Do you go through cooking phases? I do. My latest one has been Khao Pad Krapao, pronounced ‘cow pat’ which is rather unfortunate for us English speaking people. It’s fried rice with basil – that’s the ‘krapao’ part – and it’s delicious. What makes it so special is the Thai basil. I have a plant sitting on my kitchen bench begging to be used every few days, and I’ve been happy to oblige. Making this meal brings back wonderful memories of our numerous visits to Thailand although it loses some of its authenticity when eaten without car fumes.

Thai basil tastes quite different to the basil that goes so well with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and olive oil. But it comes from the same herb family. That’s right: herbs come in families just like vegetables. Basil belongs to the mint family (real name – lamiaceae). Its brothers and sisters include lemon balm, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, sage, savory and thyme. No, I haven’t forgotten that other essential Thai herb, coriander.

Relax, relax. Isn’t that what we are meant to be trying to do in this hectic world we live in? I was doing exactly that a few weekends ago at the NZ Food Writers conference. After a hard morning of visiting food and wine producers, and having to choose between blue cheese wontons with pear and rocket salad or grilled mackerel on toast with harissa at Clearview Estate Winery, we were now at Millar Road – seriously stylish accommodation – tasting yet more wine and food. Oh well, someone has to do it!

Relaxing by the pool in the afternoon sun, lapping up the Hawkes Bay countryside and Pacific Ocean spread out below us, I summoned up just enough energy to ask antioxidant expert, Dr Carolyn Lister, “Do organic vegetables have any more antioxidants than others?” She replied, “It depends how stressed they are. The more stress, the more antioxidants.”

The Auckland Food Show is on this weekend. I went with a friend today. Here’s my take on it.

[tweetmeme]Most unusual food: Halfords Earth Gems
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Earth Gems are multi-coloured, bite-sized vegetables that ‘are the jewel of the South American Incas’. They grow like a potato but are from the beetroot family and have an earthy taste. You sure know you are eating something straight from the ground. I think they are an acquired taste! With all those colours they are bound to have plenty of antioxidants.

Most native Kiwi drink: Kawakawa Fire Tea

A caffeine free tea made from kawakawa, lemongrass and ginger by T leaf T. It’s packaged beautifully with a simple Maori design. A lovely present and it tastes great.

Food I bought today and have already used: Australian semi-dried tomatoes and Monin vanilla syrup

I used the tomatoes on pizza but should have kept them for a salad. They were too delicious to waste on pizza. I mixed the vanilla syrup with low fat milk for a delicious instant vanilla milkshake. I also bought Monin’s Chai Green Tea Extract to make Chai Latte – a sweet, milky alternative to coffee.

What I’ll use tomorrow: New Zealand Breakfast Tea

A black tea blended with manuka. It smells like honey but tastes like tea. It should taste great with grainy toast and honey for breakfast.

Best buy: Dutch Maasdam cheese

It was half-price – about $20 per kilo. I bought a huge chunk!

Most interesting food: Cherry juice that helps you sleep

This tart cherry juice is made from Montmorency cherries from Canada. According to the promotional leaflet these cherries have significant levels of melatonin which promotes sleep. It’s 100% juice with no added sugar or preservatives which is good. It comes in a concentrate which must be kept in the fridge or freezer to maintain its nutritional value.

Food that brought back the best childhood memories: Fresh walnuts

There was always a tray of walnuts drying in the sun at my grandparents. We would spend ages helping my Nana to crack them open. My grand-dad liked them dipped in icing. Walnuts contain alpha-linolenic acid (a type of omega-3 fat) so make a healthy snack, preferably without the icing!

Biggest trend this year: Anything with omega-3 in it.

There was flax seed oil, biscuits, pills for kids that taste like jelly lollies, and even smoothies made with flax seed oil. Parents seemed most enthusiastic about these foods. I just hope they don’t mega-dose their kids. Omega-3 fats are good and most of us could do with a bit more but as with all nutrition too much of one nutrient is likely to upset the balance of others. Also flaxseed, like walnuts, contains alpha-linolenic acid which converts to EPA (the omega-3 fat in oily fish) in the body. The conversion rate is about 8% so you need to eat quite a bit of flaxseed to get the same effect as a from a meal of salmon.

Most organised person

The woman who had a suitcase on wheels filled with all her purchases. She had already made one trip back to the car to unload and was on her second round.

Most popular stand

Anything with chocolate!

No one in the world has the same fingerprint as you – or exactly the same mix of talents and tastes. You are designed as a ‘one-off’ which is wonderful – until you try to get a family of individuals to eat the same meals. It’s a common cry that I’ve come across a few times lately: “My husband likes meat but I want vegetables” “One child wants cheese on everything and the other can’t bear cheese but wants tomato sauce” “My child hates soup” “My children love soup but only if it’s smooth” How can you get everyone in the family to eat well without force-feeding or becoming a restaurant catering to individual tastes. Here’s a few ideas.

My husband wants meat and doesn’t like vegetables, I want vegetables and don’t like much meat

Solution: Stir fry meat and vegetables.  Beef or chicken salad

We love soup but the kids hate it

Solution: Serve soup on pasta as a pasta sauce with grated cheese on top

We always have left-over rice when I make stir-frys

Solution: Add milk, sliced banana and a sprinkle of brown sugar or syrup for a quick rice pudding

I like to put wheatgerm on porridge because it is so healthy but no-one else will eat it

Solution: Make oatmeal pancakes with wheatgerm

My children won’t eat plain yoghurt

Solution: Make a smoothie with banana or berries, reduced fat milk and yoghurt. Make raita – chopped cucumber and mint mixed with yoghurt – to serve with Indian curry

My husband won’t eat lentils

Solution: Add a handful of red lentils to beef casseroles and mince. It helps thicken the meal, makes the meat go further and provides soluble fibre to fill everyone up and help help control cholesterol and diabetes.

The only beans my family will eat is baked beans.

Solution: Baked beans are great but for variety add red kidney beans to mince with a bit of chilli to make chilli con carne. Make minestrone soup with a mix of brown and white beans (I like borlotti and haricot). Try a bean salad.

If you have a great food solution to your family’s varied taste preferences, we’d love to hear it! ..c