Happy new year to all my readers and my apologies for not posting throughout December, probably the one month of the year many of you feel inspired to cook!
As I mentioned in my last post, we had a death in the family. Glenn's father passed away which left us all at sea throughout the festive period. I would have continued posting, (writing is good therapy and would have distracted me from the sadness that engulfed our home,) however, I couldn't even access my blog! Suffice to say I'm back on track now thankfully.
As usual it seems many of us are regurgitating the same common new year resolutions, exercise more, eat less..... the diets are out in force, same old, same old: you can lose a stone in x amount of weeks if you: cut out carbohydrates, cut out sugar, cut out wheat, eat only raw foods........or go on a shake diet.
Even though time and again research has shown that weight cycling and crash dieting is damaging and not effective long term, we are driven by the desire to be thin rather than healthy.
We look for short cuts, we starve ourselves for a couple of months or live on diet shakes, bars and soups only to revert back to processed meals and fast food, it's all or nothing because many of us have lost the basic skills to cook fresh beautiful food, lots of which we can eat in abundance.
Jamie Oliver said recently that we should let go of fad foods and diets, I couldn't agree more, can you honestly see yourself living without carbs forever? Are you really going to be able to sustain living on cabbage soup or goji berries? It's really about moderation, it's about leaving the ready made pizza and oven chips in the supermarket and buying a selection of fresh vegetables and transforming them into a delicious, hearty curry or casserole.
We are a nation of sprout lovers at Christmas, yet once the festive season is over sprout sales decline rapidly, proof again that many people only bother preparing fresh vegetables for special occasions. I love sprouts, they're versatile, filling and full of nutrients, cooked sympathetically they are sweet and nutty - boiled to death they are soggy and sulphurous, hence their bad reputation. Here are a few ideas to bear in mind next time you're tempted to pick up that fat and sugar laden ready meal.
Brussel sprouts
Recipes
Place small whole sprouts (for larger, tougher sprouts, shred finely) in a hot pan
Add a good glug of olive oil and cook over a high heat, turning frequently
When the sprouts are golden and tender you can fry some streaky bacon until crisp, or crumble ready roasted chestnuts on top or add some crushed garlic and lemon juice with crumbled feta cheese or finely grated parmesan, all of these combinations are delicious served with penne pasta and are cheap, quick and easy to make
Alternatively you can toss the sprouts in olive oil, salt and a glug of balsamic vinegar
Cook in a hot oven until golden and tender - the caramelised outer leaves will be deliciously sweet.
Another delicious way to serve sprouts is in a gratin, boil sprouts for 5 mintes, drain, sprinkle with salt and pepper, place in a baking dish and add some stock, cover with breadcrumbs and bake in a hot oven for 20 minutes.
I shall be posting recipes which I hope will inspire you to use beautiful fresh and healthy ingredients, as Jamie Oliver says: small changes make a difference over time!
I find these photos that I took at a grocers inspirational, they scream out freshness and health! It's really about changing our mind sets, not looking at ready made meals that may seem cheap and convenient, but thinking about flavour, texture and nutritional benefits and rethinking food, we're not filling our bodies like we fuel our car, we need to relish what we're eating, savour and appreciate all the good things we are fortunate enough to have readily available!
"Hope smiles from the threshold of the year to come, whispering 'it will be happier'....."
- Alfred Tennyson
Lots of love
Donna xxxxxxxxx
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