Morning at Maggie and Rose Kensington Sampling Easi Yo Yoghurt - Blogger Event

Yesterday we headed off to Maggie and Rose for an Easi Yo yoghurt making event. It was dark when I woke and Aaron was in a deep sleep, so deep that I woke him a whole hour after rising myself. So many times I nearly hopped back into the bed telling myself "I won't be able to wake him" but I decided to go ahead with my plans and boy am I glad I did.

It's a full 14 minute walk from High Street Kensington station to Maggie and Rose and sooooo bursting to go to the loo was this pregnant blogger, that I decided to hail a black taxi. On the way to a posh venue, with my beautiful baby bump, all the while jumping into a taxi, it all felt a bit Made in Chelsea. Which was all a bit in juxtaposition to my scary appearance - thank God it's Halloween maybe that can be my excuse. I used my last bobble band a couple of days ago, so my plait ended with an elastic band. I bought nail varnish remover this week in a 99p shop and it didn't work, so I was sporting 10 chipped nails. I have recently lost my bag of Bare Minerals and so it goes on. I was all a bit flung together, unforgiveable really as it was the same the day before at The Baby Show, where I had the added insult to injury of not carrying business cards.

But, back to the event...

 

The reception area of Maggie and Rose had Aaron so captivated it was hard to convince him to come into the event itself. Not only is this a Dinsoaur that seems to have a vibe that says "climb on", but what you can't see in the pic is it even has a steering wheel.

It's a stunning venue for events but in actual fact is a private member's club, with the difference being, it is for the entire family. We went to their prestigious Kensington branch. We were upstairs, but I think, based on the distant sounds of happy children, I think the general public were all downstairs.

Once I did get Aaron into the space for the event, I was thrilled to see Ruth Rock n Roller Baby there as it is so long since I have seen her. Seeing her two little ones was like seeing kids from my computer screen come alive and they're just as cute in person. As for meeting her Mum, well that was even more exciting than meeting Mrs Doubtfire, as she is the regular baking, cake making, costume making, Grandma of fairy tales! Except she is as blunt as Katie Hopkins (but in the best possible taste of course)!!!

It was very easy to be able to listen to Easi Yo's demonstration from their fabulous Sales Manager as the kids had so so much to do. He was accompanied by the very passionate Brand Ambassador Jenni Falconer (straight away I recognised her voice).

Down this more adult end of the room, I straight away, immediately, recognised Luschka from Diary of a First Child, one of the very FIRST blogs I followed back in 2009. It was so lovely to be back in touch and to catch up.

I did video the demonstration of the Easi Yo yoghurt maker (which convinced me it is a kitchen tool worth having) and will upload it in the next few days. What was more impressive was the array of food we got to sample, all of course containing the yogurt.

But this soft start to yoghurt sampling did not get us ready for the taste explosion that was to come. We were offered samples of what can only be described as Snickers in a cup. Under closer examination, we could see nuts, chocolate chips and............ what else? We just all had to know as it was food porn right there. Tasting too good, too divine, to just be walked away from without being armed with the info to recreate it. I don't remember what they told us and eeek can't find it in the Easi Yo cookbook ooooops. If anyone who is reading knows??? We also had toffee apple in a cup... But my favourite quick bite of the morning was by far the frittata, which I could not get enough of. Oh and I ate 3 beautiful muffins before all of that too.

All the while I was enjoying the speakers and the demonstrations, Aaron was having his face painted, playing with play dough and getting amazing balloon creations made for him. 

In fact I have never seen balloon creations like what this lady could do.

Amazing she even made them bow and arrows which the boys just adored. Of course Aaron had Ruth's two gorgeous little ones to play with too, so he was 100% occupied. It was the perfect venue that offered something for every member of the family - just like it says on the "tin"!

All too soon the morning event came to a swift end but we all lingered an extra 30 minutes as the vibe was so lovely. We didn't exactly have kids grabbing at our coat tails to leave either as they were in their element, enjoying the reception area just as much on the way out as on the way in:

There's too many photos that I want to include, so I just had to create this collage, in particular to showcase Maggie and Rose as literally every nook and cranny is beautiful:

Although I am yet to put the Easi Yo through its paces, I did also take one away for my God Daughter and have already made hers with her, so can testify to the fact that it is as easy as the demo showcased. It is still brewing (what does yoghurt do?) so I can't yet tell you how it tastes. Although, having been at the event I can. Of course! It is creamy, divine, wholesome tasting and not at all too sweet. It has no additional sugar, no stabilisers and contains friendly bacteria, which I am a big advocate of. They do lots of varieties of sachets, so there is something for everyone.

The take home messages that stayed with me were:

• The plain one can last in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
• Easi Yo contains acidophilus.
• All Easi Yo Yoghurts are wheat and gluten free.
• No artificial colours or flavours.
• It is easy and quick to make.
• One sachet makes 1kg of yoghurt which is a great way of having enough for the whole family.
• Fruits and fruit syrups can be added for those members of the family who don't like plain yoghurt.
• They have a new red model, which includes many beneficial alterations compared to the white one. Luckily it was red ones we were given :-)
• The redesign sees the insulation wall of the Easi Yo containing New Zealand wool which I find incredibly sweet considering the inventor and founder is from there. This ensures the yoghurt remains at the right temperature whilst fermenting.

The Easi Yo sachets are available in over 30 flavours. They are stocked in leading retailers including the likes of Lakeland, Holland and Barrett, Wilko and even QVC (I told you it is a product that needs a demonstration).

A yoghurt maker will cost you RRP £17.99 with the sachets costing RRP £2 a pop. Some people say that the sachets are expensive, but a quick Google tells me that Yeo Valley is 33p for 100g, which would be £3.30 for a kilogram, whereas a sachet of Easi Yo is £2 which makes 1 kg. In addition to that when you get back from holiday or a weekend away, you don't have fresh yoghurt waiting for you, due to use by dates, whereas you can have sachets of Easi Yo at the back of the cupboard with a current use by date of: 09/01/2017, which means you can spontaneously grab it and have fresh yoghurt within 12 hours. No more waste! Very convenient! Plus that cost of £2 is where it stops, as the only things you are adding, is first tepid water followed by hot, boiled water. No further costs involved apart from what you want to add to your yoghurt. I'm definitely a convert.

Disclosure: I was hosted at Maggie and Rose with complimentary entrance and refreshments. I was gifted two Easi Yos with two sachets for each. Every word of this blog post is my own and I remain honest.