Raw Mango and Nut Salad Recipe

Some days we are just looking for an easy breakfast recipe that hardly requires any preparation, is healthy and delicious at the same time. This is one of those recipes. Especially perfect in summer when mangoes are in season!

However don't be shy and play around with this recipe and use your favourite fruit!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup raw nuts (I had a mix of walnuts and almonds) soaked in water overnight
• 1 mango

Roughly chop up all of the ingredients and serve on your favourite plate. If you like you can also sprinkle a little cinnamon and ground ginger over the top.

Now you are ready for the day ahead!

 

Fruity Carrot Smoothie

This morning I am off to go down to visit the Bunbury port as part of my new role at work. I am excited to meet so many new people and also to get to spend a day out of the office. In my current role I rarely get a day out of the office. There will be a few of us going on the site visit so it will be nice to just sit back and relax while the guys do the driving!

However I have heard stories that most of the times there is no time to have lunch somewhere so it ends up being a quick stop at the petrol station. I have to admit that is a part I am for sure not looking forward to. I am so spoiled with my Thermomix and all my healthy eating in general that most times I can ensure to put good fuel into my body.

So because I don't know what will happen on this road trip from a nutritional content perspective I have decided to have a healthy smoothie and therefore the best possible start into my busy day.

Ingredients

• 2 carrots roughly chopped
• 1 apple roughly chopped
• 1 orange peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 frozen banana roughly chopped
• 30g oats
• 750g rice almond milk
• 1 tablespoon bee pollen (just ensure you are not allergic to bee products; if in doubt leave it out)

1. Chop carrots and fruit on speed 9 for 30 seconds.
2. Add the oats, bee pollen and rice almond milk and blend for 1 minute on speed 10.

If you are in a rush in the morning you can even prepare this smoothie the night before and keep it chilled in the fridge. I know it can be hard at times when life gets busy but a healthy smoothie is something that anyone of us could prepare the night before. Your body will thank you for it!

Zucchini Smoothie Recipe

I am always looking for easy ways to include more fresh vegetables and fruit in my day. I originally got inspired when a friend told me that he enjoyed adding zucchini into his smoothies.

So I played around a little in the kitchen, added some fruit and this delicious green looking smoothie was born.

Ingredients:

• 1 zucchini roughly chopped
• 1 frozen banana chopped
• 60g passionfruit pulp
• 200g water

Blend all of the above ingredients on speed 10 for 40 seconds and enjoy!

So refreshing on a summer day!

Chia Mango Ice Cream

In the past few days we have had temperatures around 40 degrees every day so today it was finally ice cream time. Time to literally chill! I wanted something with mango but healthy at the same time so I created this chia mango ice cream. Totally creamy with a hint of mango in it and all the health benefits that chia seeds can bring.

With a Thermomix this is very easy to make but I would imagine it also works with a Vitamix or a very good blender. The chia seeds helped the ice cream keep its shape really well and I can guarantee you I will be playing around in the kitchen with different fruits in this recipe in the future!

Here are the ingredients:

• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1/4 cup goji berries
• 2 mangoes
• 1 mug full of water
• 2 tablespoons of raw honey

1. First grind the chia seeds and the goji berries on speed 10 for up to one minute.
2. Next add all the other ingredients and process on speed 6 for 30 seconds.
3. Pour into ice cube containers and freeze.
4. Once frozen you can process the cubes on speed 10 for about 30 seconds. During this stage I added another 1-2 measure cups of water to help it process into a smooth delicious mango ice heaven!

 My husband and I actually had this for lunch after we got home from church and it was just perfect!

Have you made ice cream using chia seeds before? How did you make yours?

I hope you enjoy trying out this recipe and have fun! 

Sports Gel Recipe

Today I am going to share on of my favourite recipes with you for home made sports gel. I don't know about you but I don't like the thought of polluting my body with one of the commercial sports gels which are pumped with with high amounts of processed sugars. I prefer to give my body quality fuel where I know exactly what is in it and the quality of the ingredients. I have used this recipe for my running training and it works perfectly for me to give me a real and longer lasting energy boost. Plus if you are like me you will find it tastes even great as an afternoon pick me up instead of having a coffee like so many people do. In contrast this gel will give you longer lasting energy without the highs followed by the fast approaching lows.

Ingredients

• 5 dates (soaked in water)
• 1/2 banana
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• pinch of salt

All you have to do is to process the above ingredients in your food processor or Thermomix until the gel has a smooth consistency. This might require 2 steps where you stop the kitchen machine to scrap down the sides and process again. I personally like my gel a little chunkier as you can see in the end result. This sports gel is really tasty where the banana, dates and lemon add their unique flavours in combination with the energy boosting coconut oil.

Have you made your own sports gels? What are your favourite sports gel recipes?

Lots of love!

Summer Dream Juice

When I got home a little while back I made myself a refreshing juice using the following

1. one apple
2. one orange
3. 2 peaches
4. 1 nectarine
5. 1/2 zucchini

It was delicious and had a sweet summer taste.  I can definitely recommend it and it is also so good for you!

Enjoy!

Did you know that peach juice contains iron, zinc, magnesium, manganese, calcium, iron, sulfur, Vitamin A, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B9, Vitamin C and Vitamin E. Peach juice can aid with digestive problems, aids kidney function, supports heart health and boosts the immune system.

Christmas Green Juice

When I made this juice I used what I had left in the kitchen and it turned out absolutely delicious! It is amazing how sometimes the simplest things can taste the best and just unforgettable!

For this juice you will need

• one apple
• one orange
• one handful of lettuce 
• an inch of a cucumber

Process all of the above through your juicer and enjoy!

Lemon Cashew Cookies

I love making cookies and my hubby always loves to volunteer and try them to ensure they are really good :) Today I tried something a little different and made dehydrated lemon cashew cookies in time for Christmas. They turned out delicious and were gone in no time!

You will need the following

• 1 cup cashews
• zest of one lemon
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup honey

Process all of the above in a food process until it develops into a doughly like consistency. Next shape the dough into cookies and dehydrate them for about 12 hours at 105 degrees fahrenheit (or approximately 40 degrees).

Enjoy these delicious treats!

My Garden Green Smoothie

This afternoon after work I went for a "little excursion" in my cute little garden on a mission to find some nutritious greens that I could use for my green smoothie. I found some salad greens, some parsley, some mint as you can see below... in total it was about a good handfull.

Next I added one apple, one pear, 1.5 cups water and a frozen banana and blended everything in the Thermomix for a minute on speed 9.

Enjoy!

Kimberly Snyder's Beauty Detox Solution

A friend at work first told me about Kimberly Snyder and simply how inspiring and amazing she is. She is highly knowledgeable in the field of nutrition and health and at the same time she works with many celebrities. I first started watching some of her videos on YouTube to see whether I liked her things and also because I am quite selective on what information I read up on and what I follow. Shortly after that I ordered her book the Beauty Detox Solution and I could hardly put it down once I started reading it.

Everything she explains is written in a clear way that just makes so much sense such as why it is important to eat foods close to nature. She also explains the concepts of food combining and in what order food should be eaten in order to not feel bloated and have higher energy levels. By eating foods from nature we won't need as much energy for digestion which will free up energy for the body to use it to heal and for beauty.

Kimberly is so inspirational; I urge you to check out some of her videos on YouTube and see for yourself.

Kimberly Snyder also swears by her glowing green smoothies, where the following is one of my absolute favourites:

Raw Carrot Cake

This is one of my favourites and the taste is just unbelievable! Plus because it is raw it is actually good for you. I made this for the first time for my brother and his girlfriend. Besides that I love trying new raw food recipes, they tend to eat fairly unhealthy so I also wanted to do something good for them.

For the crust blend up 1 cup almonds, 1 cup sunflower seeds and 3/4 cup dates. Press the crust into a pyrex type dish and place in the freezer.

For the filling use the juice of 4 carrots and mix it together with the pulp from making the juice. In a food processor process this together with 1/2 teaspoon ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Take out the dish from the freezer and pour over the filling to make the second layer. Place back in the freezer.

Next make the whipped cream using 3/4 cup cashews that have been soaked for approximately 2 hours, 2 soaked dates, 1/4 cup fresh orange juice and 1 vanilla pod. Blend until smooth and smooth over the filling; place the dish back in the freezer.

For the final layer the carrot cake topping process the rind of 1/2 orange and the rind of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 cup orange juice, 1/4 cup dates until smooth and spread over the cream layer. Top the cake with some walnuts.

I tend to place the dish in between layers back in the freezer; I find this makes it easier to prepare the cake and it sets better.

I hope you enjoy this special cake as much as I do!

Raw Coconut Sweets

I wanted to share the recipe to make some of my favourite sweets using coconut, cashews and raw honey.

You will need:

• 160g desiccated coconut
• 40 cashews 
• 100g raw honey

If you have a thermomix process the above on speed 8 for about 30 seconds. If you have a food processor process the ingredients until a sticky dough forms.

Next roll the dough into little balls and place in the freezer to set for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Some fun researching Raw Food Recipes

I was researching some raw food recipes the other night and after a few minutes I wasn't on my own any more.... Flash was also interested in Ani Phyo's recipes :)

He is just so cute and also seems to enjoy researching :)

Sweet Kale Crisps

Today I made kale crisps in my dehydrator. Previously I have made them in the oven but I found this recipe online using a dehydrator I wanted to try. The great thing about dehydrators is that because they use a lower heat it doesn't kill as many of the good things such as vitamins, minerals and enzymes as if they were for example made in the oven at a much higher temperature.

To make these you need

• 2 bunches of kale
• olive oil
• sea salt (I use Himalayan)
• lemon juice
• raw honey

1. First wash the kale and dry it
2. Then cut it in bigger pieces; I made them approximately the size of potato chips you can get at the shops
3. In a bowl combine the kale, a bit of olive oil (start with a little and work your way up to get a thin coating), the salt and lemon juice
4. Massage in the bowl with your hands
5. Add some raw honey and also massage this into the kale (I used about a tablespoon but it really depends how sweet you like it)
6. Dehydrate in the dehydrator for about 8 hours or until crisp.

These make great healthy snacks and are delicious.

Below I have included some pictures of when mine were ready to be dehydrated :)

Coco Banana Smoothie

This morning I felt like having the young coconut that was still waiting in the fridge. I decided to add some banana into it as well to make it a power smoothie that would give me energy all morning.

I used

• water of one young coconut including the meat
• one banana

Blend until smooth in your blender or if you have a thermomix on speed 10 for about a minute.

Did you know...

bananas contain Vitamins C, B and betacarotene. They also contain the following minerals: potassium, calcium, iron and phosphorous. Plus it contains beneficial oils for the cardiovascular system!