Ok I admit it, I am a girlie girl. I love anything pretty, pink or sweet. So you can imagine how happy I am that I can be creative with my white goods – and have pink ones!

It could be overkill having all pink appliances – I mean, I still want my décor to be tasteful not look like I live in candy floss land. But I feel proud knowing I have had my creative splash in the kitchen, seeing my pink Smeg FAB32RO7 cheers me up when I see it – it’s beautiful!

Next on my wish list is the Smeg WMFAB16RO washing machine, yes a pink washing machine! This is bound to catch the attention of fellow girlie girls who want something funky and different in the home. Smeg appliances are excellent, they are brilliant quality and have excellent energy ratings, being green is something I really care about so while you are in the process of buying pink – go green!

I admit pink appliances are not for everyone – I think a bachelor pad might want something a little more fitting, perhaps black or stainless steel! Pink appliances are becoming increasingly popular, Smeg currently offer a great pink range including pink dishwashers, pink washing machines, pink fridge freezers and pink refrigerators. I think it is only a matter of time before other manufacturers decide to be ‘in the pink’ and with exciting colours including orange, yellow and red starting to take off in kitchens all over the UK it is not surprising that pink appliances are turning the heads of lots of people.

Of course I am tempted by other appliances on offer, Stoves have a pink pomegranate range cooker in their Flavours collection, STERLING1100DF, which looks great. Unfortunately I don’t have room for a range cooker but I am working on it – who needs all those kitchen cupboards anyway!

Be prepared for your kitchen to be pretty in pink!

Freezers should be defrosted when the ice becomes 5mm thick, consumers were advised this week. In an article about ways to be energy-efficient when maintaining appliances, New Scientist recommended "a general rule" of defrosting when the ice is at a certain point.

The most effective way to defrost the freezer is to ensure it is turned off and then place bowls or pans of hot water inside. This will speed up the melting process and leave larger pieces of ice easier to scrape off. If a freezer is left un-defrosted for too long, it will have to use more power because the coils which cool the air will be covered in ice, the magazine reminded consumers.

However, a properly maintained fridge-freezer can be great in terms of practicality and energy-efficiency. An example might be the Samsung Mono Cooling RSA1WTMH, which is an A-rated American-style model in silver with a capacity of 346 litres.

However, no one enjoys defrosting their freezer and it can be quite a cumbersome task. There is a feature available inside freezers which has proved to be one of the most popular features for this type of appliance – Frost Free. Frost free eliminates the build up of ice around the inside of the appliance and on any foods which are in the freezer. Frost Free means you will never have to defrost your freezer again – think of all the time and effort you will save!

This brilliant technology works as frost usually forms around the coils which chill the inside of the appliance, the build up can become thick and prevent you fitting as much into your freezer as not being energy efficient. Frost free eliminates the build up of ice around these coils and ensures your freezer runs to its best capacity.

It is the age old battle of the sexes, can women really multitask? Are men better drivers? And are women incapable reading a map? There has been much debate about who is the greater sex, both laying claim to being the best at various tasks and roles. A new article has suggested men may be better equipped to load dishwashers than women.

In a piece for the Australia.to website, Rick Mouw states having spent some time rearranging items in the dishwasher recently, it occurred to him the male brain is more attuned to the job than that of the female.

He said his own wife is one example of someone who fails to make full use of the appliance's capacity, leaving areas "underutilised" and items not positioned to be cleaned correctly.

"Wives will place glasses and bowls upside down on the lower rack, preventing any water from reaching the upper rack," he said, adding that cups are also left on their side, meaning the inside does not get properly cleaned.

He concludes "man's capacity for technical efficiency" may explain his ability to better organise a full dishwasher load - but adds that now he has convinced his spouse of this, he has become "chief dishwasher-loader".

Oscar-nominated movie Rachel Getting Married features a scene in which two competitive males battle it out to see who can load the dishwasher fastest.

With the new found male love of loading the dishwasher it may be worth in investing in one which can entertain him with new technologies and features. The Bosch Exxcel SMS50E02GB dishwasher is a good choice, the German technology should impress him, along with a 29 minute quick wash, HydroSensor III and half load option – that should give him plenty to play with!

So are men really better at loading dishwashers? Well, in my household that is yet to be seen!

I calculated my carbon footprint and I was surprised. Am I really above average for my co2 emissions? After reading careful advice and switching my habits my footprint shrunk and over time I have become increasingly green. We are being told more frequently that we should reduce our carbon emissions and our carbon footprints but in real terms what does this mean? There are a number of simple everyday things which you can do to combat your emissions and start living a greener life. Here are 5 top energy saving tips:-Switch to A and A+ rated appliances
Appliances work hard in the home, every day we put cookers, dishwashers and hobs to the test. Refrigerators are one of the hardest working appliances in the home – they work 24/7 to ensure your food is fresh and safe for your family to eat. A rated appliances can save you money off your energy bills and reduce your carbon footprint so be sure to consider a more friendly appliance next time you are making a new purchase for your kitchen.

Cut food waste
In Britain we waste 1/3 of all food, why not put leftovers in the freezer or simply buy less? If we all stopped being so careless we could save money and reduce the amount of waste we throw away.

Reduce car journeys
25% of car journeys are less than two miles long – why not walk or cycle. You will get the benefits of exercise and can help to save 280kg of co2 a year.

No more standby
When you walk into your front room are lots of little red lights staring back at you? Why not switch your appliances from ‘standby’ to ‘off’ when not in use. In the UK from our electrical equipment being left on standby we waste 3.1² million tonnes of Co2 – just flick the switch off there is no excuse!

Recycle
Bottles, cans, paper, plastic if you have finished using it then recycle it. Local Councils have given various coloured bins to their residents to make it easier than ever to recycle waste. So take your time to put things in the right bins and do your bit for the environment.

For those of us who aren’t as green as we could be – start off small and then really get into the swing of living a greener life.

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie...That's Amore! Indeed the Italians know how to get things right - romance, art and food can all be argued that no one does it better than the Italians. When it comes to food we would all love to create the taste of delicious Italian pizza in our homes and with certain cooking appliances available it has never been easier to bring the true taste of Italy directly to your dinner table.

The beauty of pizza is that you can add what you fancy on top – the key is making the perfect base. You can literally customise the pizza to suit your tastes which is what makes preparing pizza so fun and delicious!

The Perfect Pizza

Recipe Ingredients
For the dough:
225g of strong white flour, a teaspoon of fast action yeast, a teaspoon of salt, half a teaspoon of sugar, a tablespoon of olive oil (plus some extra for drizzling),120ml of warm water

For the topping:
4 tablespoons of rich tomato sauce,125g of buffalo mozzarella torn or sliced, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, salt and pepper, four slices of Parma ham, a handful of rocket and some parmesan shavings

Remember you can top the pizza with whatever you want!

Recipe Preparation
• Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl and add the yeast and the sugar. Mix with your hands making a well in the middle of the mixture for the oil and water to be poured into. Pour the olive oil and warm water into the well in the middle of the mixture and gently bring the ingredients together into a ball. To make the ball use a sweeping motion with your fingertips. You may need to add a little more flour or water. Keep mixing for a few minutes. Ideally, you want to end up with a soft pliable dough that leaves the bowl clean.
• Transfer the dough to a work surface and knead until silky, smooth and fairly elastic. Knead by pressing your fingers into the middle of the dough ball and pulling the front of the dough backwards over the top of your fingers. Then press the ball down with the bottom of your palm and turn the dough a quarter of a turn. Repeat the process for three to four minutes.
• Lightly oil a clean bowl, place the dough in the bottom, rub the surface of the dough with oil and cover with a clean damp cloth. Put the dough in a warm place and leave to rise. Leave the dough resting for about an hour. When it is fully risen it will have approximately doubled in size. Knock back the dough by punching it with your hand, turn out onto a floured surface and knead again for a few minutes.
• Stretch the dough out by hand, shaping it into a rough circle, until you're left with a base as thick or thin as you desire. Brush with olive oil, then place on a non-stick baking sheet and your pizza is ready to be topped. Preheat the oven to 220ºC, then evenly spread the tomato sauce in a thin layer over the prepared pizza base on a baking sheet. Scatter with the torn buffalo mozzarella and sprinkle with oregano, salt, pepper and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Place the baking sheet on the top shelf of the preheated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and the edges are just turning golden.
• Slide the pizza onto a serving plate and then top with the Parma ham, rocket and parmesan, scattering the ingredients liberally. Drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and serve. Enjoy.

Appliance manufacturers have recognised homemade pizza is becoming more popular which is why they are creating features inside their oven to make it easier. Baumatic have an excellent pizza feature available – the Pizza Stone. The stone absorbs moisture from the dough helping you to achieve a light and crispy pizza base. The stone allows you to cook bread, biscuits, meat and much more so for those of you looking for something different in the kitchen this could be just the thing. Smeg have an innovative Pizza Shovel so you can look just like an Italian chef scooping out the pizza with this great extra which allows you to safety remove the pizza from the oven.

So whichever toppings you choose and size of base you decide to make, enjoy your Italian delight and create pizzas which Mamma would be really proud of!