​Yes it's Easter, but it's still cold. When the wind drops, the sun is warm on your face, but that chill in the wind reminds you that it is still March.

I am still in need of wintery food to keep me warm. The delicious salads I had in Palm Springs and planned to share with you, will have to wait a while.

I had some parsnips hanging about which needed eating. I had made some parsnip soup in the past, so decided I would experiment with some ingredients that I had in the fridge. A red chilli, some coconut milk (left over from a Thai curry) and an onion.

The result was a Thai inspired parsnip soup. I was quite surprised that the parsnip was so versatile that it could transform from a crusty old root vegetable into a flavoursome spicy asian soup.

So here's the recipe:

• knob coconut oil
• 1 large onion , peeled and roughly chopped
• 2 cloves garlic , peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 thumb-sized piece fresh ginger , peeled and roughly chopped ( or use a teaspoon of ground ginger)
• 4 parsnips , peeled and chopped into chunks
• 200 ml coconut milk
• 200ml  organic vegetable stock
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 fresh red chilli , deseeded and finely sliced
• salt and pepper

Heat the coconut oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and the red chilli. Gently fry for around 10 minutes, until the onions are soft and sweet.

Drop in the chopped parsnip and stir together so that everything gets coated in the oil and flavours. Pour in the stock, season well and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for 30 minutes with a lid on. 

After half an hour, check that the parsnips are cooked by sticking a knife in. If you’re happy, remove them from the heat and carefully blend in the liquidiser. Return to the saucepan ,taste the soup to see if it needs a little more salt or pepper and stir in the coconut milk and reheat and serve with a sprinkling of diced chilli. If I had some coriander, then a sprinkling on the top would have been a good idea.

Who knew that parsnips are a useful source of vitamins C & E as well as folate. I had to look up what folate was! Here's the definition.

Folate is a water-soluble vitamin B-9 (it dissolves in water), which means your body is unable to store it for long periods of time. Your body's store of folate is usually enough to last four months. This means you need folate in your daily diet to ensure your body has sufficient stores of the vitamin. Folate aids the complete development of red blood cells.

It is different than Folic acid  which is a synthetic compound used in dietary supplements and food fortification, whereas folate refers to what is found naturally found in food.

And as Folate is water soluble making a soup is a good idea as it makes sure you get the whole benefit of it in your diet.

While diet and routine are very important to one's well being, sometimes you have to do what feels right for yourself.

Feeing stressed, worried and anxious for over a week, none of my usual routines were working. I couldn't work out why? I suddenly thought on an impulse I needed to be somewhere that would take me out of my day to day life. So I took off for a long weekend in Norfolk. There is something special about this place that nurtures my spirit. It's the fresh air, the long walk on the marches and beaches, the delicious food and a change of scenery. 

North Norfolk has worked it's magic for me again. There is definitely some regeneration that happens  to me when I visit here. I love to walk on the wide empty beaches. The weather has been amazing. I feel so much more positive and stronger than when I arrived on FrIday.

I felt immediately better after my walk on Brancaster beach Friday afternoon. The light was surreal. I had to take a photo. Here it is.

This was the view from my bed that I woke up to on Saturday morning.  It made me want to get up and out there. Which is what I did! 

Sometimes impulsiveness is a great thing and for me this experience has had a more positive effect than staying at home trying to work through it all.

One thing I have noticed since I got back from California, is that the days are suddenly getting longer.  Of course, it's not been sudden at all. In reality, it's about 3 or 4  minutes every day- but that's twenty minutes a week, or an hour every three weeks - and that's when you notice things. It creeps up on us, quietly, but one day you wake up and think, "the sun is up already". Or one afternoon you're leaving work and think... goodness, it's still light.

It's a moment in the year I love​. Strange to think that in four weeks' time it will be Easter, which is when (someone said today) the clocks change. Spring is almost here, even if today felt like winter - cold, wet and windy.

While in Palm Springs my friend Danny introduced me to the blog Two Peas and their Pod. They have some interesting salad recipes including this one.  

I am a big fan of avocados and I am always looking for recipes that include them as a change from smashed avocado on toast. I have to admit that will always be one of my favourite breakfasts or speedy lunches.


This recipe looked really interesting.. It was so easy. We served it as part of a buffet for a party. It could easily be served for lunch or as a side dish.

It claims that it only need 5 minutes to make this healthy salad! It took me a little bit longer

Serves 4

Prep time: 5 minutes +

Total time:  5 minutes

Ingredients:

1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
2 avocados, pitted, and chopped
1/3 cup chopped cilantro (Coriander)
2 tablespoons green onion (Spring onion)
1/3 cup feta cheese
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and black pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS:
In a medium bowl, combine chickpeas, avocado, cilantro, green onion, feta cheese, and lime juice. Stir until mixed well. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.
​
​Voila - it's that easy. Looks impressive and tastes delicious. I thought that adding cherry tomatoes sliced in half would add some colour and some vitamin C.

It's been very busy at work since returning from the Christmas break. Surely it must be time for some rest and relaxation. I decided it was!

A trip to see my friends Danny and Alan, who have bought a condo in Palm Springs, California, seemed like the right thing to do. I arrived on the 11th February. It was very warm and sunny. Was it really February? You could easily forget that it was.

After a couple of days to adjust to the time difference, my brain was no longer foggy and I started sleeping through the night again.

SoCal (Southern California) is a paradise in winter. Blue skies, sunshine, mountains, palm trees, swimming pools and surprisingly healthy food. The snow birds are here in force, all escaping the cold winter of the Canadian and North American winter. It's a popular destination and I can see why. This has to be so healthy for older people than enduring the cold of a northern hemisphere winter. For me  it was a blast of sunshine in the middle of winter  and such a treat. My vitamin D levels are being topped up by all this sunshine!

    It doesn't get bluer than this!