Product Study : Orgran BuckWheat Pancakes & Lavera Body Spa

This morning, my son and I made buckwheat pancakes for breakfast. He asked me to buy this from the health shop on Sunday. The mix can make 10 pancakes and cost about A$3.75. We used half of the mix. Here are the ingredients : stone-milled buckwheat flour 49.7%, rice flour, maize starch, tapioca, raising agents (monocalcium phosphate, bicarbonate of soda) I had to add water, milk and egg as per instructions. 

We ate the pancakes with strawberry jam and golden syrup (as I ran out of maple syrup). The pancakes were rather spongy and very fuss-free to cook. It would surely taste very bland on its own as no sugar was added. Overall, I quite like them.

And a cup of lemon verbena tea to go with it. I dried the last season's leaves and they stored very well.

On Sunday we also bought some other products.  Our family uses body moisturiser a fair bit due to the dry climate here. The lower parts of our legs suffer the most dryness. This is a new brand 'Lavera' from Germany.

Here are the ingredients and the list looks rather impressive for $20. It comes in lavender, coconut and orange. We decided to try the orange.  It has a mild smell and we love it.

Product Study : Champignons & Cereals

Time for an entry on products which I like. I use champignons some times for my dishes, especially when I cook ginger and sesame chicken with dark soya sauce. I have loved champignons since childhood. My grandma used to put lots of these in soups.

Over here in Australia, I always go for 'Homebrand' Whole champignons from Safeway Supermarkets. They are large and almost always do not have any blemish. Many other brands which I have tried will have some sort of blemishes such as black spots.

Cereals are convenient breakfast foods and I give it to my son a few times a week. The usual cereals in supermarkets really do have a lot sugar and salt in them.  I steer clear of brands like Kellogs, Uncle Toby's, Nestle etc. Cereals are meant to be good for health due to the fibre in them, but to get loaded with sugar and salt from eating cereals is surely not a good thing.

I usually visit the 'health foods' section to get our cereals.  They may be slightly more expensive than the usual brands featured on tele, but I find them worth buying and affordable. One of my favourite brands is 'Freedom'. They have a few flavours. One of them is 'Cocoa Puffs' (shown above). Here are the ingredients : gluten free flour mix (rice, maize and wholegrain sorghum flour), sugar, chocolate syrup 8.5%, coca powder, psyllium, salt, emulsifier, natural chocolate flavour, mineral (iron), vitamins (niacin, thiamine, folic acid)

Another is the Maple Crunch.  Ingredients : Gluten free flour mix (rice, wholegrain sorghum and maize), sugar, apple juice concentrate (6%), psyllium, salt, emulsifier (471), Tricalcium phosphate, nature identical flavours (maple, butterscotch), mineral (iron), vitamins (niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, folate)

'Orgran' is another brand which I buy. They have 'Rice O's' wild berry' flavour.  Ingredients : brown rice 59%, dextrose, milled yellow pea 12%, millet flour 8%, psyllium 2%, pear juice concentrate, calcium carbonate, brown rice syrup, emulsifier(vegetable-derived monoglycerides), beetroot powder, salt, natural raspberry flavour (0.3%), vegetable-derived stabliliser(guar gum), natural caramel colour, tumeric, citric acid.

'Itsy Bitsy Cocoa O' is Orgran's chocolate wholegrain cereal. Ingredients : Brown rice flour 65%, raw sugar, wholegrain sorghum flour 8%, psyllium 2%, coca 2%, natural caramel colour, calcium carbonate, salt, brown rice syrup, emulsifier (vegetable-derived monoglycerides), natural chocolate flavour.