Power foods: What to put in the shopping trolley each week

There are some foods which should form the mainstay of any supermarket shop. They are the 'power foods' - the ones which are packed full of good things. Below, fitness trainer Tinika van Dort sets out what you should stack in your trolley.

Broccoli: high in fibre, broccoli will keep your body regular. Steam, boil or microwave until tender so you retain vitamin C and folate.

Spinach: packed full of goodness spinach contains betacarotene, fibre, vitamin C, E and K and several of the vitamin B group. Spinach also contains potassium, magnesium a little iron and two antioxidants. Include spinach in your diet 3 to 4 times a week – throw a handful of baby spinach leaves in to a stir-fry or whip up a salad.

Blueberries: Blueberries contain plant pigments that destroy free radicals that damage DNA. A punnet of blue berries contains very little calories and virtually no fat however is full of vitamins and minerals.

Soy beans: Containing natural plant hormones that mimic the female hormone oestrogen and as such are valuable to women going through menopause. It can also lowers bad LDL cholesterol and prevents arteries from clotting and provides fibre, omega-3 fats, protein and various minerals.

Almonds: Containing essential nutrients, a handful of almonds provides nearly 80% of your daily vitamin E intake – a key antioxidant. Almonds are also known to lower blood cholesterol and the risk of heart disease so make these your favourite afternoon snack.

Green tea: My favourite! Studies show that green tea can help to reduce heart problems, may prevent several cancers and maintain bone density in older people. The antioxidants group flavonoids in green tea are responsible for this. Green tea is a low caffeine hot beverage option, having one third to half the caffeine in coffee.

Salmon: Omega-3 fats from oil fish are the ultimate anti-ageing nutrient. They assist in maintaining eye sight, lower blood pressure and triglycerides. Eat salmon or other oily fish (fresh or canned) 2 to 3 times a week.

Lamb: Lean lamb contains vitamin B12, B6 and folic acid as well as providing a healthy source of protein. Lamb also contains iron and zinc which prevents anaemia and builds a strong immune system respectively.

Eggs: One of the few food sources which contain vitamin D, a vitamin that most young people get through sunshine. Vitamin D boosts your immune system and works with calcium to prevent osteoporosis.

Yoghurt: More easily digested and absorbed than milk, yoghurt contains protein, vitamin B (especially riboflavin needed for eyes and skin) and calcium.

Oats: Oats are full of soluble fibre which lowers cholesterol, they have a low GI index of 42 which delivers carbohydrates slowly to the blood stream , they contain vitamin B (especially thiamin and niacin) as well as minerals including phosphorus, potassium and magnesium. This is the grain for you.

Rye: A much better option that white bread alternatives, rye is another low GI option, it is high in soluble fibre and contains more antioxidants that wheat including vitamin E. Next time you are in the supermarket pop some rye bread in to your shopping trolley.

Extra virgin olive oil: containing good ‘monounsaturated’ fats, this is the best heart protector option. Spend a little more in the supermarket and choose a cold pressed, green tinged olive oil – as it has not been heated it contains more antioxidants which thin the blood and keep it free flowing. Add it to salads and char grilled veggies.

Some other items to consider include cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, garlic and lemon, these all contain properties which can aid a healthy body and taste good too. Enjoy.

If you have any recipes containing these foods why not send email them to: baysidemama@gmail.com and we would be happy to share them.

Cookbooks: Do you actually use them...or just drool?

Some of my collection of cookbooks.

Are cookbooks officially becoming the new fiction? I must confess that looking at my collection of them, you'd think I used them often. I do. But not to cook. I frequently get trapped buying them because they offer an entree into a seemingly perfect world - the beautifully photographed domestic order of the celebrity chef.

Take Bill Grainger. I love looking through his books, including his most recent, Holiday. The photography is stunning in all its faded pastel, beachy Sydney glory. The recipes look delightful yet I have't tried to make any of them. Instead I enjoy a peak inside the interiors of his domestic life. It's so different to my kitchen and living room. And when you watch him on tv baking with the kids, it is a stark contrast to baking with my two-year-old, who breaks down in world-title style tantrums when he realises he can't eat ALL the unbaked cake mix. Another Melburnian I know reckons the issue with Bill's recipes for a Melbourne audience is because they are very beachside, waterside, BBQing Sydney - and don't translate as well to our southern climate.

Nigella's another of my untried but tested kitchen companions. Love the pictures in the books. Love the tv series and I have stored in my memory all those wonderful domestic bliss tips of hers. I'm planning to use them someday. Probably the same day my kitchen resembles Bill Grainger's!

When I look at the recipe books I do actually use, I can break it down to three that I go back to. And I top these up from recipes garnered from the Web - often from other blogs. My tried and tested cookbooks are:

The Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander: We got an edition of this for our wedding and it has been a great reference ever since. Not only does it have great recipes but also vital information about choosing certain foods, how to store them and how to cook them.

Cookery the Australian Way by Shirley Cameron and Suzanne Russell: This book, in one form or another has been with me since childhood. Earlier editions were the textbook we used in Home Economics at school and it is a fabulous base for building up food knowledge.

Fresh by Allan Campion and Michele Curtis: Campion and Curtis, as many will know, are actually local Bayside food stars and this book is a great way to approach cooking. It's premise is to cook what is actually in season and structures the recipe list around this.






Oh and when I do entertain the first thing I do is drag the Jamie Oliver books out - especially Jamie's kitchen - as I reckon he makes great salads.


And while we're on food, here are a couple of food inspired blogs I've been enjoying lately:

www.tomatom.com - by local writer Ed Charles. A fantastic resource on food generally and specifically on the Melbourne food scene.

www.orangette.blogspot.com - this one is in the US but good writing and a great recipe index.

Do you have an all-time favourite cookbook?

The man who changed the Bayside food scene

Achim Herterich with a batch of freshly baked goodies at Kuche (above)

Achim Herterich has made a huge imprint on the foodie streetscape of Black Rock and Beaumaris. Clare Kennedy talks to him about his approach to food and his new venture, Kuche.

German-born chef and entrepreneur Achim Herterich is quietly transforming the foodscape of southern Bayside. After working as executive chef at Windows on the Bay in Mordialloc, he has embarked on a hectic series of food ventures. Since 2001 he counts six different endeavours. Many will know his face from his time running Beaumaris Pantry & Larder in The Concourse, which introduced great deli culture and good coffee to the area. He followed that up with Providorium in Balcombe Road, Black Rock, which provided a much needed boost to that pocket's cafe and deli offerings.

Inside Kuche (above) and celebrity actor, dancer and foodie Paul Mercurio recently ran a cooking class there (below)

Now Achim has recently opened shop-cum-kitchen Kuche Inspirational Food, a welcome haven for the weary home cook seeking a healthier alternative to the standard take-away options. He offers classy take-home meals, catering and cooking classes – all at the same Concourse venue.

Herterich, in chef’s whites and striped-blue apron, chops and sautés in his gleaming white kitchen, as he chats to customers about the day’s offerings on colourful display: chicken and mushroom lasagna, pesto lamb fillets wrapped in proscuitto and oxtail ragout - to name a few.

“My philosophy always in cooking is that the eye comes first. Before you even taste it your eye already speaks. If your eye doesn’t like what it sees, your tastebuds will be reflecting on that,” he says.

Herterich at work (above)

At a recent cooking class Herterich whipped up prawn cutlets tossed in a piri-piri spice mixture, pan fried and served with linguine pasta, and a napoli-sauce with fresh basil and sun-dried tomatoes. “The nice thing about it is you can create a meal in half an hour and have a really healthy nutritious meal, but very quickly made. That’s what people really want” he enthuses.

Herterich conducts most of the cooking classes himself around a sleek benchtop behind the counter (max 10-12 people) - with occasional guest-chefs. Master Patissiere Udo Eichelman recently demonstrated traditional European Christmas treats. At other Summer classes Herterich whipped up food for spring picnics and authentic country-style Italian meals. For those excited by a touch of glamour, local tv personality and keen cook Paul Mercurio was a recent guest-chef.

Herterich’s 25-year chef’s career includes a stint at the glamorous Drake Hotel, New York, and as executive-chef at Windows on the Bay, Mordialloc. He counts among the highlights being part of the Sheridan-sponsored team of chefs who won the 1992 Salon Culinaire Singapore world championships. His team’s winning entry included a carving of Captain Cook’s Endeavour, made from 150kg of chocolate.

Herterich’s latest venture is a perfect foil to Kuche Inspirational Wares, Herterich’s classy kitchen-wares shop, just over the road.

Kuche Inspirational Food, 19 South Concourse, Beaumaris, phone 9589 0900

Visit Kuche for food and classes at: http://www.kuche.com.au/

Little Chefs

Yummy looking ricotta cakes (above)

Kids have a natural interest in cooking and food – there’s nothing more exciting than helping Mum or Dad bake a cake. But with busier lifestyles and a generation of parents who often have fewer cooking skills and even less time to cook, cooking classes for kids have sprung up to fill the gap.

Cooking For Kids recently opened their doors in Balcombe Road, Beaumaris and offer a great range of classes for children, teenagers and adults.

Baysidemama talked to co-owner Marion Rispin.

Baysidemama: What benefit do children get from cooking classes?

Marion: We believe that children’s life long learning is enhanced when they actively participate in a positive and fun environment. Every day we are bombarded with confusing messages about the foods that we should or shouldn’t eat. At Cooking for Kids we provide children and families with skills and knowledge in the selection and preparation of healthy food. Just like learning how to swim or speaking a second language, learning how to cook is more effective if we learn it earlier in life and have fun at the same time.

Through their participation in classes, parties or workshops, children’s knowledge, skills and confidence can develop in many varied ways:

Sensory learning: Tasting, touching, smelling and seeing;

Motor skill development: Hand, eye, mind coordination;

Mathematic concepts: Counting, measuring, and following directions;

Safety: Using equipment safely and developing hygiene skills and knowledge;

Social skills: Working with others, sharing and learning to cooperate;

Language skills: Lots of new word experiences;

Why are children so attracted to cooking?

Children and indeed people of all ages are naturally inquisitive about the food they eat. As in all things there are quite large variations in children’s knowledge and confidence in talking about and handling food. Our groups like to get into the cooking as quickly as possible and love to discuss their understanding of where their food comes from and what they like to eat. The Cooking For Kids team has developed age appropriate activities that help children express their ideas about food as well as learn new skills.

Why are cooking classes for littlies becoming so popular?

There appears to be more interest and enthusiasm for food and cooking for children/young people and there are several factors behind this:

• Many children are almost totally removed from the sources of their food and no longer see food as a vital life giving substance;
• TV and popular media largely portray food as a way to relieve boredom or make you feel better but seldom relates food to nutrition or health. The messages are often mixed and negative;
• Body image has become an alarming issue for many parents and this is a complex and often difficult subject to tackle. Linking young children to dependable information about their food and how to use it can be a good way into this subject;
• Making time to prepare food and cook, as a family is very difficult for many families. Many parents also tell us that they would also like to take some classes to get back to the basics.

What can parents do to help fussy eaters?

There are many issues behind the so-called fussy eater. We need to consider each child/person individually and to work closely with the parents. What we have found is that all children are curious about food and we work with this curiosity. Colour, texture, taste, smell and fun are our key words. It is amazing to see children who won’t eat vegetables get stuck into grating a carrot, feeling the texture, experiencing the smell and taste. It often takes a bit of mess and lots of fun to introduce a new food. It also requires patience and persistence.

So what classes are on offer?

During school term classes are available for pre-school children at 10am or 1pm on most days of the week. School age groups are planned for 4 to 4.30pm and Teenage programs are run on a Saturday afternoon. Adult classes are planned either for a morning or evening. All of the timetables are available on our Web site or by contacting us. We also run special Easter classes, school holiday programs and cooking parties.

Tell us about the team’s background.

The Cooking for Kids team has over thirty years of teaching experience in health, nutrition and cooking. Geraldine Marsh, myself (Marion Rispin) and Ann Marsh bring a range of experiences from schools, pre-schools, health and community organizations. We are passionate about good health, nutrition and the preparation of nutritious food. We also know the enormous impact that the media and environment can have on how children view themselves and how this effects their level of confidence in tackling new experiences.

The Cooking For Kids team (above). Pictures: Courtesy Cooking For Kids.

Marion has supplied this recipe to try at home:

Fruity Muffins:

Sift together:

1 and 1/2 cups self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/3^rd cup raw sugar

Mix together:

4 tbs cooked apple/pie apple

1/3^rd cup oil

1 egg (may be left out)

1/3^rd cup milk

1 tsp vanilla essence

• Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix thoroughly but don’t beat. Use two teaspoons to half fill 6/8 paper patty pans that have been placed into patty tins.
• Bake at 180 degrees on the middle shelf of the oven for 10 – 12mins or until the muffins spring back when touched gently in the centre.
• These are delicious just as they are or for a special occasion add your favourite topping (icing or muesli crumbs).
  

For more information, including timetables, contact details and holiday programs, visit:
www.cookingforkids.com.au