Eating Smart with Tracy Bhalla
Waste less, Eat well
In these strange times we find ourselves in, not only should we be limiting exposure outside – i.e. less frequent trips to the grocery store, but we should also be getting more imaginative with the ingredients we have at home. Use those recipe books to find new ways of using what is already in your pantry. If you don’t have books, use Google! Do not let a single item go to waste. Plan your meals around what needs using up first. Now really all this just sounds like common sense and it is certainly the way that my grandmother used to live her whole life, but we (as a nation) have, no - HAD, become spoiled and too much food was ending up in the trash can just because we did not get around to using it in time. Well if this pandemic makes us all think differently about how we eat and how we plan our meals, then amen to that. As a family we were always pretty good at not allowing food to go bad, but there was always something that got thrown out in the monthly fridge cleanout, whether it be cheese going moldy or cucumber going soft. Well, no more! We plan our meals around what needs using first and we try to vary our recipes as much as possible, trying at least one new one a week, or at least variations on the old favorites. All fresh produce gets checked at least every other day to determine what needs using next. Over a week ago I had bought some
plums that were hard when I bought them, but the weather was warm so I figured they would ripen in the kitchen. Then the weather turned cold – really cold! As in we have had more snow in April than over the whole winter – crazy, so they have not ripened one bit. I put them in the fridge while I pondered what to do with them. The obvious answer would have been to make a plum pie or cobbler, but my husband wouldn’t
eat either of those, so I went to flipping through my many recipe books – actually quite a joy to do, you come across many a thing that gives you an idea about this or that, but I had to concentrate and focus on just the one thing, something with plums in that my husband would eat. I found it in “Baking recipe collection volume 2” by Sainsbury’s (a grocery store in the UK). A version of an upside-down cake, but with plums and ginger – Yum! Even better you could adapt this to any fruit you have that needs using up, and if you don’t like ginger you could substitute cinnamon or cocoa, whatever takes your fancy. So, here you go – one for you to try (or
adapt) at home:
Ingredients 150g unsalted butter, softened 160g light brown soft sugar 3 – 4 plums, halved and de-stoned 2 pieces stem ginger in syrup 125g self-rising flour 2 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp baking powder 2 large eggs Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 325F. Grease a 20cm springform pan and line the base with parchment. Heat 35g of the sugar and 25g of the butter in a small pan over medium heat until combined. Pour over base of tin. 2. Scatter half the ginger pieces (I actually used crystallized ginger) over sugar butter mixture. Arrange the plums, cut side down in the tin. 3. Sift together the flour, ginger powder, cinnamon and baking powder in a large bowl. Add remaining butter, sugar and the eggs; beat together until smooth. Fold in remaining ginger pieces. 4. Carefully spoon cake mixture over the plums, spread it level. It will only just cover the fruit. 5. Bake for 35-45 minutes, until top springs back when lightly pressed. 6. Remove from oven and cool in tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack. If not eaten at once, store in an airtight container in the fridge. Super easy – you don’t need a mixer or anything fancy. It can all be done with a spoon and a bowl. And gosh did it taste good! Fabulous with either cream, custard or vanilla ice cream. Only problem is, I still have 5 plums left!
Tracy Bhalla, Independent Consultant with NYR Organics, website: us.nyrorganic.com/shop/tracybhalla email: nyrbhalla@gmail.com You can also visit Tracy’s blog at Tracybhalla.com, Continuing my obsession with all things organic, I have been working with NYR for two years now, using their skincare products myself for over RiverRegionBoom.com May 2020 25 years! Your skin is the body’s largest organ, it deserves to be well looked after. I am here to answer any questions you may BOOM! Thehave. River Region’s 50+ Lifestage Magazine 46
