I have some scary packed lunch news for you. Not ‘preschooler finds snake in marmite sandwich’ scary – statistically scary.

(Because maths is fun guys!)

Flora has been working with Leeds University to recreate a huge study that was first done 10 years ago, looking at packed lunches in schools. Back in 2006, the research found that only 1% of packed lunches were meeting healthy food standards. So basically, you could have gone into any school hall, and you’d maybe have found one lunchbox that wasn’t crap. In my day, that one would belong to the unpopular kid with the parents who gave him carrot sticks and home made hummus and make him wear faux-leather school shoes from a ‘specialist’ shop. But that was the 80s, and they were harsh.

Forward wind* ten years then, and you would hope that lunch box standards have improved. I mean, we’ve got Jamie Oliver now right?

Wrong.

(We do have Jamie Oliver, that bit’s not wrong, this isn’t some kind of creepy celebrity chef murdering confession.)

Ten years later, despite there now being about approximately 8.3 million pictures on Pinterest of kids’ healthy bento lunch box ideas**, according to Flora’s research, still only 1.6% of lunch boxes are meeting healthy food standards. We look at pictures of mini olive kebabs and strawberries cut into the shapes of individual Mr Men, and then we sigh, pour another glass of wine, and just whack in a jam sandwich, Penguin bar and a bag of Skips.

healthy packed lunch ideas

Nope.

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For Belle, our recent lunch at the new Ivy Clifton Brasserie, Bristol, was less about the food and more about the opportunity to wear her new outfit, bought especially for my sister’s wedding. For me, it was definitely about the food. That, and the chance to look at Belle in her new outfit and sob quietly to myself about my lost youth. (Not that I ever looked like her even when I was 14, but I can dream.)

Here she is, getting in the way of one of my door pictures.

Review Ivy Clifton Brasserie Bristol

The Ivy Clifton Brasserie opened recently in Bristol, and Belle and I were going along to test it out. We make these sacrifices for you, you see. We went on the day before Belle’s birthday, so that even though we were there as guests, for the purposes of this review, I could make out that it was a fancy birthday treat. (I’m so thoughtful!) Actually, for the record, Belle did have a very fancy treat on her birthday, which I did pay for, all by myself, so I am thoughtful.

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Last night I ate three chocolate brownies.

Okay, even that’s a lie. I think I actually ate four, but somehow three sounds just a little less disgusting. They were about two inches square, so that’s quite a lot of brownie. Belle made them for me because I was hormonal and tired and they were delicious and chocolatey. I enjoyed eating them, but I also didn’t, because at the same time I was thinking about my thighs, and that took the edge off the fun of it a little bit.

To be honest, it scares me a little bit – my complete lack of self-control when it comes to food. I worry a lot about my complete inability to discipline myself, and what this is going to mean for me and my body over the coming years. That sounds very dramatic I know, but it definitely feels like an addiction. I have never taken drugs, and never been a smoker, because I just know that I wouldn’t be able to give up – I have no will power.

chocolate brownies self control over eating

I tested myself this morning. I had a bag of brazil nuts on my desk, and was eating them without really even thinking about it. I realised that that was probably a bad idea as it said there were 692 calories per 100g and it was a 200g bag, so I took our four and lined them up on my desk. I told myself that I would leave them there, and see how long I could make them last, that I would only eat them when I really wanted one.

Within two minutes I had eaten all four.

That’s not really okay is it?

(At this point I thought about taking four more brazil nuts out of the bag, lining them up on my desk, and taking a picture. I couldn’t take the risk though – no way would those brazil nuts go back in the bag – so instead I had to find a calorie-free stock image.)

brazil nuts self control over eating

I blame mindfulness. I’m so damn busy living in the moment that I find it hard to picture the future or make decisions based on long term consequences. All I can think about is how the brownie will feel in my mouth for those few seconds. And then afterwards of course I feel wracked with guilt and spend the half hour in bed before falling asleep fantasising about liposuction. 

I’ve even gone as far as to say that if I had one wish, I would wish that I could eat and drink whatever I wanted, without it ever having any negative consequences on my health or body. World peace? Pah! An end to child poverty? Nope. Calorie free brownies for me please.

Does anyone else feel like this about food? Does anyone else scare themselves with their complete lack of self-control?

Images – Igors Rusakovs and P-fotography from shutterstock

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I have to admit that when I think of Ryvita, I think of my mum on a diet in about 1989. I wouldn’t normally think about Ryvita as an everyday sort of food.

Oh how wrong I am.

Did you know for instance, that Ryvita do an apple and cinnamon flavour?! It’s immense. Even Belle, who really prefers just to just eat Weetos and Fry’s Chocolate Creams, will happily munch on these, dry, as a biscuit alternative. I prefer to smear mine with a thin (i.e. thick) layer of peanut butter, but either way, they are really tasty. There are in fact 12 different flavours to choose from, so there is bound to be at least one that takes your fancy.

I’m as guilty as Belle of eating a fairly restricted diet, in the sense that although I’m always happy to try new things, (unlike Belle, who made a retching noise at the weekend when I put some samphire near her), I just don’t ever really get around to it. Every day I fall into that classic office lunch trap of boring sandwich, a cup of tea… you know how it works. In my mind I want to be eating a delicious vegan quinoa salad with fresh herbs and pomegranate, but I just can’t be arsed.

Ryvita though. I feel like I could get creative with a Ryvita, (so long as there is no quinoa involved), and so I have taken up the #MyVita challenge to liven up my lunch, by coming up with some new topping ideas for my Ryvita. I had a browse of the Ryvita website initially for some topping inspiration, and must say that I was pretty impressed with their take on the classic fish finger sandwich. It looks pretty ace doesn’t it?

Ryvita fish finger recipe

Image – Ryvita

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easy pasta recipe with peas and pancetta and bertolli

As regular readers will know, I’m not really a natural in the kitchen. ‘Fridge pasta’ is one of my specialities, which consists of pasta, with whatever I can find in the fridge. Sometimes the pasta doesn’t match either, as it’s the dregs of three or four different packets.

This pancetta and pea pasta recipe is a variation on my famous fridge pasta, but created by chef Gennaro Contaldo, and with better instructions than just ‘ergh, let’s see what we have in the fridge – half a cucumber and some dry cheese? That’ll do.’

The full recipe for pasta with pancetta and peas is here, and I’ve recreated my version in this post. You might like to have a look at the other pasta recipes on the Bertolli site though, as they really are dead easy, and tasty too.

So, first up, ingredients. This is what you need to make your very own pancetta and pea pasta. It will serve about four, and only takes 20 minutes from start to finish: View Post

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We have a long standing Prezzo-related family joke. It’s not funny, I’ll warn you now. It’s so unfunny, that it barely counts as a joke, and I feel bad that I’ve even mentioned it now, when reviewing Prezzo. So bad, that I’m considering making up a funnier joke, just so as not to disappoint you. I can’t think of anything though. So, whenever we talk about Prezzo, we call it ‘Pressos’, in a strong Somerset accent. (We’re from Somerset so it’s okay.)

That is the entire joke.

I’m so sorry I put you through that.

Anyway, Belle and I went along to Pressos in Taunton a couple of weeks ago for dinner, as Prezzo wanted us to sample their new menu and let you know what we thought. (I’m stopping with the joke now, partly out of shame, partly for SEO purposes). Even though we’ve been back in Taunton for a couple of years now, I’ve not eaten in the Taunton Prezzo in all that time, so reviewing Prezzo in Taunton was a treat. (Weirdly, I have eaten in the Bridgwater Prezzo.) I don’t quite know why the Taunton version isn’t on my radar, as it has a very central location and, as I discovered when I went to the toilet, an outdoor seating area that would be lovely in the summer – definitely one to keep in mind for a cheeky summer lunch with a glass of wine.

I’m going to start with the pudding, as who doesn’t look at the puddings first and use that to plan their main course? No? Just me? View Post

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dairy free chicken korma curry recipe

This dairy free chicken korma curry recipe is so easy, a child could do it.

I mean literally, a child did do it – I got Belle to make it for me, as you can see in the video below. I’ve never really understood the whole ‘curry sauce in a jar’ thing, when a simple curry like this is so straightforward. Sure, we’re not crushing up our own blend of secret herbs and spices or anything, but why would you do that when you could let Schwartz do it for you?

Chicken korma curry is a favourite in our house, as I have bred children with zero tolerance for spice. Belle once refused cucumber sticks on the grounds they were ‘too spicy’ – I kid you not. This korma recipe is flavoursome, without any of the heat, so even the wimpiest of family members should enjoy it.

Because we have lactose tolerance issues in our household, we adapted this Schwartz recipe to use coconut milk instead of natural yoghurt and cream, but here’s the original in case you fancy making the dairy-tastic version. View Post

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We have all kinds of dairy related issues in our family, and Bee and Belle both find that avoiding dairy stops them getting all sorts of tummy related problems, but could lactose intolerance actually be a myth for many people? New research suggests that the symptoms normally associated with lactose intolerance, including bloating and stomach cramps, could actually be attributable to an intolerance to A1 protein – a substance found naturally in some, but not all, cows’ milk.

Published in the UK based Nutrition Journal, the study led by Professor Sun Jianqin from Huadong Hospital, an affiliate of the prestigious Fudan University in Shanghai, compared the impact on those that drank conventional cows’ milk – milk with the A1 protein – with that of a2 Milk™.

A2 milk isn’t processed to remove anything, it just uses the milk from cows that naturally produce milk with less of the A1 protein – it’s nothing freaky, it’s just about selecting different types of cow. The findings could prove significant for the 12 million odd people in the UK who say they have problems with cows’ milk – switching to a2 milk could be an option, instead of eliminating milk entirely, or switching to other processed or artificial alternatives.

If you or anyone in your family experiences issues with regular milk, have a watch of this short video, or visit the a2 website for more information about the research.

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Do you worry that you might be lactose intolerant?

We’ve been through our fair share of food fads, as most families do, and most of the time I take them with a pinch of salt. A month or so ago for example, Belle decided she was going to become ‘anti-pescatarian’. I don’t even know if this is a thing – she may have come up with the phrase herself – but basically it meant that after donating money to the Marine Conservation Society she had decided that she didn’t want to eat fish anymore.

This posed something of a problem, as she is already rather reluctant in the vegetable, seed, pulse and nut department, but I went with it, and it wasn’t too long before she was back on the fish fingers.

Dairy issues are more enduring in our family however. Bee is lactose intolerant, and in a bid to stop Belle complaining from feeling sick and having tummy cramps seemingly constantly, we tried cutting out dairy products for her too. It worked – she has stopped her night time tummy issues, and generally seems a lot happier.

Of course, we don’t know for sure that it’s a lactose intolerance, and while I’m happy to buy her a different spread and switch to lactofree cheese, it would be sensible I suppose to investigate it properly at some stage. I’m just a bit rubbish at actually getting round to that sort of thing.

What I am going to do though is watch Food Unwrapped on Channel Four tonight, which is going to be looking at a2 milk. Regular cows’ milk contains A1 protein which can be the cause for much discomfort – apparently it can be this, rather than a lactose intolerance, that causes problems for so many people. a2 milk is naturally free from this A1 protein and is proven to ease the symptoms for those with an intolerance.  View Post

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If you enjoy these Turkish Delight chocolate brownies why not share the post or pin it for later?

Turkish delight chocolate brownies

I originally came up with this recipe for Turkish delight chocolate brownies over a year ago, to raise money for Children in Need. It was available as a download on their website and raised over £300, which I was really proud of. It was winter at the time – long, dark evenings and lots of rain and cold, and Turkish delight chocolate brownies felt like just the sort of thing that people might need to get them through.

I thought it was about time that I shared it – Turkish delight chocolate brownies are not something you should keep to yourself after all. I warn you though, it’s pretty much impossible not to just stand at the kitchen counter, picking off corner after corner, muttering to yourself ‘I’ll just have one more little bit.’

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Written by my fiancé, because he knows more about drinking than me.

Christmas drinks guide

Christmas is thirsty work.

In 2013, Travelodge quizzed 2,500 adults about their Christmas drinking habits. Their survey established that on average, adults start drinking at 09:05 on Christmas morning. Really?? Certainly not in our house. Okay, there might be a bucks fizz with breakfast, but then that’s it until preprandial drinks. Choosing something new or slightly off the beaten track is a great way to make your celebration all the more special. I’ve hunted high and low, all in the name of research to share some lovely drinks for Christmas 2015.

Purple Moose Merry X-MooseChristmas drinks

Christmas beer is a tricky one. I’m a strong believer in supporting local breweries rather than mass produced beer that tastes like water. My choice this year comes from The Purple Moose Brewery in North Wales. Their festive beer, Merry X-Moose, is a liquid Christmas in a glass. Brewed only at Christmastime, using darker malts and aromatic hops, it punches a full flavour and is a wonderfully rich ruby colour. At 5.0% it’s perfect as a festive drop and works equally well with food or on its own. It might also be worth persuading your children to leave this out to wet Santa’s whistle on Christmas Eve. I’m not advocating driving a sleigh whilst under the influence, but Santa will be grateful. You should also try Purple Moose’s Darkside of the Moose, which took a handful of gongs in the CAMRA Champion Winter Beer of Britian awards.

Christmas drinksRed wine

When it comes to wine for your Christmas meal, I’m a big fan of light red wines. There is so much rich flavour on the table that it’s important to choose a wine that won’t compete for your attention and leave your stomach feeling like two heavy weigh boxers are doing a full ten rounds inside you. For something fun, try Domaine Marcel Lapierre Raisins Gaulois 2014. The Lapierre vineyard was a pioneer of natural wines and continues the same philosophy today, delivering wines with as little human intervention as possible. Wonderfully fruity with little or no sulphur and only local yeast, this is beautifully thirst-quenching and refreshing and is easy to glug.

If you’ve a little more of a budget, I wholeheartedly recommend the 2009 Savigny les Beaune Hauts Jarrons 1er Cru, Domaine de Bellene, which is available from Berry Bros and Rudd. It’s the perfect partner of turkey, with a nose of dark berries and chocolate. That sounds like it might be heavy, but the vineyard’s stony, hillside location keeps the wine nice and balanced. Decant it and enjoy the Christmas drink of Kings.

Don’t ever be intimidated by the thought of shopping for wine at Berry Brothers. Their staff are accommodating, friendly and helpful and will help you choose wine no matter what your budget or knowledge level. 

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So first up, what exactly is sous vide cooking?

Literally sous vide means ‘under vacuum’, but you’ll be pleased to hear that it definitely doesn’t mean you have to seal yourself into an airtight room and attempt to cook a roast dinner in a vacuum, like some sort of horrendous Crystal Maze challenge – only the food needs to be vacuum packed.

The idea behind it is to seal in all the freshness and goodness, so that the food you cook keeps as much flavour as possible. A chef somewhere apparently made a remark about asparagus and how you’d be better off chucking the asparagus in the bin after you’d cooked it, and drinking the water. It’s that.

Sous vide cooking means packing up all of your ingredients into a bag, taking out the air, and then cooking it in a water bath. The water bath is where Clifton at Home comes in.

Clifton at Home are based not far from me in Weston-Super-Mare, and so last week I went along to visit them and find out how it all works. They make their water baths right there in Weston, and have a kitchen on site where they test out recipes and invite chefs to try out the water baths for themselves. They also have a kitchen garden out the back, complete with an orchard and beehives, which you absolutely would not expect in the middle of an industrial estate. View Post

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