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Showing posts from July, 2020

‘I love my squidgy tummy!’ Nadia Sawalha shares how she’s come to love her body and why she’d hate washboard abs

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When lockdown happened in March, like a lot of us, Loose Women’s Nadia Sawalha confesses she reached for the biscuit tin ‘to suppress feelings of anxiety’. But, as she navigated the ‘new normal’, she created a new routine focusing on 
a healthy mind, body and spirit through meditation, exercise and eating well. The mum-of-two – to daughters Maddie, 17, and Kiki, 12, with husband Mark Adderley – is confident she can maintain her new mind frame in the coming months, as she calls for women to accept their bodies and ignore perfection to feel happier and healthier. Did lockdown change your body? My clothes are looser. For a recent date night, I wore a pair of trousers and I could fasten the zip for the first time. I’m 100% fine with the way I look – I don’t want to lose any more weight because, as you get older, you can start to look a bit strange in the face. You recently shared an unedited photo of your body. Would you urge others to do the same? Yes! Twice a week, my friend and I ...

Louise Redknapp reveals why her sons still hold out hope for a reunion between her and ex-husband Jamie

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Louise and Jamie Redknapp’s split in 2017 came as sad news for everyone – none more so than their two children, Charley, 16, and Beau, 11. On the surface the boys have dealt with the turbulent time brilliantly, more recently dividing their time during lockdown between the two parents. But Louise has admitted they are ‘vocal’ about wanting their mum and dad to get back together. With the couple’s friendship back on track and the pair able to happily co-parent the boys, could there be a chance for these two to rekindle their romance? Back together Seeing parents separate is undoubtedly hard on kids, so it’s no surprise the boys are holding out hope that they might come together again one day. Louise admits the conversation initially arose when her elder son Charley gave her the go-ahead to start dating again – something she didn’t see coming. ‘My eldest is 15 and super-protective over me. But he knows he can talk to me about anything and doesn’t need to be embarrassed, I’m so open...

A waste-free Middle Eastern runner bean meze recipe | Waste not

Runner beans are a wonder, because just about the entire plant is edible – and they get no better than in this Middle Eastern braise with spiced tomatoes At 14, I worked on a pig farm for £1.50 an hour. Although my main role was mucking out the pig pens, I’d also tend to the farmer’s crops of potatoes, pumpkins and runner beans. The quantity of beans, in particular, that we harvested each season seemed almost magical. Scarlet runner beans are one of the easiest and most productive vegetables to grow, and the whole plant is edible, including the leaves and red flowers (the nectar-sweet flowers taste similar to the beans themselves). Use the leaves and flowers raw in a salad or cook them like any leafy green. If you’re growing runner beans, remove the colourful beans from the pods of any oversized, stringy ones, dry them and store; soak and cook much as you would kidney or borlotti beans. Continue reading... from Recipes | The Guardian https://ift.tt/3hXhedW via IFTTT

'Coconut + Sambal' cookbook: Recipes from spiced corn fritters to chicken nasi goreng

Australian born chef, Lara Lee, goes back to her Indonesian roots to share recipes form her grandmother and family that are at the heart of the country's cooking from The Independent - Recipes https://ift.tt/2EHw4qF via IFTTT

This Morning viewers left in hysterics over embarrassing geography blunder during lockdown segment

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This Morning viewers were quick to point out the awkward mistake during the live recording. Credit: Getty This Morning fans were none too pleased during Friday’s show, when they noticed a major geography blunder during a segment debating local lockdowns . Stand-in hosts Rochelle Humes and Dermot O’Leary joined Dr Phillipa Kay to discuss the news that the four million residents of Greater Manchester, East Lancashire and West Yorkshire are facing new restrictions. But a map that flashed up on screen to illustrate the areas was a little off-kilter, to say the least. And fans were quick to call the show out over the blunder. The visual guide showed a map highlighting Greater Manchester, Lancashire and West Yorkshire, but incorrectly identified West Yorkshire as being in south Manchester. Geography lesson? #ThisMorning #northernlockdown pic.twitter.com/GsqU5mao9t — Stefanie Todd (@StefanieTodd_) July 31, 2020 Fans took to Twitter to mock the mistake, suggesting that This...

This £2 gadget will make your coffee amazingly frothy

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This budget electric whisk is a complete game-changer when it comes to hot drinks. Credit: Getty For the coffee lovers among us who aren’t fortunate enough to have an at-home machine, lockdown largely meant French press americanos and sad cups of gravelly instant. And when restrictions started to ease and many of our favourite coffee shops reopened, we were still working from home and still without a coffee machine, confining our (albeit, expensive) caffeine habit to weekends. Until we discovered the game-changing tool that upped our at-home coffee game tenfold. Handheld electric whisk Enter the handheld electric whisk, which costs just £1.99 on Amazon, and can be used for everything from frothing milk to beating eggs and mixing cocktails . The powerful little whisk is just £1.99. Credit: Amazon SHOP NOW: DaoRier Milk Frother Kitchen Tool, £1.99, Amazon The DaoRier Milk Frother Kitchen Tool requires two AA batteries – so no annoying charging cables liable to get lo...

McDonald's Happy Meals now come with a free plastic toy or a book

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McDonald's Happy Meals now come with either a free book or toy in an effort to boost children's reading and reduce plastic. Does your little one’s face lights up as soon as they see the free treat inside a McDonald’s Happy Meal ? We’ve got some important news… Instead of automatically receiving a free toy, parents now have the choice between a toy or a book. This helps work towards the McDonald ‘s pledge to remove over 3,000 metric tons of plastic from the business by 2021. All hard-plastic toys will be removed from Happy Meals by next year. The move also comes following research that revealed many parents feel that lockdown negatively impacted their child’s reading. In the same Opinium survey, a fifth of parents said they were concerned this would continue to decline over the summer holidays. Father-of-three and child author Tom Fletcher and the National Literacy Trust both back the McDonald’s campaign. READ MORE: British couples claim that going for a McDonald’s wit...

Katie Price reveals she won't be able to walk for up to six months after horrific accident

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Katie Price has been pictured in a wheelchair after a horrific accident that saw her break both of her feet while holidaying in Turkey. Credit: Getty Katie Price was rushed to hospital in Turkey after breaking both of her feet and ankles in a horrific accident. The glamour model and reality TV star shared a picture of her bandaged feet to Instagram on Thursday evening; confirming to fans that she will be unable to walk for three to six weeks, and will need pins in her feet. The accident happened on Wednesday at the Land of Legends theme park in Belek, Turkey. Katie is reported to have jumped off a wall at the theme park and fractured both of her heels in the process. View this post on Instagram Yes it’s true I have broken my ankles and my feet , I have to have both feet operated on and pins put in been told I won’t be able to walk for 3 to 6 months , @carljwoods is being amazing looking after me #reallove #bestgentleman #wordscantdecrib...

Cocktail of the week: Tavolino’s sgroppino ai tre agrumi | The good mixer

This classic Italian sorbet-based refresher works as aperitif, palate cleanser, after-dinner treat or even pudding in its own right, so take your pick Sgroppino can be traced back as far as the 1500s, when it was served as a palate cleanser between courses at aristocratic Venetian dinners. It was originally based on sorbet ( sgropin ) with vodka and lemon, with an optional prosecco top, and works as an aperitif, as dessert or as an after-dinner drink. Our version features three citrus fruits: lemon in the sorbet, bergamot in the Italicus and lime in the garnish. Continue reading... from Recipes | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2D8VFIl via IFTTT

How many people can meet outside and can people meet inside now?

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With the UK coronavirus lockdown easing, it's good to remind ourselves of the rules surrounding meet-ups with family and friends. Although we’ve been under a form a lockdown for a long time now , local outbreaks are suggesting more local lockdowns could be a real possibility, after it new lockdown areas were announced last night. So it’s still important to take precautions to protect our health and that of the general public. So while many of us have been delighted to reunite with loved ones following weeks apart, there are still restrictions on how many people we can see at one time that are worth bearing in mind. MORE:  Which areas of the UK are now in lockdown? According to the government, how many people are we currently allowed to meet up with then – both outdoors and indoors? How many people can meet up outside? At this stage of the coronavirus pandemic, the UK government have stipulated that in England, you should not meet in a group of more than six people from...

Which areas of the UK are now in lockdown?

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While many areas of the UK are finally enjoying some new freedoms following the coronavirus outbreak, others have seen spiking coronavirus cases, putting them at risk of   local lockdown.  As such, some new lockdown areas, with new lockdown restrictions, have been announced. So which areas of the UK are now in lockdown? Yesterday evening, Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that parts of Northern England will have new coronavirus guidelines put into place, as a result of the “increasing rates of transmissions” of the virus there. He revealed that these regions will require immediate restrictions, in order to stop cases from spiking too much higher. Credit: Oli Scarff/AFP via Getty Images According to Mr Hancock, cases have been increasing as a result of people visiting friends and family without observing social distancing.  He said, “The spread is largely due to households meeting and not abiding to social distancing.” So where are the new lockdown areas in...

Sophie Ellis-Bextor shares heartbreaking news of her step-dad's 'cruel' death

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Sophie Ellis-Bextor has paid tribute to her late step-dad following his 'cruel' death from lung cancer. Credit: Getty Sophie Ellis-Bextor has revealed that her beloved stepfather John Leach has died, in a moving tribute shared on social media. Married to Sophie’s mum, presenter and actress Janet Ellis, John had played an important role in the singer’s life since she was little. Announcing the tragic news on Instagram, Sophie posted a picture of her late stepdad, captioning it, ‘This is my step-dad, John. He’s been a big part of my life since I was small. I can’t believe it’s true but he died last week. It wasn’t unexpected but it was cruel. View this post on Instagram This is my step-dad, John. He’s been a big part of my life since I was small. I can’t believe it’s true but he died last week. It wasn’t unexpected but it was cruel. Still, the love he and my mum created is all around our family and that stays on forever. Their marr...