Choosing the right Wine

If you've spend the day trying out new recipes, then a glass of wine is the perfect accompaniment to a huge range of dishes. It's also a good to be able to offer your guests wine to drink if you are hosting a meal - the hard part can be deciding which wine you should choose.

Some types of wine are better suited to particular foods than others, and there are a few basic rules to make sure you never go too far wrong. However, choosing wines that are guaranteed to taste delicious can prove a little trickier.

Fortunately, many high street retailers will now recommend particular bottles - usually those that have had positive reviews from wine critics. This is a simple way to pick a wine that will perfectly compliment your latest culinary creation. However, if the choice is still too difficult, then you could always consider joining a scheme such as the M&S Wine Club. You will already find a diverse selection of  http://www.marksandspencer.com/ , but you benefit from expertly chosen bottles being delivered direct to your doorstep on a quarterly basis by joining the Wine Club. There are three different plans available (Old World Classics, New World Discoveries and the Contemporary Plan), so you can tailor your selection to meet your own individual tastes and preferences.

If the urge to whip up tasty treats in the kitchen is often a rather impromptu affair, then it can be a good idea to keep a stock of top-quality wines to accompany any given dish. By having a selection of whites, reds and rose wines regularly delivered to your home, you'll never find yourself scouring the shelves of your local off-licence, hoping to find something pleasant to be enjoyed by you or your guests.

Choosing a great wine is a skill you can pick up over time, even if you have relatively little experience. Read the bottle labels to find out if you prefer wine from a particular region, and pay attention to whether you're drinking something that's dry, sweet, fruity or full-bodied. This way you are more likely to develop an understanding of what a wine will taste like before you try it, as well as a useful knowledge of your own personal preferences.

Kitchen Stools Direct: A Giveaway

Just as I was leaving for Weimar, Germany to attend this fantastic writing, photography & styling workshop, I received this huge box from Kitchen Stools Direct & asking me if I would be interested in reviewing/hosting a giveaway on my blog. The thought of it made me smile: its so funny because I spend most of my time sitting on my Bar Stool, using my kitchen top as laptop table; writing blogposts or editing pictures.

Kitchen Stools Direct a 100% Internet based business focused on selling you the broadest range of high quality kitchen and bar stools at the best prices in the UK." The fact that they have an E-showroom, helps keep their costs down which explains why they offer you a great deal. Kitchen Stools Direct ship all of their stools directly from the warehouse in Hertfordshire (so no expensive showrooms which you end up paying for!). Delivery is free for all orders over £75, and you can expect to receive your products within four days of ordering – generally within two days.
Did they tick all my Boxes? 

• Kitchen stools come with a 12-month warranty. Check! 
• Best range of kitchen and bar stools in the UK. Check! 
• Most stools have top-quality adjustable “gas-lift” seat tops. Check! 
• Kitchen Stools Direct has the best prices in the UK. Check! 
• They gladly offer a refund if not completely happy with your stool. Check! 
• Easy to assemble with the Allen key provided. Check! 
• End result looks as good as the ones in the picture. Check!

I got this Zenith Kitchen stool from their wide range and have already added this shocking funky red poduim set to my wishlist.

Giveaway Rules:

To participate in the giveaway and be able to win a gift certificate for Kitchen Stools Direct, a competition entrant needs to (no. 1 is mandatory):

1. Like Kitchen Stools Direct on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kitchen-Stools-Direct/181313508553285

2. Find the product you love the most on their site www.kitchenstoolsdirect.co.uk and leave a facebook comment on the product page (bottom area) writing 1 thing you like most about that product. For example " I love the comfortable seat this bar stool has"

3. Visit their homepage. Find the Facebook Share button on the side and share the website on your facebook.

A comment must be left on this blog (by midnight 3rd June 2011 EST) to let me know how you have entered. The winner will be chosen randomly by (random.org) and the competition is only open to UK residents.

Domino’s New Reggae Reggae Pizza

As the weather warms up & we have such gorgeous sunny long days, one thing you love doing is entertain friends & family. Lazying around the back garden with friends & balancing bottles of beer & home-made/takeaway food in your hands (to avoid frequent trips inside the house) is a common sight. You can hear them yell schroooederrr! (after unintentionally spillingbeer or knocking of something) hear the continues giggles, the unlimited swears in every neighbours home. Sometimes it makes you feel why summer doesn't last forever!

This week we religiously gathered at a friends place on Thursday night (yes weekend started a wee bit early for us) for some food, beer & games. So we ended up ordering the new pre-launch veggie version called the Veggae Veggae pizza with Levi Root’s Reggae sauce. We ordered the pizza for a special price of just £9.99 through the Facebook page.

Made using Levi’s famous Reggae Reggae sauce, Domino’s new pizza creates a taste of the Caribbean with roast chicken, tomatoes, green peppers, pineapple and 100% mozzarella cheese. A vegetarian version of the pizza is available with sweetcorn and it can also be purchased as one of Domino’s oven-baked subs. 

The Reggae Reggae pizza can be ordered officially via 'pizza delivery expert’ from Monday 11th April at normal prices.

Verdict: The ordering bit was quite straight forward: Click on the facebook page, takes you to dominos site & order as usual. The pizzas arrived just as we started to feel hungry. So the timing was just about perfect...three cheers for the timing!! 

Ok lets take 'Me', 'S' & 'N': We were not really mad about the Reggae Reggae sauce as it made the pizza very sweet. I would have loved a sprinkle of chilli flakes or heat in some form as the pineapple makes the pizza even sweeter.

Next 'R' & 'A': Surprisingly they absolutely loved the pizza with the sweet Reggae Reggae sauce and packed the leftovers for next day's lunch.

Will we order the Reggae Reggae pizza again? Yes, will definitely try it with maybe some jalapeño or chilli.

HomeMade Pizza VS Domino Pizza: And the winner is.....

I grew up in the 80s and 90s, that I would like to call as the revolutionary period back home, because this was the time when internet was easily available to the us; youngsters looked beyond becoming either a doctor or an engineer and instead ventured into something new & trendy called the "IT jobs". Kellogg’s and instant noodles like Maggi became our breakfast favourites and Pizzas became the food of the "Yo" generation!
This is the time Domino’s pizza entered the Indian market with their endless pizzas and bottomless Coke deals, making it the ideal place to chill out with friends and family. Their Indian twist to the classic Italian made them very hard to resist and soon became our comfort food.
So, when I was offered to take up a challenge of making a classic Domino’s pizza from scratch at home and compare it with the original, I was ecstatic! I chose Veggie Volcano from their pizza menu and made it Roman style. I used basil flavoured olive oil to make the dough, a dash of barbeque sauce along with the pizza sauce and olives & grilled artichokes as additional toppings.I brushed some garlic butter for extra pizzazz. I also made another one with sautéed leeks, potato with mozzarella & pecorino romano skipping the tomato sauce. I would recommend you to read this before you make your own pizza.
Home-made Pizza recipe

For the dough

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2-3/4 cup warm water

1/2 tsp instant yeast

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp mixed italian seasoning

3 tsbp olive oil (I used basil olive oil)

Method:

Mix the flour, salt, herbs, yeast, oil in a food processor to blend. With the machine running, add the warm water and whiz just until the dough forms. Dump the dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead well. Dough will be a little sticky. Drizzle a little olive oil into a clean bowl. and toss the ball of dough in the bowl and turn over to coat in oil. Cover the bowl with cling and set aside in a warm place until the dough doubles in volume, about 1-2 hours. Punch the down dough and form into ball. The dough can be used immediately or stored airtight in the refrigerator for 2 days.

Suggested toppings

Ingredients

Onions sliced

Tomatoes

Olives

Artichokes

Peppers

Jalapeño

Home-made pasta/pizza sauce

Barbeque sauce

Seasalt flakes

Chilli flakes

Italian seasoning

Pecorino romano

Mozzarella

Cheddar

Parmesan

Assembly

Roll out the prepared dough as desired and spread the tomato & barbeque sauce liberally. Arrange desired toppings on this and sprinkle grated cheese on top. Bake this for about 15 minutes or until golden & bubbly. Cut into squares and serve immediately.

Verdict:

My neighbours have pizzas regularly and I knew they would be the right people to give an unbiased opinion on which one is better. My home-made pizzas won this challenge hands-down. When I asked the little kids for their "expert" opinion, they felt the one I made at home had more interesting toppings, the crust didn't go soggy even when cold and had more cheese options. Personally even the adults felt the same. I do think Dominos could include more interesting toppings & cheese varieties. At the end of the day, its much easier to just call and order a large pizza than making your own and covering yourself in flour whilst entertaining. I wish BKEnergy could try this irresistible pizza (it happens to be his favourite..cheeky me).

Enjoy the Lighter side of Life with New TOTAL 0% Greek Yoghurt Split Pots

When I got a mail from the TOTAL Greek Yoghurt asking if I’d be interested in reviewing their new split pots, I was already dreaming of a fridge full of gorgeous split pots like last time. My mailman promptly arrived on Saturday at 8 A.M with a coolbox full of these babies in different flavours and a small handwritten note (I love such little gestures). I quickly opened the one labelled tropical fruits and devoured a breakfast of home-made granola sundae. I did try and absolutely fell in love with their Total Greek Yoghurt range. I made these yummy lollies and ice-creams using the yoghurt they sent me last time. It was easier with these split pots simply because all that I had to do was open the foil lid and dig into the creamy yoghurt along with the fruit compote. Indulgent low cal fat free snack when you feel peckish, perfect for breakfast, lunch or for those in-between times.

TOTAL 0% combine natural fat free Greek Yoghurt with a side portion of honey or delicious compote, the perfect combination for a sweet snack, breakfast or dessert. Available in four delicious flavours: honey, strawberry, blueberry and tropical fruits, perfect fat-free indulgence, with no artificial sweeteners and no compromise on taste. Higher in protein than any other yoghurt, these little pots of convenience have less than 130cal per pot apart from TOTAL 0% with honey which has 167cal.

Total 0% split pots in Honey, Blueberry, Strawberry & Tropical Fruits are now available in most Waitrose stores or can be ordered from Ocado for delivery from end of March.

Verdict: Personally I liked the strawberry with the thick Greek Yoghurt and found the honey too sweet for my taste. Honey hardened a bit sitting in the fridge making it a little difficult to eat. My friends loved the tropical fruits one. These are really fab pots of pleasure with 0% fat.