Smooth Operator - Healthy and Tasty Smoothies for all the family

Smoothies have been around a long time now and at first I wasn't that convinced by them. They seemed packed with sugary foods that taste good but weren't actually that good for you.

However, I have slowly come around to them as a way to pack a lot of nutrients into one meal or as a way to mask some not so tasty ingredients that you know are just so good for you! So long as you make them yourself and don't add too much fruit or lots of fruit juices they are just fine as part of a balanced diet.

This is especially useful for children. I know parents are constantly trying to get as much nutrition into kids as possible without them realising what they are eating is healthy! I was the fussiest eater when I was a kid and I know my mum used to tear her hair out trying to get veggies into me! If you sell these to your kid as a treat, something exciting and fun like a milkshake then they won't even notice you are nourishing them from the inside out! Put them in a fun glass with a cool straw and they will love it.

So I've put together a few smoothie recipes here for you to try out. If you aren't a morning person then these can be made the night before and stored in a sealed container in the fridge. However, like most things in life!, these are best served fresh. 

If you don't have a blender or Nutri-Bullet (which I don't so hint hint family! Christmas is coming!) then you can get relatively cheap hand held blenders in most shops and trust me it is worth the investment!

Black Forest Smoothie:

Ingredients:

1 Banana

Handful of frozen spinach
Handful of frozen berries
1 teaspoon of Spirulina
1 teaspoon of Cinnamon
1 teaspoon of Raw Honey
Milk (dairy or non diary such as Almond, Rice milk etc) or water/Coconut water added to achieve your desired consistency.

You could also add protein powder if desired to make a great pre or post work out shake.

Or if you are on an intense work out programme or just started exercising and have very sore muscles then some cherries or cherry extract would not only taste delicious but also aid with that muscle pain! You can read more on how cherries aid muscle recover here.

Method:

Blend and enjoy!

Storage instructions:

This will keep for about 24 hours in the fridge in a sealed container. But it is best eaten fresh.

Dietary Benefits:

Full of iron, potassium, antioxidants, minerals and vitamins.

Good for the skin, nails and hair.

Gluten Free

Sugar Free

Dairy Free

Paleo

Vegetarian

Vegan

Raw

Breakfast Berry Delight

Ingredients:

1/2 avocado‬

‎1 banana‬
Handful of ‪‎berries‬
Handful of ‎spinach‬
‪‎2 table spoons of chia seeds‬
‪‎1 teaspoon of cinnammon‬
‪‎Coconutwater‬ or water/milk/almond milk etc added until you reach your desired consistency.

You could also add protein powder if desired to make a great pre or post work out shake.

Method:

Blend and enjoy!

This is a great one for kids as it's naturally sweet and looks like a strawberry milkshake but is packed full of ‪greens‬ and goodness. You could even make it the night before and have it ready to go for the morning school dash! You or your children could drink this in the car on the way to work/school in the morning.

Storage instructions:

This will keep for about 24 hours in the fridge in a sealed container. But it is best eaten fresh.

Dietary Benefits:

Full of iron, potassium, antioxidants, minerals and vitamins.

Good for the skin, nails and hair.

Gluten Free

Sugar Free

Dairy Free

Paleo

Vegetarian

Vegan

Raw

So there you have it Jeanies. I'd love to hear from you if you have another super smoothie recipe and I will feature it on the blog. Stay healthy.

Paleo, Italian, Summer Salad

The kids might be back to school and the Sunday evening, sandwich making ritual may have begun but I for one REFUSE to believe summer is over! To make myself feel more summery I decided to experiment with some summer flavours recently and invented my Paleo, Italian Summer Salad.

This is light, tasty, fills you up and takes just minutes to prepare. Even my 'Salads don't fill me up, can I have Chips too?' husband approved of it and said he really enjoyed it. (Spot his chips in the pictures below!)  Here's how you can make it too.

Ingredients:

Chicken/Turkey/Beef (meat optional as always!)

Good Quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Squeeze of lemon juice

Rock Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Freshly chopped Basil, Rosemary, Thyme (I grow these 3 easily and cheaply on my windowsill) 

Sliced fresh mozzarella (comes in a bag of fluid)

Organic vegetables of choice. Here I used:

Rocket

Cherry tomatoes

Yellow and Orange Peppers

Cucumber 

Mustard and Balsamic optional.

Method:

Time allowing, chop your meat and leave it marinade in a few dashes of olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, basil, rosemary, thyme. Thoroughly coat all the meat and allow to rest for as long as you have! If you don't have time to marinade just quickly toss the meat in the ingredients and move onto the next step.

Chop all your veggies and arrange as you feel fit on your plate.

On a low, gentle heat in a cermanic pan, cook the meat including oil, herbs and seasoning until fully cooked. 

Slice mozzarella into strips or chunks.

Arrange chicken and mozarella to the side of veggies or on top.

Using any excess juice left in the pan add some balsamic vinegar and a spoon of honey mustard to make a lovely dressing served on the side or drizzled over the top.

Enjoy as is or serve with crinkled oven chips for your husband!

The best thing about this recipe is it's quick and easy to make double portions. I usually make enough for 3 and keep some of everything to the side so I can take it for my lunch the next day. This massively cuts down on waste, time and effort and ensures you have a healthy meal ready to go for the next day.

Prep Time:

5 minutes, more if you marinade

Cook time:

15 minutes or as long as the meat is safely cooked

Dietary Information:
Gluten Free

Wheat free

Sugar Free 

Paleo 

High in protein

Vegetarian - leaving out the meat. Add nuts or more cheese instead.

Olive Oil is full of good fats, Omega 3s and excellent for hair, skin and nails.

Rosemary boosts immunity, increases circulation, aids digestion, is an excellent anti-inflammatory - great for asthmatics - and increases concentration. 

Basil helps clear skin, alleviates stress and worry and boost your mood.

Thyme is a natural disinfectant helping to fight bugs and bad bacteria in the body, lowers blood pressure and helps with coughing.

Enjoy this light, refreshing and satisfying salad anytime of day. And stay strong Jeanies! Summer is NOT over!

Can you eat clean and be Vegetarian?

I recently had an enquiry from a lady who is Vegetarian and was struggling to eat foods that are not heavy, starchy and processed. It's a common complaint and one I've been thinking about for a while.

Here is my reply below. As always feel free to ask me any questions, I'm more than happy to respond!

Hi Ruth, Yes I totally agree lots of veggie food is heavy and starchy and often people think they are being healthy just by virtue of being vegetarian. But a life of pizza and pasta is not very healthy! Saying that other vegetarians are some of the healthiest people I know. Here are some ideas to still eat clean...without the meat!

- Bulk things up with seeds and nuts. Not too many just add them to each dish for extra fuel, nutrients and omega 3s. Walnuts are the best nut and Chia Seeds the best seed. See my post on them here. I add them to pretty much everything, my husband even has them on his ice-cream! Link here

- Try sweet potatoes instead of regular potatoes. Click here for a recipe for sweet potato wedges and here is a list of their benefits.

Or you could make this stew and substitute the sausage for more veggies Spicy Sweet Potato Stew.

-Try these other salad recipes to have in the fridge ready to bulk up meals:

Red Cabbage Salad
Brocolli Salad

Eat lots of fresh soups and eat them with some Clean oat bread. Both recipes here:

Clean Oat Bread
Superfood Healing Soup

Spinach Pesto to add flavour to plain meals Link here

Snacks:

Bruschetta

Omelette

- Some clean desserts:

Coconut and Mango Drizzle Cake

Carrot Cakes (also good at breakfast)

Avocado Mousse

When travelling Click here for eating clean while travelling tips

Breakfasts options:

French Toast

Granola

Good for the Gut Breakfast
Pancakes (2 types)

Hummus is also a great add to the diet. I am just perfecting a recipe for roasted red pepper hummus which will be on the blog soon!

Hope they help!

Any more questions just let me know!

Jean

x

Spicy Sausage and Sweet Potato Stew

If there is one thing Germany is know for it's Sausages! And I must admit their range and quality of ingredients is great. So I've come up with this new recipe to showcase just how you too can experience the flavour and enjoy this delicious combination.


If you are in Ireland then O'Flynn Sausage (check them out here) do an amazing range of high quality sausages. They are 95% meat with some spices and herbs. Nothing else, no nasty ingredients. Please avoid using highly processed, low meat content sausages for this recipe. In Germany the general Bratwurst you get in the supermarket are typically 97% pork with spices and salt and so these are also perfect.

For the spicy sausage in Ireland SuperValu do a great Chrizo that is just pork, paprika, garlic and salt. No other nasty ingredients or fillers. In Germany you can get lots of gluten free, sugar free cured and smoked sausages to add some spicy flavour. Rewe do a great range and they aren't too pricey.

Ingredients:

4-5 large high quality pork sausages
1 stick of chrizo or 4 small sticks of cured sausages
3 large organic sweet potatoes, washed and chopped. You can leave the skins on.
1 large chopped organic red onion
1 chopped organic sweet pepper
2-3 handfuls of organic spinach (frozen spinach chunks shown here)
3-4 cloves of chopped garlic
1 large jar or organic tomato sauce, just tomato and salt no other ingredients
2 table spoons of Turmeric
1 table spoon of Paprika
1 table spoon of Cumin

Method:

Chop all ingredients. 

Sear the sausages (fresh and smoked/cured) in a large pan for 5-10 minutes. 

Add in the vegetables and stir well.

Cover all the ingredients in the tomato sauce and simmer on a low heat (or in a slow cooker) for 25-30 minutes until the meat is cooked and sweet potato is soft to the touch.

Serve piping hot in a large bowl with a generous spoon! 

Prep Time:

5-10 minutes

Cooking time:

30 minutes

Dietary Information:

Paleo

Gluten Free

Wheat Free

Sugar Free

High in Protein

Low in carbohydrate. High in good carbohydrates - sweet potatoes

Full of healthy vegetables

Cumin aids digestion, lowers blood sugar and prevents hypoglycaemia (excellent for people with diabetes), fights viral infections, rich in Iron.

Paprika is high in Vitamin A, E and Iron. It also has anti ageing properties, prevents hair loss and promotes sound sleep.

Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory with amazing healing and cancer fighting benefits.

Garlic is antibacterial and antiviral so excellent for fighting colds and flu.

Storage Instructions:

I typically make a big batch of this. It keeps in the fridge for a couple of days and is nice cold or heated up the next day for lunch.

It can also be frozen in batches.

Enjoy this healthy, hearty, tasty and easy to make meal.

Red Cabbage and Apple Salad

Red Cabbage and Apple Salad

This salad is so tasty and cheap to make. It looks wonderful and is full of goodness. It can be made in minutes, no cooking involved and is even nicer on the 2^nd or 3^rd day after making. Check out the Dietary Information section below for all the amazing health benefits.

In the ingredients I've listed ½ a head of red cabbage. The other half will keep for weeks in the fridge in a sealed container so don’t throw it out! Alternatively you can just make double!

Ingredients:

Makes 4-6 servings

½ head of Organic Red Cabbage

1 Organic apple

1 heaped tablespoon of Wholegrain Mustard

1 heaped tablespoon of English mustard

4 tablespoons of Organic Apple Cider Vinegar.

Salt and pepper to taste

Drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil if desired

Additions: Chopped Walnuts are delicious in this salad. As are Raisins.

Method

After removing the stem and first outer leaves of the head of cabbage half, slice thinly with a well sharpened knife. Break up the pieces into a large salad bowl cutting in half if desired.

Chop the apple into quarters, remove the core and seeds and chop each quarter into chunks or slices. Adding these to the bowl.

Add both the types or mustard (if you only have one type double the quantities), Apple Cider Vinegar and drizzle of Olive Oil and mix all together.

Serve.

Prep Time

5 minutes

Equipment needed

Sharp knife, large bowl

Dietary Information

Gluten Free

Wheat Free

Paleo

Vegetarian and Vegan

Sugar Free

Contains good fats

Two of your 5 a day

Apple Cider Vinegar is antimicrobial, lowers blood sugar (take note diabetics!), aids fat loss and is good for the heart.

Red Cabbage is packed with flavonoids which are cancer fighting, Vitamin C and K and has lots of fibre and minerals.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away! 

Mustard is high in magnesium and selenium which help fight asthma and chest congestion, slows ageing, are anti-inflammatory (can even be rubbed onto joints!), stimulates hair growth and relieves constipation.  

Storage Instructions:

Keeps for over a week in a sealed container in the fridge. If you want to make it in advance you can leave out the apples (they can go brown) and add them in just before serving. I find the cabbage softens out after at least 12 hours and allows the vinegar to soak in. This makes it even nicer served on the second day.

Serving suggestions

I love to eat this salad with some freshly baked, honey glazed Ham. The mustard and honey go so well together.

It goes with lots of other meats too. It’s great for BBQs (roll on the summer!) and is a fantastic side dish to bring to a party.

Can be used to replace coleslaw as a lower fat, healthier option

Carrot and Ginger Soup - Healing Super-food soup!

Carrot and Ginger Soup

This is a fantastic soup for those cold, winter days but it also lovely and refreshing in the summer. It’s cheap to make, can be kept in the fridge for over a week or frozen in portions.

It has lots of healing ingredients and so is perfect if you are feeling under the weather or run down.

All that and it tastes great too! What’s not to like?

Check out the Dietary Information section below to see all the healing properties of this wonder soup.

Ingredients:

Makes about 6 portions

4 large Organic Carrots

3 Organic Spring Onions

2 cloves of Organic Garlic

2 roots of peeled Organic Ginger (about 2 inches each)

1 teaspoon of Cumin Powder

1 teaspoon of Turmeric Powder

2 heaped tablespoons of Extra Virgin Organic Coconut Oil

Veg Stock cube (Organic and Gluten Free preferable or make your own!)

Water/Yogurt/Coconut Milk or Cream as desired

Method

Melt the coconut oil in a large pot until liquid. Add in roughly chopped onions, garlic and ginger and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add in roughly chopped carrots and stock cube and cover with water.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until the carrots are slightly soft.

Transfer the mixture (including water) to your blender and blitz thoroughly. You can also use a hand blender directly in the pot.

Add in cumin, turmeric, salt and pepper to taste.

This makes a robust, thick soup. If you don’t mind the added fat/calories and want to make it creamier then add in yogurt or coconut milk/cream as desired.

Prep + Cook Time

Prep time: 5-10 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Equipment needed

Large Pot, Blender

Dietary Information

Gluten Free

Wheat Free

Paleo

Vegetarian and Vegan

Sugar Free

Contains good fats

Two of your 5 a day

Garlic is antibacterial and antiviral – good for colds/flus and infections

Ginger is good for digestion issues, nausea, natural anti-inflammatory and boosts the immune system. 

Coconut Oil has many healing properties. It contains good fats and helps you burn fat better. It also helps your brain function more effectively.

Turmeric is a wonder spice it lowers cholesterol, it is cancer fighting and has anti-inflammatory properties among many others. It has recently been proven more effective than 14 Pharmaceutical drugs! More info here

Carrots are full of Vitamin A and beta-carotene (anti-oxidant that repairs cell damage), they improve your eyesight, cleanses the skin and slows down ageing! 

Cumin boosts your immunity, great for asthma or respiratory issues and is good for skin issues.

Storage Instructions:

Keeps in a sealed container in the fridge for over a week. I usually make a large batch, portion it up and freeze. It can be defrosted, heated and ready to eat in less than 10 minutes!

Serving suggestions

Best served fresh with a few curls of freshly grated ginger on a dollop of organic yogurt or coconut cream.

Spinach Pesto

Spinach Pesto

I love Pesto and let’s be honest there aren't many dishes that don’t taste better with a little (or a lot) of Pesto. It is typically made with basil leaves and basil is a brilliant antibacterial agent but to help increase my intake of Spinach I substituted the basil for spinach instead. This recipe can be made with Spinach, Kale or Basil or a combination of all 3. It is made in 5 minutes and keeps in the fridge for 3-4 weeks (sometimes longer) so I usually make a batch and store it. It’s so handy to have it prepared and ready in the fridge for those days you are in a rush and want some instant falvour.

Ingredients:

2 – 3 cups of Organic Spinach (packed) – can use Kale or Basil or combination of all 3

1/2 cup of Cheese (parmesan works best but you can use what’s in the fridge!)

1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive oil (I used the one I brought back from Italy – Delicious!)

1/3 cup of Pine nuts

3 large Organic Garlic cloves peeled and roughly chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Method

Using a blender/nutribullet/mixer blitz the spinach and pine nuts until they form a paste. Add the garlic and chunks of cheese and blend. As the mixer is on slowly add the olive oil ensuring it is evenly added. Using a spoon (or your finger!) taste the mixture and add Salt and Pepper until it is seasoned to your liking. Enjoy!

Prep Time

3-5 minutes

Equipment needed

Blender/Mixer/Nutribullet

Dietary Information

This recipe is:

Gluten Free

Wheat Free

Paleo

Vegetarian (Can be made Vegan if you leave out the cheese)

Sugar Free

Contains good fats

One of your 5 a day

Garlic is antibacterial and antiviral – good for colds/flus and infections

Spinach is high in fibre, chlorophylls, Calcium and antioxidants

Pine Nuts are high in good fats and protein

Storage Instructions:

Keeps in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 weeks. Can keep longer depending on the quality of your oil.

Serving suggestions

I use this pesto with pretty much everything! Here I used it as a topping for some Salmon darns. Just baste it on top and bake in the oven!

It can be used on pasta, rice noodles, to coat or stuff in chicken, as a topping on soups, on garlic bread, as a dip for carrot or celery sticks, in salads and on canapés with sun-dried tomatoes (drool!) and anything else you typically use pesto for.

Send me in any suggestions or pics of how you used it. I’d love to hear from you!

Tuesday's Change Week 2 - Eat your '5 a day'

So how did everyone get on for week one? Do you feel better? Sleep better? Look better? Let me know any benefits you felt. I'd love to hear from you. Week one's post here. Now try and keep it up while tackling Week 2.

This week's change is another one that sounds simple, we all have heard of it but how many of us actually do it? Eat your 5 a day! It's a common slogan bandied around in the media and you often see it on food labels. I'll discuss this in a bit but first let me outline the challenge.

See if you can eat 5 portions of Vegetables everyday for 7 days. 

Notice I have said veg and not fruit. Feel free to eat portions of fruit on top of your 5 Vegetable portions. Just ensure you are getting 5 portions of vegetable as well!

Here is some more information on the specifics:

1) A portion is roughly 1 hand full. 

2) Try as much as possible to eat organic vegetables only.

3) Raw is preferable to cooked but if you are cooking make sure not to over cook. Steaming or baking is good! Keeping the skin on where possible is also added benefit!

3) At least 2 or 3 of your 5 portions should be of green, leafy vegetables like Spinach, Kale,  Brocolli, Rocket, Salad greens, Pok Choi, Cabbage etc. The rest should be a variety of brightly coloured options e.g. Red Cabbage, red and yellow Peppers, Beetroot etc.

3) You can eat them raw or cooked but never from a packet (i.e. you can not include processed or tinned fruit and veg) and try and cook the veg yourself if having it cooked.

4) If a label on a packet says "this is one of your 5 a day portions" ignore this. If something is in a packet (besides whole fruits and vegetables that come in trays or packaged for the supermarket) then it has been processed and so lots of the benefits and nutrients are lost on processing. You are more than likely just getting the sugars left over. And we all have enough of those in our diet.

5) Plan your day in advance the night before. Where am I going to be? Will I have access to fresh food? Do I need to bring food with me? And plan accordingly so you are prepared.

Ok now you have all the information here are some tips on how you can easily add in the portions to your everyday diet.

1) Add vegetables to your breakfast. This way you start the day right and have half your portions done before you leave the house! Make an omelette with some spinach, peppers and onions. Recipe here.

2) Make a smoothie for breakfast! Adding vegetables to a smoothie is a great way of having a portion of vegetables without realising. Making a berry smoothie with some natural yoghurt, blueberries, cinnamon and honey tastes great. Adding a handful of spinach and blending will not alter the flavour too much and tastes just as good! This is a nice sweet treat on a Saturday morning!

3) Eating a large salad for lunch or dinner and get your 5 portions into you in one go! I like to use mixed salad greens with spinach rocket and baby lamb's leaf then add some spring onion, peppers, grated carrot and courgette. You can add some left over meat from the night before or cook some fresh and you have an entire meal. If you want to bulk it up a bit cook some sweet potato wedges as a side. Drizzle the with extra virgin olive oil if you find it too dry.

4) Snack on celery, cucumber and carrot sticks between meals if you are hungry. Have them chopped and ready in the fridge, sealed in a container to keep them fresh. Reach for these instead of biscuits or bread when you are famished and waiting for your dinner to cook.

5) Hide vegetables in food! Take what you might consider a regular dinner. Shepard's pie, Pasta Sauce etc. Try chopping vegetables into the sauce or if you have very picky eaters in the house you can even blend the vegetables into the sauce to thicken it. They won't even know!

6) If you are finding the vegetables bland then season them. Freshly grated black pepper is delicious on salads or cooked veg, try a small sprinkling of organic rock salt (link here), Simplee do an amazing range of salt free seasoning like paprika and lemon or chilli. Mix it up and try new spices! Link here.

7) Cook your least favourite veg with your favourite food! Brussels Sprouts taste amazing when stir fried in a small bit of bacon! A green, leafy salad is delicious when sprinkled with some olive oil and parmean cheese! All in moderation of course!

So here is a comprehensive list of veggies you should aim for that are available in most large supermarkets. Alternatively places like Quay Co-Op in Cork, Ballincollig and Carrigaline for the Cork followers (link http://www.quaycoop.com/) or organic vegetable shops will have a great range!

Spinach
Kale
Cabbage
Rocket
Lettuce
Pok Choi
Brocolli
Asparagus
Celery
Beetroot
Peppers
Red Cabbage
Carrots
Courgette/Zucchini
Onions

P.S. 'Vegetables' that are good for you but don't count as 5 a day and are more connected to the carbohydrate family are:

Potatoes
Sweet potatoes
Parsnips
Peas

FYI: Lentils, beans and peanuts are not vegetables. They are legumes!

Vegetables to avoid: 

Sweetcorn. This is not a vegetable it is a grain and a GMO one at that! More on this is a future post.

So that is it Jeanies! Do you think you are up for the challenge? I have no doubt. Planning is key and let me know if you need any more information on anything!

#EatClean