Maggi Chicken & Leek Potato Bake (Degustabox)

There were quite a few Maggi recipe mixes included in the July Degustabox (a surprise food subscription box - see my review HERE) and I decided to give the Cheesy Chicken & Leek Potato Bake a try yesterday. It's not a flavour that I would ever have thought of buying for my family but that actually made it look quite interesting and different compared to the other recipe mixes.

The recipe mix is very easy to follow and simply needs chicken thighs, leeks, potatoes, milk and cheese to complete the meal. I didn't actually have chicken thighs so I used chicken breasts cut into large chunks instead. I also added an extra breadcrumb topping to the bake to give it a bit more crunch!

First step is to fry the chicken and leeks until browned.

Next add the Maggi Chicken & Leek recipe mix (that has been first whisked into the milk) to the frying pan. Then add the sliced potatos and bring everything to the boil. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. 

Transfer the whole lot into an oven proof dish and top with the cheese. I also decided to add some "breadcrumbs"to the top (after the photo was taken!) just to liven up the colours and textures a bit. My breadcrumbs are actually a few blended up Jacob's cream crackers - they gave a nice golden appearance to the bake and a little bit of extra crunch too.

I have to admit that cheese or milk based sauces are not usually my thing at all, I always prefer to go for tomato based sauces. However, the flavours here were very tasty, and won me over completely. It's a simple combination of cheesy and herby flavours, without being overly salty, and everyone in the family enjoyed their meal. I'm looking forward to trying the rest of the Maggi recipes mixes that I received from Degustabox.

Degustabox July - Foodie Surprise Box & Discount Code!

I've been receiving a Degustabox for a few months now and I'm still as excited as ever when it comes to opening up the large box filled with foodie surprises. As I'm sure many of you will know already, Degustabox is a monthly subscription service, with no fixed contract, that sends a large parcel filled with an exciting selection of foodie products. The delivery system is excellent and well organised, they always send a text giving you the exact hour that your parcel will be arriving, and the option to rearrange the delivery for the next day. 

Discount Code: 0QNP5

Each Degustabox cost £12.99 a month, which includes delivery, with no fixed contract involved. As always Degustabox have kindly provided my readers with a Discount Code for £3.00 off next months' Degustabox, bringing the cost to £9.99 delivered. Enter the code - 0QNP5

www.degustabox.com

This month was slightly different for Degustabox as they had two separate boxes, one with alcoholic drinks and one without. I have the products from both boxes to show you so here's a look at all the new goodies inside the July Degustabox:

ZEO Drinks: I love that Degustabox included all three varieties of ZEO; peach and grapefruit Burst, citrus Crush, and Lime Zest. These drinks have a love them or hate them type of flavour. They certainly make a change from the usual sugary fizzy drinks as these are not very sweet at all. They have a tingly, dry edge and light fruity, almost botanical, flavours that I found quite refreshing. 

Portlebay Popcorn: I've been wanting to try the Portlebay Popcorn range for ages so I was delighted to find three different flavours in the Degustabox; the original sweet and salty Kracklecorn, Chilli & Lime, and Crispy Bacon & Maple Syrup.  The individual snack sizes are very useful and I can't wait to give them a taste test this weekend!

Dr Oetker Eton Mess & Violet Crystals: These are edible decorations which not only add extra colour to bakes but extra flavour too! I'm especially looking forward to making some Eton Mess inspired cupcakes using the Eton Mess flavoured sprinkles. Degustabox have definitely got something going on with Dr. Oetker because the last two boxes have also included new items from the Dr. Oetker range - great for anyone who's into baking - like me! Anyone else looking forward to GBBO returning next week as much as me? 

The Berry Company: I hadn't heard of The Berry Company before but apparently they are one of Europe's fastest growing drinks brands with a range of nutritious fruit juices and fruit flavoured teas. I love trying out new brands and this White Tea with Peach drink sounds like an interesting mix.

Frank Honest Snacking: This Blueberry & Chocolate Snack Bar sounds so good. The range is made with 100% natural ingredients and all their bars are free from gluten, wheat, nut, dairy and refined sugar. They're available in lots of delicious sounding flavours; Orange, Oat & Double Chocolate, Strawberry & Chocolate,  and Blueberry & Chocolate.

Maggi So Juicy: I've tried the Maggi range before (see review here and here) and they always give great results for family meals. I like having a few sachets in the cupboard for those days when I'm pushed for time. This So Juicy Oriental Soy & Garlic Chicken is a new flavour to me and comes with a special cooking bag that helps lock in all the juices whilst cooking. 

Maggi So Baked: I also received further sachets from the Maggi So Baked range. These are designed to make baked recipes and come in a variety of options. I received Chicken & Leek Potato Bake, Piri Piri Chicken, and Beef & Ale Casserole. These will all come in very useful for me and I'll definitely be using them for midweek meals. 

Green & Black's Organic Dark Chocolate Lemon: You can't really go wrong with chocolate and luckily Degustabox always include a sweet treat in their boxes. I've reviewed this Green & Black's chocolate bar before (see here) and it's a lovely combination of tangy lemon flavour with a sweetly rich dark chocolate. 

Hornsby's Blueberry Cider: These were included in the alcoholic version of this month's Degustabox. Hornsby's cider bottles were also included in the May Degustabox (in different flavours), and even though I don't drink cider I'm really intrigued by this blueberry flavoured version. 

Overall, I was extremely happy with this months Degustabox, it had a good mix of new products, with quite a few new brands to me too (Zeo, Frank, The Berry Company, Portlebay), aswell as the more well established brands (Dr. Oetker, Maggi). If you received the July Degustabox then I'd love to know what you thought of it in the comments below! 

For more details:

Degustabox website: www.degustabox.com

Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DegustaboxUK

Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DegustaboxUK

I received a Degustabox in order to provide an honest review.

Maggi So Tender Italian Herbs Chicken Review

Another recipe mix review from me today. I actually used this Maggi So Tender Italian Herbs last week. It's an interesting way to make chicken and uses a super easy method I've never encountered before. There are four pre-seasoned papyrus papers in the sachet which provides all the herbs and spices needed to cook the chicken. I really had no idea about the "seasoned papyrus papers", but they are simply paper pockets which are covered in seasoning. Take a look at the photos below!

It's extremely easy to get this meal on the go. Just unfold one of the papyrus papers and place a chicken breast inside, fold back the papyrus paper and press down. The chicken is now nicely coated in the Italian Herbs seasoning mix. Then just place each papyrus paper parcel in a frying pan (no oil needed) and cook on a low heat for about 10 minutes each side. 

The chicken looked great once it was cooked, still moist and hadn't dried out at all. I served it simply with a salad, a light meal on a very hot day. The chicken was very tasty but quite simply flavoured, a mix of herbs (rosemary, basil, oregano, thyme, parsley), with onion, garlic and black pepper. It's also quite salty, although not as salty as I was expecting from this type of recipe mix. I really like how quick and easy this was to make and also the fact that the meal was a success with the rest of the family. I would definitely try more from the Maggi So Tender range, although I personally wouldn't use these types of recipe mixes very often.

I received this Maggi So Tender in a Degustabox parcel (back in January!).

Degustabox Review & Discount Code!

There are quite a few subscription foodie services around at the moment but one that has always stood out to me is the Degustabox, an exciting monthly surprise tasting box. Each month a range of specially selected new and limited edition (magically words to me!) food products from well known brands are sent out in a gorgeously packaged box. There is no fixed contract involved, the monthly fee is £12.99 which includes delivery, and Degustabox estimate that the value of the contents is approximately twice that.

Competition:

If you love new and limited edition goodies as much as me then I'm pleased to say that Degustabox have kindly offered my readers the chance to WIN a Degustabox! I will be posting the competition details tomorrow so please check back!

Discount Code:
In the meantime you can also use the following Discount Code for £3.00 off your next Degustabox. The code is - BEZLS

There were so many products I actually struggled to get them all in a photo! What surprised me about the Degustabox I received was the quality of the products. Many of them are organic, and others are brands that I've previously lingered over in Waitrose and health food shops! This is definitely a box for someone who likes to try goodies that are a little bit different, as well as products that the whole family can enjoy. For me, it had the perfect balance of food products. I'll be featuring in depth reviews soon, but here's a quick run down of all of the goodies in the January Degustabox.

Dorset Cereals Berry Granola - a deliciously simple mix of gently baked oats, zingy raspberries & blackberries. I'm a big fan of Dorset Cereals so I can't wait to try this new Berry Granola. I think this would also be lovely for making some berry and granola muffins!

There were two drinks included in the parcel, both very well wrapped. Firstly, the Zico Chocolate Coconut Water. I haven't been a fan of coconut water in the past but the idea of a chocolate version is intriguing! It's low calorie, at only 20 calories per 100ml, and is made using natural chocolate flavour. The other drink is Go! Kombucha China White Fermented Raw Tea. This is described as having a unique sweet/sour taste and follows an original Ancient Chinese recipe for kombucha tea, often seen as a tonic to good health. Review coming soon!

Goody Good Stuff - I'm so glad there are some sweets included in the box! Not just any sweets though, these are all-natural, gelatin free, and dairy free (as well as being free from gluten, soy, nuts, high fructose corn syrup). There were two large bags in the Degustabox; Sour Mix & Match, and Tropical Fruit.

Maggi Recipe Mixes - There were three Maggi recipes mixes included; So Juicy Sticky BBQ, So Juicy Mexican Chicken, and So Tender Italian Herbs for Chicken. I've reviewed the So Juicy range before HERE, but the So Tender recipe mix with papyrus cooking paper is new to me and I can't wait to try it out for some quick and tasty mid week dinners.

Quinola Mothergrain Express - I was so excited when I saw this! I love Quinoa for a healthy superfood treat, and even though it's fairly easy to make on it's own, I've been looking longingly at the ready made express Quinoa packs for quite awhile now. These organic Quinoa pouches can be eaten hot or cold and are ideal as part of a salad or as a hot side.

Amy's Kitchen - Another brand that I've always wanted to try. Amy's Kitchen use organic ingredients to create nourishing health conscious soups. I buy a lot of fresh tomato soups and I'm eager to see how this Amy's Kitchen chunky variety compares. 

Jules Destrooper Butter Crisps - The Jules Destrooper biscuiterie was founded over 125 years ago and even though I was aware of this distinguished brand, I'm ashamed to say I've never tried their biscuits. Thank you Degustabox for introducing me to these delightful butter biscuits! 

Garofalo Whole Wheat Spaghetti - I was lucky enough to receive this extra product in my Degustabox. An organic whole wheat pasta made in Naples by premium Italian pasta makers Garofalo. I adore whole wheat pasta so this was another winning product for me. 

Overall I was exceptionally pleased with my Degustabox. I loved the eclectic range of products, from family meal helpers, soups and drinks, to lovely sweet treats, all from an interesting mix of well known and distinctive brands. If you're the type of person, who loves searching out unusual products or want some new foodie inspiration then the Degustabox offers a good value way of trying out something a little bit different!

For more details:
http://bit.ly/DBhomepage - Degutabox website
http://bit.ly/DBUKfacebook - Facebook
http://bit.ly/DBUKTwitter - twitter

And don't forget to check back on Grocery Gems tomorrow for the Degustabox competition!

I received a Degustabox in order to provide an honest review.