The solution to routinely losing your car at Bulls Head is, of course, to park in the same spot every day. I'm not sure why I didn't think of this before, but a multitude of smug-parkers pointed out the obvious after last week's tale of woe. I've now chosen a space on the highest covered level, to make sure the car stays cool but also to make me do the stairs! Every little bit of exercise helps, especially today as despite preaching to you about sensible portion sizes, I ate a mountain of chocolate last night.

The thing is, it was all too easy. The husband and I were having an unusually relaxing evening. With the baby safely tucked up in bed and the dog curled up at our feet, we wound down from the day with dinner, a movie and a therapeutic glass of wine. I had a large (dark, organic!) bar of chocolate on the coffee table and as it was there – you know how it goes. Now, normally I'm interrupted from doing anything for more than a few minutes by Jasper the dog. He's resigned himself to getting less attention when Chloe is around, but once she's in bed, he'll give me that forlorn look all dogs have perfected so well, until I play with him. However, last night he simply lay by our sides all night snoozing – perfect! Perfect at least until I realised something was wrong.

It turns out that earlier on, during a whirlwind moment when I was feeding Jasper, playing with Chloe, talking to my Mum and starting dinner, I muddled up Jasper's medication. Instead of giving him an anti-fungal pill for an ear infection, I managed to give him a canine tranquiliser. To be fair, the pills and bottles look exactly the same, but I was absolutely mortified!

I was even more mortified when I realised he was so dopey, he couldn't really walk, so I had to hold him up outside to pee. My poor husband, who had just drifted off to sleep, was then woken by me all upset because I'd accidentally drugged the dog. While I wailed that I was an unfit mother, he reassured me that I was simply trying to do too much at once.

This is surely the case for every parent on the planet, and as such I'm now going to try and make your lives easier with a series of quick dinner fixes! Sometimes, finding the time to cook a really healthy meal for your family is hard. What's helpful, is if there are a few "cheat" items you can keep at home that transform cooking into a quick five-minute fix, without any lengthy preparation. The Bragg Liquid Aminos pictured here are fantastic for adding healthy flavour to meals in seconds. This is a liquid protein concentrate that contains essential and non-essential amino acids in their naturally occurring ratios. It tastes very similar to soy sauce and can be used as such – but the two major bonuses are that it contains only one-tenth of the sodium of table salt and absolutely no calories whatsoever. Further, it keeps for ages when stored in the fridge and comes in a handy spray bottle – useful as the flavour is so strong you really don't need much.

I probably use this product most often for stir-frys. Stir-frys are so quick at night, especially if served with a little wholegrain pasta – which cooks more quickly than wholegrain rice. If you are seriously pushed for time, you can buy pre-cut stir-fry veggies in Lindo's. These can be quite expensive so I tend to pad them out with shredded carrot or bean sprouts.

To add protein to the stir-fry, I use either raw cashew nuts or firm tofu (chopped into one-half-inch cubes) and spray them fairly liberally with the Braggs. Once the veggies are al dente, you then simply throw in the tofu or nuts for a few more minutes and you're all set. If I do have extra time, I'll leave the tofu to marinade in the fridge for half an hour which gives an even better flavour.

Similarly, if you have an extra 10 minutes for the nuts then try roasting them gently in the oven at no higher than 160F. Commercially roasted nuts tend to be roasted at such a high temperature that the good fats are ruined. However, roasting at a lower temperature for no more than 20 minutes is OK.

The Bragg Liquid Aminos can also be used to add flavour to chicken or fish. You can buy it at Lindo's in Devonshire and most other grocery stores with organic/health sections.

The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns is a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist. Contact her at clinicalnutrition@gmail.com.