Food Art - from a football cake to seasides and forests

Authors are creative and cooks are creative, or they need to be nowadays. When I first discovered The Art Of Speed-Reading People, my favourite book, I realised why I a better at decorating a cake than making a cake. I am an ENFP, a typical teacher, writer, journalist. Maybe you are one, or know one. If you see a woman in ballooning clothes in bright colours, chances are she is an extravert.

E for Extravert - interested in the outside world and other people.,

N for Intuitive (absent minded professor type who lives more in the past and future and prefers reading a cookery book and collecting cookery books to actually making a cake.

F - typical woman, feeler, makes judgements based on feelings rather than facts.

P - procrastinator, likes to gather all the facts, before making a decision. Hates to be committed to dates.

That brings me to my pictures. Most interested in food which looks interesting.

The more elaborate the food is, the more admirable. I like to learn new skills. I also seek practical ideas I can copy.

What could I and you copy from these pictures? Lettuce leaves upright as trees. Celery upright as trees. Broccoli as grass. Cheese blocks as cliffs.

http://www.foodnetwork.co.uk/article/28-fascinating-food-art-photos.html

Looking in Waitrose supermarket, I saw these birthday cakes. If you decide you simply want to admire cakes, you can find them ready made.

Seven a day - portions of fruit and vegetables - how?

    Seven a day seems a lot. We heard rumours years ago that seven was the ideal but that we were told five because seven would seem such a large jump that the majority of people would not even try or would try and give up.
     Cut Sugar Desserts - Eat Fruit Salad
     My late father was late onset diabetic and when he was alive and came round for a bridge evening our system was simply to have fruit salad for dessert.      
     Later another member of my family had a cancer scare. We in my family tried to follow the recommendation on the cancer research sites, UK and worldwide. the cure worked.
     Now we are back to the simple rule that everybody should eat healthily to prevent problems. But we already have a system in place for five. This is it.

Five Portions of Fruit Or Vegetables Each Day
   Breakfast - fruit salad with porridge (add because porridge anti-cholesterol)  1 portion of fruit
   Lunch - meat or fish or egg(s) with 2 vegetables and 1 fruit salad -
   Dinner - meat or fish or egg(s) with 2 vegetables; desert is and either fruit salad or half portion of cake/ dessert or fruit salad and a chocolate or small crackers with cheese
 
For elevenses and tea time either two dried apricots or a spoon of cream cheese and a glass of water. Cut out sugar in coffee. Drink semi-skimmed milk.

   On the five a day system we were indulging in extra sugar from a glass or two of wine, cheese after a meal as well as or instead of fruit, sometimes a meal out including a dessert. We weighed ourselves and if the weight went up after a meal out we were back on fruit the next day, or day three if we divided up a take away dessert.

This was adopted as a diet. I have lost weight slowly. 2014 March my weight is 64.8 which is 10 stone 3 lbs. I have to lose another half stone or stone.  I should have achieved that by the end of the year.

In terms of gym and swim, I am doing aqua swim once a week. I would lose weight faster if I went twice a week or better still every day, if I had access to an indoor pool or an outdoor pool and good weather - no snow, no rain, no smog.

Seven A Day
  Our / Your Choice
Breakfast - 1 portion of fruit.
Lunch - 2 vegetables 1 fruit
Dinner 2 vegetables 1 fruit.

You can weigh your fruit and vegetables or just go by the guidelines of one large fish sized piece or a selection of smaller ones.  Ideally have more vegetables than fruit because of the sugar in fruit.

Tips

Buy fruit and vegetables from a shopping list.

Send your most rule-following person to buy food.

Go straight to the fruit and vegetable area in the supermarket and by-pass temptation.

Order online delivery so you are not tempted.

Cut cakes into finger-size portions like a chocolate to have with coffee.

Share desserts, cakes and biscuits and bread rolls between two or three.

Restrict alcohol to after six pm, like most working Americans.

Drink only at weekends.

Cut out drink except for evening birthdays and New Year's Eve.

Restrict drinking - have a January dry month. 

Give up drink for Lent, Ramadan, Passover, whatever.