— the banana bread files —

Oh fork me sideways! Here we are again. 

As a Melbourne girl, I’m more familiar with lockdown than I’d like to be (Sydney - welcome to the house party) and my fully vaccinated hugs go out to everyone in this with me.  Even bigger squeezes for those of you in isolation due to contacts or exposure sites, doing the hard yards to keep the rest of us safe.  It’s intense.

all the feels

There are so many emotions!  One minute you’re angry, overwhelmed and sick of everyone you live with.  The next you’re grateful for their company, and happy to be cozy and safe at home in your ugg boots.  There’s no right or wrong way to feel about things at the moment, and the situation we find ourselves in. 

Just as there is no right or wrong way to feel right now, there is also no right or wrong way to feed yourself right now in lockdown.  Take it from this lady, who oscillates between cooking up a storm and blogging her recipes, and scoffing Cheezles and rosè on the couch watching the Bachelor. 

I wrote this because I know how overwhelming it can all be, when you throw the food and nutrition equation into lockdown as well.  I want to share some simple food strategies you might find helpful.  And I hope that reading this might give you a little spark of energy or inspiration that makes things easier.  If it inspires you to cook something - fantastic! If it just provides a temporary diversion from the shit-show that is the news, that’s okay too! 

Firstly, let’s get some things straight:

We know that what we put into our bodies can have a pretty big effect on energy levels and mental health.  So yes, nutrition is important right now (I would say that – I’m a dietitian). However….

There’s something lots of us underestimate: The importance of balancing the goal to nourish our bodies well, with the goal to be gentle and kind to ourselves.  

What you don’t need to be doing now is trying to lose weight or eat clean or cut out sugar. You don’t need to be doing hourly sets of burpees.  And you don’t need to be counting your steps and doing star jumps at the end of the night like a lunatic to reach some arbitrary activity goal.  

I’m never a fan of strict rules, guilt trips, over-exercising and food restriction.  But I’m ESPECIALLY not a fan of these things during lockdown.  They will only serve to make you irritable, tense and (quite frankly) annoying to those around you.

Here’s my take:

When it comes to food, let’s look at what we can add in, rather than what we should take out.  Let’s ditch the judgements, and think about all the ways that food nourishes us: Through nutrients yes – but also through connections, community and comfort.  Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater, in trying to eat well during lockdown.  

This week, a special package was covertly dropped on my doorstep.  Home-made cakes and a bottle of wine.  It brightened the dreary, freezing cold day and reminded me my family is part of a caring community. 

Drive past our house and you’ll see a huge bucket of lockdown lemons at the driveway for anyone to help themselves to.  The other day I dropped cookies to neighbours.  Choo choo – it’s the good karma food train delivering.

These are just a few examples of how food can make us feel happy, safe and cared for, without needing to be nutrient dense, unprocessed or made of vegetables!

Repeat after me: food is more than fuel.

Okay enough chit chat, here’s the shopping tips

Most of us are still allowed out for food and supplies, and have access to a variety of online food delivery services. So next time you’re at the shops, here’s some basic ideas and how I use them.

Fruits and vegetables

Fruit and vegetables are your friend – add them to most meals.  In your trolley you want lots of colours, things in season (but also frozen and tinned varieties).   Stock the fruit bowl and put it somewhere central. If you have the mental fortitude, try cutting up fruit and making a fruit platter at breakfast or morning tea.  Do the same with veggies – cut up carrots, celery, capsicum, make platter.  In my experience, we’re all more likely to eat fruit and veggies if they’re presented to us in this way.

Tinned: lentils, chick peas, cannellini beans, tinned tomatoes, baked beans, peaches, pineapple, mini corn – oh and passionfruit pulp never goes astray.

Dried: apricots, dates, cranberries, currants, coconut for smoothies, baking, trail mix and everything in between.

Frozen: peas, corn, spinach, berries, mango and broad beans.  Grab a packet of sweet potato wedges while you’re at it, as a quick CBF (can’t be forked) veggie side.

Dairy products

Or alternatives – whatever floats your boat.  Milk, yoghurt and cheese are meal and snack staples. Break out of the boring cheese rut and stock up on a variety of interesting cheeses.   Bocconcini for home-made pizza, fancy schmancy brie and manchego for a Friday night lock-down cheese platter, ricotta for the ricotta hotcakes you’re going to whip up and a proper Greek feta for the zucchini fritters. 

Ice cream is a must (and no it doesn’t need to be low fat or low carb).  For one thing, it’s essential for making Oreo milkshakes, and we all need those in our life.  Sour cream is also very important (for tacos, nachos or baked potato and toppings). And yoghurt is good on fruit, in a smoothie, or as a fallback answer when anyone asks you about dessert.

Carby things

Oh my, the breadstuffs we go through in this household of 3!  It is quite evident in my experience that growing bodies need carbs. And lots of them.

Make sure you’ve got some rolled oats for porridge and baking. Bog standard cereal like Weetbix too (this can be breakfast, lunch, dinner or snack).  Put sourdough bread and crackers on your list (grainy ones if you can get it past the committee).  I also make sure we have pita bread and tortillas for wraps, tacos and pizza toasties.  In case you’re wondering, a pizza toastie is a thing of wonder, made in a sandwich press, and has pizza sauce, cheese, ham and pineapple.   

In lockdown you’ll need pasta (x 100), basmati, jasmine and brown rice, and any other starchy things you’re partial to cooking with – including noodles for the restorative chicken noodle soup you’re going to make.  Maybe throw in some buckwheat, quinoa or barley for hearty peasant-style soups and stews, grain based salads like tabouli.  Stock up on flours because you’re gonna be baking. Oh and don’t forget the Oreos (see earlier note re: Oreo milkshakes).

Nuts and seeds

Any of them.  All of them!  In fact when was the last time you did a stock take of that general area of the pantry? Might be time to check the used by and compost any that no longer make the cut (nobody wants walnuts from 2015 in their brownies). 

I try to make sure I have a stock of reasonably fresh pine nuts (for pesto, pastas, salads), pistachios and almonds (for snacks, platters, salads), pecans (for baking, granola), cashews (for stir fries, trail mix), peanuts (Asian stir fries, noodle salads, curries).  And nut butters – for toast, smoothies, baking and sauces.  I also like having  LSA (linseed sunflower almond meal) and flaxseed meal for baking or smoothies – great for fibre, omega-3 fats and antioxidants. 

Other important bits

Good quality oil – locally made, extra virgin olive oil is delicious, really good for us and super versatile.  You can cook with it (even at high temperatures), drizzle it, use it in dips, pesto, on toast and for roasting vegetables.

Delicious spices – like zaatar, curry powders or spice mixes, cumin, coriander and smoked paprika are my staples. Make sure you’ve got stock powder / liquid stock for soups and risotto.

Check your stock levels of essential condiments – like soy, mirin, miso, fish sauce, tomato sauce, chutney, shriracha, mayonnaise (no low fat ones – PLEASE I BEG YOU), balsamic and good old BBQ sauce.

Proteiny things

Eggs are the heros of lockdown in my opinion – boiled, fried, scrambled, omeletted (I just invented a word), and quiched (there’s another one).  They’re also pretty essential for baking and brunchy things like pancakes or fritters.

As for the rest of the proteiny things – you know what they are and what you like.  Try to eat fish every week - extra points for the oily, deep see variety. You might also like to chuck some tofu in the trolley (I’m talking vegetarian curry, stir fry, fried rice or soba noodle salad).  Falafel are another veggie favourite for Middle Eastern wraps or platters.  On that note, why not throw in a big tub of hommus.

And what will you do with all this food?  Here’s some ideas:

Make a kick-ass smoothie.  You can use this one for inspiration, and tweak to suit you. I always add some kind of frozen fruit for that lovely thick, creamy texture.  Tinned passionfruit with frozen mango and shaved coconut are awesome for a tropical vibe.  Dates give a lovely deep, sweet caramel twist (soak them in boiling water first, to soften). Pepitas or linseed meal or nut butter ramp up the fibre and good fats.

Make some cookies, like these.  Or just google ‘best ever choc chip cookies’ and go for it.  Cookies make the house smell amazing, make your mouth feel amazing and make you feel like a domestic lockdown god or goddess.

Try making some fritters, like these.  These are not only delicious, they’re also an awesome way to get more vegetables into your day.  This is why you needed the feta you see!

Make this delicious dip with those tinned legumes (again this is why you need the feta) and eat it with veggie sticks and home made pita chips (using the pita bread and posh olive oil you bought!)

Make a big pot of soup (like this roasted cauliflower soup, this chicken noodle soup or this super simple vegetable and lentil soup).  Adding Moroccan spice mix, cumin or curry powder to a veggie soup will elevate this to next level (just saying).

Cook a fish meal like this teriyaki salmon. Or just buy some fresh flathead fillets, coat in flour, pan fry in extra virgin olive oil and serve with sweet potato chips or coleslaw. Or steam some snapper fillets in foil with ginger, soy, garlic and spring onion. YUM!

And last but not least, make sure you treat yourself to some delicious take away or pre-cooked meals.  You’ll be supporting local small business so you’ll feel good about that.  And you won’t have to do the dishes which you’ll also feel good about. 

I ordered a Brave Meal from Free to Feed this week and I think you should check out when they’re delivering in your neighbourhood.

Cook. Or don’t cook. But feed yourself and those you love regular meals with a variety of foods. Try not to get overwhelmed - you’ve got this.

Oh, and don’t forget to tip. 

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