Zoefruitcake and her fruitcake again

[zoefruitcake]

After having a chat with my ma about preferring very dark fruitcake she went out and bought me (in Waitrose) a box of Rich Fruit Cake slices from a company called "The Village Bakery Melmerby" and they are gluten-free, wheat-free, dairy-free and vegetarian.
Now my question is, has anyone tried these?
I'm going away over Christmas and I'm planning to take these with me, but I don't want them to be my only cake if they are pants. So if anyone has tried them before can you give me an idea of what they are like and if I need to take more cake as well.
There is a web site address www.village-bakery.com, but obviously that won't tell me if they taste like heaven or cardboard ;)

[matt]

who are you trying to kid? it's over a month away and you want us to believe that you're not going to eat it before xmas?

that would be my excuse, need to try it before xmas so as not to ruin the day. eat the ones you have then replace yourself from waitrose. then you can tell us.:lol2:

[zoefruitcake]

well I'm going to try not to! My diet has been really out the window lately, and I'm a stone heavier than I was last Christmas, so I really am aiming not to eat them until Christmas when I will hopefully be burning off all the calories opening lock gates for a week.
Well that's the theory anyway :)
So I guess that is a no then? No one has tried them. Oh well, I'll report back after Christmas, or when my willpower breaks ;)

[matt]

haven't tried them but they also do mince pies a solid cake and xmas pudding i think. health food shop in salisbury has them all.

i probably won't bother as although i could do with putting on the weight i just don't have the appetite. never hungry enough to eat pudding. i'm probably the opposite to you zoe. i probably weight a stone lighter since last year!

go on, january is when you worry about diets not now. it'd be a shame to get to xmas and find you don't like them......it'd ruin the day.

[zoefruitcake]

You are right, it would be a shame to spoil the day.
I was about to say come live with me and I could fatten you up a bit, but that could be misinterpreted and also I don't mean to belittle your eating issues by suggesting I could solve them for you, and I'll just shut up now :)

I've checked them out and on Slimming World they amount to just 3 syns each so I will taste them and report back...

[linny]

Hi, after being told by my GP that I'm dying from a throat infection (I've had since Monday!):( , I decided to head from the doctor's surgery to Waitrose for some cheering up. :drool: I picked up some of the tangerine chocolate I like and a box of the fruit cake slices you mentioned. I'm hoping to keep them until Christmas, and hope they're worth the wait!! Waitrose also had big Christmas cakes and puddings from the same company.

It'll be quiet in our house this weekend as I can only just about croak, and that's painful!!! There is only 1 anti-biotic I can take now - it makes me a bit dizzy but that's better than a dodgy stomach!! My GP has also decided that I do need a flu jab this year (psoriatic arthritis is to do with the immune system). And as for an appetite what's one of those!!? Have a nice weekend everyone!
Linny

P.S. My daughter made us laugh yesterday.:lol2: After telling us what she'd had for school lunch she said 'I didn't fancy the other choice, it was salad and cold sore' (coleslaw to us!!!!!)

[ellsie]

My reply disappeared into the ether.

[ellsie]

As I was saying to linny I checked you out and you are another x stitcher. Are you madly stitching for Christmas?

[ellsie]

:xmas:

[matt]

don't worry zoe i don't take offence easily. i've had people try really hard to insult and upset me in the past (due to my job) and they didn't succeed so you've no worries. been a while since i was invited home by a lady to fatten me up!!! maybe there's hope afterall!

i get the flu jab each year due to knackered immune system, got the pneumonia one last year aswell (lasts ten years). and i've had sore throat this week. really minor one but i've a phobia on vomiting and a sore throat makes me gag, it's been fun trying to stop myself have panic attacks!

this is the wrong time of year for dieting if it stops you having fun. jan is cold and wet and is depressing anyway so diet then.

[Copper]

Linny and Matt you have my sympathy. I had that throat virus thing weeks ago complete with high temperature. I am still suffering from the after effects :( I have popping ears but at least I have just about stopped coughing.

[Copper]

Elsie I am a cross stitcher too :) I am franticallt trying to get something finished for my daughter's boyfriend. My daughter will be here in two weeks time and I need to get it done by then. I thought it was going well but I have just realised that I have a lot of back stitch to do yet!!!

[linny]

Hi Ellsie, Yes I'm a x-stitcher!! I received my Cross Stitcher mag today and have made a card from it already! This only happens when I'm ill! I've made about 6 cards so far and a winter Eeyore picture for my daughter (free kit). I can't do quite so much now I have arthritis but I feel a great sense of achievement when I complete something. What are you working on?

What are you stitching Copper?

On a dairy free note, after scrutinising the ingredients on the 'not so favourite' flavours of crisps left in the cupboard, I found that Walkers Worcester sauce flavour don't seem to have any lactose in, oh they were delicious!! I think I'm going to go on the Walkers website to investigate other flavours, ready salted and salt & vinegar can be a bit boring.
bye for now
Linny

[matt]

check for no gluten at the same time will you? worcestershire sauce:drool:

love the stuff.

mind you i've got a mandolin somewhere. i suppose i should really consider making my own crisps. just easier to pop a bag open when you fancy one ie nearly daily!! if i ever put weight on i'll be in trouble as my diet is terrible! thankfully not large in quantity or i'd be a balloon!

i'm just a big baby when it comes to colds etc. can't stand them (discounting my phobia problems) feeling rough and so on with a sore throat. wish they'd hurry up and get a cure, such a minor virus which causes so much hassle!

cross stitching.....i'm sure there's a joke in there somewhere, best not might get someone annoyed.

god i'm getting old, i have radio 2 on all the time now and i really like the music they play! and i've caught myself thinking "there's no tune to this modern stuff etc etc":lol2:

[Pam]

Walkers prawn cocktail crisps are dairy free too.

Worcester sauce ingredients - potatoes, vegetable oil, worcester sauce flavour (rusk, flavouring, flavour enhancer (monosodium glutamate), sweetener (saccharin), mustard seed oil), salt. So I'd say the rusk probably makes them off limits for you Matt.

Prawn cocktail don't have rusk but do have disodium 5'-ribonucleotide (???), paprika extract and aspartame in. I'm sure they have never seen a prawn.

I think plain crisps are probably a safer option all round instead of all the artificial flavourings.

[jill]

Salt & Vinegar French Fries have no dairy in them, although you have to buy them in singles as the multipacks have Cheese & Onion in them which do have dairy in them.

(I do cross stitch aswell, although I'm busy knitting at the moment.)

[Copper]

My daughter's boyfriend is into Feng Shui so I am stitching the symbol for Longevity. My daughter has already identified the perfect place for this picture. I just need to get it finished. I have almost finished the actaul cross stitches so will be onto the back stitch soon. The symbol is in a frame and then surrounded by water lily flowers - hence the large amount of back stitch.


I have several other projects in the drawer waiting for my spare time. One is an underwater scene on navy aida - should be a challenge.

I have a floor standing lamp/magnifyer to help, complete with daylight simulation bulb. :)

[ellsie]

I just finished a lizzie kate design of christmas gingerbread figures and called "dear Santa we've got cookies" which my kids loved and asked me to do. I have done a couple of her designs-very simple and no backstitch! My big project is Mirabilia Queen of the sea and the millenium one I will finish one day started in 1999!Which mag has the Eeyore kit as I didn't see that and my daughter would love it! Big Eeyore party next weekend as you know! Gosh I am amazed to find so many closet cross stitchers!:thumbsup: Fantastic!

[linny]

The Eeyore picture I've finished today (and framed!) was from an old issue but there is a 'watercolour Eeyore kit' in the 'Cross Stitcher' issue out on 30 Dec. I also finished the Xmas cards today, fiddly sticking and card cutting done by my husband! It's still only November, there is something wrong with me!!!!

Sorry if dairy free is becoming cross stitchers chat!

Thanks for the info about the prawn cocktail crisps too. Unfortunately I was up until 3am scratching (psoriasis) and with extremely inflamed skin on my legs last night. Could be the spicy crisps or the dreaded anti-biotics. I'll have to try the crisps once I'm anti-biotic free. Bye for now.

[matt]

think i'll stick with the salted crisps. too many other odds and sods with the other flavours. not worth the hassle.

cross stitching!!! who would have guessed? is it a side effect of dairy free? could we have stumbled over a hidden link!!! :lol2:

[ellsie]

Thanks for that Linnie.

Ain't nothin' stoppin' you Matt! We all know how much you like to make things at home!;)

[zoefruitcake]

Right, firstly I hope all of you who have been suffering illness this last week are feeling better.
Secondly, I feel really lazy now because although I am a cross stitcher this is the first year I've not sewn a single card. I did make all mine in a crafty way though
and
Thirdly, the cake slices are lovely! Really rich, moist and tasty. I've still got 3 of the 6 left, which I thought was very good of me. So I shall have to get another pack (or two) to take on the boat with me.

[Copper]

Cross stitch is not just for women. In the mags they always have stories about men and their cross stitch projects. So when will you be starting your project then Matt? It is very relaxing unless you have set yourself a tight deadline of course!!!

[linny]

Cross stitch is great to amuse kids too! My 7 yr old daughter has just started stitching her 2nd Christmas card on large hole aida (not the proper name I'm sure!), I drew the outline of holly on one piece and a present on the other and she loves sewing the rest! Tonight she's been on the Santa website - www.northpole.com (http://www.northpole.com) - :xmas: it's great for big kids like me too! Bye, Linny

[matt]

i get frustrated too easily and am not good with craft type things that need delicate work. to relax i'm a big kid...i'm afraid it's science fiction books i just immerse myself in the stories, pure escapism but it keeps me amused.

[ellsie]

And I thought you were more a "hands on" kinda guy!Ah well!

[matt]

who said i wasn't hands on?? i just said i didn't like fidley things like threading needles and so on. too much of a perfectionist to be able to be painter or so on. know your limitations and work within them.

what i do i do well!! or i try to anyway.

anyway like i said to relax i prefer to read a book (well rather that's my preference now i live on own) :lol2:

[linny]

I wanted to add a post to the'dairyfree products' forum and this is where I've ended up, although this thread seems to have changed direction!!

Anyway my question! Has anyone been able to get the Sainsbury's free from jam sponge pudding?? I haven't been able to and found that the label has been removed from the shelf. :angry: I don't like the chocolate and syrup flavour one. Linny

[linny]

Hi, I'm now going to answer my own question! My husband went into Sainburys in Chelmsford, where he works, and asked re the jam sponge puddings. They are listed but are not available, the manager did not know why or whether they will be available again. My husband then phoned Sainsburys head office and logged that we wanted to get hold of the puddings and that other people (you at Dairyfree of course!!!) were interested in buying them too! Hopefully this is the case! Bye for now Linny

[Pam]

Linny, we're not very good at sticking to the subject in our messages, as you have noticed. I don't buy sponge puddings as they don't give you enough in my opinion! I usually make sponge in the microwave.
2 eggs,
4oz sr flour, (or plain and a good tsp of baking powder)
4oz diary free spread,
4oz sugar,
give it a blast with the handblender and stick it in the microwave for 6 minutes. Plain sponge doesn't taste very good but you can coat the top of it with jam, or try adding cocoa at the mixing stage (a good tbsp), or a favourite one is lemon curd in the mixing (about 2 tbsp - make sure it is dairy free - most cheap stuff is) and then spread over the top of the end result. It makes a huge dishfull (I use a 3pt pyrex casserole dish) and serve with custard. It takes less than 15 minutes to prepare and cook.

[linny]

Thanks Pam, I'm definitely going to try that, the lemon curd one sounds delicious! Linny:) :drool:

[matt]

butter the inside of the pyrex dish then put the jam, honey curd whatever in first then the sponge mix. then hopefully it'll turn out at the end. if it doesn't then you can still just dish it out. used to make these all the time. lovely.:drool: :drool:

what are you saying we don't stick to the thread topics? just think of it like a chat with a friend at the pub. you may start chatting about one thing but it never carries on, just wanders off to whatever you think about at that moment. nice to think of this as a chat with a friend anyhow.

[linny]

Thanks Matt, I'm just hoping the other 2 will eat it as I don't have much appetite these days, I have to eat little and often due to gastritis, maybe a sponge pud could last me all day!!!:drool:

I don't mind the subjects changing, I just feel guilty if I totally change the subject, and think I should post a new subject on the correct forum - a born worrier that's me!:unsure:

We're off to the 3M do on the 17th. My husband spoke to a great chef at the hotel and he's asked me to ring him tonight to sort out my 'alternative' menu. Oh I do feel a pain sometimes - no dairy, no onion, no garlic etc. I'm happy to just be one of the crowd and not be different!! Oh well I'll just have to get to like the attention. :notworthy

Bye for now, Linny
P.S. Guess who's been fiddling with the panel at the top!:D

[matt]

great news that the chef cares enough to ask you to call. shows that he really is interested and will hopefully do something really nice.

re. topic wandering all i ever do is click on new posts so to me it wouldn't matter if someone posted new topic or just added a reply to any thread. whatever they like. it's better than it used to be when there were hardly any of us texting. that's why where is everyone started. it's great now new texts everyday. it's not too disorganised so i'm happy with how it is. mind you it's not my site!!

have a good one with that sponge. let's have areview and so on.

have a good one. don't fiddle, didn't your mother ever teach you that?
matt

[linny]

I love trying new fonts etc., I'm obviously missing being a secretary (I was one for 15 years). I used to be an editorial secretary and loved making things look nice!!!! (well different anyway!).

I 'phoned the chef and he was more than helpful. He's written me in the diary for the head chef on that night and they will ask what I want when I arrive. I feel like royalty!!

Haven't had time (or energy!) to make the pud yet, I've written the Christmas cards and made a nativity with Megan last night, today my bones are telling me to rest! :(

Bye for now, Linny

P.S. Where's the spellcheck now?