I've always tried to eat relatively healthily, but bad habits creep in sometimes when you least expect them, and sometimes simply for convenience.
For instance I nearly always have a bottle of this lemon juice in the fridge, and when I ran out of lemon slices towards the end of last year I started to use it in my morning hot water and lemon drink. The habit stayed for quite a while. It's not too bad to do occasionally but even just looking at these lemon slices shows you which is obviously the healthier of the two choices doesn't it.
Lemon juice in a bottle with added lemon oil and preservative or just lemon?
And of course with the slice of lemon, after I've had it in the hot water I can drop it into a glass of cold tap water, put it into the fridge and have another drink later in the day.
Double use from one slice. 😀
I dug these up from the bottom of the freezer, I have no idea how long they have been there but when the best before date is up on a commercially frozen food you know it's been quite a while.
The ingredients are not the end of the world, but the sausages are obviously very processed.
The two that were left in the box made for a debatable breakfast, I possibly enjoyed the tomato ketchup and the lovely fresh bun more than the sausages. If I am to move away from UPF foods I have to choose my poisons wisely. Of all the Linda McCartney sausages I think I prefer the 'Lincolnshire' variety the most.
So these won't be purchased again.
Occasionally I fry these 'Ham Free Slices' and make a 'bacon bun'. They are also useful as a addition to a nice salad sandwich, adding flavour and some additional protein. These will be purchased occasionally.
But one of my favourite breakfasts, when I'm not in the mood for a simple bowl of porridge with a dollop of peanut butter, is a slice of toast topped with sautéed tomatoes, onion and a smidge of garlic powder and finished off with a good grinding of black pepper.
Any day that starts this way is going to be a good one, and of course I will always be purchasing tomatoes, both fresh and tinned.
Sue xx
I’m trying to get away from processed foods too. But they are convenient. I love tomatoes. Favorite lunch is tomatoes and lettuce on whole wheat bread with vegan mayo. Cali
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a delicious sandwich. I guess we are all so used to processed foods, it would be very difficult to live completely without them straight away.
DeleteI have discovered that my gut doesn’t like soya in any form so am trying to be careful about any processed foods I buy./eat. You have reminded me that there are three lemons left in the fridge which should now be sliced and frozen. Catriona
ReplyDeleteI had a bad habit of leaving lemons for far too long in the fridge, but then I realised how much more juicy they are if I can remember to slice and freeze them straight away after chilling for a day in the fridge.
DeleteCouldn't eat a veggie sausage even if you paid me, card board came to mind when I started to read your post.. then I saw the pic of your toms on toast and I thought, it was smoked salmon, my favourite. Tomatoes are ok but smoked salmon is better!! LOL
ReplyDeleteThese ones are flavourful, but the texture isn't right for me, the Lincolnshire ones are so much better.
DeleteIt's hard to avoid processed food, isn't it? But, I'd say you eat fairly healthy meals on the whole.
ReplyDeleteIt's really hard to avoid it all together, I'm just trying to find a good balance. About 20% processed would be good if I can manage it.
DeleteI tried good peanut butter in porridge, it is surprisingly tasty. I sprinkle my porridge with a few pumpkin or sunflower seeds, a few defrosted blueberries, and half of a small banana. We have half an orange each and a small glass of homemade kefir, and in this cold weather, a scrambled egg on half a slice of toast, then marmalade on the other half slice. (Homemade bread, and marmalade, and an egg from our hens.)
ReplyDeleteThen we have a pot of filter coffee.
We shop very economically, mainly at Aldi, looking out for their red stickered items and offers. My small shopping trolley contains nothing but basic ingredients, plain fish, not fish fingers, pork instead of sausages with weird additives, it is the food my Granny would recognise.
That is a huge breakfast!! I have one of the elements at a time, but all of them make for a very good breakfast. :-)
DeleteThat's the thing to aim for isn't it, any foods that our Grannies would recognise. Imagine if they stepped into a modern supermarket with it's aisles and aisles of choice, they would be amazed and horrified in equal measure.
You've got me craving tomatoes on toast now - I love the way the Spanish do it...https://www.olivetomato.com/pan-con-tomate-recipe-spanish-breakfast-toast/
ReplyDeleteOnce a week I'll order a small vegetarian breakfast in Wetherspoons which comes with a veggie sausage. I don't eat that many processed foods - except noodles and pizza! xxx
A once a week veggie sausage and the occasional noodles and pizza sounds like a very balanced way to eat processed foods. :-)
DeleteWould homemade falafel, akara and other patties from pulses make a good alternative to UPF sausages? Would they freeze? What did you make from the chick pea flour?
ReplyDeleteYes, they really would, and I have frozen falafels and hummus many times with great success. I tend to mostly make pancakes or flatbreads with my chick pea flour, and yes, I add it to falafel mixtures if they are a bit too moist.
DeleteHi sue can I suggest you download a free app called Yuka and you scan barcodes on foods it will tell you all the good and bad things they contain it’s brilliant I can honestly say I have got any junk food in my kitchen thanks to this app simply to use a god send regards Jeangenie
ReplyDeleteYes, I have this app on my phone, but I'm not sure if I trust it completely. For instance it tells me that the Deliciously Ella peanut butter is 69/100 with purely peanuts as ingredients and that my cheap peanut butter that contains sugar and palm oil is healthier at 75/100, and that's just one instance.
DeleteEdit should read haven’t got any junk food not have
ReplyDeleteI guessed. :-)
DeleteI've gone off those kinds of sausage too. The only similar things we eat in moderation are Quorn pieces in a curry and Quorn mince in cottage pie. Those tomatoes look heavenly :)
ReplyDeleteI went off Quorn pieces, and switched to using tinned lentils instead as I had a huge stash of them. But they really do have a place in cooking meat-free but meat inspired meals don't they. Adding extra protein to the finished dish.
DeleteI have never had tomatoes on toast for breakfast. It looks very tasty.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
I only discovered just how tasty a breakfast it could be a couple of years ago, after someone left a comment on my old blog.
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