Butter is Best!

What a brilliant Valentine's Day present! This is what Julia's adoring husband bought her in the amazing film "Julie and Julia" starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams.

We watched the DVD last night and it is soooo my type of film. It's all about food, cooking and blogging!

Near the beginning of the film Julia and her husband are concerned to find Julia something to occupy her time when they were moved to Paris by the Diplomatic Service who employed him. After trying hat making and various other pastimes unsuccessfully, Julia's husband, the aforementioned mortar and pestle purchaser, said: "What do you like to do?" and after only a moment's hesitation she replied:

"I like to eat!"

That was the line of the film for me!

The joy of cooking and discovering new ways with food has always been my passion; I love cooking for people who love to eat. One of my favourite dinner guests is Paul. When he finishes and pronounces "Gorgeous!" I am a very happy cook. Duncan, my ever present dinner guest always enjoys anything I cook for him. Even our scrambled eggs this morning were cause of much comment and appreciation.

But when you're discovering and being innovative in the kitchen you have to do a lot of sampling and hence the increase in body weight.

That sounds like an excuse I know, but I think it's a pity that for all of my life I have been concerned about my size. I have let the scales rule my life far too much. Emphasis on the fact that I have allowed this to be.

The truth is, as was stated in the film, BUTTER IS LOVELY. It tastes great. None of the substitutes are a patch on the true taste of butter - on your bread, soaking into your warm toast or as the base ingredient in your cooking. Butter does it. And, according to an informative e mail from my friend Alison, the basic structure of margarine is only one step away from plastic! Put a tub of marg in your garage and leave it - it won't go mouldy; plastic doesn't mold. And surely the low fat versions of this are the same but with more water. Watery plastic! Yum!!

Well, I can't eulogise all day about butter but I can start to live up to what I wrote to my sister yesterday - I'm beginning to believe that the people who really love me and care about me are not concerned that I get below a size 16; they love me for who I am. Maybe if I started to live like I believe that, and size becomes less of a dominant issue in my life, I will lose the weight anyway.

Within the credits on the back of the DVD box is a phrase worth remembering :"With the right combination of passion and fearlessness, anything is possible". Amen to that.