I’m no dietitian but half the battle is won simply by considering what you eat. How living on protein alone can make you lose weight is beyond me. Yet I suspect half the success is down to being ‘on a diet’. It makes you think.
So too with the cost of food. Earlier this month a report from The Economist focused on the rising cost of food: retail prices up 25 percent since January 2008, and how this was affecting spending patterns. For those on lowest incomes purchases of fruit and veg were down 25 percent, and lamb joints 45 percent. Pizza and biscuits however, were up.
Fluctuations this large inevitably have a profound effect on shopping habits but what happens when you are eating out in restaurants or office dining spaces? You don’t expect prices to change, there is a recession on for goodness sake, how can you possibly be expected to pay more for a slice of fritatta or a salad, or a steak. Particularly when you are not expecting prices to change and believe they are not changing elsewhere.
Pressure can be a very creative force. Does a dish need embellishment? A scattering of pine nuts may seem nice, but toasted flaked almonds are also good; sardines used in fish cakes create both interest and lower costs; a Thai curry may demand coconut milk, but yoghurt stirred in at the end provides a lighter and more elegant finish regardless of not being truly authentic.
Like many people I have non-negotiables. Coffee is one of them, butter another. Interestingly when I ‘cut’ our maple syrup 50/50 with Golden Syrup my children didn’t even blink. Sometimes the sweetest things are the best.
So what does this mean for me?: There is fat in everything, which means there is always room to manoeuvre. Remember it’s not always about finding cheaper, thinking outside the box is far more creative. Try using sunflower oil in some baking instead of butter, a carrot cake can be better.
Tell me what I should do: Look at your inputs and question each one in turn. Could it go, or could there be a clever substitute.
