What's New in the Kitchen #15 : Bake, Baked, Baked

Hurray, it's

a bi-monthly edition of product reviews. For the #15, the thread is what else but BAKE. 

Next week, it's the final of the GBBO. Somehow and that's certainly not thanks to my sweet baking prowess, I got kindly sent a Star Baker Apron. If you have bakers in your midst, note that Debenhams has launched a new range for "Great British Bake Off" Christmas gifts 

At just over £10, this lilac apron in a tube could be the perfect gift. It's certainly good quality.

We can't talk about baking without mentioning cheese. Specifically Cheddar. For a very long time, I turned my nose at cheddar coming from a country where cheese has been elevated to the fare of gods. Cheddar found on supermarket shelves seemed quite insipid till I worked out that there is cheddar and Wykes Farm cheddars. Wyke Farms is the UK's largest independent cheese producer making over 13000 tonnes of cheddar per year with the same award winning 150-year-old recipe. Lately, I tried their new trio and I wasn't disappointed. Give it a go. Perfect for topping soups at Halloween.

This summer, I covered a festival for the local newspaper. A stand was offering fruit crisps. I am  traditional when it comes down to crisps. No fruit, no vegetable, potato only. 

 So Emily Fruit Crisps took me by surprise, this is just a lovely product. They look like baked crisps, though it's a different process. They are certainly not oily. A bag of deliciousness. The taste is beautiful so if you come across them at Holland&Barrett, Waitrose or Sainsbury's give them a go.  

Pebble Soup HQ was privileged to be sent samples of different grades of

to cook/bake/or simply add to yoghurt.
Golden is the lightest and we probably never see it in the UK supermarkets
Amber is the next grade, still light with a delicate taste
Dark robust is my favourite and a good all rounder, I suspect that's the one we get here
Very Dark is the last to be harvested and is recommended for sauces and glazes.
Did you know that Quebec produces 90% of Canada maple syrup?

I'll soon publish my Maple Glazed Ham recipe, see you soon

At Pebble Soup HQ, meals are mostly cooked from scratch but when I'm in a hurry, I like to use Young's for the quality of their product. Guess how happy I was when I was asked to try out their new range: Hooked is all fish based, maximum quality, minimum effort. Love it. with the exception of the breakfast option smoked Salmon and scrambled egg which I thought didn't freeze well.

The full Hooked Seafood Kitchen range includes products for every meal time occasion:

·         Smoked Salmon & Scrambled Egg Royal with a Muffin

·         Smoked Haddock & Curried Scrambled Egg with a Muffin

·         Smoked Haddock & Scrambled Egg Florentine with a Muffin

·         Chunky Smoked Fish, Salmon, Butternut Squash & Corn Chowder

·         Chunky Fish & Blackbean Mexican Style Meal Soup

·         2 Salmon & Sweet Red Pepper Tartlets

·         2 Smoked Basa & Goats Cheese Tartlet

·         Smoked Haddock Parcels with Ricotta, pesto & chilli stuffing

·         Roast Seafood Platter with Black Garlic Butter

·         Smoked Salmon Mouse Blini Macarons

·         Salmon Roast with an Asian Style Crust

Disclaimer: What's new in the kitchen is a review column, some of the products are sent to Pebble Soup HQ, some are bought. Words are my own and do not review if I am asked to write a positive review.