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Declutter your mind in five easy steps

Plus gorgeous Raspberry & White Chocolate Muffins

 It’s been an unbelievably busy few weeks in the Dairy Diary office, with five products going to print last Thursday.

Combined with the minutia of daily
life with three children, this resulted
in a VERY cluttered mind.

Now the deadlines have passed and we can enjoy a long weekend, it is definitely time to address this. In our past-paced lives it’s so important for all of us to take a little time out and follow a few simple steps to de-stress and declutter our minds.

Here are Dairy Diary’s top tips on how to declutter your mind and feel more serene:

Get everything out of your head onto paper
Use your Dairy Diary to record events that you need to remember and tasks that you want to achieve.

But! Keep only one to-do list
Lists everywhere don’t help at all. Use the daily entries or notes pages in your Dairy Diary to consolidate everything that you need/want to do.

Walk for 20 minutes every day
If at all possible, find a 20 minute window in your diary every day to go out for a walk. Write it in your diary and you’re more likely to do it. This valuable solitude away from the stresses and strains will give you space to think and clear your mind of clutter.

Meet up with friends
It may be tricky to find a time when you’re all free, but do try to put a date in your diary to meet up with friends – even if you have to book it in weeks in advance. A chat and a good laugh works wonders and really helps to get everything out of your head.

Limit technology
With smartphones, tablets and a million and one things online we are constantly bombarded by information. Unless it’s essential for work, only check emails and social media once or twice a day – not every 2 minutes!

I’ll certainly be following these valuable tips, taking time to relax and getting my sanity back! Chill out and enjoy Bank Holiday Monday everyone.

And talking of relaxing……..I find one of the best ways to relax is to bake. Today, I’ll be baking these pretty and scrumptious muffins from the 2015 Dairy Diary.

Raspberry & White Chocolate Muffins

Time 40 mins
Serves 10
Calories 331
Fat 14g of which 7.6g is saturated
Suitable for freezing
Suitable for vegetarians

Plain flour 300g (11oz)
Baking powder 3 tsp
Bicarbonate of soda ½ tsp
Caster sugar 110g (4oz)
Butter 75g (3oz), melted
Eggs 3
Natural fat free yogurt 150g (5oz)
Vanilla essence 1 tsp
Raspberries 175g (6oz)
White chocolate 175g (6oz), diced

1 Preheat oven to 190°C/Gas 5. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with 10 muffin cases.

2 Mix flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and sugar together in a bowl.

3 Whisk butter, eggs, yogurt and vanilla together in a second bowl until just mixed then add to dry ingredients and combine. Add raspberries and 110g (4oz) chocolate, mix together and then spoon into muffin cases.

4 Bake for 15-20 minutes until well risen and golden. Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes then cool on a wire rack. Melt remaining chocolate in a bowl over a pan of gently simmering water and drizzle over muffins. Leave for 5-10 minutes to set.

For more information on the Dairy Diary, and how to purchase visit www.dairydiary.co.uk

#declutter