If you try your hardest to avoid “ultra processed foods”….

[ReeseWitherfork]

There’s an article on the BBC website about “ultra processed foods” and it’s got me wondering if I can make some easy swaps on things. I am sure there are some people out there who’ve explored this before. I cook from scratch, eat a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables, but I’m wondering if I need to start looking at things like a bread maker (we’re a fan of a sandwiches my house!)…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-65754290

Tim Spectors new book food for life has a section about oils and he says evoo is better than regular olive oil which is more processed. He recommends cooking with it which surprised me. I've read lots of conflicting advice about smoke points but there is some quite good info in his book about the differences in oils. I read it on kindle so would have to try find that section again I can't remember what he said exactly

@Mummyford I just use the end of a tub of plain yoghurt (love yeo valley). If you add UHT milk it's incredibly easy as you don't have to faff around sterilising.

There was a zoe podcast on healthy oils which recommends extra virgin olive oil for everything including frying. It does have a slightly lower smoke point than other oils but not much and it has so many polyphenols in it that even after frying it's better than many other oils, particularly if you're only heating it once. The podcast is pretty critical of avocado and rapeseed oil too. So unless you're heating the same oil repeatedly for deep frying EVOO is your best bet. I find buying it in 5l cans works out cheapest particularly if you shop around. https://joinzoe.com/learn/podcast-cooking-oils

Thank you to everyone who's responded about EVOO.
In case anyone's interested I think Aldi/Lidl do the cheapest EVOO.
So annoying because the whole family loves falafel. I guess if I use the cold pressed rapeseed (or EVOO?! gah) and cook a huge batch in one go without cooling or re-heating and then chuck the oil at the end that would be the healthiest.

Grea thanks for that! Do you have any recipes you use for healthily homemade snacks? I do a no sugar banana bread which they like but I feel like I want to switch it up a bit!

I always bake falafel. It's not quite as crispy obviously but I think it's a good substitute (mainly cos I'm scared of frying anything!)

If you want to reuse fat for frying I think ghee is safe for that, though I haven’t looked deeply into it.

I mostly bake shortbread as it’s quick and well liked.
It’s very basic - butter, sugar, flour (50:50 regular and cornflour).

Thanks @UnaOfStormhold and others for the yoghurt suggestions. I already eat Greek yoghurt myself so will try it with a bit of fruit and honey for the kids and see if they go for it.

I'm definitely going to have a go at shortbread now, my go to sweet treat is flapjacks. I use this recipe but halve the sugar and add dried fruit it's still very sweet. Sometimes I cut the syrup too and use a bit of jam instead.

www.food.com/recipe/chewy-english-flapjack-147286

Any homemade cake or sweet thing works though, red velvet cupcakes are also v popular here, and chocolate cakes too. I don't stress over calories or sweetness when it's homemade.

I know EVOO is best, but the flavour is so intense, I can't eat mayo made with it (i use a small glug but mainly the Filipo Berio mild and light OO). I figure its still better than shop bought with sugar, stabilisers etc.

We listened to a program on Radio 5 about food processing. The expert described all the processes one of the seed oils goes through - and there quite a few. He said at the end of it, what we have is a chemical not a food; and we put it into ourselves, when we have no idea what it does to us!

To add to the EVOO discussion, it’s also one of the most counterfeited foods in the world. Depending on which report you read up to 70% of what you get on the supermarket shelves isn’t EVOO! It’s either lower quality olive oil or blended cheaper seed oils.

Thanks @7Worfs - I’m vegan, to make things even more complicated!

@Porridgeislife 😮😮

I put my yoghurt in a coffee cup when I have run out of bowls, it might appeal to children to have yoghurt in a cup or a glass or even a clean jam jar.

A bit of a warning about short bread.

In my house it is known as crack because I made some for my carer. And every time he went into the kitchen or walked past he ate a piece.

I sometimes threaten him with, "I'll make shortbread"

Also you can roll it out and use cookie cutters but I tend to roll it into a along sausage, then cut into chunk which I flatten on tot he baking tray with a fork.

I have an olive tree in my garden, every year it tries to produce olives and every year it is a bit more successful so I'm looking in to making my own oil.

I know I won't make enough to sustain my cooking but if you have a really sunny spot in your garden, the type that kills off anything you plant then an olive tree is perfect.

I also have a pear tree and the pears are quite ugly but really sweet, but they all become ripe at the same time. This year I've asked my local community shop if they will accept them because I get so many.

You need a lot of olives to make oil. As a family we are lucky to have our own olive groves & they are harvested annually for us to have our oil.

Gluten free also as it affects my RA. I don’t have bread very often, certainly not enough to make my own. Any good recommendations welcome!

I used to be vegan then vegetarian but became very unwell, so it’s not hard for me to make the switch again, but with the occasional fish/meat thrown in. I’d never be completely vegetarian again as I don’t think it’s healthy for me.

I know I might only get one salad dressing out of it.

Do you have any tips for making a small amount?

I’ll ask my mum if she knows!

We have a harvester (?) machine that my cousin also uses - his payment in kind for harvesting our oil! Then it goes to the pressing place in the village.

It’s Cypriot olive oil so not as good as some others probably but it’s EVOO & its from our own olive groves.

Friends are always amazed when I take out my container to top up my everyday dressing oil. I use for cooking as well (except roast potatoes) as that’s how I’ve been brought up.

@7Worfs @InTheMoonglow’s experience and input is perfectly valid in the context of this thread. Plenty of people end up suffering from eating disorders who don’t have addictive personalities or lack a sense of proportion. Just look at the diet industry, there are plenty of people who have followed mainstream diet programmes and end up losing the ability to eat sensibly outside of the regime.
You may be fine, but there are likely to be other people on this thread who might be more susceptible.
At least the term ”clean” in relation to food is being used less these days.

Making small sustainable changes is a really great approach.

Agree on shortbread. Even shop bought shortbread can be the same re ingredients if you get a good one. It is easy to make (I made it a lot as a child) and delicious.

Does anyone know about whether golden syrup is acceptable (in the same way that sugar is). I would be using it to bake flapjacks - honey would be better, but I have a child who really does not like the taste. Thank you!

@Raggletagglegypsy - I can’t say really but would just point out that one ingredient in homemade flapjacks that may potentially be ultra processed isn’t the end of the world. We shouldn’t get too caught up in being ‘perfect’ - that way madness lies.

Isn’t golden syrup just sugar, water and citric acid? If so, it’s just a processed food, not UPF.

I’ve just ordered some of the yeast that pp recommended to make my own bread without the nasties but have noticed white strong bread flour has Calcium Carbonate and Flour Treatment Agents: Alpha-Amylase, Hemicellulase in it. Wth is that?
Should I stick to Wholemeal bread flour which just has wholemeal flour as the only ingredient? If so, has anyone got a decent 100% Wholemeal bread maker recipe as I know you usually use white flour as well. 😩 help, it’s a bloody minefield.

Sorry, I’d missed this post. It’s a really valuable contribution to the conversation. Thanks for sharing.

As @Banoffeepie21 says… small sustainable changes.

Also like this from @Peridot1 ”We shouldn’t get too caught up in being ‘perfect’ - that way madness lies.”

I agree that @InTheMoonglow's post is very sensible. Banning UPFs from your diet to the extent that you become obsessive and develop disordered eating habits is in no way 'healthier' than having a moderate approach to it. Eating well is about so much more than just the actual food you eat.