Challenge #1 - The Affair

The affair I have been having with food & drink over the past five years has been growing more intense and I am tempted more and more to leave my financially stable, good on paper career for the fruits of my desire: a career in food.

What that is exactly I have yet to discover... but I am hoping to narrow the list of possibilities down over the next 12-24 months.

One of the things I struggle with the most with food is the battle between comfort food and healthy food. Nothing pleases me more than tucking into a steaming bowl of pasta, serving up a cheese and fruit platter or devouring a bowl of homemade ice cream. Who am I kidding - a batch of ice cream is lucky to last 5 days in my house!

But, I also like to take care of myself. I train hard at the gym and feel so much better when I don't consume wheat, large amounts of dairy or sugar. I thrive on protein packed breakfasts, fresh salads, veggies and of course plenty of water!

The challenge is coming up with meals that allow me to eat the way I should but taste like something far more deviant.

Being organized and doing as much preparation as possible for the week ahead on Sunday makes a huge difference for me in making sure I don't binge on the wrong foods. This week I am trying a salad of poached chicken, apricot & chickpeas from one of my favourite cooks, Jill Dupliex, for lunch. Jill always inspires me with her use of punchy flavours that never produce a boring meal and always leave you feeling satisfied.

I have always been a fan of Asian food. The balance between salty, spicy and sweet appeals to my taste buds immensely, as do the mix of textures. The dinner I am most looking forward to trying this week is a Thai lamb salad loaded with mint, coriander and chilli.

And as my treat, a tub of connoisseur blueberry crumble ice cream. Lets see if it makes it to Friday!

Tonight's dinner: gourmet steak sandwiches - thyme, chilli & garlic eye fillet with rocket, slow roasted tomatoes, onion jam, aioli, bocconcini and parmesan.