OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN IMPRESSES

I must admit that I am very sceptical whenever an actress/model/singer/heiress releases a cookbook. I usually refuse to read the books, for two reasons; 1. I do not believe that they eat/drink anything but air and evian water, and 2. If they really do know what they are talking about, I feel an overwhelming surge of jealously at how multi-talented they are. 

Saying that, I became intrigued when I came across Olivia Newton-John's 'LivWise' due to the words 'Easy', 'Happy' & 'Healthy' on the front cover.  Also, the woman is 62 years of age! She must be doing something right to be in that good a shape. 

Within a few days of borrowing the book I had written several of the recipes in my journal for me to try out. This beauty below is a favourite of mine and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner or as a snack. 

SPINACH & FETTA FRITTATAS 

DO NOT be turned off by the 'spinach' in the title here. Spinach is definitely not the best tasting vegetable in my opinion. Before making this recipe, I associated spinach with the bland-tasting, totally processed spinach that you buy frozen at the supermarket. Using English Spinach and wilting it with garlic really changes the taste, as Olivia has discovered. 

Ingredients 

• olive oil spray or 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 150g english spinach leaves, washed 
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 2 eggs 
• 2 egg whites
• 60ml skim milk
• 1 tablespoon finely grated parmesan cheese
• 70g low fat feta cheese, cut into 1cm cubes. 

Cooking 

1. Lightly coat a 6 hole muffin tin with oil. 

2. Preheat oven to 200 degree Celsius. Put spinach and garlic in a saucepan over medium heat. Cover and steam for 3 minutes or until spinach has wilted (I prefer stirring the spinach until it has wilted to really mix in the garlic evenly). Allow spinach to cool slightly, then squeeze out any excess liquid and roughly chop leaves. 

3. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, egg whites, skim milk and parmesan. Stir in spinach and season with ground pepper. 

4. Spoon mixture into muffin holes, filling each 3/4 full. Lightly press 3 feta cubes onto the top of each frittata. 

5. Bake for around 15 minutes or until frittatas are golden and egg is set. Serve immediately, as they will deflate quickly. Serve with freshly ground pepper if desired and with a salad for lunch, alongside meat for dinner or with an english muffin and roasted tomato for breakfast. 

Note - I've started to browse other celebrity's cookbooks since I had my Olivia breakthrough. I would highly recommend it. This experience has taught be a valuable lesson in the importance of being nonjudgemental. Who knew cooking was so deep?

x E