Comfort food to help my mood

Sometimes all I want for supper is a big comforting bowl of pasta, so I thought I’d work out a recipe that followed the advice on food and mood. I remembered a dish I used to have with my housemates years ago – smoked salmon and crème fraiche pasta. The smoked salmon contains omega-3, of course, and you can use smoked salmon trimmings which are cheaper than the slices.

To keep my blood sugar level steady, I switched the normal pasta for wholegrain spaghetti and added peas for some extra protein. Then I threw in some mushrooms which the mental health charity, Mind, says have high levels of potassium “which is essential for your whole nervous system, including your brain”. This is the result, comfort food which may genuinely help my mood.

Smoked salmon pasta with mushrooms and peas (serves 1)

Ingredients:

60g whole wheat pasta

A handful of mushrooms (about 120g)

Drizzle of cooking oil (olive, rapeseed or sunflower)

A handful frozen peas (about 50g)

50g half-fat crème fraiche

50g smoked salmon trimmings

Squeeze of lemon juice

Method: Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, setting the timer for the minimum cooking time. I set mine for 8 minutes because the cooking time was 8-10 minutes.

Slice the mushrooms and then fry them in a frying pan with a little cooking oil. Once they’re brown on both sides, take the pan off the heat.

When the timer goes off for the pasta, add a handful of peas to the pan, bring back to the boil and simmer for one minute. Drain and then quickly return the spaghetti and peas to the pan. You want some water still clinging to the spaghetti.

Add the creme fraiche to the pan and stir so it makes a sauce with the cooking water. Then add the smoked salmon and mushrooms. Stir together so everything’s mixed together. Squeeze some lemon over the top and eat.

It's possible to make a mess even when cooking a simple pasta dish

Mind fuel: frozen peas and beans

This is a personal take on useful ingredients if you’re trying to eat to help your mood

Why peas and broad beans?

Because they’re pulses. The Mental Health Foundation keeps its guidance on what to eat pretty straight-forward... “Eat fewer high sugar foods and more wholegrain cereals, nuts, beans, lentils, fruit and vegetables."

I’m pretty good at eating most of those things, but not the beans and lentils. I have red lentils and butter beans in the cupboard but they tend to stay there. The difference with frozen peas and broad beans is that I actually use them. Here are three ways to eat them...

Broad bean hummus

If you have frozen broad beans, oil (olive or rapeseed) and a lemon, you can make broad bean hummus. You will also need a hand blender or another food processor. I normally use this Nigel Slater recipe, but I only cook the beans for 4-5 minutes, I don’t take off their skins  and I don't add the dill. You can also make this hummus with frozen peas but it is quite sweet.

Pea or broad bean frittata

Feta works really well with peas and beans. The salty, savoury yet sour flavour of the cheese sets off the delicate sweetness of the vegetables. This frittata is also good cold, so you could save some and eat the leftovers for breakfast the next morning. You can add extra vegetables and fresh herbs to the mix if you like.

Ingredients

2 eggs, 35g feta, 50g frozen peas or broad beans, cooking oil (olive, rapeseed or sunflower)

Method

Put the peas or beans in a heat-proof container and pour over boiling water from the kettle. Leave for 2 to 3 minutes to thaw. Then drain. Crack the eggs into a bowl and crumble the feta on top. Whisk with a fork until well-combined. Turn on the grill to heat up.

Put a frying pan over a medium heat and add the oil. Once it’s hot, pour in the egg mixture. Scatter the peas or beans over the top. Cook for 2-3 minutes until golden brown underneath. Then put the pan under the hot grill until it’s golden brown on top. Eat with toast.

 

Pimping your dinner

I know this is obvious, but frozen peas and beans can be added to a meal almost literally at the last minute. If my dinner’s nearly ready and it is light on veg, I put a handful in with the pasta, rice, or potatoes. Or throw them straight in with the sauce, curry or stew. Bring the pan back to the boil, boil for a minute or two and it’s ready.

Another day's food to help my mood

When you’re struggling with your mental health, just organising three meals a day is hard enough. The idea that they’ll contain a “rainbow” of different coloured fruit and vegetables seems frankly silly. This is my attempt to make it doable. These recipes are packed with multi-coloured fruit and veg, as well as lots of other mind-friendly ingredients: slow-burning carbohydrates, pulses, nuts, seeds (there are sesame seeds in the hummus) and oily fish.

BREAKFAST

Hummus on toast (serves 1)

I know it sounds strange, but I like having hummus on toast for my breakfast. I'm getting pulses, seeds, healthy fats and wholegrains. Plus, chickpeas count as one of your five a day.

Ingredients: 2 slices wholegrain toast, butter or another spread, 1/4 pot of hummus (about 50g)

Method: Make the toast. Spread with butter (or alternative). Spread with hummus. Eat.

LUNCH

Mozzarella with a tomato and green leaf salad (serves 1)

Any combination of cheese, green leaves and tomatoes is good here. But I particularly like mozzarella because it's gloriously gooey and also low in salt. You could add chopped spring onions if you like them.  

Ingredients:
2 slices of wholegrain bread

50-60g Mozzarella (I used half-fat)

A handful of tomatoes

A handful of salad leaves

Half a lemon

Olive oil (or another oil)

Method: Put the toast down. Wash the salad leaves and arrange on a plate. Wash then chop the tomatoes and put them on top. Tear the mozzarella into pieces and add them. Squeeze over some lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and eat with the toast.

SNACKS
If I get hungry, I eat some unsalted nuts.

DINNER

Salmon with carrot and beetroot rice (serves 1)

There are lots of ways to cook salmon, so it’s worth finding the one you like. I like pan-frying, so I can see how well it’s cooking. If you’re not very confident in your rice cooking skills, you can use microwave rice (which can usually be cooked on the hob too).

Ingredients:
50g basmati rice (or brown rice)

1 salmon fillet

Half a carrot

1 cooked beetroot (buy them vacuum-packed from the supermarket)

Half a lemon

Rapeseed oil (or another cooking oil)

1 dollop of yoghurt

Method: Cook the rice according to the packet instructions. It’ll probably take 10-12 minutes. Meanwhile, grate the carrot and cooked beetroot into a bowl. Squeeze over a little lemon juice. Wash your hands so the beetroot doesn't stain them.

Now cook the salmon. Put a frying pan over a medium heat and add the oil. Put a piece of grated carrot or beetroot in the pan and when that starts to sizzle merrily, add the salmon skin side down.

Don’t prod the salmon too much; just keep it sizzling steadily, adjusting the heat if necessary. As the salmon cooks, it will turn light pink. Wait until it’s two-thirds cooked, then turn it over and cook for another minute.

To check whether it’s ready, cut into the flesh with a knife and fork. If the flesh flakes away from the skin, it is cooked. If not, cook for another minute then check again.

When everything’s ready, mix the rice, carrot and beetroot together with a squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of oil. Then put the salmon steak on top and add a dollop of yoghurt.

PUDDING
If you like, have a banana for your pudding.

A day's food to help my mood

I’ve changed my diet recently to help my mental health. It’s made a difference so I thought I would share.

BREAKFAST

Try a different breakfast

I realised that food could make a difference to my mood when I tried having a savoury breakfast. Instead of cereal and milk, I decided to eat something on toast, usually an egg with some cheese. And I noticed that instead of feeling low and hungry mid-morning, I felt full, more alert and less low.

Connect food with mood

I started playing around with different breakfasts. It became obvious that eating sugar (natural or added) had a bad effect on my mood, and that eating wholegrains, protein and vegetables kept me fuller and my mood more stable. I had blundered into the basics of keeping your blood sugar level steady. I also found that eating a bit of fat (cheese, nuts, avocado, hummus, oily fish) helped too.

Egg on toast

It's a classic for a reason. I add some cheese to give me my morning dose of calcium. If you want to add a vegetable, you could slice and fry some mushrooms or spring onions.

Ingredients: 1 egg, 30g cheese, 2 slices wholegrain bread

Method:
Cook the egg anyway you like. Put it on the toast and grate over the cheese.

1 box of eggs + 200g block cheese + 1 loaf wholemeal bread = 6 breakfasts

SNACKS

Don’t get hungry

I had been trying not to snack, because I was trying to lose weight. However, it turned out that getting hungry between meals wasn’t a good idea. The mental health charity, Mind, has a really good guide to food and mood. The first tip is to eat regularly to keep your blood sugar level steady. I started carrying unsalted nuts around with me in my bag and making sure I ate some mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Again, it helped me cope with the day better and feel more level. Tesco and Aldi both do cheap unsalted nuts. When I'm really hungry and a handful of nuts won't be enough, I eat unsalted peanut butter  or tahini on toast. 

LUNCH

Eat wholegrain carbohydrates

I have to admit I used to associate eating wholegrains with being excessively health conscious, however reading more about food and mental health, I discovered that eating wholegrain carbohydrates and other foods with a low glycemic index is a really good idea because they release sugar more slowly into your bloodstream. The Royal College of Psychiatrists has more on this in their guide to eating well. For me at lunchtime, this usually means wholegrain toast.

Get enough protein

Some of the advice surprised me. For example, it’s important to eat enough protein because it contains the building blocks of serotonin, the chemical your brain needs to regulate your thoughts and feelings. Protein also helps stabilise your blood sugar level. Of course, you don’t want to eat too much protein either. I think this lunch gets it about right - some protein and lots of vegetables….

Hummus on wholegrain toast with salad

I’ve never been good at eating pulses. I buy them, and then leave them in the cupboard. So, this is a good lunch for me. I’ve used spinach, tomatoes and red pepper, but any salad is good here. 

Ingredients: 1/3 pot hummus, 1 handful spinach, 5 cherry tomatoes, 1/3 red pepper, lemon juice  or vinegar, olive oil, 2 slices wholemeal bread.

Method: Cut up the tomatoes and red pepper, put them on a plate with the spinach, drizzle over lemon juice and olive oil. Spread the hummus (about 1/3 pot) on two slices of wholemeal bread.

1 pot hummus + 1/2 a 200g bag spinach + 250g cherry tomatoes + 1 red pepper + 1 lemon (or vinegar) + olive oil (+ the loaf you used for breakfast) = 3 lunches

How to stop your salad going slimy: Get a plastic container with a lid or a plastic bag with no holes, line it with a clean j-cloth or kitchen towel, put the spinach leaves inside, put the lid on or tie the top of the bag, put it in the fridge and your spinach should keep for a week.

DRINKS

Just drink loads of water

This is so dull. All the advice says keeping hydrated is important for your mood - that means drinking at least two pints of liquid per day. That was more than I was drinking. I just have to walk around with a water bottle and keep refilling it. To be honest, I don’t think it has had a big effect on my mood, but it has helped my digestion which is a good thing.

DINNER

Eat your greens (and oranges, reds, purples and whites)

When you’re feeling like crap, preparing vegetables doesn’t seem worth it, but it is. I always thought the advice about “eating the rainbow” was just for children who only ate peas. Wrong, it’s good advice for me too. If you're struggling, you really need the vitamins and minerals vegetables give you. I buy most of my fruit and veg fresh, but I like to have mixed berries in the freezer so I get enough purple.

Eat oily fish

This is the one piece of advice I already knew – the omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish (salmon, sardine, anchovy, herring, mackerel) are good for your brain. Mind lists all the  sources of beneficial fats here. I find it easiest to keep salmon in the freezer (Tesco, Aldi and Sainsbury’s all do MSC certified frozen salmon) and tinned sardine and anchovy in the cupboard (Both fish are on the Marine Conservation Society’s ‘fish to eat’ list).

Sardine pasta with tomato and broccoli (serves 1)
Tinned sardine has a lot going for it. It's cheap, sustainable, high in omega-3 and makes a good sauce for pasta. Don't let the smell put you off when you open the tin. Once it's cooked up with garlic, chilli and lemon, it tastes great. 

Ingredients:

50g whole wheat pasta
Half a head of broccoli
A handful of cherry tomatoes
1 dsp olive oil (or another cooking oil)
1 clove garlic
1/2 red chilli or pinch of chilli flakes (optional0
1 tin of sardines
juice of half a lemon

Method
Cook the whole wheat pasta in boiling salted water for one minute less than the minimum cooking time. Mine says 8-10 minutes, so I boil it for 7 minutes.

Meanwhile chop the rest of your ingredients. Cut the garlic and chilli into thin slices. Cut each broccoli floret in half and then chop the stalk thinly. Do whatever you like with the tomatoes.

When the timer goes, add the broccoli to the pasta. Bring back to the boil and simmer for two minutes with the lid off. Use a sharp knife to check the broccoli is soft. Then drain into a sieve.

Get a pan that's big enough to hold the pasta. Add the olive oil and fry the garlic and chilli for a minute. Add the sardines and fry for two or three minutes, chopping them up so they make a sauce.

Then add the pasta, broccoli and tomatoes and stir until everything's combined. Finally, add the lemon juice and a pinch of salt and serve. Don't worry if you're kitchen looks like a bomb site. You can clear it up after you've eaten.

PUDDING

Everyone's different

Mind has a more detailed guide to food and mood. It makes it clear that there are lots of ways that food can affect your mood. So what works for me, may not work for you. For example,  I’m extremely sensitive to sugar –both added and natural – so the best time for me to eat fruit and other sweet things is with my evening meal. But you may find it helps you to eat a banana with breakfast. Good luck, I hope you find this post helpful. 

Orange with cinnamon and yoghurt

I find cinnamon is a good alternative to sugar, a little dusting brings a warm cosiness to bananas, oranges and apples.

Ingredients: 1 orange, pinch of cinnamon, blob of yoghurt

Method: Peel and chop the orange, sprinkle over the cinnamon, add yoghurt and eat.