It’s one of life’s great ironies that when you enter middle age and have more passion (as well as disposable income) to spend on REALLY AWESOME FOOD, your body suddenly says ‘NO.’

I LOVE FOOD and when I get stressed it’s the first thing I reach for to make me feel better. I wish I was one of those women that burnt off kilos with nervous energy but I’m not.

I have always made food a priority in my life but over the last couple of years even I’ve had to be more careful with what I put in my mouth, for both health and weight reasons.

Luckily, moving closer to the city has opened my eyes to a wealth of ALMOST healthy and comforting new foods, and as I sat munching my way through one of these this morning, I thought I’d share:

1. 

   Smashed Avocado and crumbled feta on toast, with a splash of zingy lime and salt and pepper. I discovered this brekkie in a cute little café in Double Bay and although it’s obviously carby, it still feels fresh and healthy.

2. 

   Thai Chicken Larb – We are surrounded by fantastic Thai restaurants and I love Thai food as much as the next food junkie – especially all those yummy coconut milk sauces. But these days I try to opt for something a little less unkind to the muffin top. What I love about a Larb is the flavor of the fresh lemongrass and coriander mixed with the red onion, chilli and chicken.

3. 

   Spanish Baked Brie – they make this in Small Bar, the cafe NC works in at the end of our street and it is very naughty. They infuse each Brie with chilli and mixed herbs and it melts on the French bread and then straight into your gob. It’s perfect to soak up those first few wines on a Friday night.

4. 

   Japanese Salmon and Tuna Sushimi – to die for, especially with Wasabi. I’ve only discovered Japanese food recently and what I love about it is that it feels so light, it convinces you that it can’t possibly be going straight to your hips. Stay away from the Gyoza, though.

5. 

   Turkish Gozleme – THE BEST hangover food EVAR. So maybe this is not the most healthy option but it scores 10/10 in the comfort food department and is a huge hit with my whole family. The Gozleme queues at the markets are cruel but worth the wait. I love the vegetarian spinach and feta version but the rest of the family opt for the spicy meat version.

6. 

   Dessert – as you know, an exciting and healthy dessert doesn’t exist and I was tempted to put down Churros and say WTF, because Churros actually means ‘comfort’ in Spanish *lying*. But the next best thing for a sugar fix is something NC knocks up when there’s absolutely no food in the house – which is often – and it’s a banana and Nutella toasted wrap; which is a secret recipe that has been passed down our family for generations (or since the sandwich toaster was invented).

Bon Appetit!