Easter is looming, which often involves family get-togethers, meeting up with friends and plenty of eating. The eating, of course, includes Easter eggs and hot cross buns.

I love Easter eggs and hot cross buns. Particularly hot cross buns - there's something about their doughy, spicy, fruity flavour which puts me in seventh heaven. However, for me an integral part of my enjoyment is their limited availability. I’d never buy or make a fruit bun normally and I don't eat chocolate very often, however I wouldn’t dream of missing out on my annual hot cross bun and Easter egg.

We tend to think of these foods as treat foods, especially as they're only available in the build up to Easter. However, while they used to only be in shops a few days before Easter, hot cross buns and chocolate eggs are now available for months in advance. Which leaves a lot of opportunities to treat yourself.

This presents a problem if you're trying to maintain a healthy weight, as of course, eating lots of hot cross buns and Easter eggs is not good for your health.

At the risk of being seen as a killjoy, I’ve got a radical idea: why not just eat hot cross buns and Easter eggs at Easter? Don’t have them for months on end and don’t bother with the cheap-o rubbish ones. Buy really good, delicious chocolate eggs and hot cross buns. Revel in them and eat as many as you want. Thoroughly enjoy them, but thoroughly enjoy them for one day and leave it at that.

 

That's what I'll be doing.

 

I was reminded this week of an old post by Shauna Reid about what she calls spearfishing. It describes those times you come home from work, open the fridge straight up and start rummaging around for food. A bit of cheese, a couple of olives, a spoonful of hummous, some leftover bits of cooked chicken.

 

 

I suspect this is quite common. It's been a long time since lunch, you're probably tired and a bit hungry and can't quite wait for dinner. However, while you almost certainly do need to eat something, all those morsels of food, mindlessly eaten, while standing in front of the fridge can add up kilojoule-wise and if you’re trying to lose weight, it’s these habits you need to question.

Shauna (and her sister’s) advice, is to put a few bits on a plate and sit down to eat it. This means you’re controlling the portion, taking some time over eating and also having a few minutes break from your busy day.

Instead of spearfishing, why not make yourself a yummy little mezze plate, take a seat and enjoy your after-work snack-time?

 

Oh yes and I know Shauna links to a piece written by me, but that's not why I love this post!

I used to regularly crave sweet foods in the evening. Despite my best intentions, about thirty minutes after dinner I'd find myself pulling any sweet stuff we had out of the cupboards. I wasn't hungry and while I'd tell myself I didn't need anything, most nights I would give in.

I was relying on willpower alone to keep me away from too many treats. Which just didn't work. Instead of continuing with this pattern of trying to resist and then giving in, I decided to change the house "rules" around treats.

Now, I don't buy any sweet stuff when I go shopping and there's no stockpile in the cupboards or fridge. No sweet "treats" in the house whatsoever. I haven't banned these foods, instead if I want something, I have to go and buy it.

Thinking back over the last month I have probably walked up to buy something once. The nearest shop is close by, it's less than 7 minutes walk away, and the streets are safe where I live. The shop is open until 9pm and stocks a range of biscuits, chocolate bars, ice cream. However, despite their proximity and my old regularity of sweet eating, I rarely want a sweet treat enough to go and buy it.

Some nights I think about it, but then the idea of putting my shoes on, grabbing my wallet and walking up to the local shop is enough to put me off. This one impediment has changed me from the habit of eating sweet foods after dinner five nights a week, to about once a month.

Small impediments can really help when you're trying to improve the way you eat. Putting something in the way of high kilojoule treat foods, gives you the time to reconsider and put the craving aside. If you can't ban them from the house, then even putting sweet foods in an opaque container on top of the cupboards, or in the garage can be enough. By making it just slightly harder to find these foods you are reducing the likelihood you'll eat them.

 

Recently I made this dairy free onion and caraway "bread" recipe, on Have Cake Will Travel. It's a quick and easy recipe to make and the final bread is delicious.

 

For me it has slightly too many caraway seeds, so next time I'd cut back. Plus onion powder is not an ingredient I know or readily use, so I replaced it with a spice mix.

It's quite delicious, with a soft and crumbly texture. Fresh from the oven, I had a piece for lunch, spread with goat cheese and served with a salad. The next day I toasted a piece for breakfast and topped with avocado. I then had another piece with lunch, where I used it to mop up the bowl of soup I was eating.

I sliced up the rest of the loaf and it's now in the freezer.

I got 10 slices out of the loaf and will definitely be making it again - it's quick and easy and a useful food to have around. I can imagine making this with lots of different seeds and spices, tweaking it around according to what I have in the cupboards.