Rachel Shackleton's blog

Not all Fats are Equal

For as long as I can remember, the British population has received and continues to receive information about foods that are good for you to eat and foods that are not good for you. Do you remember the great margarine challenge? Is it margarine or butter and how those chosen to do the tasting were unable to “tell the difference” because margarine tasted so good?

Tips for coping with the heat in an office environment

Back at work in the office, or even if you are still working from home, working in the current heat of 25-27 degrees C can be quite difficult, heat often causes difficulty concentrating and drains energy in simply trying to stay cool.  Here are a few tips on how you can stay cool in the summer heat:

Lemon melissa – a calming herb in Summer

During the hot June week, I was sitting in my garden enjoying my lunch pondering on which herb to feature in this month’s blog. Starring me in the face was and still is the beautiful Lemon Melissa, a calming herb commonly known as Lemon Balm, or by Melissa officinalis, its Latin name. “Melissa” comes from the Greek for bee and refers to the great attraction the plant holds for bees during its short flowering season.

FENNEL - VEGETABLE AND HERB

Foeniculum vulgare is a member of the Apiaceae family. It is a warm, spicy sweet herb that has affinity to the liver, kidneys, spleen – the seat of the immune system as well as the stomach. The main actions are to regulate Qi or Chi (depending on your spelling). Qi is the seat of energy within the body.

"Tossing doughnuts, fritters or fried dumplings in fennel sugar adds grown-up complexity without diminishing the indulgence factor”

Yotam Ottolenghi