Blog – Page 14 – Bit of the Good Stuff

Creamy Butternut Squash Soup with Maple-Glazed Chickpeas

Published on February 16, 2018May 27, 2025 by Sharon7 Comments

In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for the perfect Winter warmer – Creamy Butternut Squash Soup with Maple-Glazed Chickpeas 💛 With its delicious, sweet flavour and golden orange hue, this soup is so bright and cheery that it’s bound to put a smile on your face. It also happens to be packed full of immune-boosting nutrients to help keep those pesky Winter bugs at bay.

Butternut squash is a fantastic immunity-booster. Of all the winter squashes, it contains the highest amount of vitamin C. It’s also packed with the vitamin A antioxidants alphacarotene and betacarotene. Just one cup of cooked squash provides 52% of the recommended daily amount (RDA) of vitamin C and 457% of the vitamin A RDA! (Source)

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Maple-Glazed Chickpeas with Oregano

Published on February 9, 2018May 27, 2025 by Sharon5 Comments

In today’s post, I’m sharing the recipe for one of my favourite sweet ‘n’ savoury snacks… Maple-Glazed Chickpeas with Oregano ❤️ I’d been hoping to include this recipe in my cookbook, but sadly run out of space, so I’m delighted to be able to share it with you today. These pan-fried chickpeas not only make a great snack, but they are also perfect for topping soups and pasta dishes. They’re really simple to make and ready in less than ten minutes!

I absolutely love chickpeas and eat them most days in some shape of form. The fact that they’re packed full of nutritional goodness makes me love them even more. They’re a great source of protein, dietary fibre, B vitamins and a whole array of minerals, such as manganese and iron. Chickpeas also contain an abundance of antioxidant phytonutrients, including flavonoids and phenolic acids, which boost the immune system.

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Quinoa Winter Bowl with Roasted Vegetables, Cranberries and Balsamic Glaze

Published on November 20, 2017May 27, 2025 by Sharon5 Comments

In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for a delicious quinoa bowl that’s just perfect for serving this time of year. It features roasted veggies, dried cranberries and crunchy pumpkin seeds, topped with a sweet balsamic glaze. We’ve been enjoying it as a light evening meal, with leftovers served for lunches later in the week. It can even be served cold, and Lucien’s been taking it to school in his lunchbox.

I must admit that I never used to be a fan of quinoa. I found the texture and flavour of plain quinoa quite strange and not particularly appealing. However, I discovered a couple of key steps that make it much more palatable…

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Optimum Nutri Force Extractor Review

Published on October 3, 2017May 28, 2025 by Sharon11 Comments

For the past three years, I’ve been using a Froothie Optimum Power blender at home. It’s by far the best blender that I’ve owned and since I was so impressed with it, when Froothie contacted me and asked if I’d like to become an Ambassador for them, I happily agreed.

This Summer, I was contacted by Froothie and asked whether I would like to test their newest blender – the Optimum Nutri Force Extractor. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. My family was about to embark on a road trip to France for a three-week self-catering vacation. I’d been contemplating taking a blender so that we could make our own daily smoothies, rather than buying them in cafes like we usually do (thus saving us about 15 euros a day!) My power blender is a bit big and heavy for travel, but the Nutri Force Extractor sounded just perfect. It’s smaller, much lighter (3.4kg), yet has a powerful 1000W motor. It comes with 450ml and 1 litre size cups, so perfect for single and two-person smoothies.

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Lemon Berry Crumble Slice (Dairy-free / Egg-free / Vegan)

Published on September 17, 2017May 28, 2025 by Sharon6 Comments

In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for a delicious baked treat – Lemon Berry Crumble Slices. These slices consist of a fluffy lemon sponge, studded with juicy berries and topped with crumble. They use basic pantry ingredients and are simple to make, yet they’re bound to impress your family and friends!

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Wagamama-Inspired Yasai Cha Han Donburi (Brown Rice Bowl with Stir-Fried Veggies and Tofu)

Published on August 14, 2017May 28, 2025 by Sharon4 Comments

In early Summer, my family were eagerly anticipating a trip to Wagamamas. On the way there, we psyched each other up, talking about how much we were looking forward to tucking into our favourite Wagamama dish – the Yasai Cha Han Donburi. Upon arrival, the waiter showed us to our seats and handed us the menu. Our eyes immediately moved to the spot where the dish is usually listed, but it wasn’t there. We scanned both sides of the menu but it was nowhere to be seen. We called over the waiter and he explained that they had a new summer menu. Sadly, the Yasai Cha Han Donburi hadn’t made the cut.

Has that ever happened to you? Where you’re looking forward to tucking into your favourite dish at a restaurant, or you specifically go to that restaurant because you’re craving a dish… only to find that it’s been taken off the menu. It’s happened to my family a few times and it’s always such a bummer.

Well this time, I decided to look on the bright side. I’d been meaning to try my hand at making the Yasai Cha Han Donburi at home for a while, and now was the perfect opportunity. I could still remember what the bowl tasted like and its main components, so I set to work re-creating it.

One of my favourite parts of the bowl is the flavouring added to the rice, so I really wanted to nail this part. I chose to use two of my favourite pantry staples as the basis of the dressing – Clearspring Organic Tamari Sauce and Meridian Organic Toasted Sesame Oil. The tamari provides the ‘umami’ flavour, while the toasted sesame oil add a touch of smokiness. I then added a tablespoon each of maple syrup and rice vinegar for some ‘sweet ’n’ sour’ flavour, and finished it off with a sprinkling of garlic granules. I was extremely happy with the way the dressing turned out. For me, it’s the perfect compliment to a Japanese-inspired rice bowl.

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