Permaculture

The frost has still been hanging around but I have been creating my plan to grow my permaculture paradise. It’s very small but being and working in the garden growing food is very pleasing for body and soul. It will be a 5 year ongoing project but I am trying to work with nature and understand the working relationship. Gardening and being in nature provide exercise, sunshine and food that has not been tampered with. It’s an essential part of my new reality. I may not be able to garden in the conventional way but being in a wheelchair should not hold me back.

The birds and the bees are regular visitors and all is well in my nano garden.

Bacteria

To improve my digestion I have taken the same science as if improving the soil in my garden. I equate that what happens in here is the same as what is happening out there. I changed to starting to eat in season and increasing the diversity of ingredients in my food. Instead of eating just rice, there would be millet, quinoa and couscous too, more variety in vegetables and fruits and telling myself that yes I can eat that but checking whether it fits that formula. This week it’s local asparagus although in the supermarket it comes from Mexico. Little changes do build up. Having a local veg box also provides me with local bacteria that will further enhance my wellbeing.

The conversation with nature

Yesterday I observed the birds in the garden and apart from them picking up little twigs and breaking my wool mat to bits, they were obviously building a nest.

Then there was a bluetit that kept going to my blackcurrant bush and I thought he was destroying it. However on closer inspection, there were little green flies on it meaning the bluetit was doing some work in my garden.  Sometimes we just have to observe and notice that a garden is created by all of nature and not just us.

Banana cake with crunchie

The weather has frankly been a bit dark lately and many are asking when winter will end. To fill the house with some cheer there is nothing better than the fuggy smell of a banana cake. Besides using up the needless black bananas that hang around in this house, it warms my heart and brings back wonderful childhood memories of Grandmother's kitchen. I love having cake in the house to dish out with that relaxing cup of tea or coffee. We are 15 miles from an urban coffeeshop  so we create our own coffeeshop atmosphere.

Ingredients :

• 200g Self raising flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs beaten
• 75g butter
• 175g caster sugar
• 3 large amshed bananas
• 2 crunchie bars

Grease and line a deep 1/2 kg loaf tin

Place flour,bicarbonate of soda,salt, eggs,butter and sugar in a bowl and mix together.

Add mashed bananas and put the mixture in the loaf tin. Then break the crunchie bars up, put on the top of the mixture and swirl inside the mixture.

Bake at 180 degree Celcius for about 45 mins to 60 mins until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
Cool for 5 mins and then transfer to a cooling rack.

Hide away in a tin until you can no longer resist.

How to establish your rhythm of life

What rhythm of life is appropriate to you and how to find out what is it?

STAGES OF LIFE

There are a number of stages in our life and to accept and know which one we live in now can help us tweak the energy we have. Children have a need for routine, adolescents need sleep to function properly, young adults, active in the workplace, young parents, the 30 age group, 40, 50, 60, 70 etc.Each stage of life brings challenges with it, You might be following that linear path as it unfolds or like me navigate between them.

Questions relating to each stage :

SLEEP( night)

How many hours of sleep do you need for optimum energy?
Do you sleep the required number of hours and if not what is stopping you?
If you were to sleep the required number of hours what would be the impact on your energy?
If you cannot sleep the required number can you build in a nap in the day?

Our daily rhythms vary and although I know I am at my optimum energy when having had a good 8 hours uninterrupted nighttime sleep  my teenage sons require about 12 hours and are a lot more present if I accept their rhythm. That means that their breakfast time is my lunch time and our main meal in the evening is their lunch time and that at 9 pm they are likely to need a snack. Even if it means we have different daily rhythms they meet at certain points.

ACTIVITIES( Day)

How  many hours does it take you to do your work?
when is the best time for you to use available optimum energy?
Does your commute add time to that?
Do you take time to be present when you eat a nourishing meal?
Are there seasonal changes to this pattern?( Winter and autumn)

WEEK
How do I use the time at weekends? (Could be catching up on sleep)
Is there balance in my work and play?

SEASONS

There can be very little variation on how we currently use our energy during the seasons and every week seems like another but it was not always so.
Spring was a time of planting new seeds, new life, growth after a period of fasting and as the workload increased so did the length of the day. With the convenience of electric light we can modify that but do we use the time to its optimum?
Summer was a time for tending the growing plants, eat fruits in season, socialising and usually a time to work and play at maximum capacity. Summer is the time of plenty, warm, long days.
Autumn is a time of harvest and preparing for colder weather by processing the harvest and ensuring we will have our needs met in the colder days. Autumn offers us ambiguous days that remind us of summer but also of the winter ahead.
Winter offers us the shortest amount of daylight hours and an opportunity to see if the fruits of our labours do indeed carry us through to the next season. Harvests are limited but it can be a time to slow down a little, stay warm, coset ourselves a bit and plan and gain strength for the year ahead.

YEARS

Each year and each period in our life has its own demands and thinking of what is important and what is authentic to us we can live with each 'now' in harmony or discord.

Somehow this century we have challenged these rhythms of life by working day and night, every day of the week, eating everything whenever we wanted, anytime in the name of progress. We rarely notice a change of season or pace getting out in all weathers, to accomplish our life's work paced over the seasons of the year instead of over 365 days.

A step towards change to ponder:

Start by finding out how many hours of sleep are most beneficial for you and make it a habit to get the sleep you need.( it fluctuates with age, health issues, effect of nutrition etc)
Can you give yourself a day of rest each week and plan activities that will nourish you?

Its an ongoing movement towards doing our life's work and staying present in the 'now' noticing the time of day, day of the week, seasons and how we function at our optimum level. It is a challenge but enables us to make our lives meaningful.

Sprouting seeds

Winter time gives us less vegetables to choose from and although outside my salad patch contains lambs lettuce and a few hardy varieties it is not as prolific as summertime.
The addition of sprouted seeds adds a lovely crunch and vitality to salads,sandwiches and stir-fried vegetables.

The process is simple but it requires daily attention and the equipment needed can be simple or complex but lets start simply.

For a visual representation this video provides a good introduction to sprouting.


My little jar was a present from a neighbour but it works well and delivers a small amount of sprouts to try the principle out. Little sprout jars and seeds can be obtained in the UK from https://www.livingfood.co.uk.

When your sprouts are ready to eat they will keep in the fridge for about 3 days thus a continuous small supply can be achieved with 2 jars on a windowsill.  Sprouts contain all the energy a seed would have needed to blossom and eating sprouts gives us the opportunity to harness all that goodness. Sprouted seeds can be bought at a wholefood store in bags ready made but growing your own is much more economical. Why not try it as an addition to your salad supply.

Sprouting makes indoor gardening a reality providing valuable nutrients when we most need it.

Profit or yield?

Happiness is working in a shop.

If you are wondering whether we are still enjoying what we do, the answer is a resounding yes. Apart from relentless days, weeks, months and years of working without a significant break, the life of a shopkeeper is a happy one with some surprises. It has been a transforming experience in more ways than one. 3 years ago we simply could not see how we could re-enter a working environment due to health issues until we realised that combining our strengths and working with our weaknesses as a family we could make a valid contribution to society. Family businesses are the oldest business model in the world and despite long working hours the rewards go beyond mere profit. Its an opportunity to try ideas, to involve all family members in business discussions and to get a broad view across the generations. It constantly amazes me how when we put a challenging situation on the table, many solutions arrive from all participants and we can then decide how challenges can be solved. If you want to know how to market toys to children, what better way than to take a 10 year old to the wholesaler and let him choose products for that market share. It also provides an educational tool to discuss how businesses work. If you want to understand the challenges faced by teenagers in their shopping habits, you only need to ask to receive an answer. Website design can be discussed with family members who grasp html..

When the going gets tough, we can work together as a team, each with our own individual roles to continue to serve customers. Each team member’s skills are valued and respected and their weaknesses offer opportunities for personal growth through mutual support and encouragement. A sense of humour helps.

What does the future hold in these uncertain and changing economic times? There are definite changes in supply lines as some suppliers go out of business, products are withdrawn and choice reduces but overall it is a never ending process of adaptation. We cannot anticipate completely what our customers want and when we fail , we see it not as failure but as feedback to consider change. We can see some of our suppliers struggling in this economy and we can see how that will affect our supply lines but by supporting local suppliers and by strengthening relationships with local suppliers we aim to create an interdependent local economy.

Someone’s output can become someone else’s input creating a circle of resources. Big businesses tend to rely on surveys and on secondhand information but to us having direct contact with our customers and suppliers informs us on their views on the products we offer which in turn can inform our business strategies.

As an example we recently were approached to market a new local muesli and before we agree to stocking a new item we take it apart and each family member gives some feedback. Is it local, what are the consequences of its packaging, what is the shelf life, where will be put it, what is the best possible price? Each team member has a view and brings some valid points to the discussion.

One of the best comments made by one of our sons was how lovely it was that work could be enjoyed. He had observed how many people are sad, stressed and unhappy at work and how he was not particularly looking forward to becoming a ‘groanup’. Seeing us smile, happy and contented in our work despite our challenges has given him a different perspective. That is simply a fantastic moment to remember and worth getting up for.

That is a bigger investment yield than profit.

the 5 min bread

Following on in my search to create a bread each day with less effort, no equipment and maximum flexibility has led me to the discovery of Artisan Bread in 5 mins by Jeff Herzberg and Zoe Francois. Its very easy and you can keep the ready made dough in your fridge for up to 14 days. You can use it to make loaves, pizza bases, flatbreads, pitta breads in a very short time filling the house with the wonderful delights of homebaked bread. You can watch the presentation and recipe in the utube video here:


Once you have the basic recipe, the book provides endless variations on ingredients and types of dough. Artisan in 5 also provides ongoing inspiration.
I have no pizza stone but warmed the baking tray in the oven and then slid the loaf onto it. It worked out fine.

Easy bread

Not a lot of kneading, a great way to start making artisan bread using your oven and a few casserole dishes.

Creating change

Persistence


Change is palpable in the air at the moment. Many of you will face changes in employment, shopping habits and our environment. What we have taken for granted as ' always there' is about to disappear. What I mean by that is that our perception of ' normal' is going to be challenged.

The news continues to contain either companies going into administration or taking drastic cutting back procedures which will involve a loss of facilities, a loss of jobs and a loss of products available to purchase. The banks, then luxury goods ( such as Wedgwood), now Mark and Spencers are cutting out small food stores and I anticipate seeing pressure on many retailers that provide luxury items we took as being the ' norm'.

At the same time, the value of sterling has been dropping which means that our purchasing power abroad is reduced. This can be seen in a great price increase in produce that is imported from Europe such as flowers, fruit and vegetables. As buyer for a small village shop that means that some of the products that people use ( i.e. olive oil), may start to creep up in price. The difficulty I foresee for many shoppers is that they will need to start shopping more locally for their resources and this may mean a change in eating habits too. This creates unknown territory for shoppers and retailers alike and uncertain times as well as opportunities.

Many of us are used to go to the supermarket with the idea that tonight we fancy Italian, pasta with fresh tomatoe sauce, basil and a lovely bottle of wine. The local produce on offer at the moment is rather duller : potatoes, leeks, beetroot, brussels sprouts, swedes and turnips and on the meat section duck, venison etc. Fish is limited to turbot, brill and oysters. Not Italian then as the norm today. On the menu could be roasted roots with some venison sausages if you can find them. That dish however is not going to be made in seconds. In general the season demands slow cooked casseroles, stews and soups with or without a drop of wine.

To create change drastically means that our stress levels go up so here is my strategy for dealing with change and creating a difference should you be faced with immediate change:

Every big project or goal can be broken down into small steps. Little lurches forward. Sometimes they're clumsy. Sometimes they don't even seem to make an impact. But this is how anything gets done within a certain timescale. If you want to create a big change, plan backwards to the little step you can take today to start that process.

* Years and years of built up clutter get sorted and thrown away one drawer at a time. Plan for 10 mins each day to sort and reuse, recycle or donate.

* Years and years of reckless eating and unhealthy habits get shifted one meal at a time. (Plan a 15 min walk 1 day a week, then 2 etc) and cook a healthy meal with local ingredients 1 day, 2 days, 3 days etc per week.

Cutting your financial budget and repaying debts can happen if you plan one step at a time. Reduce spending on the small things ( latte, magazine, doughnut) and the money saved can go on paying debt.

As we are now on a deconsuming pattern, changes will happen and withdrawal symptoms for many will be heartfelt. Apathy may set in as well as depression but on the other hand you may have an opportunity to make small changes that will create a new way of life. Taking positive action means you will find a way through.

The heating went on while we had visitors and now they have left we realise that we got accustomed again to a higher temperature and day by day we can change that. If we change it immediately, we would really feel the discomfort. Any voluntary change can happen and puts you in control, if a change is forced upon you, then you may feel a different reaction.

Downshifting may no longer be a voluntary thing but one step at a time it is a possibility.

changing seasons

The autumn and winter weather here in the UK are comparatively mild in temperature compared with the USA for instance. It gets wet,windy and damp and to go out requires some effort. The dog is an excellent creature of routine and expects at least 2 walks per day. The difference living here is that it gets light after 8 am and quite dark in the afternoon, just after 4 pm when the children get home from school.
Pumpkin carvings by Nathalie Halloween 2008

Light and candles are therefore important during these months and I feel drawn to scented candles and a daily walk in the fresh air. It feels like a time of hibernation, rest and contemplation and this year, I intend to give in to that rhytm a little more than previous years.
Dampness in the air, colder nights and daylight have a mellow feel to it. There is a poignancy about this time of year. Nature is still blooming, ripe with berries, hips and haws and there are still many flowering plants in the garden. Yes we know that it is impermanent and that change is imminent.

At the same time, our bodies change too in anticipation of a different season. The ancient chinese associated this season with the earth element. When you look around at harvesting of crops, gathering fruits of your labour in the garden it can be linked naturally with digestion and nourishment. Autumn and winter bring us back inside, out of the cold, expecting warm nourishment and a time of rest.

I find it fascinating that eating with the seasons brings me into a different way of preparing meals that are suited to a woodstove. Comfort foods; warm stews, soups and hot drinks centre us at this time of the year. Cold food and drinks are thought to deplete the spleen and stomach energy. When cold food enters the stomach it has to be warmed diverting valuable energy from the digestive process.

Some seasonal preparations:

• millet is a gluten free grain which in Chinese medecine is thought to be supportive to the spleen and is cooked in much the same way as porridge : 1 cup of millet flakes to 2 cups of water, simmer for 30 mins.
• Root vegetables can be roasted in the oven ; sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, squashes and yams are high in natural sugars and are a healthy way to indulge a sweet tooth.
• Slow cooked foods; casseroles, stews and soups.
• Add cumin seeds, and coriander to vegetable, bean and lentil dishes- this helps digestion.
• Drink peppermint tea after meals.

Despite the wet weather, I love the colours, the composting scents in the countryside and I look forward to coming home and taking up my knitting, my reading and spinning in the warm room.

The white stuff

Chocolate Chip Cookie And Milk


The picture about milk is changing. Its a product that is used by many of us and is a main ingredient in our kitchens. Most families in the UK start their day with cereals covered in milk, drink milk and have endless cups of tea with milk. Is the daily cuppa threatened? I grew up with milk being an essential part of my diet as it was an easy way to obtain calcium and nutrition for growth.

Milk's primary use is food for young mammals and yet as humans we are an exception in that we continue to consume milk beyond infancy. Genetically we are probably not designed to deal with that and in fact many of us become lactose intolerant at some stage in our life.
Humans are an exception in the natural world for consuming milk past infancy. The sugar lactose is found only in milk, forsythia flowers, and a few tropical shrubs. The enzyme needed to digest lactose, lactase, reaches its highest levels in the small intestines after birth and then begins a slow decline. In normal circumstances, babies would be breastfed and then continue with some form of milk until weaned. Milk is used to make butter, cheese, yoghurt, kefir, condensed milk, powdered milk, milk chocolate etc.

The wholesaler is faced with a dilemma that requires some action. The amount of dairy farmers walking off the farms and selling up is increasing ( which in term will mean less production locally in the UK) and at the same time, transport costs and labour costs are increasing regularly. This means that their profit margins are being squeezed and as such they will be putting the prices up soon. The increase here is going to be 5 p per litre which is the equivalent of a 5% price rise. One of their reasons for putting the price up is that they want to continue to pay a fair price to the remaining farmers to ensure that productivity continues and stops the tide of farms being sold off. That is a positive as the alternative to keep up supply is to import milk from other countries which only adds food miles to stand still.

The law of economics states that if a demand is greater than supply, the price goes up and if demand is lower than supply, then the price comes down.

Since 2 out of 5 in this household are lactose intolerant and actually allergic to milk products, we have made changes and the results have been noticeable. We also have far fewer plastic milk bottles to take to the recycling plant. It is a personal choice.

If you want to avoid a 5% increase in the price of milk out of your budget you could simply cut out 5% of your milk consumption per week. That could easily be achieved with cutting out 1 cereal breakfast per week or drinking black tea or black coffee. As an alternative to cereal, try porridge made with oats and water, eggs,toast or a fruit smoothie. If you want cereal, muesli is quite tasty with fruit juice or water.


A price increase in the raw ingredient of milk will also push up price ultimately of butter, cheese and all products that have milk in it.

Grazing on salad

Rain makes for a lovely green lush salad leaf and probably a wonderful beetroot in a few weeks. Strawberries on the other hand are rotting on the plants as are the gooseberries. Apples are swelling on the tree.
The raised bed that looked empty a few weeks ago is bursting with fresh green leaves and I find myself grazing whenever I pass; a rocket leaf here, a salad leaf there, a spinach leaf that is fresh and crunchy.

Salads cannot readily be preserved and are a crop that needs to be picked and eaten very quickly. Problem is that the weather suits more pies and stews than salad leaves. It makes a wonderful addition to home made savoury pies or pizza.

What amazes me every year is that different plants get the spotlight....when their growing conditions are just right. This must be a a salad year! Hence the abundance in rabbits in the fields...their vegetation is in abundance and so they multiply.

I could be negative about the lack of sunshine but instead I am grateful that this year any lettuces planted are not turning bitter and going to seed as quickly as other years. having saved the rain butt in case of drought I can only laugh at the irony of it, its overflowing every day. I fill my watering cans with rainwater to water the tomatoes that are screaming for some warmth and water the houseplants with the abundant water. After all, it makes up 75% of the chemistry of people and vegetation so there is nothing to complain about, its obviously needed.

Sandals are parked and wellies are the new summer gear!

Summer memories

Old House Ardennes 67

The daily front page news may or may not have got you down over the last month as well as the lack of summer warmth. The news all around is rather gloomy…but only if we let it. Our antidote here is to rise above any recession prediction and continue to enjoy what we do.

The economic outlook may seem as dark as the summer weather; every week suppliers provide new price lists, stop stocking certain items or change their delivery days to cut fuel costs which overall is probably a sensible approach in the current volatile business climate.

Global warming, the credit crunch and economic recession can be a selffulfilling prophecy if we let it.

My childhood in Belgium took place in a small village in the Ardennes and every Sunday I cycled to the village ( about 3 miles away, uphill) to seek out the bakery. My efforts of cycling uphill were rewarded upon entering the village where my senses would be revived. The smell of fresh bread and pastries would waft out of the bakery and Annemie would wave me in with a lovely smile. I was about 12 at the time. My basket would fill up with fresh crusty rolls, the odd baguette, fruit waffle and Tarte au Riz for afternoon tea. My cargo had to be protected on the whiz down the hill back home. During summer months I would rest on a grass verge, read a few passages of my book and admire the view of the valley below. Come rain or shine, whether my week had been successful or pretty hard to deal with, I never failed my expeditions to the bakery. Annemie’s wave and smile would beckon me in and I would leave feeling a sense of belonging and warmth which has stayed with me ever since.

This is one of the reasons for baking fresh bread, croissants and pastries in Central Stores. There are still memories to be made today for young and old alike.

For the past few weeks we have been experimenting with baguettes, different types of rolls and pastries and feedback has been very encouraging indeed. The variety on offer will continue to change, not only to test our baking skills, but to offer a moving feast for the senses to accompany villagers during bright and rainy days. You may even glimpse a smile from behind the counter!

Bread, rolls and pastries are available every day but croissants and petit pains au chocolat are weekend delights to be savoured with a steaming cup of your favourite beverage and good read whatever the weather. Baking has given me a new satisfaction; every time a croissant leaves the oven, I hear Annemie’s voice telling me not to hurry, to enjoy every moment. Every croissant has the ability to create a memory.

Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress; working together is a success.
Henry Ford

Salad days

The rainy, cool days suit the salads in the raised beds very well although the humans in the household are crying out for some hot weather.

The raised salad bed is planted quite densely which eliminates weeding. Red and green lettuces interplanted with radishes provide a feast for the senses. Slug population need to climb at least the equivalent of a mountain to reach the greenery and success for the moment is abundant.

Simple salad

Salad leaves- mixed, washed and cut up with scissors
radishes
parsley
tomatoes
cucumber
sprinkling of cashew nuts
sprinkling of sultanas
1 avocado sliced
dressing of olive oil and lemon or lime juice

add either crusty bread or 2 rice cakes, a large glass of elderflower cordial and enjoy what is left of the summer.

Where are the bees?

No bees, no fruits? No beans?
It is remarkable at the moment that the weather is off track, the plants are unsure what to do about it and a synchronicity of flowering, pollinating and fruit is far from easy to obtain presently.
We obtain our local honey from an enthusiast. He has been telling us for the last six months that he is unsure whether the bees will survive the climate change and when he came in this week, he glumly told us that 50% of his hives had not managed to survive the winter. 50% is a huge amount.
What seemed a possibility is now a certainty in our area : bee populations are severely damaged and this can only mean that British honey will die off and we will need to import our honey from the rest of the world at a premium cost. If we have no bees pollinating the orchards and fields, our crops will diminish and as such, farmers will have a harder time managing to create value crops. As a result of less insects too, birds will require us to supplement their diets with seeds and worms to keep them thriving.
If you love honey, go buy some as British honey may indeed become a rarity in the future.

Independent small retailer's week

Canary yellow is not the most suitable colour for our complexion but it certainly has been a talking point. To celebrate the status of small independent retailers, many have joined forces to open conversations with shoppers and wear the yellow jerseys. More details can be found on the myshopisyourshop site.

In a playful way we learnt what we do well and took the opportunity to find out what our local shoppers think about the way we do things, what could be improved etc. Most of all, we had a good laugh and were laughed at. The weather has been really miserable lately and word got around that something was up in the shop. It was a fun day and we have taken on board the comments made.

At the same time, our shopping bag competition has come to an end and we have some really good entries to choose from. Some made us laugh a lot and others were more serious. At least many people had a go to make the slogan about the shop their own. What we want to do is to recreate a sense of community and belonging and although vastly present in our village, we can still do our bit to enhance and strengthen the relationships we have with our customers. Details of the winning slogan will follow.

Its been quite a week :

• market research
• photographs taken of the ' canaries'
• the choosing of our own shopping bag logo
• launch of organic vegetable and fruit box.

There is more to explore but we work on the principles of the triple bottom line as suggested by Sally Lever: people, planet and profit.

Organic box scheme

Fruits & Vegetables Sign

For a few months now we have been searching for an organic vegetable and fruit box to offer to the customers of the shop. There are still issues around it but Monday this will be available. We have been offering an increased range of local produce. Local producers did not seem willing to provide a delivery service to the shop so we turned to our wholesaler and asked him to source a box for us.

It’s a bittersweet step; we will be offering an organic box but some of the produce , although organic, will be from far away. This is a bit sad that pears in the organic box are coming from Argentina but it’s a stepping stone at the moment until we can establish demand and see if we can win the local producers over to see that it is worth investing in.

We tried the contents out last week and in the box were the following :

potatoes
carrots
onions
1 small swede
1 broccoli
1 cauliflower
1 lettuce
2 courgettes
1 sweet potato
1 lettuce
4 bananas
4 pears
4 apples
2 oranges
4 plums
6 tomatoes
1/2 cucumber
1 beetroot

It was tasty but needed to be kept cool as it does not keep as well as the usual vegetables and fruit.

A few people who order from a national scheme have shown an interest and will be testing it out.

The meatrix

The meatrix is a cartoon series based on the Matrix about factory farming of meat and dairy.

Having given up on meat, dairy, wheat, yeast and sugar this week I can say that it is possible to do. I have known for some time that changing to a vegetarian diet would have an impact not only on my health but also on our carbon footprint.

Here are the steps we have taken to get this far :

• Change from normal milk to organic milk.
• Check out alternatives (almond, rice, oat and soya milk)
• Explore other grains than wheat : oats, millet, rice, barley, spelt
• become aware and ask where your food comes from.
• Shop local for meat and poultry from sustainable farms you can visit
• Change from 7 meat meals per week down to 6, then 5,4, 3 until you have 1 meat meal per week.
• Go to the library to read up on recipes based on vegetarian cooking.
• have soup for lunch or a rice salad.
• Trust that your tastebuds will change.
• Grow salads and vegetables in your garden
• Grow herbs in your garden to season your food.
• Eat fruit 3 times per day to enable your body to get used to natural sugars instead of artificial ones.
• Eat seasonally and locally produced food.

This is not about going hungry. Until recently I was unaware that the food we ate was nutritionally deficient making our bodies want more and instant fixes of sugar as this is quickly absorbed into the body.

After a week, I can eat strawberries without sugar and cream, icecream or yoghurt and they taste of strawberries.

Fresh food requires no refrigeration, can be eaten straight from the garden and waste is reduced or composted easily.

Sample menu today :

oat cereal with fresh strawberries and rice milk
mid morning snack - banana and herbal tea
lunch - rice salad : rice, grated carrot, grated courgette, raisins, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, chopped herbs, olive oil and lemon juice, black pepper.
afternoon snack- apple and herbal tea
dinner: roasted vegetables on quinoa fussili
evening snack - herbal drink

A few months ago I would not have managed this but reducing consumption of meat and dairy is possible slowly. This is not an entirely local diet but in time further changes will be made.

Some good resources are :
Barbara Cousins - Cooking without made easy
Lizee McGraw - Energy on a plate

Rhubarb - the first seasonal fruit

Preparing Rhubarb


Rhubarb is an understated native fruit. It is the first fruit of the season and can be eaten as early as March when forced. Its tender red stems, are not everyone's favourite but I continue to experiment with its flavours.

It can be bitter but when cooked with a little orange juice, the taste seems to become sweet and silky. It is a miraculous plant and I planted 2 crowns this year in the garden. They do not yield anything this year but I have been asking around and there is plenty to be had for free. I planted the rhubarb crowns under the apple tree and the morello cherry tree. When the tree is bare in winter, the sun brings on the rhubarb nicely and when the rhubarb season is over, its leaves provide a leaf compost to feed the apple and cherry tree.

Rhubarb gets creatively changed into

Poached rhubarb with stem ginger ice cream

• Rhubarb Tart
• Rhubarb Syllabub
• Rhubarb and Grapefruit Marmalade.
• Rhubarb cake

Rhubarb is said to be the ancient Sanskrit remedy Soma, for courage, wisdom and longevity. It has purifying properties and can lift our energies after hibernation.

This plant will give us fruit every year in abundance and will require minimum attention over the years. It forms part of