Anchovies make everything better.

Week 8

Oh I love food.  If having to be on a health kick meant I had to be hungry this whole thing would be a write off from the very beginning.  I've not had any processed foods, bread, pasta or added sugar for 8 weeks now.  Starting a program like this starts off with the surge of willpower needed to stop myself picking up a bag of McCoys (king of crisps) but after a while it really stops being an effort and I'm actually craving healthy food rather than the sugary/salty/carbogeddon cravings I used to have.

This is true, but slightly disingenuous by the way.  I would still absolutely destroy a pizza and a stack of chocolate chip cookies, you just wait 'till after Christmas when I write my shame blog after all the horrible things I've done to myself.

So in that spirit, rather than just write a diary this week here are basic recipes of a few super-healthy things I've been cooking lately.

Cauliflower rice is the shit.  Seriously.

Cauliflower rice.  Not rice, just grated cauliflower, but this is so much better than that sounds.  Discovered on this program as it's a low carb alternative but seriously, if I'd known of it before I'd have been eating it forever.  Fry up mustard seeds and cumin seeds in some coconut oil and then add the grated cauliflower to the pan, salt and pepper and cook for a just a few minutes. Legitimately wicked and a lot quicker than rice. Might sound weird but try it, it's legit.

Oat bars

Oat bars.  I've got a sweet tooth so cookie alternatives are a must.  Blend bananas and dates (or mash with fork if you have soft, over-ripe bananas to use up) and mix in toasted seeds and chopped nuts, then add gluten free oats (could toast these too) until you have a nice thick batter. You want it thick and sticky so it holds together. Add the zest of an orange, vanilla extract, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Bake in a tin lined with baking parchment and slice up when cooled on a wire rack.  They have a texture kinda like bread pudding.

Kale and eggs

Kale and eggs.  Another thing I started cooking as a healthy alternative and now love, I eat this for breakfast every weekend.  Coconut oil, garlic and a couple of anchovy fillets in a frying pan followed by finely sliced onions then chopped kale.  Once the kale is wilted a little add seasoned eggs and chopped tomato to the pan and scramble together.  Served with a handful of seeds and hot sauce.  Goes great with bacon.  Obviously.



The value of a being able to cook a decent tomato sauce cannot be underestimated.  I grew up on massive plates of pasta with bolognese sauce (explains a lot) so filling that gap is important to me now I'm off gluten. A rich tomato sauce with brown rice and fish or as the base for a quick chilli or a vegetable dish is perfect for easy midweek winter comfort food. Rules -  1. Use plenty of garlic. 2. Anchovies make everything better.  3. Cook it slowly, ideally twice.

A cheaters risotto with steamed salmon.

I love to cook so if you'd like some actual recipes with food amounts and and cooking times for healthy food, (y'know, ones you can actually follow), let me know in the comments and I'll start putting them in future blogs

Another 6 lbs lost this week.  I knew the scale would be back on my side after last week's snub. That's 30lbs lost since I started, still got a way to go though.

Thanks for reading, as a reward here's a cat being...  err, not cute.  Weird and a little scary really.

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