Monday 27 June 2016

Skippy Peanut Butter. It's what Americans eat!

America's favourite, Skippy Peanut Butter comes in smooth and crunchy varieties.

And both are equally delicious.

However, my wife and I noticed that the smooth version is much smoother than other peanut butters that we have tried.

And even the crunchy version is also smoother, too.

There's none of that annoying cloying lumpiness that one can come across in other brands of peanut butter.

There's enough crunch to keep your teeth busy, but there are no ridiculously large chunks of peanuts that can occur with other brands of crunchy peanut butter.

But here is a curious thing. My wife, who for years has assured me that she "hates" peanut butter, has really and seriously fallen very deeply in love with both the smooth and the crunchy varieties of Skippy Peanut Butter!

Rather than hating peanut butter, it looks as if the real reason for her previous antipathy to peanut butter was that she had just never tried Skippy Peant Butter, before!

They are available in 340g jars and cost £2.25 each from Sainsbury's.



Goa Premium Beer

The island of Goa, off the coast of India, is known for its beaches, its sun... and its beer.

Goa is the home of the Impala Distillery and Brewery, Ltd., of Assolda, Quepem, Goa.

One of the beers that it brews is Goa Premium Beer, which is a lager style beer.

It is brewed with all of the essential ingredients to create a good, classic lager style beer.

Water, malt, maize flakes, hops and yeast.

It is a good, honest lager style beer, yet there is something else there, almost, in the complex background flavours, there seems to be a hint of spiciness, that adds a little certain something else to this light and refreshing lager style beer.

Is this due to a reaction between the maize flakes and the other ingredients? It could well be.

It is best served chilled and it makes an excellent accompaniment for all types of food, it goes well with tapas, meals from the Indian subcontinent, British, American, European and African foods, and a bucket of these bottles kept chilled with ice is a perfect addition to anyone's BBQ spread.

In the UK it is distributed by The Offie Ltd., for Viking Ventures UK Ltd.

Friday 24 June 2016

Aduna cacao bars. Heavenly eats!

Aduna cacao bars do make for Heavenly eats!

For example, please take into consideration the Aduna Cacao bar with the crunchy cacao nibs, walnut and hibiscus.

Some people in the food industry argue that they need to shove large amounts of sugar or artificial sweeteners or sugar alternatives into pies, puddings and confectionery because they need to make their products sweet enough for the British palate.

Well, Aduna products are living proof that the above argument is just not true!

The bar is sweet and delicious, with the combination of tastes nothing short of phenomenal.

There's the cacao, the almonds and the walnuts, with a very alluring tang of hibiscus flowers, too.

It's also a good source of fibre, is good for vegetarians and vegans, too and is compatible with the paleo diet so there's a whole lot going on in favour of this nifty product and the other bars in the range.

To learn more please visit www.aduna.com.

We will be reviewing other Aduna products over the next several days. Please do look out for these.

Chika's Plantain Crisps

Chika's Plantain Crisps are a real taste of West Africa brought to the UK.

The plantain is described as the West African reply to the humble spud.

Well, whilst there's some truth in that, you have to remember that the plantain has a little bit more of a taste thing going for it than the more traditionally known potato.

It's also just as versatile as the potato, as Chika has been able to prove with her highly delicious and most agreeable Plantain crisp snacks.

They are hand cooked and the ingredients are plantain, sunflower oil, a little bit of salt (but not too much!)  and with the addition of some kickingly good chilli in the chilli flavoured plantain crisps.

You know they are different to crisps when you open the packet. Well, they are plantains, after all!

But the things you notice about them is their unique flavour.

There is a subtle sweetness there, but then there is also a nice savoury tang to it, also.

There is also a good, satisfying crunch to them, too.

And the kick from the chilli flavoured plantain crisps? It's good. Excellent, in fact, though it is not over-the-top, it's got a sort of laid back kick to it.

Chika has taken her West African heritage and used it to serve up a veritable plantain feast for us.

They are ideal for a snack, as a lunchbox treat, something good for a party or as a tasty supplement to a summer BBQ.

And the clincher is? They are gluten free, too!

To learn more please just visit www.chikas.co.uk.

And these fantastic crisps are available through Ocado, which is one of the main retailers for Chika!

Gluten Free Nutribix

Gluten Free Nutribix is a very helpful breakfast cereal.

Very helpful in that they provide a nutritious breakfast meal that does not cause the poor family members who crease up in agony when they eat breakfast cereals that are laden with gluten.

Gluten Free Nutribix are carefully made to an exacting recipe that consists of sorghum, which is "an awesome ancient grain", which makes up to 96% of the Gluten Free Nutribix breakfast biscuits.

There's also a small amount of salt, a little bit of Golden Syrup and Niacin, Thiamin, Riboflavin and folic acid. 

And that is about it.

Apart from the fact that Gluten Free Nutribix will not cause gluten intolerant people to double over in agony after breakfast, what other advantages are there with  Gluten Free Nutribix?

They are a good, traditional breakfast product. 

Served with milk (cow, goat, sheep, soya milk, rice milk, almond milk, oat milk, etc) and perhaps with some sliced strawberries, sliced bananas, whole blueberries or the like, they make an amazingly tasty breakfast treat that will give you the energy you need to tackle your daily life with renewed gusto. And without having to reach for tablets, pills or potions to fix your poor stomach if you have a gluten intolerance problem.

They are tasty and are a good, light eat. By light I mean that they are not stodgy like some gluten free products.

They are available in most supermarkets (check out their "free from..." section if they aren't with the other4 breakfast cereals) and healthfood stores.

They should cost up to £3.79 for a 375 gramme box of 24 breakfast biscuits, though do shop around for a good price.

To learn more please visit http://www.nutribix.co.uk and do please check out their other breakfast products.

Thursday 23 June 2016

Lizi's gluten free granola

Lizi's gluten free granola is a delightful breakfast treat that is not only tasty but very good for you, too!

Lizi makes a very good point. Although oats are, of themselves, a naturally gluten free food, the problem can arise should oats become contaminated with other crops that do contain gluten.

Also, some companies that produce oat-based granolas and other breakfast foods add other grains that do contain gluten into their recipe.

The ingredients of Lizi Shaw's granola are as follows:

Rolled-oats, rapeseed oil, desiccated coconut, fructose, black treacle, chicory fibre, cashew nut pieces, pumpkin seeds, suinflower seeds, golden linseeds, chopped almonds, chopped walnuts and chopped hazelnuts.

Lizi also makes the point that oats contain a protein called avenin, to which some people might be sensitive.  

The product is suitable not only for vegetarians but also for vegans and the product is GMO-free.

So, that's some of the technical details out of the way. So, what is the product like?

It's softer than many granolas. With some granolas older people with teeth that are way past their use by date find it a nerve racking experience as some granolas are a bit hard on the teeth and elderly fillings have been known to go ping! with some of the harder, perhaps over-baked types of granolas.

But that certainly is not the case with Lizi's gluten free Granola.

It is obvious that you are eating an oat-based product, which is, in my opinion, a good thing. There is a perfect balance between the flavours of the oats and the other ingredients.

Combined together this is an excellent breakfast meal. And yes, admittedly, it makes a good supper, too!

You can buy Lizi's entire granola range direct at https://www.lizis.co.uk.

At present the price for the gluten free granola is £2.99 for a 400g packet.

Red Stag from Jim Beam

Jim Beam's Red Stag Black Cherry flavour is Jim Beam's finest whiskey but infused (and also perhaps enthused?) with natural flavourings.

When you open the bottle you know that it is going to be somewhat different. For there is an earnest aroma of fruits, which comes, naturally enough, from the cherries that are used to create this somewhat unique American bourbon whiskey.

There's actually a hint of the scent of a good old fashioned Bakewell Tart coming through on the nose, as they say.

Wow! Talk about sweet! it is as sweet as a bowl of very pleasent sun ripened cherries.

If ever a bourbon deserved to be described as a sipping whiskey, then this, surely, must be it?

There are a number of complexities in the flavour, there's the good, standard Jim Beam flavour, but the rich flavours of the cherries take it to a whole new level of taste excellence.

Good by itself, over ice or as part of any cocktail that you care to mention, though do be aware that if you use this in place of Jim Beam in a recipe do, please, be ready for a taste of something out of the ordinary.

I now find myself wanting a bowl of ripe cherries or a slice of Bakewell Tart, so alluring was the taste of this whiskey.