Paleo Lemon and Blueberry Loaf

I, like many people, just love to watch the Great British Bake Off. It's just such an entertaining show and it's one that encourages people to get back into the kitchen! What more do you need? Now if you are anything like me you will need to watch this show stuffed to the brim or have some nice healthy cakes to hand. Otherwise you will spend the entire show drooling and/or repeatedly going to your cupboards hoping some baked creation will have magically appeared.

To prevent such sweet cravings I try and have some sort of cake made and waiting to fill the void. I recently tried this lemon and blueberry loaf and really enjoyed it. It's light and tasty with just enough stodge to satisfy. It is moist and so easy to make and keeps for a few days (if you don't polish it off in one sitting!)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of ground almonds
1/4 cup of dessicated coconut
1 teaspoon of gluten free baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
4 organic, free range eggs
1/2 cup of organic coconut oil - melted (Cold pressed/Extra Virgin if possible)
1/3 cup of raw honey (organic and local ideally)
Juice of 1 lemon (organic and unwaxed)
Zest of 2 lemons
1 - 1 1/2 cups of organic blueberries

Optional glaze:
1/3 cup of full fat butter - melted
2 tablespoons of softened coconut oil
2 tablespoons of raw honey
2 tablespoons of lemon juice

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C or Gas Mark 4.
Mix all the dry ingredients together except for the blueberries.
Slowly add in the wet ingredients, one egg at a time.
Ensure the batter is mixed thoroughly.
Line a bread loaf tin with greaseproof paper.
Place 1/2 the batter in the tin. Using 1/2 of the blueberries place them gently on top of the batter.
Cover with the remaining batter and then the remaining blueberries.
Cook in the oven for 30-35 minutes covering with foil if turning too brown.
When it is cooked allow it to cool on a wire rack.
If you wish to use the glaze then mix all ingredients together and once the loaf is fully cool drizzle the glaze over the top and allow it to soak into the cake.
Slice and enjoy!

Prep Time:
5-10 minutes

Cooking Time:
30-35 minutes

Dietary Information:
Paleo
Gluten Free
Wheat Free
Sugar Free
Diary Free
Vegetarian
Good Fats
Blueberries are one of your 5 a day and provide many anti oxidants which are great for repairing and healing resulting in better skin, hair, nails and overall health.

Storage Instructions:
Like most cakes this is best eaten warm from the oven! But it will keep for a few days in a sealed container. If you have good will power you could slice the loaf and freeze in individual slices to be defrosted and eaten when wanting a quick treat!

Enjoy this dish guys. I really do and it definitely fills a gap for stodgey, sweet treats without breaking free from eating clean.

A Gut Busting Brekkie

Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Typically your gut is clear, you've digested all the food from the day before and I always think of it as a chance to heal any damage done from the weeks before (processed foods, alcohol, sugar all cause damage to the gut bacteria which is so important is health and especially in aiding weight loss).

So this breakfast is chock full of healthy bacteria inducing foods, it's tasty and quick to make!

Ingredients:

Greek Yogurt
2 heaped tablespoons of Udo's Beyond Greens (found here)
1 heaped teaspoons of Cinnamon (excellent at lowering your blood sugar and aiding weight loss)
1 handful of blueberries
1 heaped tablespoon of 100% Coco
1 teaspoon of honey (I use Healy's Organic Honey as it's local to Ballincollig)
2 teaspoons of my homemade granola (recipe here)


Method:
Add all ingredients into a bowl, mix well and enjoy!

Why should you eat a well balanced healthy breakfast? Above is why!

Breakfast for the car!

Preparation is key when you are trying to be healthy and eat well. But let's be realistic we all have our disorganised days or days when we get delayed. We are all human don't beat yourself up about it. 

I was late this morning and so didn't have time to eat brekkie before I left the house. So I reverted to this breakfast smoothie that takes 2 minutes to make and can be eaten with one hand, while driving! Please be careful on the road I don't want any accidents that are smoothie related!

It is nutrition packed and such a great way to start the day. It's not going to win any flavour awards but the benefits will outshine the taste.

It's also an excellent post 'morning work out' fuel if you chose to do fasted cardio/training before you eat in the morning.

Enjoy and #eatclean

Ingredients (discussed in detail below)

2-3 heaped table spoons of yogurt

2 heaped table spoons of Udo's Beyond Greens

1 handful of blueberries 

Protein Powder of choice if desired

Method: (2-3 minutes)

Blend all in a nutri-bullet/blender/mash and stir by hand. Add some water if the yogurt is particularly thick and shake. Add to a portable/reusable bottle and drink in the car/on the bus/train/while cycling/at your desk. 

Yoghurt: Plain, organic and Irish where possible. Greek Style Yogurt has more protein than regular yogurt so depending on your needs select accordingly. Full Fat if 'fuel for performance' is your goal. The probiotics in yogurt are so good for your gut health, something we tend to ignore and has an effect on everything we do.

DO NOT use: 

- fat free yogurt (this is full of chemicals and artificially sweetened which makes you crave carbs), 

- flavoured yogurt, it must be natural flavour i.e. plain (even if it says 'real fruit pieces it will have sugar and other ingredients added to prevent the 'fruit' from discolouring)

Udo's Beyond Greens or alternative. This is a super product containing many 'green' products that are packed with health benefits, as well as good fats that heal, fibre, antioxidants and active digestive enzymes that help your gut in ways you can't even imagine. More information on this here. I would need a whole other blog post to break down all the benefits of this product. It is pricey but so worth it if you live a busy lifestyle and need instant boost of nutrition! Available in most good health stores, usually found in the fridge. 

Bluberries. Organic and fresh (not frozen if possible) and Irish if they are in season. Packed full of antioxidants, fibre and vitamins and minerals these truly are a superfood.

Protein Powder if desired. 

Alternative flavourings that can be added:

Cinnamon (great at boosting your metabolism)

Drop of honey for sweetness

Other berries like strawberries, raspberries, gojiberries

Milled Flax seeds