Bakers Delight Cape Seed Giveaway

Admittedly, I am pretty fussy when it comes to bread. I am quite health conscious in my selection and, of course, it has to taste good! I have always been a fan of the Cape Seed loaf and rolls at Bakers Delight, however, until very recently I had no idea it was so healthy! As it turns out.. Cape Seed bread is packed with vitamins and minerals, which makes me feel extra good about my choice in bread :)

 

Loads of goodness goes into this bread, including over nine grains and seeds go into Bakers Delight's Cape Seed loaf... soy and linseed, poppy seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, rye, barley, oats and mung beans, just to name a few. Full of vitamins and minerals it includes iron, protein, vitamin E, antioxidants and omega-3. Another great thing about Cape Seed bread is that it's has a low glycemic index (GI), which means it will keep you full longer and provide longer lasting energy (no risk of sugar crashing here!).

One of my favourite ways to enjoy Cape Seed bread is as part of a quick, weekday breakfast - sliced, toasted and topped with banana (and alongside coffee of course!) Or, for something a bit fancier, I might also add some low fat ricotta and a little honey.

Thanks to Bakers Delight, you have the chance to win 1 of 9 vouchers to the value of $5 for you to use at any Bakers Delight bakery in Australia. To enter, all you have to do is comment on this post and tell me your 'mini recipe' for how you would use Cape Seed bread. Be as creative as you like! Entries close at midnight AEST on September 8, 2010.


Good luck!

Ladybird x

Edgell Giveaway

Beans, beans, good for your heart. The more you eat, the more you... *ahem*.. Well, I don't really agree with the next part... Legumes are a fantastic source of fibre and protein, and are just the food group that most of us need to eat more of :) There are so many delicious and tasty dishes to make using beans and lentils.

Thanks to the good people at Edgell, I had the pleasure of trying some of their new products...

The individual portion tubs come like this with a separate sachet in the box... A handy snack pack for one. The 3 flavours available are: 'Balasmic Vingear', 'Red Wine Vinaigrette & Herbs' and 'Honey & Wholegrain Mustard'.

I tried the '3 Beans and Corn with a Balsamic Vinegar Sachet' to make a quick, delicious and healthy dip to serve with warm bread - yum :)

Creamy bean dip with balsamic and basil
1 x Edgell '3 Beans and Corn with a Balsamic Vinegar Sachet'
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
finely chopped fresh basil

Method
1. Open the plastic tub and microwave for 20 seconds. Note - there is no need to drain the beans and corn.
2. Tip the bean and corn mix into a blender/small food processor with about half of the sachet's dressing, extra virgin olive oil and a little salt and pepper. Pulse until smooth.
2. Taste and adjust the seasoning as required.
3. Top with fresh basil and serve with bread, crackers or even sliced vegetables!

(Makes one serve)

Drumroll, ladies and gentlemen...

It's giveaway time!

As part of this post, readers in NSW have the chance to win this lovely picnic hamper including some of Edgell's new and existing products, as well as a great apron.
 

To enter, all you have to do is comment on this post and send me a copy of your comment to diaryofaladybird@gmail.com with the subject "Edgell gieveaway" along with your full name and NSW delivery address.

Entries close on July 18th at midnight Sydney time. This competition is restricted to readers in NSW (sorry others!) 

*** Congratulations to Shaz! You will be receiving your hamper in the coming days ***

Good luck!

Ladybird x

High Tea at The Loft (and a Giveaway!)

This afternoon I had the pleasure of experiencing my first high tea! A while back I asked Sharon (of Wee Love Baking) would she be keen to go for high tea somewhere and she suggested we try out The Loft at the King Street Wharf.

It had a great ambience and it was great to enjoy something slightly old-world in a modern day setting. Rather than having the usual sort of high tea, Sharon and I opted for the high tea with a twist. For $45 this included a tea infused cocktail, savouries and sweets, as well as our choice of tea or coffee.

After some much needed cold water, we started with our cocktails. As it was such a hot day today, we couldn't wait to get our hands on them! I chose the Strawberry Pash - Vodka and creme de fraise shaken with homemade apple puree, basil, strawberries and T2's "Mardi Gras". Sharon had the Sencha Quince Fizz - Lilet shaken with a hint of vanilla, fresh passionfruit pulp, pink grapefruit and T2's "Sencha Quince" tea. Both were tasty and refreshing, and we loved the unusual flavour combinations.

 Strawberry Pash & Sencha Quince Fizz

We were seated quite close to the bar, so we had a great view of all of the beautiful cocktails being created.

This bevy of beautiful beverages was prepared for a group of ladies at The Loft for a hen's afternoon tea...

Turkish Delight - Plymouth gin and a touch of Tuaca shaken with homemade rubharb puree, pear cheek, fresh lemon and chilled T2 "Turkish Apple" tea

Soon after our high tea stand arrived - 3 plates of  yummy goodies! It included sandwiches (vego ones for me - hurrah!), mini leek and guyrere quiches, scones, brownies, mini pavlovas and lemon meringue tarts.

Before moving onto our sweets we order our teas - 'Strawberries and Cream' for Sharon and 'Blue Mountain' for me.

While neither of us are big pavlova fans we thoroughly enjoyed the mini pav - it was not too sweet and was just delicious. The brownie was fudgy and chocolatey dotted with lovely walnuts.

 The lemon meringue was gorgeous.. what more can I say?!

And of course the scones... the litmus test of a good afternoon tea. These were freshly baked and still warm inside (joy!).

So, overall? Great food and drinks, good service and a wonderful ambience.. The Loft was a great place to catch up with a friend and I thoroughly enjoyed my first high tea -can't wait to do it again soon!

The Loft
3 Lime St
King St Wharf, Sydney
ph (02) 9299 4770
http://www.theloftsydney.com/

To celebrate my first high tea, I am giving away two of these adorable necklaces with tiny teacup and teaspoon pendants.

To enter all you have to do is leave a comment and tell me about your best high tea experience in 50 words or less. The competition is open to Australian residents only (sorry!) and closes on January 31st - good luck!

Ladybird x

Congratulations to Lorraine and Kristy - you are the two lucky giveaway winners!

Christmas giveaway winner

So it's finally time to draw the winner of the Christmas Giveaway competition. Thank you to everyone who entered - there were some very thoughtful entries. The winner has been randomly selected.

Drumroll, ladies and gentlemen....

Congratulations to Kat of A Cupcake or Two! You have won the 200 Christmas Recipes cookbook! Kat, your cookbook will be in the post as soon as I get your postal address. You'll have it well in advance of Christmas so that you can start planning some tasty dishes and treats for your family and friends :)

Christmas Giveaway!

Christmas is approaching... and I love giving gifts! So to celebrate Christmas I am giving away this great little Christmas cookbook for one lucky reader :)

This is such a great book with 200 wonderful recipes and beautiful photographs for each. It contains plenty of traditional christmas fare recipes, including some delicious savoury sides. There are also countless sweet favourites, as well as recipes for edible gifts! What could be better than an edible gift for a loved one ??

I will endeavour to make some of the recipes from the book between now and the draw so you can see what I mean when I say this is a great little book to have...

To enter, simply leave a comment on this post. Australian residents only please. This competition closes at 10pm Sydney time on Wednesday, December 2nd.


Good luck!

Ladybird x