Sunday, 21 December 2014

You need Pistachios nuts or Almonds at Christmas? Go Wonderful!

Yes, if you like to have a good supply of Pistachio nuts oe Almonds at Christmas, doesn't it make real sense to ensure that you do have a good supply of Pistachio nuts or almonds for you, your family, your friends and your guests? Pistachio nuts orv almonds that are fresh and tasty which are nutritionally sound and richly satisfying?

Yes! Of course it does! So why do so many people risk buying their nuts from a shabby little so-called pop up shop with a few shelves of bags of nuts that, although labelled as 'fresh' may well be older than some of the people that you know?

Or nuts from a chain of "bargain" shops with bags of nuts with implausible names that came from goodness knows where, but which even the wild birds in your back garden will turn their beaks up at in disgust? Or launch a retaliatory strike on your washing!

Why? Why do people take that risk every year? Is it in the desperate and forlorn hope that one day it might be different?

There is only one way to change this, to ensure that you get the nuts that you need and that your guests deserve and that is to seek out a named brand, well, one named brand in particular, Wonderful Nuts!

They say Wonderful on the packet, and the contents of their packets is, of course, Wonderful.

There are traditional roasted and salted pistachios and something that is more than a little bit unusual for all your fans of pistachio nuts, Sweet Chilli Pistachios!

They also produce a unsalted variety and a salted and peppered type, too!

As for the almonds, they come in blanched, salted and unsalted varieties, too.

To learn more visit http://wonderfulpistachios.co.uk.

or http://wonderfulalmonds.co.uk/uk/

Do something different with the leftovers, go Chancham this Christmas

Not heard of Chancham, before? Well, neither had we. But now we have heard of it, and tasted it, boy! Are we glad to have made its acquaintance!

Chancham pepper sauce is proudly, lovingly and carefully made in Britain. But it is made to a traditional Bajan recipe.  Bajan is otherwise known as Barbadian, and comes from the Caribbean Island of Barbados.

It is a tasty and welcome though quite warming addition to Christmas leftovers, so it will certainly add more than a little heat and heart to your turkey curry, turkey casserole, turkey Bolognese (never has turkey bolognese made with minced leftover turkey? Trust me, you haven't lived!)   and turkey soups in the post-Christmas period.

It makes an excellent accompaniment for sliced cooked meats, too, plus with cheese and biscuits,

The flavour is fresh and lively, the kick of the peppers is offset and balanced by the pleasant tang of the distilled malt vinegar, the mustard and the tumeric which gives it its attractive yellow colouring.

Buy a bottle and you'll soon be unable to remember how you coped without it in your kitchen.

To learn more about their full range and to purchase visit them at www.chancham.com.

Rosebud Preserves are jars of pure joy

Yes, Rosebud Preserves are jars of pure joy. The jar of pure joy that we partook of was a jar of Rosebud Preserve's Ampleforth Abbey Beer Fruit Chutney.

It is dark and extremely fruity chutney, It is made with Ampleforth Abbey's delicious beer, cider vinegar, onions, sugar (unrefined, of course!) prunes. dates, apricots, sea salt, allspice and cayenne pepper.

The result is a dark and thick chunky beer fruit chutney that is an ideal accompaniment for cheeses (such as Wensleydale, mature cheddar and Shepherd's Purse cheeses and also it is wonderful with sliced turkey, so is a must have for Boxing Day turkey sandwiches.

To learn more about their range or to buy online please visit www.rosebudpreserves.co.uk.

Don't panic! You can still get great presents for Christmas!

You can still get great presents for Christmas!

Amazon is great, as you can even buy e-mail gift tokens from them on December 25th!

All you need do is to visit the That's Christmas sister site, That's books,  http://thatsbooks.blogspot.co.uk/ and use the Amazon-powered shop their to buy books, DVDs, games, gifts and Amazon gift tokens for the people in your life who matter to you.

Also, most town markets, independent retailers and large stores and supermarkets will have late opening this week, some will be open 24 hours a day, so you should be able to get everything you need.

Retailers! If you have something to promote on That's Christmas, please email thatschristmas@mail.com with the details and we'll do the rest for you!

Songs that are popular in Britain during Christmas Time

There are several season songs that, although not necessarily religious, certainly mean it is Christmas Time to the people of Britain.

Here are a selection of them:-

Roy Wood's Wizard, with I Wish it Could be Christmas Every Day.


The Pogues Featuring Kirsty MacColl - Fairytale Of New York

Paul McCartney A Wonderful Christmas Time
Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas Is You


Dean Martin - Let it Snow!

Shakin' Stevens - Merry Christmas Everyone

Slade - Merry Christmas Everybody 
Cliff Richard - Mistletoe And Wine

Merry Christmas, everyone from all of us at That's Christmas!

Saturday, 20 December 2014

Arrange some neat accessible trips out this Christmas season

This Christmas season, you will be able to find plenty to entertain you and your family. And that are accessible, too.

There are some fantastic days out available, with ideas for indoor venues all over the UK from The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain: Family Days Out.

The Family Days Out microsite is a compilation of the best accessible outings from all over the UK, that are rated as being family friendly.

It also has helpful reviews of family-friendly attractions like The National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth.

There's the Imperial War Museum location at Duxford near Cambridge. Explore a stunning collection of aircraft from World War I right up to the present day.

Belfast has the W5 Science Museum and Discovery Centre, with in excess of 250 interactive exhibits for adults and children alike.

The Rough Guide to Accessible Britain and the Family Days Out microsite have been developed with Motability Operations, the company that operates the Motability Car Scheme for disabled people. These online reviews contain all the must-have accessibility information needed to enjoy a great day out.

For more information, please visit   http://www.accessibleguide.co.uk/family-days-out.html, follow www.twitter.com/accessibleguide or ‘like’ www.facebook.com/accessibleguide.
 

More from Nairns

We have already written about Nairns Oat Cakes, but perhaps we might have inadvertently mislead you. Whilst it is true that cheeses do cry out for Nairns Oat Cakes, Nairns are not just for cheese.

Nairns are so deliciously light that they can be eaten by themselves without any topping.

But they'll be at home with cheeses (of course!) and with pate, both meat and vegetarian, with smoked salmon, (perhaps served on a bed of cream cheese? Delicious!)  and with chutneys, jams, preserves, marmalades and with cold cuts of turkey, pheasant, duck, beef, lamb or pork.

It really is up to you. And don't forget that the type of Oats used by the masterbakers at Nairns have something of a reputation as being a super food. They provide slow release energy (no nasty sugar rush!) and the biscuits themselves contain 40% less sugar than your average biscuits!

And this really brings us to another point. If you can have Nairns Biscuits, why would you settle for anything that is merely "average"?

So! Raise your Nairns, take a dram of Scotch and give a toast of thanks for Nairns!