Discover Dairy Prize Draw (NOW CLOSED, SEE THE WINNER BELOW)

If you ever wondered what the cows do all day long, now you have a chance to find out. Watch the video above!
Have you been impressed with the movie made by the fabulous Al-Moo-dovar of the cows' world? It is very atmospheric.

The British Nutrition Foundation recently found out that a third (29 %) of primary school children think that cheese comes from plants, and one in five (21%) had never visited a farm!

So, DairyCo has created www.thisisdairyfarming.com, to help people understand a bit more about cows and where dairy products come from.  Fronted by TV presenter Adam Henson, the site is packed full of fun films that show you where milk comes from, that cows have friends, and that you probably can’t keep a cow in your garden. They’ve also got a youtube moovie channel and you can keep up with all the moos on twitter @thisisdairy #Discoverdairy.

DairyCo is even giving you the opportunity to win £15 worth of shopping vouchers to spend on Great British dairy produce!

If you would like to win this prize, please fill in the Rafflecopter form.
T&Cs:
Only the first step is mandatory: all you need is answer the question by leaving a comment.

All the other steps are optional, you don't have to do them all. All it takes to win is just one entry.
Only one entry per person is allowed (however, you can tweet daily to increase your chances).
The giveaway is open to the UK residents only.
Once the Rafflcopter picks the winner, I will check if the winner has done what was requested. I will contact the winner, if they do not reply within a week, the prize will be allocated to another person.
The giveaway will close on 27 August 2013 at midnight (night from 26th to 27th).

Question:
Simply tell me what is the name of the dairy cow who was a cameraman (or should that be a camerawoman?) for a day?

Thank you everyone for entering this giveaway, but there can be only one winner. The Rafflecopter has picked the name, see the winner's name on a widget below. Big well done!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Burford garden centre

"Mama, when are we going to the garden centre again?"
and just because flattery would get you everywhere Eddie adds "You are soo good at buying things, Mama!"

Mama, can we buy it?

As a keen gardener, Eddie loves visiting the Burford garden centre. We don't go there as often as he wants, as I don't drive, and though there are buses going to Burford, they stop very far from the garden centre, and there is no proper sidewalk. It looks like people are totally discouraged from walking there and you basically rely on the cars. So we usually ask a friend to take us there by car, and my little man relishes every moment of the trip. Unlike me, he feels fine in the car.

It has become a bit of a tradition that we first browse the shelves at the food court of the garden centre and buy a few delicacies. The range of food products is extensive, but everything is overpriced (expect to pay much less for the same food products in Waitrose).
Eddie requests his croissant with butter and jam, I have a cup of tea with a pastry or a slice of cake.
Of course, the main attraction of the garden centre is the gardening equipment and plants.

The garden centre is a big compound, you can almost get lost, admiring the flowers and the other plants. They also sell some beautiful wooden furniture, very British, aka old-fashioned style clothes (you would expect this type of clothes on the caricatures about the British snobs, or in photos like you see in Country Life), and vintage crockery and china (probably my favourite area of the garden centre).

Wouldn't that bench look super in our garden?

With plants you have to be careful, despite being a garden centre, they clearly don't have enough stuff, and some of the pots are overturned, some plants are wilting already, and some (especially the established trees in pots) are clearly diseased.

Buying plants there is a bit of a pot luck. For example, all the tomatoes I bought there in spring are doing well, and we had already quite a decent harvest.
The grafted cucumber plant which was supposed to be mould-resistant and cost an arm and a leg (£5,to be precise) proved to be very much prone to mould, just like its simple, less pricey brothers.

Despite the prices and unreliable live produce, we usually enjoy visiting the centre, and my Mum who came with us the last time we went there, was admiring the flowers. She was particularly impressed with the blue salvias.

My Mum is admiring the blue salvia

Just look at these beautiful hydras!

I am trying to decide which fruit tree to buy to add to our garden, and I am still undecided. In the meantime I got this thornless blackberry bush with very sweet berries.
I love looking at the fruit trees in the centre and imagining how they would look in my garden. I would love one more apple tree. Cherry tree? Would I ever be able to enjoy the cherries, as I am battling with the birds as it is, they are total pests when it comes to berries. I managed to save the red currant bushes this year, as I covered them not only in the netting but in the fleece as well.
Ideally I would love a rowan tree, as it reminds me of my home. In Russia we make a very tasty runny jam with the rowan berries, which are soaked in the cold water for 24 hours (you need to change the water a few times) to get rid of the bitterness. The jam is very pretty, with the berries becoming colourful transparent gems. Now wouldn't that be magical to recreate a piece of homeland in my own garden?

A new blackberry bush in our garden

Schwartz Grill Mates Mojito Lime Marinade Mix

I am slowly working through a new range of Schwartz Grill Mates which has been launched this summer. This range features an enticing selection of flavours that we associate with the American cuisine: Smokey Texan, Cajun, Deep South Brown Sugar and Mojito Lime. The marinades come in handy sachets to which you need to add the oil, vinegar or orange juice.

Did you know that Mojito was the favourite drink of Ernest Hemingway? The zingy flavours of Mojito work well as a marinade.

Chicken with Schwartz Grill Mates Mojito Lime Marinade
Ingredients:
1 sachet Schwartz Grill Mates Mojito Lime Marinade Mix
50ml oil
(50ml white rum)
2tbsp white wine vinegar
900g chicken

I don't have a bottle of rum randomly sitting in the kitchen. And I didn't plan to buy a bottle just for the recipe, so my marinade was not exactly as suggested on the packet. I have squeezed juice of one lime instead. I'm sure the alcohol would have added a depth of flavour, but I didn't think of any other substitute to the rum from the selection of alcohol we have at home (Advocaat-flavoured chicken anyone? I keep a bottle for baking, I hasten to add).

Mojito Lime Marinade Mix consists of a mix of dried garlic, paprika, salt, sugar, dried onion and orange peel, cumin, lime flavouring, mint and more herbs and spices. 

Combine the contents of the sachet with the oil, vinegar, rum (if using) and lime juice. Coat the pieces of chicken well (I had a mix of chicken thighs and breasts), and leave to marinade for 15 minutes (or even overnight).
BBQ, grill or bake the chicken until cooked through.
Serve with the roast vegetables.
What did we think of it? The seasoning has given the chicken a good spicy kick. I don't know if the rum would have added a tone of sweetness to the dish, if you have a bottle and would give it a try, please let me know.
From the two Grill Mates we have tried so far, I'd say Deep South Brown Sugar is my favouite.

I had a butternut squash lying on the counter for over a week, and decided to cook it with Schwartz Perfect Shake Season All mix. This seasoning comes as an alternative to salt and pepper and includes dried chillies, paprika, dried onion, black pepper, garlic powder, coriander, nutmeg and more. As all the other products from Schwartz Perfect Shake it is easy to use: just shake or sprinkle the seasoning over the food and roast or grill it. A decent well-rounded mix of spices that would go with a variety of foods (I have also tried it with the roast potatoes, and we all liked it). This is a useful bottle of seasoning to have in the kitchen.

To find out more about the Perfect Shake range, visit Schwartz Perfect Shake Seasoning page.

For more information about the range and further mealtime inspiration, visit Schwartz. Join the conversation on Facebook at SchwartzCookingClub and Twitter at @SchwartzCooking

Schwartz Grill Mates Deep South Brown Sugar Marinade Mix

As it happens, the Brits are as enthusiastic about the grilled food as those BBQ aficionados across the pond. The BBQed and grilled food has become a trend which stays put. If you are happy to lick your fingers eating sticky food from the BBQ, you'll be glad to know that this summer Schwartz has launched a new range of Grill Mates™. This range is "featuring exciting US flavour combinations that will bring to life any barbecue dish. Simply add one of the four delicious marinades to transform your meat or fish before cooking on the grill."
The specially-formulated Schwartz Grill Mates™ Marinade Mixes are available in a sachet; they serve 4-6 people and are available in four tasty flavours: Mojito Lime, Deep South Brown Sugar, Cajun and Smokey Texan.

Schwartz is proud to inform us that "it sources only the highest quality herbs and spices from all over the world and is committed to making great flavour simpler for everyone. The Grill Mates™ range reflects the trend of infusing foods with cocktail-inspired flavours, which appeared in the 2008 Flavour Forecast, produced by parent company McCormick. The new Schwartz Grill Mates™ range will be available nationwide from all leading supermarkets (RRP £1.00)".

As it happened, we had guests coming for dinner yesterday and having perused the selection of Grill Mates, I've decided to prepare the pork tenderloin with Schwartz Grill Mates Deep South Brown Sugar Marinade Mix.

To prepare this sweet and spicy marinade mix with a hint of whisky, you will need
1 sachet of Schwartz Grill Mates South Brown Sugar Marinade Mix
50ml oil
2tbsp orange juice
2tbsp white wine vinegar
Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

I have also added juice from half a lime to the marinade.

Set aside a couple of tbsp for basting, pour and rub the rest over the meat of your choice. Cover and leave to marinade for 15 minutes minimum (or even leave it overnight). I left it for a couple of hours.
The marinade is aromatic and very colourful.

This Grill Mates mix is made with the brown sugar, salt, tomato powder, chilli powder, honey powder, red bell peppers, sunflower oil etc
It doesn't contain any artificial colours, added MSG, preservatives or hydrogenated fat.
Pork tenderloin is a lean cut, but delicious. If you baste it regularly, it won't dry and be juicy and tasty.

As you can see, I didn't cook the pork on the BBQ. Our vintage BBQ is too rusty (maybe I will win it one day? wishful thinking, as I keep entering all competitions to win a BBQ).
Once the pork was left to marinade for a couple of hours, the ceramic tray went in the oven preheated to 180C.

I have also sliced two pears and added them to the tray with 100ml rose wine and juice of half a lime and half an orange. The rose wine was one of those indescribable varieties that typically appear in the dinner for £10 offers in Sainsbury's or Waitrose, not entirely bad but not exciting either. The pears were added after the pork was cooked for at least half an hour at 180C (then I lowered the temperature and cooked for another 45 minutes).
Serve with the roasted baby sweet peppers and roast potatoes.

My friends are used now to being guinea pigs for my new recipes and jokingly ask "Is that for your blog?" when I serve something new to them. This dish has been unanimously voted as a success.


If you liked this recipe suggestion, keep an eye on my future posts, as I have been sent a selection of new Schwartz products for testing and reviewing.

For more information about the range and further mealtime inspiration, visit Schwartz. Join the conversation on Facebook at SchwartzCookingClub and Twitter at @SchwartzCooking

Classic fun: towers of pebbles

I could never lie still on the beach, getting slowly roasted and tanned, that's not my idea of fun. My guys are an active lot, and enjoy doing things, be it playing football, running, splashing in the sea, exploring the rock pools, building sandcastles or doodling on the sand.
You don't need many toys on the beach: a simple bucket and spade are useful for digging and building.

You see some families building the elaborate fancy sandcastles with lots of turrets, digging the long channels going down to the sea, or burying each other under the sand.
We are lucky that the beach in Perranuthnoe we love so much is a combination of the sand, pebbles and rocks. Tired of digging? Swap for another building activity and build a tower from the pebbles.

Make a simple turret by putting the flat pebbles on top of each other, or do a moat, or a mini-Stonehenge with the bigger pebbles.

We also picked a lot of smooth, wave-caressed pebbles to take as souvenirs with us home. Maybe one day I'll have enough of them to do a proper rockery in the garden as the homage to our holidays in Cornwall.

After all the digging and castle-building, you have to have a treat. And what could be more perfect than an ice cream cone. The Cornish ice cream is a national treasure. You can buy the tubs of the Cornish ice cream and recreate the experience at home, but it is never the same as when you have it by the sea, with the marvellous views in front of you, the curious seagulls watching you and the eternal music of the waves rolling on the beach.

Rachel's Organic Low Fat Mango Yogurt

We are fans of Rachel's Organic smooth creamy yogurts: they are organic, low fat, bio live and have a great selection of flavours. Brilliant to eat on their own as a snack or pour over the cereals/muesli at breakfast time.

Rachel's Organic have just launched a brand new low fat mango yogurt:

"Rachel's new low fat mango brings a taste of the exotic to your palate with a blissful combination of the world's finest and juiciest organic mangoes".

When I opened my grocery shopping bags, Eddie snatched the big pot of mango yogurt and insisted on trying it at once.
What did we think of the new flavour?
It is very moreish. Smooth, creamy, with nice chunks of mango for the extra texture (there is also a mango puree added to the yogurt for the sweet fruity flavour).
It is also very delicate.

If eating yogurt neat is not your thing, how about blitzing some smoothie or milkshake with it? I typically whizz a chopped banana, a few tablespoons of yogurt, some fresh berries (whichever I have: strawberries, blueberries or raspberries) and a couple of tablespoons of ice cream for the most delicious drink that my guys love so much.

Or make a batch of cupcakes!
Mango yogurt and honey cupcakes
Ingredients:
150ml Rachel's Organic mango yogurt
175g caster sugar
3 medium eggs
150g self-raising flour
70g ground almonds
2tbsp honey (any runny honey would do, I used Clarks)
1tsp vanilla essence
1tsp baking powder
160g butter, melted
lemon juice (about 4tsp) and icing sugar (5 heaped tsp)

Beat the eggs with the caster sugar, and add all the other ingredients, mixing well. Pour in the cupcake cases and bake in the oven preheated to 180C for about 15-20 minutes. Check that the wooden skewer comes clean. Decorate with the simple lemon juice/icing sugar mix and a bit of freeze-dried strawberries.

These cupcakes are very delicate and soft in texture, really light. My older son gulped three of them almost in one go.

Rachel's Organic Low Fat Mango yogurt is a lovely addition to the great range of yogurts, a versatile product that would make you ask for more.

If you want to know what the other bloggers thought of this new yogurt, please visit their blogs
Madhouse Family Reviews
and
Splodz Blogz

If you love baking with yogurt, here are a few more recipes
Incy Wincy Halloweency Yogurt Cake
Chocolate Polenta Cake
Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Yogurt Frosting

To find out more about Rachel's Organic range and enter their competitions, check out the Rachel's Organic Facebook page.

Disclosure: I received several vouchers to buy the yogurt. All opinions are mine (and family's).

Doodles on the sand

Mum has started her epic journey back to Russia: at 2pm she is leaving London by coach. Tomorrow she should be in Berlin, from there on by coach to Moscow (a couple of days) and then the last leg of the trip is 22-hours-long train journey back home. I always worry about her, and as she is not getting younger, I couldn't but ask myself if we are ever going to see each other again.
To stop myself from crying, I turn to my blog and the numerous photos I took in Cornwall. This was the 3rd time we took my Mum with us to Cornwall, and she loved it as much as we did.
One of the things that we do every year on the beach is having a daily doodling session.

Mum is hard to beat, as she is a true artist, and is very imaginative. Eddie enjoys watching us and then stamping on our doodles with glee.

Horses

She doesn't mind when people stop and watch her, ask questions, comment and even applaud (which I find a bit odd).

My boys

For the time being Eddie is more of a Terminator, he runs over the doodles and giggles when I scold him. And when we come the next day, the high tide leaves the beach in its pristine condition yet again, a new canvas for our doodles.

A boy on a dolphin

Mermaids

More mermaids

Eddie asked me to draw Peppa Pig and George, and I obliged. Of course, my simplistic drawing cannot compete with my Mum's, but you know what, Eddie appreciated it more.

Peppa Pig and George

We love Cornwall, and hope to come back again next year.

In the meantime, why don't you try to win a lovely prize from Red Spotted Hanky. They host a giveaway for a family weekend adventure in Cornwall! To enter all you have to do is visit the Red Spotted Hanky Facebook page and choose from three family activities: surf lessons in Newquay, biking along the Camel Estuary with Bike Smart or a trip to the Eden Project. Travel & accommodation is also included and Red Spotted Hanky will even try and send the sun haha.

P.S. I am not paid to mention this giveaway (in money or in kind), but because it sounds like a lovely family prize, and I wish you good luck!

Summer Play Linky

Win a personalised book "My holiday" with Love2Read (c/d 29 August 2013)

Summer is the season when many families choose to go on holidays. Some prefer to leave the unpredictable British weather and opt for the foreign climes, some choose to have a stay-cation.
We have just had our annual holiday in Cornwall and loved every minute of it. As always, I have taken one zillion of photos. One of the best ways of preserving the memories is to organise the photos in a photo book.
And what could be better if you can create a book for your children and help them with their reading skills at the same time.

Love2read has offered one of my lucky winners to create a holiday-themed personalised photo book for children. I have recently reviewed Love2Read (read my post Precious memories with Love2Read).
If you are anything like me, the only worry you'll have is which of the hundreds of photos to choose for the photo book.

If you would like to win this prize, please fill in the Rafflecopter form.
T&Cs:
Only the first step is mandatory: all you need is answer the question by leaving a comment.

All the other steps are optional, you don't have to do them all, pick just one or do all, it's up to you. All it takes to win is just one entry.
Only one entry per person is allowed (however, you can tweet daily to increase your chances).
The giveaway is open to the UK residents only.
Once the Rafflcopter picks the winner, I will check if the winner has done what was requested (I always do, as sadly there are too many cheats who click on all options without bothering to do them). I will contact the winner, if they do not reply within a week, the prize will be allocated to another person.
The giveaway will close on 29 August 2013 at midnight (that is the night from the 28th going on the 29th).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Mama's borscht

Every time my Mum stays with us (it happens once a year, when Mum makes her long journey from Russia by coach, she cannot fly for the health reasons and travels by train to Moscow which takes 22 hours and then several days by coach from Moscow), I ask her to cook a big pot of borscht for me.

This is not the first time I write about this Russian soup (scroll down for the vegetarian versions).
However, I thought I might bring to your attention an authentic version of borscht (I was terrified to see in the last but one issue of MFR a recipe for the so called Russian borscht, where the soup has been blended in the food processor and it was also cooked with the Cajun seasoning. I screamed in horror: This is just a beetroot soup, not a borscht! Call it anything else but... How would you Brits feel if someone abroad blitzed, let's say, fish and chips, and called it a British dish?! And Cajun? why, tell me why?)

Borscht
Ingredients:
3 chicken thighs
3-4 medium potatoes
3-4 medium carrots
2 beets
5 tomatoes
1 sweet pepper
beet leaves from 4 beets
1/2 onion
1tsp cider vinegar
1/2tsp sugar
1tbsp tomato paste
1 garlic clove
fresh flat parsley (to serve with)
salt, pepper

My good old Mum cooking borscht

Make the chicken stock with the chicken thighs and plenty of water.
Chop all the vegetables. First add the chopped beets to the frying pan with 1tbsp of sunflower oil (you can use the olive oil as well, or the rapeseed oil, but the sunflower oil brings the air of authenticity to the dish). Cook, stirring, on low for about 10-15 minutes, kind of sweating the veg, which brings the sweetness out, and the beets acquire a deeper flavour. If you are short of time, skip the frying bit and chuck all the sliced/chopped veg together, but you won't get the same depth of flavour. Remove the cooked beets and add them to the chicken stock.

Repeat the process with the chopped carrots. Slightly fry them with the finely sliced onion and garlic. Add the tomatoes to the pan with the tomato paste and a spoonful of vinegar (it helps to keep the beautiful deep colour). You might also add a bit of sugar to fight the acidity of the tomatoes and vinegar.
All the veg in the pan should be immersed in water. If there's not enough chicken stock, add more hot water. Cook for half an hour.
Add the chopped potatoes and chopped beet leaves, cook for another 10-15 minutes.

Serve hot with the soured cream or Greek style yogurt. Sprinkle some flat leaf parsley.
From my childhood memories: when we visited my grandma and aunt who lived in the South of Russia (Rostov-Don area), they used to serve the borscht with the chunks of bread that have been smeared with the salty galic (they would dip the garlic in rough salt and rub the bread with it, so that the bread would have a garlicky sticky surface). Yum, and triple yum.

For the vegetarian versions of borscht please read
Spring borscht with beet leaves and nettle
and
Vegetarian borscht with mushrooms


P.S. I'm not going to enter into the argument about the origins and semantics of borscht. There are claims in both Russia and the Ukraine as to which country could be called the mother of borscht. The origins of many dishes are very blurred. Both countries have been parts of one big state for many centuries, and only the die-hard nationalists can be stubborn enough to re-write the history and insist that only their version of the events is the true one.