Sabrina is a Lifestyle, Parenting and Product Review Blogger. A Writer, Photographer, Reviewer, Home Cook, Crafter & Nature Enthusiast. You will find a bit of all those categories here on Severn Wishes Blog, Welcome to Sabrina's Lifestyle Blogging & Honest Reviews.
As most of you regular Severn Wishes readers will know, my son was born with a number of allergies. I love to cook and baking is something that I am gradually getting better at. I wanted to make up a recipe that was easy and that I could use with what I usually find in my baking cupboard. But not only that, it had to taste like proper chocolate cake. There’s nothing worse than it not resembling what you know and love!
This moist and soft chocolate cake recipe is egg free and dairy free. You could even change the flour to make it gluten free too if you like. I made it normally first, and then with gluten free baking flour when my sister (she’s coeliac) visited us, and both times it still baked as a soft sponge. Delicious! A great treat if you’re doing Veganuary this year! Why not make this Vegan delight at the end of the month? Give you a treat to look forward to!
This cake serves 10 people, you only want a small slice as it’s rich! Time to Prepare, Make and Bake is… 1 Hour 30 Minutes Preheat your Oven to a Temperature of 180’c or 360’F You will need baking parchment to line your 8″ Tin You shall need a Jug for the Sauce, one Large Bowl and one Small You will also need a Sieve, a Spoon and a Whisk And finally a Cooling Rack
Ingredients
For the Cake:
175g Flour – I used plain or a mixture of Plain and Raising, or use GF 200g Caster Sugar 50g Cocoa Powder 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda 1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract – You could use Mint Flavouring instead 240ml Tepid Water 120ml Vegetable Oil
For the Sauce to pour on top:
4 to 6 Tablespoons of Tepid Water 2 Tablespoons of Golden Syrup or Maple Syrup 2 Tablespoons of Cocoa Powder 130g of Icing Sugar
Sabrina’s Free From Chocolate Cake
Method – Making the Cake
Step 1. Sift the Flour, Cocoa Powder, Caster Sugar and Baking Soda together in a large bowl. Make sure you mix them together thoroughly to combine.
Step 2. In a small bowl mix oil, water and vanilla together and stir until mixed.
Step 3. Gradually stir your wet mix bowl into the dry ingredients. Once you have combined them use a whisk or hand processor in order to make the mixture smooth. Mix until all the liquid is combined with the dry mixture.
Step 4. Pour your smooth mixture into the lined cake tin and shake gently from side to side to make it even inside.
Step 5. Bake in the Centre of your Preheated Oven, between 26 and 32 minutes depending upon oven type. Keep an eye on your cake so that it doesn’t over bake, use a knife of skewer in the centre, when it comes out clean it’s baked.
Step 6. Once cooked gently transfer the cake to a rack so that it can cool. You don’t want to pour on your sauce until it is cooled. Make sure the cake is completely cool before serving, you don’t want your sauce running off!
Method – Making the Sauce
Step 1. Sift the cocoa powder and icing sugar together in a bowl. Mix with a spoon until combined and a brown colour over all.
Step 2. Pour the syrup of your choice and the water into the bowl, make sure you stir it immediately and keep stirring until the ingredients resemble a smooth consistency. Start with 4 Tablespoons of water, if it’s not resembling a sauce that is pour-able then you can add more, one spoonful at a time until it’s how you want it to be. It can vary on the size of the spoon you use for example. TIP: Always better to start with less water and add it gradually, if it’s too wet to start with then you’re going to be measuring out more sugar which is a consistency much more difficult to get right.
Step 3. Cover this sauce until your cake is cooled and ready to serve, cut your cake slices, plate them up and then pour the sauce on to each piece. It’s easy to make more sauce if you need it and only takes a matter of minutes!
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Thank you for coming to Severn Wishes today to read this recipe blog post. I hope you have enjoyed it. Can you please leave me a comment on this post if you try the recipe, and let me know what you think!
Hello readers! This is the November 2019 Treatbox Reveal with me, Sabrina of Severn Wishes Blog.
Happy Treatbox Day! My apologies for the delay in bringing you this November Treatbox reveal.I hope that you can forgive its lateness.
It has a pretty lilac tissue paper this month… Top Tip! Open the paper carefully and re-use it to wrap something for someone at Christmas this year! Recycle your Treatbox Tissue Paper!
Don’t forget you can follow my social media for more Treatbox photos and updates throughout the month including me using items!
Here are the contents of the November box. This month there are 5 physical items in total, 10 Cards, along with 1 A5 Print and of course the usual Calendar Print.
November Calendar Print A5 Print “Time To Relax” Mindfulness Prompt Cards – 10 Cards Sign Decoration “home” Clipper Hot Chocolate Fairtrade Instant Drink 28g Candy Kittens Bag of Sweets! Tropical Mango – Vegan 54g Rose Gold Dust Sheet Mask – Moisturising Face Mask 20ml Pink Sparkle Tealights – 12
My Opinion on the November 2019 Box The items I like most in this month’s box are ‘home’ sign, the mindfulness prompt cards, the sweets and the mask.
I will be gifting away the hot chocolate because it’s not dairy free sadly, but I know of someone who will love it so it’s going in as a Christmas Stocking filler!Ooo!
I am most looking forward to eating the sweets, hanging up my ‘home’ sign on the wall. And I will try using the mindfulness cards too for the coming weeks.
This is a positive card that I do intend to take inspiration from, this is a lovely idea to incorporate at the end of your day instead of a diary entry.Candy Kitten Sweets are Vegan! And So Yum!More of the mindfulness cards…I actually achieved this card this month, two large bags of unwanted clothes and bric-a-brac have gone to a charity shop.
These candles smell nice…
Not much relaxing happening for me at the moment, so the mask is going in my drawer for a time when I have an hour or two free in order to pamper myself!
Are you thinking of ordering a TreatBox for yourself or for a gift for someone? Then you can find Treatbox subscriptions and build your own box at their website
Check out my previous Treatbox unboxing posts in this unique category of mine called ‘Treatbox’ it is specifically for these box reviews and reveals – Severn Wishes Treatbox.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes, I hope you enjoyed this Review. See you again soon.
Hello readers! It’s time for the October 2019 Treatbox Reveal with me, Sabrina of Severn Wishes Blog.
Happy Treatbox Day! It is time for some unboxing! This is my Reveal and Review of the October Treatbox.
It has a tissue paper of deep purple again this month and the sticker says “xoxo Treatbox” on it.
Don’t forget you can follow my social media for more Treatbox photos and updates throughout the month!
Here are the contents of the October box, this month there are 9 items in total, 7 physical, 1 Recipe Print and of course the Calendar Print.
October Calendar Print Print as a Recipe “Millionaires Shortbread” Bakedin Chocolate Brownie in a Mug Mix Joe Cool – Pair of Socks – Green Panda for me! Cute! Purple Tree Miracle Balm – Papaya Flavour for me! For Dry Lips & Skin Drink Me Chai Spiced Chai Latte Drink Sachet After Spa – Soap + Sponge 2 in 1 Oatmeal Notepad for Recipes including space for writing Method & Ingredients Bookmark – “When It Rains Look For Rainbows, When It’s Dark Look For Stars”
Here are some more
images of the contents from this October box…
Calendar Print and Bookmark
Miracle Balm and Socks
Chai Latte, Brownie in a Mug Mix and Oatmeal Soap + Sponge
Calendar Print, Recipe, Recipe Notepad and Bookmark
My Opinion on the October 2019 Box I really love some of the items in this months box, especially the Socks, Balm, Bookmark, Recipe Notepad and Brownie Mix!
I love Reading and this Bookmark has one of my favourite quotes of all time on it!
The socks are great quality and the Panda is so cute too! I am someone who nearly always has socks on her feet because they get cold so easily.
The Miracle Balm is a great handbag size and can be used on any dry skin. It smells lovely and I used it on my lips and found it very smooth.
I will definitely be using the Recipes Notepad because I’m always making up new recipes in my kitchen, and I often don’t have anywhere to write them down, so I write on post-it notes or a note on my phone. Now they can go on here! Hurrah!
Finally the Brownie in a Box is great because it has no dairy in it so I can eat it! Yay! I can add dairy free butter to it and even soya milk if I’d like, when I do enjoy it! I will pop it on my social media when I do!
The other additions to the box of a Recipe is lovely (I may have to alter it to suit our family allergies but I will give it a go at some point!) and the Soap + Sponge is rather intriguing! I will be gifting the Chai off to my Sister who loves this sort of thing!
All in all a very good box and I’m happy with the contents.
Are you thinking of ordering a TreatBox for yourself or for a gift for someone? Then you can find Treatbox subscriptions and build your own box at their website
Check out my previous Treatbox unboxing posts in this unique category of mine called ‘Treatbox’ it is specifically for these box reviews and reveals – Severn Wishes Treatbox.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes today, I hope you enjoyed the Review of this Treatbox and that I see you here again soon.
What makes my recipe different to others? My “Special” Curry is Free From for my family! The great thing about my recipe is that you can put any meat with it or even vegan alternatives such as Quorn with it. Whatever protein you fancy really! Even fish if you’re that way inclined! The combined flavours work well with everything, but I prefer Chicken and… Potato! Yes… you’ll see!
I use my nifty little food processor (Russel Hobbs Mini Chopper) to save chopping time but if you don’t have a processor then just chop the vegetables as small as possible with a knife and watch those fingers!
The Free From Bit! This curry recipe is DF, NF and GF and it serves 4-6 people. So many curries in the supermarkets contain dairy and nuts. Even local take away restaurants cannot guarantee things being free from certain ingredients. Our family has a wide range of allergies so I’ve learnt to cook my recipes alternatively and figure out what works without it including an allergen. This has been my best recipe to date! You can follow this and it be great for you and your family as well! Plus it’s 3 of your 5 a day!
What can you serve with it? You can serve this curry with a nice Rice, Basmati is a good choice or Pilau, and you can easily get GF rice these days, I recommend Tilda or Tesco’s own brand rice for their flavour! Naan Bread is delicious but obviously it’s not DF or GF so do be careful there! Poppadoms and Chutneys are a great accompaniment but again some of these will not be GF and some even contain Nuts! If you don’t have any allergies then you can have any of these (or all of them) with the curry! If you choose all of the above you will serve at least 6 people…
Sabrina’s Special Free From Curry Prep Time: Up To 60 Minutes Cooking Time: 90 Minutes Serves: 6 People (8 if you include side dishes)
Ingredients
500g – 600g of your chosen Protein into bite size pieces for frying
400g Tomatoes – use a tin of Plum Tomatoes for the Sauce, pop them into a food processor until smooth and a sauce like consistency, use plum will taste sweeter
1 Large Onion Diced Finely for the Sauce, you can pop this in the food processor before you prepare the tomatoes until shredded very fine
1 Large Onion Chop into bite size pieces ready for frying
2 Peppers – Chopped into short slices (Red or Yellow) ready for frying
4 Tablespoons of Tomato Puree for the Sauce
The Sauce needs to be made of the following spices and seasonings; 4 Tablespoons of Garam Masala 1 Tablespoon of Cumin 3 Tablespoons of Coriander Leaf 1 Tablespoon of Garlic 1 Tablespoon of Paprika 2 Tablespoons of Chilli Powder (Mild) (Use Hot if you can handle it) 30ml of warm water Salt and Pepper to your taste.
Oil for Frying
400g – 500g Potatoes – Cut into bite size chunks and washed
Method
Prepare all of the ingredients as stated above, diced and chopped.
You need to have a large saucepan and a frying pan warming with a little oil in each. First begin by adding the chopped onion and peppers to the frying pan. Add the tiny diced onion and some garlic to the large saucepan.
Fry off all the ingredients, once the saucepan with the diced onion is nicely caramelised, you can add the sauce ingredients from the list above and mix well. Leave the Onion and Peppers inside the Frying Pan to caramelise and then add the chicken.
Put your plum tomatoes in a food processor and then once blended add them to your saucepan. Next you’ll need to continue frying off the protein and vegetables in the frying pan until thoroughly cooked.
Add anything additional you require for the sauce, that includes the tomato puree and seasonings. Taste it before you add your meat and vegetables so you can tell if it needs more chilli or more salt and pepper.
Simmer your sauce on a low heat, adding the contents of the frying pan which should now be nicely cooked and combined in flavour. You need to continue to simmer this for at least an hour for the flavours to coat everything and for the sauce to thicken up.
Now is the perfect time to add the Potatoes! They will cook inside the sauce and do not need boiling before hand. Use fresh or tinned whatever you have at hand. Leave it to simmer for a while…
Taste test at one hour to ensure the potato are cooked and the chicken is tender, stir occasionally during this hour of cooking time to ensure it’s not getting stuck to the bottom or sides. It should gradually thicken. If you don’t think there is enough sauce when you add all the contents and mix it then add 10ml of water at a time and mix in until the sauce covers everything.
Serve immediately with Rice and any of the other sides I suggested.
Here is my curry when I served it with Pilau Rice and No Potato in this one either… you don’t have to add them it’s optional.
Thank you reading this post today, I really hope you like the look of my recipe, if you give it a go yourself then please tag me on social media to let me know and show me the end result too!
How To Make Delicious Dairy Free Vegetable Nuggets For All The Family To Enjoy!
Today I will be showing you how to make tasty, nutritious and dairy free vegetable nuggets that contain four different vegetables. They are great fun for your children to eat as finger food and your older children can dip them in the sauce if they choose. This recipe is ideal for weaning and beyond.
Veggie Nugget (broken so you can see the soft inside)
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Ingredients for Sabrina’s Veggie Nuggets
3 Tablespoons of Tomato Ketchup 1 Tablespoon of Reduced Salt Soy Sauce 1 Tablespoon of Mixed Herbs 1 Large Egg (Beaten) 160 grams of Breadcrumbs (approx) roughly 4 slices of bread – I always use the 2 end bits if I have them! 6 Medium Carrots – Grated and Squeezed 2 Courgettes – Grated and Squeezed 100 grams of Swede Cooked First, then Diced Finely using a Chopper 1 Large White Onion Diced Finely 50 grams of Dairy Free Alternative to Italian Style Hard Cheese Plain Flour (6 tablespoons approx) spread this onto a small plate ready for rolling…
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Method
To make the sauce combine tomato ketchup and soy sauce together. Double the amount if you are preparing these nuggets for people to dip into the sauce straight after cooking them. Use half of the sauce for the vegetables mixture and leave half for the dip.
Once you have prepared all of the vegetable ingredients as directed above, you will need to ensure the mixture of vegetables isn’t too wet. Take a handful of the grated and chopped veg and place it between a few paper towels, a muslin cloth or a clean tea towel. Squeeze and press it in the cloth to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Do this with all of the grated veg.
Get a large mixing bowl and crack the egg into it. Add the herbs and stir until combined. Next add some of the tomato dip. Next add the squeezed vegetables, then lastly add the hard cheese (or alternative) and the breadcrumbs, stir it all thoroughly. You don’t want lots of the same type of veg in each ball, try and mix it so you get a variant of all the ingredients. (I do my breadcrumbs in a small food mixer).
Place the flour onto a small plate ready to roll your nuggets in.
To make a nugget take a small handful of the combined mixture and roll between your palms. Top Tip! Do this with wet hands so it doesn’t stick to you! Roll them out into oval shapes, and then once happy you can roll each one in flour to coat it.
Have a large frying pan ready on your cooker with some oil getting hot. You should place the nuggets down gently so as not to break them or splash the oil. Fry each one until lightly browned all over. Top Tip! Use a pair of tongs to adjust them while frying to make sure you do all of the sides. Keep topping up the oil after every few nuggets.
Once they are cooked set the nuggets to one side on a piece of kitchen roll so as to drain any excess oil from them and let them cool a little, and then serve them while they’re still warm in a large bowl with the remainder of the tomato dip. They are great for a children’s party or a finger food family night in.
Squeezing the Veg so as to remove as much moisture as possible.
Veggie Nugget Mixture Ready For Mixing and Rolling
Vegetable Nuggets are ideal for children who are weaning at around 10 months and older, when they are learning to hold and bite into foods. They are great for getting your children to eat vegetables. The tomato dip provides a fun element for older children. The leftovers can be frozen, defrost over night and re-fry them to give them a crunchy outside again. My Recipe made me approximately 24 Nuggets.
Once you have rolled your nuggets between your palms you can get ready to fry them… My Top Tip is to have some done so you can fry one set while you make the next set…
FryingTips
When frying the Nuggets take care and turn them frequently so that they cook evenly on all sides. You also need to maintain the oil so that they sit in a few millimetres at all times to avoid sticking to the pan.
Finished Veggie Nuggets
These Nuggets are great, and rather tasty too, that is providing you like the Veg I have chosen. You can substitute the Courgette for Mushrooms if you prefer those! And you can also do these without being dairy free by using a regular cheese like Parmesan if you wish.
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Thank you for visiting, I hope you have enjoyed reading about this recipe, if you decide to give it a go then please leave me a comment with how it went afterwards… Check out my other recipes on the category list!
Hello readers! It’s time for the August 2019 Treatbox Reveal with me, Sabrina of Severn Wishes Blog.
Happy Treatbox Day! I am ready to Reveal and Review the August Treatbox. It has a gorgeous Yellow tissue paper and the little sticker reads “When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade”.
When Life Gives You Lemons…
I’m really looking forward to finding out what could be inside this box, the summertime boxes always seem more exciting somehow…
Unboxing…
Here are the contents of the August box, we can see 7 items, an A5 Print and of course the Calendar Print.
August Calendar Print – blue and yellow A5 Print “The World is your Oyster” Cotton Bag “Let’s Get Away” in beige and blue Notepad for “Lists and Things” Packet of Tissues Queen Bee Key Ring from Sass & Belle Anandas Homemade Gourmet Marshmallows – Caramel(V) 2 Hair Bands with Bows – Several Colours Available at Random
The August 2019 Treatbox
Here are some images of the contents of the August box…
My Opinion on the August 2019 Box What I really liked most about this box were the new items, the hair bands and the Marshmallows. I think we all like to try new things or receive items we have not yet seen before, this made me happy.
The quality of the months items was great, a key ring from Sass & Belle and the bag are great additions, even if they are passed on to others as gifts. Personally I don’t think you can ever have enough notepads or cotton bags! Reuse the bag for whatever you like instead of buying more plastics!
My favourite things in the August box is, well, all of it! There wasn’t an item that I didn’t like, and although the print is a little bit plain this month I’m sure the quote spoke to a lot of you. It’s a bit like, go get um! or, do whatever you like, but saying it in a nicer way of course!
This month there seems to be a theme of getting away for a day, as the bag tells us, and the tissues to go inside it, marshmallows for a tasty treat to share or not, there is a band to put your hair up in the sea breeze and you could even make a list of what to do on your day out! All hypothetical of course! But what I like about Treatbox items, is that there are multiple uses for the contents. It’s totally up to you!
It’s another Vegan treat this month, this makes me very happy!
Bags are so useful and this one is a great size too!
Are you thinking of ordering a TreatBox for yourself or for a gift for someone? Then you can find Treatbox subscriptions and build your own box at their website
Check out my previous Treatbox unboxing posts in this unique category of mine called ‘Treatbox’ it is specifically for these box reviews and reveals – Severn Wishes Treatbox.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes today, I hope you enjoyed the Review of this Treatbox and that I see you here again soon.
Our Weaning journey began delicately due to our son having suspected allergies. He is exclusively breastfed and he cluster fed for the first 5 months of his life. He was born slightly premature at 37 + 5 and after having bad jaundice at birth, it took him many weeks to recover. We spent so much time in hospital at the start that our first month with him went by in a blur. Problems with allergies began at around 12 weeks, so it was a steep learning curve in the next 10 to 12 weeks that followed.
Then, when it came to Baby A reaching the 6 month milestone he was still in size 3-6 month clothing and breast feeding up to 14 times in 24 hours. We hoped that Weaning would satisfy him more so and because we could introduce cooled boiled water with his meals, it would take a bit of pressure off me. This did work, but he had such an appetite that he continued regular breastfeeding including a minimum of two feeds a night, plus day times and extra weaning snacks. We had ourselves one hungry baby!
I recall the health visitor questioning how much I was feeding him at our 6 month visit… she couldn’t believe how much I was saying he ate, I’m almost sure she thought I was lying. I had read in a parenting book that you cannot over feed a baby, because they will simply refuse to eat it. Our son wanted more and more food as the days went by, so I used motherly instincts and I watched my baby for cues. So I continued on with my busy breastfeeding schedule plus I began our weaning journey in a rather swift fashion.
We Tried A Range Of 4 Month Plus Puree, These Are A Few Of Them Little One Loved.
Baby A enjoyed many things that we tried first off, including individual vegetables such as Carrot, Potato, Parsnip, Sweet Potato, Apple and Strawberry. There were only 2 things he spat out which were Prune and Peas. And I don’t blame him for either! Ha!
After doing some reading and noticing how keen Baby A was with eating and being fed, we decided to do 6 weeks of Purées to start with. We maintained that he was to ingest nothing dairy of course, I checked packaging meticulously or I made my own. This worked well, starting with a few mouthfuls twice a day for the first week, followed by doubling the amount in subsequent weeks. By the time we got to week 6 Baby A was eating 70g of fruit purée for breakfast and 70g of vegetable purée in the early evening. He also tried Melty Puffs around this time too.
Prices of Purée vary, but they usually cost anything from 40p all the way up to £1.50. They also range in size so look out for that. We made the most of any offers that were on in supermarkets and also used any store credit points and vouchers we had picked up to get our initial 6 week stash of purée. Boots vouchers can go a long way if you sign up to the Clubcard and baby club before hand. Keep a look out on social media for offers too.
Minced Beef and Onions with Mashed Potato (7M)
He was enjoying the food we were giving him and he was obviously hungry. We were approaching his 8 month mark when we began moving to thicker purées and food with more textures. I was bulk cooking mashed vegetables at this point and freezing them in small pots (roughly 80g each). Some combinations included Potato and Carrot, Carrot and Swede, Carrot and Parsnip and Parsnip and Sweet Potato.
At 8 months Baby A was eating between 70g and 100g for breakfast, between 100g and 130g for his lunch and between 130g and 150g of food in the evening. This was on top of 12 breast feeds still most days, and we had began to try him on some more snacks. The melty puff kind that melted on his tongue were a real hit! Luckily they came in many flavours.
We also gave him fruit such as Raspberries, Strawberries and Melon as an evening pudding if he was feeling particularly hungry.
Minced Pork and Onions with Carrot and Potato Mash (8M)
Baby A ate most things from Day Dot but turned his nose up at the taste of Cucumber and also highly disliked the taste of Peppers. Some foods took a couple of times before he decided that he liked them, usually very strong tasting food groups. He was unsure about things like Tomato, Scrambled Eggs and Pasta, but we persevered and he eats them now. The trick is to leave a food for 2-3 weeks then try it with them again.
One thing I loved about Weaning was the way he learned and every day you saw him remember. Within two weeks he understood that cutlery went into his mouth, he began to chew even when food was super soft, and he was also cutting several teeth while we were trying most new foods. He did so well with all these milestone changes and I’m very proud of him.
Mashed Carrot and Swede with a Small Chicken Steak and some Rice (9M)
One thing I would recommend to mum’s who want to cook healthy meals for their little ones is to invest in a good strong vegetable mash utensil and a mini food processor. Mine is called the Russel Hobbs Mini Food Processor 22220 Mini Chopper and I cannot rate it high enough! It was used every day for 3 months and I still use it to dice up chewy meat because it saves me so much time. I still use it for my now one year old boy.
Russel Hobbs Mini Chopper In Use
At nine months Baby A began eating some more of the food I prepared for us adults. This includes the meat and sauce of bolognese but we gave him mashed vegetables and not much pasta. He ate my cottage pie (all of it), we had chicken steaks that I had diced in a blender with soft vegetables and rice, sausages were diced and served with mash and veg, and he even ate flaky white fish with rice and veg too!
I also used a weaning book that my mother had bought for me that had some great ideas inside for weaning recipes and snacks. I altered most of them to suit the various allergies in my family of course. Homemade Veggie Nuggets were by far my favourite thing to make, I bulked cooked them which was time consuming but then they’re frozen for convenience.
Minced Beef and Onions, Carrot and Swede Mashed with a Homemade Veggie Nugget
By the time he reached 10 months of age Baby A had 8 teeth and was eating 80% of what we were. He still loves his baby related snacks too! These include Vegetable Puffs, Rice Cakes and Flavoured Shaped Corn Snacks. A lot of these are Organic too.
Some Of The Baby And Toddler Snacks We Buy Regularly.
A Few Of The Pouches We Tried And Tested From 7 Months Plus
These snacks are very affordable from places like Aldi who have their Mamia range. If you sign up to Ella’s Kitchen on their website they will send you a pack and a voucher to try bits from their range which are purchasable at most large supermarkets and Boots stores.
Our little one loves to feed himself firm snacks but has been more than happy for us to feed him things that require a spoon such as fruit purée, cottage pie, mashed vegetables and the like. It’s so important to get your little one to eat their fruit and veg, and it doesn’t matter if you have to create a mashed version in order for them to eat it. Try different combinations and see what your baby likes. Keep a food diary to keep track!
Some of the 7 month snacks are little one loves.
Sabrina’s Weaning Tips For Parents
My top 4 tips for any parents about to wean a baby would be these…
1. Take it slowly and calmly. Your Baby will be intrigued but it can also be a stressful experience for all of you. All healthy Baby’s generally have a good gag reflex and don’t confuse this for choking, stay calm if they cough or spit things out and take all foods – even the purées – at a slow pace!
2. Start with Veg! You don’t want your little one to have too many sweet flavours in those first weeks, this is because when it comes to the savory kind they are less likely to want it. Start with Veg Purée or Mash and go from there…
3. If you plan on doing Baby Lead Weaning, then you must let your little one use their hands. Be prepared for mess! Get a good highchair, get a mat for the floor and keep plenty of baby wipes at hand too!
4. Keep a Food Diary! This is a useful tip for all new parents. It’s a great way to keep track of what baby has eaten, if your little one was to have a rash or reaction to anything they had eaten you can go back and check the diary before trying the substance again. Those first couple of months are critical in preparing baby for stronger tastes and good food habits, so start them early on the main products that your household enjoys together and move forward from there.
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All Parents Should Definitely Sign Up To…
1. Ella’s Kitchen via the Website You get a free pack in the post with tips, a board with stickers, ideas for foods and even some vouchers for baby snacks.
2. Boots Parenting Club Using your Boots Advantage Card on the Boots App or Website you can add the addition of the Parenting Club which gives you bonus deals, free products and vouchers every month. For example we got a free bottle, a free weaning book and some promotions on nappies and baby food. Check the app each month for new promotions and deals. You also get extra points on your card when purchasing certain products in store and online too.
Ella’s Kitchen Have A Great Website and Their Melty Puffs Are A Real Hit!
✩ Russel Hobbs Mini Chopper Review ✩
I would highly recommend this chopper to any parents who want to make a lot of their own food for their baby. Not only is it simple to use, easy to clean and maintain, but it allows you to make just enough food for a large portion that can be good for a day, or if you’re bulk cooking into baby sized pots it made 6 pots of food no problem. The best thing about this mini processor is it’s size, it takes up very little room in my cupboard and is portable enough to take away for a weekend to a relatives house without being a burden.
Design 5/5 Features 5/5 Value for Money 5/5
RRP £16.00
✩Joie High Chair Review✩
We highly recommend the Joie High Chair because it is affordable and also has some great features. These include the large sturdy tray, the beautiful animal design on the seat itself and the large fabric basket underneath which is great for storing extra bits and pieces close by for when you need them, such as bibs, wipes and toys. We only have one suggestion, that the straps could either be entirely removable for cleaning purposes or that they be a different colour than white, because they really show up every bit of food dirt.
Design 5/5 Features 4/5 Value for Money 5/5
RRP £55.00
✩Munchkin Products Review✩
We have been really impressed by the Munchkin Apple Bowls and Plates, as well as their range of Spoons too. We picked most of them up at various baby events in Supermarkets and on Amazon UK. They are affordable and well made. They are designed for different stages of Weaning and further interactions with food, ranging from 4 months right up until Toddler ages. Our son found the spoons easy to eat off and the divider apple plates are a great idea when trying different foods at meal times. Or for separating the meal and the dessert when you get to that stage.
Designs 5/5 Features 5/5 Value for Money 5/5
Thank you for reading this post today, I hope you have found it interesting. If you try any of the products that I have recommended then please let me know in the comments below if your little one liked it.
If you have any questions about any of the products I have mentioned then feel free to also comment and ask me anything, I will do my best to answer you honestly.
Hello and Welcome to the June 2019 Treatbox Reveal with Sabrina of Severn Wishes Blog.
Happy Treat Box Day! It’s June! It’s half way through 2019 and I am ready to Reveal and Review the June Treatbox.
As I open up the box it has a yellow tissue paper and the sticker reads “Chin-Up Buttercup”.
Here is my reveal image of the June 2019 box. This month sees 5 items, an A5 Print and the Calendar Print.
June Calendar Print A5 Butterfly Print Biscuit “Choose Happy” Lightweight Scarf – White with Blue Stitch Details Butterfly Pin with the Slogan “Never Lose Hope” Hanging Plaque from East of India “Follow Your Dreams” Scented Candles (2 Boxes Available) Chamomile Blossom OR Peony Blossom Vanilla
This box has a theme of positivity and good vibes!
Here are some images of the items within this box…
What Did I Like About The June Box?
What I liked the most about this month of Treatbox was that it was a mixture of items, some of which we either haven’t had or haven’t seen for a while. I’m so glad to see a dairy free edible item, yay for me! It’s well designed and with that positive quote is feel good to! The lightweight scarf is lovely and I have no doubt that I will be using it around my shoulders throughout the Summer months. I really like the blue stitched detail around its edge. The plaque is good quality and so is the pin, I do love the positive associations from these items. In fact positivity is spread throughout this entire box of treats. That butterfly print is also gorgeous! I can’t wait to pop mine inside a frame, I’m a fan of butterflies!
Are you thinking of ordering a TreatBox for yourself or for a gift for someone? Then you can find Treatbox subscriptions and build your own box at their website
Check out my previous posts in this unique category of my website called ‘Treatbox’ especially for these box reviews and reveals – Severn Wishes Treatbox.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes, I hope you enjoyed the Review of this Treatbox and that I see you here again very soon.
Hello and Welcome to the May 2019 Treatbox Reveal with Sabrina of Severn Wishes Blog.
Happy Treat Box Day! It’s May already! And it’s time for the May Treatbox Reveal and Review.
I open up the box this month and find the little sticker reads “You Are Enough”. I’m met with a gorgeous light blue tissue paper too.
So what can we expect to find in the May box?
The Treatbox Theme is Wild!
May Calendar Print for 2019.
A4 Print – All Good Things Are Wild And Free.
Flamingo Pen – blue ink and a 3D representation of a Pink Flamingo Bird, Wooden and originally from Sass & Belle.
Flamingo Design Mini Travel Case – Perfect for Travelling with Accessories like Jewellery and Headphones, they can all be kept safe and it’s a great addition to any hand or travel bag.
Two Notebooks – Treatbox Originals. Hand drawn and designed at HQ with animal prints for this Wild theme for May. Great for people who like to make to do lists, jot down ideas or plans, or even sketch as they’re plain and blank.
Peakz – a bag of crunchy mint chocolate squares, a vegan treat that is high in fibre, has Vitamin B12 and contains Iron. It is made with No Palm Oil and you get 32g with the packet. These treats tasted nice, the mint and dark chocolate was a winning combination. They had the texture of wheat cereal squares and a nice aftertaste too. Because they are good for you its even better.
Two Korean Beauty items – from Oh K! The first is a Ginseng and Eucalyptus Under Eye Mask. The second is a hydrating gold gel lip mask with honey and chamomile extracts.
The May 2019 Treatbox.
Here are some more images of the May 2019 box and its items in more detail.This month sees 7 items and a print.
My Opinion on the May 2019 Box and its Contents
At first glance I was a little dubious about this Treatbox, I was getting concerned that the items were repeating themselves again. However I’ve been pleasantly surprised with some of it.
The May 2019 box has had some things we hadn’t seen before, such as the Accessories Case and the awesome three dimensional pen (I love a bit of stationery!). The two notebooks are fab because they’re unique to Treatbox too.
I’ve never tried any Korean Beauty items but am looking forward to trying something new. Same with the Peakz treat that I hadn’t heard about before this box.
Over all it’s a good box with some nice items that I hope to enjoy and others I aim to use often.
Are you thinking of ordering a TreatBox for yourself or for a gift for someone? Then you can find Treatbox subscriptions and build your own box at their website.
Check out my previous posts in this unique category of my website called ‘Treatbox’ especially for these box reviews and reveals – Severn Wishes Treatbox.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes, I hope to enjoyed the Review of this Treatbox and that I see you here again very soon.
Welcome to today’s post as I discuss Free From Easter Eggs with a Taste Testing and Ingredients Comparison.
This Easter time I might be on a Dairy Free diet, but that hasn’t stopped me hunting for treats! I wanted to share my findings with you all, my opinion, product information, photo’s and all! Here is my Review of several Free From Chocolate Easter Eggs.
So I’m trying a few chocolate eggs that are known as free from, I require dairy free but a lot of these eggs come as free from several allergens. Wheat or Gluten or Dairy, most of these go together. I will be outlining Allergens and Ingredients with each egg below.
Number 1. The first egg I have is an Asda Free From Easter Egg with Chocolate Orange Flavour Disks. The pack is available for £4.00 for it’s 200g. LINK
This Egg is Vegan, Gluten Free, Wheat Free and Dairy Free. The Asda Chocolate also has No Artificial Flavours, Colours or Hydrogenated Fats.
Ingredients and Allergens Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Mass, Rice Syrup, Inulin, Coconut Oil, Rice Flour, Flavourings, Emulsifier (Soya Lecithins). Soya is the only allergen present. This Egg should be suitable for those who have Nut allergies because Nuts are not part of the ingredients. The Pack provides 6 servings. 1/6 of the pack (1 serving) Energy kJ 778, Energy kcal 186, Fat 12g, Of Which Saturates 7.1g, Carbohydrate 19g, of Which Sugars 12g Fibre 0.9g Protein 0.8g Salt 0.02g.
Egg Design – The Egg design has lines similar to tree bark or waves. It’s an appealing looking Egg and smells strongly of cocoa. It’s presented inside a piece of plastic (which says is recyclable on the packaging) with disks in a plastic bag at the base. The Egg size and pattern is view able through the mostly clear plastic which is good, you can see what you’re getting. You receive 6 Chocolate Orange disks in orange foil, this is one disk for every serving. The disks are round with lined tops. The foil from the disks is recyclable but the plastic bag they come in is not.
Egg Taste – The Egg tastes very nice, it is quite a strong cocoa taste but leaves a nice aftertaste of sweet chocolate. The sugar content is very high though, and after a couple of bites I had had enough. The Chocolate Orange disks are very tasty, they have a strong natural orange taste to them.
Egg Quality – The Easter Egg itself measures 3mm in thickness at the smallest sections and 6mm at the thickest sections. The chocolate orange disks are 5mm deep and taste great, a nice addition to this Easter Egg treat.
Egg Value – A very tasty Egg and a nice treat for anyone requiring a Free From Easter treat. I would say you get a lot for your money with this considering you get the Egg itself plus the Chocolate Orange disks. Because it’s so sweet you wouldn’t usually eat all of this Egg in one sitting, meaning it will last you longer too.Most of the packaging is recyclable except for the film and carton the egg comes inside.
Asda Free From Chocolate Egg
Number 2. The second egg I have is a Moo Free Easter Egg which cost me £3.00. This pack is only 110g. You can find these Eggs at most stores, I have seen them in Aldi, Asda and Tesco.
Organic Cheeky Orange Egg that is Dairy, Gluten and Soya Free. This pack contains a Chocolate Egg that is a Milk Chocolate alternative made from a combination of Cocoa, Sugar, Rice and Orange Oil. Moo Free are an ethical and family owned manufacturer based in Devon in the UK. They use high quality ingredients that have a single origin, including organic cocoa mass from plantations in the Dominican Republic.
Despite no allergens being present in the ingredients the packaging makes the customer aware that the product is Dairy, Gluten and Soya Free. It doesn’t mention Wheat, and it also states that is is made in a factory that handles Hazelnuts. This pack contains 2 servings it states, 1/2 of an egg is classed as a serving. The values per serving are as follows; Energy 1334 kJ Fat, Total 21.2g Of which Saturates 12.5g Carbohydrate 29.9g Of which Sugars 20.8g Protein 1.8g Salt 0.17g
Egg Design – The design of this Egg is nice, hexagonal shapes are all over the surface of the oval shape and all link together.Taste – The Orange taste of this Egg is very prominent and along with the sugar content makes it rather sweet, almost sickly. I couldn’t manage half of my half (serving) and stopped at a quarter. It’s meant to be a milk chocolate alternative however it’s quite a plain and strong chocolate flavour.
Egg Quality – The Moo Free Egg is only 3mm thick all the way around the oval. It has been the thinnest of all the eggs I have tried, and is also the most rich. The taste is nice but very strong in comparison to others. Moo do several eggs but I chose to try this Orange one, so perhaps the other flavours are not to overpowering.
Egg Value – This Egg is small and you don’t get much chocolate for the amount of money that you pay. Considering most other Dairy Free items are made with Soya products though, this item gives those who suffer with a Soya allergy a way of eating chocolate this Easter. I’m very happy to see a notice on the Moo Free box which says the plastic that their egg comes inside was made with recycled plastic, and could we please recycle it again. The box is also recyclable, so of course I will do that Moo Free Company! I’d be happy to because I’m big on recycling and it makes me happy to!
Moo Free Egg
Number 3. The third egg I have is a Trio of Flavoured Chocolate Eggs. This one is a little more indulgent, I had it from Asda in their extra special range, it cost £4.50 for its tiny amount of chocolate at just 150g. LINK
There are three eggs inside this Easter Egg Selection, the first is a Chocolate Egg with Raspberry Pieces. This one tastes delicious, there are sweet and tangy raspberry pieces in every bite. The second egg is a White Chocolate Egg with vanilla, and you can see the flecks of vanilla all inside the white chocolate. The taste is surprisingly similar to white chocolate and has lots of vanilla flavouring too. Finally the third of the set is a Dark Chocolate Egg with cocoa nibs inside. This one tastes delicious because of the dark, rich chocolate flavour combined with the cocoa nibs which give boosts of taste, it’s rich and indulgent but also has a really nice after taste.
Soya is the only allergen present. This Egg should be suitable for those who have Nut allergies because Nuts are not part of the ingredients. It also states that there are No Artificial Colours, Flavours or Hydrogenated Fat.
The Pack provides 6 servings, half of each egg which would be about right considering the different tastes. 1/6 of the pack contains (1 serving) Energy kJ 583 Energy kcal 140 Fat 8.9g Of Which Saturates 5.5g Carbohydrate 14g of Which Sugars 9.9g Fibre 1.0g Protein 0.7g Salt 0.01g
Easter Egg Selection Trio
Trio Eggs Design – Each of these Egg tastes great, I would say that the Raspberry combination is my favourite, closely followed by the Dark Coca Nibs. The White is some of the nicest Free From White Chocolate that I have tried however, which gives this Egg a bonus point in taste design. The Vanilla definitely makes a big difference. Over all the set is nicely balanced in flavours, you have the fruit combo which is both Sweet and Tangy, you have the Classic flavours of the Vanilla and then you have the Rich and Indulgent Dark.
Trio Eggs Quality – The Easter Eggs were not hugely thick, however they were consistent at around 4mm. The Cocoa Mass was pretty high within this chocolate, dark chocolate has 58%.
Trio Eggs Value – Although they are the more expensive per 100g these eggs also have the better quality. Over all I would go for the taste and these have that in abundance. You don’t feel like you’re eating something that has been designed to not have Allergens in it, but instead you are enjoying a delicious chocolate treat of high quality cocoa and its adjacent flavourings to match. I have to ask myself, would I buy these again because of the taste and quality? Yes in fact I would do. Only as a treat, and Easter is that sort of one of time where I would allow it. I only wish the eggs were a bit larger, I would pay another £1 for larger ones of this quality and deliciousness!
Easter Egg Selection Trio
Of course there are plenty of other Free From Eggs out there, however I needed to avoid any that definitely contained Nuts due to my husbands allergies. And there were others that I didn’t think I would enjoy due to their flavour combinations…
I loved the flavour of the Orange Disks from Egg Number 1, and I loved Eggs Raspberry and Dark from Number 3 the Trio.
Thank you for visiting Severn Wishes today, I hope you have enjoyed this Review and that you all have a great Easter Bank Holiday!
✩ Sabrina ✩
HAPPY EASTER!!!
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