Everyone knows that prune juice is ideal to keep the bowel working well. But did you know prune juice is also rich in iron and potassium? Our body uses iron to make hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells. Potassium helps our nerves, muscles and heart function well.
Prune juice in glass bottles (750ml) Biona £8.79. James White £3.66
Whilst Biona is excellent, James White is equally as tasty and best value for money.
If you’re buying 1 litre cartons Morrisons own brand is excellent value. Sainsbury’s is also good. However, both have design problems with opening spout which make pouring difficult and resealing nearly impossible. Sunsweet with a screw top is the outright winner in carton juice.
240ml (1 cup) of prune juice provides 30% of the recommended daily allowance of iron for men and 17% for women.
For tinned prunes, Princes is the overall best value for money and best taste with our tasters.
Quick and easy, kedgeree is a nice light meal for lunch or supper.
Ingredients:
225g smoked haddock
175g long-grain rice
salt, pepper and cayenne
1 onion, finely chopped
55g butter
2 hard-boiled eggs
150g petit pois
chopped parsley to garnish
Step by step:
Pour boiling water over the haddock and leave it to stand for 5 minutes, remove any bones and skin, and flake the fish coarsely.
Bring 600ml of water to the boil in a large saucepan with seasonings to taste, pour in the rice and stir in the seasoning, cover and cook over a very low heat for about 25 minutes until all the water is absorbed and the rice is fluffy. While the rice is cooking, fry the onion in a little of the butter until soft and transparent.
Cook your petit pois for a few minutes.
Chop the hard-boiled eggs. Stir the flaked fish, the onion, egg whites, peas and the rest of the butter into the cooked rice, and season well.
Tips:
Nigel Slater finely chops the whites and presses the yolks through a sieve to make a decorative topping for whole dish. If you’re entertaining this can be a nice idea.
Hotel Termes Montbrió is a lovely traditional hotel and spa on the Costa Dorada. Set in beautiful gardens, all bedrooms are air conditioned and have nice terraces.
The spa is huge with different temperature plunge pools and water jets to pummel your body. Superbly clean and very nice staff. €35 to access all areas, it’s a bargain.
There are a good range of treatments if you want to pamper yourself and they are all listed on the website. HERE
If you want a relaxing break with a spacious bedroom, easy free parking and all modern amenities in a wonderful old building, this is the place to come. Booking direct with the hotel is recommended as they always have special offers.
Be aware some of the reviews on the internet dated before 2019 are not representative of the hotel today. There are two restaurants in the hotel serving excellent local dishes and a cafeteria for snacks.
Local restaurant Korko is also highly recommended and whilst there isn’t a website, you can find them on Trip Advisor and Facebook.
Tel: 34 977 83 33 96
Hotel Termes Montbrió Av de Sant Jordi, 30 Montbrio del camp 43340 0034 977 814 000 www.termesmontbrio.com
Quiet and relaxing
Tarragona is just off the AP7 motorway, one hour south of Barcelona and 2 hours north of Valencia.
The Hotel Termes Montbrió is a comfortable and convenient hotel.
He discovered the cholesterol-reducing compound in 1973 which has saved the lives of millions of people.
“A remarkable scientist”
Prof Bryan Williams of The British Heart Foundation described him as “a remarkable scientist”. Akira said he was inspired by Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin in 1928 which led him to study the mould of fungi to develop new medicines.
His research involved testing more than 6,000 concoctions.
Statins are prescribed by doctors for patients who have had a heart attack and those at high risk of heart attack or stroke. The pioneering biochemist received several awards including the Laska Award in the USA.
The Laska Award is known as the US’s own version of the Nobel Prize and whilst he didn’t receive the actual Nobel prize, his contribution to medicine is one of the major achievements of the 20th century.
Starlight Express is back, redesigned and brand new. The original opened in London in March 1984 and ran for 18 years, closing 12th January 2002. After more than 7000 performances to eight million people, the only musical staged entirely on rollerskates has played around the world from the USA to Asia and many stations along the way.
Did you know?
The show has played continuously since 1988 in Bochum, Germany showing to more than 19 million people.
The Troubador Theatre is just a few minutes walk from Wembley Park tube station and there is a Premier Inn nearby.
2. How many years ago was the Big Bang? 10.8 billion, 12.8 billion, 13.8 billion
A. 13.8 billion
3. In which century was the French revolution? 17th, 18th, 19th
A. 18th century (5th May 1789 to 9th November 1799)
4. Hoosier Hill is the highest mountain in which state? Montana, Indiana, Texas
A. Indiana (383 metres above sea level)
5. Where was Michael Jackson born (City and state)
A. Gary, Indiana (29th August 1958)
6. How many times has Harrison Ford played Indiana Jones?
A. 5
7. Caricature comes from which Italian word? Face, Exaggerate, Art
A. Exaggerate (caricare to exaggerate detail in drawing)
8. Which American state calls itself the ‘small wonder’? Vermont, New Hampshire, Delaware
A. Delaware – the second smallest state in the USA Named after Thomas West – the English nobleman and first colonial governor third baron of De La Warr.
9. Who invented the Kevlar bulletproof vest?
A. Stephanie Kwolek invented it in 1965 while working for DuPont in Wilmington, Delaware
Join our book club and share your favourite books. We have reviews, new release news and reading for writers. Are you writing for business or pleasure? Have you got time to share with other writers?
This week we are reading The Last Act of Love by Cathy Rentzenbrink Here
🇪🇸 Flamingo Hills – Jávea, Spain…
Set in the north east coast of Spain, Jávea is a great place for a holiday or – check out Flamingo Hills a recommended self catering accommodation…
🥘 1 pan | 🍽 Serves 4 | ⏱ 25 mins 🛒 10 ingredients | £1.10pp
Easy to make and packed with vitamins A, C and K.
Ingredients:
1 onion diced
1 tbsp olive oil
3 small apples or 2 large, peeled, cored and cut into small pieces
1 medium celeriac peeled and cut into cubes
1 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp salt
750ml vegetable stock
250ml almond milk (optional)
2 tbsp walnuts roughly chopped
1/2 tbsp thyme
Step by step:
Heat the olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a few minutes until it begins to soften.
Add the cubed apple, celeriac, thyme, salt and 500ml of the vegetable stock and simmer for 20 minutes until the celeriac is soft.
Use a stick blender to puree everything in the pot. Once smooth return the mixture to the pot and add in the remaining vegetable stock and almond milk (if using). Stir and bring to a boil. Taste and adjust seasoning with more salt, thyme or vegetable stock if too thick.
In a bowl combine the chopped walnuts and thyme and mix
Serve the soup topped with the walnuts and thyme.
Notes:
Using milk / cream ingredients will make the soup richer and creamier and if you like to fry off some sage leaves, they make a welcome addition. As always, a few shards of chopped bacon are also welcome for meat eaters.
Price checking and taste testing, we find LIDL the best value non branded frozen peas, followed by Aldi and Asda.
Lidl and Aldi were both the same price but Lidl won out on taste. Although Asda were just ahead of Aldi on taste. Asda were slightly dearer and came in third place.
LIDL
ALDI
ASDA
How we calculate the best value? We compare pack size and price, taste test results and arrive at an overall satisfaction rating.
Shop
Pack
Price
Rank
Taste
Value
Aldi
900g
£1.00
1
3
2
Asda
1000g
£1.50
3
2
3
Lidl
900g
£1.00
1
1
1
Morrisons
1000g
£1.45
2
–
–
Sainsbury’s
910g
£1.65
4
3
5
Tesco
1000g
£1.50
3
4
4
Waitrose
725g
£1.20
4
3
5
Research data 3rd June 2024
Morrisons rated less than 5 on taste and therefore dropped out of ratings.
Birds Eye remains the brand leader and if you’re not bothered about price, they are still some of the finest peas, check out their website HERE
HEAL 