Low Calorie

Good news if you're watching the calories!
Way back the end of last year I was talking about how healthy my sauces are, particularly the Rogan Josh and Spicy Tomato varieties. So I have recently completed the nutritional analysis for these two and  I can confirm that they both are really low in calories and fat.

Spicy Tomato and Olive sauce :
contains a total of 118 calories per 320g tub, of which calories from fat are 45
total fat content per tub is 6g
total carbohydrate content per tub is 16g, of which 3g is dietary fibre and 10g is sugars

Rogan Josh sauce:
contains a total of 168 calories per 480g tub, of which calories from fat are 53
total fat content per tub is 5g
total carbohydrate content per tub is 29, of which 10g is  dietary fibre and 14g is sugars

I will complete the breakdown for all the other sauces too but obviously as they contain some Donegal Creameries fresh cream, and a little Donegal Rapeseed Oil, the calorie count is going to be a bit higher! But I still hold with the idea that fresh, natural food is best for you even if it is carrying some calories and fat - variety is the spice of life.

Gweedore by Glenveagh

Gallaghers of Gweedore is the latest stockist of my range of fresh dinner sauces and the drive there last Thursday was sublime. Even through the misty rain  Glenveagh and  the Poisoned Glen offer spectacular scenery and remind me how lucky I am to be living in one of the most beautiful places on earth - Donegal.
I stopped for a short coffee break to take in some of the breathtaking views and the stunning colours of the  landscape. Must take the camera next time!

Taste of Donegal Food Festival

We're off to Donegal town on friday evening for a busy three days of the Food Festival. Ernan McGettigan,  of McGettigans award winning butchers ( and stockist of Anna's Natural Sauce) is one of the main organisers and he tells me there were more than 20,000 visitors last year!

I'm  going down with my trusty helpers, Ellen and Barney, and we are planning to have a fun time giving all the visitors a chance to taste all my sauces and hopefully selling plenty too!

There will be  Taste Awards for the first time this year - who's idea was that Ernan??! - and I will be entering all my products, so wish me luck.

Also, after popular request, I am launching two of my existing flavours in smaller, more convenient sized tubs. Creamy White Wine and Spicy Tomato and Olive will both now be available in 320g pots, ideal for two people. These will be on sale in shops soon after the show. I hope this proves to be useful to my loyal customers and an attractive trial size for new customers.

Can't wait to see you all at the show - come and say hello and have a taste of my yummy sauces!

Slimming Sauces!

I have been having loads of discussions with people recently about how many points or calories or sins are in my sauces as this is a huge issue for all of us. Apart from eating good natural fresh food it seems more and more of you want to know exactly what is the nutritional content of your food and I want to help.
So keep watching this blog as I will be investigating how to get you that information and translate it into Slimmers World and Weight Watchers language too.
In the meantime I can assure you that two of my sauces  are virtually fat free - Spicy Tomato and Rogan Josh - the only fat I use is a small amount of rapeseed oil for frying off the onions and garlic. So there you go that's a start and I hope to have much more information for you very soon.

Back home in Inishowen

My tasting tour leads me back home to Inishowen this week and I will be in Canny and Doherty's Centra Moville on Friday 24th. They have extended their store since I was last there doing a tasting so I am looking forward to a bit more space to work in! Pop in and say hello if you are passing, or stop and let me know your favourite recipes for my sauces - I'd love to hear what you think. I always learn something new, like when I was in Clonmany Centra Annette told me she finds my Creamy White Wine sauce great for making vol au vents and at the Donegal market a customer told me how he uses it for making lasagne!

Day trip to Ballybofey

I'll be travelling for work this week - I'm going to Ballybofey!
I had two great days in Carndonagh Friday and Saturday doing tastings at G&S Costcutters for their 10th anniversary celebrations. The atmosphere was great and there was a huge crowd particularly on Saturday when Highland Radio and Declan Nerney were there. I met loads of people I knew and many more I didn't and they all got a taste of my sauces.
So I am heading to Ballybofey to do a tasting in store at Supervalu and I'm looking forward to a busy day there too - that's Friday 17th.
Then I'll be back in Donegal Town on Saturday fro the Farmers Market. Oh the joys of business travel!

Spicy Tomato and Olive Sauce with meatballs

This is a great version of an Italian classic sauce which goes really well with pasta and meatballs. Find it in any of my stockists' chill cabinets in the pot with the red label!

Make your meatballs with the best quality minced beef you can afford, the less fat the better. Using your hands mix the mince with breadcrumbs, parsley, chopped onion, salt and pepper and some raw egg until you have a thorough mix not too sticky, roll in a little flour and shallow fry until browned. Drain away any excess oil and add a pot of Anna's Natural Spicy Tomato and Olive Sauce. Heat through and cook until meatballs are done - that should only be about 20 minutes. Serve with any pasta you like; tagliatelle is favourite in our house as its easier to handle than spaghetti! That's dinner made!

My daughter is a hungry student and when she heads off to college I always make a little tub of pasta and mix some of my Spicy Tomato and Olive sauce through it for her journey.  This is a great snack at any time with loads of nutrients in the sauce and energy in the pasta, a good combination for eating on the go.



Simple Tuna Pasta

This has to be the simplest, quickest way to make a delicious tuna pasta dish for a weekday meal. Take Anna's Natural Creamy Wine sauce 320g tub and warm in a pan. The sauce is ready to eat and cooked by hand in our Tullyarvan Mill kitchen so that you can save cooking time and always be sure of fresh quality food.
Take a tin of tuna, drain off the brine or oil, and add to the sauce. Heat this thoroughly while your favourite pasta is cooking. If you have prefer to be gluten -free make sure to buy good pasta as recommended by the Coeliac Society listing. You can be confident that Anna's Natural Sauces are all gluten-free,whichever one of the range you choose.
When your pasta is cooked, combine with the sauce and tuna mix and serve immediately - so easy and so tasty!