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I’m always on the look out for something new in the snack department and even better if it’s something healthy.  Chika’s recently got in touch and asked me to review some of their products. Their snacks are made with absolutely nothing artificial, baked gluten-free, lower in salt and fat, plus they are vegetarian or vegan (depending on the variety).  It certainly makes you feel better after you’ve eaten the packet!  I also like that they don’t use palm oil or GMO.

Chika’s offer a range of nuts including Honey Spiced Almonds, Chilli & Lime Cashews, and Smoked Almonds.  My pick of the bunch were the Chilli & Lime Cashews which had just the right balance between chilli heat and the zing of the lime to lift the nuts onto another level.  The only trouble is that they are very moreish.

I’ve also been liking the Chickpea Crisps.  These don’t have the fattiness of normal crisps, in fact they use a third less fat than vegetable crisps. They are spiced to add a taste of West Africa and they achieve that with spices like cumin rather than adding salt.  I have a month’s supply of 2 packs each of Honey Spiced Almonds, Chilli & Lime Cashew, Smoked Almonds, and Lightly Spiced Chickpea Crisps for one lucky winner. Enter via the Gleam widget below.

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Olives aren’t for everyone, but I’ve developed more of a taste for them over the years.  I love that these OLOVES come in handy packs and the stones have been removed.  Just olives seasoned with a little chilli, garlic and oregano. For a summer snack there’s Ryvita Thins Three Cheese in this summer Degustabox.  They are topped with cheddar, regato and emmental cheeses – mmmm!  I find these Merchant Gourmet Simply Cooked Red & White Quinoa perfect for getting a quick lunch together.  I also like the fact that Weetabix are jazzing up their traditional cereal with this Weetabix Additions Coconut & Raisin variety.  Another little treat was the Rowntree’s Randoms 30% Less Sugar are a perfect treat to share – we used ours to keep children going on a long walk.

Blossom Hill Spritz is the perfect accompaniment to a long summer evening.  Serve nicely chilled and I quite like serving it with ice too.  This is a lovely light drink because of the mixture of fruity flavours with the wine.  I tried the Elderflower & Lemon version which was very refreshing.  Another drink with a fruity flavour is the Crafted Mango & Passionfruit Fruit Juice Drink and again I’d recommend serving it chilled and over ice.  A very welcome surprise was the full price voucher for a tub of The Collective’s yoghurt.  After trying their yoghurt through a previous Degustabox voucher I’ve become a bit of a fan, so I’m keen to give The Collective Kids Big Tub Yoghurt a try.  THOR is another brand we’ve tried before through Degustabox.  I’m loving the Apple Spritz with its ginger zing.

Also, in this month’s box, we’re trialling Maille Dijon Original mustard that I plan to team up with a nice steak.  For cooking I’ve been using this Frylight Cooking Spray with Avocado Oil.  I’ve been impressed how little I have to use and it works well with a range of different cooking techniques.

The concept behind Siamais, in Brindley Place Birmingham, is that it’s a place to spend the whole evening. You can start off with a few cocktails, eat Thai cuisine and then return to the cocktails.  We started with the cocktails, it would have been rude not to, and they were quite spectacular. There was smoke and drama, ooohs and aaahs a plenty.  They slipped down very nicely too.

I started with Tempura Prawns.  I think a dish like this is a good test of a restaurant because it is all about the quality of the ingredients and letting that quality shine through without hindering it.  The prawns were lightly battered, so the batter didn’t overwhelm them.  They were seasoned with salt and chilli.  This worked well, but I could have liked to see the chilli chopped smaller as it did have a tendency to over power.

Having had prawns as a starter, I decided to try a meat main course.  Stir Fried Beef in Oyster Sauce  served with Jasmine Rice was my pick and it proved very tasty. There was a freshness and a lightness about the dish that you don’t always get. The stir fried beef was served with mushrooms, red and green peppers, ginger and spring onions.

For dessert I still felt I had room for a reasonably substantial dessert, so I picked out the Mango and Passionfruit Cheesecake.  I loved the sound of this as it is a fusion of cheesecake and ice cream: two of my favourite things. It’s topped with pieces of mango and there’s a mango and passionfruit sauce. The sweetness of the mango and the passionfruit went well with the richness of the cheesecake.

I really enjoyed my visit to Siamais and would happily visit again in the future.  I was joined for this review meal by the lovely Candace Mantle of Buckets of Tea.

Lately I’ve been trying to look after my health better.  There’s a weekly yoga class that I’ve been doing for ages and I’ve always done the school run on foot.  Lately I’ve added to this some daily yoga with a bit of weights and I’ve tried to add more walking into my daily routine.

Moving more is a great way to improve health, but it not the only thing to address.  I’ve been drinking less alcohol in recent months and now I’m trying to improve my diet a bit.  One area that I am struggling with is including enough foods that contain Omega 3, 6 and 9 oils in them and in the right balance.  It’s fairly easy for most of us to get Omega 6, but we need more Omega 3.  I do try to eat some oily fish each week, but I know I don’t eat as much as I should.  I do try to include other sources like chia seeds, which I often sprinkle onto my muesli, but I don’t always manage to do that every day. Taking a supplement is one way to help and I’ve been trying Udos Choice from Discount Supplements over the last few weeks.   The oils are fish-free and gluten-free.

The capsules are easy to take and I find I can swallow them comfortably without water despite them being quite big.  They slide down quite nicely.  It’s always difficult to know for sure if your health is being improved by a supplement, but I do find them easy to take and I would say I feel a little healthier the last week or two, so that bodes well.

I have a bottle of Udos Choice to give away to readers and you can try your hand at winning by entering through the Gleam widget below.

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It can be difficult to source the right food products if you have food allergies or intolerances, or if you have dietary requirements like needed products to be vegan.  We’ve teamed up with Easy Egg to offer a hamper of goodies, which are ideal for those seeking alternatives to traditional foods.

Our prize hamper includes the following products:

Orgran Super Trio Pasta; Kale, Quinoa, Brown Rice, Buckwheat & Millet. Perfect for winter & autumn meals but can be enjoyed by all the family. High in protein and can be cooked to perfection in just 10 minutes. Currently available on Ocado and selected online food stores – RRP: £ 3.99

Orgran Quinoa Porridge available in 3 flavours (Original/Apple/Cinnamon and berry) breathing life back into the first part of your day; all varieties are high in fibre and low in fat. Made with quinoa and a blend of wholegrain, the range consists of 7 sachets, perfect for work and keeping at your desk.

Orgran Vegan Easy Egg™ is a revolutionary product that lets you enjoy your favourite egg dishes once more. Experience scrambled eggs, quiche, frittata and omelette recipes with our vegetable based egg-free alternative. Equal to 15 eggs per pack, Vegan Easy Egg™ is cholesterol free and low in fat. It’s perfect for substitute baking or opting for a NO egg diet. Available on Ocado and selected food stores – RRP £3.49

Sanchi Tamari Soy Sauce,Tamari is made with no wheat, while traditional soy sauce does contain wheat, it is perfect for coeliacs as it is gluten-free and is perfect also for vegans and vegetarians as it contains no preservatives, caramel or artificial enzymes. Tamari has a deeper colour, is slightly thicker in texture and has a richer flavour than the common soy sauce (Chinese or Japanese). Available in Ocado & Amazon. – RRP £2.59

If you’d like to try to win our hamper, enter via the Gleam widget below.

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Easy Egg

Lollies are just the thing for this hot weather.  They cool you down, they refresh you, they are a bit of a treat.  I always have a mix of shop bought ones and homemade ones in my freezer, so there are plenty to hand when we needed them.  On the homemade side though I have run out of inspiration a little, so I liked the sound of having some lolly recipes to follow.

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50 LOLLIES

BBQ is the theme for this month’s Degustabox theme.  As you are setting up for the barbie it’s nice to have a drink in your hand, so it’s nice that there are plenty of options in the latest Degustabox.  Incidentally, Degustabox send me both the alcoholic and non-alcoholic options, so I get the best of both worlds.  Getting things off to a gentle start is the Eisberg Sauvignon Blanc Alcohol Free Wine, which tastes just like the real thing, but without the alcohol.  Westons Cider have come up with some fruity ciders Rosie’s Pig Flat Tyre with rhubarb and Rosie’s Pig Handbrake has a damson edge.  Berrywhite Organic Drinks have four delicious flavours of organic fruit juice blended with mineral water and the Lemon & Lime flavour that I tried was really refreshing. I’ve also enjoyed trying ENRJ – Energy Juice in two flavours Mango & Passion Fruit and Apple & Berries.  It’s made from freshly pressed fruit juice, naturally caffeinated with green (unroasted) arabica coffee beans (a double espresso worth) for a longer-lasting energising lift. It really keeps you going through the day.

Keeping with the BBQ theme are the Schwartz Authentic American Flavour with the BBQ Pulled Chicken and the Spicy Buffalo Wings Recipe Mixes being just the thing.  A real treat for me has been the Capsicana Brazilian Chilli & Coconut Quick Cook Sauce which is very tasty, but not in an overpoweringly spicy way.

Original O’s Savoury Cumin and Sesame Nibbles are very moreish.  Light Bites have kept me going on the move with both their Mango with Vanilla Yoghurt Fruit Chips and their Superfood Fruit Bar.  Both are full of delicious, good things.  For breakfast this week I’ve been enjoying Spoon Apple & Peanut Granola.  It’s really tasty and full of quality ingredients. Sweet things always go down well in a household with a child in it so the HARIBO Summer Frenzy packs were quickly snaffled up.  I on the other hand prefer the indulgence of the Walkers Pure Butter Shortbread Scottie Dogs.

Wagamama invited me to try out their new summer menu alongside other bloggers in their Bullring restaurant in Birmingham’s city centre. The idea behind the evening was to try out the new dishes alongside some of the new drinks available including juices, wines and beers.

To kick off proceedings we had the Beef Tataki which is made using a really good quality sirloin cut.  Beef served rare won’t be for everyone, but I loved it. Just fold the beef over enclosing the sauce with a little of the pickled beetroot.  To drink we had the Repair Juice made from kale, pear, lime and apple.  Kale is a really good accompaniment to beef, so that worked well.  The kale didn’t overpower the juice, but Wagamama do add a decent amount of kale.  The juice did separate a bit after a little while, so it makes sense to drink it quickly.

For me the stand out dish of the evening was the Seared Nuoc Cham Tuna Steak on a bed of quinoa with stir-fried kale, sweet potato, edamame beans, red onion and peppers. garnished with coriander.  I really liked that Wagamama were able to tell us the source of the fish and it clearly was the best quality tuna.  It melted in the mouth. This was paired with an outstanding beer called Kikku, meaning ‘kick’ in japanese. It’s described as a pale ale, but I’m not usually a fan of pale ales and this was a little darker than the average pale ale and leaps ahead in flavour.  It is brewed with the secret seven spice mix, shichimi to give it’s distinctive taste.  We were all asking where we could buy this beer, so we could take some home, but you can only get it in the restaurant.  On my next visit I’ll be having the tuna with the Kikku for sure.

More tasty fish next with fillets of sea bream dressed in a spicy vinegar on a bed of sticky white rice and teriyaki sauce. finished with carrots, pea shoots, spring onions and coriander, served a side of kimcheek: Grilled Bream Donhuri. I loved the fish which was tasty and tender, but I found the rice a bit of a chore even with the kimcheek to liven it up.  This was served with the Kansho beer which I was less keen on too.  Again it’s described as a pale ale and it came much closer to what I would consider a pale ale to be, but it’s not my first choice sort of beer.

Next up: Chicken Samla Curry. This is just the sort of main course that I associate with Wagamama and it doesn’t disappoint.  For this dish we were served a white wine to drink alongside it which provided a nice hint of lightness and freshness.

One of the tastiest dishes of the night was the Sticky Pork Belly. This was a citrus and teriyaki glazed pork belly with grilled miso aubergine, served with white rice and garnished with spring onions, ginger and chilli.  Very tasty and very sticky.  It was served with the Pinot Grigio Blush wine which was a match for the sweetness, although it was a touch too cloying for my taste.

We tried out a few of the desserts.  I don’t think I’ve ever had enough room for desserts at Wagamama so this was a bit of a revealation for me.  Everyone else seemed to be raving about the Chocolate Layer Cake, which was very nice and very, very rich.  My pick though would be the lighter, more delicate flavour of the Yuzu and Lemon Tart, which had enough zestiness to cut through and refresh the palette.  Served with raspberry compote and fresh mint, for me this was a wonderful end to a delicious array of dishes.

I am often asked to review restaurants – I love it, who wouldn’t after all?  Sometimes it’s a chain restaurant; sometimes it’s somewhere child friendly and I take my son; sometimes it’s a blogger event and I meet up with other reviewers there; and sometimes it’s just me and a friend trying out somewhere new.  Generally, I know what to expect from a restaurant because I have a clear idea of what sort of restaurant it is supposed to be.  This time though I really had no clue what to expect.  I’d never been to a restaurant inside a casino before.  I think I just thought they did snacks and things so people could stay on the tables or at the machines, but I didn’t really know.  What a relevation it has been!  I have never been so pleasantly surprised by a restaurant.

The Restaurant is located inside the Broadway Casino, near Five Ways, Birmingham.   It’s very much an authentic Italian restaurant and on arrival we were greeted by our host for evening, Roberto Santolamazza, the restaurant manager.  Roberto has a wealth of experience in the restaurant industry. He worked as a maître d’ in top hotels in Rome, before moving to Birmingham in 1993 where he has worked in prestigious restaurants throughout the city and beyond.  Both my friend and I have eaten in many of the finest Italian restaurants that Birmingham has over the years and we enjoyed speaking to someone who was so knowledgeable about them.  He knows a great deal about Italian food, regional cuisine, signature dishes and the wines and spirits of the whole of Italy.

On arrival we were served a fruity prosecco cocktail as an aperitif.  This was followed by a selection of fish and seafood: mackerel, tuna and octopus.  The fish was fresh and perfectly cooked by chef Stefano Gigante and served with a selection of flat breads (some the best bread I’ve tasted) and the plumpest, most juicy olives from Puglia.  I loved how tender it was especially the octopus, as that is so often a bit rubbery, but it was spot on here.  It was already clear we were in for quite a treat and my friend sent a message home to her husband to say she ‘was being treated like a princess’.

Roberto wanted to show off some of the mains from the summer menu, so we shared two of them.  Here’s my half of the succulent tuna dish and we also sampled a flavoursome beef main with gnocchi.  We just about managed to squeeze in a little more of the tasty flat breads to accompany them.  I think the tuna was my pick of the two dishes because it was such a lovely piece of fish and the beef was served with gnocchi, which I am just not too keen on as I find them too heavy.  That said these were the best I’ve tasted, but not enough to convert me.

For dessert there was some delicious Italian ice cream which was beautifully served.  It slipped down very nicely.

Throughout our meal we sampled some excellent Italian wines and liqueurs.  As a palette cleanser, we had limoncello mixed with a sorbet, which gave just the fresh touch we needed between courses.  A lovely dessert wine set off our sweets and we finished off with some grappa.  It was a smooth, rounded grappa and I was impressed that they had quite a range to choose from on the menu.

I was surprised how well the restaurant sat within the casino, although you don’t need to go to gamble to enjoy the food.  We did go to learn a little about how to play roulette after our meal and even had a go at rolling the ball into the wheel.

The Restaurant is certainly somewhere we will be going again.  In fact, my friend already has plans to take her parents there for a meal and is looking to take work colleagues there for a Christmas meal and casino experience.