JulieBhosaleAchive

As many of you know I am a self-confessed coffee lover, motherhood would be a very different journey (in my mind) without a good old cup of coffee. Here is 10 highly scientific mum facts about coffee (ok am kidding about the scientific part).   1. There is little that can't be solved by a cup of coffee. 2. Pair coffee with hanging out with your best friend and all the world's problems will melt away (even the worst tantrum in the history of tantrums doesn't seem so bad). 3. Coffee is an excuse to sit down for five minutes (even if that five becomes two minutes). 4. Coffee is calorie-free. So it's fat-free, sugar-free and guilt-free. 5. Children cannot have it, so it can't be shared....unlike EVERYTHING else! 6. It helps to stop children climbing all over you: "careful hot coffee". So it's actually child barrier of some description. 7. Coffee does not ask why. 8. Coffee makes early mornings ever so much more bearable. 9. We are not judgmental when it co

Kids love individual portions...ok to be fair....big people do as well! These mini bacon and egg pies will be a huge hit with all family members. The filo pastry makes them nice and light, bacon and eggs are always a winning combination and I even managed to sneak a tiny bit of vegetables in there too! These will make a great meal option for both lunch and dinner - and work especially well for lunch boxes as they taste just as good cold! I am sure you will win some brownie points when you pull these out of the oven! Ingredients 1 Packet of Filo Pastry 1/4 Cup butter, melted 3 Rashers of bacon 1/3 Cup of corn kernels 8 Eggs 1/4 Cup of milk 1/2 Cup grated cheese (for top) 6 Cherry tomatoes Note:  In regards to use pastry (as you can tell) I use pre-made pastry, you can read more on this in my blog ' Homemade Vs Pre-Made Pastry '. Directions: 1. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees. Lightly grease a 12-hole muffin tray. 2.  In a medium sized fry pan, cook the bacon until crispy. Remov

It is hard to beat a homemade pie....there is something about buttery flaky pastry filled with warm, hearty goodness....Ok I will stop there! But seriously a homemade pie is a wonderful family meal and a favourite in our house!. You can pack these full of vegetables and are great to make in advance (they keep warm for a while) or serve straight from the oven piping hot. If you are lucky there maybe some left overs to take for lunch!   Pre-Made Pastry? What’s the Deal? I would love to claim that I spend hours in the kitchen kneading and making my own pastry but I definitely do not. In fact, I have never attempted too. I would still love to learn but will file that away for when I have a bit more time (haha). I have watched good chefs struggle at this on many TV shows and the thought of attempting to do this when I need to get a meal on the table for hungry monkeys is very unappealing…above all else there is a great alternative. In a perfect world we would be making our own pastry....but

Traditions play a massive role in our eating habits. Just think of all the special and memorable times in your life and how much food played a part! We come together with food, in good times and in challenges. Honouring and creating our own traditions is a crucial part of not just good lifelong nutrition but our overall family wellbeing. It’s Anzac Day coming up and this is a really important day in New Zealand. The date is the anniversary of the landing of New Zealand and Australian soldiers (known as the ANZACs) on the Gallipoli Peninsula on 25 April 1915 during the First World War. We have acknowledged the landings at Gallipoli ever since that day - and Anzac Day has been a public holiday since 1921 to show our appreciation for the sacrifice of all those who have died in war, and the huge contribution of all those who have served for the country in order to keep us safe. Talking to kids about war and death is never easy but I believe it is part of our history and something that our

I am on the final stage – the final, final, final stage! And am I so glad to be at this point. It has been a very long few months waiting, in limbo. Three months and 28 days to be precise (not that I am counting). I am actually going to call it straight and say it has been harder emotionally than actually doing my thesis. At least then, while it was hard I was doing something - I had a very clear path and goal….I do not do ‘waiting’ and yet I have had to. Constantly at the back of my mind has been that worry of “did I actually do enough?”…."what if I have failed?”…."what if the last four years have just surmised to nothing…then what will I do?" I am really glad that between the boys, home and exciting business projects life has kept me pretty occupied. But I have also been ‘stuck’ in some regards, unable to move forward in quite the way I envisioned – and then have felt guilty because I should be happy with where I am at and happy to have ‘more time’ to spend on other

Our second son has been a 'sleepy baby' - especially compared to our first who was definitely not in this category at all. In fact, to this day we are still surprised and how Smushie can just fall asleep almost anywhere as this was just not something that ever happened the first time around. About a month ago however we went through a typical toddler sleep regression with him and holy molly was it hard - between having both boys wake up multiple times in the night my husband and I felt like we were back in newborn days, but with a super full work load. Like most hard parenting phases this has luckily passed....for now! This week we have a guest blog from Amy McColl of Baby Sleep Consultants  on toddler sleep regression. I am a firm believer of seeking help when you are struggling, which has only come from raw experience of battling so often on our own, so do make sure you check out this great service - they offer a free 15 minute consultation on the phone! Amy's Toddler Reg

I am a massive advocate for making food at home. You will always get more nutritious food when you make it yourself, plus you are learning important skills which your little ones inevitably learn too. However, I am also a really busy working mum and feel the pressure of needing to do a million things in one day.  Hence my nutrition philosophy of keep it pure and simple. I am always on the lookout for high quality products which you can get at your local supermarket and are nutritiously sound – trust me when I say they are hard to find, so as you can imagine, I get more than a little excited when I do. Hello Nairns Oatcakes and Oat Biscuits. All of Nairns products are made with oats as the key ingredient.  Oats provide a vital source of fibre in our diets which is crucial for keeping our gut healthy and functioning well. In addition oats provide essential vitamins and minerals particularly magnesium and biotin. As they do not contain wheat I find that those who are gluten intolerant can

Last week I was looking for some inspiration on different toppings to include on Nairns Oatcakes ( product review here! ) and, with any luck, possibly toppings that included vegetables in a way children would enjoy.... I came across a delicious recipe from Martha Stewart for a roasted pepper dip but it had a few too many steps so I decided to just have a go at my own version, and surprised even myself at how simple it was! I promise this is ridiculously easy, fun to make and you have a vegetable based dip for all to enjoy. As there are not many steps you will find it a good recipe to involve the little ones, and when I put this on a platter with some extra vegetables sticks my monkey's could not resist (neither could I for that matter!). Just jump over to my you-tube channel to see the video and all directions below!     Ingredients: 3 Red peppers (capsicums) 2 Shallots 1 Clove of garlic 2-3 Tb of extra virgin olive oil 1-2 Tb of red wine vinegar Salt and pepper to season   Direc