Posted by kathryn in Vegetables, Salads and Soups

• Broad beans: Look at this salad on Stonesoup. What a wondrous mix of flavours and textures. While broad beans might be a bit fiddly they’re absolutely worth the effort. Plus they’re , here in Australia. * Quick couscous soup: I love the quick-ness of this recipe from 101 Cookbooks. It’s a couscous soup with broccoli, sundried tomatoes and goats’ cheese. * Grocery prices: In the Guardian Alex Renton investigates who wins when there’s a rise in grocery prices. …

Read more 5 comments 31 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Dinners

Today I have another guest post – from the lovely Wendy of A Wee Bit of Cooking. I asked Wendy to tell us about one strategy that helps her eat well. And this was her answer. Tuesday nights kill me. The days are always the busiest; the evenings are often filled with meetings, parents’ nights and/or marking and, to make matters worse, the weekend is never anywhere in sight. Arriving home on a dark and cold Tuesday night it …

Read more 19 comments 29 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Vegetables, Dinners, Salads and Labels & advertising

• How to cook: Mark Bittman hands his Bitten over to his producer, who wants to learn to cook. Her first effort is pumpkin soup. Not everything goes to plan, but she makes a soup that’s “tasty and satisfying”. * Credit crunch lunch: Shocked to realise the real cost of school lunches, Charlotte from The Great Big Vegetable Challenge has made some butternut pumpkin tarts for packed lunches – and they’re only 40p a serve. * Chickpea salad: Lovely …

Read more 2 comments 24 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Dinners

The latest issue of Life etc magazine is out, complete with my regular Ten Minute Kitchen recipe column. In this edition the feature ingredient is chicken and the three recipes are: * Chicken, tomato and olive tart * Oat and sesame crumbed chicken * Chicken noodle soup The three recipes can be downloaded from the Life etc website. Simply click on the link half way down the right-hand sidebar.

Read more 5 comments 23 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Blogging

I’ve been struggling with my blogging mojo for the last two weeks. I’ve thought about posts. I’ve half written posts. I’ve sat at the computer trying to force the words out. I’ve cleaned the house and done my accounts to avoid writing posts. And apart from one recipe nothing decent has come out of me. I’ve tried. I have at least three half-written posts and several post ideas, but nothing is quite finished. Nothing is quite ripe and ready …

Read more 29 comments 21 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Ethics & Sustainablity, Salads, Snacks and Labels & advertising

• Home squeezed oranges: When your orange juice carton claims it’s home squeezed you have to think twice. Interesting article on how food manufacturers are trying to tap into the locavore movement. * Asparagus salad: Oh my. Just look at the salad on Stonesoup – asparagus, mozzarella, capers, buckets of herbs. I can’t think of many more heavenly ideas. * Falafels: For weeks now I’ve been craving good falafels. Moist, full of herbs and with a crunchy outside coating. …

Read more 7 comments 17 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Blogging, Dinners, Desserts and Salads

Bananas, custard and asparagus are not the most obvious elements on which to base a meal. And when I started thinking about Sarah Cucina Bella’s $7 dinner challenge they were far from my mind. Originally I was planning a red lentil dal with yoghurt and rice. Good bargain fodder. Until I saw asparagus for a dollar and realised bananas were the cheapest fruit in the supermarket. Which is when my plan changed. Instead my meal is a barley, fetta …

Read more 13 comments 13 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Dinners and Salads

• The US$7 Dinner Challenge: Sarah’s Cucina Bella has set a challenge: making a two-course dinner for four people for US$7. That’s not a lot of money, about $10 Australian. I’m taking part – are you up to the challenge? * A selection of salads: I’m new to Food Blogga, but particularly love her salad selection. There are side salads, meal salads, dishes suitable for winter, as well as lighter salads for the summer months. The Food Blogga salad …

Read more 5 comments 10 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

Lisa thought I might have some advice on how to find a good nutritionist! While it’s not something I often look for, I do have some opinions and thoughts on this. h3. 1. Make sure your nutritionist is registered In Australia, once you’re qualified, if you want to practice as a a nutritionist you have to join a professional association. Registration is also necessary for getting insurance – vital for practising these days. As I’m from the naturopathic school …

Read more No comments 09 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

The next question in Q & A Thursday is about lemon juice in the morning. bq. What do you think of half a squeezed lemon in hot/boiling water in the morning? I have been doing this as opposed to my morning coffee. This is an old naturopathic remedy. Most detoxes include it and a lot of practitioners recommend this combination to aid liver and digestion. While I don’t promote detoxes, I do have clients who swear by it and …

Read more 4 comments 09 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

The next question in Q & A Thursday is from a reader who asks: bq. Someone once told me that people who are anaemic crave ice. I can’t find any information about this, but it worries me because my 12 year old daughter LOVES ice. Pica is the name of the health issue where people crave and chew substances which are either not normally classified as food, or are not usually eaten in large quantitites. As well as ice, …

Read more 7 comments 09 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

Next on Q & A Thursday a reader asks: bq. What are salicylate levels? And why are people concerned about these levels in fruit? I have come across several websites noting that the salicylate levels in pears drop to zero if you peel the skin off. I always thought that we should try to eat the skin of fruit and vegetables because that is where all the vitamins are, but should I be peeling my fruit instead? h3. Chemicals …

Read more 3 comments 09 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Vegetables

First up in October’s Q & A Thursday is a question from Andrea: bq. I’ve often heard that you should steam vegetables, rather than boil them, to gain more nutrients out of them. However, I am not sure why this is so. Is this because (a) nutrients are water soluble, so when you boil them and drain off the water, you are pouring the nutrients away? Or (b) boiling vegetables actually destroys the nutrients somehow? Vegetables "contain a number …

Read more 4 comments 09 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

Following some thought I’ve decided to make the regular what’s in season list NSW specific. I’m moving more and more towards eating primarily local foods and the vastness of this country means sticking to Australian grown produce is not quite enough. Food and produce from the west coast and far north travel thousands of miles getting to Sydney. Which isn’t quite “local” food really. So from now on each month I’m going to concentrate on what’s being grown and …

Read more 7 comments 08 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Uncategorized

h3. Q & A Thursday This is a Q & A Thursday week. For those new to Limes and Lycopene, Q & A Thursday is a monthly burst of blogging where you get to dictate the subject matter. Q & A Thursday is all about simple, practical answers to food and diet dilemmas sent in by readers. If you have a question you’d like answered send me an "email":mailto:me@kathrynelliott.com.au. For more information you can take a look at the …

Read more 4 comments 08 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Dinners and Desserts

• On becoming an omnivore: This has nothing to do with health, nutrition or even being sensible really. But I just love Jeffrey Steingarten’s writing. Here he talks about becoming an omnivore. * Mediterranean-style quinoa: Each week I say to myself I’m not going to link to 101 Cookbooks again. And then Heidi posts another superlative recipe and I just have to let you know. This one is culturally confused quinoa dish – with "pesto, roasted cherry tomatoes, pine …

Read more 12 comments 03 October, 2008

Posted by kathryn in Blogging and Dinners

I’ve been thinking recently about one of the difficult parts of keeping on the dietary straight and narrow. Planning and shopping. They’re an integral part of eating well, but for most of us there are days and weeks when thinking ahead and getting to the supermarket just doesn’t happen. At these times it’s easy to fall back on fast food and take away. h3. The challenge So a few weeks ago I set a challenge. Was it possible to make …

Read more 12 comments 02 October, 2008