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Life from a (slightly) more mature perspective

Giveaway – Canapés recipe book

This week’s giveaway is Canapés, a beautifully photographed recipe book written by Victoria Blashford-Snell and Eric Treuille. It’s full of delicious ideas for party nibbles, some easy to make, some more difficult, but all look yummy.
Read my review of Canapés here and there’s a couple of recipes for you to try here.
I have three copies of the book to give away, courtesy of those kind people at Dorling Kindersley. All you have to do is leave a comment below and you will be in with a chance of winning one.
Canapés, by Victoria Blashford-Snell and Eric Treuille, published by DK, £14.99, dk.com
(Closing date 15 November; entrants must be over 18 years old; one entry per person; giveaway open to UK residents only. Any questions or problems please let me know.)

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Foodie Thursday – Canapés review


Now we are in autumn, and celebrations such as Bonfire Night and dare I say it, Christmas, are on the horizon, the publication of this recipe book is well timed.

Canapés is a cornucopia of party nibbles, savoury and sweet. It’s a great looking book, full of gorgeous photographs and it is hard backed, so it’s hardwearing, something I think is essential for a cookery title.

I’ll say it now – I love canapés. We have a tradition every Christmas Eve in our house of party food for tea. It’s decadent, rich and you can experience lots of different flavours at one go. Normally, I admit, I buy my feast from a combination of Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda, but this year I’m going to have a go at cooking up a few nibbles myself.

With more than 200 recipes to choose from I’ve already marked out a few favourites, two of which I’ve reproduced in my next post, with kind permission of the publisher. I’ve chosen easy dishes, as I’m no chef and let’s face it, won’t have lots of spare time on Christmas Eve!
For the more adventurous among you there’s clams with ginger and lime butter; monkfish, pancetta and rosemary spiedini with lemon aioli; classic fish goujons; quail egg and crispy bacon croustades; sweet potato and ginger rosti with coriander pesto; smoked haddock and parsley cakes; spicy pork empanaditas with chunky avocado relish and triple chocolate biscottini with hazelnuts.
My mouth is watering.
There’s also heaps of help in the form of menus, how many canapés to allow per person, drinks to accompany the food, and presentation tips.
Professional cook and co-author of Canapés Victoria Blashford-Snell says: “Serving canapés to your guests is a fun way of showing off. It is the one time you can mix a little Asian and French together, as long as you make some considerations for taste, texture and presentation when choosing your menu.”
Roll on Christmas Eve.
Canapés by Victoria Blashford-Snell and Eric Treuille is published by Dorling Kindersley and costs £14.99. For more information please take a look at www.dk.com

Giveaway alert!

I have three copies of Canapés, kindly supplied by Dorling Kindersley, to give away to three lucky people. All you have to do to be in with a chance of winning one is visit 40s Chic on Monday (15 October 2012) and leave a comment under the giveaway post.

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Giveaway – Korres skincare

We have a great giveaway this week thanks to the fab guys at Korres. If you haven’t been introduced to these beautiful skincare products then you have been missing out. Think of sunny Greek Islands and you are pretty much on the nose with this brand – it is natural, organic and smells delicious.
As a company Korres has its roots in Athens’ first homeopathic pharmacy; today it blends nature with science to produce an exciting collection of skincare, haircare, suncare and cosmetics. What more do you need?
First up we have the Guava Body Butter, full of vitamin C to help stimulate collagen production, shea butter, almond, sunflower and avocado oils for their softening and hydrating qualities and quince extract to nourish and restructure. 

Next in our Korres giveaway is the highly sought after Lip Butter. The company tells me that one of these hydrating balms is sold every minute, which means it is their biggest selling product across the globe.
A mixture of rice wax and shea butter, this balm just melts on the lips leaving a glossy tint, not only looking good but protecting and hydrating – ideal for this time of year.

Another problem must of us have to deal with during autumn and winter is dry skin, especially on our hands. This is where the Organic Almond Oil & Calendula Moisturising Hand Cream comes into its own.
Almond oil is a highly effective emollient, nourishing skin and preventing moisture loss, as well as containing oleic acid to tackle wrinkles, and A-tocopherol, a natural antioxidant. Calendula is anti-inflammatory, soothing irritation and dryness other ingredients include nourishing shea butter and provitamin B5.

Finally this week we have Wild Rose Moisturising Cream, which will hydrate and care for your skin with its vitamin C rich wild rose oil, grape seed and sunscreen.

To be in with a chance of winning all of these gorgeous goodies simply leave a comment below. One winner will be randomly chosen after the closing date. To find out more about Korres visit www.feelunique.com

(Entrants must be over 18 years old; closing date 7 November 2012; only one entry per person. Any problems please let me know.) 

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Giveaways – a great gift of FUN from Lush

Launching giveaways on 40s Chic are the kind people at Lush – and I have three prizes of their new FUN multi-purpose marvel up for grabs.
Use it in the bath and love the masses of bubbles, wash your hands with it, you can even wash your clothes with it. It’s pliable so you can mould it into shapes (great fun for the kids) and it smells divine.
FUN is available in five fragrances: Sentai Ranger Green, with lemon and lime oils; Sentai Ranger Red, a fruity combination of mandarin and orange oils; Sentai Ranger Yellow, with gardenia and comforting vanilla absolute; Sentai Ranger Blue, a blend of calming chamomile and lavender and Sentai Ranger Pink, sweet and warming, containing tonka absolute and benzoin resinoid.


 
As well as making bathtime fun, FUN also has a serious side – 10p from each bar sold during the first year will go in the form of grants to charities and projects catering for children. Lush hopes to channel this money to children in Japan who are still suffering from the tsunami, earthquake and resulting nuclear devastation at the Fukushima power plant. 
Did you know that youngsters living in the Fukushima area have to play indoors? Playing outside is just too dangerous and many school playgrounds are off limits. Lush hopes to help by donating money to projects and events at grass roots level, so the children of Fukushima can meet together and just have a little fun. It’s what being a child is about right?
I have three pink and three green FUN to give away and I also have three Rosie gift sets! If you’re a floral fan then Rosie is sooo for you. Enjoy scrumptious Rose Jam Bubbleroon, Rose Queen bath bomb, Amandopondo rose and lemon bubble bar and Ro’s Argan body conditioner. How fabulous is that? You get to enjoy a beautiful bath gift and the kids get to have FUN.

For a chance to be one of three winners this week on 40s Chic, simply leave a comment below.
(Entrants should be over 18 years old. Closing date is midnight on 31 October, winners will be notified within 28 days after that. Any questions just let me know.)

 

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