I am currently eating and enjoying some Thorntons’ chocolates. Very nice they are too.
One downside, means that I don’t really like eating (cheaper) boxes of chocolates from the likes of Nestle or Cadburys.
Apricot Delight
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall in today’s Guardian writes about the golden wonder that is the apricot.
A juicy, ripe apricot, eaten straight from the tree, is one of the sweetest treats summer has to offer. But this brilliant fruit pays dividends in other ways, too …
I was only thinking yesterday that I usually only taste apricots either in a yoghurt or fromage frais or in apricot jam.
Think I might need to look at this fruit again.
Photo source.
Chicken and Irish Sausages
Well I mentioned I had purchased Paul Rankin’s Irish Pork Sausages again.
This time I roasted them in the oven with chicken, red pepper, mushrooms and pancetta.
I served it with a lemon risotto.
Long era of cheap food is over
BBC reports on the end of cheap food…
Peering just a few months ahead to estimate food prices has been a tough game recently.
Pringles are “not crisps”
BBC reports on a court ruling which says that Pringles are not crisps.
Pringles, the popular snack food in a tube, are not potato crisps, a High Court judge has ruled.
Their packaging, “unnatural shape” and the fact that the potato content is less than 50% helped Mr Justice Warren make his crunch decision.
This is all a tax avoidance issue and nothing really to do with crisps and non-crisps.
Photo source.
Gala Pie
How on earth did pork pie with egg come about?
Did a baker one day, go oops…. dropped an egg into that pork pie mix, ah well maybe no one will notice…
Special request perhaps?
Are there other variations which didn’t work, and as a result never saw the light of day…
Ah pork pie with strawberry yoghurt, hmmm nope that doesn’t work for me.
And why is it called a Gala Pie?
Are you a “supermarket tart”?
Are you the kind of shopper that supermarkets love, the type who always shops at the same supermarket on a regular basis?
Tesco, Morrisons, etc… love you, as you are often more loyal to them then your employer or even your family!
Well the BBC reports that in these times of economic turmoil, the days of the loyal supermarket shopper may be coming to an end as we become more price sensitive.
Many supermarket-goers are wedded to their brand of shop. But as people begin to draw in the purse strings, some are starting to see benefits in being a more promiscuous consumer.
Evidence suggests once loyal shoppers, who in the past have been faithfully wedded to a single supermarket brand, are starting to experiment with younger, cheaper models.
However will these changing habits last? According to the article, no.
…as shoppers have more money again they will revert to old habits.
Starbucks shrinking…
It would seem that problems with the American economy is hitting Starbucks quite hard.
According to an article on the BBC, they are closing 600 of their outlets.
The coffee chain Starbucks plans to close 500 stores in the US on top of the 100 it had already announced.
It’s not as bad as it sounds in some respects as Starbucks intends to open 200 new stores this year. The 600 which are closing are the stores which are performing badly and interestingly most of the drive-thrus are closing.
I have noticed a few Starbucks in the UK have recently closed.
Tesco to end trade with Zimbabwe
The BBC reports on how Tesco responding to political and consumer pressure it to no longer source products from Zimbabwe.
Supermarket chain Tesco has announced it will stop sourcing products from Zimbabwe while “the political crisis persists” there.
The retail giant buys around £1m ($1.9m) worth of goods, including vegetables, from Zimbabwe.
Tesco said it was looking for other ways to support workers there.
This is an example of how political and consumer pressures can force business organisations to change the way in which they do business.
Ooh nice sausages
I seem to have been buying the same sausages for ages, so the other day seeing Paul Rankin’s Irish pork sausages on the shelf the other day, decided, oh lets try them.
I was slightly hesitant as sometimes you wonder if you are paying more for the “name” than the quality of the ingredients. I did wonder if I would get cheap salty tasting sausages which though made with “succulent cuts of pork” was actually made with cheap succulent cuts of pork!
However I did remember that I use the buy Sainsburys Taste the Difference steak which was endorsed by Jamie Oliver at one point and I really could taste the difference!
So what about Paul Rankin’s sausages?
Well they cooked perfectly with very little shrinkage or water loss. They had a good texture and tasted really good. Sometimes good quality sausages can be very salty, so all you can taste is salt, with these I could taste the pork.
I will certainly be buying these again.