I'm not usually too lucky in competitions, but Instagram is my good friend when it comes to giveaways 😉 My most recent strike of luck was a Mini Box from Halal Goodies.

Have you heard about Halal Goodies yet? They're quite a fresh business, that has only been launched in March 2016. The brains behind the brand, Ameen and Naziha, wanted to make sure they set a good example of halal lifestyle for their daughter, so after years of struggling they came up with the concept of Halal Goodies. 

The idea is simple - they offer a selection of boxes filled with beauty products. What makes them different, is that all the products are halal-friendly. They hand-pick every single product they put in their boxes, after carefully evaluating the sellers, so that we can relax and enjoy the best selection of luxurious beauty products.

My box contained two full-sized products: Green Tea Body Butter and Chocolate Marshmallow Face Mask. In addition to these, there were five samples: Face Shimmer, Shampoo and Detangler, and the cutest little bar of natural soap.

If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably already seen me sharing the love for that one 😉 This chocolate face mask is made of all natural ingredients in form of a powder. You just need to mix a little bit with some water, or, as recommended on the box, rose water, and apply to your face for few minutes. It feels really indulgent, and smalls so chocolate-y that you'll definitely be tempted to have a taste!

Next product I got t try was this Green Tea body butter. It's just as the body butter should be, rich and creamy. And it has this zingy, citrus scent - it just feels light and refreshing. And because it's all natural again, as at Halal Goodies they strongly believe in #NONASTIES, it's good enough to use on Adam too.

As I mentioned above, in addition to the full-sized goodies there were a few samples. I'm particularly keen on this tiny bar of natural soap, which not only looks cute but also smells amazing! I'll admit though - I haven't used it yet, because I'm one of those people who think it would be a shame to ruin it just yet 😁

You can find all the different boxes over on www.halalgoodies.co.uk, where they have something special for everyone. 

Where we live, we're surrounded by halal butchers. You can get pretty much anything you want, from chicken to lamb and beef, with handful of shops offering duck, rabbit or even venison.

But it still feels like they cater more for large families who buy meat in bulk, and are not overly interested in the foodie types - I always seem to get the looks when I buy a small portion of chicken or meat. Or maybe it's because I'm a gori 😉

The guys behind Halalnivore are self-proclaimed foodies, who weren't satisfied with the quality of meat available at the local butchers. They invested a lot of time and effort into researching the best quality halal meat suppliers, to create gourmet meat club that delivers the best cuts straight to your door.

I met the guys a few months ago at the London Halal Food Festival - they are such a friendly and enthusiastic team! Although I remember actually being more interested in their new range of meat rubs, while Hubby was discussing the meat 😉 A while ago they kindly offered to send us their Starter Box to try out. They call it "the ultimate box to get you started on your gourmet meat journey". 

How it works then?

If you place your order by 12pm on Tuesday, you'll get your selected box on Thursday. The box is delivered by the courier straight to your door. The meat is fresh, never frozen (although this only applies to the cuts, burgers might arrive frozen), and with the way it's packed it can stay fresh for up to 48 hours - once you have it delivered it's suitable for freezing. 

The starter box contains succulent beef steaks: 2 x 8oz Irish rump steaks and 2 x 8oz Brazilian rib eye steaks, as well as juicy 6oz Angus Beef burgers and 5oz Lamb kofte burgers (packs of 5).

I must admit - I've always been slightly scared of cooking steak. In all honesty, I'm not really a big fan of red meat - I could probably happily go through life only eating chicken 😁So I've never actually cooked a steak before, and wasn't sure if I can get it right. But Halalnivore though about the beginners too - in the box I found a little guide to cooking the perfect steak, and by following that I cooked my rib eye to a perfect medium, just as I wanted! 

And, although I said I'm not really into red meat, I'm partial to a good burger. Sadly, it's hard to get a decent one where we live - there are maybe a couple of places that serve tasty halal burgers. And what's available at the shops isn't that exciting too.

But oh my, the Angus Beef burgers. Honestly the best I've eaten in a long time! 

And I even enjoyed the lamb burgers! I absolutely hate lamb, and will only eat it if we go to someone's house and that's what's on offer, but the Halalnivore kofte burgers have so much flavour from the spices, that I found them quite pleasant.

Haalnivore offers great deals for all the lovers of good quality meat. You can choose from set boxes that include a selection of best cuts, or you can browse the Halalnivore website, select your favourite cuts and/or burgers and they will make that into a box for you. The boxes start at £39 for the Starter Box we've been trying, with free delivery over £80 (and just £4.50 if you spend over £25).

We found the box to be quite a good value for money, especially when you consider the fact that all the meat was fresh and carefully sourced for best quality, so it equals the standard you get in the best restaurants!

For even better value, Halalnivore kindly offered a discount for my readers - use discount code HALALMAMA5 for 5% OFF your order,

*The above post was written in collaboration with 'Halalnivore', who kindly sent us their products for the purpose of the review. All presented opinions are my own.

I love snacking. I'd say it's a big part of my life, especially when I spend the days at home with Adam. It's probably also one of the main reason for all those pounds piling up!

Actually snacking itself isn't necessarily all bad - it's supposed to be good to have a snack in between meals, to avoid overeating large portions. But then, the snacks need to be healthy, not like my usual choice of chocolate, biscuits or crisps. Theoretically I could just have some fruit or vegetables, but let's be honest - we all like variety and want something more exciting than an apple! I know I do, especially when I spend the whole rainy day bored at home. And I admit, most of my snacking is a result of boredom.

One thing I do like, that's pretty healthy, are dried fruit crisps. I absolutely love apple crisps, but usually have little luck finding them - all I can ever find on the shelves are soft dried apple slices, whereas I prefer a bit of crunch. Actually most dried fruit are soft, the only crunchy ones that I can usually find are the banana crisps. My own dehydrator is definitely on a wishlist for the future ;)

Turns out, there's a brand of healthy fruit and vegetable crisps for the crunch fans like me!

Nimsha Raja first introduced her air-dried Nim's Fruit Crisps in 2012. She realised that both adults and children enjoy the flavour and texture of the crisps, but wanted a healthier option - especially being a mum. She started sourcing great quality fruit, and perfected the process of air-drying them for crispness and great flavour. Her crisps fitted perfectly into growing healthy lunchbox trend, and quickly grew in popularity. Last year Nimsha was able to set up her own UK-based factory, meaning the brand can now ensure consistency of the product and exceptional quality.

Nim's Crisps are currently available in eight varieties. Five fruity options include apple, pear, pineapple, melon and orange and pineapple and kiwi. There are also three vegetable varieties: tomato and cucumber, peppers and courgettes, and classic beetroot and parsnip.

I already said that I love apple crisps, but it was great to try something different. While I wasn't overly keen on the dried melon, I absolutely loved the dried orange - could happily have a whole pack of just that! Although I must say that after trying few more pieces, even the melon started growing on me. My absolute favourite from the range though was the pineapple. I've had dried pineapple before, but never crunchy, so it was definitely a whole new experience.

All in all, the Nim's Crisps are the perfect healthy snacks. One pack counts as your five-a-day, and they're 100% natural and vegan, with no added nasties - just dried fruit and vegetables, so they're fat, dairy and gluten free. And they come in really convenient small packs, perfect on the go.

Adam didn't quite share my enthusiasm - to be honest, the flavours in the crisps are pretty intensive, so along with the unusual crisp texture I suppose it got a bit too overwhelming for his little tastebuds. But now Nim's Crisps are also trying to introduce Nim's Kids - a range of more subtle flavours for the little snackers.

(please note that the final flavour varieties haven't been decided yet, the ones presented above are just examples)

The current range of Nim's Crisps is available online and at independent local retailers, but they want to reach the major supermarkets. To achieve that, and to launch the kids' range, they're currently running a fundraising campaign through Tesco BackIt - a programme that helps small food and drink businesses get discovered by customers. And if you choose to back their campaign, you can get rewarded for making a contribution! If you have a look at their campaign page, you can see exactly where your support can take them. Be quick though, they now have less than a month left to reach their goal!

*I was sent samples of  Nim's Crisps range for the purpose of the review, but as always I've given my honest opinion.

Last week was the school half-term for us. We didn't really plan anything special, like lots of people do, but Hubby took a few days off work so we spent that week all together.

The weather wasn't exactly the best, but we did decide to take a small trip. And what's better about autumn than all the colours around? So we went off to visit the Ashridge forest in Hertfordshire - it's only about half an hour drive from us, so it's a perfect choice for a day out.

The forest is part of Ashridge Estate, owned by National Trust. It's a whooping 5,000 acres of woodlands. It's great for walkers - we saw lots of people with dogs, and whole families enjoying a stroll. We only chose to have a short walk, having a toddler in tow, but quite a few people had prams and strollers with them - there are some wheelchair trails available.

For those hanging out for a while, there's a small shop and café to grab a lunch, although possibly the best option is to bring a picnic. We did bring some sandwiches and snacks, but the day was pretty chilly and the dark clouds covering the sky made us unsure, so we had our lunch after returning to the warmth of our car - plus Adam's been battling a cold pretty much since he started the nursery, so we didn't want to keep him out in the cold for too long. But I'd love to go again closer to summer, and spend some more time hanging around the woods.

We still enjoyed the trip - Adam was picking up leaves, and even found some nice acorns (we never found any in town, I'm not even sure if I ever spotted an oak here!).

Here are just a few of the photos from the day:

National Chocolate Week!

It's a perfect excuse to indulge (not that I need one!). Some quality Grenada, nibalicious 60% dark chocolate bar , pack of delicious florentines , and all that washed down with a mug of hot chocolate. What more could one want?

Well, there is probably one thing - an indulgent chocolate sauce. I made some churros earlier on (even though they weren't that great), so all I needed was some dipping sauce. And, although these Thomas J. Fudge's Wondrous White Chocolate Florentines are already delicious (seriously, I need more of these in my life!), why not dip them in some more chocolate? After all, they're only covered on one side ;)


As part of 'Death by Chocolate' challenge, set by Thomas J. Fudge's to celebrate the National Chocolate Week, I prepared two delicious chocolate dips. Simple chocolate dipping sauce is so easy to make, but so adaptable you can easily add your own twist to it. I made kind of 'his' and 'her' option - one with a chilli kick, one with subtle hint of rose.






If you want to make your own chilli chocolate sauce, you'll need:

• 100 ml double cream
• 50 ml whole milk
• 3 tbsp golden syrup
• 100 g quality dark chocolate (I used 82% organic dark chocolate from The Grenada Chocolate Company, for its intense flavour and bitterness)
• 3 small dried chilli peppers 

• 100 ml double cream
• 3 tbsp rose water
• 100 g dark chocolate (not too bitter, otherwise the rose aroma won't come through)
• 2-3 tbsp golden syrup

*The above post was written in collaboration with Thomas J. Fudge's, who set up the 'Death by Chocolate' challenge and kindly supplied the ingredients.

In Poland, we call it "ciasto drożdżowe", which literally means "yeast cake". It's often made with variety of seasonal fruit, but the simplest version is a bread-style cake, simply topped with sweet crumble. For some reason I was craving it the other day, so I had a go at making it.

There are plenty of recipes for this online, but I used one from my 1980s "Contemporary Polish cuisine" cookbook, that I took from my mum some time ago.

Ingredients:

Cake:

Crumble: *

• 50 g flour
• 25 g butter
• 25 g icing sugar

*I halved the quantities originally shown in the book, as this made way too much crumble for the cake

Preparation:

Place the milk, yeast and 50 g flour in a large bowl and mix well to make a leaven. Cover with a cloth and leave in a warm place to prove for about an hour. 

Separate the eggs. Whisk the yolks with sugar and add to the leaven. Add the remaining flour and salt, and knead the dough. Towards the end of kneading add the melted butter - make sure you let it cool down slightly. Whisk the egg whites and gently knead together with your dough.

To prepare the crumble, knead all the ingredients together.

Place the dough in a greased baking tin, up to about half of the tin's height. Brush the top with beaten egg and sprinkle the crumble on top. Cover and leave to prove for further 30 minutes or so.

Bake in 180C for about 40 minutes.

The cake is not overly sweet, and has a bread-like texture - it's best eaten warm, and great with a spread of butter or jam.

To prepare a portion of syrup, simply slice a large onion and sprinkle with sugar, which will release the juices. Let it sit overnight.

In the morning you'll have a portion of clear syrup. Take a spoonful as needed for your cough and cold. 

It tastes quite nice and sweet, but keep in mind it does smell and taste of onions! Adam decided he didn't like it and spat his spoonful out - you can try keeping the nose closed while drinking it.

Days are getting shorter and colder, meaning we're getting hit by autumn after few really hot days last week. This will bring changes to our kitchens too.

Apple and cinnamon is just perfect autumn/winter combination, don't you think? There's something really warming and comforting about this flavour combo.

The other day I just really fancied baking. I was thinking apple and cinnamon muffins, but then realised I had no butter and going out to the shops wasn't an option at that time. Then I remembered I had a carrot cake recipe written down, in which the oil is used instead. Yay, I could make my cake after all!

Ingredients:

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180C. Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they start forming soft peaks, gradually adding sugar and then egg yolks, one at a time. Add oil, grated apple and sifted flour mix. Combine well. Bake for about 30 minutes.

If you fancy, you can add some raisins and/or chopped walnuts to the cake, for some extra bite.

I must admit that I'm not that great when it comes to Desi food. It's only recently that I understood it needs time and a bit of patience, especially when making the base for the curries - can't tell you how many times Hubby stepped in to further cook down my curries that turned out too thin or had bits of undercooked onion floating inside...

One thing I think I'm pretty good with, is butter chicken. It turns out pretty well, because I always stand in the kitchen with my Indian cookbook open, and follow the recipe to the letter ;) Even though Hubby once told me to modify the cooking method, he always likes it so why change something that works?

Ingredients:

*The original recipe calls for Indian five-spice powder, but I happened to have ground allspice in the cupboard first time round, so I just ended up using that instead.

Preparation:

Mix the yoghurt, tomatoes, ground almonds, garlic and all the spices together. Add the chicken pieces and mix well, until all the chicken is coated. Leave to marinate in a cool place for at least few hours.

Heat the ghee in a deep pan. Add the onions and cook until browned. Tip I got from my Hubby: if you see onions browning too much too quickly, add some water to avoid burning and cook until soft.

Add the chicken together with all the marinade. After about 10 minutes add the coconut milk. If it's all too think, you can add some extra water or stock. Cook over a low heat until the chicken is cooked and the sauce thickens. 

Another pro tip: your curry is ready, when the oil comes out on top.

Serve with rice or chapatis.

"And tell the believing women to lower their gaze, and protect their private parts and not to show off their adornment except only that which is apparent, and to draw their veils (...)"

(Quran, 24:31)

As you might see from my photos, I don't permanently wear a headscarf - commonly know as the hijab. I'm not really gonna get into the discussion on the woman's obligation to do so - I'm not a scholar, and my personal views are currently just too confused.

I've never felt judged by other Muslims for not wearing a scarf. If anything, whenever I'd actually wear one, I hear words of encouragement, but nothing pushy. The only times I felt the judgement, it came from fellow converts - couple of times we came across mixed couples like us, and while my husband would talk to the man, he heard the usual "Isn't your wife going to convert?" question. And at the same time I would get asked exactly the same by his veiled wife. And believe me, it's not a look of approval when I answered that I did, in fact, convert. The looks we both got said "How come? But she's/you're not wearing the hijab!"

As I already said, I'm not going to get deep into the issue of the obligation to cover. The general agreement is that a woman needs to wear a veil, but you can also find plenty of sources arguing that it's not compulsory. One thing I believe, is that it needs to be a woman's own, conscious choice. And Allah knows best.

Contrary to popular belief, my husband has never asked me to wear a headscarf. Even when I asked him directly, he didn't really want to answer. The only thing I got out of him, was that it needs to be my choice and he can't tell me to do anything.

The thing with hijab is, that every woman will be at a different level with her faith. Some I know started covering straight away, some took few months, some took few years and quite a few never took this step. And you know what? It's not really for us to judge one another. If anything, it's really discouraging. Wearing a headscarf without properly understanding it, feeling forced to do so, will make anyone unhappy.

Why don't I actually wear the hijab then?

Some Muslim converts are able to take this step straight away - right after the Shahada it's goodbye old clothes, hello hijab.

For some, like me, it's a gradual process. 

I actually started dressing more modestly way before converting. When Hubby and I met, I used to wear shorts, mini skirts, sleeveless tops... At first he wouldn't say anything, but then one day when we were going out together, he wasn't too happy about my dress' length. I still remember how upset I was - I thought he'd be different, that he wouldn't try to dictate me what I can and cannot wear. 

But then we sat down, and discussed this calmly. His point was, that he's now responsible for me, and equally I represent him when we're out. He wouldn't want people to disrespect me, thinking that he got himself a girlfriend just for fun. It took a while, but I did actually understand his point - couple of years before I once went to our Asian area with a friend, who was buying halal meat for her own husband. And as it was summer, and we were coming back from the gym, we were both wearing shorts and tank tops. Oh my, the looks we got - I don't think I've ever felt so uncomfortable about my clothing choice! To my defence, I didn't really know much about Islam and Muslims, so I didn't realise it could be frowned upon ;)

Anyway, since then I decided I can tone it down for his peace of mind. He wouldn't mind me wearing short-sleeved tops, but I started avoiding deep necklines and short skirts were reserved for holidays back home. Even though I wasn't even thinking about Islam at that time, I guess this gradual transition was one of my first steps towards it.

Where am I now then? 

I admit that I often think about the hijab. I love my scarves, and pretty much always have one around my neck - even though there isn't one on my head, I feel more comfortable if I have a scarf covering my chest.

I actually tried to put the hijab on when going outside. Last year, just before the Ramadan, I thought it could be a great time to start. I went out wearing a scarf few times, and actually felt quite comfortable in it.

But after a few days doubts started creeping in. Why was I actually doing it? On one hand, I thought maybe wearing the hijab would push me to better myself. That I'd actually be recognised as a Muslim. But on the other hand I didn't feel worthy of it, if you know what I mean. Most of the time I'm not exactly a great example of a Muslim. I probably got scared, that people would perceive me as more pious, that they would have certain expectations towards me. I started thinking - did I actually put a headscarf on for the right reasons?

I remember spending couple of days at home, not wanting to go out anywhere. I didn't want to go out, because I didn't know if I wanted to put the scarf on my head. And I cried. I sat alone, while Hubby was sleeping off his night shift, and cried so hard, because I felt lost. And what felt worst, was that it was actually Ramadan, the month where people usually get spiritually uplifted, and I felt like that.

Eventually I decided to talk to Hubby abut it. I cried again, when I told him that I might've made a choice that wasn't quite right for me at that point. And he just hugged me, called me silly and told me it was gonna be OK. That if felt I wasn't ready, then I wasn't ready, and I shouldn't be forcing myself and making myself unhappy. I can only say Alhamdulillah for such a supportive spouse!

I know I'm not perfect in my struggle. But I also know I'm not alone. Nowadays I only wear long trousers and skirts or dresses, or if I like some shorter dress I pair it up with leggings. I don't have any tops with low neckline, and short sleeves are reserved for wearing at home - only on really hot days I'll resort to 3/4 sleeved shirts. In addition, all my clothing is rather loose-fitting. I'm even uncomfortable going swimming, unless it would be women-only session.

But all some people see, is my hair on show.

So please, don't be too hard on us non-hijabis. You never know someone's personal struggles. And you never know when we might change our mind. 

Have you seen my recent post on the new Haloodies cooked chicken range? Here are couple of ideas on how we used some of the products.

Cajun Chicken baguettes

Ready sliced chicken breast was just asking to be used in a sandwich! I made these healthy, super-filling baguettes for lunch the other day - Hubby and I liked them so much, that I made them again the following day (although we already used the pack of Cajun Chicken Breast slices, so I put Chargrilled Chicken Mini Fillets in instead).

For 2 baguettes:

Cut the baguettes open, careful not to cut right through. Spread a little bit of mayonnaise on one half, cover with lettuce, sliced tomato and cucumber. Place chicken slices on top (you can warm them up in the oven a little bit, or just use them cold). Mash the avocado and spread on the other half of the baguette. Season with some salt and pepper if needed - I just added a few olives for myself, and sliced jalapenos for Hubby. Carefully close the baguettes (they ended up quite full!) and enjoy.

Southern Fried Chicken wraps

The Southern Fried Chicken from Haloodies is definitely something for the fans of spice. It reminds me of the chicken we sometimes get in one of the town's fast foods, so I chose to use it in wraps.

For 2 wraps:

• pack of Haloodies Southern Fried Chicken Mini Fillets
• tortilla wraps
• 1 mini gem lettuce
• 1 small onion
• 1/3 red pepper
• 1/2 yellow pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp chilli powder
• mayonnaise or your other preferred sauce