Posts tagged competition

Win this amazing hamper!

October 23, 2014 · Filed under News · Tagged

Running an online business is a tricky thing – the effort required to start up and keep going is HUGE, so it’s an honour today to be able to feature a few fantastic women who like me, are tiny mumpreneur ventures doing amazing things. They’ve kindly sent me a bunch of products to pop into a giveaway hamper, so let’s check them out…. (BTW, I’m not being paid to run this post – I’m just happy to promote a few of my online mates)….

hamper-giveaway

Here’s what you win!

3-in-1 turning slicer courtesy of Jen at Barefoot Kitchens
Little Mashies reusable squeezie pouches.
Four reusable snack pockets from 4myearth
Additive free cake sprinkles, Zipzicle Ice pop bags and Jack N’ Jill natural toothpaste from Happy Tummies
Let’s party additive free by Melanie Avery
Raw food 4 kids by the Sarah Quinney
Three Safety Food Peelers
Four Cow Farm Baby kit of natural & organic baby oil, wash, lotion & cream from Nourishing Hub.
and my Kitchen Collection book

PLUS! My reader Katie has gifted a copy of the book her clever husband Giuseppe has illustrated!….

Aaaawwwww! So cute.

Aaaawwwww! So cute.

Since this hamper is focused on younger children, to enter all you have to do is share your favourite parenting tip in the comments below. It can be insanely practical, short or long – just one little nugget of wisdom when it comes to raising kids under three. To be eligible, you must be resident in Australia (so that I can ship everything to you).

Do yourselves a favour, take the time to visit and support all of these women on their facebook pages…. Barefoot Kitchens, Little Mashies, 4myearth, Happy Tummies, Let’s Party Additive Free, The Raw Food Mum, Safety Food Peelers, Nourishing Hub and Giuseppe Poli.

Entries close Sunday night, 6pm, AEDT.**** Thanks everyone and congratulations to our winner Narita!

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Win a Kambrook food prep system

September 15, 2014 · Filed under Vegie smuggling techniques · Tagged

This nifty gadget could be yours.

This nifty gadget could be yours.

It’s been a long wait between giveaways! In fact I don’t think I’ve run one all year (I’ve been too lazy to organise and administer them, sorry!) But this week I break the drought with a very awesome prize from Kambrook.

I actually got in touch with them looking for a new mini-food processor. Mine is making all kinds of weird noises after 5 years of being flogged to death, so time for an upgrade. Very kindly, Kambrook thought they could do something even better and sent me their X Blade Pro Food Prep System. At first glance I was aghast at the larger size of this thing. It’s some kind of mini-food processor on steroids, in fact it’s really a neater doesn’t-need-all-the-bench-space version of the more traditional food processors, but after mucking around with it for a couple of weeks, I’m IN THE GROOVE with this appliance. The motor purrs like a kitten and the stick blender function has some serious grunt.

When do I use it? The stick blender is perfect for blitzing soups. Just stick it into the pot or slow cooker and away you go. So insanely easy. Try it on this pumpkin, corn & lentil soup.

vegie smugglers pumpkin and lentil soup recipe

Pumpkin, corn & lentil soup.

But wait, there’s more – there’s also a mashing attachment which makes light of that little job. Try this vegie mash…

Stockpile portions of mash in the freezer.

Stockpile portions of mash in the freezer.

And then there’s all the functionality of a regular mini processor but at the larger size – which is perfect for those of you with more than 2 kids. PLUS it also comes with all the attachments for slicing and dicing which saves you a heap of prep time.

It’s a good piece of kit and if you’re cooking for a larger family then this is kitchen gold.

I’ve got one to give away, too (worth $149.95). To win, you must be a Vegie Smugglers subscriber (sign up if you’re not) and you must be living in Australia (so that Kambrook can ship your prize to you). I’d recommend that you go and like the Kambrook Facebook page. Then pop back here and let me know in 25 words or less why you REALLY need one of these and what you’d make with it. As always, I can be swayed by a bit of humour and tales of how many children you’re trying to feed.

Entries close 9pm Thursday September 18, AEST. Winner will be notified by email. ****THANKS EVERYONE FOR ENTERING! COMPETITION NOW CLOSED – CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER JENNY S! YOUR KAMBROOK PRIZE IS ON ITS WAY.

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How to make friends with salad

November 12, 2013 · Filed under All recipes, Food experiences, Vegetarian, Vegie smuggling techniques · Tagged , , , ,

Hopefully, over the winter you’ve accumulated a repertoire of accepted (and even enjoyed) meals that contain enough vegies and nutrition to keep you achieving your status as an awesome-parent. But the casseroles and bakes that you’ve come to rely on may hold less appeal as the weather warms up.

It’s time to lighten the menu, and traditionally it’s the time when the BBQ gets trundled out and parents are faced with the screwed up faces of little kids who are not friends with salad.

There’s often not much smuggling potential in salads. They are, after all, full of raw and highly-recognisable ingredients. To get the kids interested in them, they need to be particularly tasty. While a good dressing helps a green salad to be more agreeable, there are a couple of more creative salad recipes that are a good starting point when you’re trying to instil a BBQ & salad culture.

Start simple and convey the whole concept of cold side dishes with a couple of particularly tasty examples that they can’t resist. Our favourite noodle salad works well, luring them in with flavour and crunch. Another sure-fire hit will be this Japanese-style potato salad that uses a mayonnaise-based sauce to entice them.

Dou itashimashite.

Dou itashimashite.

Japanese potato salad

Sauce:
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp Dijon mustard

4 medium mashing potatoes, peeled, quartered
1 carrot, peeled, grated
4 spring onions, finely sliced
250g corn kernels, drained
1 cucumber, sliced into rounds

Combine the sauce ingredients well and set aside.

Pop the potatoes into a large pot of cold water and bring to the boil (adding them cold stops the edges from disintegrating). Reduce the heat to a strong simmer and leave for 15 minutes until soft enough that you can easily push a skewer through. Drain and add to a large bowl. Use a fork to roughly mash, but leave heaps of texture with lots of large chunks.

Stir the carrot and spring onions through the hot potatoes (this cooks them slightly). Season with plenty of salt & pepper. Pour over the sauce and mix thoroughly.

Leave to cool then combine in the corn and cucumber. Refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.

Serves 2 adults & 3-4 kids as a side dish (leftovers make great lunches).

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June giveaway (and why I love bread)

June 16, 2013 · Filed under All recipes, Ham/pork, Vegetarian · Tagged , , , , ,

Wasn’t there a lot of pressure a while back to give up bread? I was still working in magazine-land at the time and naught a model nor stylist nor photographer would DARE have it pass their lips (but then joyously they discovered QUINOA and were saved from the evil rampaging of processed carbs).

Me? I’ve always loved bread and have never had issues with it. A warm crusty baguette is pretty much as good as life gets. Sourdough downright seduces me and I find it IMPOSSIBLE to walk through Townhall station without grabbing a Luneburger loaf.

In the burbs I’ve always been happy with Bakers Delight bread, particularly the cape seed and the hi-fibre, low-GI white, which is a great option for the kids. So when they got in touch and asked to team up I was more than happy. You can see my recipes on their website here…

In return, they’ve given me a bunch of prizes for my June giveaway. Up for grabs are two vouchers for $40 each and 5 kids merchandise packs which include a ruler, pencil case, pencils & lunch bag.

To enter you must be in Australia and you must be a Vegie Smugglers subscriber. Check out the Bakers Delight website and then comment below about which of their products is your favourite and what you like to do with it (stay nice!).

I’ll start… this is what I do with a slice of low-GI white…

Bread tart cases.

Bread tart cases.

Easy egg tarts

Cut a big round of bread from a slice, push it into a greased muffin tin, spray with oil and grill until a bit golden. Then pop in some prosciutto and cherry tomato before cracking in an egg (in a smaller muffin hole, you won’t fit all the egg-white). Then bake until set to your liking and sprinkle over salt, pepper, parmesan and parsley.

And there you have it, a gorgeous, quite posh looking egg tart, done with the minimum of fuss. Your turn…

Entries close Sunday June 23 at 8pm, AEST. **COMP NOW CLOSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO VANESSA & JILL WHO WON THE VOUCHERS AND TO SUSIE, CAROLINE, DEB, JOANNE & ALLISON WHO WON THE MERCHANDISE PACKS.

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A giveaway from Lunchboxes with Love!

April 18, 2013 · Filed under News · Tagged , , ,

This month’s competition is courtesy of the fabulous and inspiring Cath at Lunchboxes with Love. She was an early Vegie Smugglers supporter, supplying me with props for my Lunchbox Planner e-book. We’ve been in touch ever since and I love watching her business grow. Go Cath!

Here’s what you can win…

All this could be yours!

All this could be yours!

• Sleek design, black Zippered Sleeve. Insulated, water-resistant and food safe (no lead, BPA, PVC etc). Rrp $30.
• Bento-style Primary Lunchbox Set. Versatile, compact, and easy to clean (microwave & dishwasher safe). Pack and stack the containers in the fridge the night before. Store neatly in the cupboard when not in use. RRP $30.
• 10 Various Styled Leaf Picks. Gorgeous little picks to create a garden in your lunch. RRP $16.
• Luv It! cutter that quickly cuts food into small bites, complete with a matching popper that instantly pops out fun shaped pieces – hands are clean, food is untouched. RRP $16.

See full details of all the products here.

With so much AWESOME, your kids will be eating up every little scrap of their lunches. Especially once you start whipping up recipes from my new ebook, “10 quickbakes plus 10 sandwich spreads”, which will be available in a day or two.

To be eligible to win all of these items from Lunchboxes with Love, you must be an Australian-based Vegie Smugglers subscriber, then, simply comment below on the items that are most popular in your kids’ lunchboxes. Inspire us all!

Entries close Monday April 22 at 5pm AET.

24/4/2013 – THANKS EVERYONE FOR YOUR ENTRIES – AND CONGRATULATIONS TO DEB JAY FOR TAKING OUT THE SET – HOPE YOU ENJOY IT DEB!

And of course, visit Cath at www.lunchboxeswithlove.com or at her totally popular Facebook page.

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How exciting! A competition! With a prize!

March 3, 2013 · Filed under All recipes, News, Vegetarian · Tagged , ,

I’ve got a great prize today from Superfoods for Kidz. The lovely Vanessa recently sent me a bunch of their products to try and now it’s your turn to win some for yourself. If your kids are fussy, then a combination of vegie smuggling and popping these powders into some recipes will be all you need vastly improve the health of your family. This is what’s up for offer…

Worth $158!

Worth $158!

I run competitions rarely, and I don’t get paid to run them. I asked Superfoods for kidz to team up with me for this one because like to support local small businesses that are focused on helping the health of our community. You can read all about them here.

So I’ve been experimenting and adding the powders into heaps of things really successfully. The C Berry Blast was a big hit in this smoothie…

Bananas, yoghurt, milk & C Berry Blast powder.

Bananas, yoghurt, milk & C Berry Blast powder.

A sprinkle of the choc berry blast has been gracing the top of our yoghurt and the kids were BEGGING me for the Berry choc chunk superfood bars. They’re a great snack size for younger kids and another great idea for lunchboxes.

And the Vital Veggie Powder worked a treat in these cheese & vegie muffins.

Cheese muffins

Perfect way to get vegies into a lunchbox.

Cheese muffins

1½ cups self-raising flour
2 cups grated cheese
125g can corn, drained
½ cup mushrooms, very finely diced
2 tbsp tomato relish
1 egg
¾ cup milk
60g butter, melted
Chives (optional)
2 tbsp Vital Veggie Powder (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a 12x125ml muffin tray.

Mix together the flour, cheese, corn and mushrooms in a large bowl.

In a separate jug or bowl, combine the relish, egg, milk, melted butter and chives.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until just combined. Divide between your muffin holes and bake for 25-30 minutes until very golden and cooked through.

MAKES 12

To enter, you must be a subscriber to this blog. Then below, suggest how you would use the powders at your place. You don’t need to supply a full recipe, but links are always fun. And links to MY recipes are bound to be popular really, aren’t they!

And it’d be great if you’d support Superfoods 4 kids on Facebook.

Entries close 11pm AEST, March 6. Winner notified via email March 7 and published here.

*7/6/13 – CONGRATULATIONS TO COLEEN SUMMERS – YOU’RE OUR WINNER! VANESSA FROM SUPERFOODZ & I LOVED THE IDEA OF POPPING POWDER INTO RICEBALLS!

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