The problem with dieting....

Day 1

Is that you spell it DIE with a T on the end. It always feels like punishment. I am determined to lose 10 kilograms and enjoy what I am eating. Without constantly measuring and obsessing about every crumb I put in my mouth. I know I have been eating too many carbs and sugars lately, and just too much in general. So I have decided to follow different eating regimes based around how I am feeling that week, and see whether it works. I have nothing to lose at this stage apart from pounds...


I just can't deal with portion control this week, so have decided to drop the evil wheat carbs and sugar for a week and see what happens. So far, so good, although it's only lunchtime. I can literally feel those lbs melting away (!?)

For lunch I have just enjoyed a delicious broccoli salad loosely based on Jamie Olivers Cowboy Salad (minus the bacon and much less fat in the dressing) - basically take a head of broccoli and cut into nicely sized florets(not too big) and blanch in salted boiling water for 1 minute. Add 1 chopped tomato, and several chopped spring onions to the broccoli. I then added a can of smoked chicken breast, but you could add tuna, tofu, or any other protein of your choice that's healthy. Even Weight Watchers chicken bacon would be really good in this. I then made a dressing of 1/2 clove crushed garlic, salt and pepper, 1 tsp Dijon mustard. 3 tbs wine vinegar, and 1 t oil. Mix it all together and you have a healthy salad lunch for two.

Boysenberry and Apple Strudel

Tomorrow night we have decided to only have desserts for dinner because we can. As this isn't 'best practise' when it comes to parenting, I was trying to think of a recipe that might contain fruit and protein, that might be 'almost healthy'. Then the word 'strudel' popped into my mind. No, it is not healthy, but it is good, and if you're only going to eat desserts then why not have your favourites. It does contain fruit and ricotta cheese which is healthy, just ignore the sugar and butter parts of the recipe. If you want a truly healthy dessert, try freezing banana and strawberry bite size pieces. Blend these with a little yoghurt/milk until it reaches ice-cream consistency. The end result is sugar free ice cream which can be lactose free if you use soy milk or yoghurt.

Anyway, back to the strudel...

75g butter
90ml light muscovado sugar
3 egg yolks
1 lemon, grated rind only
¼ tsp nutmeg, grated
250g ricotta cheese
8 large sheets filo pastry
200g boysenberries
2 apples, peeled and sliced
2 tbsp sliced almonds
icing sugar, for dusting
To serve créme fraîche


Preheat the oven to 190C. Soften 15g of the butter. Place it in a bowl and beat in the sugar and egg yolks until light and fluffy. Beat in the lemon rind, nutmeg and ricotta. Set aside. Melt the remaining butter in a small pan. Working quickly, place a sheet of filo on a piece of greaseproof and brush generously with the melted butter. Put a second sheet on top and repeat the process. Continue until all the filo has been buttered and layered. Spoon the ricotta mixture over the filo pastry and spread until it covers the pastry - leave a border around the edge. Scatter over the apples and boysenberries. Fold in the filo border and use the greaseproof paper to carefully roll up the strudel. Grease a baking sheet with butter and place the strudel on top. Scatter the almonds over the top. Bake the strudel for 35-40 minutes until golden and crisp. Dust with icing sugar and serve with créme fraîche.