Viks Picks : February 2016

February has been cold and emotional and frankly I'm fairly glad to see the back of it. There have been a good share of nice things too, though, and certainly my picks this month have made it all more tolerable.

1. This month I've been mostly cooking from Take One Veg. I love the simplicity of it and how it really highlights the vegetable. I've cooked roasted roots, made lettuce soup with left over salad, a sprout, lemon and cheddar salad and still have my eyes on a blueberry and goats cheese salad.
2. It's so easy not to pay attention to your toes  in the winter months, just stuffing them into thick socks, or pounding the roads in training but I've been trying to remember they need looking after. This Burts Bees Foot Creme is my new favourite foot cream! It's thick, nourishing and smells divine. That and some new nail polish has made me feet feel loved.
3. As a little extra motivation to get out and train I signed up to Bounts. Link up your apps and it'll reward you for your steps, runs and bike rides and with GPS location services you can also get rewarded for attending your leisure centre or yoga class. Premium membership gives you 3 times as many reward opportunities than the free account for less than £1 a month at the moment so you'll be on your way to useful rewards such as big brand coffee, restaurant, shop and cinema vouchers that much sooner. Use referal code vikkiroberts501 when you sign up and we'll both get rewarded with 100 points!
4. I've got to thank to Elle for the chance to try Muscle Mousse as I won one of her competitions. I won a pack of the Strawberry flavour and I'm getting through it rather quickly. I've tried The  Protein Works' version but I prefer Muscle Mousse. It mixes with water so I can always make up a great tasting dessert even when I've no milk in the house, it mixes well so I never get lumps, and it sets to a lovely thick consistency. It's not cheap but I think I will invest in the peanut-choc caramel flavour next.
5. My little treat of the month has been the stack of Superseeds Hazelnut Cocoa Kick from 9bar (another prize - thank you!). These are really delicious and although I don't find them filling enough for a breakfast on their own they're great with (and apparently in) a smoothie, crumbled onto yogurt and fruit and for a boost after a long race. Every bar they sell helps to provide solar lights to people in Africa, allowing kids to get their homework done, feel safer and generally experience a better quality of life, so I can feel doubly good about these bars.

What's been getting you through February?