Ok, all you cooks out there! In the past few years it can’t have escaped you that Chefs like Jamie Oliver and Gordon Ramsey seem to have taken over on the TV. New cook books are advertised and on sale every few months and kitchen cupboards are packed full of interesting herbs and spices and wonderful gadgets.

Take a look at www.pamperedchef.com for loads of really useful ideas. My favourites are the food chopper which chops onions, veggies, herbs, in fact anything that needs chopping, in seconds. Also, the Microplane adjustable grater is fantastic for finely grating hard cheese, citrus rind, ginger, garlic etc. which comes with a slider attachment to avoid grating fingernails and the end of your finger along with the cheese which we’ve all done at some time!! Both are dishwasher safe which is an added bonus.

They also do some great stonewear which distributes heat uniformly for even baking and browning leaving pizzas crispier and roasts more succulent. There are many different shapes and sizes to choose from and Pampered Chef are so confident with their product that all products carry at least 1-year guarantee; some products even have a lifetime guarantee, so you really can’t go wrong. Get cooking!!

I don’t know about you but I seem to miss Pancake Day every year and usually end up having them the day after. Well not this year because in case you didn’t know it’s Pancake Day today. I admit that I did actually have some pancakes last Tuesday by accident but never mind I can have them again tonight.

My favourite recipe has to be lemon, sugar and chocolate ice cream, this reminds me of when I go skiing in France and we stop off for a crepe. Let me know your favourite dishes so we can get some ideas for tonight.

If you’re unsure how to make pancakes there’s a great basic recipe for lemon and sugar pancakes at the BBC Food website.

Late afternoon I always start craving something sweet and fattening to get me through the rest of the day – I know I shouldn’t give into the temptation but sometimes it’s just too hard! Today I came across this Simpson’s Doughnut Maker and now all I can think about is how good these would be right now.

The recipe is included inside and even explains how to make your favourite flavour batter and topping. A batch of six can be made at a time and there is a non-stick coating so your doughnuts are perfect every time. Available from the GadgetShop for £24.95.

Via Shiny Shiny

After watching ‘The Truth About Food’ on BBC2 last night I have been inspired to start a healthier diet by introducing more fruit and veg into my everyday routine. On the program a group of men were testing a diet of two smoothies a day to see if they could increase the quality of their sperm – all men had a low sperm count and damaged DNA.

Obviously I am not doing it for this reason because I am female but the smoothies looked so damn delicious I want to give it a go myself. After looking on the Internet for a smoothie maker this morning a came across one by Russell Hobbs called the ‘You Are What You Eat Smoothie Maker’ for only £13.24 (reduced from £26.48).

If you have been trying to encourage your kids or even your lover to eat more fruit and vegetables, smoothies could be a great solution - you are giving them a tasty treat and also giving them the nutrients and goodness their bodies need.

The Russel Hobbs smoothie maker is available at Amazon for this price.

Jamie Oliver’s most recent cookbook ‘Cook with Jamie’ was probably one of the most popular gifts under the Christmas tree in 2006. In my family alone we had three copies between ten of us.

The reason I love the book so much is because of its simplicity and explanations on basic food knowledge. Before picking up the book I had no idea what part of the cow different pieces of beef came from but the simple diagrams show this in a way that even young children can understand. Similar drawings of lamb, a pig, a chicken and a duck are also included to help you get a better understanding of what you’re eating.

My favourite recipe from the book is mini roast potatoes with rosemary, garlic, onions and mushrooms. I try to cook this at least once a week with a nice piece of meat and some veggies, this goes down an absolute treat with the family.

A quote from Jamie Oliver: ‘I can’t tell you how long I’ve dreamt about writing this book. It’s the biggest book I’ve ever done, and I’ve really tried to make it a timeless, modern-day classic’.

The book is currently selling at £17.16 reduced from £26.00 at Amazon.co.uk.

For all of you who love baking these cookie cutters could be a great idea for you on Valentines Day. Why not treat your partner to some stylish yet romantic cookies on the special day. Even better why not buy the cutters and tell your partner you want them baked and brought up in bed with your morning coffee. Haha - if anyone can actually pull this off I would love to know.

The copper set comes with six different heart shapes so you can show off your design skills by decorating the shapes in different colour icing and patterns. The set is available for $24.95 from Sur la Table and is currently in stock.

Found via Kitchen Contraptions

I came across a website yesterday that shows in detail the types of food you can eat for 200 calories (kcal). Each image represents 200 calories of the particular type of food ranging from the lowest calorie density such as celery and peppers to foods with much higher densities such as butter and fried bacon. I think this is a fab idea because it shows clearly what you should eat often and what you should try to eat in small moderation.

The website notes that you need to eat about 2000 (female) to 2500 calories (male) a day to maintain your weight then asks this question “you have a fixed amount of calories to “spend” each day; based on the following pictures, which would you eat?”.

After reading this I though actually I would much rather eat 328 grams of kiwi fruit than a teaspoon of peanut butter but unless you have this information in front of you all the time you tend to forget just how many calories are in that peanut butter sandwich. If I could have a chart to put in my kitchen with loads more foods I’d probably have a much healthier diet. Check out WiseGeek to see the images.

I’m a Gillian McKeith fan and when I have the motivation I love to test out her ‘You Are What You Eat’ recipes. This lemon squeezer is perfect if you’ve ever tried her water and lemon morning detox – usually my glass of water is filled with pips and the white part of the lemon and I can’t bring myself to actually drink it.

This great little gadget contains a pip retainer and prevents the juice squirting out in all directions - just pop the lemon into the clear bit at the end and squeeze! According to Gillian, water with a sqeeze of lemon is a great thing to have first thing in the morning and will give you an instant boost.

Available for $27

I’ve always wanted one of these but never actually got around to buying one. After recently going to a Halloween party and spending all night dunking my marshmallows in the chocolate fountain I thought it was about time to get my own. The fountain makes a great centrepiece at any party, and with chrimbo on its way, it’s sure to impress the old relatives and young children.

After searching around I came across this bargain from Littlewoods Direct, recently reduced from £49.99 to £24.00 – there’s a keep warm function and a quiet motor – perfect. It’s making me dribble just looking at the melted choc … mmmm.

Chocolate shot glasses – what a fab idea! Not only do you get a shot of your fav liqueur, but you then get to eat the yummy chocolate - perfect for the end of a good meal.

The Choc Shots are made by Rococo Chocolates in London and come packed in a set of 12. The only thing that worries me is that I can’t have chocolate in the house without eating it, so I’m not sure I could save these up for a dinner party!

Available for £9.99 from iwantoneofthose.com.

As mentioned in a previous post I recently did the super juice diet created by Jason Vale. One of the main ingredients in the majority of the juices was pineapple. I cannot cut a pineapple very easily and I often ended up with very little flesh because I had accidentally cut it off with the skin. Had I known about this ingenious invention I probably wouldn’t have got so stressed when preparing my ingredients.

This little contraption is called the Vacu Vin Pineapple Slicer and it peels and slices the whole pineapple in just a few seconds. All you need to do is cut off the very top of the pineapple and the slicer does the rest for you. This one will certainly be on my Christmas list. You can buy it at Amazon for $9.99, found via Kitchen Contraptions.

I love eggs and soldiers, they’re one of my favourite snacks. The eggs have to be perfectly cooked with a runny yellow centre and a fluffy white outside and the soldiers have to be lightly toasted with a thick layer of butter … mmm it’s making me hungry just thinking about it!

My disappointment when the yolk’s not perfectly runny is always clear. How am I meant to dip my soldiers into a hard yellow centre? Well now I’ve found the perfect little gadget for perfect boiled eggs every time. The Quick Egg Boiler is used in your microwave oven and takes 6 minutes for soft, 7 minutes for medium and 8 minutes for hard. All you have to do is add a little water. Plus you don’t have to bother waiting around while the water boils and make sure you time the three minutes exactly right!

Food shopping is not so bad, I quite enjoy wandering around and deciding what I’ll be eating the following week. However I don’t enjoy loading the bags into the car, unloading the bags from the car and carrying them into the house to unpack them. I’m always on the look out to make my life easier and this Bag Rack looks as though it could save me some unnecessary stress.

The steel frame holds 15 plastic grocery bags by their handles and the angled design prevents tipping and sliding in the back of the car. When the rack’s not in use, it folds flat to 1” thick for easy storage. A pretty nifty little gadget for us girlies if you ask me!

Available for $29.95

Not only does this Emma Orange Peeler have the best name around, but it looks like a great little gadget to save alot of mess and frustration! For all of you who love to eat fruit but hate the time it takes to prepare it, this is for you. It’s a simple concept - the simple ones are always the best - just cut the skin into sections and peel off. For only $5 you can’t go far wrong. Plus look how cute it is

Via Coolest Gadgets

I am one of those people who try every diet available and always end up at the same weight I am now. This Juice Master book is my newest fad and one that appeals to me a lot because I love fruit and vegetables especially when they are in smoothies. I bought the book last week and read it whilst in Marbella at the weekend, Jason Vale the author of the book and creator of the juices insists you read the whole book before starting the new eating plan in order to boost motivation and change your thought process for the better.

The diet allows you to drink five juices throughout the day for the first 7 days and take part in a new exercise plan. No solid foods are allowed throughout the entire first week which is why you can apparently loose 7lbs in the first 7 days. After this initial week you can introduce your normal solid foods back into your diet gradually so that you don’t put all the weight back on that you started with.

Some of the ingredients are supplements you may not have heard of such as Spirulina and Wheatgrass which you can get from your local health shop. Many of the items you will have heard of and can get from the supermarket, Jason Vale claims to be the man who helped Katie Price (Jordan) loose 2 stone in 3 months after the birth of her second son. If she can lose all that weight after just having a baby I’m certainly going to give it a go. Let me know if you have tried this diet, I’d love to hear how you got on.