Yes, the bacon and sausages pulverise well but the hash browns can still leave bits...

Good source of info here Brian. Lentils wouldn't really be a substitute for carbs, but they are high in dietary fibre and a good source of protein. They have numerous health benefits, but I guess you already realise that?

I don't really follow recipes as such, as I've been cooking for so long - however I do use on-line recipes as a source of inspiration, and mostly the BBC Food website. In general if not planning meals and looking for something new to cook, I look to see what's in the fridge, lets say I have a lot of courgettes, I go on-line, Google courgette recipes, read a few for ideas and then put something together myself.

Red lentils are particularly good as they cook quickly and don't need pre-soaking. One of my all time favourite soup recipes is yellow Dahl and was adapted from this -  www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/slow_cooker_split_pea_93320

I cook it in the pressure cooker (about 20 mins), use more liquid and omit the fried cumin in oil as you would serve with a traditional dahl - I up the chilli content too and don't measure or weigh. If I have curry leaves I use them, if not I don't, no biggy. All I generally need for a recipe is a list of ingredients. Give it a try though, I love it served with a warm pitta. I blitz it too with a stick blender, taking about a cup out before, then blitzing the rest and add the cup back in after so you have some texture variation. I also add lemon juice or white vinegar if I don't have lemon.

I kept a food diary religiously for ages and learnt that carbs were not good for me, I logged every single thing I ate and weighed myself everyday and soon discovered carbs were the devil. I still eat carbs, but not often and not in large amounts. I'm pretty much plant based Mon-Fri but doubt I could ever be a full on vegetarian - I'm a flexitarian for ethical, environmental and health reasons

An update on smoothie making. I'm still doing it! As well as Wagamama's Raw Juice (a favourite which I can now successfully make), I play with recipes quite a lot and have settled on another favourite created by me:

1 cored apple; 1/3 banana; 1/2 inch ginger; 1/8 unwaxed lemon with rind; blueberries to the top; top up with water. Makes a lovely smoothie with the sweetness of the blueberries offset by the citrus flavour.