Bank Holiday BBQ Picnic - #SayYestoSummer

August bank holiday weekend used to be one of the hottest weekends of the year. I can't remember the last time we had a really hot (or even dry) August bank holiday weekend, but as it's the British tradition to picnic and barbecue on this weekend we did just that.

Off we went to Cannock Chase (again) as it's our new favourite place to be. We packed a bbq (although I'm not sure if a bbq is allowed in the forest, but we were very very careful),  picnic, bottle of wine (goes without saying really) and our den kit.

Whilst the bbq was warming up we played football, hide and seek and climbed trees.

We then enjoyed bbq pork loin steaks, cheese scones, home made coleslaw, cheese & tomato skewers, chips (from the local Wimpy), followed by lemon & courgette cupcakes.

As the picnic was all part of our #SayYestoSummer challenge by Lactofree there were plenty of Lactofree goodies included in the picnic. We had cheese scones and cheese & tomato skewers made with the amazing tasting Lactofree mature cheddar, which is as good as or better than my current mature cheddar, and lemon and courgette cupcakes, made using the buttery tasting Lactofree spread, which, just like the cheese, I absolutely love.

We stayed and watched the sun setting whilst eating ice creams from the ice cream van and playing football on the common. Despite the chill in the air we had a great family evening out. This is what bank holidays are all about.

Cheese Scones

210g self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
50g Lactofree spread (cold)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp English mustard
120g Lactofree mature cheddar, cheddar
170ml Lactofree skimmed milk

• Mix the flour and baking powder together in a large bowl
• Rub the spread in carefully with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs
• Stir in the cayenne pepper, mustard and cheese (reserving some of the cheese to top the scones)
• Add enough milk to the dry ingredients and mix until it starts to come together
• Squeeze together with your hands and roll out on a floured surface until approx 1.5cm thick
• Using a round cutter, cut scones out and place on a greased baking sheet
• Continue to cut scones out until the dough has been used up, re-rolling as necessary
• Top the scones with the remaining grated cheese
• Set aside whilst the oven preheats to 180C
• Bake for approx 12-15 minutes
• Serve warm or cold

Lemon & Courgette Cupcakes - makes 10
115g Lactofree spread
115g caster sugar
2 eggs, beaten
juice & zest of 1 lemon
1/2 courgette, grated (75g)
115g self raising flour
50g caster sugar

• Beat the spread and 115g caster sugar until light & creamy
• Beat in the eggs one at a time
• Beat in half of the lemon juice and all the zest, along with the grated courgette
• Fold in the flour
• Divide batter between 10 muffin cases in a muffin pan
• Bake in a preheated oven for approx 15 minutes until lightly golden
• Mix the remaining lemon juice with 50g caster sugar and spoon over the warm cakes
• Cool on a wire rack

I'm working together with Lactofree to provide inspiration and recipes over the summer.

Lactofree Shakes #SayYestoSummer

The next in my #SayYestoSummer challenges with Lactofree was to create some summer shakes using Lactofree products. There is a shake for every taste, whether you like it full of berries or maybe even banana and peanut butter.

For my first shake I was inspired by one of my favourite cakes, the carrot cake. Carrot cake is full of so many flavours so why not bring these flavours into a milkshake - so simple yet so tasty.

I used a ready made slice of carrot cake but you might want to make your own to ensure that it's lactose free. It was topped with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting which makes it really indulgent and not for those counting their calories.

Carrot Cake Shake 

1 slice of carrot cake - approx 100g

200ml Lactofree milk

handful of ice cubes

75g Lactofree soft cheese

75ml Lactofree cream

1/2 tsp cinnamon

walnuts (optional)

• Place the carrot cake, milk and ice cubes in a blender & blend until smooth
• Whisk the soft cheese with the cream and cinnamon until it forms soft peaks
• Pour the carrot make milk into a glass and top with the cream cheese frosting
• Top with crumbled carrot cake and walnuts

The second shake was a little more on the healthy side, with less indulgence and more fruit. This one combines the summer fruits of strawberry and rhubarb along with vanilla.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Shake

1 stalk of rhubarb
1 vanilla pod
1 tbsp demerara sugar
handful of strawberries, hulled and halved

handful of ice cubes

200ml Lactofree milk
75ml Lactofree cream

• Cut the rhubarb into 2cm pieces and place in a small baking dish with the seeds from the vanilla pod and demerara sugar
• Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 10 minutes
• Add the strawberries and bake for an additional 10 minutes until the fruits are tender, allow to cool
• Once the fruit is cool add it to a blender with the ice cubes, milk and cream
• Blend until smooth and serve in a sundae glass

The final two involved less preparation and can be made in seconds.

Banana and Raspberry Shake

1 banana
handful of frozen raspberries
200ml Lactofree milk

• Blend everything together & serve

Vanilla Iced Coffee

1 shot Espresso coffee
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract
200ml Lactofree milk
handful of ice cubes

• Blend everything together and serve

You can find more Lactofree summer recipes here, and also check out the Lactofree Facebook page for giveaways and inspiration.

follow Lactofree on Twitter

I'm working together with Lactofree to provide inspiration and recipes over the summer. For this second challenge I was provided with a fabulous cool bag of products. 

Elizabeth Sponge with Lactofree #SayYestoSummer

Look at that beauty!

I love it when a sponge cake rises exactly as it should, and doesn't collapse the moment you take it out of the oven. My old oven is a bit temperamental and bakes more on one side than the other so it's always a risk turning the tin around part way through the baking process. Today was a good day though and my cake turned out perfectly.

I am working together with Lactofree through the Summer on their #SayYestoSummer campaign, and will be receiving products and ingredients to enable me to get to know the Lactofree range and share results of my baking with my readers.

As Wimbledon is currently taking place I was sent a Wimbledon inspired hamper of goodies, including the most gorgeous picnic blanket and cute fabric strawberries.

If you fancy trying this delicious cake you can find the recipe here, but first please go to the Lactofree Facebook page, where you can win a walking holiday to the Peak District complete with a picnic basket and blanket.

If you want to try out more yummy summer recipes go to the Lactofree #SayYestoSummer page. 

follow Lactofree on Twitter