Globecooking recipe : Charquican (Chile)

One of the things I love about globe-cooking is reading through a really exotic-sounding recipe from a far-flung country and realising it's very similar to something traditional that you often tuck into already. That was the case with Charquican from the Chile-themed Kitchen Trotter Box. It's basically a tweaked version of cottage pie or corned beef hash, with a few surprising ingredients like beef jerky (biltong), white wine and Mapuche chilli. 

These are the two required ingredients from the box - some biltong and some Mapuche Indians' Spice Blend, which is a ubiquitous spice in Chile with a wonderful smokiness mixed in with the chilli heat.

Here's my version. It packs in loads of veggies too - perfect family-friendly comfort food.

Charquican

ingredients :

4 potatoes

300g pumpkin/butternut squash (or I used 2 sweet potatoes)

a splash of milk

a knob of butter

20g biltong

salt and pepper

500g minced beef

2 onions

2 large cloves of garlic

1tbsp sugar

cumin/oregano/Mapuche chilli to taste

150ml white wine

1 cup sweetcorn

1 cup peas

1 fried egg per person

Peel the sweet potato but don't bother peeling the potatoes. Chop into large chunks and boil in salted water until soft (about 20-25 minutes).

Meanwhile peel and chop the onion and garlic and gently fry in a drizzle of olive oil.

Add the minced beef and the herbs and spices and fry until cooked through, then add the spoonful of sugar and allow to caramelise slightly.

Add the peas and sweetcorn (frozen are fine) then the white wine and simmer until the liquid has almost completely evaporated.

Drain the potatoes/sweet potatoes and mash them, adding a knob of butter and a splash of milk. Mix in the biltong and season to taste with salt and pepper.

When the meat is ready, mix in the mash.

Adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, pepper and Mapuche chilli if desired.

Top with a fried egg. (I've come to the conclusion that South American food always comes with a fried egg on top !)

This was utterly delicious and so simple to put together. You could easily make this with just store cupboard basics if you leave out the biltong and Mapuche spices. I'll definitely be making this again, particularly during the autumn and winter when the weather turns chilly. Chile food for chilly weather - no pun intended !

*** Don't miss my country-by-country globecooking recipe index ! ***

Come what May ! Which theme park to visit ?

You may remember that last year, we were lucky enough to win an Annual Family Merlin Pass. The girls absolutely wanted to visit Madame Tussaud's to see one Direction (no surprise there !) so we popped off for an amazing weekend in London.

It was great fun and we managed to pack loads in, including ...

 the amazing Poppies at The Tower

the Natural History Museum

and a spectacular trip on the London Eye.

Well, now that the theme parks have opened up for the new season, I've decided we need to head off on our jollies again, this time visiting one of the theme parks in the Merlin group before the cards run out. We have the choice between Legoland Windsor, which I know nothing at all about (probably tied in with a trip to Windsor Castle?), Chessington World of Adventures or Thorpe Park, both of which I haven't been to for about 30 years ! What would you recommend, bearing in mind that the Madhouse kids are 5, 10 and 13 and not keen on the huge whiteknuckle rides?

With perfect timing, just as I was about to have a scout about for any cheap hotel deals,Ibis got in touch with news of their latest promotion. This spring, the earlier you book the cheaper you stay with up to 15% off when you book up to 15 days in advance - rates start from £37 at more than 69 hotels across the UK and Ireland so that definitely sounds worth investigating.

Let me know if you've seen any other unmissable deals and whether you've visited any of the aforementioned themeparks. Feel free to drop me a link below to any blogposts you may have about them.

Ollo Foods Mild Spiced Curry Sauce review

You may remember me mentioning Ollo Foods in the past when I reviewed several of their artisan pickles and sauces. You can click through to see what we thought of their Smoked Spiced Barbecue Glaze, Goan Style Curry Sauce and  Carrot & Tamarind Sweet & Piquant Chutney. Well, if you're a regular reader, you may also have seen me talking about my monthly #KitchenClearout linkie where I go delving into the back of the food cupboards to see what is lurking there that I can use up. Last time I went delving at the back, I came up with this jar of Ollo Foods Mild Spiced Curry Sauce which had somehow got mislaid at the back. Certainly time to rectify that situation !

It's been lurking at the back for so long that Ollo Foods have given their jars a very funky makeover, as you can see at the top of this blogpost. They've come on in leaps and bounds, winning Great Taste Awards in 2013 and 2014 and I have no doubt they'll make it a hat trick this year.

What I love about Ollo Foods is that their products taste home made and, when you look at the ingredients list, there's nothing on there that you wouldn't find in your kitchen at home. The Mild Spiced Curry Sauce contains  Onion, Tomato, Garlic, Ginger, Coconut Milk, Sugar, Salt, Red Chilli, Fenugreek Seeds, Spices, wheat flour, (Gluten), Vinegar & Water - no preservatives, no additives, nothing artificial at all, and you can really taste the difference.

Ollo Foods suggest using this sauce with chicken, fish or vegetables and they also have some delicious sounding recipe ideas, including Chickpea Salad and Mild Chicken or Lamb Curry. I decided to use mine to jazz up the leftovers from the Sunday roast though, so I simply added it to some cooked chicken, carrots, onion and roast potatoes, all chopped into fairly large chunks.

The Madhouse kids aren't usually keen on curry, even if I add loads of crème fraîche to cool things down, but even they liked this sauce because, just as it says on the label, it is mild. It has a lovely thick texture that perfectly covers all the pieces of meat and vegetables. It took literally 5 minutes to throw the dish together but it looked and tasted like it had taken a lot longer and the whole family complimented me on "my" sauce, proving that they thought it was home made.

Further proof of how good it tastes is that I was convinced I'd taken a picture of the final dish, plated up with rice and cucumber salad, but when I went to find the picture, it wasn't there. I was obviously far too keen to tuck in to remember to take the photo !

Ollo Foods products are currently stocked in selected delis and farm shops, but with all these awards they're winning, hopefully they'll be available in the big supermarkets or online very soon too.

star rating : 5/5

RRP : £5

for more information : http://www.ollofoods.com/

Disclosure : I received the product in order to write an honest review.

Fancy joining in with this month's #KitchenClearout linkie? Go and see what's lurking in your kitchen cupboard, fridge, freezer or spice rack then come back and show us what you made !

Giveaway #477 : Win 2 x Moondial DVDs - closed - winners Barry Page, Jayne Townson

The hugely popular classic BBC series Moondial, based on the best-selling book by Helen Cresswell, makes its long awaited arrival, in its original unedited version, on DVD, courtesy of Second Sight Films. This fantastic children’s fantasy adventure, which first aired in 1988, comes to DVD on 4th May 2015.

When 13-year-old Minty goes to stay with her Aunt Mary, she discovers a magical secret within the grounds of the local old mansion. When nighttime comes and the light of the moon falls on a sundial, Minty is transported back in time where she discovers two children at the mercy of evil forces.

Linking past and present, this wonderful six-part series is directed by Colin Cant (Coronation Street, Grange Hill) and produced by Paul Stone (Tom’s Midnight Garden, The Silver Chair). It was adapted for TV by Helen Cresswell (Lizzie Dripping, The Bagthorpe Saga & The Demon Headmaster screenplay) from her own novel.

*** Click through to read our review of Moondial ***



I have two Moondial DVDs to give away to lucky Madhouse Family Reviews readers. To be in with a chance of winning, fill in your entries in the Rafflecopter widget below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

UK only. Closing date : 13/5/15

T & C's : Entries close at midnight on the closing date. Winners will be selected with a random number generator and announced on facebook, twitter and in the giveaway post subject line. Please note, you will be contacted by email and/or twitter and if I haven't heard from you after a week, I'll have to pick another winner. Prizes will be sent out by the companies or their PR directly to winners. Madhouse Family Reviews cannot be held responsible for any prizes that go astray !

Other giveaways you may be interested in :

Giveaway #476 : Win a copy of Shoutykid book 2 - closing date 12/5

Giveaway #475 : Win an Ultimate girly night in bundle - closing date 7/5

Giveaway #474 : Win a Heroes of the City prize pack - closing date 4/5

Giveaway #473 : Win a world map mural worth up to £250 including postage - closing date 1/5

Giveaway #471 : Win 1 of 2 Dry Like Me 'smart way to potty train' packs - closing date 29/4

Giveaway #470 : Win 2 x The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry books - closing date 27/4

DVD review : Moondial

*** Don't miss my Moondial dvd giveaway ! ***

What were your favourite kids' TV programmes when you were growing up? I remember watching things like Rentaghost, The Adventure Game,  Knightmare, John Craven's Newsround, Evacuation and loads of cracking dramas like Children's Ward,  Stig of the Dump, Grange Hill, Simon & The Witch ... The list is endless and maybe I'm getting old but children's TV doesn't seem to be anywhere near as good any more.

I was therefore rather excited to hear that the hugely popular classic BBC series Moondial, based on the best-selling book by Helen Cresswell (who actually helped with the TV adaptation), will make its long awaited arrival on DVD on 4th May 2015, in its original unedited version, courtesy of Second Sight Films. This haunting children’s fantasy adventure first aired in 1988, with a repeat in 1990, and has been in much demand but unavailable in any format for many years. We received a review copy and I was intrigued to see if it had stood the test of time and what a new generation of kids would think of it.

The story follows 13-year-old Araminta, known as Minty (played by Siri Neal), who goes to stay with her Aunt Mary and discovers a magical secret within the grounds of the local old mansion. When night time comes and the light of the moon falls on a sundial, Minty is transported back in time where she discovers two children, Tom (in the Victorian era) and Sarah (in "the century before"), who have been troubled by evil forces and severe cruelty. Minty must overcome the spirits in order to save the children.

As we settled down to watch the first episode, I had a few misgivings. It does seem very dated - just the whole vibe, I'm not really sure why (maybe the colours aren't as bright or the definition isn't as sharp or maybe it's just the whole absence of computer wizardry) - and there is some really bad acting in the first episode, but the Madhouse kids didn't seem to notice. There were a few raised eyebrows at the "hi-tech" Walkman and tape deck though, but they made me feel quite nostalgic ! The actors seem to grow into their roles as the episodes progress though and the Moondial worked its magic on another generation of viewers.

If you fancy a blast from the past, don't miss my giveaway where you can win Moondial DVDs coming up in just a moment.

star rating : 4/5

RRP : £15.99

• Number of discs: 1
• Classification: PG
• Studio: Second Sight
• DVD Release Date: 4 May 2015
• Run Time: 158 minutes

Disclosure : We received the DVD in order to write an honest review.

Giveaway #476 : Win a copy of Shoutykid book 2 - closed - winner Patricia Avery

Hi there,
My name is Harry Riddles, and I live with my mum, my dad and my EVIL sister Charlotte.But now my mum is having TWINS so either me or Charlotte are gonna lose our bedroom.ALSO, Dad’s moaning that I should do more sport and not be just a gamer (which shows what he knows cos I’m actually the BEST gamer World of Zombies has ever seen). ButI’ve joined the school football team to keep him happy although if we win anything it will bea miracle cos we suck. I’ve written to some stars of the football world to see if they wanna help out, and also a bunch of people who might take Charlotte off our hands – oh and Brad Pitt’s wife to see if she wants to adopt a couple more kids, but who knows if they will write back. We’ll see. Good luck and have fun.
Harry Riddles

The funniest kid in fiction is back! Follow his life’s ups and downs told through laugh-out-loud letters, emails, texts and more! Here are a couple of examples :

Dear David Beckham, England’s Greatest Dad and Footballer, hi there

My mum said if there’s one player in the whole of England who could help turn me and my school team from a bunch of losers into the best team in the South-West, it would be you. I told my mum that’s not going to happen because you don’t live in Cornwall, but my mum said you LOVE Cornwall. So that gave me a great idea!! Why don’t you move your family down here and live your CORNISH DREAM?!! Then you could send your kids to MY school. I think Cruz is about my age, and if he’s anything like you, I can tell Mr Phillips we have some real talent on the way and maybe – JUST MAYBE – we won’t get CRUSHED in the first round of the cup. That’s all I have to say.

Good luck and have fun and GBTM soon!

Harry Riddles

Dear Sir Alex Ferguson, the greatest football manager of all time,

 hi there –I know you’ve won more trophies than any other manager has EVER won in British history, but there’s one you missed – The South-West Schools’ Cup! How would you like to help bring this home to my school, Mount Joseph’s? Before you say yes, I should warn you that we really suck at football, but if you fancy a new challenge and you’re getting bored of being retired, let me know. Good luck and have fun.

Harry Riddles

I've just posted my review of the first two Shoutykid books - I loved them and raced through both in the space of an evening, before passing them on to the kids !

Lookout for book 3 in August 2015! Visit Shoutykids website for hilarious blog entries, competitions and learning resources at www.shoutykid.co.uk

The publishers have kindly offered to send a copy of the second Shoutykid book, How Harry Riddles Mega-Massively Broke The School, to one lucky Madhouse Family Reviews reader. Fill in your entries in the Rafflecopter widget below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

UK only. Closing date : 12/5/15

T & C's : Entries close at midnight on the closing date. Winners will be selected with a random number generator and announced on facebook, twitter and in the giveaway post subject line. Please note, you will be contacted by email and/or twitter and if I haven't heard from you after a week, I'll have to pick another winner. Prizes will be sent out by the companies or their PR directly to winners. Madhouse Family Reviews cannot be held responsible for any prizes that go astray !

Other giveaways you may be interested in :

Giveaway #475 : Win an Ultimate girly night in bundle - closing date 7/5

Giveaway #474 : Win a Heroes of the City prize pack - closing date 4/5

Giveaway #473 : Win a world map mural worth up to £250 including postage - closing date 1/5

Giveaway #471 : Win 1 of 2 Dry Like Me 'smart way to potty train' packs - closing date 29/4

Giveaway #470 : Win 2 x The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry books - closing date 27/4

Children's book review : Shoutykid - Simon Mayle

*** Don't miss my Shoutykid giveaway ! ***

If you look on the flyleaf of the second Shoutykid book, there are lots of quotes from readers (all aged 8-10) enthusing about how it is fabulous, hilarious and really awesome. Well, I'd like to add my own : "Unputdownable, endearing and laugh-out-loud funny. Cheryl, aged 42". Yes, I know I'm not at all in the target audience but I absolutely loved it and read through both books in the space of an evening, rather than watching the telly !

Despite his nickname, Harry Riddles (aka Shoutykid) is a quiet, unassuming ten year old. A bit of a loner, he prefers spending hours playing on World of Zombies online rather than getting outside into the real world with his friends or playing sport. His family are perfectly ordinary - his dad is a moderately successful script writer, his mum hovers around more in the background than in a leading role and his older sister Charlotte likes to make his life a misery, in between dates with her latest boyfriend. The bickering and banter between Harry's family members and friends are hilarious because they are so believable and as an adult, I love it when Harry takes things that his parents have said at face value when they are obviously meant to be tongue-in-cheek.

The books' format is very innovative - it is entirely written in texts, online forum discussions and emails, interspersed with funny sketches and doodles. This makes it a really quick read (which is why I managed to read through both in the space of an evening) and makes it much less daunting and more appealing to novice or reluctant readers. 8-12 year old boys are notoriously unenthusiastic readers so they'll be reeled in by the content (gaming, football, high jinks at school, ...) and young male narrator. The books look very long - they're both well over 300 pages long - so Juliette was put off until I showed her some of the pages.

In the first book, Shoutykid : How Harry Riddles Made a Mega-Amazing Zombie Movie, Harry decides to try to help out his down-on-his-luck dad, whose latest script has been slated and who needs to get a job in a supermarket to help make ends meet. In between writing updates on his life to his cousin in America (which is how the main story is told), Harry writes a number of hilarious letters to famous people who might help him out - The Queen, the prime minister, Hollywood actors and Harry Styles from One Direction (much to the girls' delight), to name but a few. When they (unsurprisingly) fail to provide financial support, he decides to make a zombie movie that will make his family rich and allow his dad to follow his dream, rather than sell out and spend the rest of his life stacking shelves.

The second book, Shoutykid : How Harry Riddles Mega-Massively Broke The School, sees Harry's parents dropping a bombshell - his mum is pregnant but not only that, she's expecting twins ! As if that's not bad enough, they also decide that Harry is spending far too long gaming in his room and limit his screen time. He sneakily decides to create a computer club at school but ends up getting into hot water when the entire school network is hacked, with hilarious consequences. To try to redeem himself (and impress a girl he likes), Harry decides to give the school football team a go and manages to use his love of World of Zombies to create new winning game tactics.

The tone of the book really reminded me of an updated version of The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, but it's also comparable to Diary of a Wimpy Kid. I'd say it would appeal to readers of both sexes aged about 8 upwards, but it's far too good to keep for the kids so make sure you read it when they've finished with it !

I was very pleased to learn that a third Shoutykid book will be released over the summer, so I'll definitely be looking out for that. I also have a giveaway coming up in just a moment where you can win a copy of the second book.

star rating : 5/5

RRP : £6.99

Disclosure : I received the books in order to write an honest review.

Book review : A Twist of Fortune - Mike Martin

Sgt Windflower is back and I must admit, this made me smile ! He is perhaps the most laidback detective I have ever come across in literature, loving his food and his walks around Grand Bank as much as he does locking up the criminals in the sleepy Newfoundland town. (In fact, when I read the last book, I was inspired to write a whole blogpost about Newfoundland cuisine and even recreated one of the recipes, Newfoundland Raisin Molasses Bread.)

A Twist of Fortune is the fourth book in the Sgt Windflower Mystery series, following on from The Walker on the Cape, The Body on the T and Beneath The Surface. (Click through to read my reviews.) There are occasional mentions of things that happened in the previous episodes but the book can also be enjoyed as a standalone novel.

Fans of the series will be pleased to learn that, following her serious accident, Sheila is back on form and going from strength to strength, both in her professional life and also her burgeoning love story with the chirpy Mountie. Windflower continues to frequent his small group of buddies and colleagues in the close knit community - the chess and whisky-loving Dr Sanjay, Herb and Moira Stoodley from the Mug-Up cafe, his hardworking colleagues Tizzard and Evanchuk, Betsy the super-efficient secretary and not forgetting his wayward Uncle Frank.

I'm always slightly surprised by the major crimes going on in the unassuming Canadian backwater town. After dismantling a human trafficking ring and dealing with some sexual harassment within the Mounted Police in the last novel, Sgt Windflower is back on a murder case, as well as keeping an eye on the unrest in Grand Bank caused by the fish plant, one of the town's biggest industries, closing down.

As in all the other novels in the series, Windflower's work on the case is on an even par with his beloved mealtimes and his personal life, which leads to a slower paced, less intense read that many other crime fiction novels. It takes a while to get used to but I have come to love Sgt Windflower's easy going, low pressure approach to life. Reading the book has also given me a couple of great ideas for dinner - I really need to find a recipe for ice cream cheesecake !

star rating : 4.5/5

• Paperback: 278 pages
• Publisher: Booklocker.com, Inc. (1 April 2015)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1634903803
• ISBN-13: 978-1634903806
• Product Dimensions: 15.2 x 1.5 x 22.9 cm

Disclosure : I received the book in order to write an honest review.

Body Jewellery Shop earrings review

Last month, I was accepted onto an Etail PR Blogger Network campaign for Body Jewellery Shop. They are a UK-based company founded in 2000, who stock a wide range of body jewellery for all of your body piercing and ear piercing needs. I'm not big into body piercing so I raced past all the belly bars, labret studs, flesh plugs, tongue ticklers, stretching gear and other things with names that made me shudder and headed into the safer ground of the earrings department.

Even once you're in the ear piercing section, you still have a huge number of choices. Did you know just how many different places on your ear you can have a piercing? (And if you did, can you name them all?!) You have the choice of auricle, conch, daith, helix, lobe, orbital, pinna, rook, snug and tragus. Wow, I never dreamed there were so many !

I said to Sophie that she could choose some designs and her first choice was this pair of dice earrings. We chose the dark blue ones but they come in a wide range of colours. They are made with UV material so they'd look very funky if you go out clubbing. They are made of silver with a simple to fasten butterfly clasp.

The second pair were these simple, classic pearl stud earrings. They're timelessly elegant and they're discreet enough to be worn on all occasions, whether at school/work or on a special occasion. They are also made of silver with an easy-to-attach butterfly fastener.

Both pairs come in at a bargaintastic £1.99 and if you spend £10 or more, you'll be eligible for free postage. Can't say fairer than that !

Disclosure : We received the products in order to write an honest review.

Sunday weigh-in : Sod the scales !

OK, I'm going to say this quickly and get it out of the way - this week I put on 500g. No biggie but I really think I deserved a loss ! Oh well, on to the positives ...

Last week, I stunned myself by completing a 30 minute jog on the Wii Fit, moving up from my usual 10 minute endurance runs and a tentative 20 minute one. Well, this week, I blasted it and completed THREE 30 minute jogs. I'm obviously getting fitter too because the first few times, even after 10 or 20 minutes, I felt tired out and could hear the blood pumping in my ears. (I even googled it to see if I should stop but apparently, having ringing ears after a workout is common.) Now I can do a 30 minute jog then just carry on with my day after a glass of water. My distance is also increasing, from 5.8km to 6.3km in the 30 minute slot.

So on balance, who cares what the scales say ?! (The killer was, I weighed myself on Wednesday morning - 85.8kg. Had a SlimFast for lunch, did a 30 minute jog, ate well in the evening. Got up on Thursday, jumped on the scales - 86.6kg. WHAT ?!! Assumed it was just water retention and would disappear but it didn't. So definitely not fair !)

Positives of the week

- 3 x 30 minute runs - go me !

- I'm now on holiday for a fortnight and I've got the Madhouse kids in on the Wii Fit so we'll be able to do some jogs together ! Weather permitting, we'll get out for lots of long walks too,although as they're still getting over last week's illness, I don't want to overdo it.

Current targets 

Last week's target :Do 2 x 30 minute Wii Fit runs. Stay in the 85's. (I'll say DONE even if the scales weren't playing along)

This week's targets : Keep to 3 x 30 minute runs. Start listening to the Slimpod again.

Short-term targets : 21kg to lose sounds a lot but breaking it down, aiming for 1kg a week, that's only about 5 months - plenty of time for heading off to Turkey in August !

first target, get my "weight to lose" badge down into the 40's (it's currently on 51lb) (done),
 second goal - get back to 85.9kg, my pre-xmas weight (done )
third goal : get my "kg lost" badge back into double figures 
fourth goal : get my "weight loss" badge higher than my "still to go" badge
fifth goal : get back into my (smallest) bright blue jeans comfortably
sixth goal : get back to 77kg - my lowest weight since my pregnancies

Longer-term targets :  Hit my target weight of 68kg. 

START WEIGHT :93.7kg

TARGET WEIGHT : 67.8kg

WEIGHT LAST WEEK  : 85.8kg 

WEIGHT TODAY : 86.3kg

WEIGHT LOST SO FAR :  7.5kg

STILL TO GO : 17.4kg

CHANGE THIS WEEK : +0.5kg

Feel free to add your weightloss posts to my weekly linkie - it's great to see how everyone else has been getting on and give each other support and encouragement. You can even grab the linkie code and add it to your own blog if you like. :)

get the InLinkz code

get the InLinkz code

Created by MyFitnessPal - Free Calorie Counter

 MyFitnessPal - Nutrition Facts For Foods