Tag Archives: tesco

OUR FINEST FIVE: TESCO FINEST CELEBRATES ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY

Posted on by

Twenty years ago Tesco introduced its posh nosh range and is celebrating the anniversary this year by reminding us of just how deliciously opulent these goodies can be. To celebrate, we’re sharing with you our finest five – see what we did there?

 

The Finest snack…Tesco Finest Quadruple Chocolate Cookies (£1.59)

Buttery, chocolatey goodness in one beautiful cookie. There’s a mix of Belgian dark chocolate, Belgian milk chocolate and Belgian white chocolate chunks AND is if that isn’t enough, it’s half dunked into Belgian chocolate.

 

The Finest main… Tesco Finest Thai Green Chicken Curry and Coconut Jasmine Rice (£3.00)

We’re not usually fans of tray meals but let’s be honest, when you’re living the London life, cooking from scratch isn’t always the easiest so we’re keen to find a tasty alternative. This taste of Thailand is rich and full of flavour, topped with a coconut, lemongrass and green chilli sauce. With a side of prawn crackers (essential), you’ll feel like you’ve had a Deliveroo right to your door.

 

The Finest dessert… Tesco Finest Raspberry and Passion Fruit Cheesecake (£4.00)

Cheesecake – one of the real wonders of the world. This slow baked passionfruit cheesecake with raspberry sauce and raspberries with a seeded passionfruit glaze has a really delicate balance between the sharp bursts of passionfruit and the rich cream cheese centre.

The Finest drink… Tesco Finest Vintage Champagne (£25.00)

The party season is quickly approaching (hurrah!) and what better way to celebrate than with a brilliant bottle of bubbles. This one is ripe citrus flavours and a delicate mousse and is perfectly light and refreshing.

 

Tesco Finest Comte Cheese (£3.00)

Few things excite us more in life than a good cheeseboard. Whilst we’ll never turn our nose up at a good cheddar, we enjoy expanding our dairy horizons and this Comte is no joke. Made and matured in the Jura region of France, the nutty, butteryness is something to behold.

 

Master your Asian cookery skills with Jeremy Pang’s 15 minute Noodle Kit.

Posted on by

JP

Much like Jamie’s 30 minutes meals, TV Chef and School of Wok founder Jeremy Pang has come up with a quick and tasty way to create your favourite Asian dishes at home. Unlike 30 minute meals, Pang’s 15 minute Noodle Kit’s actually do take 15 minutes and not a minute longer!

11705418_457434364428002_6287309051996845132_o

The kits, which include Singapore Noodles, Chow Mein and Pad Thai, each feature an authentic blend of herbs and spices that bring the real taste of Asian street food into your own kitchen. The convenience and quality of the kits are not their only appeal, Pang has set out to create a learning experience too and the kits encourage you to hone in your Asian cookery skills by including a link to YouTube video tutorials on how to make the most of your dinner kit.

One of the best features for me is the handy Wok Clock which shows an ingredient clock showing your what order they go in without having to keep looking at a recipe. Another brilliant time saver are the numbered sachets. Personally, these little touches make the world of difference especially if you have very little time to cook but would love to be able to make something delicious.

Frost were lucky enough to pay a visit to School of Wok, Pang’s Covent Garden cookery school, and managed to get a live demonstration from Jeremy Pang himself so we thought we’d share with you our Top Wok Tips;

Make sure the oil is boiling hot, enough to hear your ingredients sizzling.

Swivel the pan in a circular motion whilst folding the ingredients with your spoon to make sure everything gets cooked through evenly.

Slice your ingredients thinner for an even and shorter cooking time;
For me this was an important one as many people tend to overcook their chicken. The trick is to slice it thinly and trust that it only does take a few minutes to cook through. If in doubt cut it with your spoon to check for pinkness.

And finally…

Your ingredients need as much love as we do so make sure to massage all of your marinade into your chosen protein to make sure every bit of it has absorbed.

Our verdict;

In terms of instant dinner kits this has to be top for convenience and quality. The Wok Clock has won me over and the range of skills you can pick up will help you become a Wokstar in no time.

11850613_459287600909345_2390719259403759262_o

Jeremy Pang’s 15 Minute Noodle Kits are currently available in selected Tesco’s Stores and are currently on offer priced at £2.00

School of Wok is open to visitors Mon-Sat 10am-6pm and offer a wide range of courses and classes suitable for any levels. Follow School of Wok for more details on @SchoolofWok

Nappy Comparison Site Bumdeal Shows How Kate & Will (And Everyone Else) Can Save Money

Posted on by
baby,nappies, nappy, save, cheap, budget, working mothers, overwork, stress

The price of nappies can be shocking.

Save money in nappies: Nappy comparison site bumdeal.co.uk shows how Kate & Will (and everyone else) can save up to £500 over the first two years of nappy buying!

Shopping around and comparing the price of nappies can save parents a shed load of cash – even the Royals! Across the first two years of a baby’s life, it is estimated that you will use over 4,000 nappies. As some retailers can charge more than double the cheapest price for nappies it is wise to shop around.

The table below shows a breakdown of the cost of nappies across an average first 24 months:

 

Nappy  Cheapest Price Most Expensive Nappies per Day Months Total nappies Min Cost Max Cost Difference
Size 1Pampers New Baby 9p/nappyAmazon family 17p/nappyOcado 10 2 600 £54 £102 £48
Size 2Pampers New Baby 11p/nappyTesco 19p/nappyBoots 8 2 480 £52.80 £91.20 £38.40
Size 3Pampers Baby Dry 9p/nappyAmazon family 20p/nappyTesco 6 4 720 £64.80 £144 £79.20
Size 4Pampers Baby Dry 10p/nappyAmazon family 24p/nappyOcado 5 16 2,400 £240 £576 £336
    Totals: 4,140 £411.60 £913.20 £501.60

If you bought all of the most expensive nappies, you would spend over £900 across the two years. If you were savvy and bought from the cheapest retailer, you’d spend just shy of £400 – an incredible saving of over £500.

Some of the cheapest prices are via Amazon’s membership programme known as Amazon family. This offers a 20% discount off various nappies when you sign up to its subscribe and save service. A free 30 day trial is available which can be cancelled at any time.

For completeness, excluding the Amazon family programme the total cost of nappies rises by £37.20, but still gives savings of over £460 over the two year period.

 

BumDeal founder Adam Cable, says “Nappies are amongst the largest expenditure young families face. You can save by shopping around, but it’s not easy to take into consideration all the special offers and promotions. Luckily BumDeal takes away the time-consuming task of finding the best deal and provides results in a clear way. Plus, those with a smartphone can access the comparison on the go, which is great for when you’re already inside a supermarket.”

 

Nappy  Cheapest Price Most Expensive Nappies per Day Months Total nappies Min Cost Max Cost Difference
Size 1

Pampers New Baby

 10p/nappy

Tesco

 17p/nappy

Ocado

 10 2 600 £60 £102 £42
Size 2

Pampers New Baby

 11p/nappy

Tesco

 19p/nappy

Boots

 8 2 480 £52.80 £91.20 £38.40
Size 3

Pampers Baby Dry

 10p/nappy

Tesco Direct

 20p/nappy

Tesco

 6 4 720 £72 £144 £72
Size 4

Pampers Baby Dry

 11p/nappy

ASDA

 24p/nappy

Ocado

 5 16 2,400 £264 £576 £312
  Totals: 4,140 £448.80 £913.20 £464.40

 

Leo Bancroft launch party

Posted on by

Last night I attended  the brilliant launch of Leo Bancroft’s new product range at The Ivy Club. It was celebrity packed with Ruth Langsford, Derek Chisora, Matt Johnson, Liam Botham, Amy Willerton, Nancy Sorrell and Vic Reeves, Lembit Opik, Javine Hylton, Mem Ferda and many more attending.

Ruth Langsford said, “Leo has always been a great hairdresser and I am a big fan, he has been doing my hair for years. I highly recommend Leo and his line of products to everyone, and we love him at This Morning.”

It is not only the models and catwalks that love Leo, but since becoming This Morning’s hairstylist, Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes are both his biggest fans and loyal customers, as well as a list of celebrity clients and friends, including the Chelsea football team and their families, Peter Crouch, Abbey Clancy, and Kirsty Gallagher.

 

 

Leo has launched his 17-product line, bringing catwalk and celebrity glamour to his full product line and the high street. His unrivaled range of products delivers you beyond professional hair care, allowing you to replicate his award-winning styles and acclaimed approaches to create ‘the best version of you’.

 

Leo’s range is hot with celebrities. I have tried it and I like it. His new range at Tesco is brilliant but reasonably priced.  Leo’s range is now available exclusively in 500 Tesco stores UK-wide. Get your hands on some if you can.

EX-MINING TOWN PIONEERS ‘CROWD FUNDING’ MOVEMENT

Posted on by

EX-MINING TOWN PIONEERS ‘CROWD FUNDING’ MOVEMENT ALLOWING COMMUNITIES TO TAKE PLANNING PUBLIC SPACE INTO THEIR OWN HANDS

I really love this story, it shows what can happen if you but your mind to it.

Stephen Fry, Martha Lane Fox, Wales’ rugby heroes and firms including Admiral, Asda, Tesco and Deloitte have all helped to pioneer a new online hub allowing communities to fund public developments that have suffered following a halving of council spending.

The ex-mining town of Glyncoch, South Wales, has become the unlikely pioneer of a “crowd-funding” movement that harnesses private funding for community building projects.

After spending seven years chasing state cash for a much-needed £792,000 community centre, residents turned to Spacehive.com, an award-winning new initiative, to reverse their fortunes.

With tens of thousands still to raise before their grants expired, the town appealed to local families, celebrities and businesses to fill the void. Using Spacehive.com as an online hub for donations, the town was able to garner support from an unlikely array of places.

The site works by allowing anyone with an idea to pitch it online and, once it’s been certified by the Spacehive.com if it achieves the necessary funding, it can go ahead and get built.

Their success this week, after Tesco contributed the final £12,000, raised hopes that Spacehive’s model could help revive hundreds more community building projects hit by the economic downturn.

State spending on such projects, from sports facilities to parks and playgrounds, is estimated to have halved from a pre-recession average of £500m a year, according to the British Property Federation.

Glyncoch’s campaign was boosted by comedian Stephen Fry who asked his four million Twitter followers to each donate “the cost of a cucumber sandwich”, Matha Lane-Fox, the government’s “digital champion” and co-founder of Lastminute.com, and Welsh comic Griff Rhys Jones, who urged supporters to: “help Glyncoch win.”

Fresh from their Six Nations triumph, the Welsh rugby team also encouraged people to dig deep. Yesterday Captain Sam Warburton said: “We think what Glyncoch has done is amazing and an inspiration to us all. We’re right behind the community. The regeneration of this town – which has produced so much rugby talent over the years – is another victory for team Wales!”

Corporates including Deloitte, Asda, and Wales and West Utilities quickly added to the pot, alongside local businesses from the coach firm to the golf club. Henry Engelhardt, founder of Admiral Insurance gave £10,000 and Tesco finished the campaign off with a £12,000 donation.

Residents themselves dug deep, raising thousands through street collections, bingo nights and even a sponsored silence by the town chatterbox. Pledges came as far afield as Newfoundland, where a Welsh descendant pledged £100.

As the community celebrated yesterday Deputy Mayor Doug Williams said: “We’re absolutely ecstatic that by summer we’ll see a state-of-the-art centre offering the types of training and education that will kick-start people’s ambitions.

“Glyncoch is a deprived area; people are used to being let down. Now people are thinking ‘we can get out of this rut.’”

Lucy Neville-Rolfe, from the Tesco Charity Trust, the retailer’s charitable arm, said: “This unique project shows just how much communities can achieve when they work together. We’re delighted to help the people of Glyncoch reach their target.”

Spacehive aims to shake up neighbourhood planning by allowing anyone to pitch proposals for community building projects and anyone to pledge funding through Spacehive.com. Funders are only charged if the project goes ahead.

The model, co-designed by Deloitte, means the cost of popular projects can be split between hundreds of individuals, businesses, and councils.

Projects in Spacehive’s pipeline range from new playgrounds to the transformation of a derelict East London dock into a creative hub and marina.

Founder Chris Gourlay said: “Success in Glyncoch, one of the UK’s most deprived towns, really shows the potential power of Spacehive’s model in helping communities to transform where they live.

“This isn’t about privatising planning. The state mustn’t shrink from its responsibilities. It’s just an approach that allows communities cut through the inertia and make popular projects happen. We think town planning should be faster, more people-powered, and more fun.”

Liz Peace, Chief Executive of the British Property Federation, which along with the Royal Institute of British Architects is a supporter of Spacehive, said: “We support the government’s intention to create a planning system that supports economic growth but the reality is nearly £300m of funding for capital public space developments has been lost.

“Enabling the public to take direct action through Spacehive.com could help ensure vital improvements go ahead by channelling funding from companies and individuals.”

The Glyncoch pilot was supported by Nexters, an initiative to boost online giving in the UK, which helped the local community reach corporate backers.

Efforts to regenerate Glyncoch were kicked-off by social action network Your Square Mile a year ago. Paul Twivy, the network’s Chief Executive, said: “To see everyone from local family firms to the country’s biggest retailer coming together to help this entrepreneurial community is heartwarming.”

Riots Will cost Taxpayer £100 Million, Mark Duggan 'Did Not Fire at Police'.

Posted on by

Mark Duggan ‘did not fire at police’

It has emerged that Mark Duggan had a blank-firing gun which had been converted to hold live ammunition

16,000 police on duty in London

England game against Netherlands at Wembley tomorrow called off

Jamie Olivier’s restaurant in Birmingham was targeted by rioters

Police Cells are now full and 44 more police officers have been injured

Three people arrested for attempted murder of police officer

Cost of cleaning up the riots could cost taxpayers £100 million

Prime Minister David Cameron has recalled Parliament for Thursday so he can make a statement

Sloane Square Tube station was among dozens that were closed last night during the rioting

Youths congregating at Piccadilly, riot police are there

People urged to stay indoors

In Clapham youths went on the rampage trashing dozens of shops and walking out stolen goods.
Residents complained that police were very slow to respond as a Debenhams store was ransacked.

This morning Clapham high street was cordoned off as a investigation and the clear-up got underway.

Rioting began in Hackney at about 4pm yesterday when hooded youths began hurling missiles at officers and setting fire to bins and cars. Masked rioters on BMX bicycles armed with batons attacked a crowded London bus during the evening rush-hour, chasing terrified commuters as they tried to escape.

Some of the thugs were as young as eight and they forced the driver to stop the double-decker by pelting it with champagne bottles stolen from a nearby Tesco. About 40 passengers ran away, some carrying their children.

Within hours similar scenes erupted in Lewisham, spreading to Peckham, Deptford and Croydon.
Hundreds of fires were started all over the capital, North London; Camden, Woolwich in the south, in West London; Ealing. People were forced to take the law into their own hands to protect themselves and their family.

In Dalston and Hackney, shopkeepers fought back against looting youths and protected their businesses. Surrounding areas were pillaged as members of the town’s large Turkish community stood up outside their homes and businesses to protect them.

Home Secretary Theresa May said this morning that there had been 450 arrests in the last two nights but she ruled out bringing in the Army and using water cannon. She told BBC Breakfast:

‘British policing has always meant and always depended on the support of local communities and that’s what we need now.’

She told Sky News the capital needed ‘robust policing’ – and claimed that police budget cutting had not had an impact on the violence.

‘Don’t let police budgets be used as an excuse for what is going on on our streets is sheer criminality and nothing else.’

Patrick Mercer, the Tory MP and former Army officer, hit out and told the Telegraph that tougher policing should be used.

He said: ‘I find it strange that we are willing to use these sort of measures against the Irish yet when Englishmen step out of line and behave in this atrocious and appalling way, we are happy to mollycoddle them.’

Met Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Kavanagh seemed to contradict the Home Secretary and said using the military had not been ruled out.

‘All options were discussed last night and that means, not that we’re doing it, the people of London need to know that the Commissioner and his management board team are considering everything and working through those options as we go forward,’ he told BBC Breakfast.

Mr Kavanagh said it was ‘a shocking and appalling morning for London to wake up to’ and he was struck by the ‘sheer scale and speed with which the attacks took place across London last night’. It ‘was truly unprecedented’

He said there was a ‘changing nature’ in the make-up of the rioters, with the profile changing ‘dramatically’ last night from 14 to 17-year-olds to ‘older groups in cars doing organised looting’.

He added: ‘And there was the far more focused attempt at injuring London Ambulance staff, there to help the community, trying to injure Fire Brigade officers and, of course, police officers.’

In Birmingham, West Midlands Police said it had made about 100 arrests and confirmed that a police station in Handsworth, Birmingham, was on fire. Merseyside Police said there were a number of incidents in South Liverpool and that cars had been set on alight.

Somerset Police reported 150 rioters were in Bristol city centre, with main roads closed and a number of shops damaged.

Councilors have said it will cost £227,000 to repair Tottenham

There is a brilliant article here on how the poverty these kids have is moral, not financial.http://www.thecommentator.com/article/359/london_rioters_are_the_pampered_children_of_the_welfare_state

And the Telegraph has a brilliant article with pictures of london before and after the riot

You can help people made homeless by the London riots by donating bedding, clothes, etc to Apex House, 820 Seven Sisters Road, London N15 5PQ

Londoners Life 8 by Phil Ryan.

Posted on by

Londoners Life 8 – by Phil Ryan

Well, in London, Christmas and the New Year are truly over now. It’s the end to that weird kind of period of semi-social vacuum. Londoners generally indulge in the early sales tradition (strikes permitting) and catching up with all the less important friends on their list. It’s a brief respite that many enjoy. But now we’re all back with a vengeance – coping with the new EVERYTHING IS GOING UP mantra that the London authorities are now teaching us to swallow.

From Oyster Cards to restaurants, the price of everything is on the increase. But the London way is to shrug and just carry on as usual. I watched people on the London News just rolling their eyes at the various reporters’ daft questions. As if to say: “Huh? This is London – plus we have no choice. Asking us how we feel is a pointless exercise. We don’t have time to feel! We’re Londoners. Busy busy.”

So what are my London predictions for this year?

Well, house prices don’t seem to be heading down, no matter what the market does. So expect the rental market prices to keep heading skywards. And the price for first-time flat buyers to remain tantalisingly out of reach – unless you’re 12 and from Qatar or Russia – in which case you’ll buy the building from your pocket money. Plus you’ll sadly notice an explosion of posher estate agents appearing in your area. Luxury properties will remain immune to the price issues and continue to rise. You’ll see the expansion of trendy middle class folk fleeing to Lidl and Aldi (as seen in all the fashion mags where various ladies enthuse about their products) and you’ll see lots more branches of said lower cost German brands appearing.

I visited a friend the other day and they were enthusing about their tins of low cost and catchily named schweinekartoffelaffensuppe from those lovely well-known folk at Krauten Valley Fabrik GMBH and some huge packets of weird looking cakes called Kuchenzuckertortestrassezitrone from Panzer Backerie 17. The kids love them apparently, but are now all diabetic.

You can expect a lot more London local high streets to empty of smaller shops and fill with shuttered fronts as the huge shop opening programme of Tesco and Sainsbury continue to suck the life from them. In my own area, we have two mini Tesco’s about eight minutes from each other, now to be joined in a month’s time by a Sainsbury’s sandwiched in between them. Convenient, yes. I suppose. Food quality, sadly crap!

So, expect more small shops to bite the dust in droves, aided by the ever-increasing ramping up of parking revenues from London Councils now sending ever growing hordes of Parking Attendants, or whatever new name they’re calling them, out onto the streets scaring customers away. Check out the new parking times arriving near you soon. In many areas, meters will soon run from 8.30am until midnight. As I say – you can drive where you like in London – you just can’t stop. Well, not without giving up your life savings anyway. Which means more local small shops will vanish thanks to the Council’s greed.

Unsurprisingly, because of the economic factors you’re going to see a lot more churchgoers this year. Especially among the young and fashionable. It’s a trend that’s expanding. Cool churches with bands and singers. More of an open mic night with Jesus. So Sundays are going to get busier in your area. But the crowds will all turn the other cheek which is nice.

Apart from that the Olympic juggernaut will roll on – relentless ads of people telling us how fantastic it’s going to be interspersed with the truth about ludicrous and impossible ticket prices, private roads for Olympic fat cats and the fact that the Government will be flogging all the buildings and venues to Overseas companies at knockdown bargain prices when the whole ghastly thing is over.

And expect the Underground to get worse if that’s possible. Regular upgrade closures and strikes will really be the order of the day. Hmm. That’s about it. Oh yes, I nearly forgot. Expect the West End to overflow with even more film to musical adaptations this year. I see ‘Shrek the Musical’ is on its way (good God!).  I was looking forward to ‘Saw IV the Musical’ myself but apparently it’s not been written.

So predictions over. Something I’m noticing is that real theatre is now virtually on its knees in London. It’s only kept alive by smaller groups and brave theatre collectives thankfully, but the big boys seem to have thrown in the towel generally. Three new plays came into the West End last year. Wowee! (we should take Kevin Spacey’s passport away to stop him leaving – he’s almost singlehandedly propping up real theatre – give him a knighthood or something I say)

Finally, while I’m on the subject of entertainment, this is the year of relaunches of various new London Clubs,  including the Blitz Club and possibly some new remakes of closed venues. But it will be interesting to see if the money and the appetite is there to support such ventures.

The London appetite for nostalgia shows no signs of abating as I also notice lots more old fashioned Tea Rooms opening up. Proper ones too, I’m pleased to report. Not the organic designer kind. Real cakes. Normal teas.

So that’s it. Predictions REALLY over. Doom and gloom with glimmers of hope here and there. But will any of this stop us having a good time? No. Not in the least. It’s a London thing.