EXTRA SPECIAL VALENTINE’S MEAL WITH ASDA

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This post has been sponsored by ASDA’s Extra Special Range. We love and shop there every week and it’s a pleasure to work with them!

It’s so nearly Valentine’s Day! Valentine’s Day is extra special in our house. I have the best, and most painful memories of two particular Valentine’s days when I’ve been in labour – and whereas Jensen was born a few hours after the clock ticked over into the 15th February, Lyoto was born on the 14th and makes him our special Valentine gift. Jensen used to complain about this, but this year his birthday is an INSET day and so for some reason, he’s fine with the 15th, haha.

We’re so excited, and so deliciously delighted this year to be celebrating by creating a three course meal from the Extra Special range at ASDA. We’ve tried quite a few things from the range so far, as we’ve lived very close to a HUGE hypermarket of an ASDA in Eastleigh, Hampshire [much to the envy of my family] for nearly 20 years now. I can get everything I need from there and it’s saved me in so many emergencies. I love that store SO much, [and spend quite a bit of Gav’s income in there].

Extra Special Shop

The ASDA Extra Special range is, as far as we’ve sampled over the last two decades, extremely delicious. There are some items we regularly buy from the range each week, and quite a few we still have to try – but whilst they can be indulgent, they’re affordable – and the choices we’ve made have always tasted worth it, which I think is the most important part. Our meal for the five of us, three courses came in less than £40!

• ASDA Extra Special Aberdeen Angus Burgers [x3] £9
• ASDA Extra Special Vintage Red Fox Red Leicester £2.50
• ASDA Extra Special Jumbo King Prawns [Frozen] £2.98
• ASDA Extra Special Freshly Squeezed Cloudy Lemonade £2
• ASDA Extra Special Spanish Picual Extra Virgin Olive Oil £3
• ASDA Extra Special Mini Plum Tomatoes and On the Vine £2.50
• ASDA Extra Special Echalian Shallots 83p
• ASDA Extra Special Marabel Potatoes £2
• ASDA Extra Special Oak Smoked Dry Cured Pancetta [x2] £4
• ASDA Extra Special Bramley Apple Pie £2.50
• ASDA Extra Special Madagascan Vanilla Ice Cream £2.00
• ASDA Peppers 99p
• ASDA Red Onions 70p
• ASDA Baker’s Selection Burger Buns [x2] £1.38
• ASDA Mild Mixed Salad Leaves £1
• ASDA Taste of Japan Teriyaki Sauce £1

The boys were all excited because Gav was putting Harry Potter on the TV, so I snook out into the night to the store, which was nice and relatively quiet. It turns out that not many feel shopping is the most fun way to spend a Saturday night. More fool them. Haha. On the other hand, I was so exhilarated because I managed to get out without the boys tagging and claiming they needed every snack in sight, and secondly it also meant it would only take me a couple of hours and not the usual 3 or 4 I can easily take with them going up and down the aisles. The boys LOVE a shop at ASDA – toys, clothes, magazines, snacks, and whenever it’s a seasonal event it’s even better. Haha. When people say their children refuse to go shopping I look at them in disbelief. Like, seriously, I need to rethink my shopping tactics.

So, these aren’t all of the items we bought for our meal. We were invited to create a three course meal for our family from the ASDA Extra Special range and as you can imagine, we got quite a bit.

Extra Special Starter

The first course we decided on was the starter. ASDA Extra Special King Prawns on skewers. Jensen loves prawns and we don’t have them often enough, and he was all giddy when he saw the bag of King Prawns emerging from the freezer. We marinated them in a teriyaki sauce and popped them onto little bamboo arrows which Hero and I cut out. Hero was impressed with himself so much if you saw our stories. My original plan had been to make them look like little hearts on the arrows but honestly, if you’ve ever tried to get a prawn not to curl up on the griddle, it’s like wrestling a teeny bear. So they were curled and happy. And SO tasty. And yes, Jensen ate most of them just like he guzzles anything that swims in the sea.

Extra Special Main Course

Gav was most excited about the main course. Burgers. Burgers might not seem romantic to many people but on the basis that people with full tummies are happy, loved people, the ASDA Extra Special Aberdeen Angus burgers were chosen along with some of our favourite [and always on 2 for £4] oak smoked pancetta slices [which I still can’t seem to pronounce easily, thanks for the help after my attempt on IG Stories], ASDA Extra Special Red Leicester and Vine Ripened Tomatoes. Gav made some tasty little chips with the Extra special potatoes and we picked out some ASDA Extra Special Coleslaw too. The burger was heavenly. I honestly wish we had made more because even if I couldn’t have fitted another one in, I would have tried. So hard. Haha. I know they’re good burgers when the table goes all silent whilst people are eating. These are scrumptious. Truly scrumptious as Lyoto is singing and peeping over my shoulder.

Extra Special Dessert

So we had to wait a while after dinner for dessert because we were all soooo full and we wanted to appreciate the last course. We chose something for dessert that we haven’t had in so long – something I used to have every week as a child I think, thanks to my Granny always making them from her little tree in the garden. Apple pie! ASDA’s Extra Special Bramley Apple pie and Extra Special Madagascan Vanilla Ice Cream – and we broke out the Brambly Hedge plates too. I got exactly one spoon of the ice cream which was SO good that Jensen, who had gotten a spoonful before Lyoto, tried telling him that it wasn’t something he would “probably” like, hahaha. The apple pie’s pastry was so buttery and not at all dry, and the apples were perfect. I want this pie in my life every week now. It was so good that Gav and I ate another slice watching Forgotten on Sunday night, 11pm whilst the boys were asleep. You know, in case it went off and was wasted….

And that was our very Extra Special, completely beyond delicious Valentine’s meal in our house. We celebrated our special day, and love for each other and filled our tummies too. Hero bought his new Valentine’s Jellycat with him to enjoy the special meal and fell asleep soon afterwards. A perfect end to the perfect celebration of a perfect day.