IF the past months of full-on family life have left you feeling frazzled, give yourself a lift with my summer life hacks.
Save time with these 20 great tips and products, then get out there and enjoy the sunshine we have been promised.
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And try the easy recipes below from morrisons.com.
SHAKE IT UP
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Freshen up your meal ideas by borrowing cookbooks from family and friends – or find lots of delicious recipes at Morrisons.com.
SPEEDY MEALS
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From freezer to plate in eight minutes, turn to Iceland’s king prawns in tomato and garlic sauce, down from £4 to £3.75 or three for £10.
CHOP CHOP
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Give yourself a break in the kitchen with ready prepped essentials such as Iceland’s frozen chopped garlic, £1 for 100g.
TIME-SAVING SAUCE
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Make short work of pasta with Napolina’s frozen sauces, split into portions to reduce food waste, £1.50 for 250g at Iceland.
BERRY CLEVER
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Use mushy strawberries and other fruit to pep up smoothies. Or freeze them for later to defrost and use when you are ready.
MAKE A DATE
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Tuck into Morrisons’ Date Night Meal for Two. For £12, you get two mains, two side dishes, dessert and a bottle of wine (or Sicilian Lemonade).
TRANSFORM TEA TIME
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M&S’ new £5 cook book – 50 Fast, Fresh & Easy Recipes To Transform Family Meals – uses its time-saver range, such as red pepper paste, £1.50.
LOLLY GOOD SHOW
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Whizz up frozen fruit with yoghurt then freeze for healthy lollies. Aldi has fun moulds, £2.99, in unicorn, dinosaur and penguin.
COOL AS A CUCUMBER
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Freeze berries, cucumber, fruit chunks or mint in ice-cube trays (alone or in water) for fancy looking drinks.
WOK’S UP
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Make a tasty meal of noodles, vegetables and sauce for just £3 at Morrisons, saving 70p on buying the items individually.
AVO GO HERO
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To soften a hard avocado, wrap it in foil and pop it in the oven for about ten minutes at 90C. Then put it in the fridge to cool.
READY OR NOT
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For days you don’t fancy cooking, you can get three for £10 on dishes, including cajun chicken breasts, normally £4.19, at Waitrose.
WELL, WINE NOT
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If you have leftover wine, freeze it in ice cube trays and pop one out when a recipe calls for a dash of red or white.
GENIUS AND TONIC
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Freeze slices of lemon, lime or grapefruit in a bag for an instant way to add zing to your evening cocktail.
RICE ONE, SON
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Whip up a meal in minutes with Uncle Ben’s long grain or golden veg rice, which The Co-op has for £1.80 each, or two for £2.
ICE YOUR CREAM
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Chill your sun cream in the fridge for an instant cooling skin-hit on those hot summer days in the garden or by the beach.
TAKE IT SLOW
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Slow cookers are good for pasta sauces or pulled pork. Morrisons has Schwartz BBQ pulled pork seasoning for 90p, or four for £2.
SLAP IT ALL OVER
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Give your skin a summer treat with Nivea’s nourishing body lotion for dry skin, currently half-price at Morrisons, £3.
SMOOTH OPERATOR
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Get bikini-ready with Veet hair removal cream for sensitive skin, down from £4.50 to £3 at Morrisons.
WINE CHILLER
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Instead of watering down your glass of vino with ice, freeze some grapes and add them to your glass.
Market Street tip
“Try adding a topping of passion fruit and mango sorbet to your Prosecco for a treat, or pop it into the kids’ drink for cooling fruity flavour on a hot day”
Herby frittata
Serves two
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Preparation time: Ten minutes
Cooking time: Ten minutes
YOU NEED:
- 3 eggs
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp turmeric
- 1 handful coriander, chopped
- 1 handful parsley, chopped
- Small handful dill, chopped
- 4 spring onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp walnuts (optional)
- 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
- 30g feta, crumbled
METHOD: Heat the grill on high. Whisk together the eggs in a large bowl along with the baking powder and turmeric.
Season with salt and pepper. Stir in most of the coriander, parsley and dill, then add the spring onions and, if using, the walnuts.
In an ovenproof, non-stick frying pan, drizzle some of the rapeseed oil. Pour in the mixture and cook for eight minutes until the egg is nearly set, then place under the grill for a minute.
Sprinkle over the remaining herbs and crumbled feta.
Cod pesto parcels
Serves four
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Preparation time: Five minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
YOU NEED:
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 fresh cod fillets (approx 130g), skinned
- 4 tbsp pesto
- 1 large handful cherry tomatoes
- 1 lemon
METHOD: First cut out four squares of foil and then drizzle a little oil on each square, sit a cod fillet on top. Spread the pesto on top of the fillets.
Cut the cherry tomatoes in half and scatter them around the fish, then give each portion a good squeeze of lemon. Fold the foil into parcels, then bake in the oven at 180C/160 fan/gas 4 for 15 minutes, until the fish is cooked and flakes easily with a fork.
Serve drizzled with the juices from the foil. If desired, garnish with salad leaves, such as rocket.
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