April Box Degustabox: Snacking and New Recipes

 Degustabox is a monthly food and drink subscription box. It's an excellent way of discovering new products which have only just appeared in the shops, or those which have been around for a while, but you haven't had a chance to try them yet.

Thanks to Degustabox, I have found new favourites to add to our shopping list, including some products which I otherwise wouldn't have tried.

Each time a monthly box arrives, its contents are a total surprise. You get a good selection of foods and drinks.

If you haven't tried Degustabox subscription box yet, and would like to have a go, I have a £3off discount from your first box (and you can unsubscribe any time), just use code DKRLN when placing an order. 

What did we get in April Box: Hello, Snacking and New Recipes Degustabox?

BE FREE by Eisberg sparkling white 0.0% (£2) is an alcohol free sparkling wine based drink in a can.

Drink cooled straight from the can, pour in a glass with ice, or make a lemonade spritz with this alcohol free wine. We had it before, it was one of the products in the Advent calendar, and it is lovely, refreshing and crisp.

Eisberg have teaed up with artist Samuel Thomas to create a funky design, evocative of the sea, sky and freedom.

Nutritional values: 23kcal and 5g of sugar per 100ml.

Available on Amazon.

Seabrook Tomato Ketchup Crinkle Cut Crisps (£1.50) is the latest addition to the popular range of crisps.

Seabrook Crisps are the original crinkle cut crisps, crafted in Yorkshire since 1945. These crisps combine bold flavours with a classic crinkle texture. 

Tomato Ketchup crisps are bursting with flavour, sweet, savoury and tangy. 

Nutritional information: 124kcal and 1.1g of sugar per 25g bag; gluten free, suitable for vegetarians and vegans.

Available in the major supermarkets.

I used a bag of crisps as an ingredient in cooking crab cakes. I added crushed crisps to the panko breadcrumbs as the coating for the crab cakes.  They turned out really tasty, with a lovely added flavour and texture.

Namdong Kimchi Jjigae Noodle Pot (£1.60) are Korean-inspired noodles. 

K-noodles are a big trend nowadays, with a variety of brands and flavours to choose from.

These noodles allow you to personalise your spice level, as they come with a separate chilli sachet - spice as you like, depending on your preference, from a gentle kick to a more mighty level of heat.

My younger son is the noodle king in our family. He is not the biggest fan of the kimchi flavour, but did say the noodles were fun to try.

Nutritional information: 376kcal and 3.5g of salt per pot; vegan.

Available in the major supermarkets.

Alpen Muesli No Added Sugar/ or Original (£2.99) is inspired by the Apls themselves.

You will receive one item of two.

We got the Original flavour, promising a brimful of delicious toasted wheat flakes, creamy rolled oats, crunchy nuts and juicy raisins in every spoonful of the original recipe.

Nutritional values: 168kcal and 9.5g of sugar pper 45g serving; 100% natural ingredients, wholegrain, high in fibre.

If you're not a cereal-in-the-morning person, use muesli as an ingredient in cookies or homemade oat bars.

Available in Tesco, Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Morrisons, ASDA, Ocado, Amazon and Co-Op.

Angel Delight Bubble Jelly (£2.85 each) is a new product from the Angel Delight range. It's a fun new product, which combines the wibble-wobble wtih boba pearls.

There are three flavours to choose from, and you should receive one of three.

We got Lemonade Jelly flavour with Strawberry Boba, and it certainly delivers a burst of flavours in each bite/slurp.

Nutritional values: 86kcal and 20.8g of sugar per 130g pot; suitable for vegetarians. Keep it in the cupboard, or fridge, if you like it chilled. 

Available in ASDA, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Ocado.

Whitworths Nutty Kitchen Original Supermince/ or Italian Supermince/ or Mexican Supermince (£3.20) is a new 100% natural meat-free mince.

You should receive 1 flavour of 3. 

We got Italian Supermince, which is made with chopped Californian walnuts, lentils and red quinoa, with an Italian seasoning blend. Use it to make a vegan Bolognese. One pack offers 4 servings.

Nutritional values: 307kcal and 0.59g of salt per 100g.

I didn't cook a Bolognese with it, but mixed with cooked rice and stuffed sweet peppers, which were roasted in the oven. 

Available on Ocado and Whitworths webshop.

What is your favourite product from the latest Degustabox?

Muesli cookies

I'm not a muesli person. If I must have a cereal in the morning, I'd rather go for plain cornflakes or Special K. When I was a kid, we never had cereals for breakfast. Cornflakes were something you read about in books set in the States. We would have a variety of porridge or cooked kasha in the morning, or "proper" hot meals on a cold and frosty morning. It's only in my 20s that I started eating dried cereals, and I've never acquired a particular fondness for muesli, even the most fancy ones.

These days (I sound like a hundred-year-old, don't I?!) there is such a variety of muesli and granola that you can almost get lost in the muesli aisle.

The latest food box from Degustabox had a box of Primrose's Kitchen Raw Beetroot and Ginger Muesli as their product of the month.
It is a creative and colourful combination of fresh English beetroot, ginger, British gluten free oats and virgin coconut oil, with some extras like nuts, seeds, psyllium husk and chia.

The Primrose's Kitchen range of natural food is well-known among the health-conscious public. The brand is the brainchild of Primrose Matheson who did Naturopathic and Complementary health studies and has a degree in Homeopathy. She used her knowledge to create a range of the natural and wholesome food which includes muesli and granola, nut and seed butter, sprinkles and smoothie boosters.
I have reviewed some of her products over a year ago.

Beetroot muesli look pretty, with big thin slices of coconut. I bake a variation of oat cookies every week, as my guys love them, and thought the beetroot muesli could be a nice new ingredient to play with.

Muesli cookies
Ingredients:
90g caster sugar
100g margarine (I use Stork)
100g muesli
130g+ self-raising flour
1 small egg
1 heaped tbsp cocoa powder

Cream the margarine with sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the muesli, flour and the beaten egg, mix well, forming the dough.
Divide the dough in half, and mix one half with sifted cocoa powder to add a bit of colour.
Pinch a small walnut-sized piece of dough of each colour and roll it into a ball, then squish it into a crescent and place two coloured halves together on trays lined with parchment paper or special cookie baking sheets, flatten them lightly so that they are held together.

that's what the cookies look when raw

Bake them for about 15 minutes until golden at 180C. Don't overcook, they are still soft when you take them out.

I appreciate many people would not consider margarine in baking. I find it that when baking cookies with butter, they tend to go shapeless while those which are margarine-based are keeping their shape.

I use either Stork or Flora light in baking cookies. The cakes are a different kettle of fish, for cakes I prefer a real butter, with Anchor being my top choice. 

Adding this recipe post to the #KitchenClearout linky run by Cheryl at Madhouse Family Reviews, since I used the very last tablespoon of cocoa in this recipe, as well as some margarine which expired - ahem - a while ago. 

I love my porridge, my porridge loves me

Eddie has a hearty appetite and loves his food. I started weaning him on solids, when he was five months old, and now that he is reaching a ripe old age of 1, he has tried many lovely foods. (And he still loves his Mummy milk. :))
Remembering unpleasant baby rice and constipation issues with our older son when he was a baby, I decided to avoid baby rice altogether and start with veg purees and baby porridge. We have tried all the major brands of baby porridge, and to my disappointment they tasted like shredded cardboard, absolutely unappetising (I won't name them but they are sold everywhere).
That is, until we found Plum.
Plum makes baby porridges and muesli in a variety of flavours.
Plum baby Four Grain Muesli is a combination of four healthy grains. It has a nice texture and a lovely delicate taste. Finally, a baby food that tastes good.
It has the following ingredients:
Organic oat flakes (76%) Organic banana flakes (8%) Organic whole rice flour (5%) Organic popped amaranth (4%) Organic strawberry flakes (4%) Organic quinoa flour (3%) Thiamin (Vitamin B1)
Another favourite is Plum Baby four grain super porridge in a combination of wholegrains. It is creamy, smooth and easy to prepare.
I usually use a mix of Plum muesli and porridge (50/50), prepared with hot milk.
As you can see, Eddie enjoys his porridge.