Top 5 functional foods

Salmon tops the new US Functional Foods list (because of its Omega 3 content) which is a real problem because salmon also tops the unsustainable fish list. So while the functional food approach educates people about nutrition, it ignores the bigger picture. It seems impossible to get it right! 

Other less endangered fish are equally rich in Omega 3 - like sardines & pilchards & mackerel - it depends where you are in the world as to  whether these are OK sustainability-wise. 

The other 4 foods: oats, blueberries, low fat milk, low fat yoghurt.

SUPERMARKETS

DON'T get me started. In Australia there's little competition and the 2 major chains have us over a barrel. In UK,  competing chains provide pleasant shopping environments with islands instead of tunnel aisles, good signage you can spot a mile away, little imitation "real" shops like fishmongers or bakeries, trolleys with snap-on holders for unwieldy items, fast pack-it-yourself checkouts with a no-more-than-2-waiting policy, toilets, cafes, extra-wide parking for pushchair mums, and loyalty schemes. 

Compare that with Australia. Long narrow aisles which force you up the full length because of inadequate signage, poor trolley manoeuvrability, dodgy unfresh produce that shouldn't be on sale except in a discount bin, negligible organic section with fresh veg wrapped in plastic trays thus cancelling out the brownie points, high stack which create an oppressive atmosphere, no universally comparative price labelling,  ridiculously long queues at checkout and poor packers who use far to many bags and don't understand you put the tomatoes on top of the watermelon, not the other way round. 

Seasonal produce - autumn

Best seasonal veg - cavolo nero, aka tuscan cabbage, aka kale, aka black cabbage. Grown locally. Fabulous rich deep black-green colour, a paler turquoise on the reverse with that waterproof texture that turns water into quicksilver balls. Chop it up and bung it in soups, stews, anything. It cooks down but not like spinach. 

And finally, in autumn,  purple garlic Australian-grown, not Italian imports at a ridiculous $45 p kilo. Is it true that Chinese garlic is bleached white? Why on earth would anyone want to do that, how can anything be nicer than purple garlic? 

Australian cheeses are getting really good. The best come from the boutique dairies dotted around the place:  washed rinds, blues, various forms of goat's cheese. Off to a cheese and wine event soon, showcasing 5 new cheeses.