Toasting our new baby – with salami, seafood and the finest cheese!

Richard-and-Laura-Alsop-with-baby-Lena

A FEW weeks ago, my wife Laura gave birth to our beautiful daughter Lena. While I expected it to change our lives completely, little did I suspect what an impact it would have so quickly on our eating habits, writes Richard Alsop.

Even before the birth, the overnight bag was made up of “classic snacks” – crisps, sugar, crisps and more sugar and crisps. It did cross my mind to pack a cheeseboard – but Laura gave that the veto! In hindsight it was probably the perfect pack-up and the sugar came in rather handy to combat the biggest adrenaline crash mummy and daddy were ever going to share. At the end of play, half-empty packets and juice cartons scattered the birthing unit – not too dissimilar to the end of a teenage sleepover! The next day, after a steady drive home from the hospital, we finally got to settle in. Trying our best to process the last 24 hours, we realised it was now time to talk about possibly eating, restocking the fridge and replenishing our bodies while we had the chance. This was especially important to Laura, who had just done the physical equivalent of back-to-back marathons and then some!…