Savour Every Morsel - Upside to Imposed Austerity

In the post Upside to Austerity  back in December 2011 I wrote about how tougher times could prove to be a plus in culinary terms if we were pushed into valuing our food more. We had in times of more than plenty overindulged, and I felt that had made us blase (still can't do accents on this system) about what we ate. I'm feeling a similar thing on our alternative eating programme (and still refusing to use the D-word).

Not that we have been going hungry, or decided to live on crispbread and gravel. But taking into account each part of a meal in terms of its nutritional elements makes one value, say, mushrooms as a source of chromium (and they are far more delicious than car trim); or the multiple virtues of green leaves.

As second and third portions are perhaps what led to us needing to stick to the AEP for a while I'm being careful with quantities in my cooking. If you have one plateful you tend to make it last longer, and to savour what you have. So this just may be imposed austerity.

There are upsides to this version too. Considering our regime more closely has led to some interesting new finds. Black rice is probably top of that list: not an austerity item as a small box cost £2.50, though that will do the carbs for three of us for at least three meals. It's actually more purple than black, that colour showing it has the same antioxidants as blueberries, blackberries etc. The gourmet benefit is that it has a fine flavour, far more interesting than plain white long-grain. The AEP benefit is that it has a lower GI rating than said white rice. I'm guessing the Emperors and tyrants who 1000 years ago kept it all for themselves (or is that marketing tosh?) were more interested in how it tastes.

One definite austerity aspect to the so-called programme is that we are eating vast amounts of fruit, so I can't remember having to throw away a single soft apple, or any rotting oranges found at the bottom of the fruit bowl (a fruit bowl rather than the fruit bowl to be more accurate) for weeks. Another is that my bread-making has been to the fore, to ring the changes with plain supermarket wholemeal. It is possible to buy a loaf for less than one of my homemade efforts costs, but the cheapo bought version would be pasty and flabby and rubbery, the admittedly less than perfectly symmetrical loaves I turn out have become lighter and tastier as I've gained experience.