Dorset Cereals Walks The Red Carpet At This Year's Oscars

Stars are in for a treat when they open their goody bags at this year's Oscars on February 24. For among the ipods, Macbook Airs, jewellery, clothes and even diamonds in their glittering swag bags, Oscar nominees from George Clooney to Meryl Streep will find Dorset Cereals award-winning mueslis, complete with bowl and spoon, awaiting them in the gifting suites.

Recently voted Britain's favourite breakfast cereal (As quoted by Marketing Week in a study by Nunwood, the customer experience specialist,) Dorset Cereals was specially selected to be part of the Official 2012 GBK's Gift Lounge in Honour of Oscars. Mandy Cooper, Head of Communications at Dorset Cereals, comments: "When GBK contacted us about being part of the Gift Lounge at the Oscars we were tickled pink. As a little company from Dorset, England, it is a huge privilege to be selected to be in front of so many A-list celebrities, not to mention a wealth of other well-established brands".

Hello from Dorset........

"We make all our breakfast cereals at Poundbury in Dorset which is the unique village inspired and created by HRH The Prince of Wales. Mueslis, Granolas, Porridges, Tasty Fruit and Fibre, Tasty Low Fat Flakes and Cereal Bars are all made to recipes which are packed with goodness. For recipes, photos, competitions to win lovely stuff and news about simple pleasures go to www.dorsetcereals.co.uk.

FACTFILE:
Since 2006, Dorset Cereals has been awarded numerous Gold medals for taste, design and packaging which reflect the uncompromising dedication the Company has to making premium cereals. The Company was voted runner-up in Sainsbury's Magazine's 2010 Brand of the Decade. They were also nominated as one of the UK's top 500 Cool Brands 2010/11.

Dorset Cereals supports local The Woodland Trust and has paid for 8,000 trees, which will be planted over two years by people across the UK in their local areas as part of the 'More Trees, More Good' campaign. In December 2010 they planted their own woodland of 500 trees near their factory at Poundbury Dorset.

Temperature Rises At Stokes Sauces

Award-winning sauce and preserve company, Stokes Sauces, has announced the launch of a new range of chilli products which will add a hot and spicy kick to mealtimes.

The Suffolk-based food company, which now produces over 100 different lines, has unveiled a range of new chilli products including a Chilli Jam, Chilli Mint Jelly and Chilli Yellow Pepper Jelly.

Packed full of the finest fresh ingredients, the new chilli products are presented in the unmistakable high-quality Stokes bottle and retail at around £3 a jar.

Rick Sheepshanks, managing director of Stokes Sauces, said: "We are truly delighted with the new additions to our brand.

"We launched our Real Tomato Ketchup with chilli back in 2006 and the product was so well received that we decided it was time to expand our range of hot and spicy sauces and preserves."

The new chilli products work particularly well with red meats and provide the perfect cheese board accompaniment, highlighting the flavour of mature cheddars and soft bries.

Rick's own favourite use for it is rather simpler, however:
'The new chilli products make a fantastic cooking ingredient and add a real kick to a pasta sauce - a Spaghetti Bolognese isn't fit for consumption in my house without a great big dollop of chilli jam," he said.

Launched in 2004, Stokes Sauces now produces in excess of over 100 different lines and its produce is widely stocked in farm shops and independent stores throughout the UK.

Leading supermarkets are now also beginning to stock key lines from the Stokes brand.

Smoked Chicken Caesar Salad Leaf Canapés With Parmigiano Reggiano Shavings

Impress your dinner guests with these mouth-watering smoked chicken Caesar canapés served with chicory leaves and Parmigiano Reggiano.

Whatever the occasion, these delicious canapés are perfect for an evening of entertaining and look lovely too! Simply prepare the dressing by whisking together the egg yolk, lemon juice, anchovies and garlic, drizzle into the chicory leaves and top with smoked chicken and plenty of delicious Parmigiano Reggiano shavings.

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, known as ‘Parmesan’, is one of the world’s oldest and richest cheeses - still produced today as it was nine centuries ago. Totally natural - it’s the only cheese that has such an extensive maturation which improves the nutrition, aroma and taste. The use of raw milk and the richness of natural ingredients make this cheese a unique and superior product - It takes 16 litres of milk to produce one kilogram of cheese! The minimum maturation time for Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is 12 months, but only when it reaches approximately 24 months of age, is it at its best. As well as having fantastic nutritional qualities, it’s easy to digest and is high in calcium.

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) product. PDOs are defined and protected by European Union law in order to defend the reputation of regional foods. This mark ensures that Parmigiano Reggiano cheese can only be produced in designated areas of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna to the west of the Reno River and Mantua to the east of the Po River.

For more information on Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, please visit www.parmigianoreggiano.com

Sassy & debauched: the ultimate Valentine’s Day indulgence for Britain’s busy women

Pretty Idle Artisan Chocolates

Need a little last minute luxury for the gorgeous, busy woman in your life this Valentine’s Day? Or celebrating solo and want to lose yourself in a universe of shamelessly selfish indulgence? New British luxury relaxation label, Pretty Idle, is here to save the day with its first blissed-out collection of artisan chocolates.

Presented in a sumptuous drawer-style box with a black velvet tab, each chocolate sparkles for attention and has been individually created by Pretty Idle’s own London-based chocolatier, Madame Coco, using her personal favourite flavour-combinations from around the globe. These chocolates are unapologetically sassy, shamelessly indulgent and deliciously immoral. A veritable treasure trove of chocolate hedonism, designed for women by women, the box contains twelve opulent treats:

Pretty Idle Spice – A secret blend of decadent spices in velvety dark chocolate
Gem de la Mer – Sexy sea-salted caramel encased in shimmering milk chocolate
Passion Rocks – Glitzy little squares of indulgent passion-fruit praline
Boozy Floozy – Fabulously retro cognac and raisin in deep, dark chocolate
Ooh La La – Sumptuous layers of Parisian praline, feuilletine and white chocolate
Ruby Rouge – Raspberry ganache with a shameless pinch of saffron

Pretty Idle Artisan Chocolates are available exclusively from http://www.PrettyIdle.com for £18. Order by 11 February for guaranteed UK delivery for Valentine’s Day.

Inspired by the vintage Hollywood glamour of Marilyn Monroe and Mae West, spiked with a cheeky modern twist of style, wit and an inherent understanding of what it feels like for a girl, Pretty Idle is Britain’s newest luxury relaxation label, dedicated to delivering slivers of bliss to busy women who spend their lives putting others first.

Created by ultimate busy girl, Jacqueline Day, and award-winning West End performer, Frances Ruffelle, Pretty Idle is here to bring hedonism into your homes with little touches of opulence that make all the hard work worthwhile.

2012 will see the label launch its exclusive first collection of limited edition chill-out accessories such as cashmere blankets and socks and luxe aromatherapy candles and bath oils, all designed and created in the UK. Discover more at http://www.PrettyIdle.com

Foraging triggers new launches by food trend setters My Secret Kitchen

Wild Garlic Secret Spice

The UK's first food tasting company are very proud to announce the start of a new range of Secret Spices starting with Wild Garlic.

One of their founding principles is a commitment to creating versatile products with a multitude of uses. The first in a new range is a perfect example. It comprises wild garlic and garden herbs together with a secret dash of wasabi.

Wild garlic is very common throughout the UK and you can often smell it before you see it whilst taking a walk through the woodlands. Unlike your standard garlic, it’s the leaves of the wild garlic plant that are used in this blend. As well as using Wild Garlic seasoning to make a gorgeous garlic butter, a brilliant garlic bread, a delightful dip or a tasty cheese ball just 1/4 tsp of this store-cupboard wonder can replace 1 clove of fresh garlic in other recipes too.

My Secret Kitchen are predicting the rise of North African food in the market place in 2012. Their new Saffron Tagine Paste is an intense concentration of saffron and exotic spices. A heady combination of classic flavours you'd find in a traditional tagine or stew – coriander, cinnamon, black pepper, clove and mint – with a generous helping of the most indulgent of spices, saffron.

The result is a fragrant and aromatic paste that can be used in a tagine or slow-cooked stew (where it is especially good with cheaper cuts of meat) or in marinades and dressings. As is now normal practice at My Secret Kitchen this is an especially intense paste so a very little will go a very long way.

Finally My Secret Kitchen are very proud to announce the long awaited return of Miso dressing with ginger. It is an intensely flavoured salad dressing featuring wheat free soy sauce, white miso paste (a Japanese paste made from fermented beans more commonly used to make miso soup) and fresh ginger. Perfect as an Asian marinade or to add to a quick stir fry, and as it's oil free and has no added salt, it's the perfect thing to splash onto salads for a burst of guilt free flavour.

My Secret Kitchen is the UK’s first nationwide food and drink tasting company, and was started by husband-and wife-team, Clare and Phil Moran. They’ve taken the traditional Tupperware style business concept of home demonstration parties and turned it into a wonderful food tasting evening, where the host and his/her friends have an enjoyable time experiencing unusual and different foods, sharing recipe ideas in a warm relaxed non-pressure environment.

The business concept has proven to be a great success in the economic downturn for food lovers who are looking for an extra income and have joined My Secret Kitchen as a consultant, earning money from showing all the great foods.

If you're interested in spreading the word about some weird and wonderful foods, or would like more info about the idea of helping people earn an extra income by indulging their love of food or simply looking for a feel good story about a family who are leading the way in innovative food concepts.... or maybe would just like some samples to try then contact Phil Moran at:- philmoran@mysecretkitchen.co.uk
0845 094 5319
www.mysecretkitchen.co.uk

Open Lasagne Of Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, Prawns And Baby Squid With Lemon And Basil Pesto Dressing

Beat those winter blues with this mouth-watering Open Lasagne of Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, Prawns and Baby Squid – a great twist on the classic lasagne recipe! Make the white sauce by combining flour, butter, milk, crème fraîche and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Simply pour the white sauce over cooked lasagne sheets and add marinated seafood, fennel and walnut pesto. Top with another sheet of lasagne and finish with a drizzle of pesto, a little olive oil and grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. Buon Appetito!

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, known as ‘Parmesan’, is one of the world’s oldest and richest cheeses - still produced today as it was nine centuries ago. Totally naturally, it’s the only cheese that has such an extensive maturation which improves the nutrition, aroma and taste. The use of raw milk and the richness of natural ingredients make this cheese a unique and superior product - It takes 16 litres of milk to produce one kilogram of cheese! The minimum maturation time for Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is 12 months, but only when it reaches approximately 24 months of age, is it at its best. As well as having fantastic nutritional qualities, it’s easy to digest and is high in calcium.

Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is a PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) product. PDOs are defined and protected by European Union law in order to defend the reputation of regional foods. This mark ensures that Parmigiano Reggiano cheese can only be produced in designated areas near Parma and using specified artisan methods.

For more information on Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, please visit www.parmigianoreggiano.com

Shrove Tuesday: Wild Alaska Pollock And Prawn Pancakes

This Shrove Tuesday, add a twist to your normal pancake recipe by making these scrumptious savoury Pollock pancakes. Simply add flakes of wild Alaska pollock, prawns and dill, parsley or thyme to a creamy cheese sauce.

Spoon into homemade pancakes and sprinkle with freshly chopped herbs before serving. Sustainable and delicious, you can’t get batter than that!

Sustainable Alaska pollock is a great eco-conscious seafood choice and available frozen all year round. Alaska’s long-term dedication to sustainability began over 50 years ago in the State constitution and has ensured continuous, wild and healthy harvests, and guaranteed that stocks of superior seafood are preserved for future generations.

Alaska’s most abundant seafood species, genuine Alaska pollock is a lean, mild and tender member of the cod family. Swimming freely in the icy waters of the North Pacific Ocean, they feed on natural marine life. Wild Alaska pollock is low in fat and a natural source of protein, vitamins, calcium and Omega-3 oils, and can be eaten as part of a balanced diet.

Alaska pollock is easy to prepare and the most versatile of all whitefish varieties, and great value for money too! You can also find ready-prepared wild Alaska pollock fish fingers in the ranges of your favourite fish finger brands.

That's Food and Drink would like to thank the following for helping to prepare this article:

The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute

Photography and Reportage: Steve Lee

Recipe and Food Styling: Sue Ashworth