Happy eating
Two years ago, the actress Gwyneth Paltrow was eating lunch with friends in her London garden. When she stood up to clear the table, she found that her right hand wasn’t working properly, and ‘Everything went blurry. I got a searing pain in my head, I couldn’t speak and felt as if I couldn’t breathe.’
Paltrow thought she was having a stroke. As it turned out, she was suffering from a very bad migraine and a panic attack. Further tests revealed that she had a benign ovarian cyst, and a nodule on her parathyroid. She was also vitamin D deficient.
For someone who has lead a seriously starry life – Paltrow, now 40, received her first Oscar when she was 26 for her role in Shakespeare In Love, is married to the rock star Chris Martin of Coldplay and is best friends with Stella McCartney, Cameron Diaz and Beyoncé – and has been an outspoken supporter of healthy living, this news must have come as something of a shock.
‘It was crazy,’ she has said. ‘I was a mess… I knew it was time for a change.’
But this bodily meltdown set Paltrow on an urgent quest to improve her health. After conventional treatment for the cyst, her doctor in America, Alejandro Junger, suggested an elimination diet to clear out her system and heal her gut. That meant ‘no coffee, no alcohol, or dairy, eggs, sugar, shellfish, deepwater fish, potatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, aubergines, corn, wheat, meat, soya; nothing processed at all…’
It sounds seriously draconian. But after three weeks, Paltrow says, ‘I was a different person. I asked Dr Junger when I could go o this incredibly strict diet.’ The answer, depressingly, was: Never. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Paltrow’s immediate response was a loud moan of protest. But Paltrow, who has already written one cookbook, Notes From My Kitchen Table, and produces Goop, a weekly blog that emphasises all life’s positives and offers helpful tips on everything from food to fashion and the fiscal cliff , was made of sterner stuff.
With co-author Julia Turshen, she set about writing another book that would use her new healthy regime as a base from which to build a collection of recipes that ‘look, smell and taste like the food I always cooked but are also superhealthy… comfort food but with a healthy bent.’
The result is It’s All Good, a collection of ‘easy recipes that will make you look good and feel great’. Crucially, it also takes families into account. As Paltrow, who has two children Apple (nine) and Moses (seven), says, ‘what do you feed kids who can’t eat gluten when pasta and bread are their favourite things on earth? What do you give a kid who is allergic to cow’s milk for dessert?’
This book is notable for its straightforward style and unfussy recipes. She has included an eclectic range of dishes from Thai-style chicken burgers, power brownies and avocado toast, to kid smoothie (‘an excellent way to get nutrients into kids’) and brown-rice pasta with tuna, olives and fried parsley.
They all look like things you could, might even want, to cook. In the introduction, Paltrow stresses that she wanted to ‘create this book, not only for my family, but also for anyone out there who struggles with finding truly delicious food to feed their family when health issues need to be addressed’.
If you are part of such a family, then It’s All Good could be of some help. ‘Mealtimes should always feel happy,’ Paltrow notes. ‘Not like a punishment. Falling off your plan is… not a reason to beat yourself up. It takes time to make these changes…’
It’s All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Turshen, is published by Sphere, priced £20. Gwyneth Paltrow’s blog: www.goop.com
MANY-MUSHROOM SOUP
Vegan & Elimination diet
Serves about 6
This soup gets depth of flavour from the dried mushrooms and a creamy texture from being puréed; it’s hard to believe no chicken stock or cream is involved. To add a little texture, quickly sauté a few thin slices of the mushrooms in olive oil with some salt and pepper and float them in each bowl.
Ingredients
Method
Place the shiitakes in a small bowl or teacup with the boiling water. Set aside for at least 10 minutes.
Drain the mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Slice off and discard stems and thinly slice the caps and set them aside.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot over a medium-high heat. Add the leeks, onion, garlic and thyme, along with 2 heavy pinches of salt, and cook, stirring now and then, until softened but not browned, for 9 or 10 mins. Add the crimini and portobello mushrooms and the reserved shiitake mushrooms. Stir to combine with leek mixture and cook until mushrooms begin to release their liquid, for 5-6 mins.
Add the vegetable stock and the reserved mushroom soaking liquid (avoid any grit that might be at the bottom) to the pot and turn up the heat. Once the soup comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes to bring it all together. Carefully purée in a powerful blender. If you want a really refi ned, smooth texture, pass the puréed soup through a fi ne-mesh strainer. Serve immediately with a bit of parsley for colour and a good grind of black pepper.
Makes about 1 pint
This recipe has all the rich, creamy texture of ice cream with none of the dairy or sugar. The crunchy topping is a snap to put together and is so good.
Ingredients
Method
Freeze the banana slices in a single layer on a tray or plate lined with parchment or wax paper. Once the slices are frozen, use them immediately or keep frozen in a zip-top plastic bag or airtight container for up to a month.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the almonds with 2 tsp of the maple syrup and the pinch of salt and set the mixture aside.
Combine the frozen banana slices, almond milk, the remaining maple syrup, and the vanilla in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is the texture of soft-serve ice cream, scraping down the sides as necessary. Don’t worry if the mixture is not totally smooth at fi rst – once the bananas start to break down and defrost in the processor, the ‘ice cream’ will take shape quickly.
Spoon the banana ‘ice cream’ into bowls immediately and sprinkle each serving with a bit of the almond mixture.
Paltrow thought she was having a stroke. As it turned out, she was suffering from a very bad migraine and a panic attack. Further tests revealed that she had a benign ovarian cyst, and a nodule on her parathyroid. She was also vitamin D deficient.
For someone who has lead a seriously starry life – Paltrow, now 40, received her first Oscar when she was 26 for her role in Shakespeare In Love, is married to the rock star Chris Martin of Coldplay and is best friends with Stella McCartney, Cameron Diaz and Beyoncé – and has been an outspoken supporter of healthy living, this news must have come as something of a shock.
‘It was crazy,’ she has said. ‘I was a mess… I knew it was time for a change.’
But this bodily meltdown set Paltrow on an urgent quest to improve her health. After conventional treatment for the cyst, her doctor in America, Alejandro Junger, suggested an elimination diet to clear out her system and heal her gut. That meant ‘no coffee, no alcohol, or dairy, eggs, sugar, shellfish, deepwater fish, potatoes, bell peppers, tomatoes, aubergines, corn, wheat, meat, soya; nothing processed at all…’
It sounds seriously draconian. But after three weeks, Paltrow says, ‘I was a different person. I asked Dr Junger when I could go o this incredibly strict diet.’ The answer, depressingly, was: Never. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Paltrow’s immediate response was a loud moan of protest. But Paltrow, who has already written one cookbook, Notes From My Kitchen Table, and produces Goop, a weekly blog that emphasises all life’s positives and offers helpful tips on everything from food to fashion and the fiscal cliff , was made of sterner stuff.
With co-author Julia Turshen, she set about writing another book that would use her new healthy regime as a base from which to build a collection of recipes that ‘look, smell and taste like the food I always cooked but are also superhealthy… comfort food but with a healthy bent.’
The result is It’s All Good, a collection of ‘easy recipes that will make you look good and feel great’. Crucially, it also takes families into account. As Paltrow, who has two children Apple (nine) and Moses (seven), says, ‘what do you feed kids who can’t eat gluten when pasta and bread are their favourite things on earth? What do you give a kid who is allergic to cow’s milk for dessert?’
This book is notable for its straightforward style and unfussy recipes. She has included an eclectic range of dishes from Thai-style chicken burgers, power brownies and avocado toast, to kid smoothie (‘an excellent way to get nutrients into kids’) and brown-rice pasta with tuna, olives and fried parsley.
They all look like things you could, might even want, to cook. In the introduction, Paltrow stresses that she wanted to ‘create this book, not only for my family, but also for anyone out there who struggles with finding truly delicious food to feed their family when health issues need to be addressed’.
If you are part of such a family, then It’s All Good could be of some help. ‘Mealtimes should always feel happy,’ Paltrow notes. ‘Not like a punishment. Falling off your plan is… not a reason to beat yourself up. It takes time to make these changes…’
It’s All Good by Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Turshen, is published by Sphere, priced £20. Gwyneth Paltrow’s blog: www.goop.com
MANY-MUSHROOM SOUP
Vegan & Elimination diet Serves about 6
This soup gets depth of flavour from the dried mushrooms and a creamy texture from being puréed; it’s hard to believe no chicken stock or cream is involved. To add a little texture, quickly sauté a few thin slices of the mushrooms in olive oil with some salt and pepper and float them in each bowl.
Ingredients
- 3 dried shiitake mushrooms
- ½ cup boiling water
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 leeks, white and light green parts only, thoroughly washed and finely chopped
- 1 small yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
- Coarse sea salt
- 1lb crimini mushrooms, stems removed and caps roughly chopped
- 1 large portobello mushroom, stem removed and cap roughly chopped
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- Italian parsley, for serving
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method
Place the shiitakes in a small bowl or teacup with the boiling water. Set aside for at least 10 minutes.
Drain the mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Slice off and discard stems and thinly slice the caps and set them aside.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, heavy pot over a medium-high heat. Add the leeks, onion, garlic and thyme, along with 2 heavy pinches of salt, and cook, stirring now and then, until softened but not browned, for 9 or 10 mins. Add the crimini and portobello mushrooms and the reserved shiitake mushrooms. Stir to combine with leek mixture and cook until mushrooms begin to release their liquid, for 5-6 mins.
Add the vegetable stock and the reserved mushroom soaking liquid (avoid any grit that might be at the bottom) to the pot and turn up the heat. Once the soup comes to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes to bring it all together. Carefully purée in a powerful blender. If you want a really refi ned, smooth texture, pass the puréed soup through a fi ne-mesh strainer. Serve immediately with a bit of parsley for colour and a good grind of black pepper.
BANANA ‘ICE CREAM’ WITH SWEET-ANDSALTY ROASTED ALMONDS (pictured above)
VeganMakes about 1 pint
This recipe has all the rich, creamy texture of ice cream with none of the dairy or sugar. The crunchy topping is a snap to put together and is so good.
Ingredients
- 4 ripe bananas, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
- ¼ cup finely chopped roasted almonds
- 2 tsp, plus 2 tbsp good-quality maple syrup, divided
- A pinch of coarse sea salt
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Method
Freeze the banana slices in a single layer on a tray or plate lined with parchment or wax paper. Once the slices are frozen, use them immediately or keep frozen in a zip-top plastic bag or airtight container for up to a month.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the almonds with 2 tsp of the maple syrup and the pinch of salt and set the mixture aside.
Combine the frozen banana slices, almond milk, the remaining maple syrup, and the vanilla in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is the texture of soft-serve ice cream, scraping down the sides as necessary. Don’t worry if the mixture is not totally smooth at fi rst – once the bananas start to break down and defrost in the processor, the ‘ice cream’ will take shape quickly.
Spoon the banana ‘ice cream’ into bowls immediately and sprinkle each serving with a bit of the almond mixture.