Food News, with Amanda Killelea

DIET plays a major part in our health and can play a major part in the development of diseases.

Now shopkeepers have joined forces with community dieticians to get the message across that you are what you eat.

The Brookhouse area of Blackburn was recently named in Which health magazine as one of the nation's worst districts for the availability of healthy foods, with local shops stocking only limited supplies.

And with 80 per cent of Brookhouse's population being of Indian or Pakistani origin - one of the highest risk groups for heart disease - health workers decided to take action.

The Healthy Shelf Scheme was launched in June to educate the local community about healthy eating and to encourage shopkeepers to stock healthier options.

Now a total of 13 shopkeepers have signed up for the scheme and are working with dieticians to improve the diet and health of Brookhouse residents.

The shops involved were presented with certificates of participation by the Mayor of Blackburn, Coun Salas Kiani, who himself has recently suffered health problems and went into hospital last week. The shopkeepers have pledged to help health workers to target a number of issues.

Healthier foods are being stocked on a trial basis, alongside information about diet and health.

And quarterly newsletters are being sent out to the community offering advice about excessive milk drinking in toddlers, low intakes of calcium in adults and the benefits of drinking skimmed and semi-skimmed milk to prevent heart disease. The first healthier option to be stocked will be reduced fat milks.

Community dietician Vanessa Hollings said: "Suitable for everyone over the age of five, low fat dairy products such as milk can make a significant contribution to reducing total fat in the diet and therefore reduce the risk of heart disease."

The following shops have signed up to the scheme: Troy Street Food Stores; Openshaw Drive Spar; Mataiwala News; Hafiz Food Store; Khans; MV Patel and Sons; Altom Food Store; Akhtars; Madinas; Rizwan Cash and Carry; Mohammed Grocers; Calder Street Food Store; and Muslim Food Store.

For more information on the scheme or to get involved contact Vanessa Hollings at Bangor Street Community Centre on 01254 674408.

Ghoulish goodies add sparkle to bonfire fun

CAST your own special spell this Hallowe'en with some delicious foods that can be cooked up in no more time than it takes to flick a broomstick.

You can even get the children involved with the hubble, bubble, toil and trouble to make some easy-to-master kids recipes.

For both Hallowe'en and Bonfire Night you can turn the simplest of recipes into something special with the magic of herbs and spices.

For November 5, especially, it is best to have food that is easy to eat as well as prepare.

Soup is warming and can be a meal in itself, especially with some seasoning and spicy cheese to give it a Mediterranean flavour. Garlic bread is always irresistible, especially with the addition of pesto sauce, and spicy potato wedges make the perfect finger food.

For the youngsters there are the traditional favourites of treacle toffee and toffee apples.

But to make sure they are getting Hallowe'en food that is nutritious as well as delicious, how about trying these ghoulish "severed finger" sandwiches to give them all a nail-biting experience.

INGREDIENTS

8 slices of white or brown bread, crusts removed

2 tbsp soft cheese

1 tbsp yeast extract

1 tbsp butter

16 flaked almonds or thinly cut slices of cucumber

2 tbsp tomato ketchup

CUT each slice of bread in half.

Spread eight of the halved slices with the soft cheese and the remainder with a thin layer of yeast extract.

Tightly roll up each slice to form a finger shape.

Dab a little butter on one end of each finger and place a flaked almond on top to form a fingernail.

If you or any guests suffer from nut allergy use thin slices of cucumber shaped to form a fingernail instead.

Use a blunt knife, make small indentations in the bread to form knuckles, then spoon ketchup onto the end of the finger to make them seem as if they've been freshly severed. (Recipe from BBC Vegetarian Good Food Magazine)

Adults may prefer something with a bit more spice to keep out the autumn chill on Hallowe'en and Bonfire Night, so this tasty sausage and pasta soup is ideal.

INGREDIENTS

(Serves four)

1 tbsp olive oil

4 giant frankfurter sausages, sliced

1 leek, sliced

2 carrots, sliced

1 tbs herbes de Provence

2 tbsp flour

50 g pasta

2 tomatoes, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the sausages, leeks and carrots for 3-4 minutes.

Add the herbes de Provence and flour and cook for one minute.

Blend in the stock and add the remaining ingredients.

Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until the pasta is cooked. Season to taste.

For a spicy cheese topping mix 4oz cheddar cheese and two tsp of Piri Piri seasoning together and use to top the soup.

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