The French Week

To all our customers and readers -

As a correspondent for The French News, I was very sad when it folded at the end of 2008, a victim of the credit crunch. But now the team are back and this time they'll be producing a weekly. I was happy to be contacted again by the editor, Miranda Neame, and hope to be producing a variety of regular articles and reviews for the new paper. I'll be doing the occasional veggie recipe too.
Miranda really likes the EnFamilleBio weblog and may, from time to time, be using material from this site.
If anyone is interested in taking advantage of the introductory subscription special offer, please let me know and I will email a copy of the form to be completed and sent to The French Week offices in Castillonès. The special offer is from just €0.75 per issue (French addresses only) and lasts until august 30. It will, of course, also be available from certain newsagents.
Sue
p.s. I'm always pleased to hear about newsworthy items, so please drop me an email or call if you come across anything you think might be interesting. Thanks.

A GREAT BURGER from Sue

You're doing a barbecue and don't want to dish up a shop-bought veggie burger for those guests who don't eat meat. Well, there are several tasty alternatives you can rustle up in your own kitchen and they'll tempt the meat-eaters too, so make sure your veggie friends get in first. Here's one I really like:

By the way, the flat semi-circular things on the right are slices of giant puff-ball!

MILLET BURGER WITH CAULIFLOWER

As you will see this is an American recipe. Trying to find a truly comprehensive chart of cups to grams is well nigh impossible, so I take a teacup and use that throughout. It seems to work!

I cup millet, washed and soaked for 8-12 hours then drained
3 cups water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 cups small cauliflower florets
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 egg beaten (optional)
1 cup sesame seeds

Put millet, cauliflower, water and salt into a medicum saucepan and bring to the boil. Cover and cook until the water is absorbed (approx 30 mins).
Add melted butter and stir in well, use a masher if you prefer. Allow to cool.
Add the egg, if using. Stir in thoroughly.
Roll mixture into balls, flatten into burgers (you choose the size you want) and coat with sesame seeds.
Lay carefully on a close mesh and barbecue, turning once. You may prefer to cook them in a frying pan with a little oil - less of a risk of them breaking up.

Serve with the usual sauces or relishes - pesto is great with these.

LET'S GO NUTS by Sue

Nuts are high energy foods - they contain quality protein as well as carbohydrate and fats. I know most of us baulk at the mention of fats, but its fuel that we use up in our daily lives, it's only bad news if we eat too much of it and particularly if it's saturated. Nut fats are good because they're unmodified and help to regularise blood lipids and protect us from cardiovascular deterioration. The 'slow burn' of nut calories dampens hunger pangs and can help in weight loss in a natural diet and alongside exercise.

For veggies, vegans and fruitarians, nuts provide not only high quality protein, but the carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals that make up a healthy diet, and when eaten 'sensibly', there are no downsides to nuts.

Nearly all nuts, with the exception of coconut, contain Vitamins B1 (Thiamine), B2 (Riboflavin) and B3 (Niacin). They are also high in the bioflavonoid resveratrol, which is found in red wine and thought to help prevent plaque forming in the arteries. Peanuts, in fact, have more resveratrol than grapes. And that's not the only reason they're stars among nuts; studies have shown that even small amounts of peanuts in the diet can achieve a healthy reduction in LDL 'bad' cholesterol.

Why else are PEANUTS so beneficial? They're particularly high in protein with 25g to a 100g serving. They're a great source of energy with 50g of fat (mostly monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) and 16g of carbohydrates and they also contain niacin (Vit B3) and Vitamin E.

ALMONDS are an excellent food too. They 'burn' slowly in the body and help to normalise blood sugar levels. They contain around 20g of protein, 20g of carbohydrate and 52g of fats including omega 6 and omega 3, and are a good source of calcium, natural magnesium and niacin.

BRAZILS are noted for their omega 3 content (about 7% of the total 66g of fats). They contain around 14g of protein and 10g of carbohydrates per 100g serving and some calcium. They are also a good source of magnesium and particularly of selenium.

CASHEWS are high in carbohydrate - about 45g to 100g - high in magnesium (only slightly less than almonds) and have around 17g of protein. They are a great sustaining food.

The amino acids in HAZELNUTS mean they are a source of high quality protein - 13g to every 100g. They contain 17g of carbohydrates per 100g and 62g fats and are a good source of calcium, second only to almonds.

For more info on more more nuts check out the Natural Food Guide to Common Nuts.

EARL GREY TEA LOAF - YUMMY AND SO SIMPLE TO MAKE from Sue

The prep is done in a trice, then just let the oven do the rest.

Ingredients
75g each of raisins, sultanas and currants
1/2 pint earl grey tea (using a bag)
250g/9oz self-raising flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg
200g/7oz soft light brown sugar
1 egg beaten

Soak the fruit overnight in the tea (leave the teabag in).
Pre-heat the oven 180˚C/Gas 4.
Drain fruit and add sifted flour, baking powder and spices. Mix in well.
Add sugar and egg and mix in.
Gradually add the juice from the soaked fruit (minus teabag!) until you get a nice gooey mix that will flop rather than pour into a 450g/1 lb loaf tin lined with greaseproof.
Bake for approx one hour. Check the cake is cooked by putting a skewer into the middle. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. Leave to cool for ten minutes.
Place an oval plate over the loaf-tin and reverse. Peel greaseproof off the cake and reverse onto a wire rack. Leave to cool.

The cake is delish on its own, with butter or, if a bit gooey, with a glob of cream. Leaf likes it like that.
Enjoy!