IF the past months of full-on family life have left you feeling frazzled, give yourself a lift with my summer life hacks.
Save time with these 20 great tips and products, then get out there and enjoy the sunshine we have been promised.
And try the easy recipes below from morrisons.com.
SHAKE IT UP
Freshen up your meal ideas by borrowing cookbooks from family and friends – or find lots of delicious recipes at Morrisons.com.
SPEEDY MEALS
From freezer to plate in eight minutes, turn to Iceland’s king prawns in tomato and garlic sauce, down from £4 to £3.75 or three for £10.
CHOP CHOP
Give yourself a break in the kitchen with ready prepped essentials such as Iceland’s frozen chopped garlic, £1 for 100g.
TIME-SAVING SAUCE
Make short work of pasta with Napolina’s frozen sauces, split into portions to reduce food waste, £1.50 for 250g at Iceland.
BERRY CLEVER
Use mushy strawberries and other fruit to pep up smoothies. Or freeze them for later to defrost and use when you are ready.
MAKE A DATE
Tuck into Morrisons’ Date Night Meal for Two. For £12, you get two mains, two side dishes, dessert and a bottle of wine (or Sicilian Lemonade).
TRANSFORM TEA TIME
M&S’ new £5 cook book – 50 Fast, Fresh & Easy Recipes To Transform Family Meals – uses its time-saver range, such as red pepper paste, £1.50.
LOLLY GOOD SHOW
Whizz up frozen fruit with yoghurt then freeze for healthy lollies. Aldi has fun moulds, £2.99, in unicorn, dinosaur and penguin.
COOL AS A CUCUMBER
Freeze berries, cucumber, fruit chunks or mint in ice-cube trays (alone or in water) for fancy looking drinks.
WOK’S UP
Make a tasty meal of noodles, vegetables and sauce for just £3 at Morrisons, saving 70p on buying the items individually.
AVO GO HERO
To soften a hard avocado, wrap it in foil and pop it in the oven for about ten minutes at 90C. Then put it in the fridge to cool.
READY OR NOT
For days you don’t fancy cooking, you can get three for £10 on dishes, including cajun chicken breasts, normally £4.19, at Waitrose.
WELL, WINE NOT
If you have leftover wine, freeze it in ice cube trays and pop one out when a recipe calls for a dash of red or white.
GENIUS AND TONIC
Freeze slices of lemon, lime or grapefruit in a bag for an instant way to add zing to your evening cocktail.
RICE ONE, SON
Whip up a meal in minutes with Uncle Ben’s long grain or golden veg rice, which The Co-op has for £1.80 each, or two for £2.
ICE YOUR CREAM
Chill your sun cream in the fridge for an instant cooling skin-hit on those hot summer days in the garden or by the beach.
TAKE IT SLOW
Slow cookers are good for pasta sauces or pulled pork. Morrisons has Schwartz BBQ pulled pork seasoning for 90p, or four for £2.
SLAP IT ALL OVER
Give your skin a summer treat with Nivea’s nourishing body lotion for dry skin, currently half-price at Morrisons, £3.
SMOOTH OPERATOR
Get bikini-ready with Veet hair removal cream for sensitive skin, down from £4.50 to £3 at Morrisons.
WINE CHILLER
Instead of watering down your glass of vino with ice, freeze some grapes and add them to your glass.
