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10 irresistible delicacies and drinks to feast on this spring

These mouth-watering products could inspire your next indulgent dinner party

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Monday 13 February 2023 17:36 GMT
(Getty)

From organic, ethically raised meat products to tropical, fruity cocktails, our food and drink suggestions are a great way to elevate your recipes and try new, exciting flavours.

Find inspiration for delicious vegan meals

(The Vegetarian Butcher )

In need of plant-based recipe ideas? New Meat: A Plant-based Ode to 100 Classic Meat Dishes by The Vegetarian Butcher (one of the world’s leading plant-based meat brands) is made for meat-loving revolutionaries. The cookbook provides inspiration and tips and tricks for making traditional, feel-good meat dishes such as wellington, bourguignon or Indian butter chicken, entirely with plant-based ingredients.

The Vegetarian Butcher spoke to 11 top chefs and front runners, including Asimakis Chaniotis (executive chef at Michelin-starred London restaurant Pied à Terre), Josita Hartanto (chef at Lucky Leek in Berlin) and James Goodyear (head chef at Michelin-starred Birmingham restaurant Adam’s) who shared their secrets exclusively for The Vegetarian Butcher’s new cookbook.

Buy New Meat at Amazon.co.uk now

Try a ‘forbidden’ cocktail made with natural ingredients

(Forbidden )

If you’re after a cocktail brand with character, give Forbidden Cocktails a go. Alluding to The Blind Pig Speakeasy bar in Jersey Island (named after the police who turned a blind eye to the liquor rooms of the prohibition era), these cocktails are created by passionate bartenders. Some of the offerings include premium vodkas and rums. Packaged in recyclable cans, the Forbidden Cocktails – from the lemonberry house special to the classic pornstar martini – carry no artificial flavours and are vegan-friendly and gluten-free.

The natural ingredients are sourced from partners with a like-minded, green ethos. The brand invites you to “dare to be you” no matter your philosophy or preference in drinks. Get an introductory 20 per cent discount on your first order until 18 April 2023.

Shop now at Forbiddencocktails.com

Taste delicious, sustainable fish straight from the waters of Alaska

(Wild Alaska )

Alaska is known for the clean waters of the Pacific Ocean, where fish swim in the wild. Combine this freedom with the fish’s natural diet and you get salmon and pollack of superior taste and texture. Alaska Seafood offers wild, natural sustainable seafood with no artificial colouring or preservatives. Firm, fit and vibrant, the fish are high in nutrients like selenium and vitamin B12, which contribute to the normal function of the immune and nervous systems. Better still, seafood is also packed with DHA, the omega-3 fatty acid that contributes to the maintenance of normal brain function and vision.

For recipe inspiration and more information visit Wildalaskaseafood.co.uk

Order a nutritious snack box that’s kind to the planet

(Graze )

Looking for a tasty snack to keep you going while working from home? The graze subscription box offers a wide range of nutritionally balanced snacks, delivered straight to your door. From flapjacks to chocolate oat cookies and marmite peanuts, these B Corp-certified treats are packed with fibre, protein and natural ingredients. Graze looks after its snack-loving audience through wholesome recipes, while caring for the planet, recycling more than 50 per cent of its waste on site.

The brand has become particularly popular for its delivered-to-your-door snack boxes. graze products are available in shops across the UK, Netherlands, Germany and Ireland. Plus, you can enjoy 50 per cent off your first box with the code “SNACKS2023” (offer valid until 1 January 2024).

Shop now at graze.com

Order premium meat products to your door

(Meat Me at Home )

Meat lovers in search of a velvety steak or a luscious pork belly should check out Meat Me At Home. The company delivers exceptional meats (both fresh and frozen) to your home, creating a fine-dining experience in your kitchen. Sister company Freedown Food has more than 30 years of experience of importing specialist meats from across the globe (including some from the UK) and exporting them to Michelin-starred restaurants around the country.

Try Meat Me At Home’s olive fed wagyu beef reared in Yorkshire (mixing the buttery finish of traditional Japanese wagyu beef with the more delicious flavours of grass-fed beef), or cuts such as the wagyu tomahawk steaks and the highly marbled Picanha. Right now, use the code “Easter23” to get 15 per cent off your order until 13 April 2023.

Find out more at Meatmeathome.com

Buy ethically-reared meat from an online butcher

(Turner & George )

For meat aficionados seeking a more personalised experience, Turner & George could be the way to go. The butcher has supplied high-end, ethically raised meat and poultry to London’s discerning foodies for the past 10 years, both online and from its shop in London’s Angel, and it opened its second shop in Waterloo in November 2022. Chef Richard H Turner and butcher James George find exceptional meat by personally visiting independent farms in the UK.

T&G focuses on procuring and providing quality dry-aged steak, and its butchers make sausages on site from the same primal cuts as the steaks and joints. Order online for next-day delivery to mainland UK and get 20 per cent off all click and collect orders at Waterloo using the code “TGIN23” until 28 February 2023.

Visit Turnerandgeorge.co.uk now

Enjoy your favourite pre-mixed cocktails at home

(Boozy )

Craving your favourite end-of-the-week cocktail but don’t have the patience or the ingredients to make it at home? Boozy has you covered. The brand offers premium, pre-mixed cocktails in eight flavours: Long Island iced tea, espresso martini, pornstar martini, mojito, purple rain, blue lagoon, margarita and sex on the beach. Boozy pre-mixes all the key ingredients so you don’t have to.

Simply shake, pour, add the relevant mixer (orange juice, lemonade, coke or soda) and serve. The cocktails come in 120ml and 500ml pouches and are also available in gift sets including the ingredients, two glasses and a recipe card. There’s free shipping over £50 and you can get 15 per cent off a £50 minimum spend using the code “BZYIND152” (offer valid until 31 March 2024).

Visit Boozy.co.uk now

Sip on an ethically made beer

(Hepworth )

Beer enthusiasts with a conscience are bound to love Hepworth, the brewery that puts the environment at the centre of its production. As well as using ground-breaking technology in beer heat source pumps, the brand uses solar power, electric cars for its field-based team, CO2 recovery during fermentation and its new reed beds to recover water waste. What’s more, Hepworth aims to become entirely carbon-neutral as soon as the technology allows it.

Beers are gluten-free and vegan-friendly, with the team aspiring to make all beers organic, too. Hepworth is currently rebranding in order to give a more integrated, modern look to its beer brands in March 2023. Fancy saving on your first order? Use the code “HEP10” for 10 per cent off (offer valid until 30 April 2023).

Visit Hepworthbrewery.co.uk now

Bring a taste of South America to your cooking

(Chimilove )

Add a unique flavour to your meal with Chimilove’s plant-based sauces. The brand balances fresh, natural ingredients to create a sensational selection packed with South American flavours. A must-have for BBQs, the sauces are made with plant-based ingredients, making them great for vegans, vegetarians and meat-lovers alike. The range includes a variety of chimichurris, spicy Aji sauce and Chimichurri & Mayonnaise, with the flavours inspired by one of the creators’ Colombian roots.

All Chimilove products are made in the UK and packed sustainably, with the company donating profits to plant trees in collaboration with the foundation Just One Tree. You’ll find the brand’s product range in more than 200 shops and online wholesalers across the UK, including Selfridges, Whole Foods Market and Ocado. Get 25 per cent off with the code “CHIMILOVE25” now (offer valid until 31 March 2023).

Visit Chimi.love now

Take your desserts to the next level with a scratch baking kit

(BakesterBox)

This is your chance to level up your baking, with a little help from the BakesterBox gourmet home baking kits. Founded in 2020 by Le Cordon Bleu-trained pastry chef Tamsin Robinson, BakesterBox provides the perfect solution to hassle-free home baking without compromising on quality. Open a BakesterBox kit to find pre-measured professional-quality ingredients, handy baking equipment and easy-to-follow instructions.

Expect exciting recipes such as the Valrhona blond chocolate, pistachio and cardamom cookies, fluffy cinnamon buns and decadent passion fruit chocolate fondants to delight your inner pastry chef and your tastebuds, too. Available as one-off baking kits, as well as three- or six-month baking subscriptions.

Find out more at Bakesterbox.com

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