Hugh sees food in a new light
A few years ago, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall was startled to learn he had high cholesterol.
A lover of home-grown veg, who has always "eaten salads and fruit", the 49-year-old admits that his GP's diagnosis took him by surprise.
"I thought I was basically very healthy," explains Fearnley-Whittingstall, who lives in Devon with his wife Marie and their four children.
"I felt more or less pretty good most of the time, but then I stopped and thought, 'Well actually, you do slap the butter on a bit too much on your morning toast, and if the cheese is out at the end of a meal and you've got a glass of wine on the go, you do go back there for a bit more'."
Although both toast and cheese are admittedly "pleasant", the TV chef and food writer has been conscientiously shifting towards recipes that don't rely on wheat and dairy, writing up his findings in his new book, River Cottage Light & Easy.
Emphasising foods that are "perhaps a little bit better for you", Fearnley-Whittingstall, who went vegetarian while he wrote his landmark River Cottage Veg book, is a convert to his own method.
Best of all, his cholesterol is now in the normal range. And despite being a self-confessed "toast muncher", he has enjoyed finding new ways of cooking.
These days, he eats dairy and wheat, but doesn't rely on them as "go to" ingredients. Though he does make some exceptions...
"When my wife has made a fantastic sourdough loaf, or I go round to some friends and they've baked a lovely cake, that's when I'm going to go, 'Of course I'm going to have some of that'," says the foodie, known for his campaigning Channel 4 food programmes Hugh's Fish Fight and Hugh's Chicken Run.
At home, both he and his wife share the dinner duties, but when Marie's at the cooking coalface, Fearnley-Whittingstall knows to make himself scarce.
"If my wife's cooking, it's probably best to let her get on with it, because I do have a terrible tendency to butt in and interfere," he admits, grinning.
"Even if I'm looking at her while she's cooking, she can find that a bit annoying, so I'll go and do some gardening."
The family are often treated to home-cooked meals cooked by the eldest children too, something which clearly fills the chef with pride.
"I've got much better at making a bit of room, not just for my wife but for my elder kids Chloe, who's 18, and Oscar, who's 15," explains the food writer.
"They're both keen cooks and are more than capable of putting together a family meal. So sometimes we can both take an evening off, relax in the garden and take the dog for a walk, and come back and find a pretty delicious supper on the table."
The only downfall is that the children sometimes "suggest we do the clearing up" afterwards, he adds, laughing. But donning the marigolds is a small price to pay for getting his kids interested in cooking.
"I do think that all kids have a natural curiosity about food and a natural inclination to get involved in the kitchen," he says.
He concedes that involving the kids isn't "easy for everyone", especially with time and space constraints, but adds: "If you nurture that curiosity and give a little bit of independence in the kitchen, you do them the most fantastic life service."
Freddy, 11, and four-yearold Louisa are too young to be whipping up meals like their older siblings, but FearnleyWhittingstall, who also cooked from a young age, is keen that "whatever trials and tribulations lie ahead", all his children leave home knowing how to cook for themselves.
"It's not just about your health," he says. "It's about your wellbeing and sense of self respect. I think that counts for a huge amount... It's [that sense of] 'I can cook for myself, I can look after myself'."
Here is one of Fearnley-Whittingstall recipes to try at home.
CREAMY ROASTED TOMATO SOUP
(Serves 4) 1.2kg tomatoes (the riper the better) 4-5 garlic cloves, chopped 3tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil 75g cashew nuts, plus a few extra, to finish (optional) 200ml light vegetable stock or water A pinch of sugar (optional) Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper To finish: Extra virgin hempseed or rapeseed oil A dusting of paprika (optional) Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.
Cut the tomatoes in half and put them in a large roasting tray (they should fit fairly snugly). Scatter over the chopped garlic, trickle over the oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Roast for 25 minutes, then scatter the cashews over the tomatoes. Return to the oven for a further 20 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and pulpy and perhaps a little charred in places.
Scrape the tomatoes, cashews and all the garlicky pan juices into a blender. Add the stock or water and blitz to a puree. Pass this through a sieve, which will remove any pips, or stubborn bits of tomato skin.
When you're ready to serve, reheat gently. You can add a little water if the soup seems very thick or the flavour is too intense. Season with more salt and pepper if needed, and add a pinch of sugar if you think the tomatoey acidity needs tempering slightly.
Ladle into warmed bowls and finish with a swirl of extra virgin oil, plus a few chopped cashews and a dusting of paprika if you like, and a generous sprinkling of pepper.
River Cottage Light & Easy by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is published in hardback by Bloomsbury, priced £25. For River Cottage food videos, visit www.rivercottage.net/foodtube