Last week, we shared a beet and goat cheese recipe that forever changed your idea of a good girls’ night in. This week, we’re introducing you to the sisters behind that recipe, as well as several hundred others like it, from their new cookbook, The Art of Eating Well
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The Hemsley sisters, Melissa and Jasmine, live in London and cook up more “whole, organic, nutrient filled, delicious homemade foods, free of grain, gluten, high starch and refined sugar” food than you could ever hope to eat. Perfect, right? We love this new cookbook for just that reason. Flip it open to any page and find a delicious, accessible idea for what to eat now.
We asked these two adorable sisters to answer a few of our pressing culinary questions. We’re keeping it simple, talking good eats, kitchen tools and family biz – really, what else do you need to know? Here they are…
We always eat:
Lots of things! Homemade bone broth is our secret weapon and we focus on seasonable vegetables, quality fats, grass-fed meat and probiotic foods for better digestion. Everything we eat has to be packed with nutrition and flavor and make us feel great.
We never eat:
We steer clear of gluten, grain, refined sugar and refined vegetable oils – especially processed foods and low-fat products!. We pay great attention to the provenance of all the food we eat, but especially the animal foods and fats.
This cookbook in 3 words:
Simple, nourishing, delicious.
3 blogs we love:
Aside from The Chalkboard Mag… Sous Style – we are their London editors, The Huffington Post UK, and British Vogue – we’ve blogged for them for two years.
Go-to lunch on the fly:
A quick lunch at home: Heat up some delicious and nourishing bone broth (made from quality beef bones or chicken carcasses), grate in some carrots, ginger and garlic or some herbs and spices and simmer for a few minutes. Then turn off the heat, stir in some torn-up spinach leaves or spring onions, some miso or pesto and drop in a whole raw egg and give it a swirl until just cooked.
A cold travel lunch: Our muffin frittatas from the book.
A hot travel lunch: A kelp ‘pot noodle’ from the book – add kelp noodles, good spoonful of probiotic miso paste and leftover veg to a glass heat-proof jar in the morning. Come lunchtime just add hot water.
Best thing about a family biz:
We’re on the same page – both dedicated to sharing what we know with as many people as possible.
Worst thing about a family biz:
We have to remind ourselves to switch off at Christmas and on family occasions, no matter how busy we are or how much we love working! No laptops, no phones allowed and no work talk!
Favorite thing about the cookbook:
Seeing it used, dog-eared and loved in people’s kitchens. Social media is amazing too, seeing pics of our dishes being cooked, eaten and shared across the world.
What sets you two apart most:
We’ve got quite different personalities, which is very complimentary to the business. Having said that, we both like eating out, traveling, yoga, spas, period dramas and cats…. but when it comes to peanut butter, which I love, Mel says no way!
Can't live without in the kitchen:
1. Grater – we love to grate vegetables for speedy meals and salads.
2. High-speed blender – for speedy smoothies, sauces, pestos, dips, soups.
3. Sharp knife – you only really need one good-quality knife.
Must-have kitchen pantry staples:
1. Coconut oil – great for baking, roasting, frying – throw out vegetable oils.
2. Dried mung beans – cheap and full of goodness. They make a great dahl and hummus and are delicious sprouted too.
3. Sea salt – proper salt for flavor and minerals.
4. Raw apple cider vinegar – good for digestion and delicious in dressings and dips.
5. Good selection of spices for flavor and added nutrition.
6. Dried seaweeds – rich in flavor as well as iodine, iron, magnesium and calcium.
