Quit smoking for good in 2020

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Like so many vices, people know that smoking is bad for them, but giving up can be hard.

There is no getting away from the addictive nature of cigarettes, but stopping is the best you can do for your health, and it won’t hurt your pocket either.

Let’s have a look at how you can get away from the smoke, nicotine, smell and toxicity of one of the worst habits in the world.

Make a list
Having all the reasons you are quitting, written down in black and white can be a great way to kick things off. Whether it is to smarten up your teeth, keep cancer at bay, save money, smell better or just be healthier, write down your reasons. Next, stick them on the fridge door, kitchen cupboards, bathroom mirror and add to your phone so you are reminded all the time – and when you are feeling like cracking and lighting up, those words will help see you through.

Have a clear out
The dirt and smell of smoking is pretty gross, so having a clean-up can help get you in the right headspace to quit for good. Get rid of all the ashtrays, put lighters and matches in the bin, chuck out any old packs, find stubs in the garden and bin them. Then, open the windows in the house, and your car, and have a really good clear up. Wash your bedding, put throws and cushions through the machine, and a valet is good if you smoked when you drove.

Talk about it
Family and friends will be used to seeing you smoke, so let them know you are stopping. Some might join you, but at least if they know you are quitting then they shouldn’t offer you one when they see you, you don’t need temptation to be placed in your path.

Think about what you eat
A lot of people find that they put on weight when they quit smoking, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Eating a balanced diet and not adding in lots of sugary snacks and takeaways is the key to maintaining your weight. Drink plenty of water, stock up on fruit and veggies, and don’t up your alcohol intake as a substitute for smoking.

Get fit
Just as eating well, you might also want to consider doing some more exercise, or taking it up for the first time again. Maybe join a gym, go to a new dance class with a friend or join a local netball team who are looking for new players. Yes, you might find that smoking has had an impact on your fitness levels, but keep at it and in time you’ll get fitter, be able to keep up with others, but more importantly you will become a better, healthier you.

Keep your cash
There is no escaping the fact that cigarettes are expensive and a total waste of money. Whether you were on three a day or thirty a day, get a jar or money box and put the money you were spending on your habit, in it. At the end of the year, treat yourself to something you really want – we think you will be surprised at just how much you’ll save.

Ask the professionals
Before you do give up, maybe speak to your GP or pharmacist and make sure you have the support you need. Yes, you can go cold turkey and place your bets on willpower, but with gum, lozenges and groups out there to help you quit, you don’t have to go it alone.

Good luck and well done for taking the first step towards being a better you.

Team Pure Beauty

Chocolate Week Comes to Town

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baking powder, bars, boiling point, boiling water, buttons, cake, caster sugar, chocolate, cinnamon stick, cold, cream, dark, egg, free range eggs, fridge, greate, jam, jar, marshmallows, milk, mug, mugs, organic, pan, recipe, salt, seeds, self-raising flour, semi-skimmed milk, smaller pieces, strawberry jam, sugar, tins, vanilla pod, white

Love chocolate then you will love the fact that this week is Chocolate Week, culminating in The Chocolate Show at Olympia National Hall, London.

Milk, white, dark, organic, buttons, bars, the list goes on so we have looked at the best ways to indulge in this worldwide food phenomena.

Let’s face is, everyone loves chocolate cake, don’t they?

It is easy to make and for one cake you will need:

50g cocoa powder
3 large free range eggs
6 tablespoons of boiling water
4 tablespoons of semi-skimmed milk
175g self-raising flour
1 rounded teaspoon of baking powder
100g of softened butter
300g /caster sugar

For the icing you will need:
150g of broken up, good quality dark
150ml double cream
3 tablespoons of strawberry jam
Icing sugar for dusting

The method for baking this chocolate delight is very simple:

Preheat your oven to 180C / 350F / Gas 4, then grease two 20cm sandwich tins.

Put the cocoa powder and boiling water in a large bowl and mix into a smooth paste. Add the rest of the ingredients and beat until they are all combined well.

Divide the mixture into the two tins then place in the oven. Bake for around 30 minutes, until well risen and slightly coming away from the sides of the tin.

As the cake cooks, start on your icing. Pop the chocolate pieces and cream in a bowl, put the bowl over a pan of simmering water until melted, then leave to cool.

When cool, move the cakes from the tins and spread the bottom of each one with jam . Spread half the icing on the jam, sandwich together and put the rest of the icing on the top. Dust with icing sugar and serve in slices with a mug of hot

When we talk about hot chocolate we don’t mean a packet mix but a delicious, creamy drink that leaves you full and satisfied.

This recipe is perfect for cold winter days and you will need:

1 litre of semi-skimmed milk
150g good quality, plain chocolate, broken into small pieces
Extra chocolate for grating
1 vanilla pod split and seeds scraped out
1 cinnamon stick
A little caster sugar
Mini marshmallows

Making this luxurious drink is super-easy:
Gently heat the vanilla pod and seeds, cinnamon stick and milk in a saucepan until boiling.
With the pan taken away from the heat, add the chocolate pieces and then stir until it melts.
Whisk the liquid until frothy, pour into your favourite mugs. Grate a little chocolate on the top and together with several marshmallows and you are good to go.

Chocolate spread is a kitchen cupboard staple for many but why buy it when you can make your own? For one decent sized jar, you will need:

140g of dark, good quality chocolate, chopped into smaller pieces
160g of double cream
45g of caster sugar
2g of salt

To make the spread put the cream, sugar and salt into a pain and bring to boiling point. Pour the hot mixture over the chopped chocolate and whisk until smooth. Use a hand blender to smooth the mix and once cooled, pour into a sterlised jar and put in the fridge.

Happy Chocolate Week.

Team Pure-Beauty

In a pickle

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boil, bread and cheese, brown sugar, burgers, cast sugar, grill, jar, lemon juice, oven, over-ripe fruit, pan, preserving sugar, purple beauties, red onions, ripe damsons, saucer, sea salt, September, simmer, soft, tomatoes, wrinkles

As summer comes to an end and autumn begins, many of us are switching from burgers on the grill to jacket potatoes in the oven.

With a wide variety of gorgeous autumn produce on offer, this is the perfect time to get to work in the kitchen making chutneys, pickles and jams that will take you through to spring.

To save you slaving over books, we are sharing our favourite recipes that will make your mouth water and taste buds tingle.

Tomato chutney is an autumn kitchen cupboard staple and a great way to use up anything still growing on the allotment.

This recipe does take two days to complete, but is so worth it.

What you will need:
3kg tomatoes
500g red onions
1 large tablespoon of sea salt
500g juicy sultanas
500g cooking apples
500g organic brown sugar
1.14 litre spice pickling vinegar – we love Sarsons

Slice and skin the tomatoes and chop the onions as finely as you can, then place in a large bowl with the salt. Put a clean tea towel over the top and leave somewhere cool overnight.

Next day chop and core the apples and chop the sultanas too.

Mix the sugar and vinegar in a large pan, then stir as you bring to the boil and totally dissolve the sugar. Add the apples and sultanas and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain the tomatoes and onions in a colander, add to the pan and return to the boil. Then simmer the liquid for around an hour, stirring now and again until you have a lovely thick, pulpy mixture.

Once cooled, put into clean, sterilised jars and enjoy with bread and cheese.

Damson Jelly is a fantastic preserve that you can spread on buttered toast or enjoy with colds meats and Sunday lunch.

To make a decent batch of delicious jelly you will need the following ingredients and a little bit of patience, as this can be a fiddly recipe to perfect:

2kg soft, ripe damsons
The juice of two organic lemons
A bag of preserving sugar
Water

Once you have washed the fruit put it in a large pan together with 300 ml of water. Slowly bring to the boil before simmering for around an hour or until the damsons are soft.

Very carefully sieve the hot fruit and catch the resulting liquid in a large bowl. Leave to rest for around three hours.

Next measure the cooled mixture into a pan and add 500g of sugar for every 500ml of liquid. Stir this over a low heat and once the sugar has completely dissolved, raise the temperature and boil until the ‘setting point’ is reached. To find the setting point, put a little jelly onto a saucer, cool slightly then push with your finger. If the mixture wrinkles it is ready, if not, return to the heat, boil for five more minutes and test again.

Put the jelly into sterilised jars, cool before sealing and use within a year, but we think it will be eaten sooner than that!

September is the perfect time for blackberry picking and these purple beauties are perfect for making jam.

To make traditional no nonsense blackberry jam, you will need around three hours of time and the following ingredients:

2kg of just ripe blackberries – if they are a little sharp they will set better than over-ripe fruit
100 ml water
3 tablespoons of organic lemon juice
2kg caster sugar

Put the blackberries, lemon juice and water in a large pan and simmer until the fruit has broken down and is soft and lumpy. This tends to take around an hour and a half.

Once ready, add the sugar and bring to the boil whilst stirring all the time. You can then start testing for the ‘setting point’ using the same method as above. Once ready, place into sterilised jars and seal immediately. Leave in a cool, dark place for 24 hours and then you are ready to enjoy with fresh bread or scones and cream.

Happy cooking and let us know how you get on.

Team Pure-Beauty