Kerri Quinn stars in The Lyric Theatre’s production of Willy Russell’s award winning comedy at The Gaiety Theatre 21st – 25th March, 2017
Where do you shop?
I tend to a lot of online shopping. I hate having to venture in to town, too many people. So best to do it sitting in your jammies at home. A lot less stress.
Can you list the contents of your weekly shop?
I could be here a while as me and my daughter are currently living at my parents so I have five people to take in to account. Definitely a selection of fruit, a meat parcel, veg, Robinson’s diluted juice (grapefruit), chorizo/meat selection(Libby’s fav) and a bottle of nice red wine.
Describe your typical breakfast?
Breakfast consists of a coffee. I can’t eat in the mornings.
Describe your typical lunch?
A typical lunch for me is soup/salad. Spicy salad though. Love hot food.
What kinds of snacks do you eat?
Snacks consist of a lot of jelly sweets. Throw a Red Bull in there too.
Is there anything you won’t eat?
I’m not a picky eater but a few things gross me out: runny eggs, blue cheese or smelly cheese and aubergine.
What would you cook to impress someone?
I enjoy cooking but I’m not the most experienced. Cooking for my daughter it has to be pasta bake, her favourite. I love doing a buffet for friends/family parties. Romantically??? Haven’t a clue. They’d be doing the cooking.
What’s your guilty food pleasure?
My guilty food pleasure has to be a big sausage roll out of the local bakery, Bluebells.
Ultimate comfort food?
If I’m watching a movie in my comfies it would consist of crisps, dips, cheese, crackers and wine.
Favourite takeaway food?
My favourite takeaway has to be Indian food.
Have you tried any diet fads in the past 6 months?
No I don’t diet. I do everything in moderation. Also doing shows and having a 5 year old kind of helps!
Death row dinner or last supper?
Oh where would I start? I’d order fillet steak with tobacco onions, garlic potatoes and veg. Jelly for dessert.
Rosanna’s Verdict:
I like Kerri’s attitude towards shopping, as I’m also a fan of online shopping. You don’t need to drag heavy bags in and out of your car, plus I find that I spend less money as it takes away the temptation to impulse buy if you spot something tasty but unnecessary. I’m also a big advocate of reading nutrition labels carefully and trying to avoid believing the marketing hype on the front of a packet. Shopping online means that you can take more time to read labels to check if foods contain added refined sugar and other processed ingredients.
It’s great to see that Kerri includes a selection of fruit and vegetables in her weekly shop. While we’re mostly familiar with the message of aiming for five portions of fruit and veg a day, recent research is pointing increasing that to ten servings for the most health benefits. That sounds like a lot, but there are ways of increasing your intake. Adding fresh fruit to your morning cereal or porridge, packing your lunchtime sandwich with extra salad veggies and choosing a piece of whole, fresh fruit over a chocolate bar or packet of crisps are all good options. I also love smoothies for an easy way to pack lots of goodness into one drink, and it’s fun to experiment with different flavours. Mine always contain leafy greens and berries.
Kerri skips breakfast and fuels up on a cup of coffee. I appreciate that not everybody enjoys eating in the mornings, but it’s a crucial time of the day for kickstarting your metabolism after the overnight fast and getting some important nutrients into your bloodstream to support energy levels. Coffee provides false energy in the form of adrenaline. If Kerri can’t face solid food, then I would at least suggest she tries to drink a smoothie first thing. She could add in some oats, high-quality protein powder, seeds, nuts or nut butters to keep her full for longer.
Research suggests that eating breakfast helps people to maintain a stable body weight, mood and avoid snacking on sugary foods later in the day. Kerri’s snacks include high-sugar jellies and fizzy drinks, which can play havoc with your mood, waistline, energy and concentration. Eating something at breakfast time may help her to avoid cravings for sugary foods later in the day.
For lunch, Kerri opts for a healthy salad or soup. The most beneficial types of salads contain plenty of fresh leafy greens and colourful veggies, such as tomatoes and peppers. Healthy fat is an important part of our daily diet, and the type found in avocado, walnuts, ground flaxseed and flax oil and oily fish are an especially beneficial addition to salads. A protein element can be added to a salad to boost its amino acid content. Hummus, falafel, beans, eggs, fish and poultry are all useful sources of complete protein. If you have an active lifestyle and require plenty of energy, then adding a wholegrain or a starchy vegetable to salads can give a great energy boost. I love roast sweet potato in salads.
Adding in a breakfast smoothie, swapping sweets for a handful of raw nuts and ensuring her meals are a healthy balance of protein, complex carbs and healthy fats, would be a super boost to Kerri’s diet and would ensure she has plenty of energy to sustain her busy lifestyle.
