Flipping Fantastic (WARNING: Pancakes were harmed in the making of this blog)

Sorry I haven't written very much over the last couple of weks, between work, social engagements and general yoyoing emotions, I haven't got round to writing.

This week was bizarre. After Monday's let down, I got back on the horse so to speak. I started again. I began to think carefully again about what I was eating and what I was doing to combat anything I shouldn't be eating!

Tuesday was great, I still felt a little disheartened about my Monday binge. It shook me well and truly. I was disgusted with myself. But there is no point dwelling, if I am that appauled, I shoudl do something about it. Food on Tuesday wasn't ncessarily the smartest as it was pancake day, but god damn it, I wasn't missing out on pancakes. Steve was shocked that I had never flipped a pancake before, so after making a batter together and arguing over the best technique to make the perfrct pancake, we got to flipping! Once I had begun to flip the pancakes, Steve said I had to go for 'Big Air'. This meant I had to, one handed, flip the pancake practically as high as the ceiling. For this, we moved into the dinning the room after Steve had hit the lights in the kitchen. After throwing my pancake into my face several times, I did finally manage 'Big Air'!! Hooray! You might think, but as my air born pancake reached its lofty heights the wind direction changed (the ceiling of my victorian terrace clearly has its own climate), it no longer was directed tpwards my open pan. It was cruelly swept away from me and landed slap down on the wooden floor. Never mind, it still got eaten!!

Steve also had a similar problem with his 'Big Air'. But his mathamatical brain managed to calculate the physics of the experiment so he could catch his pancakes, unscathed. However, bravery took over and he attempted the ultimate pancake toss. The pancake was flipped in 'Big Air' stylee, he pun on the spot, pan flung out in the opposite direction, the pancake . . . on the floor! Devestated he lay on the floor, crestfallen at his fallen pancake. He wanted to give up. He had given up. Nevertheless, my 8 year old inner child that had never flung pancakes before, was mesmerised - he just had to try again! The pancake, now quite cold, was returned to the pan and attempt 2 took place. As the spin was completed, I closed my eyes momentarily, praying the pancake would make it. Opening my eyes I saw Steves pancake land perfectly into the pan, arms aloft we cheered like no one has cheered before! Steve ran a small circle around the dinning room, praising his greatness! He celebrated by eating the cold floor pancake!

It was lovely, I was a child again. My Mum never flipped pancakes, I had never even tried. Its pathetic I know, and its strange how something so simple and so innocent can revitalise you. I knew I shouldn't really have eaten so many pancakes, I knew pancake shouldnt really be in my hair, I knew I shouldn't eat food that had been on the floor, but none of that seemed to matter. I was 8 again, I dind't need to watch what I was eating - ust for a moment. I was suddenly relaxed and happy. I had had a major stress over Monday, which was probably partly due to my stresses in other areas of my life. I have been up and down very much over the last couple of weeks, doubting myself at many corners. But all my worries were flipped away in the toss of a pancake! Wonderful!

Aside from all that, I am now 12 stone 3! Just 2 pounds to go to reach the half way point! Hooray!!!!!!! I am sooooooooooooooooo happy. Yesterady at work, so many people commented on my weightloss, noticing I had a waist again - I was only wearing jeans and a jumper! I felt fabulous. However, I have my lovely Cie this weekend so wine will be drunk, sushi eaten, and hopefully, mucho fun will be had! Not necessarily great for the waist line!

Nx

Comforting Memories - with lots of gravy!

What exactly IS comfort food?

I was just browsing through my chosen homepage of BBC Good Food and decided to have a quick look at their 'top 5s' list. At the bottom of their page they simply list 5 dishes, such as top 5 desserts, top 5 starters, top 5 comfort food dishes. The list, in no particular order, goes as follows:-

Steak and Kidney pie - my god yes!! There is nothing more lush than a rich gravied steak and kidney (must have the kidney) with a round of golden, crisp, puff pastry on top. Definitly a comfort.

Braised lamb shanks - ok, not what I would choose, but certainly understandable. Good meaty dish.

Champ - ermmmm, milk, onions and potatoes? again, ok, understandable but no thank you.

Cheesy swiss bake - no. comfort food should not be pasta bake, come to that, the only cheese based food I would class a vaguely comfort food is cheese on toast.

Panetone pudding - No, no, no. How pretentious! Bread and butter pudding yes, but panetone? just not right.

So I thought I would think about my favourite comfort foods. To me, true comfort food - not binge food, is food that is warming, home cooked and gives cosy, satisfying memoreis of childhood. The kind of food that envokes a smell from a memory, that pictures a small child curled up infront of a real fire in winter, wrapping their hands around a hot cup of cocoa. Comfort food takes you to where you are safe, where you are happy, where your fondest memories hide. No wonder comfort food can be addictive. I causes you to feel emotions that maybe you thought were long past, to think of days you thought long forgotten, to make you smile.

For me, these memories, these foods, stem from my mum and grandma Gill. I used to love watching them both cook, loved the smells from their kitchens (ok, not my mum's when she made pea and ham soup - eugh) loved getting to lick out the mixing bowl when the baking was done. These women are to blame for my liking of proper, old fashioned, home cooked food!

1. Roast beef, yorkshire pudding, good roasties and lashings of gravy! Nothing better - steak and kidney pie is nearly there but not quite. My favourite way to do roasties is this: Heat some oil in a roasting pan (hot oven). Meanwhile, par-boil some maris pipers in salt water. Toss the potatoes around in a collander so the edges break up and throw straight into the sizling oil. Turn once during cooking and bake till golden - so very good.

2. The good ol' cheese on toast - a decent quality creamy lancashire on thick white bread - a dash of worcester sauce goes well too.

3. Jam Rolly Polly Pudding and Custard - a lovely thick suet pudding with oodles of home made custard. I have never been able - well never attempted - a jam rolly polly, but one day!

4. A northern chip shop's pudding chips and gravy - to be honest, only from the Little Chippy in Adlington. Proper northern food. While checking out pictures for tonights blog, I found this website - made me giggle a lot! http://www.liquidice.co.uk/food/chipsngravy.html and in the words of my deputy head "Northern Girls Love Gravy!" Its true.

5. Chocolate goo - of various forms. When I was little and my mum was having a crap day, we would melt down a large bar of galaxy chocolate and eat the whole lot with a bag of crisps each. May sound horrid, but seriously not. So good it should be illegal. You would think my mum a huge woman from this description, but shes one of the slightest women I know.

I would be intrigued to know what other people view as comfort food. For me, when I feel low, these foods are the only things that will do. Sadly, somewhere along the line, the idea of comfort food got fuzzy. The 'lowness' became a constant, and the food became somewhat of an addiction. I lost the line between occaisional indulgencies and indulgent occaisions. The latter became more and more regular. It has been some time since this began, and it is only now that I am learning to love the comfort foods of my childhood again, not abuse them.

Homey and Healthy?

I love my homey food. For all the thai, oriental and asian things I throw together, there is nothing more appetising, comforting and warming than something truly homey. I was thinking this today whilst eating my lunch time soup. Homemade soup this week - none of this heinz stuff (sorry heinz . . . . I still love you!). Roasted veg soup went as follows . . .

Roasted Veg Soup

1 sweet potato

3 parsnips

half a butternut squash

1 red onion

three good pinches of cumin seed

turmeric

smoked paprika

mild chili powder

honey

toasted sesame oil

2 pints chicken stock

1. Put chopped sweet potato and parsnips in one tin. sprinkle over the cumin seeds and a good sprinkling of turmeric - quite a thick layer.

2. Over the potatoe and parsnips squeeze a thin layer of honey.

3. In another tin put the chopped butternut squash and red onion. Sprinkle over a good layer of mild chili powder and smoked paprika, as well as a dribble of sesme oil.

4. Roast veg at the top of a very hot oven until edges of the veg start browning.

5. In a heavy sauce pan, boil the two pints of water, adding two chicken stock cubes.

6. when the veg is cooked, add everything to the stock. Use a couple of table spoons of stock in each backing tin to remove any veg and juices that may have stuck. Return this to the pan.

7. Simmer for a few minutes then use a hand blender to blitz.

8. Salt and pepper to taste.

Lovely, warming and homey.

I haven't done the calorie count for this soup, its obviously not the lowest with the oil and honey, but my god it tastes good. It serves about 6 portions and is all I need to see me through from lunch until tea time.

As for my tea . . . I got my teriyaki!! Ok it wasn't chicken, it wasn't as beautifully constructed, but I enjoyed it. Tonight I marinaded salmon fillets in the teriyaki, garlic and a little mirin (Japanese sweet vinegary thing - much lighter than rice vinegar but add a good sticky coat). With potatoes chopped up small (so it looks like you've got more!) roasted in the oven, crunchy carrots and green beans, and a healthier version of my favourite cabbage dish - it was just what the doctor ordered! Again, quite homey but with a twist - posh fish and chips!

However, if I could have my way, this is how I love to cook cabbage:- Cook down with butter and nutmeg; add some scaps of crispy bacon, maybe some pine nuts of bits of walnuts; a splodge of cream or creme fraiche and voila!! I love it! But not particularly healthy. Maybe I will save up my calorie count for this!! Heehee!

Nx