The Drunken Vimto and Four Classic Cocktails

This sassy cocktail combines succulent blackberries with blackcurrant jam, lemon, vodka and soothing honey!

Yield: 1 rocks glass
Prep time: 5 min

The Drunken Vimto

This sassy little cocktail is my very own creation. It's a lovely mix of blackberries, blackcurrant, lemon and vodka with a hint of honey. But we'll get to that in a second. Last night, I was invited to an event at the Millennium Copthorne Hotel in Salford Quays. But not just any event, a cocktail making masterclass headed up by a fantastic team of bartenders. The event, #toastofthetown sought to pair our fantastic city of Manchester with cocktails of our own creating, but first we were taught the basics with four classic mixed drinks.

Dealing with Haters on Your Blog

You can't please everyone all the time and bloggers find this out very quickly. Here are four practical methods for dealing with haters on your blog.

Haters happen. No matter what you blog about, no matter what stance you take, there's always going to be someone there waiting to either knock you down or to try to take credit for your work.

It's the way of the world. Recently, I've been victim to both types of hating in relation to content on Anyonita Nibbles. And I've been approached by a quite a few bloggers seeking advice on how to handle hateful comments, pin descriptions and general feedback.

I'm going to share with you four methods for dealing with haters on your blog and I invite you to share your experiences with blog hate, too!

These brownies are the most indulgent, fudgiest gluten free brownies ever! Plus, they're made with double Nutella for an extra hit of decadence!

Yield: 20 or so brownies
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 30 min

Two Layer Gluten Free Double Nutella Brownies

Ever since my Coeliac Disease diagnosis, I've been on a one-woman mission to find super fudgy gluten free brownies. When I say fudgy, I mean on the brink of sticking of your mouth together. I mean somebody pass me a glass of milk, fudgy. I'm talking super moist and squishy and wholly decadent and indulgent, fudgy. So fudgy, people will think you're fudgin' when you tell them they're gluten free --- and if you make these without the cream, they're dairy free too.

#tastytuesdays no 62 + 12 cookies, bars & bites recipes

Gluten-Free Watermelon Granita with Lime Recipe

A fruit-filled icy treat that's gluten-free, dairy-free, vegetarian and vegan friendly!  Tastes like summer!

Yield: 2 liters
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 4 hours

Watermelon Granita with Lime

Granitas are snowcones for adults.That's not meant to be a knock against granitas--I love a good snowcone, but they give the impression of being rather, tricycles and teddy bears. Granitas are snowcones all grown up. And, you could even add a shot or two of your favorite spirit for proper grown up granitas. But the ones I'm sharing with you today are alcohol free. They're also free of gluten and dairy and are suitable for vegans and vegetarians alike.

OXO Shake & Flavour Oven Fried Chicken, Gluten Free Coriander Griddled Corn and Gluten Free Hasselback Sweet Potatoes

Bake the crispiest, juiciest oven fried chicken with OXO's new flavour shake granules!

Yield 4 servings

OXO Shake & Flavour Oven Fried Chicken 

This chicken is amazing! You won't even realize it's not been properly deep fried--you get all of the crunchiness and juiciness of proper deep fried chicken without the excess grease and general unhealthiness. That's a big plus. This chicken was accidental in that I hadn't planned on making it. I was getting food ready for a barbecue picnic when the skies turned gray and big clouds rolled in.

Living in the UK, you become quite adept at having a stream of rainy day back plans to hand, especially when it comes to barbecues and picnics! We were planning two barbecues, to take advantage of a short stint of glorious weather; the first barbecue went off without a hitch. The second, not so much. With gray clouds threatening to burst at any moment, we needed a back up plan and quick.

I received a box of OXO's new Shake& Flavour Seasoning Granules for the purpose of whipping up a quick spread and it was my intention to use some of the seasoning in the box for a barbecue. Not wanting to abandon the granules and still excited to try them, I brainstormed an easy way to use the granules and the handy recipe sheets included in the package! (Nice one, OXO!)

This post is part of a BritMums project with OXO Shake & Flavour. Shake & Flavour seasoning granules can be sprinkled into food during cooking or before serving. Find out more about the Shake & Flavour varieties.

#GetHimFed 36

How Bloggers Maintain Relationships with Brands Part 3 of 3

For bloggers, developing and maintaining relationships with brands is vital for success. Master these five techniques and get big brands in your corner.

So far we've looked at attracting brands and developing a relationship with brands. In the final installment today, I want to focus on maintaining the relationship you've established. 

As with any relationship, it needs cultivation and care. You can't just let it sit in a corner and do nothing. 

Brand and blogger relationships, while different from most relationships, still need an element of TLC. But how you dish up the lovin' to the brands that agree to work with you is going to be different from how you treat your family and friends.

You'll want to focus on your end of the bargain, consistency and thoroughness. In every dealing you have with brands, strive for this. Don't try to be something other than who you are. At the end of the end of the day, it doesn't matter too much how many followers you have or how much clout your blog carries. Brands are run by people. People want to work with people. And no one likes unreasonable, hard to pin down, disorganized people.

Anyonita's Virtural Bake Sale #CurrysBakeSale

Most of the opportunities I get pitched are usually ones that will benefit just me, which is nice,but it's not exactly the safest sitch to be in terms of karma. I try to help people as much as I can, although my volunteering and acts of kindness these days are usually reserved for blogging tutorials and coding help (it can be really difficult to turn up at a charity with a stroppy two year old and try to volunteer!).

#tastytuesdays no. 61 & 9 summer thirst quenchers

STOP! Please read the welcome message as there has been ONE VERY BIG CHANGE!!! I want to make sure that I provide the very best party for you, giving you the best chances of having your content repinned and traffic to your blog increased. To do this, I've made one final, very big change to #tastytuesdays I hope you all like it!