Yes, I do mean the one who was married to Beatle, Paul McCartney. Why am I so appreciative of her? Well as you might expect it’s all about food. The biggest challenge we have faced in embracing a new way of eating has been finding ready-to-eat food for the times when we don’t have an hour or more spare to prep a meal and that is where Linda McCartney products have become a lifesaver. Before she passed away in 1998 after a battle with breast cancer McCartney established an eponymous food brand which specializes in meat free vegetarian and vegan products.

Linda McCartney brand vegetarian sausages

Always always read the package to find out whats in the stuff!

So far we have tried the Sausages, Asparagus and Leek Tartlets, Tuscan Topped Fillets and the Fish Free King Prawns. All have been outstanding.
Check out this yummy Sunday lunch of mashed potatoes, sauerkraut and Linda McCartney vegetarian sausages which Chris rustled up in less than 30 mins and that included peeling the spuds!

Ready to eat! veggie sausages, mashed tatties, sauerekraut & fried onions with garlic

OK I’ll admit we put yoghurt with the sauerkraut so its not truly vegan but you could easily serve it without the yogurt. A fast fix great tasting lunch with all the ingredients readily available in a local store (unfortunately for our US readers the brand is only currently available in the UK, Ireland and Australia, however we’ll be researching alternate brands in the US shortly).

Linda McCartney’s line of meat free food had caught my attention because increasingly cancer researchers are pointing to a restricted meat diet as a factor in reducing risks. In the United Kingdom the Penny Brohn Cancer Center recommends the Bristol Approach to Healthy Eating which advocates lots of fruit and vegetables a moderate amount of organic red meat and minimal amounts of processed meat, in the America’s the Oasis of Hope in Tijuana, Mexico, advocates what its top doctor describes as a “quasi vegan diet low in fatty animal products.” “More and more epidemiology suggests that one can greatly lower the risk for certain cancers,” writes Dr Francisco Contreras in describing a series of measures the first of which is dietary. “This diet includes an ample intake of fruits and cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. It also includes vegetables rich in alliums such as garlic and onions.” Contreras’ ebook; Itegrative Therapy – A Multi Focal Strategy for Cancer Control is available for free download. BTW Linda McCartney also authored a stack of vegetarian cookbooks, here is a selection of them:

Linda McCartney on Tour

Linda’s Kitchen

Linda’s Summer Kitchen

Linda Mccartney’s Home Cooking

The Great Green Cookbook

In order to eat well you have to (yes, you really do!) include fruit into your diet on a regular basis. I have known this for years but my body has somehow just resisted it, instead I have reached for the filling pastry, but just the other week I got it!  I started buying fruit and eating it as I would have eaten a high carb nibble. I was in a food store and I bought  blueberries as an eat-on-the-way-home snack and you know what? Surprise, I started liking the fact that my need to eat was fulfilled but I did not feel stuffed.

Well since then I have started adding fruit to my breakfast. If you want to do this the healthy way you need to be ready to do just a little bit of work (it’s OK it’s not much work and its easy – I’ll tell you how). You see, those pre-packed fruit salads often come with syrup and that stuff is not healthy so you need to make your own. This morning I made a strawberry and kiwi fruit salad for Chris and myself, it took me all of two minutes.

Enjoy the blend of tart and sweet in this delicious fruit salad

I have always liked the taste of strawberries but hated the prep, my mum called it hulling the berries, you know pulling on the green bit to get the little sort of cone shaped core out of the fruit. Most times the green bit pulled away and all I got was an icky mess, well I have found a solution to all that, take a small sharp knife and cut a V in the top of the berry and scoop out the green bit and most of the core in one movement. Yes, you do lose a little more of the fruit but hey its quick and its easy. Then slice the berry in two and drop it into a collander. Next you put your same small sharp knife to work skinning the kiwi’s,then once they are skinned slice them horizontally. Just one more step and you’ll be done! Rinse the fruit under the tap for a minute in cold water before shaking dry and serving.

I have been trying to get Chris to eat fruit for months but when I put this on the table with her breakfast guess what? She eats it right up and you will too! Enjoy.