Recipe: Yorkshire Creamery Macaroni Cheese

At the end of September I went to North Yorkshire for a foodie weekend away. While we were there, I wanted to visit the Wensleydale Creamery and have a look around. After enjoying the Cheese Experience we had worked up a good appetite and fancied lunch in Calvert’s Restaurant. Naturally we ordered fairly greedily, with an epic cheese board taking centre stage. Being hungry types, we also shared a gorgeous portion of Yorkshire Creamery macaroni cheese.

Recipe: Yorkshire Macaroni Cheese

The macaroni cheese was made with mature Yorkshire Cheddar and extra mature Yorkshire Red. They were the most delicious combination, so as we left, I picked up a wedge of each from the shop to make for myself once I got home. Here’s my recipe, and it’s not a bad recreation of the original.

This recipe feeds two heartily, and three or four as a side.

Recipe: Yorkshire Macaroni Cheese

Yorkshire Creamery Macaroni Cheese

Ingredients:
250g dried macaroni pasta
50g unsalted butter
50g plain flour
Approx one pint of milk, maybe more, maybe less
100g mature Yorkshire cheddar cheese, grated
100g extra mature Yorkshire red, grated
Salt and pepper
30g breadcrumbs

How to make this Yorkshire Creamery Macaroni Cheese:
To make this Yorkshire Creamery macaroni cheese; melt the butter in a saucepan, once melted, tip in the flour and mix well with a wooden spoon. Mix until it’s a paste and then cook the flour out for a minute. Add a splash of milk and stir until it turns into a paste again. Keep adding milk in splashes and mixing until it starts to turn into a silky sauce. The amount of milk will vary, but I’d say you need at least a pint of milk.

Leave your sauce to bubble gently on the hob while you put 250g of pasta to another saucepan of boiling water. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.

While your pasta cooks, grate your cheese and setting aside 70g of the Yorkshire red to top your bake with, add all of the rest of the cheese to your sauce. Stir, stir, stir your sauce and season with salt and pepper. I also like to add ground chilli flakes for a bit of a gentle kick, but you can leave that out if you prefer. Taste the sauce to check the seasoning; if it’s not cheesy enough for you, now is a good time to add more cheese. Now would also be a good time to pre-heat your oven to 220°.

Recipe: Yorkshire Macaroni Cheese

Once your pasta is cooked, drain it really well and tip it into your cheese sauce; stir that through and pour into a baking dish. Level the top gently with the back of a spoon.

Sprinkle over the remaining Yorkshire Creamery red cheese and the fresh breadcrumbs; pop it into the oven for 25 minutes, or until it’s brown and bubbly on top. Take it out of the oven and put to one side for five minutes. Serve with a big salad and crusty bread.

If you enjoyed this recipe, you might also like to try this ham hock macaroni cheese recipe.

Recipe: Yorkshire Creamery Macaroni Cheese

25 TV shows I’ve binge watched during lockdown

I don’t think I would have got through lockdown without Netflix. It’s kept me reasonably sane and fairly occupied since March. As soon as the boy is in bed, I like to tuck myself up for the evening and have a couple of hours watching TV on my iPad. After a couple of months, I decided to make a list of what I’ve binge watched, and here it is.

I’m an absolute horror for binge watching and if I’ve got the time, I can happily binge watch a whole series in an evening. For this reason, I’m constantly looking for new shows to devour.

I first got Netflix when The Last Kingdom moved from the BBC to Netflix, and I’ve been an avid consumer of on demand TV ever since. I’ve discovered some absolutely brilliant series on Netflix, but I probably watch an equal amount of programmes on iPlayer too.

25 TV shows I’ve binge watched during lockdown

Apparently during lockdown, TV programmes about the countryside, nature and farming have been really popular. As you can see from my list, I’ve also been losing myself of an evening by virtually popping down the farm and herding some sheep.

Here are 25 shows which I’ve binge watched during lockdown…

A Letter to the King – Netflix
After Life – Netflix
All Creatures Great and Small – My5 Channel 5
Anne with an E – Netflix
Bonding – Netflix
Buffy the Vampire Slayer – 4OD
Dead to Me – Netflix
Derry Girls – Netflix
Fresh Meat – Netflix
Ghosts – BBC iPlayer
GLOW – Netflix
Grace & Frankie – Netflix
Island Medics – BBC iPlayer
Mortimer and Whitehouse: Gone Fishing – BBC iPlayer
New Girl – Netflix
Our Yorkshire Farm – My5 Channel 5
Peaky Blinders – Netflix
Pose – Netflix
The Last Kingdom – Netflix
The Trip (and The Trip to Italy) – Netflix
The Umbrella Academy – Netflix
Turn Up Charlie – Netflix
Unorthodox – Netflix
Virgin River – Netflix
Young Offenders – BBC iPlayer

What TV shows you’ve binge watched during lockdown? Would you recommend them? Please let me know in the comments, I’d love some new suggestions.

25 TV shows I’ve binge watched during lockdown

Halloween Recipe: Gingerbread Mummies

I love gingerbread, it’s one of my guilty pleasures. Often when I pass the bakery on the way to picking my boy up from school, I’ll slip in and buy a couple of gingerbread men, women or penguins for us both as a little treat. I like my gingerbread spicy, so I’m always a little generous when I make my own, like with these spicy gingerbread mummies for Halloween.

Halloween Recipe: Gingerbread Mummies

This week we got a new set of kids baking equipment, so we were keen to test it out and I was keen to bake a batch of gingerbread people for Halloween. The recipe is a tired and tested one; I’m not sure where it came from, but it’s been used many times over the years and my butter and flour splattered recipe book can attest. Like I said, I like it extra spicy, so if you want a milder gingerbread, then maybe halve the quantity of the spices.

As Halloween is round the corner, we wanted to make Gingerbread Mummies. These are especially easy for kids and for not very confident decorators to do. You just drizzle the icing over to look like bandages. If I’d been more on it, I’d have bought a pack of sugar eyes which you can stick on to add to the spookiness.

Halloween Recipe: Gingerbread Mummies

This recipe makes a surprising number of gingerbread men. Admittedly I use a pretty small cutter, but I managed to make 40 of them. They didn’t last the weekend though, not with my greedy family. They keep well in a sealed tin or container, so don’t feel like you too have to eat them all within 48 hours.

Spicy Gingerbread Mummies

Ingredients
350g plain flour, plus extra for rolling out
1 level teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
2 fairly heaped teaspoons of ground ginger
2 fairly heaped teaspoons of allspice
125g baking margarine
175g caster sugar or soft brown sugar
1 large egg
4 tbsp golden syrup
To decorate
100g icing sugar
Warm water, a few drops at a time
Sugar eye decorations (optional)

Halloween Recipe: Gingerbread Mummies

Method
Using a large bowl, sift the plain flour, bicarb of soda, ginger and all spice and the pan mix together, I use a food processor as it saves getting overly sticky fingers and it’s quicker.

Tip in the margarine and mix until it looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and then add a large egg and the golden syrup. This is where things get really sticky, mix thoroughly in the food mixer until it all comes together.

Wrap the dough in cling film, or pop in a clean plastic bag and refrigerate for half an hour or so. Once the dough is rested, it’s ready to roll!

At this point, I set up a bit of a gingerbread production line. I line two of my biggest baking trays with baking paper and pre-heat my oven to 180 degrees.
I divine the dough into four and on a floured surface, I roll out one of the pieces of dough. It needs to be about half a centimetre thick.

Carefully using your gingerbread cutter, cut out as many shapes as you can manage, roll out and cut again until you have filled your two trays. You need a bit of space around them, and I did trays of 8 figures, baking two trays at a time. In all I baked 5 trays, which is enough gingerbread mummies for a party!

Bake each tray for 12 minutes, maybe a minute it two more. They need to be lightly brown. Take them out of the oven and leave them to cool for 10 minutes or so. If you try to take them off the tray sooner, they will likely break. After 10 minutes, remove them from the baking paper and leave to cool fully on a wire rack.

Once they are cool, then you can decorate them. I sifted 100g of icing sugar into a bowl and gradually added drips and drops of water, mixing all the time. You need it to be thick but runny enough for it to drizzle off the spoon.

To decorate, I put my gingerbread mummies back on the baking paper I’d used (it saves you getting sticky icing everywhere) and using a teaspoon, I drizzled the icing across the mummies so it looks like bandages.

If I’d managed to get some sugar eyes, I would have stuck those on using some of my drizzly icing too. They looked pretty cool and my boy thought they were the perfect Halloween sweet treat.

If you enjoyed this, you might also like to try these recipes…

Halloween Recipe: Gingerbread Mummies

How to keep a long distance relationship going during Covid-19

Long distance dating is hard. You don’t see each other very often, communication is strained by the distance and you can’t always be there when the other needs you. Throw in a global pandemic and a lockdown, and you’re trapped in a long-term, long distance dating nightmare.

I’d like to say that I have all the answers, and that the rigours of 2020 have made my long distance relationship thrive. If I did say that, I’d be lying. I would say that although this year has been hard, we’ve pulled together and found new ways of dating, despite the distance. And if a relationship, any relationship can survive Covid-19, then it’s got an awful lot going for it.

How to keep a long distance relationship going during Covid-19

Regular Video Chats
Being physically apart from one of the people who make you happiest is hard. Not being able to be held by them when you need a hug is hard. It is not the same, not by any stretch of the imagination; but regular video chats on WhatsApp, FaceTime or Zoom are really helpful. It can feel a bit pressured, to perform or be full of news, but if you’re isolating, chances are there is no news anyway. What we sometimes do is dial in for a video chat during our working from home working day. We just work and natter like colleagues would. That takes the pressure off and it’s also nice to have that bit of company for half an hour.

Remote TV dating evenings
I really enjoy these. We pick a film or TV series we are both interested in which is available on iPlayer (usually). We get online, press play at the same time and then watch together. It’s not the same as sharing a sofa and a bag of popcorn with your beloved; but it’s nice to have a shared experience and be able to react in real-time to something in the programme together. It really does help us feel closer when we have a TV date night.

Keep the postman busy
I’m a letter writer at heart, and even though you can text or DM all day long, it’s also nice to send or receive a letter, or some other token of affection. I think our mutual love language is small thoughtful gifts. He worries about me being cold, so gives me mittens and cosy hats. I like to send things which will cheer him up, or make him smile, so he gets daft things like a homemade Yorkshire Tea Advent calendar.

Kiss and make up
If your main form of communication is text or DM, then it’s easy for misunderstandings to occur. You can’t really sense a tone or if something is meant as a joke but lands badly. Fall outs happen and they are a normal part of relationships. It is easy to flounce off and it is important to take some time and have some space to calm down or realise it is probably a miscommunication. We fall out, we snap at each other. Lockdown is hard and it adds to the stress of being in a long distance relationship; but we are also pretty good at talking it through, saying sorry, explaining our position and why we felt that way.

Play games
We both love word games and I’ve been playing WordFeud for years. I introduced him to it at the start of lockdown and we’ve been playing together ever since. It’s just something we can both dip in and out of, something we can do together even though we are apart. Find a game you both enjoy and play it online.

20 Questions
This is something we have done on and off throughout lockdown. One of us would put together a list of questions and we would both answer them, like Mr and Mrs, but with 87 miles between us. It’s one way of getting to know each other a bit better. It’s also good for sparking other conversations, because it’s very easy to run out of general topics and small talk when all you do is sit at home and work. We really enjoyed doing the question and answer evenings. It was a fun way to get to know each other a bit more; we laughed together and were able to tell each other things we might have been too embarrassed to say to each other’s faces.

Send me a selfie
We miss each other quite a lot and although we are in very regular contact with each other, I miss his face and he misses mine. We are regular selfie senders. They don’t have to be all duck faced selfies, funny faces are our speciality; anything to make the other smile. We also share photos of our meals, or things we’ve seen on walks, just snippets of our day. Selfies and photos and the occasional video message help us keep a feeling of closeness despite the distance.

Being in a long distance relationship during lockdown is hard. I’m lucky that he is a very calm, level-headed man who is full of wise words and kind actions. He has endless patience with me and is nothing but supportive of me and the things I do. I asked him what advice he would give to people in long distance relationships during lockdown; he said “be aware that others have it worse but also be aware it’s hard”. See, I told you he was a wise one, and a keeper.

How to keep a long distance relationship going during Covid-19

Back to Hogwarts – back to school in style with Hogwarts

AD – PR Sample, we were sent some Harry Potter Hogwarts back to school accessories for the purposes of this review. All images and opinions are our own.

I am happy to hold my hands up to say that I hate all the back to school shopping. All the queuing around shopping centres to get the equipment he needs and all of the uniform faff. These days I’m very happy to order it all online and have done with it. I tend to leave buying things until the last minute, lest he has a sudden and unexpected growth spurt. Whilst his uniform is fairly generic, it’s in his accessories where he likes to express himself. This year, Hogwarts is the favoured theme.

Back to Hogwarts - back to school in style with Hogwarts

We’ve long been fans of Harry Potter, and the perennial question of which Hogwarts House would the sorting hat choose for us is one which we continue to argue about. I’ve taken all the online quizzes and I get a different answer each time, you might a well shove me in Slytherin and throw away the key. The boy however is Hufflepuff, or at least he is this week.

Hogwarts House Backpack

Every Harry Potter fan needs a backpack for school and the new Hogwarts Houses backpacks are brilliant. Each one comes in the House colour with the coat of arms too. They look very smart, they’re vegan and big enough to carry everything he needs for the school day. In fact, they’re the perfect size for my work day too, so once I settle on a House (the Ravenclaw one is a beautiful colour), I will be getting a new one for work. They cost £14 and are padded in all the right places. I’m a big fan.

Back to Hogwarts - back to school in style with Hogwarts

Harry Potter Lunch Bag & Water Bottle

The Harry Potter lunch bag is also a big hit. The very cute cartoon figures of Harry, Hermione and Ron are really eye catching, so I know he’ll be able to find his lunch in a pile of other bags and boxes. The bag comes with a carry handle, yellow piping around the zip closure and a handy name tag section on the back. There’s plenty of room inside for a hearty lunch for a budding wizard. The lunch bag costs £7, but is currently £6 at ASDA.

Alongside the lunch bag, there’s a distinctive water bottle. In school, everyone has their own water bottle in class which they fill up every day. This has a 473ml capacity, and all over print design with a yellow screw-on lid featuring a flip up spout and carry handle. The water bottle is £4 but currently £3 at ASDA.

Harry Potter Stationery

Everyone loves stationery and ASDA have an awful love of the Harry Potter range available. We have the pencil case which comes with a pen, a pencil, a ruler, a rubber and a pencil sharpener. It costs just £2 and apart from the need for spares, that’s everything my son needs for his school year. At that price I’d be tempted to buy a couple and keep one for spares when he loses bits and pieces. ASDA also have notebooks, pens, pencils, pretty much everything you could think of for the return to school.

Back to Hogwarts - back to school in style with Hogwarts

Thankfully, apart from school shoes, he is all set for going back to school this week. I’m not sure how much he is looking forward to it, these are strange times we are living in and school will be quite a bit different for him. We’ve been filling the last few days before he goes back with fun things. We’ve spent a couple of days building the new LEGO Hedwig figure, which is suitable for ages 10+. It’s quite a complicated build, but very satisfying. Once it’s finished, his wings will flap when you turn the handle. It’s only £34.97, but it’s kept us both quiet for a couple of days. Brilliant fun.

Back to Hogwarts - back to school in style with Hogwarts

What do you think of the new Hogwarts back to school range? Which Hogwarts House would you be in?

Putting Trutex School Uniform to the test

We were sent these items from Trutex for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

My son grows like a weed. Every couple of months he seems to shoot up another inch and he needs a whole new school uniform. With him also enjoying the rough and tumble of school life, he also needs a school uniform which will stand up to the rigours of crawling about in the playground, or a boil wash after an especially beany school dinner. Over the last few weeks we’ve been putting his new Trutex school uniform through its paces.

Putting Trutex School Uniform to the test

We have had Trutex school uniforms before and they’ve always been warm and comfortable, they’ve washed well and tolerated the beating my son manages to give his clothes during the average school day.

School trousers

For us, we are regular buyers of school trousers, his legs seem to grow quicker than anything and before long they’re half-mast and in need of replacing. We chose a pair of the charcoal sturdy fit trouser with internal adjuster. I’m a big fan of the internal adjuster; the tape inside the waistband which you can adjust to tighten or loosen the waistband. I think all trousers should have this, even adult trousers. The trousers come with “TrutexStay Smart technology” which makes washing and ironing easier, the trouser creases are permanent and they have a stain resistant finish. There’s also a hidden side pocket to zip up small valuables; valuables to my boy are mostly marbles and conkers, but it’s handy to have. These trousers cost £16.99 per pair, my son has been wearing them since Christmas and they look as good as new.

Putting Trutex School Uniform to the test

School jumpers

We are lucky that my son’s school lets children wear uniform which doesn’t have the school badge on. This makes shopping for jumpers a lot easier and cheaper too. The crew neck sweatshirt from Trutex costs £9.99 but will likely last a whole year before he grows out of it (legs are the fast growing danger-zone in our house). At £9.99 a jumper we usually get 2 or 3 to last the year and hope he doesn’t have any major wardrobe malfunctions while he’s wearing it.

The crew neck sweatshirt is available in a rainbow of colours. Our school is resolutely navy, so we plumped for that. It’s a soft, regular fit sweatshirt which has reinforced seams, to help withstand the school day. It’s a very solid uniform choice and I would happily buy and buy these until he leaves school.

Cosy Fleece Jacket

For my son, the star of the show is this Polar Fleece jacket from Trutex. Not only is it available in his school colours, it’s warm, cosy and comfortable. He often ditches his school jumper in favour of this, as he’s not a fan of too many layers. The jacket costs £13.99 and is so popular with my lad, I’m going to buy him another couple in different colours to wear out of school too. It’s stood the test of time and still looks as good as new. I’m a big fan of the school uniform fleece; especially for boys like mine who have some sensory needs and don’t always love to be bundled up in a jumper. Fleeces are such easy care too and dry almost instantly after a wash.

Back to School: Putting Trutex School Uniform to the test

When it comes to school uniforms, we need well-made pieces which can stand up to rough play and frequent washing. My boy has been wearing his new uniform since Christmas, and after a few months of rough and tumble, it’s all still looking as good as new, we can’t fault it.

For more information about Trutex and to check out their range, visit their website.

Note: I originally wrote this post back in March 2020. Due to lockdown it has been sat in my drafts ever since. Good luck if you’re returning to school next month.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

AD/Gifted. We were sent the So Sand Satisfying Sand Case for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

It’s been a long old year, what with lockdown and home schooling. The last few weeks I’ve felt like I’m all out of ideas. My boy is about as against doing anything educational as it’s possible to be right now, so all our activities have to be overtly fun and any learning or educational benefit has to be hidden. Thankfully the So Sand Satisfying Sand Case comfortably ticks all of those boxes; being FUN as well as bringing some creativity and sensory play to the table.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

The So Sand Satisfying Sand Case is a handy carry case with a selection of cutting tools, bags of sand and decorations. The instructions are easy to follow, you make up your own brightly coloured kinetic sand.

If the kinetic sand craze has passed you by, Kinetic Sand is made from 98% sand and 2% silica oil. It behaves a bit like playdough but without the sticky horror if it gets walked into your carpet. You can clump the sand up together like a ball, then watch as it melts through your hands almost like a liquid. It’s strange, but in a good way and making your own is super fun.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

There are three colours to make up; yellow, pink and blue, and there are a selection of glitter packets which you can add to your kinetic sand creations. My son, with his love of being extra extra, added glitter to all of the sand. He quickly shot down my suggestion if having half plain, half glittery sand.

If you making the sand isn’t enough for you, the So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case contains a selection of tools for you to roll, shape and cut your sand into all different shapes. The instruction leaflet has a number of kinetic sand serving suggestions, but why follow convention? My son started to follow a couple of the suggestions, then the urge to freestyle took over and he made all kids of fun shapes.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

The storage case makes great storage for the tools and the sand too. It even includes a play tray to keep everything tidy. Playing with kinetic sand and this So Sand DIY Case is really relaxing and a great sensory activity. It’s suitable for ages 6+ and costs around £20.

My son really enjoyed playing with this sand kit; and after months of stressful home schooling, he relished the chance to play with something pretty darn restful and creative.

Review: So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case

The So Sand DIY Satisfying Sand Case is available from a wide range of retailers, including Amazon.

Review: Discovering the Disney Plush Classic Range

AD/Gifted. We were sent two plush toys from the Disney Plush Classic Range in exchange for a review. All images and opinions are our own.

My son loves a cuddly toy and he likes to fall asleep cuddling his current favourite plush. His favourites are usually characters from whatever TV programme or film he’s been watching lately, and thanks to months of lockdown, we’ve been watching plenty of films together.

This beautiful range of Classic Disney soft toys features collections from seriously classic Disney films including Bambi, 101 Dalmatians, The Aristocats, Lady and The Tramp and so many more and has all of your favourite, recognisable Disney characters, in a range of sizes which make the perfect gift for any Disney lover.

Disney Plush Classic Range

We were sent a lovely soft and squishy 35cm Dumbo the elephant (rrp £19.99) and a 17cm Baloo (£9.99) to cuddle and get to know a bit better. 25cm plush toys will be available in this range later on in the year. The plush toys are both so soft and huggable, they’re suitable for ages 3+ and I can see them being incredibly popular with all ages, everyone loves Disney don’t they?

As well as the Classic collection, there is a whole host of Disney plush to collect in a variety of ranges and sizes such as Princess, Mickey and Minnie, Frozen 2 and Toy Story.

The boy loved his Baloo plush; he’s a big fan of The Jungle Book so he recognised him instantly. I also have a very soft spot for this lovable bear. The Jungle Book was one of my favourite films as a kid and I still love it now. He loved Dumbo, because how could you not? The plush is so soft and squishy and huggable enough to cuddle as you’re drifting off to sleep at night.

These plush toys are really well made and feel like they will be pretty robust and able to withstand years of cuddling.

Disney Plush Classic Range

The Disney Plush Classic Range includes pretty much every classic Disney character you could hope for. If you’re looking for a gift for a Disney fan, then this range of plush toys is what you need. Priced from £9.99 and suitable for ages 3+ this range of plush toys is bound to be popular this summer.

The Disney Plush Classic Range is available from a wide range of retailers including Tesco.

Recipe: Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

AD – I was sent some Ye Olde Oak Hot Dogs to create this Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole recipe with. All images and opinions are our own. We have not been paid for this post.

I’m a big fan of cookery programmes and in the time before I got a proper job, I used to watch an awful lot of American cooking shows on Food Network. They generally made dishes fit for cowboys and truckers, but there was the odd recipe which really took my fancy.

In America they seem to be quite fond of something called a sandwich casserole. This is essentially a load of bread roll sandwiches put in a baking dish, brushed with butter and baked in the oven. I liked this idea, I liked it quite a lot, so when I was sent some Ye Olde Oak Hot Dogs I figured now was the time to make my American style sandwich casserole dreams come true.

Recipe: Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

They are really very easy to do. They’re great to make ahead and just bung in the oven for a quick feed. They make a lovely casual meal; ideal for play dates or if your BBQ has been rained off. They best thing is, you can mostly make them out of things you’d have in the cupboard already.

ye olde oak hot dogs

My recipe makes 6 hot dogs, but you can very easily double up, or triple up if you’re feeding a lot of hungry people.

Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

Ingredients
A packet of hot dog rolls
1 tin of Ye Olde Oak Hot Dogs
1 tin of tinned chilli (or homemade if you have it)
A packet of burger cheese slices
100g cheddar cheese, grated
50g butter
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Pepper, ground
2 good pinches of dried mixed herbs or finely chopped fresh parsley

Recipe: Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

How to make your Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

You will need a large oven proof dish. Melt your butter in a pan or microwave, add the crushed or minced garlic, a very good grind of pepper and your dried or fresh herbs. Using a pastry brush, brush the bottom of the dish with the melted garlicky butter and then put it to one side for later.

Slice your hot dog buns open, but not all the way through. Put a slice of burger cheese in each bun, then put a Ye Olde Oak Hot Dog on top of the cheese; top with some chilli. Fill the oven proof dish with your loaded hot dogs, nestle them in together so they’re almost spooning, but don’t squash them up too much.

Once you have filled your dish with chilli cheese hot dogs, brush the remaining garlic butter over the bread buns. Top with the grated cheddar cheese and cover the dish with foil.

Put into a pre-heated oven at 180°c for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for a further 5 minutes or so; until the cheese is melted and everything is bubbling and delicious looking. Remove from the oven and serve.

Recipe: Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

This Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole got the big thumbs up from my boy. You can top them however you want really, but the chilli and cheese combo is a winner! I was really impressed with how they came out of the oven; the bread bun was slightly crispy on top, but soft underneath. I’m so glad I tried the sandwich casserole idea, it’s one I’ll be playing with in various forms over the summer and beyond.

If you enjoyed this recipe, you might also like to try these pizza hot dogs.

Recipe: Chilli Cheese Hot Dog Casserole

Review: CarGoSeat a booster seat & suitcase for kids

AD – we were sent a CarGoSeat for review purposes. All images and opinions are our own.

With the holiday season upon us, we’ve been busy planning a summer of gadding about. Sure, we won’t be flying off on a world tour anytime soon, but we have a couple of short breaks booked which we hope to go on. The first of which is a trip to Ribby Hall in Lancashire, which seems the perfect time to put our new CarGoSeat through its paces.

Review: CarGoSeat a booster seat & suitcase for kids

The CarGoSeat is a great new car seat which combines a group 3 booster seat with a suitcase. The CarGoSeats have 10L of storage capacity, which is great for kids who want to pack their own case for a getaway. The case itself is lightweight which means kids can easily wheel it along with them on their travels.

The CarGoSeat is fully tested to the highest EU safety regulations (ECE R44/04 regulation safety standards) and has been rigorously crash tested. It also comes with a 12 month warranty. It is available in a range of colours, blue, green, purple or pink. We went for the blue which was popular with the boy; and it’s just the thing to take some books and toys away in for our little holidays this summer. It costs £49.99 and would be a good thing to have to save on car seat hire on holidays abroad.

Review: CarGoSeat a booster seat & suitcase for kids

It is really easy to fit and if you open the case there is an instruction booklet if you get stuck. It’s really well designed and you can tuck the seat-belts away inside the case when you’re using it as a suitcase. The seat is padded and comfortable and is suitable for children who are 125cm or taller and weigh 22-36kg. The seat pad is washable and the rest of the CarGoSeat is made of plastic; so it’s great for wiping down any spills you get in transit.

Review: CarGoSeat a booster seat & suitcase for kids

What I liked about this is it’s well built but lightweight; so it’s ideal as a spare booster seat if we are taking extra kids out for the day. I thought it was excellent value for money. The boy was thrilled and wanted to start packing for our next getaway (in a month, he’s excited).

We really liked the CarGoSeat. It’s ideal for short breaks and getaways. My son is really excited about having his own luggage; and he thought the seat was comfortable and pretty cool too. I liked the bright colour and how lightweight it was. I feel a bit more ready for my holiday now, just need to pack some suncream!

Review: CarGoSeat a booster seat & suitcase for kids

For more information about the CarGoSeat or to buy your own, visit their website.