Lavender and Lime 2024: A Food, Travel & Lifestyle Blog

Tandy Sinclair, the creative force behind Lavender and Lime, has been sharing her culinary adventures since 2009. Living in a cozy cottage in Gordons Bay with her husband Dave and their dogs, Tandy crafts recipes using fresh, local, seasonal, and organic ingredients. As someone who is sucrose intolerant, she adapts all her dishes to use fructose. Passionate about cooking from the heart to nourish the soul, Tandy is eagerly anticipating the completion of her new, larger kitchen. When not cooking, she sells natural and organic products and travels annually to explore new culinary delights. DeliveryRank has the pleasure.

Tandy, your blog mentions your early memories of food, including your grandmother's pantry and cooking with your aunts. How have these experiences influenced your cooking style and the recipes you create?

Cooking for family has always brought joy. And now cooking for friends brings the same level of love. I don’t cook the traditional fare I grew up with, unless it is a roast chicken, which is pure comfort food. My cooking has veered more to the Mediterranean due to the diet we follow. I specifically cook Italian dishes, based on our extensive travels to Italy. Their cuisine is unique to each region, is simple to prepare in most instances, and always delivers on taste. When cooking for Dave and I, our meals are simple. But when I cook for a dinner party I go all out and will do extremely technical recipes. The preparation for these reminds me of being with my grandmother on Jewish High Holy Days, when organization is everything.

You mention being sucrose intolerant and adapting your recipes to use fructose. How has this affected your approach to cooking and recipe development, and what advice do you have for others with similar dietary restrictions?

Luckily, fructose is gram for gram replaceable with sucrose, which means I don’t have to adapt recipes I test too much. But it has been a challenge when developing recipes where the way sucrose behaves is key, like in meringues. Sucrose is referred to as sugar, which is usually made from cane. I have been on a sucrose restricted diet since my twenties (over 30 years now) and I have not had any medical issues with using fructose as opposed to sugar. I prefer not to use xylitol as it can be deadly to dogs, even if they lick one small crystal of it. As I always have a dog in the kitchen with me, I must be extremely cautious when using anything other than fructose. I have also used erythritol and stevia, but if I can find fructose in our shops, this is the sugar replacement I prefer to use. 

For anyone who finds they are sucrose intolerant I can only advise that you cut out all refined sugars until your body has healed itself. For me, that took several years before my gut behaved properly. I also take a daily chromium supplement, but as I am not a physician, I would recommend to anyone that they consult with their doctor before adding this to their regime. I now indulge in sugar-based desserts when we eat out and travel, knowing my digestive system can handle a little bit of sucrose.

What does food encompass for you?

Simply put, food equals love. I could never be the person who eats to live. I really do live to eat, and cook, and shop for fresh ingredients. I grew up with so many diverse foods and eating experiences. Plain simple meals at my dad’s mother, very elaborate dinners at my mom’s father, and good home cooking from my mom. We ate out from an early age at restaurants, and at local bistros and steakhouses. My Grandparents came from different parts of Europe so we ate a lot of different types of foods. And Jewish High Holy days meant all sorts of traditional dishes were prepared and tasted.

How has travel influenced your cooking and the recipes you share on your blog? Are there any memorable dishes or ingredients you've discovered during your travels that have made their way into your recipes?

The main thing that travel has influenced is my shopping habits. When we are overseas, we shop every day at local markets for that night’s dinner. Sadly, we do not have proper markets here. But I do go to a local store every day to buy fresh produce. I am also hyper aware of food miles, as I have seen South African produce on sale in Europe. I prefer to buy local, seasonal ingredients, and this is a habit I picked up in Italy when in small rural communities. 

There are so many memorable dishes, and to name just one would be so difficult. We had porchetta in Gubio, which I have recreated at home. And the most amazing octopus’ dish in the South of Italy that I am still trying to perfect. In Toulouse there was cassoulet; whelks, and oysters in Brittany; and in Scotland, razor clams and langoustines. I could go on and on about the different things I have tried. But what is most important is the memories I have of all the amazing food, and produce I have tried because of our travels.

You've participated in various community challenges and competitions. How has being part of these events enriched your cooking journey and your blog? 

Personally, I do not think competitions have enriched my cooking journey. The local competitions have not been played on a level playing field. And this has been so disappointing that I no longer put myself forward to participate. Community challenges on the other hand have been great, and when I started out blogging, they were the perfect way to meet other bloggers. Sadly, these challenges no longer exist. And I no longer have the need to find new ones to join. I now blog for myself and I find that this way there is zero pressure to perform. In saying that, I do feel my recipes, and recipe development is worth something. 

Before I started blogging, I won several recipe competitions. I have had recipes featured in high end magazines, and overseas publications. Last year I submitted recipes to be considered for publication in a local recipe book compilation, and two of my recipes have been chosen. So, I know within myself that my recipes are great, and this encourages me to continue sharing them.

If you would like to find out more about Tandy Sinclair, visit https://tandysinclair.com/