Recently I've been experimenting with Lasagne. Not in a kinky way. Just trying to get it right!
I was taught by my mother to layer it pasta; bechemel; bolognaise, ending with bechemel topped with Parmesan. It looks great in the dish, and tastes good, but the texture is all wrong and it collapses on the plate into a sloppy mess.
Having had fantastic lasagne in Italian restaurants, I was curious how they did it. Theirs always stood perfectly on the plate, perfect layers with a good balance of flavour.
Doing some research I found it is the bechemel that's the problem. I should have guessed that a French sauce had no place in an Italian dish! The restaurant ones layered just pasta and bolognaise, topping with a cheese layer made of a combination of ricotta and Parmesan. The bolognaise layers were much thinner than mine, preventing the pasta from 'slipping' when served.
I had prepared the base layers, and allowed them to cool completely. I popped to our local co-op to get some ricotta but they didn't have any, so I bought cream fraiche instead. I mixed this with grated mature cheddar and black pepper, and topped the lasagne with it, finishing it with a generous amount of grated Parmesan. It then baked in the oven till bubbling and hot.
The results were slightly odd, the consistency was perfect, and it had a nice creamy taste. The problem was it had a sweetness to it which was just not lasagne.
So lesson learnt, and the great lasagne experiment continues. Ricotta and cream fraiche are not interchangeable!
Tuesday 17 July 2012
Thursday 12 July 2012
Compliments & Complaints
I wanted to discuss my ethos on compliments & complaints. I know there are some who do this for fun, complaining about products they never bought, because they heard someone else got freebies for doing so. In my mind, these aren't freebies for anyone, as the cost of them is passed on in the price of the product.
I do believe in speaking my mind. If I like something, or have a genuine problem with something, I will tell the company. I love complimenting, and do so far more than complaining. When was the last time you told someone that you loved their product? I regularly email companies to tell them why I like their products. Recently I bought a posh chocolate bar, and absolutely loved it. I emailed them that evening while England were playing football, and had a response just ten minutes later from the company's Managing Director who was thrilled and even invited me to visit the factory and meet the team.
Sometimes companies respond to the compliment by sending out vouchers or samples. I think that's great, and it increases the likelihood of me telling others how good a company is, both the product and their customer services team. I don't expect it though, and it's not the driving force behind me complimenting in the first place.
Complaining is a whole different ball game. If there is a fault with a product or service, or it didn't meet my expectations, I want to tell the company to give them a chance to act on that feedback. It's one of the ways products grow and change, and essentially become better. Evolution in the marketplace!
I strongly believe that a complaint requires as much good manner and politeness as a compliment, and aim to make my feedback constructive rather than critical. Take the Cravendale milk complaint in my last post, a friend bought the same milk from the same store, and had the same problem. She was angry and fired up a complaint straightaway. I made sure to tell Cravendale that every other time I bought their milk, I loved it, and wanted them to know about the problem to prevent it reoccurring. I received a letter 2 days later with 4 vouchers for a free 2 litre carton. My friends reply took 3 weeks and she received 2 vouchers.
So please don't use my blog as a source of ideas for complaining, that's not it's purpose.
I do believe in speaking my mind. If I like something, or have a genuine problem with something, I will tell the company. I love complimenting, and do so far more than complaining. When was the last time you told someone that you loved their product? I regularly email companies to tell them why I like their products. Recently I bought a posh chocolate bar, and absolutely loved it. I emailed them that evening while England were playing football, and had a response just ten minutes later from the company's Managing Director who was thrilled and even invited me to visit the factory and meet the team.
Sometimes companies respond to the compliment by sending out vouchers or samples. I think that's great, and it increases the likelihood of me telling others how good a company is, both the product and their customer services team. I don't expect it though, and it's not the driving force behind me complimenting in the first place.
Complaining is a whole different ball game. If there is a fault with a product or service, or it didn't meet my expectations, I want to tell the company to give them a chance to act on that feedback. It's one of the ways products grow and change, and essentially become better. Evolution in the marketplace!
I strongly believe that a complaint requires as much good manner and politeness as a compliment, and aim to make my feedback constructive rather than critical. Take the Cravendale milk complaint in my last post, a friend bought the same milk from the same store, and had the same problem. She was angry and fired up a complaint straightaway. I made sure to tell Cravendale that every other time I bought their milk, I loved it, and wanted them to know about the problem to prevent it reoccurring. I received a letter 2 days later with 4 vouchers for a free 2 litre carton. My friends reply took 3 weeks and she received 2 vouchers.
So please don't use my blog as a source of ideas for complaining, that's not it's purpose.
Luxury Coffee Mocha, Budget Price!
I love posh coffee. I have a minor Starbucks addiction not helped by the recent opening of a branch just 3 miles from my home. My bank balance, however, hates Starbucks with a passion. So when possible, I recreate my favourites at home.
I recently had cause to complain to both Cravendale and Anchor Squirty Cream. The Cravendale had gone off to the cottage cheese stage the day after I bought it, and I was fed up of the nozzles snapping off my squirty cream. Both companies have excellent customer services teams and my complaint was answered quickly and thoroughly and accompanied by vouchers for replacement products.
So this morning, feeling tired and impoverished after our holiday, I have decided to perk myself up with a top notch Coffee Mocha, a la Starbucks.
I microwave a mug of Cravendale skimmed milk for 3 minutes, and stir in 1 teaspoon of Carte Noire Instinct Coffee along with a big dollop of Hershey's Chocolate Syrup. It is topped with a big squirt of Anchor Chocolate Squirty Cream and mmm mmm mmm heaven!
Cravendale milk - we started using Cravendale instead of regular milk a few years ago. It is slightly more expensive (average £1.80 for 2 litres, but often on 2 for £3 offers), but we have found it cheaper in the long term, as we aren't throwing away any turned milk. Firstly, the Cravendale has a longer shelf life prior to opening, generally a good 3-4 weeks, meaning we can take advantage of multi-buy offers. Secondly, after opening it keeps for atleast 1 week, far longer than regular milk. Finally, it tastes better! We used semi-skimmed for years, but recently changed to skimmed and have noticed no taste difference.
Carte Noire Instinct instant coffee - another extravagant purchase? No! Bought while on half price offer and combined with a 75p off voucher given away at a food and drink festival. Tip - free samples are available on the Carte Noire Instinct Facebook page which comes with a money off voucher. I don't drink coffee often, so a tin lasts me 3-4 months. Especially if well hidden from hubby! Both Instinct and it's rival Millicano are lovely, much smoother than regular instant coffee and more like filter coffee. I had 3 vouchers so stocked up a few months ago.
Hershey's Chocolate Syrup - I bought this at Aldi during one of their American specials last year, I think it was £1.99. Kept in the fridge it's still going strong! I use it mostly to make Mochas, and on pancakes. It makes amazing milkshakes, a fact I've not shared with my sons.
Anchor Chocolate Squirty Cream -Squirty cream is a regular feature in my fridge, both my 11 year old Alex and I love it on top of hot chocolate and lattes. If the nozzles is rinsed after every use it keeps for a long time. When I make a trip to Makro I tend to buy their own brand one, and often buy the Asda brand cream. I've only found the chocolate variety in Anchor brand though. I had 4 vouchers for free Anchor Squirty Cream and have so far tried the regular, and extra thick variety. I bought the chocolate one this morning in Asda with one of my vouchers, it was selling for £1.98 but luckily for me the cashier didn't bother to check the price charged and keyed in the maximum value of £2.10 as printed on the voucher, effectively paying me 12p to bring home some cream. Always a bonus! The chocolate cream is yummy, a good chocolate taste and not too sweet.
So how did it turn out? Flumping gorgeous!
I recently had cause to complain to both Cravendale and Anchor Squirty Cream. The Cravendale had gone off to the cottage cheese stage the day after I bought it, and I was fed up of the nozzles snapping off my squirty cream. Both companies have excellent customer services teams and my complaint was answered quickly and thoroughly and accompanied by vouchers for replacement products.
So this morning, feeling tired and impoverished after our holiday, I have decided to perk myself up with a top notch Coffee Mocha, a la Starbucks.
I microwave a mug of Cravendale skimmed milk for 3 minutes, and stir in 1 teaspoon of Carte Noire Instinct Coffee along with a big dollop of Hershey's Chocolate Syrup. It is topped with a big squirt of Anchor Chocolate Squirty Cream and mmm mmm mmm heaven!
Cravendale milk - we started using Cravendale instead of regular milk a few years ago. It is slightly more expensive (average £1.80 for 2 litres, but often on 2 for £3 offers), but we have found it cheaper in the long term, as we aren't throwing away any turned milk. Firstly, the Cravendale has a longer shelf life prior to opening, generally a good 3-4 weeks, meaning we can take advantage of multi-buy offers. Secondly, after opening it keeps for atleast 1 week, far longer than regular milk. Finally, it tastes better! We used semi-skimmed for years, but recently changed to skimmed and have noticed no taste difference.
Carte Noire Instinct instant coffee - another extravagant purchase? No! Bought while on half price offer and combined with a 75p off voucher given away at a food and drink festival. Tip - free samples are available on the Carte Noire Instinct Facebook page which comes with a money off voucher. I don't drink coffee often, so a tin lasts me 3-4 months. Especially if well hidden from hubby! Both Instinct and it's rival Millicano are lovely, much smoother than regular instant coffee and more like filter coffee. I had 3 vouchers so stocked up a few months ago.
Hershey's Chocolate Syrup - I bought this at Aldi during one of their American specials last year, I think it was £1.99. Kept in the fridge it's still going strong! I use it mostly to make Mochas, and on pancakes. It makes amazing milkshakes, a fact I've not shared with my sons.
Anchor Chocolate Squirty Cream -Squirty cream is a regular feature in my fridge, both my 11 year old Alex and I love it on top of hot chocolate and lattes. If the nozzles is rinsed after every use it keeps for a long time. When I make a trip to Makro I tend to buy their own brand one, and often buy the Asda brand cream. I've only found the chocolate variety in Anchor brand though. I had 4 vouchers for free Anchor Squirty Cream and have so far tried the regular, and extra thick variety. I bought the chocolate one this morning in Asda with one of my vouchers, it was selling for £1.98 but luckily for me the cashier didn't bother to check the price charged and keyed in the maximum value of £2.10 as printed on the voucher, effectively paying me 12p to bring home some cream. Always a bonus! The chocolate cream is yummy, a good chocolate taste and not too sweet.
So how did it turn out? Flumping gorgeous!
Tuesday 10 July 2012
Exmoor Zoological Park - Tesco Days Out Vouchers
Last week we had a family holiday at the Golden Coast Holiday Park, Woolacombe (Devon).
I had redeemed £10 of Tesco Clubcard points for £40 of Days Out vouchers, in the hope of enjoying some 'free' family days out. For hubby, one child, and one concession rate adult (disabled), it came to £29.85, as our youngest, Charlie, was free. We used £30 of Days Out vouchers, covering the admission cost. It was fortunate we were using them, as all phone lines at the zoo were down meaning they 'couldn't' process card payments. Like most people I don't carry a lot of cash and this would have been a problem. I used to work in hotel management and it was normal to keep an old style manual swipe machine and sales vouchers to allow us to accept card payments in such circumstances.
The zoo was easy to find, the postcode worked with the sat nav, and once we got close there were plenty of signs. There is a small car park at the entrance with a few marked disabled bays.
We noticed when we arrived that they had 3 or 4 mobility scooters available to hire for £5 plus a refundable deposit. I hadn't taken my electric wheelchair on holiday as it fills the car boot, so was using crutches that day. I asked at the entrance how hilly the zoo is and whether there were many benches so I could stop and rest. We were told there was only a gentle incline, and plenty of seating so decided to plod on. Evidently my idea of a gentle incline differs from the staffs as the zoo proved to be quite hilly and steep in places. Not all areas had wheelchair accessible paths, and although these were clearly signed as being unsuitable avoiding them would mean missing sections of the zoo.
The seating was a different story. Most areas had plenty of seating, often in small covered areas which would provide excellent shelter on a rainy day. The down side of these shelters was the flies. For some reason the zoo was full of flies, and the sheltered areas in particular were badly infested, making them unpleasant places to stop and rest. I've not seen so many flies in any other zoo or animal park, and can't see any obvious reason for them. I guess it could be the amount of plants, as it was a very green park with plenty of well established bushes and trees.
Some areas were distinctly lacking in seating, in particular the otter enclosure.
The zoo did however have many positives. The animals all seemed content and well cared for, with stimulating environments. One big difference to previous zoos we have visited was how close you are to the animals. Many of the enclosures are only fenced to half height, with no restriction on how close to them the public can get. This was evident when we came to a large pond, home to ducks and a couple of very friendly penguins. Should anyone want to, you could easily reach over the fence or put fingers through, which meant we had to be extra vigilant with our 2 year old, Charlie. The penguin seemed to think we may have been planning to feed him as he followed us along the fence line looking very excited!
The zoo is home to a wide variety of birds and wild cats in particular, with some birds roaming free around the park. We saw a hen with her baby chick walking around, which was very cute, but gave my eldest (Alex, 11) a surprise when he unintentionally got too close and faced the wrath of a protective mother hen! In other areas there were roaming peacocks and hens, who we were fortunate to see displaying their magnificent tail feathers.
We enjoyed some of the keepers talks and feeding sessions, it was obvious how dedicated the keepers are and how much they enjoy their jobs. There was a full schedule including interactive sessions, where you could hold insects and snakes, or go into an enclosure of tame wallabies. All of these were included in the entrance fee.
We had lunch in the zoo cafe, scraping together enough cash to pay for it as the phone lines were still down. The food was decent, we all had a hot meal for just under £20.00. The cafe area was pleasant, clean and with ample seating.
Overall, as a family enjoyed the outing, and would recommend it to others. Alex particularly enjoyed seeing the 'Exmoor Beast' (a majestic black leopard) and Charlie enjoyed the wallabies. There is room for improvement with accessibility, but it is atleast making an effort and not just paying lip service.
I had redeemed £10 of Tesco Clubcard points for £40 of Days Out vouchers, in the hope of enjoying some 'free' family days out. For hubby, one child, and one concession rate adult (disabled), it came to £29.85, as our youngest, Charlie, was free. We used £30 of Days Out vouchers, covering the admission cost. It was fortunate we were using them, as all phone lines at the zoo were down meaning they 'couldn't' process card payments. Like most people I don't carry a lot of cash and this would have been a problem. I used to work in hotel management and it was normal to keep an old style manual swipe machine and sales vouchers to allow us to accept card payments in such circumstances.
The zoo was easy to find, the postcode worked with the sat nav, and once we got close there were plenty of signs. There is a small car park at the entrance with a few marked disabled bays.
We noticed when we arrived that they had 3 or 4 mobility scooters available to hire for £5 plus a refundable deposit. I hadn't taken my electric wheelchair on holiday as it fills the car boot, so was using crutches that day. I asked at the entrance how hilly the zoo is and whether there were many benches so I could stop and rest. We were told there was only a gentle incline, and plenty of seating so decided to plod on. Evidently my idea of a gentle incline differs from the staffs as the zoo proved to be quite hilly and steep in places. Not all areas had wheelchair accessible paths, and although these were clearly signed as being unsuitable avoiding them would mean missing sections of the zoo.
The seating was a different story. Most areas had plenty of seating, often in small covered areas which would provide excellent shelter on a rainy day. The down side of these shelters was the flies. For some reason the zoo was full of flies, and the sheltered areas in particular were badly infested, making them unpleasant places to stop and rest. I've not seen so many flies in any other zoo or animal park, and can't see any obvious reason for them. I guess it could be the amount of plants, as it was a very green park with plenty of well established bushes and trees.
Some areas were distinctly lacking in seating, in particular the otter enclosure.
The zoo did however have many positives. The animals all seemed content and well cared for, with stimulating environments. One big difference to previous zoos we have visited was how close you are to the animals. Many of the enclosures are only fenced to half height, with no restriction on how close to them the public can get. This was evident when we came to a large pond, home to ducks and a couple of very friendly penguins. Should anyone want to, you could easily reach over the fence or put fingers through, which meant we had to be extra vigilant with our 2 year old, Charlie. The penguin seemed to think we may have been planning to feed him as he followed us along the fence line looking very excited!
The zoo is home to a wide variety of birds and wild cats in particular, with some birds roaming free around the park. We saw a hen with her baby chick walking around, which was very cute, but gave my eldest (Alex, 11) a surprise when he unintentionally got too close and faced the wrath of a protective mother hen! In other areas there were roaming peacocks and hens, who we were fortunate to see displaying their magnificent tail feathers.
We enjoyed some of the keepers talks and feeding sessions, it was obvious how dedicated the keepers are and how much they enjoy their jobs. There was a full schedule including interactive sessions, where you could hold insects and snakes, or go into an enclosure of tame wallabies. All of these were included in the entrance fee.
We had lunch in the zoo cafe, scraping together enough cash to pay for it as the phone lines were still down. The food was decent, we all had a hot meal for just under £20.00. The cafe area was pleasant, clean and with ample seating.
Overall, as a family enjoyed the outing, and would recommend it to others. Alex particularly enjoyed seeing the 'Exmoor Beast' (a majestic black leopard) and Charlie enjoyed the wallabies. There is room for improvement with accessibility, but it is atleast making an effort and not just paying lip service.
Monday 9 July 2012
Welcome!
Welcome to my new blog, Voucher Crazy Mum.
The title is pretty self explanatory, but for a quick synopsis...
I'm Shelley, a 32 year old mum to 2 boys, aged 11 & 2, and wife to Terry, 39. We live in Merseyside, where I am a stay at home parent.
I had to stop working outside the home 2 years ago due to disability. As a result finances are pretty tight so I'm always looking for ways to stretch my budget, increase the quality of what we eat and where we go, and make a few extra pennies to contribute to the household.
My favoured methods include:
* using discount vouchers / codes
* making the most of special offers and loyalty schemes
* selling through eBay and car boot sales
* accessing deals available because of my disability
But are these always worth the time and effort? That's the point of this blog. I aim to share and review freebies, deals and vouchers, and also products and places from a disabled perspective.
Feel free to add your comments, or suggest things to try.
The title is pretty self explanatory, but for a quick synopsis...
I'm Shelley, a 32 year old mum to 2 boys, aged 11 & 2, and wife to Terry, 39. We live in Merseyside, where I am a stay at home parent.
I had to stop working outside the home 2 years ago due to disability. As a result finances are pretty tight so I'm always looking for ways to stretch my budget, increase the quality of what we eat and where we go, and make a few extra pennies to contribute to the household.
My favoured methods include:
* using discount vouchers / codes
* making the most of special offers and loyalty schemes
* selling through eBay and car boot sales
* accessing deals available because of my disability
But are these always worth the time and effort? That's the point of this blog. I aim to share and review freebies, deals and vouchers, and also products and places from a disabled perspective.
Feel free to add your comments, or suggest things to try.
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