Say Cheese! It’s National Healthy Bones Week

This year National Healthy Bones Week will run from 4-8 August. This event, run by Dairy Australia, aims to raise awareness of the importance of dairy and other calcium-rich foods in maintaining healthy bones and preventing osteoporosis later in life. A diet rich in calcium, along with weight-bearing activity such as walking, is essential for developing and maintaining strong bones.

Stuck for ideas about ways to consume calcium-rich foods? There are plenty of great recipes in The Food Book that include a variety of dairy products, such as milk and cheese.

For a quick meal, try making a rich, creamy alfredo sauce (The Food Book p. 243) to serve with wide fettuccini or the store cupboard classic, tuna mornay (The Food Book p. 265) – both recipes contain parmesan, which has an intense and sharp flavour.

For those with a bit more time on your hands, try making some hearty and comforting fish pies with milk (pp. 272-273). Or you could make a deliciously smooth cheese sauce (p. 429) to serve over cauliflower or broccoli.

If you are feeling like something sweet, custard sauce made from custard powder and milk (p. 449) makes for a simple yet sumptuous addition to many desserts. You could add it to old-fashioned winter favourites such as stewed apples (p. 324), baked apples (p. 329) or the steamed jam pudding (p. 347). What ideas do you have for ‘saying cheese’ and consuming foods high in calcium during National Healthy Bones Week?