Fresh Lemon Smoothie

I always look for things to cook that will use up fruit and veggies in my fridge. This weekend I had a few lemons that I wanted to use up. I have been experimenting with smoothies lately so I thought I would try a lemon smoothie. So here it is!

Ingredients

½ lemon – peeled and seeded

½ cup strawberries

1 orange – peeled and seeded

1 banana (frozen if desired)

½ cup yogurt

1 tbsp honey *optional

½ cup water

1 cup ice

Method

Blend on high until smooth

Chia Pudding and Nuts

This has got to be the simplest and tastiest recipe ever!! Not to mention super healthy too. Chia seeds are amazing, they can soak up to 9 times their weight in liquid. You can soak them in just about anything from orange juice to milk. I tried coconut milk the first time and i thought the taste was too rich and overpowering, maybe half milk or light coconut milk would be better.

So all you have to do is soak 1 part chia seed with 3 parts chosen liquid, you could use any of the following:

Almond milk
Milk
Coconut Milk
Orange Juice
Water

You can add nuts and dried fruit of your choice and some honey or agave if you like it a bit sweeter.

I have just put one in the fridge with almond milk, raspberries and raw cacao powder,looks delicious!

Have Experimenting!!

Overnight Oats.

So I have discovered a quick and easy way to have breakfast ready the night before!!!! These oats are so quick and easy to prepare and it will save you a heap of time in the morning.

So this is the basic recipe for overnight oats and you can add anything you want to them to jazz it up!!
All you need is:

2 Tbls rolled oats
2Tbls milk

Optional extras:
Cinnamon, apple, raspberries, cocoa, vanilla....whatever you like really.

All you need to do is add the milk to the oats and pop it in the fridge overnight, if you want them a little thicker you can do half yoghurt instead of milk or all yoghurt if you want. I layer it up with natural yoghurt mixed with a spoonful of raw cocao powder. Just keep experimenting until you get your favourite flavour. :)

DELICIOUS.

Winter Fashion 2013

Which one do you like??

Benefits of exercise

GET EXERCISING!!!!

There are so many great benefits from doing regular exercise. It doesn't have to to involve going to the gym there are plenty of 'equipment free' workouts that can be done in your lounge room like the one below!!

Beany Brownies

I would have never dreamed of cooking a sweet treat with kidney beans!! I had read a few reviews on various recipes and the feedback was good so I thought I would give it a go. I couldn't find black beans in my local supermarket but I had a tin of red kidney beans so I used those instead.
I could not stop eating these brownies the day I made them, they are sooooo tasty!

Enjoy  xo

Red Kidney Bean Brownies with Peanut Butter Swirl

Brownie Ingredients

1 can red kidney beans
1 egg
1/4 egg whites ( or 3 eggs in total)
1/3 cup pumpkin puree (or unsweetened apple sauce)
1/2 cup natural cocoa powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
2 Tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup honey or maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp instant coffee
1 Tsp baking powder
1/4 cup dark or milk chic chips

PB Swirl Ingredients

1/3 cup peanut butter

1 Tbsp maple syrup or honey

Pinch of salt

Dash of vanilla extract

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 180C

2. Place all black bean ingredients into blender and process until smooth.

3. Spray an 8x8 baking dish with healthy, non-stick cooking spray

4. Evenly spread batter into baking dish

5. Melt PB swirl ingredients together and mix

6. Dollop PB mixture about 3cm apart on brownie mixture

7. Run a knife through the batter to create the swirls

8. Place in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes

9. Brownie is ready when a tooth pick comes out clean and brownie is pulling away from sides

10. Let cool in dish for about 10 minutes

11. Gently cut brownies, serve and enjoy!!

*Stored in a tightly sealed container in the fridge once cooled completely

Guilt Free Pancakes

I am always in a rush in the morning but I always make sure I eat breakfast. The batter for these pancakes takes under 5 mins and I can get other things done while they cook away. They are tasty and so healthy for you.
Enjoy xo

Quinoa, Coconut & Banana Pancakes

Method

Spoon 2 heaped tsps of coconut flour into a 1/3 measuring cup and top up with quinoa flakes then put into a bowl. Add 1/3 cup of soy milk (I use almond milk too) and just under 1/3 cup water, add egg and mix together. 

Add 1/2 ripe mashed banana, this is optional but it tastes a little bland without, you can also add a tsp vanilla  or stevia if you like it a little sweeter.

Heat oil in fry pan and drop batter in, make sure they are sealed and showing small bubble holes before you turn as they will fall apart. 

You can serve with honey or natural yoghurt and cinnamon!!! Yum