Recipe: Potato Mamoosa

Made this recipe for dinner tonight.  Sounds a little odd, but is really very tasty.  And, as far as I can tell, perfectly anti-Candida diet A-OK (you could always leave out the chilli).

Quick and easy lunch idea

Devised a really simple, yet really yummy lunch idea today - so obvious really, that I don't know why I didn't think about it before.

Spinach Scrambled Eggs

2 large eggs
handful of fresh, baby spinach
olive oil spread
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Rinse the spinach. In a small pan heat a knob of olive oil spread. Add the spinach and gently fry until it wilts (only takes a minute). Remove from the pan and keep warm. Beat the eggs in a bowl, add to the pan (on a low heat) and scramble. When almost cooked, but still moist, return the spinach to the pan. Stir into the egg. Remove the pan from the heat. Season to taste and serve, with oatcakes or potato farls.

The peppery-ness of the spinach works really well with the egg. I guess the resulting dish is really a kind of deconstructed Eggs Florentine!

What shall I have for breakfast?

No longer able to eat sugary breakfast cereals and toast, finding something to eat for breakfast might seem difficult. Here's a few ideas:

Invariably I have muesli with yogurt for breakfast. 'Normal' supermarket-bought muesli brands are no good, even the no-added sugar versions, because they will contain raisins, other sugary dried fruits and possibly nuts (which are to be avoided, especially by those just starting out on the anti-candida diet). So, I make up my own muesli mix, which takes a bit of planning and to-ing and fro-ing between different shops, but ultimately it's worth it.

Holland & Barrett (health food chain) sell a muesli base (just flakes of oat, wheat and bran), to which I add dried coconut shreds (anti-fungal properties) and an 'omega' seed mix (both from 'Julian Graves' - another health food chain). Now I have been able to reintroduce some foods, I add three chopped apricots ('Crazy Jacks' organic dried apricots, available from Tescos and Sainsburys, are dark and caramelly and delicious - and are free from added sugar and citric acid), and a few chopped brazil nuts, but if this isn't an option, try chopping up half an apple for natural sweetness. To this I add 'milk' (more below) and a good couple of spoonfuls of bio yogurt.

If I've run out of muesli/'milk', I go for fruit (chopped apple or maybe some berries - if you're allowed them) with yoghurt. Not as filling as muesli, but it'll keep you going.

'Milk'

Dairy products are restricted for those on the anti-candida diet. Lactose - found in all dairy products - is a naturally occurring sugar, but sugar all the same. However, it is found in greater proportions in cows milk, which is why lactose-intolerant people may be able to tolerate sheep and goats' milk, cheese and yoghurt (where levels are lower), and the same applies to those following the anti-candida diet.

There are other options: oat, rice and soya milk are fine (and can be used as substitutes for milk in cooking and baking, with no problems), and - despite what it says on the carton - never seem to go off! But, goats' milk and yoghurt are my current preference (I've been able to get goats' milk from Marks & Spencers and the Co-op and goats' yoghurt from Sainsburys); there's been a good deal of media speculation recently about the moral and ethical objections to the production of soya beans, as well as health problems associated with the over-consumption of phyto-oestrogens found in non-fermented soya products.

Eggs

Eggs are great. Have them scrambled (with a knob of olive oil spread and salt and pepper to taste) or boiled for breakfast, with oat cakes instead of bread.