There was a very interesting programme on the TV last night. It aimed to highlight the amount of food waste in the UK. It followed 4 chefs, using nothing but waste food to create a delicious banquet menu.
If you missed it you can watch again on the BBC iPlayer here.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, keeping you updated with food news.
The growing consensus among scientists is that small doses of pesticides and other chemicals can cause lasting damage to human health, especially during fetal development and early childhood.
Scientists now know enough about the long-term consequences of ingesting these powerful chemicals to advise that we minimize our consumption of pesticides.
To try and help you make an informed choice, we have detailed the information below and included a chart detailing the most common foods affected, you can click on the image if you need to view a larger version.
Research has found that people who eat five fruits and vegetables a day from the Dirty Dozen™ list consume an average of 10 pesticides a day. Those who eat from the 15 least contaminated conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables ingest fewer than 2 pesticides daily. The Guide helps consumers make informed choices to lower their dietary pesticide load.
Will Washing and Peeling Help?
The data used to create these lists is based on produce tested as it is typically eaten (meaning washed, rinsed or peeled, depending on the type of produce). Rinsing reduces but does not eliminate pesticides. Peeling helps, but valuable nutrients often go down the drain with the skin. The best approach: eat a varied diet, rinse all produce and buy organic when possible.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, looking out for your health
To stay healthy, you need to replace the fluids you lose. And don’t forget, if the weather is hot or you are exercising, you will be losing even more water.
How much water do we need?
In climates such as the UK, we should drink approximately 1.2 litres (6 to 8 glasses) of fluid every day to stop us getting dehydrated. In hotter climates the body needs more than this. We also get some fluid from the food we eat.
Signs of dehydration
One of the first signs of dehydration is feeling thirsty.
If you think you might not be getting enough fluids, check if you are showing any of these other common signs of dehydration:
* dark coloured urine and not passing much when you go to the toilet
* headaches
* confusion and irritability
* lack of concentration
Pudding Pie Cookery School, we care about your health.
Fifty thousand pounds worth of savings were made through reduced waste disposal costs, thanks to the ‘Oxfordshire Waste Campaign’ last year.
Oxfordshire council-tax payers have saved over £50,000 in waste disposal costs by throwing away less food since Oxfordshire Waste Partnership launched its Love Food Hate Waste campaign last March in conjunction with Pudding Pie Cookery School, offering practical advice on how to reduce waste and shopping bills.
We are delighted to have been involved in reducing food waste and are delighted to announce that we have been asked to run events again this year during the British Food Fortnight from the 18th Sept - 3rd October.
We will post a schedule of where we will be as soon as we can.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, educating and saving people money.
To help avoid food poisoning it’s important to make sure the food you make for yourself and for other people is safe to eat.
This section explains the basics of food hygiene. You’ll find practical advice on how to keep food safe from harmful bacteria – including preparing and cooking food, keeping your kitchen clean.
You can view and download various information here.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, keeping you safe in the kitchen
We’ve known for a while that broccoli has good anti-cancer properties. Now we know why. Scientists at the Institute of Food Research in Norwich have found that the magic chemical called sulforaphane counteracts a genetic fault that’s involved in prostate cancer.
The experiments, on human prostate tissue, found that this chemical dampened down activity in the cells that lacked the PTEN gene, reducing risk of cancer. Whilst this isn’t as good as research done directly on people, it’s a promising start.
What’s it good for?
Broccoli helps protect against prostate cancer, lung, colon, breast and ovarian cancer. A study also showed that people who eat the most cruciferous vegetables (such as cabbage and broccoli) have nearly a third lower risk of bladder cancer compared to those who eat the least.
Eye Health, Broccoli contains lutein, helping to counteract cataracts and eye degeneration. Broccoli is also high in disease fighting vitamins A and C, plus fibre and folate (vital to prevent birth defects). It also has iron, zinc, bone-strengthening calcium and magnesium.
So broccoli may look like just a vegetable, but it is in fact one of the most healthy ones you can eat, bearing in mind it’s cheap to buy and easy to cook, are you eating enough?
Pudding Pie Cookery School, caring about your health.
If you have ever used the services of Pudding Pie Cookery School, are you aware that you have free use of our advice service?
Whether you have a cookery question, a disaster you need help with or if you are simply looking for a recipe, we can help you.
Just drop us an email ask for the information you need and we will help you out. You can also receive our free monthly newsletter and free recipe.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, offering ongoing help in the kitchen.
The UK ban on the beak-trimming of egg-laying hens is under threat. Please help us ensure that it is not abandoned. The welfare of millions of hens around the UK is at stake.
There are around 26 million hens in the UK’s laying flock. The majority of these will have had part of their beaks cut off shortly after hatching. This mutilation is a painful and unnecessary solution to feather-pecking. It was due to be banned on 1 January 2011, but the Government will soon make a decision on a possible postponement.
To read more about the ban and to add your voice to the campaign, please visit the Chicken Out Campaign Website.
Pudding Pie Cookery School - putting animal welfare first.
I think we all appreciate the benefits of baking our own fresh bread. But there are major health benefits also attached to not buying the cheap packaged shop bread.
With a growing culture of people reporting digestive problems which is in turn associated with eating wheat products, research has shown that it is not only the processes used in modern bulk baking that cause problems, but the other ingredients that are added just to keep shelf life and products looking fresher!
The simplest breads are made from flour, water, yeast & salt. These breads are generally eaten the same day they are baked, they taste delicious and contain nothing harmful to your digestive system.
Then we have traditional shop bought mass produced packaged breads. Amongst other things this can contain:
Enzyme’s (these can be animal based, they do not list this, so if your a vegetarian be aware), Emulsifiers, Dextrose, Dough Conditioners, Preservatives, Vegetable Oils, Bleaching Agents and more ….
So what’s the moral of this story, it is that home baked is best, but if you have an intolerance to wheat maybe it’s just a case of looking at the type of bread you eat.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, caring about your health.
Each month, the average family throws away £50 of good food that was bought but not eaten.
“TV Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis says “Throwing food away is the purest waste of money possible. I’ve been banging on about how to beat it for years.”
Saving money does not mean cutting down on the indulgence and fun, if anything, planning well, will leave us with a warm glow of self-congratulation. So what’s the secret?
There is no secret, it’s just knowing what you can do with these leftovers, at Pudding Pie Cookery School we can teach you loads of tricks and techniques that will save you an average of £50 a month off your shopping bill.
Pudding Pie helping you save money.
Wheat intolerance is a growing phenomenon, with more people experiencing discomfort or worse after eating bread or wheat products.
Some might disagree, but there is growing evidence that the problem isn’t with the wheat itself, but with the way it’s used.
The suppliers of all our Flours, Shipton Mill, have produced possible evidence of this, to read the findings please click here.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, caring about the diet we eat.
Whatever your views on the new Government, lets hope they do more to tackle the growing child obesity in the UK and find some funding for schools to start to educate children early about eating healthily!
Pudding Pie Cookery School, promoting healthy eating for children.
We ran a very successful event in Dorchester-On-Thames for the Carbon Project at the weekend. In association with WRAP & Oxfordshire’s Waste Partnership, we held an interactive lunch, teaching residents how to make the most from what is normally considered waste or leftover food.
We made delicious bubble & squeak cakes with a nice dip and some bacon & egg, followed by a banana and biscuit pudding and also some chocolate chip cookies. They all then sat down and enjoyed their creations whilst receiving some tips and free recipes from the Waste Partnership.
Altogether a good day, thanks to everyone involved.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, promoting the reduction in food waste.
On Saturday we are in Dorchester-On-Thames working with WRAP and The Oxfordshire Waste Partnership to help promote the ‘Love Food Hate Waste‘ message.
We will be running live cookery demos and preparing a meal for the lucky students to enjoy!
Maybe we will see you there!
Pudding Pie Cookery School, proud to support ‘Love Food Hate Waste’
At Pudding Pie Cookery School, cooking with Schools has been a great success for us and we are proud to support Flora’s 2010 campaign which will be their last year.
Cooking with Schools is all about putting healthy eating at the heart of the classroom, showing children how to prepare and cook healthy food – and having fun in the process.
Through this exciting initiative, Flora will provide thousands of pounds worth of cooking equipment to primary schools, equipping school staff to teach children the importance of eating well and maintaining a healthy heart.
Check out their website for more details.
Pudding Pie Cookery School, putting children’s health first.