Nutrient Rich Foods - Goji Berry Sparkler

Previously I told you that after undertaking a little research I decided to include some of the most nutrient rich foods into my diet. My last post showed you how easy it was to include Spirulina into your diet by adding it to fruit shakes, much to the amusement of my colleagues at work! 

This weekend I've been experimenting with Goji Berries. I already include them in my diet as they are an ingredient in my home made muesli, but I wanted to see what else I could make so that it wasn't just breakfast that I ate them.

I gave up drinking back in September after one mother of a hangover suffering with a nasty headache and nausea. I didn't use to drink a lot, but I had found that the units per week had started to creep up. After a bad day at work I would pour myself a glass of wine instead of having my usual green tea with jasmine. So after the mother of all hangovers, I decided enough was enough and stopped! And do you know what I haven't missed it in the slightest even over the Christmas break! I've been enjoying my tea a lot more and trying different blends and drinking lots more water. Some people have even said too much water! 

I wondered if I could make a drink using the Goji Berry and started experimenting.

The Goji Berry is a powerhouse berry! My research has found out that they have been used in traditional Chinese medicine for over 5,000 years. These little berries are regarded as a strength building food, can you imagine how strong Pop-Eye would have been if he ate them! They are also associated with longevity and they contain 18 kinds of amino acids, of which 8 are considered as essential amino acids. Other nutrients they contain, to name a few, are: 

• over 20 different trace minerals, 
• significant amounts of antioxidants, 
• iron and 
• B & E vitamins. 

See what a mean a powerhouse berry for sure!

We can only get dried berries over here, but they can be purchased from supermarkets or health shops so they are easy to find. As I was making them into a drink I soaked them over night so they would be easier to blend.

The Goji Berry has quite a powerful taste when dry and to some it may taste a little bitter, personally I like them and could snack on them on their own but as a drink I figured it needed sweetening up. I also wanted to include another health improver ingredient, which I had read has anti-inflammatory effects; ginger. As you know this has a very strong taste so I was careful with the amount I used as I didn't want it to overbear the other flavours. Here's what I did:

Ingredients

50g Goji berries, dried
100ml Cold water
1 Orange, zest only
Small knob of ginger, finely grated
(I used about 3g after peeling)
1 Tsp Agave nectar
Sparkling water

Method
Soak the Goji berries overnight in the water. They plump up nicely!

Transfer the Goji berries and the soaking water to a powerful blender, I used my faithful vitamix but any powerful blender should do the trick.

Add the zest of the orange, the grated ginger and finally the agave nectar.

Blend until you have a smooth liquid, you may still have a few flecks of berry, but don't worry. 

Add at least a teaspoon of the mixture to a tall glass and top with sparkling water and serve with a sprig of mint.

If the flecks of berry bother you then filter the drink through a fine mesh sieve, but remember if you do you'll be throwing out goodness.

Play around with the ingredients, the above will give you a hint of orange to take away the bitterness of the Goji and the ginger just gives it a very subtle hum of warmth.

I'll definitely be trying more drink creations with this little berry, I think mint would work too instead of the orange, but you could also try lemon or lime.

Nutrient Rich Foods - Spirulina Fruit Shakes

Personally, I don't like the term superfood, especially how it has been banded around the media over the last few years. You don't hear the terminology "superfood" referred to with carrots do you? But to me carrots are one of the healthiest foods out there, if you don't believe me do some research yourself, you'll be amazed at the power of a carrot!

This month I am focussing on "nutrient rich foods" which are high in a number of vitamins and minerals, which are said to have a number of health benefits. They are the most potent and super concentrated foods you can find, which will improve your overall health. Now, I'm not a dietician or medical expert but an individual who after undertaking research for myself has decided to include some of these foods into my diet. 

Today, I'm focusing on Spirulina, which is a blue-green algae which is found on water. In other words its like pond scum, but that doesn't sound appetizing at all does it? So lets stick with calling it Spirulina, it sounds far more appealing and kind of exciting! 

Spirulina provides a vast array of minerals and my research has unearthed that it is the worlds highest source of complete protein! In fact around 65% of Spirulina's dry weight is protein. Spirulina also has over 100 types of nutrients including B complex vitamins, which is great news for vegans.

There are many reports of health benefits associated with Spriulina although it appears that more research is needed before it can be determined whether or not Spirulina can treat certain health conditions.

Personally, after the research I have undertaken I have decided to include Spirulina in my diet for the following health reasons:

• To strengthen my immune system so I'm less likely to experience colds and other winter bugs.
• To help with inflammation, it is said to be one of the most powerful anti-inflammatory agents in nature.
• To ease the symptoms of pre-menstrual tension, it is said to be one of the leading sources of Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA) 
• To help my body detox naturally, and provide a boost in energy, Spirulina has a very high concentration of chlorophyll, a natural detoxifying agent 
• To ease my heyfever symptoms, it is reported that Spirulina can alleviate allergies. Since transfering to a vegan diet my heyfever is mild into comparison what it has been previously so I'm all for an extra boost to make it disappear altogether!

So, how can you introduce Spirulina into your diet? The easiest way is by adding a teaspoon into your juices, smoothies or just adding it to a glass of water. But I wanted something a bit more exciting than that, enter fruit shakes.

Fruit shakes have the consistency of a milk shake but use frozen fruit instead of milk.Thanks to my beloved Vitamix I can make fruit shakes in 2 minutes flat, which includes cleaning up afterwards! Any powerful blender should work though, just make sure it is suitable for ice!

I've been playing around with fruit shakes for a while now and I have three out right favourites, strawberry, raspberry and a combination of mango and pineapple. Just add a teaspoon of Spirulina to the mix and there you have it a green fruit shake.

When they are first made they are the thickness of soft serve ice cream, in fact I can hold my jug upside down and they don't budge. But after transferring to a glass they soon start to melt a little and are easy to drink through a straw.

I make one every morning, transfer to a plastic cup so I can transport it to work and as soon as I get to my desk its ready for drinking, delicious. In fact I'm drinking my green fruit shake right now!

Green Fruit Shake
Take any of the recipes below and add 1 teaspoon of Spirulina to your blender and whiz up! My favourite to add the Spirulina to is the mango and pineapple fruit shake as you get such a vivid green colour. The raspberry and strawberry fruit shakes are more brown than green in colour. Any recipe you choose though is delicious.





Mango & Pineapple Fruit Shake

Ingredients
4 Tbsp Lime and Lemon yoghurt
(I used Alpro)
1 Frozen banana
150g Frozen mango & pinapple pieces
(great if you can freeze your own but a bag from the supermarket works well)
100ml Cold water

Method
Add the ingredients to your blender of choice in the order above and blend until you have a smooth consistency similar to soft serve ice cream. I have to use a tamper with my Vitamix machine to push the frozen fruit down towards the blades. 





Raspberry Fruit Shake

Ingredients

4 Tbsp Rhubarb and Strawberry yoghurt
(I used Alpro)
1 Frozen banana
75g Frozen raspberries
(great if you can freeze your own but a bag from the supermarket works well)
100ml Cold water

Method
Add the ingredients to your blender of choice in the order above and blend until you have a smooth consistency similar to soft serve ice cream. I have to use a tamper with my Vitamix machine to push the frozen fruit down towards the blades. 



Strawberry Fruit Shake

Ingredients
3 Tbsp Vanilla yoghurt 
(I used Alpro)
12 Strawberries (frozen)
1 Banana (frozen)
200ml Coconut water

Method

Add the ingredients to your blender of choice in the order above and blend until you have a smooth consistency similar to soft serve ice cream. I have to use a tamper with my Vitamix machine to push the frozen fruit down towards the blades. 

          

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Sorry I'm late! I actually can't believe that its the 10th January already!

Veganniversary - A look back over the last 2 years and how my health and wellbeing has improved.

New Year is also my veganniversary and this year I am celebrating two years. The main benefit I've noticed is my health. I used to suffer with headaches, there wasn't a day that went by without me suffering. I was also prone to getting a head cold or worse as soon as I stopped. Every year when I broke up for a holiday or Christmas instead of enjoying my time off, relaxing and filling each day with fun, I was always warding off a cold or bug of some sort and the worse thing I suffered with was cold sores!

Whenever I got run down, which seemed a lot when I look back I didn't just get one cold sore but I'd get a whole fat lip covered in the little buggers, inside and out. It was so painful and it hurt to drink, which was always through a straw let alone eating! There was no over the counter medicine that would even touch the little blighters, it always meant a trip to the doctors where I was prescribed tablets to help clear them up! 

Since turning vegan I haven't suffered massively with cold sores although I did have a rather nasty break out in May 2013, five months into transferring to a vegan diet. I did however combat the breakout with food. Back in May 2013 after doing a lot of research I created a couple of cold busting smoothies; 1) using strawberries and 2) using pineapple. Did they work? Yes they did without taking a trip to the doctors, my preference was the Pineapple smoothie. Thankfully since that last outbreak I haven't suffered another apart from one little cold sore which was nothing compared to what I used to get.

Another great thing is that I no longer suffer with headaches, OK I have the odd one now and again who doesn't, but these days I wake up feeling great and I have more energy. One thing I love is turning that energy into growing my own food.

Some of you may know that leading up to Christmas it was a very stressful time. My Dad was very poorly and after 3 months of worrying times where he was rushed into hospital 4 times, had two operations and had to stay in hospital for over a month, we were all pleased that he managed to be home for Christmas. After daily visits from the district nurses I'm pleased to report that he is making good progress. Thankfully even though it was an extremely stressful time my health didn't suffer and I managed to stay in tip top form to support my Dad along side my Mum and sister.

These Christmas holidays I have been surrounded with people who are ill, hubby has had a nasty chest infection which made him ill all over the Christmas holidays and is only just starting to feel better. All my friends and family have been prone to an illness of some sort too, mainly with nasty colds and coughs. Everywhere I go I seem to be the only one who isn't ill! When I went back to work earlier this month it was like walking into a doctors surgery waiting room!

So, I am very fortunate not to have succumbed to one of the nasty bugs flying around. Don't get me wrong there have been days where I have thought "O-oh I'm coming down with something" but after a good nights sleep I wake up the next day feeling fine.

So, what do I put this down to, diet? sleep? exercise? aromatherapy? 

All of the above! My diet is the healthiest it has been for years, 5 a day is no problem for me and its normally like 10 a day! My sleep pattern is getting better and most nights I manage to drift off not long after climbing into bed. My exercise regime is better too thanks to my wonderful furry friend Marco! A bouncing border collie who is always up for a walk or a game of football or fetch.

Then there is aromatherapy, some time back I did a course on aromatherapy blends and it was one of the best things that I ever did. I always have an oil burner on the go or I use a room spray that I have made to combat bugs. I love my aromatherapy baths where I can soak for what seems like ages in total relaxation. I also use it to help me sleep and a quick spray of one of my blends on my pillow always helps me drift off into dreamland.

Now, don't get me wrong, I am nowhere near where I want to be with my health and wellness but I've started my journey and I'm enjoying the ride.

I could still be healthier in what I eat, yes I do fall off the wagon and indulge in a whole family size bag of crisps or a whole packet of biscuits, always vegan of course! Sometimes I wish there was no vegan junk food to tempt me! But then again, a little every now and again can't be too bad for you. You would only end up craving it more. My one big thing with my diet is portion size! I just LOVE food! There I've said it, if something tastes good then I want more of it! 

The Journey Continues - 2015

Looking to the future and how my journey to becoming a happier, healthy and less stressful individual continues. How I am going to do this? 

Diet
I'm working to get my cravings in check, by understanding my triggers and knowing how to combat them, I will control my portion sizes, and learn to identify when I am full! I hope to ditch refined sugar by utilising natural sweeteners such as dates. The benefits of doing all this is to hopefully lose some weight. 

Exercise
I also need to find some other form of exercise! Ideas in the comments please! 

The excuses: I've tried running but I get bored, running with Marco is not ideal as he always wants to go faster than me! I love Orienteering but its an expensive sport and in order to partake in an event each weekend you need to travel a lot, and I mean a lot!

The enjoyed: Walking Marco, sometimes we are out exploring all day so its a great way to burn up calories. I also enjoy my gardening which is a great calorie burner, but I need to find another form of exercise that I enjoy. I'd love to be able to start up my yoga again, which I had to stop due to injuries which meant I didn't enjoy it as much. Every time I try to start it up I inflame one of my injuries. It's a catch 22!

Well-being
One other thing I want to master or improve on is my meditation, I truly believe those that meditate are less stressful and more healthy individuals. You don't need any fancy equipment to meditate and you can do it anywhere so there are no excuses, you should give it a try if you don't practice already.

Record of Progress
Of course, my blog will be a place where I will record my progress to becoming a happier, healthier and less stressful individual. It will also be full of tasty healthy food for you to try as I share my 'improved health through food' journey with you. This month I'll be focusing on nutrient rich food and how you can incorporate them into your diet.

Refried Black Badger Peas & Hodmedods Review

Recently I was asked if I would like to review Hodmedods, a company that sell British beans and peas. I jumped at the chance especially when I saw they sold a pea called black badger! They sounded so intriguing, I just had to check it out.

Hodmedods source produce from British farms and are particularly interested in searching out less well known foods. I'm ashamed to say I had not heard of the black badger pea before. Their range is growing all the time and currently they have the following products:

• British Grown White Quinoa
• Canned Baked Beans 
• Canned Whole Fava Beans
• Vaal Dhal
• Split Fava Beans
• Whole Fava Beans
• Black Badger Peas
• Kabuki Marrowfat Beans
• Split Yellow Peas
• Split Green Peas
• Whole Yellow Peas
• Large Blue Peas

The range won't stop there either, they have big plans to launch other beans such as red fox peas, ying yang beans and Gog Magog beans. See what I mean don't they all sound so intriguing?

If you're stuck for ideas what to make with their peas and beans there website has lots of recipes for you to try. Go check it out here 

The great thing about dried beans and peas is that they store for longer periods of time. I used to be put off with the cooking time needed for dried beans but now I have my freezer it's a doddle. All I do now is soak the beans over night, then cook as per the packet instructions the next morning, drain and then freeze into small portions. Then, when I want to use beans in a recipe I just open my freezer and take out a portion. Easy!

I couldn't wait to get stuck in and the first dish I made was my take on refried beans using Black Badger Peas.

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Refried Black Badger Peas

Ingredients  

100g Black Badger Peas
1 Tsp Bicarbonate of soda
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 Garlic, minced
¼ Tsp Salt
½ Tsp Cumin seeds
1 Tsp Dried coriander
1 Tsp Chilli powder
Juice ½ Lemon

Method
The night before prepare the Black Badger peas by soaking in water. The next morning rinse and add to a saucepan with clean water and the bicarbonate of soda. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Leave the lid tilted as they easy boil over.

Once cooked, drain and set to one side whilst you prepare the remainder ingredients.

Fry the onion in a little oil for 5 minutes or until translucent, add the garlic and fry for another minute. Stir through the salt, cumin seeds, coriander, chilli powder and lemon juice.

Add the beans and stir to combine, cook for another 5 minutes stirring all the time being careful not to let anything burn.

Transfer to a blender and blitz to your desired texture. The refried Black Badger Beans will keep in the fridge for 3 days if they last that long!

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I, for one will never buy refried beans again, the Black Badger Beans make a fantastic refried bean puree.

The next dish I made was a chilli, how could I not? I mean, all those fancy beans were just dying to be made into a chilli to warm me up!

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Hodmedod Bean Chilli

Ingredients 

100g Kabuki Peas
100 Fava Beans
100g Soya mince
1 Onion, diced
1 Red pepper, diced
1 Tsp Cumin seeds
1 Tsp  Ground coriander 
1 Tsp Paprika
1 Tsp Smoked garlic
½ Tsp Salt
100l Water
1 Tin plum tomatoes (400g)
2 Tbsp Refied Black Badger Peas

Method

As with the Refried Black Badger Peas, you will need to soak the Kabuki Peas and Fava Beans over night.

Drain the peas and beans and cook as per packet instructions. Drain and set aside, I cooked more than this recipe needed and froze the rest.

Fry the onion in a little oil for five minutes or until translucent. Add the pepper and cook for another 3 minutes.

Add the soya mince with a little water to stop it sticking.

Add the cumin seeds, coriander, paprika, smoked garlic and salt and stir through until combined, cook for another minute. Add the tin of plum tomatoes and the 100ml water and stir through, breaking up the plum tomatoes as you stir. Cook for another 5 minutes.

Add the beans and cook for another 5 minutes. Add the refried Black Badger Beans and stir into the chilli, this will thicken the chilli slightly. Cookfor another 5 minutes or until everything is cooked through.

Serve with rice.

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Hodmedods snacking range is also delicious, I've been lucky enough to try Horseraddish roasted peas, unsalted roasted fava beans, lightly sea salted roasted peas and lightly sea salted roasted fava beans. Great for Christmas nibbles!