Guilt free chilli - kinda!

I never used to like Chilli, I never used to be able to tolerate spice in any way shape of form but for some reason, my palette has 'grown a pair' albeit a small pair but it means I can enjoy much more flavour in my food.

There was a recipe that I liked from the BBC website here.  I made it and my boyfriend loved it, I thought it was okay but needed a few tweaks.

I now follow the basic recipe as above but make a few adjustments as I go a.k.a. I wing it! 

I heat up some coconut oil (about a teaspoon) in a big pan and once that is melted I add a chopped onion and cook for about 5 minutes until its soft.

I mix all my spices together in one little bowl just so they can mix together better. I use mild chilli powder, dried crushed chillies, paprika and ground cumin.

I chopped up one pepper (orange or yellow because I don't like red) and about 4 cloves of garlic.

The goggles in the picture are for the chopping of onions as my eyes are useless puddles before I can get the skin off usually!

Add the peppers and garlic to the pan and then add the spices to let some of the 'rawness' cook out.

You can use tinned kidney beans, supermarket market own brand ones are fine and usually less than about 50p a tin.  I have a bag of dried ones, which is fine for adjusting the amount you use and therefore reducing wastage but you do have to remeber to soak them for a good 12 hours and rinse them thoroughly before use. 

At this stage is where it gets CRAZY! Instead of adding minced meat of some form, I use Quorn mince - controversial, I know!

I added a carton/tin of chopped tomatoes, some tomato puree (two tablespoons ish) and some beef stock (about 200 ml) and let it come to the boil. Once it has begun to boil, reduce the temperature and let it simmer, the longer it simmers the more of the flavour the quorn will absorb.

You might have noticed in the picture above that my tomato puree is in the form of a star, tomato puree can be frozen so once you open a jar or tube and take out the amount you need you can freeze the rest in ice cube trays.

Once the chilli has reached a gently simmering stage you can then add some dried marjoram, salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar if you wish (you can add dark chocolate nearer the end rather than sugar if you prefer). Leave to simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Add the kidney beans, these are great for giving texture to this dish and this would be the stage you would add the dark chocolate.  Bring to the boil again and then reduce to a simmer and that's pretty much it.

I like this served with rice but the other half loves it with those taco trays and cheese and soured cream and all the rest!

I find, especially with the quorn, that this is a great dish to make on a sunday and eat on the monday after a long day at work, by then all the flavours have really blended in together and have been soaked into the quorn.

Do you have a favourite recipe that you can prepare in advance?

How do you feel about spicy foods?

Hugs,

Jodi 

xxx

Another trip to Boots!

I really should be banned from that shop!

I went in to get a white nail polish and spent about 31 shiny pounds!  

Here's my purchases...

I couldn't resist the Barry M as it was a 'spend £6 and get a free ltd edition bottle' deal and I was getting the white anyway.  I got the sequin effect in pink as I have been wanting to try these for ages and so I got the yellow limited edition one free! Yay!  I will review this in a separate post very soon! 

I got the radox as it was only £1 and I love the smell of this one and so does my other half.  I wouldn't say the scent lasts particularly well on the skin,  it it makes our flat smell nice whilst the bath is running. To quote my man 'if pink were a smell, that would be it!'

I was going to a wedding the next day and so was looking for a good tanner that wasn't too expensive.  I came across this No.7 'perfectly bronzed' and it was buy one get one free on their suncare and tanning and so I picked up the anti-ageing sun protection spray in SPF 30.

The Soap & Glory 'night in shining armour' was in the clearance section for £3.25 when it's usually £13! I've seen some good reviews of this product with regards to helping even out skintone and replenish moisture (particularly helpful in this warm weather that I keep harping on about!).  I used it for three nights and on the first day after I would say I felt my skin was softer and my make up sat better however after the third day I have had quite a few (7 12!) spots pop up all over my face :-( .  Now, this may be nothing to do with the cream, I only put on a light layer and I have been having spotty chin issues lately but these appeared on my chin, cheeks, temples and even the top of my nose! I'm going to wait until these painful pests go away and I will try the cream again. 

Do you use a night cream?

Do you go into a shop for one thing and come out with 7? And a bored looking other half?! 

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

A bling thing!

Hey Chummers! 

Recently I went out for tea with work chums and although I was dressed in navy, cream and tan, I couldn't help but add a bit of coral into the mix! 

Meet 'Are we there yet?' by O.P.I and 'Glamour Glitter' by Nails Inc.

'Are we there yet?' Is a peachy, coral-ly, salmon-y colour with a gold shimmer throughout it.  I didn't expect to like this colour as much as I did.  In the bottle it looks a bit dustier, a bit duller but when on the nail it is actually quite vibrant.  The shimmer that is quite apparent in the bottle, doesn't transfer onto the nail quite so much but it is visible in sunlight.

I topped it with the 'Glamour Glitter' to add a bit of bling since it was a Saturday night! I really like that this is just a simple, understated gold glitter - no holographic particles, no base colour just plain old fashioned glitter! Simple glitters like this can be quite hard to find and it's usually cheaper brands that you will find them in.  For example, I spotted Asda's own make up range with a glitter very similar to this (they also had a silver too!) 

Please excuse the midge bite marks on my thumb! 

Do you like plain glitters?

What is your favourite combo? 

Hugs,

Jodi

xxx

Pretty posies!

Hiiiiii!

So right now, I'm loving flowers, I love being around them, I love looking at nice pictures of them and I've even looked into taking a flower arranging class! Next step, WI meetings?!?! 

I recently bought some posies that were reduced and although they don't really go with my decor, I loved the bright cheery colours.

Once I trimmed them down and removed excess leaves, there wasn't much left and I didn't have a small enough vase to put the in without them looking lost and so I came up with this...

An old spice jar! 

I think it looks really cute and would be lovely with sweet peas in it and a wee ribbon just to decorate it.  

The candle is a citronella one which I picked up at home bargains as for some reason the midges are loving me this year! I haven't yet got round to lighting it though as its just too hot to contemplate candles! Haha! 

How do you like to display posies in your place? 

Do you call midges midges or mosquitos? 

Hugs,

Jodi 

xxx

'Maybe she's born with it...'

I recently received this Maybelline Superstay 14hr wear Lipstick after winning a competition run by 'Fab' magazine, which I entered on Facebook.  

First and foremost, the packaging is really quite sleek and handbag friendly although for some reason I kept thinking it was a gloss and then getting surprised when I opened it and discover all over again its a lipstick - this has seriously happened every time I have opened it! 

An important note, this is the yummiest smelling lipstick I've ever came across, it has such a lovely fruity scent that kept me going back to sniff it! 

The lipstick itself had a lovely teardrop shape tip which allows for neat application, especially round the Cupid's bow area.

The colour I was given was 'Ultimate Blush' and although in the tube it looked like a 'just been kissed' kinda rose, on application it actually had a lot more of a shimmer to it. I've tried to show on the picture below how shimmery it was.

The texture was quite nice but I felt it leaned towards the drier side of things, possibly the reason why there was so much shimmer to try and give off a glossier finish? 

The longevity was not the 14 hours claimed but more like 6 which is still pretty reasonable.  After eating and drinking the shimmer vanished and left more of a lip stain effect behind.

I think that this would perhaps last longer if you do the apply, blot, apply method.  Worth a try! 

The only downfall to this I felt, was the shimmer, I felt it made me look older! 

I've since given this to my boss as I felt it was right up her street and she loves it, she loved the fact that the colour was still there, as a stain, at 2pm after putting it on at 8am.

Do you have a long lasting lip hero? 

Hugs,

Jodi xx

Hospital Heatwave Heroes

Hi!

It's been a while! This summer weather has got me all outdoorsy and my partner and I have been spending most of our evenings out of the house.  My man is recovering from a torn hamstring and some of the best physio for that can be gentle strolls! 

I thought I would post a wee look at what has been my daily 'work' face for the past couple of weeks, I walk to work and hospitals are notoriously warm and so I need something that isn't going to be halfway down my face before I even cross the road! 

Clockwise from top - Carmex Cherry Lip Balm SPF 15, Dr Jart+ Water Fuse BB Cream SPF 25, Rimmel Match Perfection Loose Powder, E.L.F. Eyebrow Tame, The Vintage Cosmetic Company Eyelash Curlers, YSL Luxurious Effect Mascara, Natural Collection Suntint Bronzing Powder, L'Oreal Lumi Magique Concealer, MUA Undress Your Skin Radiant Flawless Primer, E.L.F Studio Lip Definer & Shaper and Bourjois Little Round Pot Blusher

The only other tools I use are my Real Techniques powder brush and also the contour brush, the rest is done with my fingers - I like to keep it simple of a morning! 

The Carmex is lush and always makes me and everyone around me crave haribo! However, the main reason I am choosing this is because it has an SPF in it.

The Dr Jart+ Water Fuse BB Cream was part of a Glossybox a while back and although the shade isn't quite me - it is darker and has both more ashy (to begin with) and more yellow (by 10am!) tones than I would like, at this time of year when I have a bit of colour to me, I can carry it off.  It's lightweight, easily blendable and has an SPF 25.

Ah loose powder, I like it as it helps my make up stay in place but by Jove it goes everywhere!! I forget this part, until I use it then need to try and get it off my clothes/sink/cat! This Rimmel Match Perfection Silky Loose Powder does what it says on the tin but you're losing half of your contents into the hereafter! 

E.l.f Eyebrow Treat and Tame (this is only the 'tame' part), a slightly reddish toned product with a rather big wand, this does help pin down unruly brows and fill in slightly patchy areas quickly but I find it doesn't last through the whole day.  The wand is too big I feel (one day, someone will bring out a cone shaped eyebrow wand and it will be a good day! ) and the packaging is incredibly cheap - mine was chipped when I received it and promptly broke the next day :-( 

Eyelash curlers are quickly becoming a staple as I'm not bothering with eyeshadow and these badboys from The Vintage Cosmetic Company, help open up my eyes (Nb. these are actually a fair bit cheaper on the likes of feelunique.com as opposed to the company's own website).

YSL Luxurious Effect Mascara, this is a sample that I got from Whatsinmyhandbag.com a while ago and I'm just getting round to using up now.  This is an okay product, personally I look for something that will help my lashes hold a bit of curl and while I find this is good at keeping my lashes defined and clump free, I don't think it works with my downward facing lashes as well as some others.  Good pigmentation and it stays pretty well put.

Natural Collection Bronzing Powder in Sun Shine, which I dropped last week! I like this as it has no shimmer, I really am not up for dazzling my patients with a face full of sparkles! This is a wee bit dark for me normally but as I have a bit of colour to my face, I'm making the most of this.  This isn't super for blending but I find if I apply this before my loose powder, it looks more natural.

L'oreal Lumi Magique Concealer in Light, a more purse friendly alternative to the renowned touché eclait by YSL (both owned by the same company!), is a nifty little tool for keeping dark circles at bay, it certainly lightens up the area but if you are looking for a great concealer, this is not it.  It's a click and use product and so is really handy to keep in your bag.

MUA Undress Your Skin Radiant Flawless Primer is really being put to the test in this weather! It claims to create a flawless base but unfortunately for me that isn't happening, my make up stays put on the majority of my face (always disappears off the apples of my cheeks by lunch) but pores etc are all still visible.

E.l.f Studio Lip Definer and Shaper, a dual ended pencil with a sharpener in the lid.  This is going a bit melty in the heat and so sharpening it was messy but its a nice, natural looking product.  I wear this all over the lip with a slick of the Carmex over the top and I find it gives a 'my lips but better' colour leaning towards slightly blue toned which makes teeth look better too! The shaper is a highlighter to be used in the Cupid's bow to highlight and enhance your lip shape.  

And the Bourjois Little Round Pot Blush which I spoke about here.  I'm liking this a bit more since I scraped off a layer from the top and I now find I'm getting a better colour payout.  Gives a subtle, rosy glow and I still like the smell! 

And that's it. 10 minutes and I can then find other things to procrastinate about rather than going to work! Haha!

What do you think? 

Do you have any Heatwave heroes to get you through a day at work? 

Hugs! 

Jodi 

xxx

Pastels and Polka Dots!

Hey Chummers!

This weekend in Aberdeen was really quite grey and wet and miserable, so I decided on Sunday that I was going to bake a cake with a difference after being inspired by this blog post.  I didn't read the blog post until a bit later but the image of the cake popped up on my facebook page and thought it would add just the right amount of colour into my weekend!

I would like to point out that my cake did not turn out as intended but it was still yum, so a win really! Haha!

I started by making the batter from my coconut recipe as detailed here, this was going to be for my coloured cake balls.

I then split the mix into five seperate bowls, added some food colouring and mixed it well in.

I didn't have a cake pop baking tray so I thought I would just make individual cupcakes and trim them to size, so I used my pastry/basting brush to grease a baking tray with butter and then threw sifted flour over it. You can buy the silicone cake pop trays off of the likes of ebay and amazon pretty inexpensively.

I divided the mixture into the baking tray using an ice cream scoop.

How pretty does that baking tray look!! haha!

I baked them for about 15 minutes, until a cocktail stick stuck in the centre came out clean.

While they cooled, I made the buttercream icing, again like the one for the coconut cake (without the coconut) and added a teaspoon each of vanilla essence and blue food colouring - my other half picked the blue!

I used the excess batter to make a wee rainbow layered heart cake for the Mr.

This is where I forgot to take pictures, silly me! I trimmed the cupcakes down to kinda ball shapes but was a little bit gutted that the colours were not very vibrant, the blue looked green, the green looked yellow, the purple looked pink, the pink all rose to the top and the yellow wasn't even visible!

I made a vanilla sponge batter, which is just the coconut sponge recipe without the coconut and a teaspoon of vanilla extract.  I put a thin layer over the bottom of a greased and floured cake tin.  I used a square one as I thought it would be fun against the circles in the cake, but a 9"/20cm round sandwich tin would be fine.

On top of the thin layer, I placed the cupcake balls and then poured the rest of the batter over the top making sure that each ball was well covered.

I put it into the oven at 180 degrees C (fan assisted) for about 30 minutes - again, keep checking with a cocktail stick on knife, when you stick either one of those in the centre, they should come out clean, if they come out and they have mixture on them it means that it is not cooked through the middle.

Et Voila!!

Leave for 5 minutes in the tin to cool but do take a knife round the edge to loosen the sponge.  After this, place on a wire cooling rack until completely cool and then decorate 'til your heart is content!

I hope you like and that this maybe inspires you,

Do you have any recommendations of vibrant food colourings?

Hugs,

Jodi 

xxx