Friday Feature - Breadren Cooking Classes

Bread. It’s perhaps one of our favourite comfort carbs not only at The Amazing Blog but for most of us, and the Breadren Cooking Class will teach you how to make it but with an artisan twist. You can learn how to make artisan bread from the comfort of your own home, which sounds fantastic to us. You will be taught by the bread-master Baker Max Tobias at the London-based artisan bakery, Breadren. Breadren, is holding cooking classes with dietary restrictions in mind. They understand the daily struggle if you’re gluten-free, vegan or even vegetarian, and they’re here to broaden your horizons. Their ethos is to promote natural, unpretentious food. You won't learn just how to bake, however, as some of their star recipes include roasted cauliflower with tahini, quinoa with roasted brussel sprouts, crispy kale & fresh pomegranate, Vietnamese-style summer rolls, charred sprouting broccoli with harissa, and matcha and coconut mochi cake.

We’ve often pined for the baking abilities of those we see on the British Bake Off, and now the abilty to shape round loaves, rolls and batards, to knead and proof dough, and manipulating temperatures for the ultimate loaf is at our fingertips. Both sweet and savoury baked goods are incorporated into the classes, and both naughty and nice recipes! You needn’t be trapped by trendy food fads and uninspired ‘free from’ diets. Their recipes naturally forego ingredients like eggs, sugar, wheat or dairy so you can keep to your diet restrictions if necessary, whilst cooking and eating some tasty food.

Vegan Cornbread

There are classes once a month throughout the year, ranging from ‘Vegan Seasonal Cooking and Baking’ to ‘Seasoning & Spice’ classes. However, if you prefer cooking around your loved ones you can book a private cooking class on everyday cooking or a themed cooking class for you and your friends and enjoy the experience. Breadren uses local and seasonal ingredients wherever possible, sourcing primarily from London and the South East, an added bonus.

You can book a cooking class here from £55, and book a private cooking tutorial here for a small group of 2-5 persons for £60 per person.

Alkaline Infusion - Kiki Health

Here at The Amazing Blog, we know just how important it is to look after your body on the inside as well as on the outside. We also know that this can be tough at times as we try to keep up with the fast pace of modern living. Therefore, if there is a product that can help us get that little bit healthier and is also convenient, it goes straight to the top of our list. This is exactly why we love Kiki Health's Alkaline Infusion which is simple to incorporate into your daily routine.

It is easy in today’s society to develop deficiencies that can affect our moods as well as our appearance, all because of a lack of vitamins in the diet. The Alkaline Infusion is full of magnesium which helps with fatigue and mood swings. The high vitamin C content helps to improve the appearance and function of the skin, teeth and bones, improves metabolism and boosts the immune system. The powder also contains silica which is instrumental in the growth of collagen, which helps skin maintain its elasticity and youth. Our bodies are often far too acidic due to poor diets and the stress of modern living, which can leave us feeling and looking low – which in turn can lead to reduced self-esteem and bad habits. With the balance of alkaline, vitamins and minerals, Kiki Health’s Alkaline Infusion helps your body neutralise these negative issues so that your body can regain its natural balance.

This supplement is an easy and tasty way to get the vitamins you need. With a delicious sweet and citrus flavour, you can easily mix your daily two teaspoons into a glass of water or to a smoothie for some added zing! This product is suitable for vegetarians and vegans, and is naturally free from wheat and gluten, making it suitable for everybody.

You can purchase Kiki Health’s Alkaline Infusion here for £27.00

Friday Favourites - Sweet Treats

The weekend is nearly upon us and so is the urge to indulge, and here at The Amazing Blog we know just how!

For something wickedly moorish pick up a packet of Ultimate English fudge which champions local produce in the Yorkshire region.

Using rhubarb grown in the heart of the rhubarb triangle itself by celebrated farmer D Westwood & Sons, the companies’ new rhubarb coconut ice gives a nostalgic nod towards the childhood-cherished rhubarb crumble.

If you fancy something more traditional check out their All Butter Fudge or the Salt Water Chocolate Truffle Fudge which combines the finest all butter fudge with the highest quality Belgian chocolate which recently was awarded a gold star in the Guild of Fine Food Great Taste Awards.

You can purchase Ultimate English fudge via retailers across the UK. You can find your nearest stockist here.

If you’re after a slightly healthier option then look no further as Chocolift is a lactose free, no added sugar chocolate with sweeteners extracted from plants, 38% pure cocoa, 8.2g whey protein isolate and 2g of coconut oil. The blend of cocoa, whey protein and coconut oil is a great alternative for chocolate lovers on sugar and lactose controlled diets, and at only 89 calories per half a bar we think it’s a great diet friendly option.

You can buy an 8 pack of Chocolift bars for £28.65 here.

Here at The Amazing Blog we also love Sweet Virtues’ award winning luxury truffles, which are nutrient-dense and power-packed with more than five super food ingredients in every truffle. The raw centre is made up of a blend of Maca, Lucuma, Coconut Nectar, Carob, Ginseng, Sunflower Seeds and Ground Almonds mixed with 72% Organic raw dark chocolate with Bio Live Cultures. Each truffle is hand-made and is dairy-free, suitable for vegetarians, vegans and those on gluten-free diets.

Available in three delicious varieties, Maqui, Chia Seeds & Lime and Baobab & Vanilla, the truffles come in boxes of around 10 (£13.95 for 115g), or a two truffle ballotin box (selection pack containing one ballotin box of each variety for £7.50). Both are perfect as a unique and luxurious gift or the ultimate guilt-free treat for oneself.

The Sweet Virtues range is currently available with a number of retailers, including Harrods, Daylesford, Planet Organic and Partridges of London, or from the company’s website.

Last but not least, we all know that chocolate makes you feel good, and Lovechock does just that! Made by hand from the best organic, raw cacao from Ecuador, instead of being roasted the beans are cold grounded, providing a natural source of flavonoids and ‘love chemicals’-  goodies that make you feel happy and loving.

Lovechock is milk free, soy free and gluten free and is sweetened with Coconut blossom nectar, which has a low GI value and therefore keeps the blood sugar levels more stable than common sugars. All Lovechock products are 100% vegan (recognized by the Vegan Society) and come in a variety of flavours including Goji/Orange, Almond/Fig and Mulberry/Vanilla.

We’re also loving Lovechock Rocks which are a great snack for when you’re on the go. The rocks are fruits or nuts covered in raw chocolate and a pinch of reishi, and come in three different flavour combinations Mulberry/Hemp seed, Almond/Cinnamon and Raisin Coconut.

You can buy Lovechock products from Planet Organic, Real Foods and The HealthBay.

Amisa Organic

We here at The Amazing Blog love to bake. We were a little skeptical about switching out our usual mixes for gluten-free ones, but thanks to Amisa Organic, our worries have disappeared!

Amisa Organic produces only gluten-free food. The company avoids using additives, preservatives and chemical pesticides. It believes everyone’s body is unique and needs the right kind of food to meet a person’s special dietary needs.

Have you ever thought about making your own bread? Amisa Gluten Free Seeded Bread mix makes baking super easy. It’s wheat free and full of crunchy, yummy seeds. 

Fancy pancakes for breakfast? Amisa Gluten Free Pancake mix with buckwheat and wholemeal rice flour tastes just as delicious as regular pancake mix and will be a perfect and healthy addition to your mornings.

If you’re looking for a healthier way to indulge in chocolatey desserts, the Chocolate Cake and Brownie mix both have rich, deep chocolate flavours. As a chocoholic myself, I was quite happy with the results.

With all of these mixes, you can't even tell you're eating something gluten-free. They are that good!

Each mix is easy to prepare with step-by-step recipes on the back of every box, so it’s time to step up your gluten-free game and start baking with these new mixes. You can view Amisa Organic's stockist list here.

PUNKU Quinoa Cookies

In an endless quest to find alternatives for breads and pasta, Quinoa has started to become a staple in Western World diets. Even at The Amazing Blog we love to include Quinoa in our daily meals, which is why we jumped at the chance to try some of PUNKU’s range of organic Quinoa Cookies from Bolivia.

The company recently launched a new flavour of Orange & Cranberry to add to their Chocolate Chip and Orange & Mango flavours. These cookies contain superfood organic Royal Quinoa which is only grown in a specific region of Bolivia. Quinoa is a grain-like crop grown primarily for its edible seeds and it contains all the essential amino acids. Quinoa is also a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus.

Each box contains 12 individually wrapped cookies. These cookies are wheat, gluten, dairy and egg free, which makes them suitable for all types of eaters. We loved the fruity flavours that satisfied our sweet tooth and the crunchiness of the quinoa.  

Patricia Estivariz, the founder of PUNKU, grew up in Bolivia and wanted to introduce Bolivian foods to the UK. She imports the cookies from Bolivian suppliers who have developed education and health programs to assist their employees. That means that buying PUNKU’s products benefits hundreds of Bolivian families, giving them a better standard of living.

Not only do you get to indulge in these amazing and healthy cookies, but you get to support people in one of the poorest countries of Latin America. Who can say no to that?

The products are available to purchase in select food stores around the UK or directly online. Over the next couple of months, PUNKU will be introducing additional products so keep an eye out for those as well!