GIZZI ERSKINE ON CLEAN EATING & A CRACKING CHRISTMAS DINNER

Before any hint of illness struck, I could spend hours on end making my way through the back catalogue of BBC Food’s cooking programmes. Usually, I was in bed and most likely, I’d be chowing down a rather large bowl of creamy (albeit microwaved – sorry Nigella) porridge. It was a simple and delicious pleasure and one of the many moments of sheer bliss that Anorexia carelessly robbed from me.  One of my all-time favourite foodies to watch, learn and fail to copy was the gorgeous Gizzi Erskine. Her food was never too gluttonous that it turned my anxious mind off completely, yet her recipes were always unapologetically comforting. The beehive-rocking, smiley sass-pot seemed to impart a pretty simple message – and one that I continue to wholeheartedly champion.

Food tastes good. Eat things because you like the flavour.

The daughter of Scottish and Polish parents, Gizzi can’t imagine a life in which her diet would be anything but “varied”. The family’s move to Thailand when Gizzi (real name Griselda, btw) was just 12-years-old propelled the interest in exotic flavours even more so. By her late teens, Gizzi was “more comfortable with tamarind and fish sauce than most people were with salt and pepper”, and her beloved mother’s affection for experimental home cooking had been well and truly passed on.  After moving back to the UK and enrolling in the world famous Leith’s School of Food and Wine in 2003, this food heroine was officially on her way to fulfilling her mission to reignite a nation’s passion for their produce. Although interestingly, it was Gizzi’s experiences on various sides of the pond that enriched her cooking know-how and her appreciation for flavour.

I don’t have to say much to get Gizzi going on the whole “clean eating” explosion, as she discusses the shame she feels towards her sweet potato brownie recipe (which she wrote 10 years ago).  Although she regrets naming it a “brownie” – perhaps it’s more of a “cake”, she wonders. “What makes a brownie, brownie is that cracked surface and you get that from white, refined sugar and butter. Actually, the difference in calorie content between that and the sweet potato version is very, very minimal.”

It’s the trend of finding “healthy” replacements for ingredients the 37-year-old champions that really gets the bee in her bonnet. Don’t even get her started on Sainsbury’s latest foray into the vegan market with their so-called “vegan” cheese. I tell her that the Internet has since re-named the cheese-alternative “Gary” and she falls about laughing.  “It’s true though, because it’s not cheese! I don’t know what it is – and it’s not a cheesecake if it’s vegan. Is it “cheesecake” in inverted commas? I mean, what do you call it?”

Not that Gizzi would turn down a crusty piece of Sourdough toast with a couple of slices of Gary. When it comes to food – ALL the food – nothing is off the table.  “Variety is the spice of life and that’s what’s been installed in me. It was eat as much wholegrain as you can and lots of vegetables; good oil and non-fatty meat. Those are the things I have really stuck to – you need fat – there are good fats!” Variety means variety – and not just a wide range of stock from her local Waitrose. Let’s be honest, there’s always going to be some mornings when that well-balanced home cooked meal just doesn’t hit the spot.  “A couple of times,” she says, “once in awhile, I might have fast food. Because sometimes you just have to. I’m not going to deny myself anything.

“As long as my mind is happy, that’s the most important thing.”

“A friend of mine asked me what the best doughnuts were in London and I said – you know what, go to Krispy Kreme, because they are the best.” Gizzi’s effervescent enthusiasm for her favourite flavours makes me compelled to dash out of Shoreditch and hunt for the nearest Krispy Kreme doughnut stand. If Gizzi says it’s tasty, then it must be worth a bite.  It’s also this love affair with strong, punchy taste (she has a particular thing for horseradish), which makes her “cross” with “what’s going on in the food world”. Watching her livelihood become vilified – the substance that brought her two television series’; six books and more than 81,000 Twitter followers – is pretty irritating, to say the least.

Especially as, according to Gizzi, some of the books published by so-called ‘wellness’ gurus, are written almost entirely by someone else.  “What’s awful is that they have huge power and influence. Thousands of people follow what they write and most of them aren’t even the ones writing the books. Even I have friends that say, you can’t have this and you can’t have that – it’s crazy how much power they have.  “I’ve written all my own books,” Gizzi insists, “and I have always had a dietitian to sign all my recipes off and give them a tick, apart from the ones in my latest book.”  Although the East Londoner is stringent about enlisting a nutritional expert to sign off her healthy recipes, she’s pretty clued up already herself.

 

“Your body needs everything to work together”

Discussing various nutritional fads with Gizzi isn’t hugely different from conversations with dietetic professionals. Informed comments such as, “your body needs all foods to be able to digest the nutrients in the other things. You need everything to work together”, and her concerns about early onset of Osteoporosis due to a lack of calcium from milk, are pretty indicative that this cook knows her stuff.  Gizzi’s latest culinary treat, Gizzi’s Season’s Greetings, has been a particular delight to work on. Mainly because, there’s no aim to reduce calorie content in any of her recipes so the tasting phase was a particular highlight.

“I put on a couple of stone whilst writing the book,” she says, “and now I’ve lost one. Sure, I’d like to lose another one but to be honest; I’m not going to break my back to do it. As long as my mind is happy, that’s the most important thing.” The chef herself puts this particular philosophy down to her upbringing, courtesy of her mum who “never spoke about weight or anything. I was brought up with a very positive body image.

“It was never a conversation. It was more inspiring and empowering because she [mum] would show me what to eat and how to cook. “  Inspiration and empowerment are definitely qualities that have trickled down the generations. After only an hour of lounging on a Shoreditch sofa with this wonder woman, I am already tempted to invite her over to my mum’s house for Christmas. Although our Christmas dinner probably won’t measure up to Gizzi’s grub, not to mention the pressure of cooking for someone who graduated top of their class at one of the UK’s most prestigious chef schools. Oh, and on top of that, Christmas dinner is her favourite meal, like, ever.

“Oooh,” she smiles, “ it would be a roast dinner with all the trimmings. Loads of veg; really, really good gravy; loads of stuffing and really crispy potatoes.”  I congratulate her on her choice, but wait – she’s not done yet.  “Or, a big ham hock or a big joint and lots of delicious salads and lots of bread.

“And maybe a Charcuterie, people can just help themselves – then the vegetarians have got what they want too.”  All this talk of last suppers has overrun somewhat, and Gizzi is forced to dash off for her next “exciting” (she’s not allowed to tell me what it is yet) appointment.  Not before, however, she downs her English breakfast tea and bids me farewell with a giant, warming bear hug.

As for my Christmas plans? So sorry mum, but I think I’d quite like to go to Gizzi’s…