Glorious green smoothie bowl – your 5 a day in one

So, as promised, here is the first Monday in May recipe to help you get your 5 a day. And this one is a corker. It’s creamy, it’s tasty and so freaking good for you it deserves a halo.

I love smoothies – whether they’re in a glass if they’re liquid enough to drink, or in a bowl or jar to eat with a spoon. They’re super easy to make, and unlike juicing, you do get the whole goodness of the fruit/veg because you’re not discarding the goodness containing pulp. But it’s also very easy to turn smoothies into sugar bombs that will blow your healthy eating out of the water and bring on cravings and love handles. So how do you avoid that?

Well, first off, don’t too many sugar-laden fruits – we’re hearing a lot of scaremongering about fruits being full of sugar and how we need to avoid them. I am NOT going to start off down the ‘don’t eat fruit’ trail, because I think it’s a load of tosh. Tosh, I tell ya! I think it’s FAR better to eat an apple or banana than a Mars Bar. So if you’re craving something something sweet, fruit is definitely going to be a waaaaaaay better option than chocolate that will stick to your innards and fatten you up. But I will give a little warning that with smoothies, something different happens – firstly, you’re squishing the fruit up, so you tend to eat more of it than you necessarily would if you were picking it out the fruit bowl. And secondly, the process of squishing changes the sugar structure of the fruit, so it’s not held intrinsically in the cells but becomes an extrinsic sugar… which basically means that it acts more like refined sugar that you’d find in the sugar bowl. So when you’re blitzing up fruit, you want to make sure that you’re choosing the slightly lower sugar fruits like berries and be careful that you don’t overload.

The other thing that you should do with smoothies, especially if you’re using slightly higher sugar fruits, is to combine them with some form of protein. Protein helps to slow down the digestion of the sugars which, as well as keeping you fuller for longer, will also keep the blood sugar spike under control. I use protein in all manner of forms – whey protein powder, Greek yoghurt, nut butter, chia seeds… they will all help slow down digestion, but also taste awesome too! Cinnamon is also good at controlling blood sugar spikes, so is another good addition to your blender.

Glorious green smoothie bowl

So let’s look at what goes into my glorious green smoothie – and how to get your 5 a day in one hit…

Ingredients: 

Ingredients for the 5 a day smoothie bowl

• 1 cereal bowl of kale leaves, chopped, thick veins removed (use spinach if kale is too scary for you)
• 5cm chunk of cucumber (you will hardly taste this)
• 1/2 avocado
• 1 small banana
• 80g (about half a cup) of frozen mixed berries
• 1 scoop vanilla why protein powder
• 1 tbsp milled flaxseed (for added protein and fibre)
• 1/2 tsp spirulina (for added vitamins, minerals and protein) – optional
• 1 cup almond milk (or whatever milk you’d prefer)

Simply chuck all the ingredients into the blender and blitz for a minute or so until it’s properly smooth and silky. The avocado and banana will make this super creamy, while the berries and protein powder add a sweetness to make it taste gorgeous. Add more milk or water to yours if you’d prefer to drink it, but I ate this one out of a bowl, topped with fresh strawbs and pumpkin seeds. YUM. And a great way to kick off the day with a bowlful of goodness! Halo is firmly intact. 🙂

Bowlful of goodness

Let me know if you try this! What other breakfasts do you have that pave your way for a good 5 a day?

Meat-free made easy: 3 tasty tips for veggie newbies

It’s the end of my meat free month. And if truth be told, I’m a little mournful. But then again, I am SO EXCITED about my simple salmon supper tonight (yep, not the massive steak that I thought I’d be devouring at one minute after midnight on 1 May)! I did genuinely love it. I had to deal with massive energy slumps and the occasional pang for something slightly meaty… but the experience was definitely more positive than I expected. I haven’t lost any weight (that’ll be the cheese then), but I haven’t gained any either. I don’t feel noticeably healthier, but I do love the new tastes and luscious goodness in the dishes I’ve been trying. And I’m also super conscious of restaurant choices when I now meet up with my veggie friends – man alive, sometimes the choices for veggies can be DIRE. Sort it out restaurateurs!

As a vegetable-lover, it wasn’t a hardship to eat more of the green and fresh stuff. But (wo)man can’t live by veg alone (well… you can… but… you know…!) So there were a couple of additional special ingredients which, although I’ve eaten regularly before, were my go-to favourites.

All hail halloumi

Halloumi became my carnivorous craving-stopper.

• On the BBQ, try skewers with halloumi and a range of veg (peppers, courgettes, mushrooms, tomatoes) marinaded in either a fresh n’ zesty lemon (zest and juice for maximum zing!), lime and mint; or for a bit of a kick in chilli, garlic and ginger with lemon juice.
• For a comfort food cuddle on a plate, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with a bit of halloumi and pesto with pasta. I like to dry fry the halloumi with extra garlic (I’m a delight to sit next to the following day!) and chuck in some green stuff – whatever you’ve got going to be honest – peas, mange tout, courgette, baby brussel sprouts, green beans…. Add a couple of teaspoons of pesto (make sure it’s proper vegetarian if you’re being ultra-veggie) and add your wholewheat/gluten free pasta… Nyom.
• And another quick n’ easy delight was grilled halloumi with a cheeky little salsa of chopped cherry tomatoes, sweetcorn, spring onions and avocado with a bit of parsley, chilli, olive oil and lemon juice – I often ate this on it’s own, but it worked great with a  wholewheat wrap, pitta bread or mexican style rice.

Praise be for chickpeas!

• A stolen recipe from a friend of mine – chickpea curry, straight up and simples. Just fry up your onion and garlic, add your chickpeas, curry powder and tin of tomatoes and simmer right down… I added aubergine and red peppers to flesh it out a bit, but you could add anything that tickles your fancy!
• Chickpea salads were an awesome filling lunchtime extravaganza. With some fresh chopped tomatoes, cucumber, onions, sweetcorn, radish, leaves and a bit of a sesame oil/tahini/lemon juice dressing… you were in for a treat. Add loads of fresh herbs (I love that my herb garden seems to have survived the drowning of the winter months!) and maybe a handful of feta for a creamy boost, and all for less than £2 for a massive lunch… A prime example of why packed lunches kick ass.
• Warming Moroccan spices, mixed with onions, garlic, chickpeas and aubergine, served with a bit of couscous or quinoa, felt almost holiday-esque!

Ave avocado

Avo has always been a firm favourite of mine. Growing up in Zim they were the size of small rugby balls… none of this palm-sized malarky that we get in the UK. And the abundance of them in the tree outside my childhood home means that I am so happy with finding a gazillion things to do with avo’s for breakfast, lunch and dinner… but sometimes the simple things are the best!

• My absolute favourite breakfast (instead of the fry up that the man in my life prefers!) has long been to have avocado mashed on toasted rye bread with scrambled egg, bacon and grilled tomatoes on top. And all I had to do to vegetise (if that’s not a word, it should be!) it, was to avoid the bacon! Easy! And AMAZEBALLS.
• To me, avocado isn’t just a fruit, it’s something that can immediately take something a wee bit bland and amplify all it’s tastiness in one massive hit! So you have a mixed bean salad. Meh. Add avocado to it and suddenly you’re transported down the taste super highway! Okay, maybe not that extreme, but you get what I’m saying. And the good thing is, it’s packed full of the natural, good monounsaturated fats that are good for us… unlike cheese.
• The simplest dinner of all… and the one that kicked ass for me time and time again: the humble avocado on toast. Rye bread (I like the ultra nutty rye, but even regular wholemeal works a treat), with nothing but half a ripe mashed avo, with black pepper, a touch of salt and (if you’re feeling well posh) a drizzle of balsamic glaze.

Thanks for the recipe ideas and inspiration during the month of April. I’m not going to lie, I won’t be giving up meat entirely. But I’m already quite happily settling in to my ‘more-veggie-days’ existence. Tomorrow night, the meat-eater-man is having steak, and I’ve actually opted for a bean stew. Wonders will never cease! … 🙂

 

Packin’ a good lunch

I love a packed lunch. Not just because I’m a penny-watcher (although it’s without a doubt more cost efficient to bring your own), but also because I get to choose what I want to eat and I know that it’s fresh and healthy with no hidden nasties. To some people, watching your weight and bringing in a packed lunch might mean that you’re faced with the prospect of eating a portion of yawnsville with a side serving of dullness. I’ve seen the containers in the fridge at work – that tell-tale Tupperware filled with iceberg lettuce and a dry looking piece of chicken. Or a few celery sticks and a rice cake. Or, the worst offender (for the poor individual, but also the rest of the office), a watery-looking cabbage soup. I’ve mentioned before how mixing things up and adding a bit of variety can be motivating and help you enjoy your food and stay on the right track. Just because you’re counting the calories doesn’t mean you need to lose your sense of lunch time adventure!

There are several reasons why you might not do a packed lunch. The most obvious excuse is always the lack of time. But if you’ve thought it through, it’s actually something that can be done whilst you’re making dinner the night before. All it takes is a little habit forming. Yes, I know, it’s easier said than done.

My trick is down to menu planning. Long before my growing interest in food and nutrition formed, I was planning menus to make sure that we could eat nice food on our measly budgets. I have a notebook, which I plan out breakfasts, lunches and dinners for me, and mostly for him too… I have been mocked by friends for years for it, but hey, you know what? It works for me! It means that when I go to the supermarket, I know exactly what I need to get. And I’m less likely to stray. It also means that I can spend a Sunday prepping as much as possible before the week ahead so I don’t have to faff around on weekdays when the whirlwind of life is swooping me up and spitting me out.

So, let me take a typical week of working packed lunches for you:

• Monday: leftover venison sausage and quinoa casserole. I made a big pot for lunch on Sunday and had enough leftover for a really tasty lunch. Packed with protein and vegetables, it wasn’t too heavy to leave me flailing on a Monday afternoon.

• Tuesday: homemade butternut and lentil soup. I made 4 portions on Sunday and froze two for next week. The lentils gave a good boost of protein, and I’d normally eat this with an oatcake or Ryvita for some wholegrain carbs. The soup pots are super easy to just pick up in the morning – no mess, no fuss. So it’s great for days when I’ve had a really busy evening the night before and no time to think about things.

• Wednesday: tuna mixed with Greek yoghurt (extra protein and makes it creamy), with a salad of spinach, olives, tomatoes, red onion and my absolute fave, avocado. A little bit stinky, but oh so tasty. Not to mention super easy. I chopped up the salad while dinner was cooking and literally just chucked it in. I dressed the salad with lemon juice, great with the yoghurty tuna.

• Thursday: leftover rice, quinoa and butternut squash from my meal the night before with grated carrot, cherry tomatoes, feta cheese and beetroot. I dressed it with balsamic vinegar and a touch of olive oil. Was more-ishly more-ish.

• Friday: I had the second pot of butternut and lentil soup. Nice n’ easy!

How do you make time for healthy, homemade lunches?

Food: the elixir of life?

I have a birthday coming up. It’s not a big one, but it’s the biggest one I’ve had so far. And I’m reaching that stage where I’m suddenly starting to notice things getting a little less young looking. I’m slightly more creased than I used to be. And am prone to looking a bit like I’ve had a rough night – which is particularly disconcerting when I’ve had a full 8 hours sleep. If we really are what we eat, then I need to start eating something to pump the youth back into me. So I’ve been having a little meander through the wealth of information on t’internet to see what food can do for our skin, hair, eyes and general well being… And because I’m more generous in my old age, I thought I’d share it with you!

It goes without saying that a diet packed full of veg and fruit (more veg than fruit!) is the best all round fix. But there are other things that I think most people might overlook. So here’s my top 3 things to turn us into sprightly young things of youthly youngfulness*
(*NB – I may be prone to slight exaggeration.)

• Embrace the fats: but make sure they’re the right kind of fats. Avocado and salmon (the natural monounsaturated fats) = yes. Am particularly obsessed with coconut oil at the moment too – from cooking with it, to rubbing it on my skin direct from the jar… it’s a lush-smelling pot of love! These types of natural fats pour a world of good into your body, and do wonders for the skin. Fast food and margarine (transfats) = no. The bad fats clog your arteries and take away elasticity from the skin.
• Sugar is the devil. Yes, I know, it’s also oh-so-tasty and (according to Mary Poppins) ‘makes the medicine go down’… But I’m sure we’ve all had the odd spotty outbreak after gorging on chocolate. Sugar makes it more difficult for our bodies to heal. And it depletes collagen in our blood which is what keeps our skin nice and tight. So basically sugar = wrinkles. Luckily, there are a whole heap of natural sugar replacements – I use agave nectar (great on porridge) and stevia (sugar-free baking here you come!).
• Drink plenty from the fountain of youth: sadly it doesn’t overflow with wine, sugary squash or fizzy stuff. Now, you’ll have a tough time prising a glass of wine from my hand, but in my defense, I do also try to drink a bucket load of water. Not out of a bucket though. That would attract some strange looks. And, in a nostalgic glance back to my African roots, I am a huge fan of rooibos (red bush) tea which is packed full of antioxidants, is anti-inflammatory and is a great caffeine free cuppa. Bliss.

Obviously that’s just skimming the surface – there’s plenty else that can be done to help slow the inevitable aging process. I’d love to hear your top three tips… And I plan to be more rigorous with putting mine into practice… just as soon as the birthday is out of the way. Well, it would be rude not to… 😉