Monday, February 5, 2018

In my kitchen - February 2018

I am linking this into the monthly In My Kitchen round-up, hosted by Sherry of Sherry's Pickings.

In my kitchen, the days are getting longer. Last week it even felt a bit like spring - but then this morning it snowed, proving we are not quite there yet.

To offset the wintry weather and the reduced variety in winter fruit, my kitchen regularly has imported berries. I ease my guilty conscious slightly by trying to find ones that come from southern Europe rather than south America (fewer air miles).


In my kitchen are new vegan 'chicken' slices by Quorn. I was very excited to see this addition to the vegan Quorn range. The slices are very reminiscent of chicken, although a little too processed for my usual tastes.

 


In my kitchen is Alpro's 'caffe' coffee hazelnut drink. It would be better suited to the summer months but really, it's not too hard to make iced coffee at home. This was nice for a one off though.


In my kitchen are snack bars bought on sale. Nakd bars seem to be available for 50p on a regular basis these days, and I was delighted to spot the new blueberry muffin flavour this week. It tastes pleasingly of blueberries. The middle bar below is a 'pulsin' chocolate orange oat bar. I hadn't tried it before, but it was delicious.


In my kitchen are these mini coconut pepper wraps in the Santa Maria range. I really like the flavour and their mini size.


In my kitchen are some dairy free and sugar free carob bars. I find myself in central London semi-regularly these days, due to varying work commitments, and sometimes have time to pop into Whole Foods to restock my carob supplies. I adore these bars!


In my kitchen are some new Ryvita 'protein' quinoa and sesame crackers, and some savoury Marmite biscuits. The Ryvita are not dramatically different to the rest of the Ryvita range and are good for adding to soup or stew for work lunches.


The Marmite biscuits are delicious, far more than I expected them to be. They remind me a bit of cheese flavoured crackers, but they are dairy free and nicer than their cheese counterparts. The individual packaging isn't great for the environment so I hope they bring out a regular pack too.


Speaking of the environment, in my kitchen is my new collapsible coffee cup. I am in love with it. I use it for my morning coffee-on-the-train and can then collapse it to fit in my running backpack when I run (part of) my journey home.



My kitchen also sees a new organising system for our many newspapers. We take so long to read the weekend paper that we always have several on the go, and this keeps them in a manageable state.


Last but definitely not least, in my kitchen there is a toddler in varying states of activity. Investigating things is a bit hit at the moment, be it the washing machine, the dishwasher, or all of our cupboards.


What is happening in your kitchen this month?

17 comments:

  1. Wow so many things. I'd pick up those Naked bars for 50p but i have not seen them at that price, will have to look harder. I like the Quorn Beef mock slices with horseradish and D likes the Turkey one. We use them for our working lunch sandwiches when I can't be bothered to make pasta salad. I am def. going to get some of those marmite biccies, i am backing of crisps so these would be welcome. Finally, love the investigative toddler!

    As for the snow, wrap up tomorrow - apparently there is more to come.

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    1. Sainsbury's is where I tend to find the 50p Naked bars :-) And the Marmite biscuits are worth seeking out!

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  2. An exploring toddler is definitely the best "thing" to have in one's kitchen! More photos, please.

    best... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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  3. your kitchen looks very busy in a nice bustling toddling (so cute) way. I like your coffee cup - I was very tempted by a collapsible lunch box on the weekend but was not sure it was just what I needed. I love the marmite biscuits shape and would love to try them. Glad they are a hit. That coffee might go well with my gingerbread syrup but you are right that I don't eat coffee (but perhaps the syrup and chocolate might work). And the quorn chicken slices make me feel quite nostalgic for a processed chicken slice that we sometimes had in sandwiches as kids but I can't think what we called it now and I think the idea is preferable to actually tasting them.

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    1. Ooh, I will have to look up collapsible lunch boxes! Interesting.

      Often those nostalic memories are better as ideas than realities :-)

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  4. i love the photo of your toddler in the machine. how cute. Ryvita? wow it's been years since i had them. marmite biscuits sound interesting. is it part of the actual biscuit? that coffee cup looks like a winner too. great idea to have it fold up. mm not sure i'd like the quorn thingy. have a great month. cheers S x

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    1. Yes, the marmite is part of the flavour! I love them.

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  5. Kari, apologies if this is a duplicate comment. I recently "re-upped" my online accounts after the first of the year and have run into difficulties posting my thoughts on friends' comment sections without multi-layered verification. (That's what I get for purging my online activities until "before time", but my computer operates much faster, LOL!) What I was trying to say was that I thought your lil' one's "investigating the laundry room" photo was a hoot, your collapsible cup was is convenient (not to mention responsible), and your thoughts on "too large" tortillas were spot on! How much do they think a person can consume in one sitting?! The flavor combo you featured was intriguing though... coconut & black pepper? Yes, ma'am! Will be looking for those. Thank you!

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    1. Don't worry, only one came through :-) Thanks so much for persevering with your commenting and I hope you find the tortillas!

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  6. Every so often, there's a bright, sunny (and freezing) day and I get my hopes up that spring is coming too! (I've been disappointed every time!) We seem to be on a similar wavelength this month - I saw both the Quorn and the Alpro coffee and wondered whether to buy them, so reading your post has just saved me a few bob as I'll give them a miss now. The coffee cup is much more up my street - very clever stuff.

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  7. LOL, love the photo of Mini Bite. Thanks for a peek inside your kitchen.

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  8. Really intrigued by those coconut wrappers!

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  9. I hear you, it got warmer here and now it's cold again. :(
    Ooooh I need to find those chick'n slices. I hope they have them in the states soon!
    I love seeing what's going on in your kitchen for the month!

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    1. We have sunshine again here! I hope you're finally getting some warmth too, and that you see the chicken-style slices to try.

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  10. "Last week it even felt a bit like spring - but then this morning it snowed, proving we are not quite there yet." We are having a very similar experience... minus the snow. Although weirdly enough we got a freezing rain warning here in "sunny, warm" California ;)
    I haven't seen that blueberry nakd bar - I love blueberry, I'll have to keep my eyes open for it. And oooh the coconut pepper wraps look so good!
    The collapsible and reusable coffee cup is such a great idea! And I like that you run part of the way home and train to work. Way to be environmentally friendly =)
    The toddler picture is definitely the cutest picture of the month.

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