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Singer and actor Liv Austen has turned a health issue into a passion for cooking, by taking control of every ingredient that goes in to her meals. Every week she shares something she has learned from cooking from scratch, and goes through a recipe she loves, so you can cook alongside the podcast. Cook from scratch - your body will thank you.
Do you think of avocado as a fruit or a vegetable? Well, that was a trick question - because technically it is a berry. What?! Yup, they are part of the Lauraceae plant family, and is related to cinnamon.
Avocados are native to Central America, maybe not surprising to hear when you think of dishes that include this ingredient traditionally, but now they are grown in several places around the world.
One thing you may know about avocados already is that they are high in fat. And that is true! About 15% of an avocado is healthy fats, which is essential for energy in our bodies.
They contain quite a bit of potassium as well, which is a nutrient that a lot of us don’t get enough of. Potassium and magnesium, both found in avocados, can help regulate your blood pressure.
If you’ve ever been pregnant, you’ve probably heard people go on about folate, which you need a lot of when you’re carrying a baby and when you’re breastfeeding. Avocados are a great source of folate, so definitely add these to your diet during pregnancy! That being said, folate is great for non-pregnant people too, it can help brain function, decrease risk of type 2 diabetes and development of rheumatoid arthritis.
Avocados are high in fibre, which helps you feel fuller and is hugely important in helping your gut bacteria function correctly. Some research shows that avocados have helped increase bacterial diversity in participants, and we definitely want that for our digestive system!
So it’s all good news for your body basically. However, there is one big but here - they are not necessarily great for the environment. The reason for that is, avocado planting is resulting in deforestation in many of the areas where they grow a lot to keep up with the huge demand for avocados all around the world, and as they are part of mono-culture plantations, which can negatively impact the biodiversity in the nature around these plantations. Another issue with avocados, as I’m sure you’ve experienced at home if you buy them regularly, is that they can ripen way more than you’d like overnight - resulting in food waste!
There are two things you can do here to not impact the planet too much with your avocado consumption; 1. Have them in moderation. You don’t have to cut them out completely (in my opinion, you may disagree and that’s totally fine), and 2. Plan your avocado use well. They ripen much slower in the fridge, so make sure that you only take them out of the fridge in time to use the ones you need. Avocados can also be frozen! You can halve, peel, core them when they are at a nice, ripe level that you’d like (great thing to do if you have too many ripe ones to use right now) and keep them in a box or bag in the freezer.
Have you tried my 1-7 ingredient guacamole yet?
Now we're going to learn how to make a delicious salmon yoghurt spread, perfect on a toasted bagel!
So I kind of stole this recipe - from a book I read at the hairdresser’s. They had a cookbook lying there among the gossip magazines! Yay! I was in heaven! I’m so sorry to not give proper credit, I didn’t take down the name of the book, but this particular recipe stuck in my head as I had an oven baked salmon fillet left over from the day before and tried this for lunch instantly when I came home. It was so delicious, and especially on a toasted, buttered bagel. Highly, highly recommended! I have of course, as with all recipes, made it my own - I looove dill and parsley with fish for example, so have added that as a recommended topping. Some people can’t stand it so I’ve left it as an “optional”!
Salmon Yoghurt Spread
Makes enough for 4 slices of toast/bagel
Time: Max 5 minutes (unless you have to cook the fish first)
1 baked/steamed (cold) salmon fillet (trout would be lovely too!)
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup of natural yoghurt (Greek style recommended for ultimate creaminess)
Juice from half a lime
A lemon wedge for extra juice on top!
Dill and/or parsley to top
So I am doing this as a “leftover” recipe, but if you need to cook the fish - do that first and then let it cool. You can oven bake it or steam it.
In a small to medium bowl, crush up the fish with a fork. Add some salt and pepper, and mix in the yoghurt, then the lime juice. Mix everything well.
For the most magical experience, toast 2 halved bagels and butter them, top them with the salmon spread and sprinkle some dill and parsley (or just one of the two) on top, then give a little squeeze of lemon, or serve the lemon wedge on the side.
This makes a super quick lunch so special and fancy! Enjoy!
Did you make the salmon yoghurt spread? Did you like it? How do you use leftover fish? Share on Instagram and tag @TheFromScratchBody and hashtag #TheFromScratchBody so I don’t miss it!