A weekend lunch

I am home alone today, so music on, coffee on, paintbrush out. And now that I have managed to cover myself, and several areas of carpet, with white gloss paint it feels like a good time to stop for lunch.

Today lunch is leftovers. Last night for a quick supper I cooked up a cross between a frittata and a crustless quiche and served this with mashed white beans and a salad.

For the frittata / quiche:
Gently fry in a little oil an onion, some chorizo or bacon, courgette (chopped into bit size pieces), 3 or 4 mushrooms (also in bite size pieces) and a clove of garlic crushed or finely chopped. This all needs to be just cooked and must not have any excess liquid as this will water down the egg.

In a bowl beat 3 eggs with a splash of milk. Season well.

To get the shape and to enable me to bake this in the oven I used a cake tin, a round one that I would normally use for a Victoria sandwich cake. I used the base of the tin to draw a circle on grease proof paper to give me a disc of grease proof to put in the base of the tin. I brushed the tin with margarine (or butter or oil) before putting the disc of paper in as this creates a seal that the egg cannot leak into. Then I brushed the paper (now in the tin) with margarine as well. This sounds fiddly but is actually very quick to do and means that the frittata will not stick to the tin and can be more easily removed.

Once the tin was ready I added the cooked vegetable and chorizo mix, spreading evenly. Then I poured the egg mix carefully over the vegetables. Finally a topping of chopped cheddar cheese - this could be grated but to be honest I don't like making washing up so I see no need to use a cheese grater for this.

I carefully put the tin in a pre-heated oven (about 180 c) with a baking tray underneath as the tin was very full. This was baked for half an hour, although I would suggest checking after 20 minutes. Once cooked I left it to cool for 5 minutes before using a knife to release the edges. I then put a plate on top of the frittata, tipped it upside down to remove it from the tin, then another plate to flip back the right way up (similar to getting a cake out of a tin). Remember to remove the grease proof paper!

It was delicious hot. But today I am eating the leftovers cold with salad (lettuce, tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, almonds and a little crumbled stilton dressed simply in olive oil). And it is delicious.

A mushroom supper

I do like a mushroom. And there is something wonderfully filling and comforting about large, flat mushrooms cooked in the oven, especially if they are covered in something nice.

Today's mushrooms were happily dressed in the summer colours of red (a splash of passata and some fresh tomatoes), green (spinach and a handful of sharp salty capers), yellow (cheddar cheese, gloriously golden brown once cooked) and a scattering of black olives. I did sneak in a couple of anchovies, although I know these are not to everyone's taste. A splash of olive oil and twenty minutes or so in the oven and this was a tasty supper with a Mediterranean feel.

Get better broth

Ok, so even eating healthier can't stop the occasional poorly day. And on a poorly day when I am feeling delicate and washed out all I want is uncomplicated food, nothing too strongly flavoured but definitely comforting, thick socks or slippers and a quilt to curl up under.

This week I had a couple of poorly days. And once I felt ready to eat I knew that what I fancied was a broth, chicken, of course, because chicken soups and broths always feel medicinal when feeling unwell, but also full of pulses (pearl barley or spelt) and lots of vegetables, especially green ones becoming almost seaweed like in the liquid.

And so I made my broth, and only thought to take a photo on the second bowl! But it did make me feel better.

 

 

CHICKEN AND SPELT BROTH

3/4 pint chicken stock
1 large handful of spelt grains (or pearl barley), rinsed thoroughly
Chicken chopped into bite sized pieces
A good selection of vegetables (I used onion, courgette, carrot, mushrooms, spinach), also chopped into small pieces
A squirt of tomato puree (optional)
A splash of soy sauce (optional)

First a word on chicken stock - yes I would like to say that I started with a homemade stock, but I would be lying. When you are feeling under the weather, or even just leading a busy life, don't waste time on feeling guilty about whether the stock you are using is homemade or not. Mine wasn't!

Pour the chicken stock into a saucepan and add the spelt. Heat gently bringing the stock up to a simmering point. Then add the ingredients - I started with the longer cook vegetables (carrot / onion), then worked my way through until all vegetables were added. I also added a  squirt of tomato puree because I like the additional tomato flavour.

Lastly I added the chicken and let it poach in the broth, long enough to cook but not too long that it became at all rubbery. Pull apart a piece of chicken to check it is white, and therefore cooked, all through. For the size of my chicken pieces this took about 15 minutes. Also check the spelt is cooked (soft, but still holding its shape).

Just before serving I added seasoning to taste and a splash of soy sauce, because I like the salty depth of soy sauce.

Serve in a bowl on its own, or go mad and add thick slices of bread (granary, of course).

Baking!

Some days only cake will do.

I struggled with this a lot when I first changed my diet. Custard caramel doughnuts, rocky road slices, coffee shop cakes, chocolate brownies... And my view on deciding not to eat something is that you don't attempt to replicate it (I could never understand vegetarians who eat "fake" meat), but just sometimes cake just makes everything better.

So I looked for something I could cook at home, starting with the theory that if the ingredients themselves were less processed then surely a "healthier" cake would be possible. This was when I discovered spelt flour, now thankfully available from most supermarkets and health shops.

The popularity of this type of flour was such that actually my first baking project was from a very mainstream cookery book - Nigella Lawson's Kitchen from which I adapted her Apple and Cinnamon muffins adding in porridge oats for a slightly heavier muffin. And they are now a firm favourite - a proper old fashioned style cake with substance, not one of these flighty, fussy, lighter than air fripperies in the form of a cupcake that are sickly sweet and insubstantial. I have decided I like my cakes brown and tasting of something other than just sugar.

I am now reading my way through two books - Love Bake Nourish by Amber Rose (given to me by my friend Jon) and also Spelt by Roger Saul. I am planning my next baking projects with much anticipation. I love cookery books so half the fun is being able to look at a whole bunch of recipes feeling that there is nothing to stop me making, and eating, them when for a while baking seemed no longer an option.

So expect a few more baking blogs to come.

Dehydration

I don't drink as much water as I should, who does?

But when I do drink water I feel the benefit. And when I don't drink water I feel the impact.

Simple fixes, but important ones.

A nice cup of tea

Betty's black china tea with rose petals brewed in a teapot. Memories of student days and my friend Roger who would still insist on using a proper teapot and loose leaf tea even in a student hall of residence.

These days, though, my tea of choice is very different. Having decided that the normal bog standard cup of English tea had an extremely diuretic effect on me I reluctantly tried to find an alternative. And now I drink rooibos (red bush) tea with milk regularly - the first drink of the day and often the last. But it wasn't a change made without reluctance - I missed Earl Grey in particular.

Now, with excitement, I have discovered that there is an Earl Grey rooibos tea available from my local health food shop, and it is a fantastic brew.

The options available are noticeably increasing, which to my mind can only be a good thing. Recently I discovered rooibos, vanilla, and cocoa. Obviously I bought  it, although am still yet to try it. Can I admit that the packaging alone swayed me? But, in my defence, if the pretty packaging of cupcakes, pastries and pre-packed milk chocolates are no longer an option than surely a little nicety in the form of a pack of tea should be allowed. And it is the closest I have felt to the excitement of buying Betty's beautifully packaged loose leaf tea twenty years ago.

Time for tea? I think so.

A working day lunch

From the start of my diet change lunchtimes became a challenge. I had fallen into the routine of so many busy working women and made my daily trip to Sainsbury or M&S to buy a pre-packed lunch. I knew I should be more virtuous than this, making time to make lunch at home - a way to be certain of what I ate and most definitely a way to save money - but when the hours in the day never seemed to be enough and tiredness was a constant state the daily food raids became a way of life, and in my mind an excuse to make me leave my desk for a brief while.

And any way did I know what I was eating, even if I made lunch at home? Sandwiches, with brown bread if I was trying to feel a little healthier, pre-packed salads that seemed to be low in calories, couscous, flatbreads filled with chicken in sweet sauces, confusing packaging, numbers and percentages that I was sure should mean something. But whatever care I took to try to understand, it seemed to make little difference - I weighed what I weighed (heavier than I wanted to be), and tiredness seemed to be constant.

Lunch now is easier. I take advantage of the fridge at work and fill it with a bag of salad (yes, pre-packed and from the supermarket, I admit it! But I am still busy). Adding olives, cold meats or fish, other antipasti (such as artichokes or peppers), cheeses (Roquefort is my favourite), seeds (pumpkin or sunflower), a splash of olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Perfect. A lunch that always feels like the sort of food you eat on holiday and have every intention of replicating when you return home (but never do). Yes it takes some thought on a Monday, but once I have filled the fridge it will last me for a few days, which actually makes it cheaper than buying separately daily. I have also discovered that there is something mood lifting about eating food from a plate with a knife and fork in the middle of a working day, rather than from a plastic packet.

A granola alternative (and other breakfast options...)

Much as I love porridge the thought of having the same breakfast every morning can lead even the most sane person to the edge of insanity. So I have experimented with alternatives, such as cooking up a version of granola which can then be eaten with greek yoghurt (and maybe a touch of the slightly naughty honey or maple syrup) or cold with milk as a replacement cereal. My granola was a mix of oats, crushed nuts (macadamia, cashew), a few dried cranberries (but not too many), pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, desiccated coconut and a little honey. The mix was then placed on a baking tray and toasted in the oven for approximately 20 minutes. Left to cool it doesn't become as crunchy as commercial versions, but it tastes good and I know exactly what is in it.

 

 

Of course there is always the option to avoid anything cereal related completely. Unlike trying to follow a low calorie diet I have found that being able to eat eggs and cheese and dairy products has been quite liberating. What better way to start the weekend then with a version of eggs benedict, or, more accurately, eggs en cocotte with spinach and a teaspoon of crème fraiche, cooked in the oven in a pan of water for approx. 20 minutes or until the eggs are soft set (obviously served on a granary based toast, rather than a white flour muffin). Coffee and eggs - could there be a better combination for a slow morning?

 

 

Porridge!

Breakfast cereals are no longer an option, even the ones parading as a healthy start to the day are no longer a possibility. Porridge has proved to be a lifesaver -  good breakfast is vital in the control of sugar levels and nothing works better than starting the day with oats. Perfect.

 

 

 

 

 

Unbearable Sweetness

Removing sugar from my diet has made me realise just how sweet modern foods are. I don't mean obviously sweet foods - cake, puddings, biscuits are clearly going to be sugary - but foods which we class as savoury also now seem so very sweet. Salsa dips, pasta sauces, ketchups and pre-packed meals all now taste unbearably of sugar.

But going without sweetness altogether is not easy. I cannot drink coffee without a spoonful of sugar, and I like my porridge sweet in the morning. And now and again I really do need some sort of cake - not a fluffy, sugar filled fancy but a wholemeal muffin with apple and almonds or similar.

So what options for those avoiding sugar but still wanting the sweetness? I have tried stevia but cannot get on with the after taste. Recipes for "healthier" cakes have suggested using maple syrup or honey, but, although less processed, I am unsure whether these represent a lower gi than the sugars I used to cook with (granulated / demerera / muscovado). I have also tried agave, nice in taste but so very expensive, and fructose. Fructose is my current sugar of choice with its claims of being lower gi, but I have heard the arguments against it too, which worry me that in trying to make a healthier choice I am in fact choosing an even unhealthier option.

I know, I know - the obvious answer is to learn to live without sugar at all, but life is just too short to live with that amount of denial.

So I will continue to try to reduce my sugar intake as much as possible and will continue to wonder which is the best option for those times when I really do need a little sweetness.

The unexpected diagnosis

Two years ago, after numerous tests trying to explain why so often I felt achey and generally under the weather, I was diagnosed as having a hereditary resistance to insulin. It was not what I expected, I was a healthy, slim, active woman with a teenage son and a full time career - the triggers of diabetes, such as being over weight, eating too much junk food, general inactivity - really didn't describe me or my lifestyle. But sometimes your genes just let you down.

So suddenly I was dealing with something incurable, and something that could potentially lead to diabetes and heart problems if not controlled. Quite a lot to take in when I had suspected that the feeling of being run down was probably only due to stress. Mind you, I had been lucky - my GP had persisted in trying to find the root cause when most GPs would have agreed with my diagnosis of stress.

And how to deal with it. No pills or medication, just diet and activity. More specifically, a low GI diet and pulse raising  activity at least 3 times a week. Sounded simple - low GI was something I had vaguely heard of so surely it must be easy to follow some "rules", read a few books, look at the GI labels on food and everything would be straightforward. How wrong I was! No food labels exist for the GI levels of food, partly because the GI level depends on the concentration of sugars and the mix of food in the meal you are eating - this means that the glycaemic load (GL) is a more important measurement than the glycaemic index (GI), and this is much more variable. All I know is that I had always considered myself an intelligent woman until I stood in the aisles of a supermarket on my first lunch break after diagnosis completely at a loss as to what I could eat.

Two years on I am still confused, but I have some guidelines by which I now eat and cook, and in general these seem to work. I survived the first 3 months of cold turkey, removing sugar completely from my diet, and now try to maintain a sensible approach to food without living a life of complete denial.

So here I am writing about my experience, maybe to share or maybe as a form of therapy. It is entirely possible that no-one else will ever read this, but if that proves to be the case then I will be grateful for having had a chance to record some of my experiences as I have tried to come to terms with how best to cope with this condition.