BeccaJaneStClair's Profile

Also, don't ever try to take peanut butter cookies in your checked bag.....http://www.blog.beccajanestclair.com/2011/12/how-the-tsa-stole-christmas/

Plain canned tomato sauce (the kind sold in little tins) can be easily substituted for Passata. I moved from the US to the UK and I have no problems replacing plain tomato sauce with Passata in my recipes and vice versa when I visit the US.

I have these cheapie IKEA bowls that only cost 49p we use for soup, salads, and pasta. I love them and I love that they were super cheap.

I love online grocery ordering. Saves the hassle of going to the store and walking around AND it cuts down in impulse buys! I can purchase groceries for the week for my husband and I with £30-40 if I order online. If we actually go to Tesco, we come away spending at least £60.

Get yourself the "I hate to Cook Book" for some good giggles!!!

I drink shandys all the time because I can't ever seem to drink a full pint of beer before everyone else is ready to move on to the next round or pub if it's a pub crawl, but I find it easier to drink a shandy.

When I got married and friends knew I was moving to the UK, they made sure I had a set of iced tea spoons to take with me, since in the UK the only teaspoons sold with flatware are short-handled and designed to be used in hot tea. She got them at Bed, Bath, and Beyond if anyone else is searching for any.

I use those thing all the time -- and even in my hot tea. They're perfect for fishing tea bags out of the tall flasks my husband uses for work.

I am allergic to both onions and garlic, and I use asafoetida to give dishes that taste of onions/garlic.

Before I moved to the UK in January 2010, I had never ordered groceries online. But I live in a small village and the closest big grocery store is a 20 minute bus ride or car ride away. My husband works shift work for the railway, and I haven't yet mastered driving here (I'm from the US). Being able to do my weekly shop from Tesco online and scheduling a delivery has saved so much time and money. There are no impulse buys because I just search for exactly what I need. The Tesco pickers pick as though they are doing their own grocery shopping so pick the best fruit and meat with the longest use by dates. If you get something you don't like, you simply send it back with the driver.

I absolutely love online grocery shopping. Plus, when it snowed, I still had groceries and didn't have to go out!

I don't have an Aga, but I have an Esse, which is pretty much the same thing. Esse has been around as long as Aga and costs about the same. Our Esse is from the 1950s and we're currently in the process of getting it looked at so I can cook with it, and I got excited to see it profiled here!