fat and thin arguments: Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

In a book so interesting, the things which don't convince me do seem so particularly unconvincing that it does detract from the very fascinating parts which could well convince me.

Raw meat eating in our modern industrialised society seems risky in the extreme. Fallon does seem to argue that veges should be cooked more and so then to suggest we eat raw meat is rather counter intuitive to me.

She doesn't like pressure cookers because she thinks they cook food too fast. 'Thinks' being the operative word because she doesn't pull out any research to back that one up. I am in empathy with her on the anti-microwave front though.

She talks a lot about fat. Animal fat from traditionally pastured animals is top of her list, and olive oil is okay also. She is also an enthusiast for coconut oil, which I'll be prepared to consider. I do like coconut cream in a curry but coconut products seem to exacerbate Fionn's eczema. Hence why we don't use those "natural" washing powders, which always seem to use coconut products.

I am happy with using butter. It is an appropriate use of local food. We have lots of dairy farms near us. Shame we can't actually buy locally but have to pay for loads of fossil fuel as it is tanked around the country. I'm not obsessed with size, though many much more slender people than me find cause for concern. My weight is stable and doesn't stop me from doing anything (years ago I started gaining weight quite fast when I gave up biking and had access to a car and the rapid weight gain aspect was scary as I could see it could stop me from doing things). I think my family need feeding up when I look at them, not slimming down. She talks about eating fat and losing fat but I'm not much into that line of thinking. Whoever said "eat food. Mostly plants" is right on the money in my view. Obesity is a weird wealthy world problem and I can't get my head around how we spend so much money trying to lose weight while the rest of the world literally, through no fault of their own, starves.

The main problem with butter in my view is that it is rapidly becoming mega expensive. Whereas petrol is clearly going to rise and rise and rise, I'm less worried in the longer term about dairy products as I predict dairy prices will crash when Chinese dairy farms come on stream.

Olive oil I'm happy with also. Yummy stuff in the right place. 'Tis from a long way away though. Post peak oil life may not have so much olive oil in my family's diet, but I'm prepared to keep on using and enjoying it now. After I read Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma, I swore off margarines and unnamed vegetable oils.

Sally Fallon also talks about grains and digestibility. I am going to have a go at sprouting grains and maybe at making kefir and her fancy titled yoghurt which I forget the name of right now. But I did note her claim that potatoes appear to be the most easily digested carbohydrate. Excellent as I can grow them easily right here in my own backyard.

It's all looking rather like we're back to meat, spuds and veg to me. Or stew, spuds and sauerkraut anyway.

Rooster killing has been delayed until next month. Seven roosters then! We best start eating the freezer, as we'll need the space. I bought a free range bird for the price of a good bottle of wine this week and the stock from it has hardly gelled. Won't be a problem in that respect with Rayleen's local, free range over paddocks roosters. They make truly fantastic stock. I'm thinking I might have a go at cutting the meat of the bones and making stock with raw bones this time. Heads, feet, the lot.

Bought some more shallots to plant this afternoon. I read recently that I should have planted them with their necks sticking out of the ground. I think I planted mine much deeper than that. Time will tell what survives and prospers.

Food diversity: bok choy tonight in with the other ingredients in the lentil shepherd's pie. I have got some in the garden but it isn't ready to eat yet. This bought stuff was huge compared with mine. I made the lentil shepherd's pie out of the leftovers from last night's puy lentil and bacon bone casserole. I am getting better at appropriate serving size. Finally.