My gorgeous American friend Mel is the Queen of Salads. I went to her house for lunch once and she made a salad that was so good I recreated it and we had it for dinner that night, and three nights in a row the following week. So when Mel emailed me a recipe of another salad she thought I “might like”, I got excited and I raced off to the supermarket to get the ingredients.
(more…)
Easy Mid-week Asian Chicken and Corn Soup
This soup is a regular feature on our week night menu. It takes a quick 15 minutes to make from start to finish – assuming you have pre-cooked chicken on hand! Best of all, it’s healthy, everyone eats it, including our fussy Small Child. Use whatever vegetables are in season, or what’s in your fridge (or leave them out if you are short on time!). (more…)
Jordana Lipsticks – Cheap and definitely cheerful!
I’m an unashamed fan of this DIRT CHEAP brand which is widely available in NZ through many 1,2,3 Shops, $2 Shops and D-City. The price point is unbeatable – $4 to $4.50 for all items and I think some of the range(definitely not all!) is great. It represents astonishing value for money, especially in Down Under where purchasing makeup can sometimes almost require a home re-mortgage! (more…)
Leek & Potato Soup with Guilt-free Croutons
I’ve realised with spring nearly here my weekends of enjoying comforting winter soup are numbered! One thing to do: Get cooking! This soup is my spin on a classic. It’s really economical, easy to make, low(ish) in fat, but best of all – it’s absolutely delicious. I can’t get enough of it. Whilst I love soup, especially a creamy soup but I hate the calories, I’m forever fighting the battle of the shrinking jeans. Luckily I learnt a great tip on Weight Watchers years ago: Replace cream in soups with low fat Carnation evaporated milk! Genius: This scrimps on calories, but not taste. If you aren’t in a hurry, make this ahead of time as the flavour develops overnight… Guess what’s on the lunch menu for work this week?
(more…)
Urban Decay’s Naked 2 Eyeshadow Palette – Oh yes…
This eyeshadow palette has been on my wish-list for two long years. You can’t buy Urban Decay in New Zealand and, despite reading umpteen blogs singing the palette’s praises, I was nervous at the prospect of spending NZ$100 on getting an item shipped over from the UK/Australia without having the option of ‘trying before I buy’. Anyway. I finally got one… Knowing what I know now, I wish I’d just bitten the bullet two years ago and just bought it!
Clinique Take the Day Off Balm – Review
I’m just in the final stages of writing a blog post on a few lots of beauty products I indulged in when I went to Singapore and Thailand in July (it’s rude not to take advantage of duty free, right?) Anyhow, it occurred to me that this little ripper of a product from Clinique, which has been around for a while, it’s just new to me, is so blinking good it deserves it’s own post: It’s my top beauty purchase of 2013. It is so good that I have been waxing lyrical about this lately, instead of recent makeup finds.
Handmade Easy Chocolate Balls!
My buddy Caroline and her family came over for Friday Takeaway night and we whipped these up (literally for dessert). We didn’t do it quite right, but that’s OK, they tasted amazeballs (get it?!) and in any case, you can learn from our mistakes! These are so easy – and so good. So bad. But so good. I usually don’t know the meaning of the word ‘rich’ – but these are so rich, I ate three and was happily content.
5 Must Have Makeup Bargains
Here’s five inexpensive and affordable makeup products that are all tried and tested and are now staples in my makeup kit. In NZ (and Aussie) makeup costs a fortune due to the huge costs associated with transporting it into Paradise. So I’m insatiable with my quest for beauty bargains!
