When you think about food being energy, it’s quite an eyeopener. I’ve been learning about this recently and it’s so interesting to think about food in a different way. To think about the fact that what we eat becomes us.
In 2020, I found peace in the kitchen and found myself shopping local a lot more often. The local fish shop, the local farmers market, all of these places not only gave me an opportunity to fill my plate, but gave me a sense of community and companionship. It’s been so nice to have a chat and spend a few minutes doing something different within my 5km.
Organic food can often be expensive but I know it’s becoming more widely available in all supermarkets. I try to buy organic as much as I can. I know it can add up but when I think about it I want to spend my money on things that will actually make a difference in my life. I think I’m still trying to heal my body after years and years of stress which took a major toll on me. Since 2017, I have changed my approach to food and it’s been a lovely learning experience.
Buying a box of fruit and veg can not only nourish you but support the local farmer and give you that sense of community. When you think it, most farmers put love and passion into their work. They often work with family members that they love, they grow the vegetables, pick them when they’re just right and pack them into a box for people in their community. That is amazing energy to be bringing to your house and putting into your body. Last week I ordered an organic box from a farm in Wicklow and we ate from it for 5 days. It’s a great way to try new food and get everyone involved in meal planning and thinking outside the box. There is nothing like opening your door to see a box packed with so much goodness waiting for you and your family. Next time I order I will take some pictures so you know what to expect, if you haven’t tried it before. It’s a mix of fruit and veg and it was so fresh.
This week, I came across an at home sushi kit in Dunnes so we decided to try it on Friday night.
The kit is really handy, it supplies you with all that you need to make sushi like the bamboo mat and the rice. All you need is your fillings like avocado, crab, whatever you fancy.
We made some crab and avocado and avocado and carrot. It was so easy to make and I’d really recommend it if you’re bored of having the dinners every week
We love pasta in our house and I like to make it as a treat once a week. This week, I turned to the king of pasta Guy Sinott for some inspiration. If you don’t follow Guy, you are missing out! He gives the best inspiration especially if you are looking for really gorgeous recipes. This week, I made a version of his Ziti, which he has saved in his highlights. I added some vegan sausage to it and it was so delicious. I didn’t have all the ingredients so I subbed out his ricotta sauce for a white lasagne sauce from BBC Good Food and it worked perfectly. I just chopped up the vegan sausage ‘meat’ and rolled it into little meatballs, I fried them up and added them to the tomato sauce and let them simmer away for 30 minutes.
I always serve pasta with some greens, this week we had broccoli and I made a big batch of this so we had enough for lunch the next day with some spinach. This was so tasty and I definitely make it again.
I promised I’d show you my soup maker. This was an absolute game changer for me. My mother in law Hazel swears by hers so I ordered mine over Christmas from Currys and I’m pretty sure it arrived the next day. I leave a link here to the website. I ordered the Morphy Richards 1.6 litre one just so I could make batches to last me a couple of days. So you sauté up your veg as normal in a pan. When it softens up a little (5 or 10 minutes) you just pop it into the soup maker, fill it up with boiling water to the line, add in a stock cube.
Then you can choose if you’d like smooth or chunky and 20 minutes later your soup is ready to eat. It’s the handiest kitchen appliance I’ve ever used, I love it.
There’s also a cleaning function on it so you just fill it up with hot water and a bit of fairy liquid and it cleans itself. We have fresh soup almost everyday in winter and it is a great way to stock up on your vegetables and to also use up leftover veg at the end of the week.
I hope you enjoyed that and got some inspiration for the week ahead.
All my love,
