Over the last few years, healthy eating has really grown in popularity, which has been wonderful for me and my bank manager! It’s been a thrill to hear from people who bought my first book, Deliciously Ella, saying how much it transformed their lives and how they would like to share their joy with family and friends. So for these lovely people, I have written Deliciously Ella with Friends. Its delicious recipes are quite similar to thefirst ones, but with larger quantities of ingredients so that there’s enough for family and friends to share.
On a more serious note, I would like to clear up one popular misconception. Some people are calling me The Queen of Clean, as I may have given the impression that my plant-based recipes could cure you of life-threatening conditions, such as cancer, heart disease and Ebola fever. I now wish to make it plain that, when I talk about healthy eating, I in no way mean to imply that eating healthy food can make you healthier – though if you want to make that association, it is perfectly OK with me. So from now on, I would appreciate it if you didn’t call me The Queen of Clean.
Some friends may be resistant to eating healthy foods that won’t necessarily make them healthier. You may have to break them in gently – Deliciously Ella Intolerance is just as serious a condition as lactose intolerance. When I’ve shared my recipes with people who are sceptical, I’ve found it helps not to shame them by calling them “fat losers who are going to die young”. Try just calling them “fat losers” instead.
Breakfast is the first meal of the day and the one I most look forward to after I have just woken up. If I have a busy morning, I opt for a Roasted Almond Butter Bar as it only takes about an hour to make. Preheat the oven. Put some chia seeds in water and soak for 20 minutes. Go out to my favourite deli in Notting Hill to buy organic medjool dates and blend them with coconut oil. Mix in everything else and cook until golden brown. If you’ve made a lot, you can let someone else have a bit.
My boyfriend Matt is Deliciously Matt. Here’s a picture of him with our dog. Doesn’t Deliciously Matt look Delicious? Every morning, Deliciously Matt says to me: “Please make a berry and orange smoothie, Deliciously Ella.” So I do. All it takes is some oranges, mixed berries and brown rice milk. You could share that with some of your friends if they are Delicious enough.
Many of us lead Deliciously busy lives and it can be hard to fit in eating healthily alongside your regular yoga, pilates, pedicure and colonic irrigation appointments. So here are some Deliciously quick recipes that I like to call “Deliciously Al Desko” for when you want to have a meal on the go.
Kale, sun-dried tomato, olive, pine nuts and sweet potato salad is one of my favourites. Take some kale and chop it up. Do the same to the sun-dried tomatoes. Then roast the sweet potatoes for 45 minutes before mixing everything up together. Be careful not to give this dish to anyone who is allergic to pine nuts as it might kill them. And that wouldn’t be very healthy!
Here are some photographs of Deliciously Ella – that’s me – and Deliciously Matt cuddling up in our Deliciously designed living room. We all need date nights some time so that we can reconnect with out Inner Deliciousness.
My favourite date-night recipe is tomato and aubergine bake with a side dish of spinach with mustard seeds. But if you’re in a hurry, quinoa will do. Take two large aubergines, add several ingredients you won’t be able to find in any normal shop, and make a cheesy sauce with tamari and butternut squash. PS: the cheesy sauce was the invention of the Amazing Serena in my office who does all the things that I can’t be bothered to or don’t know how to. Deliciously Easy!
Digested read, digested: The Queen of Clean Slate.
