At the start of this year, I had a bit of an epiphany about eating more delicious food. And a vague resolution about making meals more of a celebration of eating, rather than a mindless refuelling stop.
And part of the root of the problem was the aimless wander round the supermarket, putting together a similar basket of food each time and then wondering why I was bored of all our family staple meals. There had to be a way to improve matters.
From the enormous power to be gained from harnessing one's mental energy I decided to be ingenious and come up with a solution to the problem. And do you know what I think it might be?
Yes, a DIY gastric band, so the entire family could live off their humps instead of requiring me to provide food 3 times a day.
I wish...
No, the answer was staring me in the face in the mounds of food magazines/freebie recipe cards/bits torn from the newspaper that are to be found all over my house. I save anything that looks tasty, but those impulses were not making it to the plate, until I put together a very scruffy binder clip of them and shoved them into my handbag.
And for the last few months, when I park outside the supermarket and gather my wits, I fish out those scruffy bits of paper and choose something for us to eat. They are not all 'haute cuisine' by any stretch.
One of them is inspiration for a fish finger sandwich. Which incidentally went down a treat with the husband as well as the offspring! I haven't eaten a fish finger in years. Cruncy lettuce, tartare sauce, squished up peas, posh bun - it was good! And more importantly, it was something we wouldn't have eaten otherwise.
As innovations go, it has been a resounding triumph. Though it hasn't done anything to conquer the 5lbs that seemed to settle stubbornly around my backside this winter. But it's okay. With my newfound zeal for focus and conquer, I have a plan for that too...
