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Sunday 31 January 2010

Football Shirt Biscuits!

I was asked by a friend to make a batch of decorated and wrapped cookies for her son's 8th birthday. He is a big football fan and plays for a team so I decided to theme them on his team shirt!

He was turning 8 and his name begins with J so I also added these details at the end. Wrapped them up in cellophane and tied with football ribbon and they looked great!

I used a very basic biscuit recipe

3, 2, 1 biscuits
3oz plain flour
2oz butter
1 oz caster sugar
1tsp vanilla extract

Shaped them in to the shirt shapes (I had a load that I couldnt use as I accidentally used SR flour - the kids enjoyed tucking into these leftovers!!)


Once out of the oven I cut the same shape out of rolled out Navy Blue sugarpaste and covered each biscuit.....


Then, using sugarpaste glue (jam and water :)) I stuck white stripes on to the shirts and then brushed them with water to get rid of the icing sugar on them.

Added the 8 and J details, a couple of silver balls and they were done!




All wrapped up they looked great!



From the mouths of babes

My son, Harvey has just randomly said to me...."Mum, I know that all you want is to keep this family safe and happy"

If that is not the equivalent of a fabulous review in the working world I dont know what is! I must be doing something right :)

Love the very bones of that boy xxx

Slimming World Lasagne

Another recipe, going to make this for dinner for the troops tomorrow - love how on slimming world we can all eat the same. Something very miserable about eating seperately from the family. I am also not comfortable with the kids realising I am "on a diet" so this way they need never know!!


Ingredients
Serves 4
7.5 syns for entire recipe
400g of extra lean beef mince
1 onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic crushed
3 rasher of turkey bacon or similar lean bacon
1 carrot chopped
4 mushrooms chopped
400g tin of tomatoes or passata
1 sweet potato
fresh herbs (thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary)
cinnamon
chilli powder
1 beef stock cube mixed with 200ml of water
balsamic vinegar
spray oil
42g of mozzarella cheese
approx 9 sheets of lasagne (boiled if not ovenready)
for the cheese sauce
1 tablespoon of cornstarch
240ml of skimmed milk
42g of reduced fat cheddar cheese
Method
Preheat oven to 180c or 350f
Spray a frying pan with some spray oil and cook the bacon with a pinch of cinnamon until golden,
Add the onions, garlic, carrot and herbs cook for a further few minutes, making sure it is all mixed together.
Add the beef mince and cook till browned.
Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, stock and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Then cover with some greaseproof paper and cook for approx 1 hour over a gentle heat on the hob.
In the meantime if using non ovenready lasagne sheets, boil them in a large saucepan until cooked.
Peel and slice the sweet potato, sprinkle with some chillipowder and spray with sprayoil and bake in the oven until tender.(approx 45 mins).
When the meat mixture has almost finished it’s cooking time you can make  the cheese sauce, Mix the cornstarch with a little of the milk and add to the rest of the milk in a small saucepan over a low heat, constantly stirring until it comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from heat and stir in the 42g of cheddar cheese.
Using a square dish. Spray the bottom with some spray oil and lay 3 sheets of lasagne on the bottom. Top with half the meat mixture and then layer with the sweet potato. Do another layer of 3 lasagne sheets again top with the remaining half of the meat mixture. Then top with the last 3 lasagne sheets.
Pour over the top the cheese sauce.
Turn oven up to 200c or 400f and bake for 30 mins, remove from oven add the 42g of mozzarella to the top and return to the oven for approx 5 mins until cheese has melted.
Recipe from the great blog about slimming world food - Slimming Eats

Friday 29 January 2010

Proud mama alert!

Firstly, get me! I am typing this on my iPod touch sitting on the exercise bike at the gym whilst listening to music! I love technology, it's really taking my mind off the burning in the thighs!

Anyway, so yesterday was my ickle, wickle, precious, princess, 6lb6oz baby's first day at playgroup.

We packed her bag in the morning with her supplies and water and she insisted on putting a lipgloss in - wanted to look her best for the big moment!!

She went in no trouble whilst I had to be practically physically removed from the premises!

I fretted all morning about her and got there early to be greeted with the wonderful sight of her laughing, running and playin in the playground with her little mates. Looking at her there, wrapped up warm, rosy cheeked and giggling (with perfect lippy!) bathed in the bright winter sun I thought "we made it tilly! We got there in the end!"

Phew, sweat just dropped on my screen, I'm off on the rower!

Xxx
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tuesday 26 January 2010

Slimming World Lemon Drizzle Cake

I havent actually made this yet but love lemon drizzle cake and have a fab full fat recipe for it but I daren't make it as I know I will eat it!

Just found this slimming world version so bookmarking it here .... will update when I get round to making it!

Serves 10
syn - 4 each slice on both plans

prep time 25 mins
cooking 25-30 mins

ingred - 4eggs ( i used 6 eggs yolks tho as only had small eggs)
50g caster sugar
5 tablespns of sweetner
150g of self raising flour
1 tsp of baking powder
2tablespns of grated lemon zest
1 tsp icing sugar to dusr

For drizzle

long strips of zest from lemon
juice of 2 lemons
1 tbsp of arrow wood
4tsp of sweetner
60ml water

Preheat oven 190/ gas 5
Line baking tray ( i used 22cm/9in) within non stick baking paper

place egg yolks, caster sugar, flour, sweetner, baking powder and lemon zest in bowl and whisk until thick and pale

in separte bowl whisk egg white until softly peaked then fold into yolk mixture.

Spoon mixture into tin and oven for 25-30mins - or until cake has risen and is firm to touch. Leave to cool.

Meanwhile place all dizzle ingredient in a pan on the heat and stir continous until mixture is thick . dizzle over cake.

once sauce set , dust cake with icing sugar



If it is even a patch on the other recipe, I'll be happy!




Weigh in Tuesday!

Been to slimmers, as ridiculously sad as it sounds I always really enjoy the meetings, our "leader" (take me to your leader hehe) is really funny and there is always a laugh to be had. I was really hoping for 2.5lb to make half a stone but wasnt sure I would get it. But I did!! Yay me - so half a stone off in 2 weeks - it wont stay at this pace for long but Im hoping that all of the extra lard I have accumulated will come off as quickly as it went on.

This week I am hoping for 2.5 again and going to gym it 3 times and be reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally good with food.

Having the colonic tomorrow (eeeeeeeeeeeeek!) and going to use the fresh start feeling to make a few more diet changes.

NO wine for a while (If I am having a tipple I will partake in clear spirits only with diet mixers)
Plenty of fresh fruit and veg
Replace some of my numerous daily cups of tea with herbal!

Onwards and downwards :)


Can't wait for summer!

Do you ever forget there is such a thing as summer when we are in the middle of winter? I do! I have just had that feeling you get when you wake up and realise it was just a bad dream. These cold miserable days will end and this year is going to be a good one!

Things I'm looking forward to.....

Making my lovely heart shaped garden pretty again and hopefully seeing all of my planted flowers returning

Late, light nights where we can eat outside and the children can be playing out after school

Nice walks in nice places with the dog

Wearing nice clothes that fit me instead of covering up the flab

Cold cocktails with lots of ice

A much bigger choice of things to do with mathilda when the kids are at school

Washing on the line!

Painted toe nails and sandals



Roll on spring!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Monday 25 January 2010

My heart literally just skipped a beat...

...when I saw this!



Have you ever seen anything sooooo cute? It could almost persuade me to have another!
I think this will be bookmarked as the next New Baby gift I need to buy! (I found this on Not on the High Street)

The power of pamper



As part of "operation find the old Rebecca" I have been trying to look after myself a bit more and have the very forunate situation that my sister has left her "day job" to embark on a career in beauty therapy. She has set up Polished, a mobile service offering loads of fabulous treatments including eyelash extensions and Bio Sculpture gel nails. So I have been her head guinea pig and enjoying very generous friends and family discounts! My nails are in so much better condition since she has been working on them and little things like looking down at pretty nails makes a big difference to my general attitude :)


Progress, not perfection!


Flylady (the funny little cartoon lady that tells me what to clean) has a motto "progress not perfection" which I am adopting as my own!

Since I last posted things have been moving along nicely!

Weight - In my first week at slimming world I lost 4.5lbs (yay) and find out tomorrow how I have done at my second weigh in, I'm hoping against hope that I manage 2.5lbs and that will be my first half stone off - a good milestone to reach to keep the motivation up!

Exercise - I have been to the gym three times now! I am hoping to get into a routine of going every monday, wednesday and friday. The gym I am going to is placed in an Elderly Day Centre and some of the grannies and grandads are putting me to shame on the treadmill at the moment - the shame!!! But I am enjoying it and going to definitely keep at it - not just for the figure, I'm really hoping it helps with the low moods.

Anti Depressants - I am still on 75mg of Venlafaxine and whilst I am not coming off it as quickly as I would like, it is still half of my starting dose. After I have gained a bit of control of my weight I am going to restart the slow weaning progress.

House - things with the house are great, partly due to a massive clearout and partly due to flylady's wise teachings (;) I am managing the house WAY better. Chipping away a little bit all of the time is having a massive impact. No more mad all day cleaning sessions when I cant stand the chaos anymore. Just a little bit here, 15 minutes there and sticking to some regular routines is working wonders (and makes it so much easier to actually get up and face the day!)

Oh, and I am going for a (shhhh..... colonic) on Wednesday, I am, quite literally shitting myself about it. Trying very hard not to think about the tube up the bum aspect and more about the positive effects. It is going to be a fresh start for my poor abused body!! Out with the toxins and in with the goodness. Hopefully I will be less likely to put alcohol, cigarettes and crap food in once it has had a good old wash!





Saturday 16 January 2010

Perfect eggs!

Every time I make boiled eggs for my kids I forget the perfect "recipe" after googling again I have found it!

For perfect dippy eggs,
firm white runny yoke

1. Place eggs on pan an cover with cold water to 1cm
2. Put on high heat, as soon as it comes to boil, turn down to a gentle simmer and set timer for four minutes!

VoilĂ 




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday 15 January 2010

Nivea almost the same as Creme de la Mar ?



Have just been reading this blog post which states that nearly all of Creme de la Mar's super expensive ingredients are found in Nivea, the humble moisturiser in the blue tin! Imagine that if something that is about 1.50 could rival the £100's a time pot!!??

I reckon its got to be worth a try, will report back.

Going to look for similar, "buy this for pennies and look amazing" type products now :)


Wednesday 13 January 2010

Shift the flab!

Today I have booked an induction at the gym for next wednesday, it's going to huuuuurt!

It has to be done, I rejoined slimming world last night and need to lose three stone to get back to what I was last Christmas, three stone!!!!!

Tuesday 12 January 2010

Sorting the house out with the [slightly cheesy] flylady way!


Have you heard of flylady? The funny little cartoon woman from America? I have read her website for years because I have a compulsion to be organised but sadly wasnt born that way! I am the messiest person I know!

Basically she has pioneered a system for people that aren't BO (born organised) for SHE's (sidetracked home executives - yes really!) if you take all of that with a pinch of salt it is actually really useful. Its all based on implementing tiny changes a day at a time and building up to a routine so that everything in your house is sorted and organised almost without you realising!

I am going to track on my blog how I am getting on!




Monday 11 January 2010

Things I want....


Now I know I want never gets, but I do, I want one of these!

I would like to grow some lovely herbs that will in turn improve my cooking (wont it!!)


House of Words!










I have realised that I have a slight obsession with homely decorations that are made up of words! I don't know what it is about them that I love

I would like to become more creative with my use of them though, instead of buying them off the shelf using some of my card making skills and making something that is unique - thats the plan anyway!




Onwards and upwards!


I am going to restart this blog (not that it ever really started!) and stick at it as a place to document my change this year to a more positive me.

I am so much better than I was but have taken a little dip recently which culminated in a big old WEEP last night about the realisation that I am not as well as I would like to think.

Talking with a very good friend and a very good sister I have started to think of a way to continue my recovery and not to continue "treading water"

1. A phonecall has been put in to relate, we went to relate in october to start rebuilding the relationship that has been put under huge strain. For one reason or another we havent followed it up so I made the positive step of requestion the booking form. Must make sure I act on it when it comes!

2. A decision has been made to get rid of distractions that take my eye off the ball. What is most important to me right now are (in no particular order) - my marriage, my kids, taking care of the house, losing some weight, doing some exercise, being around people who have a positive effect on me. So, anything that doesnt positively contribute to something in that list is GOING!

I have felt really anxious and fragile all day but it has not all been bad.

5 positive things I can say today

1. I made a tasty and fairly nutritious tea for the kids
2. I didnt just leave the kitchen in chaos when I woke up depressed this morning
3. I enjoyed putting Mathilda to bed and took extra time reading stories.
4. I have some really good friends
5. I have a husband that loves me

Tomorrow I am starting back at slimming world to lose some of this weight that is literally weighing me down!