Is Novac Djokovic’s Success Down To Going Gluten-Free?
According to some web sites, like this one, it is.
I’m sceptical, especially as that site has an agenda!
But statistically, the fact that I only know of one top class sportswomen, Hayley Turner, who has been diagnosed as a coeliac is way under the expected odds.
Kangaroos in Walthamstow
I went to the Village Kitchen today in Walthamstow and had a kangaroo steak for lunch.
It was good! And gluten-free too!
I’ve been skipping down the road since, as a friend will confirm, as we met for a coffee afterwards at the Angel.
Lamb Leg Steaks With Creamy Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce
This is another recipe off the side of a packet of meat from Waitrose.
You will need.
- A packet of four lamb leg streaks. The ones I used were new season Welsh ones.
- 200 ml. of lamb or chicken stock
- 2 tsp sun dried tomato paste
- 2 tbsp of creme fraiche
- 25g of fat soft cheese
- lemon juice.
- fresh basil.
And this is how you do it.
- Grill the steaks, which should take about 15 minutes. Keep them warm.
- Put the stock in a pan and bring to the boil with the tomato paste.
- Add the creme fraiche and the cheese, a squeeze of lemon juice and season well.
- Simmer for one minute, add a few shredded basic leaves and pour over the lamb
It says serve with rosti potatoes and sugar snap peas.
Stewed! For Lunch
For lunch today, I had a Chorizo, Chickpea and Pork Stew from a company called Stewed! in one of my old haunts, Wood Green. They don’t give an address, but it looks like it’s somewhere behind the old Haringey Town Hall and also the Barclays Bank, where my father used to have an account. He once told me that he was also involved in the training of a race horse somewhere in that area. Rumour has it, he was warned off for painting on the blaze of the horse with Meltonian. But then racing at Alexandra Palace was very dodgy between the wars.
The Stewed! was very good with some large pieces of sausage and meat and I’ll certainly buy some more. It was labelled gluten-free and now a couple of hours later, I’ve no reason to doubt their assertions on the packet.
I also liked the cooking method, which for someone with a slightly gammy left hand was easy, as the lid was simple to remove.
So good luck to them!
I bought mine from Waitrose, but I think Sainsburys stock them.
A Visit to the London Wetland Centre
I’d been wanting to go for some time and felt that as this morning was hot, it might be a bit cooler to stand amongst the old reservoirs, that now make up the London Wetland Centre. So I took the North London Line to Gunnersbury, then a few stops back on the District line to Hammersmith and then a 283 bus to the centre.
283 Bus at the London Wetland Centre
It wasn’t a difficult ride and using the Overground to go from North East to South West London is preferable than the Underground, as the views are better and the trains are a lot more comfortable in hot weather.
The Peter Scott Visitor Centre
The centre is impressive and very much worth a visit. I stayed for a couple of hours and walked around the site observing the various birds. Not that I know much about what is what without a book and some binoculars, which I had forgot to take. Although the signage was good and very much in a style that Sir Peter would have approved of. Ponds are laid out by habitat and country or continent, with a large wild area that attracts all of the birds that either live in or visit London.
When it started to rain, I had a coffee in the excellent cafe, which I checked as to whther they knew their gluten-free or not! They did incidentally.
I then left on the bus to Hammersmith, before taking the Metropoitan line to King’s Cross to get the bus home.
Hammersmith Station on the Metropolitan line
The picture shows the Metropolitan line station at Hammersmith, which has been refurbished since the Undergound reorganised the Circle line. It certaining looked better than it did, when I went with my father from Wood Green to Earl’s Court avoiding the deep Tube lines. Anybody in their right mind would have used the Piccadilly line all the way. But my father had a phobia of deep lines, so went by steam train to King’s Cross, Metropolitan line to Hammersmith and then back to Earl’s Court on the District.
Gluten Free For Players At Wimbledon
According to The Times today, gluten free food is there if the players want it.
Very good!
Barry’s Gluten Free Muffins
Barry, the chef in my local pub, the Northgate Arms in Southgate Road, is a coeliac, so he knows his gluten-free well.
As today, it was raining when I got my paper from next door to the pub, I popped in for a drink. They were offering a Brunch Menu, which contained Eggs Royale, which is a poached egg on top of smoked salmon and a muffin.
I decided to have one, whilst I read the paper with a drink.
For me, instead of a muffin, Barry grilled a slice of aubergine, added a slice of a large tomato and some spinach to the top as a delicious substitute.
It Pays To Complain
A couple of months ago, I bought a Genius loaf in Waitrose in Islington Upper Street and it went mouldy almost immediately. I think it might even have been mouldy when I unwrapped it. I did post details here.
The outcome was better than I expected. I complained to both Genius and Waitrose and got a voucher for five pounds from Genius.
And then today, I got another five-pound voucher from Waitrose.
On the bread side though, the last Genius loaf was more or less fresh to the last slice.
So it’s a result in all ways.
Is This How To Educate Teachers About Gluten-Free?
Adam’s Gluten-Free Surprise is a book written about a coeliac child by a teacher.
I hadn’t been diagnosed as a coeliac when I was at school, so it couldn’t have helped me, but it might help all of those gluten-free children, who suffer in an unsympathetic school.
The Anonymous Widower 