Well my little one was 17 months yesterday and we are both busy bees. Having lots of fun with new and nice things to eat. Her absolute recent favourites I must say are mine too. Everything from houmous, avocado with pitta or brown toast (oh how she loves toast) to yum fish pie, pasta with everything and anything. And our new favourite juices which is also our favourite pastime. I must say she did make a funny face when I tried her with a healthy green juice. She loves orange, apple, kiwi and lime along with a straw to keep us all entertained. Today I made the lovely bang bang chicken from the wonderful Annabel Karmel www.annabelkarmel.com I made extra and popped it in the freezer pre cooking. I also had some granny smith Apples which were nearing the end of their time. I cored them put them in a roasting dish and popped some dates and a knob of butter on top, baked in the oven for 45 mins. Served with natural yoghurt. (add some water to the bottom of the dish before roasting. Its such an exciting time for me to see my little girl experiment new food and taste. Sometimes its greeted with delight and other times it pops straight back out of her mouth. I do think the more variety and taste I give her the happier she is. So let me know what your little ones are eating or not and any ideas/recipes you may have to share. Until then Happy eating.

On May 1st 2008 at 15.58 our beautiful daughter Isabella Eve was born. All I can say is “what great big eyes you have Isabella” She is so beautiful and the immense feeling of love we have for her is magical. I have never been happier in my life. Thank you sweet one. xxxx

With just a few weeks to go…..I am still wondering should I purchase the everloving rennie. I think every mum I have spoke to has talked to me about heartburn. Have never had it before so not sure what I should be looking out for. I hear though I’ll definitely know when I have it. So its light, energy giving food for me for the next couple of weeks. I find smaller meals more often is best. Fish is so important to eat – pregnant or not. I love fish pies, anytime of year. Comforting and gentle. You can also cook them as light as you like. Leave out the cream and replace with light crème fraiche. At this stage of pregnancy the lighter and easily digested meals are best.

Some of my favourite things I like to cook.

Breakfast – must have some.

Porridge with Natural yoghurt, honey & nuts.

Granola – very simple to make your own and you can add whatever you fancy.
Coat some rolled oats with apple juice, add any nuts you like Almonds, pecans or hazelnuts are especially good. Add some dried blueberries. Spread on a baking tray in a low to medium oven for twenty mins.

For the weekend - Breakfast Muffins

Flapjacks….
Just made some nice no sugar flapjacks today and really pleased how they turned out.
Preheat Oven (fan) 170 degrees celsius.

In a food processor blend 150g of pitted dates with 3 tsp fruit juice. Melt 50g butter in a large saucepan. Add the blended dates, 200g oatflakes, 50g almonds, 50g of your favourite dried fruit. Stir well.
Grease tin and pour mixture in. Using back of the spoon press well.
Bake for 25 mins.

Lunch
I own lots of cook books which have travelled with me to every city I have lived - Sydney, San Francisco and London. Even when I go away for weekends you might find one of them in my bag.
One of my favourites is Nigel Slater’s Appetite.
Yesterday after a long walk on a gorgeous but cold february day. I really fancied some hearty soup. So I cooked up the following - a version of one of Nigel’s recipes and it definitely hit the spot.
Serves 4
1 leek
4 carrots
3 sticks of celery
2 gloves of garlic
small bunch of parsley
mixed beans. – I used cannellini, barlotti, kidney. Pre-cooked. If you have time cook your own.
Parmesan Rind (please don’t throw away)

Gently cook the beans in some olive oil. Add all your chopped veg, garlic and parsley. Cook until the veg has a nice glaze.
Cover with cold water and add your parmesan rind. Cook on a low heat for 1 to 1.5 hours

www.amazon.co.uk/Appetite-What-You-Want-Today/dp/1841154709/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=gateway&qid=1202234566&sr=8-1

During my pregnancy I have noticed it’s the simple food that satisfies me most. Something quick, light and nutritious. Omelette’s, I love them. Not sure if its eggs I’m craving but there is something about them that just makes me smile. I must admit its my sweet one that makes the best ones.

So with some good organic eggs. We use Connolly’s and whatever is in the fridge cherry tomatoes, spring onion and a good shaving of Gruyere you can have a quick warm supper to satisfy.
Other suggestions – Goats Cheese, pea and basil. Mushroom, bacon and cheddar.

I love having a week day off work, usually its Monday if I have dealt with the saturday buzz. It gives me time to reflect on the weekend and plan the week ahead. I always try cook something with a little extra love on days off. Now I know pasta is usually the quick option but this lovely recipe from Gennaro Contaldo book Passione is a real winner here. It’s a stuffed pasta shell with home made tomatoe sauce and plenty of mozzarella on top. Perfect for preparing in advance and cooking later.

Served with a simple salad. Mondays aren’t that bad after all.

Over the next couple of posts I am going to chat about one of my true loves (other than my boyfriend or my little growing baby) but cheese.

As a cheesemonger in my fifth month of pregnancy I am quite concerned about all the different advice on what to and what not to eat. Whats good for you and baby and whats not.

Take cheese for example, most doctors and the like tell you to avoid all un-pasteurised cheese. Firstly not only is this incorrect, you are depleting your body of necessary calcium and nutrients which you and your growing baby need.

I work on a busy retail counter and the majority of pregnant women that buy cheese tell me they have decided not to eat any cheese rather than take the risk. Usually they are buying for family and friends and feeling miserable as they can’t have any.

In my view all pasteurised cheese is not safe.

Pasteurisation is when the milk used to make the cheese is heated up to 72 degrees celsius for 20 to 30 seconds killing any bacteria good or bad that may be in the milk. Then lactic bacterria (made in a labroatory) is added to the milk to help generate the correct paste for the cheese.

Traditionally cheese was made as a way of storing nutrients in milk. Evidence shows that Unpasteurised milk has a higher nutritional value , providing more vitamins and minerals than pasteurised. It also has a better flavour, with none of the deterioration in quality.

Soft Cheese’s like Brie, Camembert even while pasteurised (which doctors say is safe) can still be contaminated with Listeria. This is because these are considered as young cheese’s. Therefore pasteurised or not I would not eat them. Wheras Parmigiano Reggiano, or any aged hard cheese,  I would be happy to eat as these cheese’s are too dry and high in salt for listeria to survive. Listeria is attracted to the soft young cheese’s.

There is nothing nicer than having a piece of cheese with some delicious oatcakes, dittys (my favourite) www.dittysbakery.com

Don’t get me wrong I do love some pasteurised Farmhouse cheeses that are available especially the Irish ones.

Recently I can’t get enough of Coolea Mature. Made in West Cork with cow’s milk, this chesse has a lovely mild, creamy flavour with a long lasting after taste. They also won Gold at the British Cheese awards in 2007. www.cooleacheese.com
Another favourite is Gubbeen which is also pasteurised and comes smoked too. Delicious washed rind cheese also made in Cork by the Ferguson family. www.gubbeen.com

Bluebell Falls Goats cheese is a recent find and it’s a delicious cheese made by Paul Keane in Co. Clare. He has a soft Goats Cheese but the one I am eating these days is his mature Goats Milk Cheese. Paul uses a method called thermisiation, a form of pasteurisation. The milk is heated to 65 degrees which kills off most bacteria but not killing off certain enzymes.

While pasteurisation is a debatable subject, I do believe some advice been given is not only misleading but can also lead mum- to- be making wrong food choices.  Therefore depleting mum and baby of necessary vitamins and nutrients.

Six months and counting……..

All getting very exciting now and not only am I nesting and itchy to get little one’s room prepared. I am also planning on stocking freezer with healthy nutritious meals which can be quickly reheated during the first few weeks of baby’s arrival.

But steady on we need to eat now…
Well since we last chatted I had the dreaded head cold, very sore throat, blocked nose and generally felt yeuch.

But my lovely one took good care of me. I felt pretty miserable and really wanted a lemsip as the headache and throat felt pretty bad. Of course I didn’t take lemsip, no medicine for me. Instead lovely one made me a Lemon & Manuka honey hot drink. I really wasn’t hopeful it would work as I felt so poorly but it did. It definitely helped the throat and cleared the head some what.
Important thing to put lemon and honey in first and then add the boiled water. We sieved it through but think the lemon pulp should be fine if you like it. Sniff sniff.

Some tasty recipes to prepare in advance, freeze and then reheat in the oven. I must admit I don’t own a microwave. Not sure - long term how long this will last. What with reheating little one’s meals at six months of age. But for now we are getting by…

This is one of my favourite alternative’s to Lasagne or the baked pasta dish. It’s a Gennaro Contaldo recipe from his beautiful book Passione. Not as time consuming as it sounds, I promise its worth it, yum„,

Baked Pasta Shells filled with Cheese.
For this recipe you will need Conchiglioni Rigati (pasta shells) Cook them al dente in boiling salted water and leave to cool.

Having made a simple tomato sauce using good tinned tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and basil. Combine 150g ricotta, 1 ball of mozzarella (diced) 2 tablespoons of grated parmesan some salt & pepper and mix well. Shape the mixture into 16 balls, wrap each in a basil leaf and stuff into cooled pasta shell.
Pour a layer of tomato sauce in the bottom of an oven proof dish and place the filled shells on top. Pour over the remaining sauce, sprinkle more parmesan and top with slices mozzarella. Cover with foil and bake for 35 mins at 200 degrees celsius.

I love all food but for the first time in my life (other than when I am sick) certain foods are not on my current menu. Hopefully its only temporary. 8 weeks pregnant I am conscious of my growing baby getting all the important nutrients and vitamins he or she needs to grow and develop.

Today I can barely drink water. Normal I know at this stage but I do work at a busy cheese counter……For dinner this evening its some freshly cut fruit and bed. Which leads me to think if for the moment I’m not getting on with food should I take some pre-natal supplements. Will telephone my G.P tomorrow. night, night.

Folic Acid as you may know is necessary prior to conception and if not then at least for the early stages of pregnancy. Lots of foods are now fortified with folic acid eg: pasta’s and breads. If you rely on foods to obtain folic acid from the best sources are green leafy veg, brown rice, wholemeal bread, milk and fish. Folic acid helps in the prevention of spina bifida and or other birth defects. Its best to consult your doctor on any questions in relation to supplements. Everyone is different.

Vitamin A which is found in foods such as liver is best avoided. Large quantities are known to cause birth defects. A synthetic form of Vitamin A is used in the acne medication Roaccutane. This has been found to be highly toxic to a developing baby. If you are considering pregnancy and on this drug you must consult your doctor and under no circumstances take it.

Iron deficiency is very common in pregnancy. When you have your visit to the hospital and you meet your mid wife you can discuss this with her. She may do a blood test. In the meantime the best food sources of Iron, other than meat are almonds, brazil nuts, pecans, pumpkin and seasme seeds and parsley. Iron absorption is best with vitamin C so having a glass of orange juice will help.

All in all your body will let you know if it needs help. Tiredness is very common in the early stages of pregnancy. Listen to your body. Take the rest, eat well in small amounts and drink lots of fluids.

foodBump is an idea I came up with when I was six weeks pregnant. Awaiting our first scan at 12 weeks and keeping our secret, I found it hard to find real advice on what I could and couldn’t eat. I’m a very excited expecting mum along with a very excited protective Dad to be. We love food but at this point in our pregnancy everything I eat or don’t eat worries us. 

We trawled the Internet and nightly read every pregnancy book that exists. The most frustrating thing would be the amount of conflicting information out there. None of the advice we  found was from people who liked to eat good food instead it was from the medical profession giving blanket advice that air on the side of caution.

And then there was the guilt……the guilt if what I ingest will harm my baby. And for nine months (actually more like ten) you are in a worked up state of what you can and cannot eat. or then you have concerned friends/family members/colleagues or just random passer by’s telling you about something else you should not eat. I quietly struggled with all this and decided I needed to do something that I felt was not been done. I started a food diary which in turn became foodBump

(usual disclaimer I applies: I am not a doctor, and if you are pregnant you should speak with yours before following any of my advice)

My hope for foodBump is to share some of my beautiful pregnancy story with you while generating chat and making us mindful of what we eat pregnant or not.

Enjoy…..