Browse the internet or a bookshop and you’ll find a slew of advice on how to be taken more seriously – by your partner, your colleagues, or even by your own children. Lower your voice, hold someone’s gaze, focus on the things most important to you, and so on. It’s important too, because it’s how you get people to listen to your ideas – and even a three-year-old knows that not being listened to is one of the most frustrating things in the world. (I am writing on the eve of International Women’s Day.)

Whether these methods work is another matter, but to be taken seriously must be something we want, or we wouldn’t be so open to all that lecturing on the subject. Strange that, because I don’t see much evidence of us putting these ideas into practice. Open your eyes and ears to it: in the office sentences trail off into self-conscious laughter (of both the boisterous and meek kind); at the playground parents absent-mindedly chide small children with one eye still on their Facebook-covered iPhone screens; and lovers on the tube quarrel in mock baby voices. Mostly, it seems, we’re busy trying to be liked (whether by our new boyfriend or on social media) instead.

Now, the time is ripe for a radically different approach – which, thankfully, has nothing to do with the tone of your voice. It starts with taking yourself more seriously, especially when it comes to what you eat and drink. You’ll soon find that the food which makes you feel satisfied and energetic, rather than bloated and rather lacklustre, both pleasingly reduces the sizes of your waist and gives you a certain, necessary resolve to tackle life’s other challenges. You see, saying no to the biscuits being passed around the office is excellent practice for suggesting an imposed deadline may be unrealistic. Stopping yourself eating the entire tub of ice-cream in the freezer requires the same sort of will power needed to get up and go for a run the next morning. And, gently putting your hand over your wine glass as a generous host proffers the bottle round the table helps you feel comfortable straying from the herd to make your voice heard.

Simply put: eating good food in a measured and sensible way is a matter of self-respect. You owe it to yourself. Engender this feeling and you’ll discover a reserve of previously hidden confidence, particularly useful for batting off such comments as: “Oh, life’s too short only to eat salad.” or “How can you pass up on cake?” or “What, chips without ketchup and mayonnaise, are you mad?” – which are not only ignorant but also untrue. And on that note, which vegetable could be more self-respecting than beetroot … 

A self-respecting beetroot salad 

(Serves 4 and can be made quickly allowing for plenty of other very serious activities) 

Ingredients 

• 4 small beetroots (cooked, vacuum-packed, with no vinegar!)
• 3 courgettes (smallish ones)
• 2 avocados
• 150g quinoa or brown rice
• Olive oil
• 2 lemons
• Tahini
• Parsley
• Mint
• Cider vinegar
• 1 garlic clove
• Block of feta / large goat’s cheese / 4 smoked trout fillets (take your pick but note the dish tastes equally good without any of them)
• Handful of walnuts

Method 

Boil the quinoa or rice, depending your preference. Note that brown rice takes more than twice as long to cook as quinoa (40 mins vs. 15 mins) so allow yourself time appropriate.

Wash and cut the courgettes into smallish chunks. Place these in a microwavable dish, cover with the juice of one lemon, a sprinkle of salt (though unnecessary in my opinion), and a generous swirl of olive oil. Cover and microwave for three minutes. If you don’t like the idea of microwaving, or indeed don’t own one, then you can easily cook them gently (using exactly the same ingredients) in a broad-based pan with the lid on – you will need to cook them for longer (perhaps 10 minutes). Leave to cool a little.

Drain the beetroot (there’s always some extra juice in the packet), cube and then put into a large salad bowl. Scoop in your two avocado, and chop in a good-sized bunch of parsley using the kitchen scissors. Cover the three ingredients with the juice of the second lemon.

Then make the dressing in a small water glass. Grate a clove over garlic into the glass. Using an ordinary kitchen fork, whisk together the garlic and 3/4 inch cider vinegar with a tsp of tahini and a generous glug of olive oil  (use slightly more oil than vinegar). Chop in four to five mint fresh mint leaves. Add salt and pepper to taste.

By this point your grain (quinoa / rice) and courgettes should have cooled slightly (they’ll be delicious warm, but will spoil the avocado if piping hot). Tip both into the bowl, making sure to use all of the lemony courgette juice. Then drizzle over your dressing and gently stir the entire mixture using a large metal spoon. Add a little more olive oil if the mixture looks too dry.

Top the salad with crumbled cheese (feta or goat’s cheese) and walnuts before serving, if using. With smoked trout, serve the salad topped only with walnuts, alongside the fillets on the plate. Or simply eat it on its own, perhaps with a spoonful of hummus – which, if using quinoa, is a perfectly balanced and nutritious meal. If you’re feeling really fancy, you can serve on a bed of freshly washed spinach.