Adventures in Food

OK so we tried the local thing, I will jsut say that it was bloody hard work but i would have liked to stay on it for a whole year. But I also liked giving up, that day when I had Frosties, that will stay with me. But now I miss the clean feeling I had when on the diet. I think that can be attributed to the absence of processed food. Anyway the thing is we have had several discussions about it and agreed to go back to a similar thing but its the whole of the uk this time which should make it a bit more practical. In the meantime we've been having food adventures with things like rock samphire from the sea cliffs in Cornwall. (And loads of other stuff like making an animation, but those are different stories) So I'd like to keep posting about these interesting UK foods and stay with the local theme and jsut see it more of an ongoing adventure and less of a serious and focused challenge. I also want to write about the thoughts and experiences that came out of being on the diet . ...

I found this interesting ad on gumtree about fresh bread http://www.gumtree.com/london/95/8354295.html The fact is we aren't following this diet properly any more but have adapted our regular diet taking on board some of the things we have discovered. I have some conclusions to share that may be of interest. I'll put them up presently. Watch this space!

I met hilary at her allotment at a secret location in west london. She supplied four packs of local butter from Berkely Farm Dairy near Swindon. She also gave me some greens to take home and told me about some organic slug pellets she is using that work without harming cute things like birds. The greens were amazing: fresh oregano - i am attempting to grow a cutting sorrel - a revelation in a world without lemons - I must have some! purple sprouting - the staple of local organic eating some green leaves - nice! This hanging around in a garden plot and trading cuttings reminds of what the women get up to in the amazon chacras where we were so many years ago. Its nice to feel that sense of unity with people who live so far away. Thanks Hilary

Well not strictly fish, although you could say the whelks and the scallops come into it but they aren't really fish. (We havent yet succeeded in locating local fish, which is probably one the biggest changes in our diet as we used to subsist on mackerel - cheap and healthy though probably endangered or something. But I digress.) i said before that the price of food doesnt really impact on one;s budget but i did notice last time in Waitrose that we are paying more than double the price for milk from Prince Charle's estate than it costs for some equally beautifully packaged and unhomogenised milk with lots of cream on top that comes from just outside our range. The cheaper milk also comes in bigger cartons so it produces slightly less waste. Even though this is a matter of 40 pence, I think it indicates how there can be quite dramatic differences in food prices for very similar items. I suppose people are paying the extra for the status symbol of having Duchy milk. There we are b...

We are now nearly three months in to the experiment and there is still an open question over whether to continue and in what form. I would like to reflect on the experience so far. I have noticed recently that the novelty and initial excitement has worn off and at times it has become a real drag. Its not a matter of craving things, which passed quite quickly and the new eating habits have been easy for me to adapt to and beneficial eg. herbal tea and low sugar. However it is the amount of work involved that makes it difficult. For example, we have to go to a market every saturday and they all shut at one or two, thank god Richmond Farmer's market is open till three or we would have starved a few times. Some saturdays you really dont feel like going to the market so it makes saturdays into more of a workday because there is a routine and a deadline. Also actually shopping is hard because it is all scattered. You go to Waitrose for milk and flour and oil; the market for some greens a...

We had a long weekend in Exmoor which is over 100 miles away. What a conundrum! We took the opportunity to see what produce they have in the area and went to the local farmers market in Minehead. We also stayed on an organic B&B farm (Hindon), where they serve huge breakfasts made from the pigs and lambs and cattle that you meet as you head off up the hill afterwards for your walk across the moor. This makes a good change as most local food is not organic. If we tried to live on local organic food we would be in intensive care by now. We brought back some goodies and I would like to mention that the taste of the cucumber, potatoes and eggs that we brought back from Exmoor were all fabulous. I think it must be the rich red soil. I am serious - I noticed the difference in quality and will miss the eggs - that was one of the best omelettes ever! - and the sweet, fluffy, rich potatoes. I never knew potatoes were anything more than general Filler food. More holidays in Exmoor Please!