What busylittlefoodie is all about: Interview with Westmeath Examiner

I was delighted to come back from holidays to find that a recent interview I did with Olga Aughey, the Entertainment Editor from the Westmeath Examiner, was published.

Olga and I used to work together in another paper years ago. She's a fantastic journalist and follows my blog. In August, she asked me to do an interview about the blog and my motivation behind it. I was amazed since it still hasn't dawned on me that my little food blog interests people. I am beyond thankful for the support from friends and family in writing this food blog and for my new followers.

Here's hoping those who read the article are encouraged to have a look at BusyLittleFoodie now.
I wasn't able to get the interview link so here is the interview in full, with a photo to prove (to myself more than anyone else, that I had something written about my blog in an actual newspaper). Incredibly happy!

Thanks for reading. Never fear. Now that I'm back from my sojourn, I'm working on new recipes for those toasty cold autumn and winter days. Recipe up very soon!

- What age are you, where are you living, and what do you do in your day job?

I'm 28, living in Terenure in a little cottage since the beginning of the summer. By day, I teach English as a foreign language to adults from all over the world; Spain, South Korea, Brazil, Japan, Russia and so many more places I'm probably forgetting.

- What (and when?) made you decide to start your blog in the first place?

I'm obsessed with food. I always have been. I love the colors, textures, tastes and creativity that is inherent in growing and cooking good food. My family are all great cooks and it was always important growing up to know how to cook good food. About four years ago when I first moved to New Zealand, friends started telling me about this great food blog run by Emma Galloway from the town I lived in who had recently relocated to Perth, Australia. Her blog, with its love for food, photography, no nonsense passion for the kitchen and the garden and honest writing really inspired me.

For years after, I toyed with the idea of writing my own but was far too self-conscious and doubting in my abilities as a cook, photographer and writer. A year and a half ago, I was at the peak of my struggle with depression and anxiety disorder, which I had suffered from since I was a young teenager, and was fed up with a lack of lust for life. I realized that growing and cooking colorful food and writing about my experiences had a profoundly positive effect on my depressive state and so decided in the Spring of 2013 to combine them all together and set up busylittlefoodie, my little blog.

- Tell us a little bit about its contents, photos, recipes, etc. 

My blog is focused on three concepts: easy recipes, colorful and uplifting photographs I am proud of and writings about what is going on in my life at the time of the particular blog post. I studied philosophy in college because I was always pondering our day to day. I think my writing reflects that. At times it can be serious, others can be very giddy but generally it is always related to wondering about where I am in life and what that all means. 

As for the food, I take my inspiration from what is in season and what is fresh, healthy and colorful. I'm a huge fan of farmer's markets, particularly Dennis Healy's stall and Mc Nally's family farm stall in Temple Bar. I grow my own food in containers in the back and forage when I can. My inspiration also comes from my food needs at the time or as a result of friends asking me how to make something or cook a particular ingredient. My friends, especially at work, really inspire me to cook.

- You also talk quite a bit about your own personal life in your blog - is it hard to do this or do you find it liberating? 

It is incredibly difficult to write about myself and there are many times I question myself about why I am writing something so personal to share online when I could be focusing solely on recipes. Each time I feel that way though, I have to remember why I started the blog and how beneficial it has been for me to write about personal aspects of my life. 

I find writing incredibly liberating. There is a great freedom associated with getting the thoughts out there and making sense of them in a creative way. Sometimes I think of no longer writing about the personal side but my blog is part of who I am. I really am not a yoga guru, super positive vegan who sees positivity in every bowl of raw salad. I would be lying if I pretended to be someone that I think fits the mold of a healthy food blogger. I would be lying if I didn't connect the food I write about with the feelings I had when I came up with the idea for the recipe in the first place. 

- Do you have much interaction with your readers?

That has been the most remarkable aspect of starting this blog. When I decided to write it, I made the decision based on the idea that it would make me happy to complete a post and send it out there. If people read it or even followed the blog, that would be a bonus and if it helped someone to read my writing or make my recipes, that would be the cherry on the icing on the cake.

In the last few months, more people have shared my posts and commented on them. The interaction has been nothing but positive. Even better, I've had equally positive and considerate comments on my writing, recipes and photography. It's been fantastically humbling and uplifting.

- And where do you get your inspiration from?

There are some incredible food blogs out there. For certain, MyDarlingLemonThyme has been the most inspiring blog. MyNewRoots is a close second. Cookbooks from the seventies when there was a craze for Grow Your Own make me smile. Restaurants that use local, seasonal ingredients like Cornucopia in Dublin, Ard Bia in Galway and Denis Cotter's Cafe Paradiso in Cork are my heroes. My Mam and Dad for their love of cooking all through the years and as cheesy as it sounds, nature and gardening and seeing a dormant seed grow into a beautiful herb/plant/fruit/vegetable really inspires me.

- You've also been nominated for the blog awards - congratulations! What does that entail and what would it mean to you if you won?

Thanks so much! A friend of mine has a brilliant music blog called Soundblob. We agreed to nominate each other for the blog awards to support each other. Some friends heard about it and showed their support by voting and then lots of other friends voted too. I was lucky enough to be nominated for Best Food Blog and recently found out that I am in the running for the Best Blog Post award too. The Food Blog award will be judged by a panel of judges in a few weeks and the Best Blog Post is currently open to a public vote for the next few weeks. If people want to vote, they can go online here: http://www.blogawardsireland.com/best-blog-post-2014/

It would meant the world to me if I won since it was amazing and humbling just to be nominated. To be awarded Best Food Blog would be incredible since there is stiff competition. Having my blog post win the Best Blog Post would be a dream come true. Out of all the posts I've written, it's the one I am most proud of. It's a post from when I was in New Zealand earlier in the year and is very sentimental to me.

- Is there any chance you would bring out a book based on your blog?

MyDarlingLemonThyme blog recently got turned into a stunningly beautiful book. MyNewRoots's book is also on the brink of being placed on the shelves. There is a chance for all bloggers to get a book deal out of their blog but it is also the dream because it is so rare to get that amazing opportunity. If I'm honest with myself, I would be over the moon if it happened in the future. In the meantime, I plan on focusing on the next post.

Soothing seas and Kale herb couscous

Everytime I go to the sea, I feel alive again. The salty air, the repetition of the waves, whether ripples or torrents of white wash bashing the shore, soothe me. Everything is ok again once I'm near the sea. For someone who grew up in the midlands, this has always seemed strange. I could never explain it. No one really understood. While the term sea-sick usually means getting ill, for me, it was similar to homesickness; if too long a time period had gone by without a visit to the sea, to breathe in the refreshing gusts of air or to immerse myself completely in its magical waters, I would become seasick.

The feeling has never left. When I took up surfing, it was the ultimate sea experience. Usually during summertime, going to the sea on holidays was liberating relaxation of momentous proportions. I would dive under, swim, stall, float on my back and drift around. Complete freedom. Bliss. Surfing brought a new element to my life, a new connection to the water. Surfing made me realize just how much my depressed mind needed to be calmed. When you dive headfirst with your board in tow, every worry, doubt, fear, anxiety and stress is instantly washed away. When I finish each surf, whether I caught any waves or not, I feel renewed and light.

In Dublin, there is no surf but there is the sea and it's close by. Sometimes, I forget that fact but in light of renewed focus on healthy habits and nourishment of the soul, I cycled out there today. I was instantly reminded of when I first moved to Dublin and became overwhelmed and a loving manfriend calmly brought me out there to remind me that the sea was in Dublin. He lovingly reminded me that all I needed to do was stick my feet in the sand and breath. It was a gusty, temperamental  sort of afternoon, whipping wind all around. As soon as I got there, though, I realized just how essential it is when you're feeling blue or low on energy to get outside, switch off the phones and interact with the real world around us.

Toes in the sand. People, bird, wave and dog watching, all in the shadow of the Ringsend chimneys and the busy city not so far away. Leaving, I felt hungry and calm, like my mind had been shook up and all the useless thoughts and worries were carried out to sea and dispersed in the salty wind.

When you feel yourself getting caught up in your head and there's a worry that the sinking thinking is about to start, detach from the mechanics of your busy life and head outside. Whether you've got a sea, a park, a garden or a stream, get out there and breathe.

Hungry and eager to make something quick and tasty, I came up with this delicious Kale couscous.
Using Dennis Healy's black kale from Wicklow, some couscous from the press and a few other easy ingredients, I cooked up this in a record 10 minutes. It's tasty, warming and bursting full of greens, the mood booster. Leafy greens contain folate, an essential nutrient which helps develop neurotransmitters that balance your mood. The queen of greens has a bad reputation as not being tasty. I'm hoping this recipe will change your mind.

Feeds 2 for dinner or if you are like Me, Myself and I, dinner and lunch for the following day.

Ingredients:
One bunch of kale: approx. 10 leaves
2 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons of coconut oil
1/4 can chickpeas
2 Tbs mixed pumpkin and sunflower seeds
salt and pepper
1 handful of mixed fresh herbs (I used mint and parsley from the garden)

1/2 cup of couscous
1 cup of boiling water/boiling veggie stock

2 Tbs apple cider vinegard
2 Tbs soy sauce

Soaked sprouts (optional)

Method:
Measure your couscous into a bowl and pour boiling water/stock over. Cover bowl with lid/plate and let sit for 10 minutes to absorb.
In a frying pan, add thinly sliced garlic and fry until softened (2-3 mins). Cut off the stalk parts of each of the leaves and slice thinly. Fry with the garlic, seeds and chickpeas. Season with salt and pepper and fry until chickpeas get toasty and seeds are browned. Slice the kale leaves into thick strips and quickly fry with the rest of the ingredients in the pan.

Chop herbs finely and stir through the couscous then stir the frying pan ingredients through. Dress with the vinegar and soy sauce and mix thoroughly. Serve with soaked sprouts if you like.
Enjoy!

Happy Sunday X