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We were sent the Hazeldines’ Deluxe Butchers Wrap Meat Pack to try.  It arrived very quickly in a parcel that was insulated and contained ice packs.  This had done a good job of keeping the meat cold and the meat looked in very good condition on arrival.  Our pack contained:

2 x 150g Wet Matured Premium Fillet Steaks

1 x Luxury Steak Sauce

340g x Smoked Dry Cured Bacon

340g x Thick Premium Hand Linked Pork Sausage

2 x Chicken Breast Fillets

400g x Best Lean Minced Beef

2 x Free Range Pork Chops with Crackling

1 x Whole 1.6kg Chicken

So far we have tried the steaks with the steak sauce.  One evening we had the roast chicken and we took the sausage with us on a recent camping trip for breakfast sandwiches.

The fillet steaks looked plump on juicy on arrival.  I did thump them a little with my hands to flatten them a bit before cooking quickly under the grill and serving up with some vegetables plus the sauce provided. I wasn’t so keen on the sauce as I felt it was a bit bland and the big, bold flavours of the meat overwhelmed it. The steaks were very tender and full of flavour.

We had the sausages for our camping breakfast sandwiches.  The sausages are nice and thick as well as been very flavoursome.  The only downside was there were only 5 in a pack.  Obviously, they are sold by weight, but I’d think an even number of sausages in a pack was more practical for most people.  Our sandwiches kept us going nicely through a busy day spent outdoors.

  A roast chicken dinner is a regular Monday evening treat in this house.  The chicken goes in before the school run and then I do the veggies when I get home.  As  you can see my chicken from Hazeldines roasted up well with a good colour and a nice plump breast.  It was very moist and the leftovers have been tasty in sandwiches and other dishes this week.

I like that you get a good mix of products in the Butcher’s Wrap and you can save money by buying a range of meat in one go.  I like the fact that with Hazeldines you are buying from a small family firm with the care and attention to detail that you’d expect.  I’m a big fan of the family butcher and don’t buy meat at the supermarket if I can help it, so this is very much my sort of meat shopping.

I have another of these lovely butchers wraps to give away to readers.  Enter via the Gleam widget below.

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It doesn’t seem long since the Easter box arrived, but now the April Degustabox is here.  This was one of my favourite boxes as there were plenty of things I like to eat.

Starting at breakfast there was a Dorset Cereals pack with their new Machu Picchu flavour.  I’m a big fan of Dorset Cereals and I was keen to taste this new flavour.  It’s quite fruity, but I didn’t really get the taste of coffee mentioned on the packet.  Very nice though. Also, for my breakfast cereal were Good Hemp’s Hemp Seed Hearts.  I like to scatter these on my morning cereal because the seeds are high in protein, fibre and Omega 3.

There were quite a few snacks including some healthy ones like the latest flavours from Nothing But.  We’ve tried these in Degustaboxes before and enjoyed them.  This time we tried out the Strawberry & Banana Snack which was very yummy.  I tried the Whitworths Full of Super Vanilla Maca-Roons one day to top up my breakfast to keep me going till a late lunch and it certainly did the trick.  Good to know that they are high in fibre and pantothenic acid as well as being so tasty. Also, on the snack front there were crisps: Seabrook Lattice which were Sea Salt and Black Pepper flavour and very moreish. For those with a spicy palate there were ViPnuts Hot Chilli flavour.  Daisy and Dam’s Quinoa, Smoked Tea and Vanilla Chocolate provided a little sweet treat. I like to keep some mints in the car, so this POLO Sugar Free Pot was perfect for me.

I’ve been trying out Fentimans Pink Grapefruit Tonic Water: very refreshing.  My Dad gave his thumbs up to the Celia Organic Lager from the Czech Republic.  Being huge pasta fans we were glad to see Garofalo Whole Wheat Penne Pasta in this month’s box.

Inspired by Sir Francis Drake’s adventures, newly launched Golden Hind Coffee immerses you in the stories and experiences behind the drink you enjoy – while delivering curated premium coffee to you with the convenience you’d enjoy from a luxury subscription service. Golden Hind Coffee was set up to provide a solution to those who are fed up of not being able to find good coffee available to buy.

Every week subscribers receive a 250g bag of Golden Hind’s flagship coffee: the Kenyan Kainamui AA.  Whether you enjoy your coffee first thing in the morning, or later in the day, you’ll have enough coffee to drink up to two cups a day. If that sounds appealing, pop over to their site to sign up – you can pause or cancel your membership at any time.

Good news for readers: we have some Golden Hind Coffee to give away.  Enter via the Gleam widget below.

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Golden Hind

Cucina Rustica in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter is a place to seek out if you enjoy Italian cuisine.  Often though I think we visit restaurants and don’t pay enough attention to the wine list and to choosing a wine to go with our meal.  That’s why I was intrigued by the idea of tasting and enjoying wines, which have specifically been chosen to compliment certain dishes.  Previously, I’ve only really done this in Michelin starred restaurants, usually when we’ve picked the wine flight to go with a tasting menu.

Traditionally white wine is teamed up with seafood, but I was unprepared for the clarity and purity of the Frascati Superiore that was served with our first course. Frascati has acquired a poor reputation, thanks to over production and a decline in quality that went with its heyday of popularity about 30 years ago.  It’s known as the ‘wine of popes’ and I can certainly see why after our experience of the Frascati Superiore from Casale Mattia in Lazio.  A perfect match for our succulent scallops!

Cucina Rustica offered us a new (to me) take on that springtime favourite: lamb, with their wonderfully moist and sweet Costolette D’Agnello (rack of lamb with honey glazed apples and a Marsala wine sauce – pictured here on the right). I’d certainly pick this one off the menu on a return visit, but it would have to compete with the unctuous delights of the Tagliata di Filetto (sliced beef filet, with capers, shallots, anchovies and balsamic vinegar).

By the time dessert arrived I was struggling to find room inside for all the wonderful food we’d been served.  It would be rude not to try the sweet course though and there were some wonderful options.  There was Tortino al Cioccolato (a hot chocolate fondant), Torta Di Ricotta (a light cheesecake) and Tiramisu, the Italian favourite that is often the test of a good Italian restaurant (Cucina Rustica passed the tiramisu test with flying colours).  We were served this with a dessert wine: Vinsanto del Chianti Classico.  Dessert wines are a bit of an acquired taste and I only drink them a few times each year. When they have the intense fruit and nutty flavours of this one married with a deceptive freshness, they can really add the finishing touch to a meal.

 Lots of lovely goodies as usual in this month’s Degustabox, which has arrived in time for Easter.  We are certainly planning on enjoying some of these treats over the holidays. Pipers make really good quality crisps that taste really good.  We liked their Cider Vinegar & Sea Salt take on the old salt and vinegar favourite.  For mornings that are busy a breakfast drink might be the answer, but I’m afraid the Weetabix On The Go drinks weren’t for us, but we aren’t Weetabix fans anyway so that might explain it. Another great snack for those times when you need to eat on the go are these Cacao Raw Bars from Whitworths.  They are crammed full of almonds, chai seeds, coconut flakes, golden flax seeds, quinoa, acai and more. Rebel Kitchen Chocolate Mylks are easy to pop in a lunch box if you, if you need a dairy free drink.   They don’t overdo the ingredients, so you just have what you need to make a great tasting drink.

For those with a sweet tooth there was plenty to tempt.  My personal favourite was the Cadbury Dairy Milk Oreo which we tried in both Peanut Butter and Mint.  Peanut Butter was my favourite – very moreish. Westons Cider – Pure Hopped Cider is a collaboration between Weston’s Cider and Purity Brewing. It’s a crisp cider with a tart finish – I much prefer this to sweet cider.  The Jelly Bean Factory‘s gourmet flavours have certainly been popular and there are some grown up flavours like Pina Colada.

Heinz (Seriously) Good Sauces have some great flavours to help lift a meal – we tried the Creamy Pepper variety. Handy for lunch boxes is Naturelly, which is a fun and refreshing juicy jelly snack containing 100& of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C. We liked the handy pouch packaging.  £onepounders Chocolate Eclairs took me back to childhood visits to my grandmother’s house as Chocolate Eclairs were the only sweet she ever seemed to have in the house.  I still like them many years on. Maldon Smoke Sea Salt Flakes pack in a lot of flavour and I think you need to use less salt because of that extra flavour punch. Lemon is a popular flavour in our house and the Gusto Organic Lemon Energy proved very popular: zingy and refreshing.

Natural Healthy Foods have been a feature in Digbeth, Birmingham for a while, but now they have expanded into the city centre with a shop and eatery selling vegan food.  More and more people are discovering vegan food and those of us who don’t go as far as that, can enjoy a few days without meat and dairy.

The new eatery with store attached is on Suffolk Queensway, not far from the Alexander Theatre.  It’s not in that busy a part of town although it’s very accessible, but I think people are prepared to go a little further to access specialist cuisine. I guess there might be some pre-show trade from the Alex, although I think a lot of that custom will stay around the corner on John Bright Street. I think though that the combination of shop and restaurant is a good one and many people will pop in to buy some food and end up having a meal, or come back another time to eat in.

The food is freshly prepared and throughout the time we were there, staff were continually bringing out more food and taking away dishes that had been emptied.  The way it works is that you help yourself to a range of items and put it on the plate.  You then take your plate to the counter to be weighed and are charged accordingly.  I have to say I am a bit dubious of that method of charging as I think it means that if you pick out cheaper to produce roasted vegetables and grains, you are probably subsidising those who like expensive, leafy salads.  Plus, you don’t know how much you will pay till you get to the till.

 Each of the dishes is carefully labelled with the ingredients listed which is ideal if you are looking to avoid certain foods.  From the selection available when I went, I’d pick out the Cauliflower Cheese which was very moreish.  The Lemon & Lime Wholegrains were zingy and very refreshing.  Despite not looking very appetizing I was pleasantly surprised by the Onion Bread which wasn’t ‘bready’ at all.

To  go with the meal we had a vast selection of drinks to choose from.  I opted for the Phoenix Orchid tea which had a lovely delicate flavour. I also tried Kombucha which is fermented green tea and is often served with fruit or vegetable juices.  I liked the taste, but my companion was less keen.  I could easily get into the habit of drinking it regularly.

I was surprised by the variety of desserts produced without dairy products.  My favourite was the Key Lime Pie which was delicious.  I also enjoyed the brownie made with dark cacao, but my table companions were less keen as it had quite a bitter flavour.

It’s a canteen style restaurant which makes it very easy to eat there with children or for someone to pop in and grab some dinner on the their own.  It’s quick too because of the serve yourself arrangements, so it’s handy if you are in a hurry.  I liked that after the meal I felt pleasantly full, but not overstuffed and heavy.  I’d happily eat there again and may very well be back soon.

This week I went to Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham to try out the Indian cuisine of the intriguingly named 1580 restaurant.  1580 is the year that Drake circumnavigated the globe in the Golden Hind and the food on offer reflects that east meets west idea.  It’s a cut above the average curry house and this is reflected in the decor, the quality of the ingredients and the care with which the dishes are prepared.

We started with 1580 signature cone poppadoms with a range of accompaniments including onion, tomato and chaat masala. I liked the idea of the cone and it certainly makes a change from the usual poppadoms.  Be careful not to fill the cone with something very spicy though as it might come as a bit of a shock.

Next up was a platter of starters.  My favourite was the Kochi Kekraa which is made from crispy soft-shelled crabs tossed with curry leaves, chili, pepper, onion, ginger and garlic from the port of Kochi. Tasty too were the lamb chops (flavoured with distinct red chilli and dried coriander flavour cooked and served with Laccha Salad) and the succulent Chicken Tikka. Spiciest of all were the juicy tiger prawns (Tandoori Saffron Jumbo Tiger Prawn Tikka flavoured with saffron, ginger, garlic and other spices).

For me the starters were the stand out dishes of the night and I’d have happily eaten just starters.  The main courses were very flavoursome though, but they did lack the star quality and the range of the starter selection. One of the most interesting dishes was the Bater Curry (or Quail Railway Curry) which was a Tandoori quail cooked with fresh ginger-garlic, tomatoes, onions and green chilli in a typical North Indian railway style.

Desserts can be problematic in Indian restaurants. We sampled the Gulab Jamun which is a milk reduction and cottage cheese dumplings which was served with a delicious coconut flavoured ice cream.  I do like that 1580 are making the effort to serve traditional Asian desserts and I always like to try something new in the sweet department.  Sometimes Indian desserts are overpoweringly sweet, but I like that the Gulab Jamun provided a better balance of flavours.

1580 is well worth a visit to try out the innovative and interesting menu and discover new flavours and taste experiences.  The restaurant is easy to get to being situated on the Chester Road and only a few minutes walk from Chester Road train station which is on the cross city line.

This month’s Degustabox contains all sorts of yummy goodies.  We picked out Willy Chase’s Fit Popcorn to try first as the idea of Apple Cider Vinegar flavour really appealed.  This is free from gluten and made with the best ingredients.  I’m trying out the gift sample of Willy’s Apple Cider Vinegar I got sent and hoping to see the health benefits associated with cider vinegar, especially given that this vinegar is made from the produce of a 300 year old apple orchard.

I’ve got my eye on the Kabuto Rice Noodles as a lunch time treat – I love that it’s full of sweetcorn and peppers.  The Coldpress juice drink is packed full with fruit and vegetable juices and tastes like a glass full of healthy deliciousness. Some sweet treats are always welcome especially when they involve my favourite dark chocolate.  This time we have the Maui and Sons’ Banana Chips which are lightly coated with Belgian dark chocolate, plus the New York Delhi’s Americanos which are roasted Guatemalan coffee beans covered in dark chocolate.

Quite a few products to keep those with a sweet tooth very happy this month.  I love the fact that the Diablo bar doesn’t contain any added sugar, so there’s no need to feel guilty enjoying that one. Bebeto sent 2 varieties of sweet: Bebeto Cheese Cake Gummies and Bebeto Candy Crush Gummy Mix.

I’m saving up the Blossom Hill Fruit Bloom for the weekend as I’m meeting up with friends and I think we’ll all enjoy this tipple. We’ll use the Koko Dairy Free on our cereal – I love that it is made from freshly pressed coconut milk. My son has got his eye on the Heinz No Added Sugar Beanz, it’s good to be able to serve him up beans that don’t have added sugar.  Peppersmith have the deal products to keep your mouth fresh all day with their mints and chewing gum.