Post-Surgery Eats

All about the foods that'll help you get back on your feet

Ok, I know what you're thinking, "Eleanor, don't be overdramatic, you didn't have real surgery" and to be honest, you'd be correct. I didn't have 'you'll feel a sharp scratch, fall asleep for about six hours and then wake up with zero recollection of where you are and wholeheartedly believing you are in fact Hannah Montana' type surgery, but I did spend a Sunday evening in an operating theatre while my left hand was thoroughly beaten up (and then patched up) by a surgeon. I had local anaesthetic, took antibiotics three times a day for a week and currently have a finger the size of a golf ball, featuring stitches reminiscent of #FrankensteinChic.

Either way, when I realised quite what a state I had got myself into, and quite how long (and how much hard work) it would take to rectify and get me back to dual handedness, I jumped straight on the 'food cures everything' bandwagon and started searching out what sorts of foods promote healing and basically help the body to do its thang.

As ever, the internet did not disappoint. It was surprisingly easy to find foods that are accessible, tasty, and full of everything your body could ever need; so here's what I've been chowing down on lately...

ALMONDS
for: Vitamin E
Almonds are a great source of Vitamin E, which not only helps to encourage wound healing and building up scar tissue (so we can all be Harry Potter), it's also a key player in antioxidant defence, helping to protect you from anything nasty that could be lurking in any tissues or cells.

Also found in: sunflower seeds, peanuts, kale, vegetable oils and olives

BEANS
for: Iron
Iron is pretty vital at all times, let alone when you've had surgery, because it helps create new red blood cells that store and carry oxygen in your blood. #Science. This in turn encourages the wound to heal and boosts your energy levels, getting you back on your feet and full of beans. Sorry, couldn't resist...

Also found in: meat and poultry, dried fruit, leafy vegetables, eggs and whole grains

POULTRY
for: Protein
Foods that are high in protein are a no-brainer after surgery because muscle tissue is likely to have been moved or damaged, meaning your body will be quick to try and repair itself (it's pretty great like that). Therefore, giving your body an extra dose of protein (feat. amino acids) will help boost its ability to heal, repair and regenerate tissue. Plus it'll help you feel stronger and more energised.

Also found in: seafood, eggs, nuts, dairy and beans

CITRUS FRUITS
for: Vitamin C
Ah, our trusty friend, Vitamin C. He's always there when we're feeling under the weather (which makes sense because he's great at protecting cells and keeping them healthy). In this instance, Vitamin C also helps heal up wounds and repair collagen. There's also speculation that Vitamin C can minimise the chance of over sensitising your nerves, so that's a pro.

Also found in: peppers, strawberries, blackcurrants, broccoli, brussels sprouts and potatoes

SEAFOOD
for: Zinc
Zinc is yet another speedy healer of wounds, but it is also well-known for helping to make new cells and enzymes. Not only that, but it helps us process and break down carbohydrates, fats and proteins in food which is, you know, pretty helpful.

Also found in: meat, cheese, bread and wheat germ

SWEET POTATOES
for: Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a mighty chap; just a small dose of Vitamin A enables your body to keep your immune system in tip-top condition so it can continue to fight against infections (always a worry after surgery). However, any Vitamin A not needed for immediate use is stored away by your body for the future, so you don't need it every day. Nifty!

Also found in: dairy, eggs, oily fish and leafy vegetables

WHOLE GRAINS
for: Fibre
I hope it's fairly self explanatory why fibre is a pretty important part of this list; basically so your body keeps working like it should and allows you to feel totally cool and chill. Getting fibre from high-carb foods will also help increase your energy levels.

Also found in: fruits, vegetables, beans, bread and porridge

YOGURT
for: Probiotics
Anaesthetics, antibiotics, and painkillers are notorious for messing you up and can deplete your supply of good bacteria. Therefore, eating foods high in probiotics will help keep your gut healthy and well balanced, as well as replenishing any 'friendly' bacteria lost.

Also found in: fermented foods and dairy

WATER
for: Hydration
It's so important to keep your fluid levels up. Personally I don't love water, but I know that it's the surefire way to prevent nausea, fatigue, and just not feeling all that peachy. As well as the fact that getting your eight glasses of H2O promotes healing, it also helps your body absorb medications and metabolise vitamins and nutrients.

Turns out you really are what you eat...
~ Eleanor xo

The London Coffee Festival 2016

Or as I decided to call it, "The Glastonbury of coffee". Seriously, who knew so many people digged coffee enough to visit a festival dedicated to it? Not me, that's for sure. We actually had to queue around the block before we were allowed inside and it became evident pretty quickly that we'd need to have our elbows at the ready.

The festival itself was held inside The Old Truman Brewery on Brick Lane (which explains why we were surrounded by so many obnoxious hipsters the whole time). 

The choice of venue was great; I really liked that the organisers had clearly thought about the kind of vibe they wanted, using both floors, splitting the stands into themed sections, letting live music play out and really using the space and style the rooms offered. 

The one downside was that the place was absolutely heaving and with limited space, it was difficult at times to actually a) move anywhere and b) get close enough to a stand to try out products or chat with the event staff.

There was a whole variety of stands to be seen; coffee from various parts of the globe (some of it doing good for humanity at the same time), monstrous coffee machines at eye-watering prices, dairy substitutes, coffee syrups, espresso martinis, hot chocolate (Hotel Chocolat officially owns my heart), old school roasteries, frozen yogurt, flavoured waters, baked goods (just look at those cakes!), juices, even a section for tea! As well as a whole load more *phew*.

Although I had a great time at the Monin counter, having a lengthy chat with the guys at the stand about my love of syrups and getting recommendations on which to try out next (and where to get the one-litre bottles at a discount), it was actually the vast array of dairy substitutes on offer that really took my interest. 

I really enjoyed trying out different types of almond milk (the one I tried from The Pressery has to be my favourite), coconut milk (the latte from the Alpro counter was all kinds of amazing) and a bunch of others that I wouldn't have even considered ordinarily. 

At the risk of sounding like a pompous a-hole, using 'milk' from nuts really does add something extra to your coffee. Especially when it's a creamy coconut flavour.

Although the tickets give you a four hour slot, it took about an hour or so for us to see what we wanted and to take it all in. The festival itself was a fun experience, and something a little different, though I now have a humongously burnt tongue from sampling all the steaming hot coffee. Booo.
~ Eleanor xo

The Old Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane, London, E1 6QL

Lemon Drizzle Slices

 A mash-up between this recipe from Lakeland (basically only created to try and flog you their mini rectangular loaf tin) and this recipe from Mary Berry (who is too fabulous for words).

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I love lemon drizzle cake. If I'm out somewhere and that's an option on the menu, it's a no brainer. I am all over it. With a capital all. I love the light sponginess paired with the sharp citrus taste; it's such a perfect mix (and goes great with a cappuccino). So I went a-googling to see if I could find a relatively straight forward recipe. I found a couple that sounded doable but I don't like to bake huge portions (because wasting home-baked goods physically hurts my soul) so I kept searching until I found one, or in this case two, I felt confident in.

The reason this is a recipe mash-up is because the baking utensils vary slightly (there was no way I was rushing out to Lakeland to buy a mini loaf tin set), so I used Mary Berry's expert advice to bake this as one complete cake in a traybake tin. Sure, I could've used Mary's recipe in its entirety but I liked that the Lakeland version included ground almonds as I feel like they add an extra little summin-summin.

Prep time: Around 30 mins | Cooking time: 35 mins | Makes: 10 slices

INGREDIENTS:

• 200g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra to grease
• 175g golden caster sugar
• 2 unwaxed lemons
• 3 medium eggs
• 200g plain flour
• 2 tsps baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 50g ground almonds
• 2 tbsp milk

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4. Lightly grease a tin of 30cm x 23cm x 4cm and line with baking parchment.
2. Cream the butter and caster sugar together until pale, light and fluffy.
3. Grate the zest from the lemons (reserving a small amount to decorate), and add the rest to the mixture. Beat the eggs and gradually add to the mixture - stirring well each time.
4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Using a large metal spoon, fold into the cake mixture, then fold in the ground almonds. Then add the milk and the juice from one lemon and mix until smooth.
5. Pour the mixture into the tin and use a spatula to smooth out the top.
6. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the middle of the the cake comes out clean. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 5 minutes then ease out onto a wire rack and leave until completely cool.
7. Once cooled, sprinkle remaining lemon zest over the top of the cake and cut into even slices.

~ Eleanor xo

The Working Gal's Honest Food Diary

Welcome to the working girl's honest food diary. I kept a food diary for the whole of the last week (you can tell I didn't plan this in advance because it was the week of both pancake day AND valentine's day so let's not judge too harshly...)

I feel like there are so many healthy food blogs out there where they encourage you to recreate recipes using healthy ingredients (but what they don't tell you is that coconut oil costs £8 per pot and where the eff am I supposed to find almond flour????) that they seem to forget that most average working women simply don't have the time to be healthy twenty-four seven. So you know what, this is me kicking all those health guru's in the face and proudly telling the world that a couple of weeks ago I woke up with a Ferraro Roche sticker stuck to my face.

I'm owning it. Here's how a real working girl eats:

MONDAY

a full work day

• 7:05am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and blueberries
• 8:15am Douwe Egberts with skimmed milk and vanilla syrup in a to-go cup. I'm so super fancy that I drink this in my car
• 12:30pm A banana 
• 1:35pm Homemade sourdough bread sandwich with a filling of what can only be described as plastic ham
• 2pm 500ml water
• 2:30pm Grande skinny peppermint latte from the mothership (AKA Starbucks)
• 4:30pm 3x Kallo blueberry and vanilla rice cakes. First time trying them and I'm feeling undecided.
• 7:00pm A jacket potato with cheddar cheese, slices of chorizo and tomatoes 
• 7:30pm Some grapes
• 8:45pm My last Christmas Ferraro Roche 

TUESDAY

a full work day + Pancake Day

• 7:05am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and overripe blueberries 
• 8:10am Drops about a quarter of to-go cup coffee on the floor. Drinks what remains.
• 10:15am 500ml water + pain relief tablet 
• 12:35pm A banana 
• 1:45pm Sandwich of homemade sourdough bread and Marmite because yesterday's plastic ham wasn't very joyous and Marmite is my soul mate 
• 2pm 500ml water
• 4pm 3x Kallo blueberry and vanilla rice cakes. Why must they be purple and yellow?
• 7:10pm Homemade cottage pie made with buffalo mince and green beans
• 8pm 2x Sainsbury's ready made pancakes plus a huge scooping of Nutella

WEDNESDAY

a full work day feat business trip

• 7:05am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and about 3 blueberries because I suck at portion size 
• 11am A much needed frothy latte. Headache is cured
• 2:15pm Mozzarella, pesto and tomato baguette from 'Tossed' at a service station on the M40
• 2:15pm 500ml sparkling water
• 4:30pm A banana
• 7:45pm Spanish style chicken, homemade ratatouille and roast potatoes
• 8:30pm Some grapes

THURSDAY

a full work day

• 7:05am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk (blueberries have run out by this point in the week)
• 8:20am Coffee that after yesterday's caffeine withdrawal headache is consumed with gusto
• 10:40am 500ml water 
• 12:50pm A banana
• 1:45pm Waitrose tiger bread with plastic ham. That's right, we're back on the plastic ham
• 2:45pm Grande pistachio and rose mocha from Starbucks that was frankly vile
• 3:15pm 500ml water
• 7:10pm 1x Kallo blueberry and vanilla rice cake because desperate times 
• 8pm Chicken pie and tomatoes because tomatoes are life

FRIDAY

a half work, half vegetating day

• 7:05am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and blueberries from a new punnet that aren't yet overly ripe
• 8:15am Coffee consumed while sat in standstill traffic
• 12:25pm A banana
• 2:45pm Fresh carrot & coriander soup with Sainsbury's giraffe bread
• 4:20pm Coffee with Monin blackberry syrup mmm yeah
• 4:30pm Gingerbread heart
• 7pm Lasagna with two slices of garlic ciabatta bread (self control at its finest)

SATURDAY

weekend, duh

• 9:30am First cup of coffee (consumed in a bubble bath while catching up on Real Housewives)
• 10:30am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and blueberries that've somehow over-rippened overnight #life
• 11am Second cup of coffee. What a luxury it is to drink it at leisure out of a mug
• 2:30pm Remaining half of carrot & coriander soup with not-so-fresh giraffe bread (that's code for: really sort of stale)
• 4:30pm Four squares of Lindt chocolate. Feel massively sick afterwards. Self loathing ensues.
• 7:15pm Jacket potato with tuna mayonnaise and tomatoes because if it wasn't already obvious, tomatoes are everything

SUNDAY

Valentine's day

• 8:30am Coffee (consumed while watching K.C Undercover on Disney Channel. Zendaya is life)
• 9:45am Bitesize Honey Nut Shredded Wheat with skimmed milk and blueberries that mostly seem a good ripeness
• 1:45pm Roast beef with roast potatoes, veggies and yorkshire puddings *drools*
• 4pm 2x Stroopwafels that I may've given as a valentine's gift
• 6:30pm Homemade waffle, vanilla ice cream and hazelnut syrup coffee because that's what St Valentine would've wanted

As you can tell, the state of a blueberry can really make or break a day. If you're encountering the same over-ripening issue, stay strong, it'll be ok.

~ Eleanor xo

Shortbread Snowflakes

Festive baking, in my opinion, is the one. Arguably, also a huge marketing ploy set up by supermarkets around the world, but how exactly is one supposed to resist seasonally themed (and downright adorable) baking instruments? "Well of course I need a mitten shaped biscuit cutter", I tell myself feebly. Every year, it's the same vicious circle.

Still, when you do give in and purchase said mitten shaped biscuit cutter, whatever can you use it for? Well, how about some super easy and super tasty shortbread?! I should be an infomercial narrator. While these aren't mitten shaped (that's Waitrose fault), they are crumbly, semi-seasonal (holla mixed berries) and crazy easy to make. Plus, research suggests* that snowflake shaped treats are good for the soul. *no it doesn't.

Prep time: Under 30 mins | Cooking time: 20 mins | Makes: 15-20 snowflakes

INGREDIENTS:

• 125g unsalted butter (softened)
• 55g golden caster sugar, plus extra to finish
• 180g plain flour
• 100g berry mix

METHOD:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5 and line a baking tray (or two) with greaseproof paper. 
2. Beat the butter and the sugar together in a mixing bowl until smooth. 
3. Stir in the flour until you get a smooth paste. Scatter as many dried mixed berries as you fancy into the mixture and use your hands to work the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling film and let it chill in the fridge for about twenty minutes.
4. Cover the surface and rolling pin in an appropriate amount of flour, remove the cling film and roll out the dough until it's about 1cm thick (don't worry that it's super crumbly, just bare with). Use your chosen cutter to cut out the biscuits and place them on the baking tray. Repeat process until all the dough is used. Or you run out of room.
5. Sprinkle a small amount of golden caster sugar over the top of each snowflake and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. Shimmy across to a wire rack to cool.
6. Devour.

Afternoon tea, anyone?
~ Eleanor xo

Blackberry Compote

I know what you're thinking, "Eleanor, you're twenty-one, at the height of your youth, what are you doing making compote?" Well, I'll tell you what, my amigos. After learning how crazy expensive blackberries are during my perilous years as a student, I was adamant I wouldn't let our homegrown blackberries go to waste.

I wasn't exactly sure how to go about making a compote, so obviously, I did what any twenty-first century native does, I googled it. Only, I couldn't find a recipe I was 100% sure about, so then I did what any new baker does, and decided to wing it. By combining the ingredients and methods of a few recipes, I became a self-proclaimed compote extraordinaire.

All you'll need are these four snazzy ingredients, some kind of food processor (or a smoothie maker) and about fifteen minutes.

Ingredients:

200g Blackberries

33g Caster Sugar

2tbsp Lemon juice (or, if you're feeling fancy, you can use a fresh lemon)

A pinch of cinnamon (honestly just a pinch) ~ optional
*These measurements can be altered to your taste

Method:

1. Wash and chop your blackberries in half (or at least, into smaller pieces)

2. Measure and combine caster sugar, lemon juice and cinammon

3. Pour all ingredients into a food processor (or in my case, a smoothie maker) and whizz up until smooth

4. Serve straight away or store in a jar in your fridge

Make sure you use your compote within two days, or freeze it ready to enjoy at a later date!

Now, I'm off to buy some ice cream so I can enjoy my new found skill.
~ Eleanor xo

Champagne Afternoon Tea | The Aviator Hotel, Farnborough

First of all, do not eat for at least four days before you indulge in this afternoon tea. Sure, it may not look like much in the photos (my family and I all fell into that trap too) but oh my word will you waddle out of the building thanking all kinds of Gods that you wore a skirt with an elastic waist. But of course, even when you start to feel yourself getting a bit full (midway through scone number two) you simply can't stop.

We spent a little over two hours in the hotel's Sky Bar; chatting, eating, drinking, lounging, eating, eating and yes, eating some more. They make you feel totally at home in the hotel; when you arrive, you are invited to relax and get comfortable while they fetch the perfectly chilled (and totally legit) Champagne which they then pour into your glass like a total pro. Everything runs seamlessly; after the champagne, the host then returns to offer you hot beverages and gives detailed explanations of the vast variety of the Jing loose leaf tea on offer. Once you place your order (I went for Darjeeling) you are given your own cafetiere full of your chosen tea that you can drink at your own leisure. And then, and then, the cake stand arrives. Lord have mercy on my waistline.

For each person in the party, the 'starter pack' includes: four finger sandwiches, two scones, three cakes, one macaroon and one panna cotta. Absolutely everything, right down to the jam and clotted cream for your scones, is made by hand at the hotel just for you. I say 'starter pack' because as it turns out, you can order extra of anything you like and they'll (freshly make) and supply it for you. I have no shame in admitting we ordered extra sandwiches because they were so unbelievably tasty. Who knew cucumber, cream cheese and mint would be so good?!

An afternoon tea was the perfect way to round off a birthday (the chef's even surprised me with a plate of chocolate truffles!) and I would absolutely recommend choosing The Aviator for pretty much any occasion.

~ Eleanor xo

Address: The Aviator Hotel, 55 Farnborough Road, Farnborough, Hampshire, GU14 6EL