Dedicated to Salad Haters

Octopus salad with soya vinaigrette in Restaurant 'La Mar Salada'

You knew this was coming, right? So just let me get this out of the way real fast and then we can get back on track again.

The world is divided between those who like salad and those who don't. Therefore, this post is dedicated to those who don't like salad coz you salad lovers are already on my side ;-)

So, salad haters, why do you hate salad so much? Is it because salad and diets are so inextricably linked in our current culture? Is it because as far as you are concerned, a salad is just some watery lettuce with onion rings, olives, tuna and hard tomatoes (typical salad in Spain and one which I personally loathe for its lack of imagination)? Or is it coz you just hate the taste of 'salad'?

As far as I am concerned, a salad can be the quickest, most nutritious one-plate meal you actually don't need to cook and, has fed my body and soul many a time. And I really believe that you just cannot NOT love a good salad when I have finished with you and this post!

Let's de-compose a western salad into its constituent parts so you can understand what exactly makes a salad a good salad. Know thine enemy, right?

Spinach, chicken and ricotta salad with orange and oil vinaigrette

Part 1: The Leaves/Greens:
This IS a salad. You gotta have some greens! Make that 50% of the solid ingredients. And please, don't tell me that that cold pasta dish with some tuna thrown in is a pasta salad because I will whack you. Hard. 
There are SO many leaves to choose between and not just that damn iceberg lettuce that most people use. I personally find no use for an iceberg except as chow for your pet snail or tortoise. C'mon people, be BOLD and go for some or other variation of those found here ! Which reminds me, in which universe will the banana die out but not an iceberg? 
Leftover veggies are kickass in a salad. Or just raw - tomatoes, celery, mushrooms, avocado, fennel.. You can steam/roast/ grill most veg and once it has cooled down, add it to your salad.
Fruit - you can even add a handful of fruit and it's still a salad and not dessert! Swoon. Most fruits go well except bananas, durian or anything fleshy. Try mandarin segments or cherries ( in which case don't add honey in your dressing or raisins/prunes as extra), or strawberries or any berries and you'll be in heaven!

Steamed broccoli with crispy tofu, feta & sesame oil

Part 2: The Carby base:
This will make your salad into a meal rather than a 1st course, if that's what you want. Make sure it is about 20% of the solid ingredients.
Again, tons of elements to choose from:
Rice - brown, wild, red, white - you choose
Potatoes - boiled, steamed, with peel, without..even straw potatoes, for god's sake!
Croutons - garlicky? oven? fried? None? I opt for none coz I generally hate croutons. Shhh, don't tell anyone.
Couscous - wholemeal? normal?
Quinoa - very nutty
Pasta - you wanna Penne? Campanelle rings your bell? Conchiglie makes you come out of your shell? Jeez, try any of those here, they DON'T bite. 
Polenta - please cut into bite sized pieces.

Part 3: The Protein:
This should be about 25% of the solid ingredients unless you are adding cheese, which should be 10%
a. The protein will give you muscle. And that's not a promise.
Some ideas:

Spring greens salad with nuts, Barton restaurant

Fish - ANY, tinned, fresh, fried, roasted, smoked..
Beef, pork , chicken, turkey...
Vegetarians can add: Eggs, tofu, seitan, quorn, lentils, any beans, chickpeas, tempeh..
b. Cheese: Any and every except the really gooey ones. Holy Moly, here is a very cheesy cheasecyclopedia to help you choose. WARNING: Only a small handful else the meal becomes very calorific and you don't want that. 

Part 4: The extras:
5% or a tablespoonful.
Nuts, seeds, raisins/ prunes/dried apricots and other dried fruit. Candied fruit: No bloody way!

Ricotta, parmesan and pear salad with a sesame dressing

Part 5: The Dressing:
BEST bit! But please don't drown your salad in the dressing. Just coat it AND IN THE LAST MINUTE! Else the God of Wilted Salads will pay you a visit.
You can add mayo if you want something unhealthy and bland but I advice you to leave the mayo where it belongs, with tuna ;-)

The vinaigrette decomposes into:
a. The oil - Healthy examples would be - olive, walnut, sesame, peanut, hazelnut oil. Any infused oil will do too, anything except coconut oil because UGH
b. The acid - vinegar ( wine, balsamic, apple...), lemon, lime, acidic yoghurt (leave it out for the whole day), tart mashed tomatoes..
c. Salt - normal? himalayan? flakes?

Feta, walnut, raisin with balsamic and mustard dressing

black - kinda strong as it tastes like a fart
d. Optional spices - pepper, paprika, chilli, cinnamon ( in minute quantities), cumin
e. Optional herbs - coriander, parsley, basil, chives, thyme and rosemary in minute quantities since they can overpower a salad...
f. Optional condiments - mustard, soya sauce, fish sauce  ( use with caution), Worcestershire sauce, even honey ( coz I don't know where to put this so will just chuck it here), tartar etc

Mandarin and pine nut salad with balsamic/oil vinaigrette

The rule of thumb is generally 1 part acid to 3 parts oil and the rest as you will. Experiment and see what quantities you prefer. I find that adding mustard means that I need to reduce the vinegar while adding lemon instead of vinegar means I need to increase the oil ratio. 

Still think salad is iceberg ( damn you , Iceberg: You have ruined the appetites of many and I hope you go to hell) and some tomatoes? Feeling frisky and wanna try something new with my simple guidelines? GO FOR IT. Be like Nike: JUST DO IT

Roast vegetable salad with balsamic/oil dressing

Fig, endive & sunflower seed with olive oil/passion fruit vinaigrette

Thai raw papaya salad in Brussels

Some thoughts on sushi

I recently read that the Japanese government is so sick of foreigners messing up their cuisine that it will protect its reputation by setting up a tough new certification system for overseas chefs. And too bloody right! How many times have you eaten sushi where the rice has been over cooked? I mean, HOW many times? Sadly, I have rarely eaten sushi where the rice is perfectly cooked. :-( Where you can taste each grain individually as you savour the filling and the saltiness of the soya sauce along with the pungency of the wasabi. There have been sadder times when the sugar in the rice has been overdone or the vinegar. The photo shows one of the few times when not just the rice but my Uramaki sushi was JUST PERFECT - and strangely, the eel and foie melded very well in the palate. 

Here is a page which has 100 different types of sushi with nice, big photos. OOOH YA

Tuna sashimi in 'Nanaya', Barcelona

For a few years now, I have been going to a tiny Japanese restaurant where the food has always been excellent and the service hyper efficient. Unfortunately, seems the chef has changed and so has the menu :-( But no one can take away the memory of the yummiest Tuna sashimi that I had. Just look at that red, glistening flesh. 
RIP Yummilicious Tuna Sashimi.

One of my favourite makis when I am quite hungry, since this is a rather filling dish, is the Dragon Maki at 'Shanghai 1930' restaurant in Barcelona - yes, in a Chinese restaurant! But before you throw up your hands in horror, just hear me out - nicely cooked and well seasoned cooled rice is stuffed with prawn and mayonnaise and then wrapped in the thinnest slivers of fresh avocado. And then generously sprinkled with crunchy onion. Yummy! Aren't we lucky that the Japanese invented sushi? 

Dragon Maki at Shanghai 1930

Random sashimi to make you salivate

And the torture continues with more random sashimi

And lastly, a beautiful video: 

Some exceptional sandwiches

On the Eighth day, he made bread. And on the Ninth, a sandwich....

The Bosphorous

Turkish fried chicken and chilli sandwich

A few years ago, I went to Constantinople (which sounds wayyyyy better than Istanbul) and had this crunchy chicken and fried chilli sandwich. It was a cold and blowy day as I faced the Bosphorus, trying to take in the history of my setting and hoping that that damn wind would stop blowing. The wind didn't stop doing its job but this sandwich happily added some much needed heat to my body. 

A few years even before that, I had this kickass sandwich called 'bifana' in a little bar in Lisbon. It is a stewed pork sandwich and just what you need when you have been driving a car for hours and desperately need a quick pee and then a pick-me-up. Accompanied by a cold beer.I can still feel that crunchy bread and that firm meat ...scarf!

Indian 'Zaiqa' roll

And somewhere between these two sandwiches, in India, I had a 'zaiqa' roll from a street vendor. Curried chicken rolled up in 2 minutes flat! Who knows where his hands had been and who knows what all he had added but I didn't care that day. Street food rocks and whoever tells you to the contrary, please refer him/her/it to me and I will give them a stern lecture. You see, I am good at stern lectures on food. 

Post christmas Turkey sandwich

One fine day, it is the day after christmas and you wake up still not sick of turkey. So you do what a friend of mine does - make a turkey meal sandwich. In goes the turkey, the stuffing, the gravy- hell, chuck in whatever you have left in the fridge, on the countertop, in the pantry...make several layers and munch away. 
WARNING: Not for the small-mouthed as you need a rather large mouth to take a bite. 

Chinese steamed breads should be a category all on their own but this is about sandwiches and the below two were just too awesome to not include. The one of the left is actually a stuffed bread, stuffed with mostly Chinese water spinach, garlic, onion and soya sauce. 

Stuffed Chinese bread

Chinese bun with squid

On the right is one of the best smoked sweet bun with inky squid that I have ever tasted. This delicacy is found a very special restaurant called Ignició, which boasts a smoked kitchen where all food comes out smoky and heavenly.. Madrid squid sandwich, eat your heart out!

Budapest, summer, late night: My son and I were hungry and we were wandering around when we espied a type of food fair going on. We just wanted something light so, seeing a type of calzone, went for it. It was lovely - roast veg and meat and just what any doctor would recommend ;-) especially washed down with a cold beer

Hungarian calzone

And last but not the least, a very special mention to the Rancid Sardine ('sardina ráncida') sandwich that I ate, a while ago, in Zaragoza. It is basically marinated sardine in a crunchy bun and the bar is very famous for it, The Lince. Try it!

Rancid sardine sandwich of Bar Lince in Zaragoza

Brekkie time!

French toast

Breakfast has got to be my favourite meal of the day and not only do I slowly prepare everything but also,  I take time to eat it. A long time ago, a dear friend taught me how to make French toast and oh my, was it a revelation! And when made with love, oh soooooo good. And oh soooo simple, like all the best dishes. Here is my favourite recipe:

Serves 1

1 egg

1 knob of butter - you can choose how big that knob is ;-)

2 pieces of white bread ( has to be white, brown just doesn't work and makes this decadent dish way too healthy for a weekend)

2 tablespoons of milk

Cinnamon

Maple syrup (to add at the end). I make sure my maple syrup is organic as the non organic one is full of pesticides - Yikes!

Crack the egg in a shallow bowl, add the milk and cinnamon and give it a good whisk. 

Lay one piece of bread in this and thoroughly coat on both sides.

Melt the butter in a pan and add the prepared bread.

Coat the other piece of bread on both sides till the egg mixture has been thoroughly absorbed. 

Lay on the pan and cook till golden brown. Drizzle with as much maple syrup as needed.

Marbella fry up

Sometimes there is nothing better, after a hard night of partying in Marbella, than a good ol' fry up. Doesn't that look divine? My arteries clog with happiness just by looking at this photograph. Marby has so many Brits that this brekkie is an easy one to get anywhere. Here in Barcelona, a place serving a good cholesterol fest is a bit tougher to find but they exist. Halleluiah, there is one near my house!

At other times, especially on a Sunday and an hour before I go for a run, I make myself some pancakes. Here is a nice and easy recipe with video to boot - don't tell me I don't make things easy for you. 

On normal working days, I go for something simpler - some good thick 'give you hairs on your chest' German rye bread and butter, toasted on a solid pan like in times gone by. Always accompanied by freshly ground organic coffee - you can't beat the taste of freshly ground coffee! Sometimes I add some cheese or a yoghurt for that much needed calcium that our ageing bones need. On that glum note, here is another photograph to cheer us up and make us hungry!

An ode to Caesar Salad

Orgasmic Ceasar salad

Ok, HATE me but I am a fan of salads. And it's not because I am a health freak or whatever. It is just that there is nothing like a good, crunchy salad to fill your craving for something fresh as well as that urge to eat something RIGHT NOW without a lot of cooking. I am a great fan of the 'right now' style of cooking. Most salads are like that, toss whatever you have in your fridge (make sure there is something green, for form's sake), mix some vinegar or lemon with some oil and toss it over your leaves IN THE LAST MINUTE, for god's sake! Anyone who marinates their salad should be imprisoned as there is nothing sadder than leaves wilting with the salt and acid of a dressing. Ok, ok there is one other thing which when wilted is pretty sad but, I digress...

So, getting back to a caesar salad..it is the king of salads for me, even though I am not a huge fan of the anchovies needed for the dressing. I love the classic but gimme a chicken caesar and I will scarf it before you even ask me what the word 'scarf' means. A simple recipe I quite like is here

The above photo has got to be of one of the best Caesar salad's I have ever eaten, in La Mamounia hotel in Marrakesh, about 5 years ago. The romaine was crispy, the parmesan milky and firm, the croutons freshly made, accompanied by an oven roasted broiler chicken quarter....they even added some plum tomatoes gratuitously but hey, delicious sun-ripened tomatoes are NEVER to be disdained. It was so good that even today, I get transported back to this wonderful hotel and city. Which brings to mind, how often is it that one eats a Caesar which is not fit for even a poor, starving beggar? Oh too often :-( I still remember the time I had to return a 14€ supposed 'Caesar' which was, in reality, iceburg lettuce with half a pot of watery mayonaise and some oily croutons - barf! I was OUTRAGED and after demanding to talk to the chef, gave him a stern lecture on Caesars and, the management, on trying to sodomize me- in front of my very embarrassed friends. Hrumph!

La Mamounia courtyard

To tapa or not to tapa?

Tapas with beer in Madrid

When you think of Spain and if you are a foodie, I bet that the first word that springs to your mind is 'TAPA'. In English, it means 'cover' or 'lid'. A 'tapa' traditionally could have been a free piece of bread or sliced ham/dried sausage on top of a glass of wine. Over the ages, it has now come to embrace a huge array of food which comes in typically small portions and, is commonly served to quash hunger before lunch or dinner.

There are many stories about the origin of the 'tapa' and they are all quite entertaining. According to one, the tapa was born when, due to an illness, the Spanish king Alfonso X, had to take small bites of food with some wine between meals. Once recovered from the disease, the king decreed that no wine was to be served in Castile, unless accompanied by something to eat. I don't get the logic of that but, oh well.

As per good ol' Wikipedia, before the 19th century when many were illiterate, Spanish innkeepers offered their guests a sample of the dishes available, on a "tapa" rather than a written menu. 

Yet another story, in 'The Joy of Cooking', is that the original tapas were the slices of bread or meat with which sherry drinkers in Andalusian taverns used to cover their glasses between sips. This was a practical measure meant to prevent fruit flies from hovering over the sweet sherry.  Also, as the meat used to cover the sherry was normally ham or chorizo, which are both very salty and activate thirst, bartenders and restaurant owners increased their alcohol sales. Very nifty. 

My favourite story though, is that of king Felipe who, to prevent the soldiers from coming home drunk after a night out and subsequently suffering from hangovers the next morning, thus reducing their performance, made it law that all alcoholic drinks be served with a 'tapa'. That makes sense. 

La Cervecería Catalana

One of my favourite place to go and eat some lovely tapas has got to be the 'Cervecería Catalana' which translates as the Catalan Beer place. The food is fresh, the place bustles with good energy and despite the crowds, I always manage to get a seat at the bar with the lucky person I am showing the place to ;-) The service is decent but the mostly S.E Asian bartenders don't have the easy banter you can get from Spanish barmen (women). A lot of my purist friends will tell me that it is where all foreigners go and so be it but I always have a great time. A note of warning though - either order a bottle or be prepared for a really mediocre house wine/ cava. Oh, and watch out for the pickpockets!

The photo on the right shows: 
(Bottom L to R) Brined anchovies ('boquerones'), thinly sliced artichoke fritters ('alcachofa frita') ,croquettes ('croquetas').
(Center L to R) Bread with tomato rubbed on it and a drizzling of olive oil (''pan con tomate or as the Catalans call it, 'pan amb tomaquet'), delicious JAMÓN (Spanish ham, which deserves a post all on it´s own), more 'pan con tomate.
(Top L to R) Fried eggs with french fries ( 'huevos estrellados' - make sure you ask them to sprinkle paprika on top) and some mushroom croquettes.

Fried bites of seventh heaven

If you have been to Spain, you are probably also familiar with 'Patatas bravas', a SIMPLE fried potato dish which most places have NO CLUE about making so you just fill your stomach with stodge and drink beer in the hopes of masking the stale oil and refried potato taste. UGH. But before you lose hope or the contents of your stomach, I know of at least TWO places where you will repeat your order, diet or no diet. I mean, just FEAST your eyes on the above photograph. Hungry? Let me tempt you further for you won't come across a more delicious, crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, ali-oli (garlic mayonaise) topped, hot sauce festooned, parsley sprayed fried wonder ever... And where can you eat this calorie laden bit of yummiliciousness? In a place called 'Biercab' which serves about 30-40 draft beers too. I haven't been in over a year but I suggest you take your sunglasses and a gun with you because their eye-level, very powerful, operating theatre lighting needs to be shot! 

And the second place, you ask me, anxiously? "Where is the second place where I can gorge on the BEST patatas bravas in town?". Relax, take a deep breath and prepare your belly for yet another morsel sized, baby potato version. Happily, the portion is small and the bill is large so there won't be much gorging to be done. The place? Restaurante Cheri, Barcelona. 

More Patatas Bravas

I can't mention Tapas and not mention this great place on the outskirts of Barcelona, in a village called Alella, Companyia d'Alella Celler I Taverna. Just. Look. At.That. 
The Spanish have a huge variety of conserves and the below is a variety of some of the finest.
From bottom R to L: Mussels in marinated brine ('mejillones en escabeche'), Tuna in marinated brine ('atún en escabeche'), assorted dried sausages and 'Manchego' cheese, anchovies in olive oil, chips with paprika sauce, peasant bread, olives and crayfish tails ( 'cola de langostino'). All washed down with jugs of white wine which left my friend and I quite drunk! 

Oh, My, God

As a final piece and to get your saliva flowing even more freely, I thought I would gratuitously add a couple more photographs of some lip-lickingly good tapas I had in Santander. On the left you have cod stewed in white wine and olive oil. On the right is a mini beef burger with fried onions and chives. Ok, I need a tissue to wipe my own saliva now...

War Zone

Flor, the passionate owner of 'Lo de Flor'

There is an area in my city which resembles a war zone at certain times of the night - the Raval. You will see police in plentiful, body checks going on and people suspiciously scuttling here and there, with their heads bent downwards. I usually avoid this area and will only venture there at night, if armed to the teeth. Hah, you believed me, right? Am kidding. But tis true that after dark, I never venture there alone. So you can imagine how much convincing a dear friend had to do to get me to go there recently. He only had to use two sentences, 'Fabulous Food' and 'You're invited', and my resistance fell, just like Trump's credibility the second he opened his mouth.

So, with my eyes closed and a shiver tingling my back from time to time, I was escorted safely to this haven of golden light and welcoming odours - 'Lo de Flor.' The name can be roughly translated as 'Flor's', after it's Argentinian owner. A very appetising aroma of caramelised onions wafted into my nose as we walked in. 

Now, there is nothing nicer and more inspiring than meeting someone who is passionate about what they do. This woman definitely loves what she does and it shows! Her ingredients are seasonal and mostly sourced locally apart from a few Italian and french speciality items like rillette, for example. The menu has a good variety of meats, fish, vegetables...

Stuffed artichoke

I had a stuffed artichoke starter - the garlic cream was fluffy and married oh, so well with the firmness of the artichoke hearts. Poached and buttered baby carrots and celery sticks were beautifully laid on a light squash cream. Mmmmmmm. Unfortunately, I had agreed to share this starter so it felt like I had barely tasted my artichoke and it was gone- never to be repeated. Ohhhhh! 

Steak tartar

For the main, I ordered a delicious, hand chopped tartar. It was divine! I am not one of those raving carnivores who can't eat a meal without a lump of oozy meat but this was one of those occasions when I was so happy with my choice! It was accompanied by a lovely potato dauphinoise which I chewed in a slow lady like manner - coz I can do that from time to time. 

My friend had the most succulent 'poussin' stewed in a rich raisin and pine nut gravy. He returned my favour with a piece of this month old bird. We were silent as we gnarled on bones and flesh, transported to a cave, long, long ago....

Broiler chicken stewed with pine nuts and raisins

Must say, I am not a dessert fan so be blown away when once in a while, I put up a dessert photograph. This was a very tart lemon curd, sitting on a bed of slowly sautéed apples. It was set off with a delicious, crunchy stick made of Filo pastry, lightly basted with butter and sprinkled lovingly with some cinammon. Ooo la la!

Do you double dip your boiled egg?

Perfect semi-boiled egg with soldiers

I do. Sometimes I even triple dip - is that such a sin? Well, boil and quarter me if you must!
Eggs, what can I say that others haven't said before? 5 seconds of reverent silence, please.

THE PERFECT BOILED EGGS
This title reminds me of a young friend of mine who has just learnt how to cook. To make his perfect semi-boiled eggs, he checks that the water does not exceed 100ºc, WITH A THERMOMETER!!! I was laughing silently when he recounted his conscientious ways to me. I just put a large egg in cold water for 9 minutes, boil without a lid and Bob's your uncle! The yolk will be golden and runny and the white will be firm and opaque. Add salt and grind some pepper. How do you do yours? 

My scrambled eggs on toasted rye bread

THE PERFECT SCRAMBLED EGGS
Who doesn't enjoy some creamy scrambled eggs on toast? With their own fine dusting of freshly ground pepper, of course and no, you don't have a choice in this. Mmmmmm...And how hard IS IT to get them to be creamy - if you are lucky, you will get hard and non soggy. The worst is hard and soggy - with a whey like liquid underneath - just the thought makes me heave. These two particular ways are specialities I have come across, time and again, even in 5 star hotels, around the world. Hot plates and scrambled eggs are mortal enemies but needs must and the public has to scarf their mummified eggs to face the world. The secret, dear friends, is in the timing - that's all I am going to say :-) 

MY PERFECT INDIAN SCRAMBLED EGGS
Indians love to take any food item and literally and liberally spice it up and cook it to death and reincarnation. These scrambled eggs have all the creaminess of the above western version and the chilli of a good ol' Indian curry. You will need:

My Indian scrambled eggs

Serves 1
2 eggs
A quarter finely chopped onion
A green chilli, finely chopped
Some green coriander, yep, finely chopped
1 Tbsp milk
1/2 Tbsp sunflower oil
Salt n pepper
Optional 1/4 tsp Cumin, 1/4 tsp Turmeric

Make sure you have everything chopped before you start to cook as at one point, you will have to be fast and throw everything in!
Brown the onions in the oil and then add the egg and all the ingredients except the pepper. Scramble away till creamy. Serve. 

THE PERFECT CURRIED EGGS
I was recently deep in South India, Kerala to be precise, and got to taste a typical breakfast, drool at the below curried eggs, with a delicious fried egg shaped pancake called 'aapam'. My, was this breakfast tasty! The egg curry is made in coconut oil and can be quite strong for people not used to it but then, olive oil in food is also strong tasting for many. There is a lot of sliced onion in this so you must like onions - thankfully I do! Add spices, tomatoes and voilá, Eggy Heaven. 

Curried whole eggs

I was in a lush estate for the weekend and was lucky enough that I got to not just eat a lot of typical Keralan dishes but also, the cook was amazing. I was intrigued at the form of the pancake which was new to me and requested him to show me how they made it. His smiling assistant proceeded to dazzle me. The 'aapam' pan is bowl shaped and she added some batter and expertly rolled it around so that a thin film coated the sides while the rest remained at the bottom, thus giving the typical shape of this morning glory. 

Aapam

THE PERFECT OMELETTE
The below gives you a hint. Can you guess how it is made or do I have to spell it out for you? OK, OK, I guess you are tired, you have just finished work and your brain is a liquid mess. Here is a simple recipe for some more of eggy heaven.

Serves 1
2 Eggs
A good handful of my favourite mushrooms, chanterelle. And NO, you do NOT wash these! You just clean the dirt, blow and hope that a wandering dog didn't pee on them.
2 Tablespoons of milk
A tablespoon of half oil and butter ( am getting very technical here)
A bit of grated cheese
Salt and pepper

Tock, schlump. Tock, schlump ( 2 eggs popped in a bowl)
Add the milk, salt and whisk for 10 seconds.
In a frying pan, heat up the oil and butter mix and cook your 'shrooms till wilted but not dead. This should barely take 5 minutes. Pour your eggs and make sure you coat all the 'shrooms. When the mixture starts to congeal, toss the grated cheese, switch off the fire and grind your pepper. Serve straightaway. You don't even need to get to a table - just eat.

Snack-dinner time

There are times when you JUST DON'T WANT TO COOK. Which is normally ok, but when you just happen to be hungry too, then what do you do?

Here is a simple recipe for that quick and nutritious meal your body is craving for RIGHT NOW!

2 Slices of brown bread
Grated cheese - you choose how much you want to eat - let's be democratic about cheese
2 Slices of ham
1/2 Avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced thinly
Black pepper
Truffle or truffle oil (optional)

Toast the bread and heap everything on top. Drizzle with truffle oil or add laminates of truffle if you happen to have some, on top.
Eat/Guzzle/Scarf