by Siobhan | Aug 7, 2017 | Desserts, Health
Juju-what?
A jujube. They’re like the dates cousin. They’re a soft, sweet fruit that originated from Asia. One difference I’ve noticed is that they’re not as sticky as other dried fruit which is actually a nice surprise because then you’re not scraping them off your teeth for an hour afterwards.
Benefits
The jujube fruit is a rich source of Vit C and also contains small amounts of manganese, calcium and iron. It’s also packed with fibre, antioxidants and flavonoids such as quercetin and epicatechin (also found in green tea). Therefore they have traditionally been used to help keep a healthy immune system, provide energy and maintain a healthy digestive system, some compounds in the jujube can have a mild sedative action which explains why they’re also used as a night time tea.
These snacks have no added sugar, no chemical additives, are gluten and dairy-free, paleo, sulphite-free, and suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
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by Siobhan | Aug 2, 2017 | Advice, Health
Any food or drink when consumed in excess can lead to detrimental effects but these are a few which I feel can be easily overdone without even realising it, after all, if some is good, then more is better, right?
Not necessarily, so I felt it would be a good post to help explain why you should try to monitor your intake of these foods, meaning you can still enjoy them and their benefits without suffering unwanted effects.
Please don’t let this put you off food or make you feel it’s too hard to be healthy, it is meant to empower you, not discourage you.
Brazil nuts: selenium is a powerful antioxidant and is great for your thyroid and immune system but too much can result in brittle nails/hair, nausea and more severe symptoms.
Brazil nuts are the most dense source of selenium so 1 or 2 a day depending on your weight & gender will provide more than the RDI for selenium so there really is no need to go over board and remember that you can also get selenium from other foods too (meat, seafood, dairy). Therefore if you feel you haven’t consumed enough from your diet over the past few days then popping a brazil into your smoothie or yogurt is great for rectifying this, just don’t go regularly eating a whole bag of chocolate covered brazil nuts!
Seafood: Depending on where it’s from and how it’s sourced certain fish e.g. farmed salmon, most tuna and the big predators such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel etc usually contain high levels of mercury so eating these kinds isn’t recommended. Instead, stick to 1 or 2 portions of fish a week, with at least 1 portion being oily and opt for wild caught Alaskan salmon (or check with the fish monger about their mercury/growing conditions), sardines, hake, cod, small Atlantic mackerel (not king mackerel) and you can occasionally have skipjack tuna.
For good infographics, see here.
There are other choices, so do some research to find ones that are accessible to you and with the lowest levels.
This information is especially important for kids/petite women/those trying to get pregnant.
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by Siobhan | Jul 24, 2017 | Dinner, Grainfree, Popular
“Taco” a look at this indulgent, healthier Saturday night fakeaway! (sorry, couldn’t resist).
For those of you not from Northern Ireland you may have a different idea of what a taco chip is but over here it’s a typical takeaway dish that uses fried white chips that get covered in mince, melted cheese and a special taco sauce. It’s a properly indulgent, Saturday night blowout kind of treat. I’ve only ever had it once or twice in my life and I’m not going to lie, it’s flipping delicious! However, I’ve never really liked red meat so would always pick around this bit and I’ve been craving one recently so I decided to make a healthier one. This is what I tend to do with my cravings, I’ll try to satisfy them with a healthier homemade version first, which works 9 times out of 10.
What’s even better is that this version contains 2/5 a day (the tomato puree actually counts as 1 as it’s so concentrated) and contains many more nutrients with none of the deep fried fat as it’s baked, you can also get some good omega 3 fats in there too by choosing an organic cheddar cheese.
As for the mayo and cheese, I feel no guilt with these ingredients as I use good quality versions and the rest of the dish is pretty lean therefore it actually needs the fat for flavour and moisture, otherwise you wouldn’t really want to eat it, but trust me, if you make this version, you WILL!
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by Siobhan | Jul 20, 2017 | Breakfast, Grainfree, snack, vegan
Fancy dessert for breakfast with all of the flavours and creaminess with the bonus of it counting as 3 of your 5 a day?
Of course you do!
Here’s my take on the smoothie version of a black forest gateau with the creaminess coming from avocado and the rich chocolate flavour from cacao powder, but you can use unsweetened cocoa powder if you like.
Benefits: You get a fair antioxidant hit from the berries and cacao plus the avocado and cacao are great for skin, making this a tasty and nourishing brekkie!
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by Siobhan | Jul 17, 2017 | Desserts, snack
Steal his bun if you dare!
In celebration of Game of Thrones coming back on I’ve created “Sansa’s soft & simple lemon cakes”. Some of you may remember these from previous seasons, they are small “cakes” that can be eaten with one hand and are Sansa’s favourite, probably due to the fact that she usually lives in an area that’s so cold it could never grow lemons. Fortunately for us we have a steady supply all year round so make the most of it and bake up a batch of these to munch on while you watch the latest episode.
I’m so so happy with how good these turned out, they’re so soft, tasty AND made with wholesome, nourishing ingredients including a high fibre wholemeal flour that I got at Tesco for just £1.10! This flour has added gluten to make the buns lighter so I recommend getting this one but any wholemeal flour (except rice) should work fine, I recommend buckwheat for gluten free.
I used honey to sweeten as it’s easy to find, affordable and natural, I also used some lovely, organic grass fed butter to make these buns moist and delicious.
I was tempted to make a topping/frosting for these but honestly, they don’t need it, they’re great the way they are but if you have it and want to make the buns look a little fancier then sprinkle them with baobab powder, this is a dried fruit powder that’s citrusy and rich in vitamin C.
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