Frost Loves Linwoods Overnight Oats Range with Benefits

I love overnight oats. Easy-to-make, good for you and tasty. What more could you want? Linwood have an amazing range of delicious overnight oats with extra benefits. I love them and can’t recommend them enough.

Get your mornings off to a great start with Linwoods as today they unveil a delicious range of Overnight Oats with functional benefits in three tasty variants; Strawberry EnergyChocolate Protein & Original Energy.

Indulge guilt free with Linwoods Strawberry flavour Energy Overnight Oats which deliver energy yielding metabolism and tiredness reduction through its supporting nutrients Vitamins B6 and B12.

Chocolate flavour Protein Overnight Oats are high in plant-based protein for muscle growth, and magnesium which combats tiredness and fatigue and supports muscle function. One 50g serving of this blend delivered 11g of plant-based protein which supports growth and maintenance of muscles.

Or why not try the Energy Overnight Oats in a natural flavour allowing you to customise your own oats with whatever toppings you prefer whilst also adding those energy supporting B Vitamins into your diet.

Known for their health credentials with their milled seed range, Linwoods newest innovation takes the hassle out of developing your own overnight oats recipe. Nowadays our lives are busy and we need convenience but that can’t take away from the importance of a healthy diet, in fact, a healthy diet is a must to feel good and get the most out of life.

Linwoods Overnight Oats recipe are so simple to make in 3 easy steps:  

  1. Soak: Simply soak 50g of oats with 100ml of your favourite milk and stir.   
  2. Chill: Cover and leave in the fridge overnight.  
  3. Enjoy: Grab and go or add some of your favourite toppings to make it your own.   

No matter what your lifestyle, Linwoods Overnight Oats will get your day off to a flying start. The new range is available to buy now at www.linwoodshealthfoods.com.

Flirt with your senses this Valentine’s Day: Explore Xīn and Voltaire’s frozen sorbet cocktails

Love is in the air, and Xīn and Voltaire are poised to redefine romance this Valentine’s Day with their indulgent collection of frozen sorbet cocktails, bringing the joy, sophistication, and unforgettable sensory experiences to every date night and galentines celebrations this year. 

These sorbet cocktails taste great and are deliciously alcoholic. They also look great. There are a decadent and stylish treat for a moment of joy.

Xīn and Voltaire has reimagined the way we enjoy cocktails, offering creatively conceived, luxuriously crafted frozen sorbet cocktails that cater to every palate. By harnessing innovative technology and cutting-edge science, Xīn and Voltaire has made it possible to freeze alcohol at a higher ABV, ensuring that for the first time, the complex flavours of bar-quality cocktails are preserved in a frozen format, and elevated with the texture and mouthfeel of a sorbet.  

This Valentine’s Day, Xīn and Voltaire invite cocktail enthusiasts to create enchanting moments with their loved ones. Whether it’s a unique gift for a special someone or the perfect low-maintenance, yet elevated welcome drink to a galentines soirée, Xīn and Voltaire’s signature serves are sure to steal the spotlight; savour straight from the tub and serve with a spoon, or scoop into champagne coupes and top with prosecco for an at-home twist on the classic Sgroppino.  

With a diverse menu of four vegan, low-calorie and gluten-free frozen sorbet cocktails, each blend is sure to cater to various palates and captivate the senses. From the floral and elegant notes of Florian, the vibrant combination of dark rum, coconut liqueur and mango in Alphonse, the effervescent Giselle with mezcal and raspberry for a twist on the classic margarita, and finally Aurelie’s warming winter notes of wood and caramel released from single malt whisky and amaretto.  

Xīn and Voltaire’s on-demand delivery and personalised orders make it easy to enjoy these unique frozen sorbet cocktails in the comfort of your own home. Priced at £9 per cocktail, or £32.40 for their Taster Collection and Love Sharing Collection Boxes. Simply add to basket, select the preferred delivery date and the products will arrive at your door already frozen.  

You can also share the joy with an elevated date night at Sabine Rooftop Bar, where Xīn and Voltaire has partnered to create the ultimate Lover’s Week. The secret garden in the clouds is an oasis from The City, allowing guests to be transported to a hidden space away from the busy London streets, and where you can enjoy beautiful views of St Paul’s. Incorporating a bespoke Valentine’s menu running from 13th-17thFebruary, expect the immaculate setting to be accompanied by indulgent sorbet cocktails, sharing plates and entertainment.  

For more information about Xīn and Voltaire’s revolutionary sorbet cocktails and to discover the perfect addition to your Valentine’s Day celebrations, visit www.xinandvoltaire.com 

Frost Loves: Your Christmas Party Essential – The Cocktail Society

I used to hate ready made alcoholic drinks but The Cocktail Society definitely changed that. They taste great and look stylish. Perfect for gifts, stocking fillers, or for yourself.

Heading to a party and wanting to bring something a bit more exciting than a box of chocolates? The Cocktail Society offer the full range of award-winning, bar-quality cocktails in beautifully packaged 200ml and 500ml bottles, making the perfect gift for cocktail aficionados. 

RPP: £12.00 – £26.00 for 200ml – 500ml Bottles. Available from The Cocktail Society

A Journey from Oxfordshire to the World: Introducing Sky Wave

Multi-award winning, small-batch gin distillery from Oxfordshire Sky Wave introduces a bold new look that’s more planet-friendly, inspired by a bygone era of elegance and adventure

Multi-award winning Sky Wave is yet another testament to the creativity, intelligence and innovation coming out of Oxfordshire. Now with a bold new look, Sky Wave invites you to join their global community embarking on an extraordinary journey through the world of small-batch premium gin, inspired by a bygone era of elegance and adventure.

Sky Wave is distilled using the finest Oxfordshire natural mineral water from Blenheim Palace and has garnered over 50 awards in just four years, earning their rightful place among the world’s finest spirits. Every drop of Sky Wave is a testament to the meticulous care and dedication of master distiller, Andrew Parsons.

Nestled in the heart of Oxfordshire, Sky Wave was born from a commitment to craftsmanship. Each sip of Sky Wave is a sensational exploration of botanical wonders,inspired by ingredients and tastes from all corners of the world. From its fruity counterparts, including Sky Wave Raspberry & Rhubarb Gin (70cl RRP £44, ABV 42%), Sky Wave Orange and Madagascan Vanilla Gin (70cl RRP £44, ABV 40%) and Sky Wave Spiced Apple Gin Liqueur (70cl RRP £26, ABV 20%), to what is officially the World’s Best Contemporary Gin2: the fabulously smooth Sky Wave Signature London Dry Gin (70cl RRP £44, ABV 42%), Sky Wave boasts an abundant collection of sophisticated flavours to discover.

The new bottles have shed 40% in weight compared to the previous packaging, deliberately designed to be lightweight to reduce the environmental impact on raw material usage, production and transportation; all while offering more liquid proportionally for the price. Proudly, the bottles are 100% British: designed in Wales and manufactured in Yorkshire.

Alongside their core range of exceptional gins, Sky Wave proudly offers Sky Wave Zero, a groundbreaking addition that showcases the brand’s unwavering commitment to innovation and inclusivity by providing an exquisite alternative for those seeking a sophisticated, alcohol-free experience. Crafted with the same precision and care as its alcoholic counterparts, Sky Wave Zero promises the same exceptional taste and quality, without compromise.

The bold new Sky Wave bottle will be available at select retailers, Master of Malt, Amazon and at www.skywavegin.com from Monday 30th October. Don’t miss your opportunity to own a piece of this exceptional craftsmanship from Oxfordshire: explore the wider range online here. Perfect for the festive season, why not savour the World’s best with delicious crafted gifts here?

#FromOxfordshireToTheWorld

The Best Christmas Winter Cocktails By Lixir Drinks

It’s no secret we love cocktails at Frost. ONE of the best things about Christmas is the gorgeous and indulgent food and drinks that we can enjoy, guilt free, in the name of celebration and these Christmas cocktails by Lixir drinks will not fail to disappoint! Lixir have opened their drinks cabinet and bought you the best seasonal flavours, that not only taste divine but will visibly impress your guests, all with limited effort. 

Christmas Negroni

Ingredients:

  • Lixir Blood Orange & Cinnamon Tonic 
  • Gin 25ml
  • Campari 25ml
  • Lillet 25ml
  • Garnish with dehydrated orange & a candy cane 

Instructions:

1. Add the Gin, Campari and Lillet into a mixing glass. 

2. Stir for 1-2 minutes 

3. Pour over ice into a short Tumblr. 

4. Top up with Lixir Blood Orange & Cinnamon Tonic

5. Garnish with dehydrated orange and a candy cane

White Margarita

Ingredients:

  • Lixir Classic Indian Tonic 
  • Coconut syrup 25ml
  • Milk/ Oat milk 100ml
  • Silver tequila 50ml
  • Triple sec 20ml
  • Lime juice 15ml
  • Coconut rim around glass
  • Garnish with Cranberries & Lime 

Instructions:

1. Caught the rim of the glass with lime juice

2. Add the coconut flakes to the rim

3. In a shaker pour the milk/oat milk, tequila, triple sec, lime then add ice. 

4. After shaking pour into highball glass full of ice

5. Top with Lixir Classic Indian tonic to lengthen & lightly stir

5. Garnish with lime wheel and cranberries

Santa’s Bellini (Lower ABV)

Ingredients:

  • Lixir Rhubarb & Ginger Tonic 50ml
  • Prosecco 50ml
  • Sugar 25ml
  • Garnish with Mint leaves and some Jazzie sprinkles 

Instructions:

1. Combine Lixir Rhubarb & Ginger Tonic, prosecco and sugar into a shaker

2. Shake for about 2- 3 minutes

3. Then slowly pour into a flute glass

4. Garnish with mint leaves and jazzie sprinkles

Gingerbread Martini 

Ingredients:

  • Lixir Ginger Beer or Lixir Ginger Ale 
  • Vodka 50ml
  • Fresh lime juice 20ml
  • Ginger syrup 25ml
  • Garnish with Biscuit/ shortbread crumbs around rim

Instructions:

1. Add into the shaker the vodka, fresh lime juice and ginger syrup

2. Shake aggressively

3. Then pour into a chilled martini glass

4. Top with Lixir Ginger Ale or Lixir Ginger Beer

4. Garnish with Biscuit crumb rim

Photo credit @RGNproduction

Drinks development @private_mixologist

BEST MEAL OUT EVER: THE NEW DINING EXPERIENCE AT WINTERINGHAM FIELDS

It’s always a scary moment when your favourite restaurant announces a new dining experience. Exciting too, but for me the predominant thought was ‘please, please, don’t mess this up.’ Especially when for us, it’s a seven hour drive to get there.

I need not have worried. The friendly welcome from Janet at reception, the freshly baked gluten free cakes waiting in our gorgeous room; our stay started on a resounding high. We even had time for our favourite walk out to the Humber and through the village – a place I love so much I set Endless Skies there.

But dinner was, of course, the main event. And dinner was the part that had changed. A new dining room, now advertised as being part of the kitchen, hidden behind a curtain as you take your pre-dinner drinks and snacks (oh, what snacks!) in a cosy new bar. And when you are ready, you are led down the hallways of the old farmhouse and into the bright, modern kitchen.

We were greeted by James, the sous chef, as Gareth, the head chef, was unwell. He told us not to worry, we were in safe hands, and we definitely were. And this is all part of the experience; you feel you get to know the chefs a little as you work your way through the courses. Think chef’s table, but brought to a whole dining room, and in a relaxed and friendly manner.

After chatting to James over a delicious bowl of lovage soup (food miles are second only to ingredient quality at Winteringham Fields, and lovage had come just a few yards from the bed in the garden outside) we were taken to our table, which had a great view of the pass so we could see and hear everything that was going on. It takes great confidence in your team to open a kitchen to that extent; some guests who hadn’t visited before were even invited to walk around.

Dinner at Winteringham Fields is a lavish tasting menu, and we always play a game where we rank the courses in order. This time there was a clear winner; the Isle of Wight heritage tomatoes with watermelon, ponzu and nori. Tomatoes and watermelon? Who knew? And the consommé was one of the most spectacular things I have ever tasted. Almost as good as the langoustine terrine we had on our first visit… and when I told chef James about this he said he would try to track down the recipe.

We discussed our second favourite course for a very long time, without really coming to a conclusion. The huge hand dived scallop in laksa sauce was genius, but the lamb belly with asparagus, curds and mint such a clever blend of flavours and so completely melt in the mouth, it was hard to separate them. And both dessert (Winteringham Fields’ take on a Solero with mango, passion fruit, coconut and basil) and the lemon, thyme and honeycomb pre-dessert, were top notch.

Each course is brought to the table and introduced by the chef who prepared it, with as much or as little information as you like. It isn’t formal or stiff, there is genuine enthusiasm here, especially from the young lady who cooked the duck. The amount of care and attention poured into the dish was astonishing – and it showed.

So I need not have worried. Yes, it’s expensive. Yes, it’s a treat, but I would rather save up to eat here a couple of times a year than have pub grub every other week. Winteringham Fields, once again, you have smashed it!

 

All photos courtesy of Winteringham Fields, who have extended their midweek offers to cover the whole summer. Find out more here: https://winteringhamfields.co.uk/

JANE CABLE’S HIDDEN CORNWALL: FOOD & DRINK

I sometimes wonder how much, if any, of Cornwall is really hidden these days. It’s one of those locations that thrive on visitors finding something off the beaten track… even if that track is not much more than six feet wide and they’re towing a caravan.

Nevertheless, the county is my adopted home and I am sure I see it a little differently. For a start, I see it out of season; lashed by winter storms and on unreasonably soft and sunny spring days. I see city, countryside, and coast. I love its history and it inspires me. I love the people, because, let’s face it, the ones I know are my friends.

So as a taster for the first of these articles I’m going to write about another love of mine. Food and drink. And to give you a few ideas you may not have thought of if you find yourself hungry or thirsty in Cornwall this summer.

TAPAS TIME

No, not in Spain, but every bit as delicious, with a fabulous atmosphere and seasonal menus suitable for vegans and meat-eaters alike, as well as – a big plus for me – gluten free options. I’m talking about Bodega 18 in Truro, our current favourite restaurant. There’s a branch in Falmouth too, but we haven’t tried it. We have no reason to when we can stagger home from this one.

TAP YARD

Very sadly for Cornish folk, Skinners Brewery went into receivership more than a year ago, taking with it not only its most famous beer, Betty Stoggs, but also its brilliant tap yard bar in Truro. It had an amazing outdoor area with a casual vibe and visiting food trucks, and filled with locals on Friday evening it was just the most laid back place to be.

The good news is that Goodh Brewing, who have taken Skinners over, will be bringing back the tap! Hopefully in July, just in time for it to start pouring with rain again.

WOOD FIRED

The St Kew Inn is rather less hidden since chef Andy Tuck appeared on the Great British Menu earlier this year, but it’s still in the middle of nowhere a few miles inland from Port Isaac, and not a place to tow your caravan to. It’s definitely worth a visit though, because the wood-fired food is genius. If you haven’t tried Baked Alaska cooked that way then you haven’t lived. Not only that, the welcome is super friendly too.

BEACH BREAKFAST

No 4 Breakfast & Bistro in Perranporth gets my vote every time. After a walk along the beach – which can be miles and miles when the tide is out – or a bracing swim – the portions here are as generous as the welcome. Even for the dogs… although the local cat who seems to own the garden can make life interesting for the pooches at times.

A GOOD HONEST PINT

Tucked away near Trevaunce Cove in St Agnes (or St Pirans, in my first Cornish Echoes mystery, The Forgotten Maid) is The Driftwood Spars. A pub, a brewery, a restaurant, and a guest house, all within a stone’s throw of a fab surfing beach with the added seasonal entertainment of some idiot who thinks it’s a good idea to park their very expensive car on the sand. Trust me, it happens. Don’t let it be you.

The bar of the Drifty is on the ground floor and their own beers are amazing, and perfect for me because they are brewed using a gluten free process.

 

Photo credits belong to the venue concerned as I never take pictures of my food!

 

EVA GLYN’S HIDDEN CROATIA: EATING WITHIN DUBROVNIK’S WALLS

First let me say that I am one lucky, lucky writer. Long have I dreamt of eating at Dubrovnik’s only Michelin starred restaurant, and on my last visit, I did it. It’s a very special place (with prices to match) but I had cause for celebration – it was publication day for The Collaborator’s Daughter, my novel set in the city.

I had visited Restaurant 360 before, but only through the pages of The Olive Grove. Where else would wealthy businessman Josip Beros take Damir to impress him?

‘The design of the place alone took Damir’s breath away, the cubed rattan furniture in turquoise and grey in the lower courtyard contrasting in both colour and style with the honeyed stone of the old fort into which it was built.’

It is, indeed a stunning location, and in the summer open air tables grace the tops of the walls giving stunning views of the harbour, but on a breezy evening right at the beginning of April I was pleased we would be eating inside.

Everything about Restaurant 360 is precise, except for the service which is as friendly as it is knowledgeable about the food and wine they serve. As well as a la carte choices, there are two tasting menus; Antalogica, which showcases the chef’s latest signature dishes, and Republika, a modern take on heritage dishes from the time of Dubrovnik’s Ragusa republic.

We were delighted when the sommelier was able to match a different Croatian wine with each course. Croatian wines are hugely underrated (and my husband knows a thing or two about wine, having worked in the industry) and we were able to enjoy a selection of the best with our meal. We were especially impressed with a Grk from Lumbarda on Korcula. All the more delicious to me because that’s where The Olive Grove is set.

All the food was wonderful, but it was with fish that Restaurant 360 excelled. We do sometimes treat ourselves to Michelin starred food, and some of the dishes bettered anything we have eaten. Anywhere. The absolute star of the show was what sounded an unlikely combination of smoked eel, foie gras, melon, and date cream. The man who thought that one up, and then delivered it, is some sort of genius.

A great deal of time goes into perfecting the dishes. Our waiter told us that the ‘fish soup’ accompanying the brodet (a very traditional Croatian dish) of grouper and clams had gone through almost forty iterations before it was deemed worthy of serving. And I would imagine it was the same with everything else; the sea bass with leek and langoustine was one of the most amazing things I have ever tasted. And the scallop tartar with kohlrabi and yuzu gel was as delightful as it was refreshing.

Great care was taken with my gluten free diet and I felt very safe all evening. The bread was delicious and plentiful, accompanied by a colourful array of butters, and where a dish could not be adapted, (as with one of the amuse bouche) the chef made something specially for me. Nothing was too much trouble for kitchen or staff, which made dining at 360 a wonderful experience.

I couldn’t resist taking a copy of The Olive Grove with me, and gave it to our fabulous sommelier when we left. He was delighted to hear it was set on Korcula, where he and his wife had honeymooned. It seemed such a small thank you for a night we will never forget.