This course is about more than food, it’s about creating a healthy lifestyle.

If you want to adopt a healthy way of eating based on a Mediterranean, low sugar and low carbohydrate regime, this course will help you make and sustain that change.

Each week we will cook simple dishes with a wide range of fresh ingredients. The emphasis throughout is on variety, along with tips to make it easy to sustain a healthy way of eating.

This time we will focus on vegetarian eating, creating a range of dishes that incorporate lots of vegetables and pulses. Most of us still don’t eat enough vegetables so our goal with this course is to make vegetable-based dishes that are so delicious you will want to feast on vegetables daily! We will teach you techniques and dishes that are balanced in nutritional value without the need to add meat or fish.

Here is the menu

Week 1. Spring green risotto with fine beans, peas, leeks and goats cheese

Week 2. Vegetable burger and roasted sweet potato wedges and fresh seasonal salad

Week 3. Squash, chickpea & spinach coconut curry with cucumber, mint & yoghurt raita and your own made naan bread!

Week 4. Homemade pasta turned into roasted vegetable lasagne

Week 5. Re-fried bean, tomato and coriander cheese quesadilla with spicy mango salsa

Week 6. Italian vegetable frittata served with Orzo, baby spinach, feta, olive & pine-nut salad

This course is suitable for all levels of cooking experience, from complete novice to experienced cook.

Alongside the cooking we will encourage you to look at other aspects of life that support physical and mental good health. When you sit down to eat the dishes you have prepared, an invited speaker will give a short, informal talk. Several local exercise teachers will discuss their disciplines, how they help with general health and well-being and where you can take them up locally, if you want to.

We will find out about T’ai chi, yoga, pilates, dancing and walking for health.

We will also look at stress management and have an introduction to mindfulness as an accessible practice that anyone can use to reduce the effects of stress and feel more in control in everyday life.

We encourage the group – there will be up to ten participants – also to learn from each other and to use these weekly sessions as encouragement and support for your transformation to leading a more healthy and fulfilled way of life.

This is a six session course on Tuesday evenings. Please arrive by 6.40pm and remember we will be dining together.  All ingredients are provided.