A Christmas Dessert - Aletria (Rich pasta pudding)

Christmas is in a matter of days, YAY! Every family holds some sort of tradition as to what they place on their dinner tables over the festive season. Being of Portuguese descent, our waistlines seem to expand over this time of year (mine does anyway) as a result of all the delicious foods that are laid before me at our table, everything from Bacalhau (cod fish) which is our traditional Christmas evening meal, to all sorts of sweet desserts that one looks forward to all year around. Today I’m going to share with you a recipe for a dessert that makes an appearance in our home every year, it’s easy and tastes so good! Here it goes.

Ingredients

100g Vermicelli (A very thin pasta, can be bought at your local supermarket)

500ml Milk (any)

125g Castor Sugar

Strip of lemon rind

1 Stick of cinnamon

45ml Butter

4 Egg Yolks

Ground Cinnamon

Method

1. Boil the Vermicelli in 750ml water for 5 minutes and then drain.
2. Add the milk, sugar, lemon rind and cinnamon stick to the Vermicelli. Bring to a boil and simmer until soft.
3. Add the butter and beaten egg yolks. Simmer just long enough to cook the egg yolks.
4. Pour into a large serving dish, dust with cinnamon and serve.

This pudding is best eaten on the day that it is made, cold.

It is the perfect accompaniment to your Christmas dinner, my family and I really enjoy it! We hope that you do too

S

Xoxo

*As seen in, Mimi Jardim’s, Cooking the Portuguese way in South Africa, Page 137

November Favourites

 I haven’t done a ‘my favourites’ post for quite some time so I do believe it is well overdue. In South Africa, November is a time for summer, sun and some serious fun with a hint of Christmas fever, so it’s only right that our products match the summer vibes. Let’s take a closer look and get this favourites party started…

First off on my favourites list is the Freeman Avocado and Oatmeal clay face mask. It kind of sounds like a health guru meal of some sort but I don’t think I have ever come across a facial mask that cares for my skin as much as this one does, it purifies your pores and deeply cleanses as well. I have always tried to be quite cautious as to what products I use on my skin because I have always had very sensitive skin that can be prone to break outs. The first time I purchased this product I purchased the small sachet which I think had four uses in one, just to try it out (I think this is a really cool way to try out a new product instead of committing to the larger 175ml bottle right off the bat) I liked this product so much that the following time I was at my local pharmacy retailer, I put a bottle in my basket right away. It is rich in Vitamin E with, as the bottle says, avocado and oatmeal altogether culminating in the provision of long lasting softness while deeply cleansing your skin, not to mention that it smells great too. Undoubtedly an A+ in my books!

The next product on my favourites list is the Maybelline, Baby Skin, instant pore eraser. This product is at the top of my list of primers, it is lightweight and instantly erases the pores that you want to hide of which we all have a few. I think the best property of this particular primer is that it leaves my skin feeling so soft before I’ve even put any make-up on, as well as its matte finish to my make up look. It is a pretty small tube for the price you are paying but I do feel that having a good primer is important to have so next time you’re in store, get your hands on this cute little mint coloured tube of quality.

I can’t seem to stop raving about latest Garnier product to hit the shelves, Micellar Cleansing Water. (I have previously done a full review on the product so if you’d like to know a lot more on what I’m about to tell you then have a look at my previous post titled “Product Review – Micellar Water” of which the link I will post below.) This bottle of gold has got to be the nicest make up remover that I have ever come across, it is ideal for the late night, dance your pants off, then to McDonalds, get home and pass out kind of lazy girl who couldn’t be bothered to remove her make up, trust me, this product makes your life easier. It’s gentle on your skin, it removes ALL your make up without you even having to rinse your face thereafter. Micellar cleansing water contains no alcohol so it isn’t harsh on your skin making it ideal for your eye area. Ladies I love this product and I really think it’s great value for money.

http://shezdoeslife.blogspot.co.za/2015/10/product-review-micellar-water.html

Finally, we have the newest member to my nail polish collection, YAY. This one is 011, love my golden pumps. This little gem forms part of Essence’s limited Christmas edition collection called “Merry Berry”. I’m sure that by now you all know that I’m pretty into the Essence brand so naturally when this collection hit the shelves I had to be first in line (I will post a review on the rest of the collection within the next little while). This is a top coat which has a generous splashing of gold glitter, but it’s not the usual shaped glitter we have in a lot of our other nail polishes, these little flicks are all different shaped and sized which makes for an exciting new Christmas vibe to your nails. Can we all just please take a minute to look at the adorable packaging...The bobble top is perfect for the Christmas feel of this collection and actually reminiscent of a particular Dior nail polish... I love it! The first time I used it over white nail polish, I loved it but what stuck out to me is the fact that my nail polish didn’t chip this top coat assisted in my nail polish lasting about six days… Impressive I know! #Like

 So that concludes my November favourites my loves, I hope it was informative to you and that you’ll go out and try some of them out, I’d also love to hear what your summer favourites are.

S

xoxo