delivery service. Now a further 12,000 households in communities in the Kippax and Swarcliffe areas of Leeds can now access Co-op groceries delivered by robots quickly, easily and conveniently.

Orders are placed via the Starship food delivery app, which is available for download via iOS and Android, with residents in Kippax and Swarcliffe able to choose from a wide range of groceries which are picked fresh from two local Co-op stores, and delivered in the local community.

With a delivery fee starting from only 99p, customers can order their delivery to arrive in under an hour and watch the robot travel in real-time via a special interactive map. They'll receive an alert when the robot arrives, and can meet and unlock it via the app.

Chris Conway, Co-op's eCommerce Director, said: “Co-op stores are well placed in the heart of local communities to provide quick, easy, convenient grocery home deliveries for time-pressed shoppers, whether that is a full shop or, for last-minute top-ups and forgotten items. 

"We're committed to exploring new and innovative ways to increase access to our products and services, and delighted to be able to roll-out robot deliveries to provide further online flexibility and choice for consumers across Leeds.”

Councillor Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for sustainable development and infrastructure, said: “Residents and families of Adel and Tinshill have welcomed Starship robots delivering their groceries, with over three-quarters of survey respondents in support of the introduction of the robots in the area. 

"The expansion to Kippax and Swarcliffe will mean more people in Leeds can benefit from a zero-carbon alternative to grocery deliveries. As a council we’re pleased initiatives like this can help towards reducing the emissions of the last-mile delivery journey. It helps us to meet our pledge of becoming a carbon neutral city by 2030 by aiming to reduce short journeys to the shops made by car."

Andrew Curtis, who is the Director of European Operations at Starship Technologies, said: “The feedback we have received since first launching in Leeds last year was overwhelmingly positive and we are very pleased to be able to extend the benefits the robots have provided to an extra 12,000 homes from now on. More and more people are conscious of trying to reduce their carbon footprint and our robots helps them with this by eliminating the need for short car journeys to pick up their groceries.”

Starship’s robots are powered by 100% renewable electricity, with an average delivery for a robot consuming as little energy as boiling a kettle to make just one cup of tea. Time-pressed shoppers use the service for its speed, ease and convenience to fit around their busy lives, including the 24% of Starship’s existing customers in Leeds who either have, or live with someone, who has an accessibility need.

This expansion in Leeds continues robot delivery growth across Yorkshire following the launch of the service with Co-op in areas of Leeds and, in Wakefield earlier in the year. The robots are also familiar and popular sight in other places across the UK, including Trafford (which is in Greater Manchester), Milton Keynes, Northampton, Bedford and Cambridge.

Since launching commercial deliveries in 2018, Starship’s 2,000+ fleet of robots have safely completed more than five million deliveries around the world, with consumers using the service to save time and fit shopping around their busy lives. Globally, the robots undertake 140,000 road crossings every single day.

I wonder when our local Co-op will get robotic delivery options?

Sound action for the bees at Marks and Spencer's farms

Following two successful trials last year, M&S has announced a further expansion of its partnership with agri-tech start-up AgriSound to an additional 18 sites all over the UK.

Last year M&S launched two in-field sensor trials that assisted farmers better support pollinators such as bumblebees and increased crop yields, and now M&S is rolling the technology out to more M&S Select farms likes East Seaton Farm in Arbroath which supplies Red Diamond strawberries to the high-street retailer.

AgriSound Polly technology allows farmers to track the number of pollinators who visit their farm in real-time and target specific interventions, like differing wildflower densities, for improving numbers and yields and quality of crops, as well as benefitting the wider environment. 

Specialist listening devices combine acoustic technology and environmental sensors to monitor the density of key pollinators, which include bumblebees and honeybees, plus the wider insect community remotely. The devices collect and send data via mobile data, with users able to see results via a smartphone or web app.

This roll-out will cover a diverse range of M&S’s fruit, veg and salad farms, making up 8% of M&S British growers, with monitors covering 120 habitats and over 1000 hectares, the largest number of growers reached through a retailer-funded trial so far to date. The technology will provide growers access to real-time data and insights to help set their farms up to be more nature-friendly.

At East Seaton Farm, the sensors are to be sited within the Red Diamond strawberry tunnels, to help track which kinds of pollinators are attracted to the strawberry crops. The roll out of this technology will help them determine how many natural predators they now attract through pollen and nectar mixes and evaluate the relative value of these different habitats in attracting pollinators at different times of the year.

Lochy Porter,who is the owner at East Seaton Farm, said: “Pollinators play an extremely  vital role in helping us deliver the best quality produce we can at the farm, so we’re keen to see the impact AgriSound technology has on activity. 

"With so many current environmental challenges, it’s more important than ever to understand pollinators better. We’re delighted to have been selected by M&S as one of the locations for this expansion and excited to see what beneficial outcomes can be achieved by these relatively simple measures. If we can attract more pollinators to our farm, this will be a huge success for us.”

The collaboration is part of M&S’ Farming with Nature programme, launched back in 2021 to support the retailer’s Select Farmers to become more resilient to environmental challenges spanning climate change and biodiversity loss.

As part of the programme, M&S has partnered with specialist industry partner LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) to strengthen pollinator-friendly farming practices across M&S’s grower base in the UK. M&S British fruit and vegetable growers are adopting higher standards, developed in partnership with LEAF, to boost biodiversity. 

This means, for example, growers set aside between 5-10% of habitat for wildlife and monitor numbers of farmland birds and pollinators. Today, M&S Select Farm growers are protecting and enhancing 9,500 hectares of habitats across the UK, with the growers on average setting aside 7% of their farms to wildlife, delivering the biodiversity badly needed across supply chains.

Andrew Clappen, Technical Director at M&S Food, said: “At M&S, our Plan A target is to become a net zero business by 2040. M&S Food makes up the majority of our emissions, with 72% of this coming directly from agriculture. Sustainable farming is not just a nice to have but a necessity for our business.

"Improving biodiversity is at the forefront of our plans to help farmers become more resilient to the impact of climate change. Pollinators are the unsung heroes of British farming – helping to improve yields and quality while benefitting the wider environment.

"Since we launched Farming with Nature, we’ve been hosting workshops offering advice to our M&S Select Farmers on the best ways to attract more pollinators. Now, by expanding out our partnership with AgriSound, farms like East Seaton will have real-time data and valuable insights into what’s working and what’s not.”

Gill Perkins, who is CEO Chief of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, said: “It’s fantastic to see a major retailer investing in supporting and monitoring our essential wild pollinators. Bumblebees and other pollinators ensure the food we eat is nutritious, healthy and tasty, by working in the fields from dawn until dusk every day. They're pivotal to food production and it’s great to see them receive the recognition they deserve and the support they need to survive.”

Casey Woodward, Founder and CEO of AgriSound, said: “We’re delighted M&S has decided to roll-out AgriSound technology to more of its Select Farms. The development of our Polly™ devices has taken years of dedicated research and it is really exciting to see our technology continuing to deliver unique insights into pollinator activity. I look forward to working closely with the Select Farmers to help protect local pollinator communities.”

To learn more about M&S Farming With Nature programme, please visit: Agriculture and Supporting Our Farmers | Marks & Spencer (marksandspencer.com).