Tag Archives: vegetarian

A healthy mashed potato

It’s been the coldest Spring in France for 30 years. I got out my big saucepan and made soups again last weekend. I whipped up this delicious healthy version of your regular mashed potato and ohmygoodness it was good.

Here is how you do it: (for one person)

4 small potatoes
half a cup of quinoa
one grated zucchini

boil the potatoes until soft. Peel them and set aside.
Rince the quinoa and boil it until cooked. Drain.
Grate the zucchini and simmer in coconut oil, ghee, mustard seeds, half a teaspoon of turmeric, sea salt, pepper and some fresh ginger. Add the quinoa and potatoes and toss together until the spices are evenly mixed. Then purée with a hand-mixer.

I served mine and decorated with fresh water cress, sesame seeds, paprika and a splash of extra virgin olive oil.

Side note: Yes, I know, I have a Simpsons bowl. I only have one- promise, and it’s not actually mine :)

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Almond milk energy drink

I made this for breakfast yesterday and have been dreaming of it ever since. The almond makes it thick and the date sweet and the cardamom warming.

Almond milk contains more nutrients than other dairy milk alternatives like rice milk. The health benefits provided by this option even match dairy choices. Almond milk works as a great alternative for those with soy and lactose allergies. It is high in protein, Vitamin E, magnesium, potassium, selenium, manganese, and iron. While many dairy farmers have made strides to ensure that their cows are rBGH-free, the practice of injecting dairy cows with growth hormones and antibiotics has not been completely eradicated. If you make your own almond milk from organic almonds you are sure to be avoiding this!

Fresh dates, despite being very sweet, are actually healthy. Everything in measure, I say! Dates contain B-complex vitamins and vitamin C. Dates also contain a good amount of minerals, including potassium, copper, sulfur, iron and magnesium. Dates are a particularly good source of calcium, which helps promote strong teeth and bones. Another health benefit of dates is that they are low fat. In 100 g of dates, only a fraction of a gram is saturated fats. Saturated fats can raise serum cholesterol and lead to blood vessel and heart disease, so eating foods low in these types of fats is part of a healthy diet.

Fennel, known as jeera in India, is recommended to be used in cooking daily. Its actions are: carminative, antispasmodic, stomachic, stimulant, and diuretic. It has proven useful in conditions of: indigestion, abdominal pain, including cramps and gas, diminished agni (which refers to the build-up of toxins in Ayurveda.

You can click here to read about the benefits of cardamom.

Basically, this almond drink is one big vitamin burst and you’ll love it in the morning. Be sure to have a glass of warm water half enough before to get your digestion going.

Here is how you do it:

Soak 12 almonds overnight and peel them in the morning.
In a separate bowl, soak 2 fresh dates, a teaspoon of fennel seeds and around 6 cardamom pods. Pit the dates and get the seeds out of the cardamom pods and discard the pods and blend it all up until everything is completely smooth and even the cardamom seeds have been blended. If you like vanilla you can add some vanilla too.

This is so delicious you won’t look back!

Enjoy xoxoxox

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Basil Hummus

I must say, this idea, which came out of nowhere, was genius. The apartment smelt of sweet fresh basil and it was just what I needed for a weekday dinner. The good news is, it’s easy!

Soak a cup of chickpeas overnight before boiling them as it makes them quicker to cook. Boil until they are very soft and add 4 tablespoons of tahini, as much olive oil as you need until it’s soft, a bunch of basil, sesame seeds, a clove of garlic, a spoon of yoghurt, sea salt, pepper and mix it, baby!

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Served on some sourdough bread- nothing better!
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Aztec Hot Chocolate

A home-made hot chocolate is gooooood, but an Aztec hot chocolate is much better! One of my all time favorite drinks for the colder season is hot chocolate. We love classic hot chocolate but here’s a fun way to spice it up!

For one cup of joy, here is what you need:
- 1 cup of fresh organic milk
- 1/2 a cup of water
- 1 teaspoon of an Indian masala spice mix
- as much cocoa as pleases you
- a sprinkle of cayenne pepper
- rock sugar or unrefined sugar

Put everything in a saucepan. Bring to the boil and let simmer for a minute or two then serve. This one will surely warm the cockles of your heart.

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#3 In My Basket

With Spring arriving, but it still being quite chilly, the wintery fruits like pears, apples and rhubarb are still around.

I went to market on Sunday, which is still my favourite activity of the weekend (obviously), and got Swiss chard, rhubarb, pears, fresh basil, sourdough bread and fresh milk.

Tonight I’m going to make Swiss chard grattin. Last night I made basil hommus which was wonderful Sunday soul food – I’ll post the recipe this week.

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Weekend Bliss

Spring arrived this weekend- at long long last. I pulled out my lace tops and sunnies to celebrate and got some flowers to decorate the apartment.

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While Spring is here, it’s still important to keep looking after our immune systems as our bodies are adjusting to the change. This is why I had lots of spicy chai tea and an immunity smoothie. For this smoothie you’ll need:

Frozen berries, organic
a cup of fresh green tea
super greens
matcha
a chunk of fresh ginger
turmeric
a spoon of raw honey
a few spoons of yoghurt

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Turmeric needs either honey or some kind of “fat”, like yoghurt, for it’s properties to be activated. It’s a fantastic blood cleanser and is an anti-inflammatory. It’s good for everything really!

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I’m Australian- vegemite on toast goes without saying.

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How the French eat artichokes

Artichokes are sometimes scary to cook. In France I’ve eaten them a few times and have loved the way they eat them. Their soft hearts are sweet and with a bit of olive oil and balsamic it’s just divine. A great light but nourishing meal.

Here is how you do it à la française:

Cut the ends of the artichokes off and pull of any of the leaves that seem tough. Put them in a deep saucepan and fill up the pan around 1/3 of the way up with water. Bring to the boil and steam for around 35 minutes or until the outer leaves can be easily pulled off.

To serve: prepare a small finger bowl with olive oil and balsamic

To eat: pull off the leaves and dip the fleshy part in the oil preparation and eat this bit only (not the end bits of the leaves) until you get to the heart that is the best bit. As they say, save the best till last!

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Morning Juice

There is no better way to start your day than with a fresh juice. Full of vitamins, gets your metabolism going and makes you feel bright and alive!

This particular juice was lemon, blood orange and luke warm water. Don’t have cold water first thing in the morning, it’s too hard on your system after sleeping.

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#2 In My Basket

The season is (finally) changing, and even though it’s still cold, the Winter vegetables are starting to go out of season. There are still the root vegetables and the Winter apples and pears but kale is going out of season now so it may be my last kilo of kale for a while. This week I’ll be eating so much kale!

I’ll take you through what I had in my basket this Saturday after my outing to market. Favourite outing of the week. By far .

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Organic and fresh Jersey cow milk. For those of you that have lived in Europe, you must have also noticed their milk isn’t real milk, and to be honest it kind of freaks me out. You can keep it out of the fridge without it going off. It’s been so processed that it is no longer milk. So for my lattés and chai, I get this organic milk which is actually very good for you and full of lots of nutrients. I think that you need to put in your body what feels right. I respect fully the people who are lactose intolerant, and they should steer clear of my raw milk, but for those of you that can digest milk, please look at the way it’s been treated and ask yourself if the milk you are eating has any nutrient value, or if it’s like the freaky milk you find everywhere here in France. Without getting too political, it is also a great way to support local farmers. Lobbying by the government and big supermarkets is very strong in all countries. We need to think about the small producers and the quality of their products is absolutely one hundred times better than what you find in a supermarket.

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Fresh sourdough bread.

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Chocolate bread with a dark chocolate heart.

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Organic blood oranges.

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Sweet potato. Baked with coconut oil. TO DIE FOR.

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Gorgeous snow-white like apples.

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Fresh beetroots and their leaves which I use in salads.

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My new capsules from Terre de Cafe. I’ll be writing about this place soon.

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And of course, I got a big bag of kale.

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This is what I call real yoghurt, folks!

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J’s brunch.

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My brunch. No ham.

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In the side salad I put beetroot leaves, sprouted lentils and grated beetroots. I like my eggs scrambled so I did them with olive oil and kale. J likes his eggs fried so I sprinkled kale on them as they were cooking. The cheese is cantal, which is one of my favourite cheeses!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. What did you buy and cook this weekend? Anything special?

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#1- In My Basket

I hope you all had a lovely weekend lovelies. Saturday was a gorgeously sunny day here in Paris so I got excited and took out my basket and flask of coffee and myself out to market to get some fresh vegetables. I do that every Saturday, but seeing it’s an important part of my weekend I thought you may enjoy knowing what fresh food I get each weekend, depending on the season and what I’m cooking, and showing you what I cook with it all. How does that sound? This little series will give you an insight into my Saturday mornings at market here in Paris.

In My Basket

In My Basket

Fresh parsley and coriander.

In My Basket

In My Basket

Fresh ginger.

In My Basket

In My Basket

Four fresh beetroots.

In My Basket

In My Basket

My pretty pink glitter flask that I took my coffee with me in. I’m such a girl.

In My Basket

In My Basket

A bag of fresh organic kale. Obsessed, much?

In My Basket

In My Basket

Loaf of sourdough bread that had literally just been pulled out of the oven when I got it from my bakery.

In My Basket

In My Basket

With my fresh ingredients I made myself a kale, sprouted lentil, raw beetroot, grated ginger, and roasted beetroot (which I roast in coconut oil) salad with a dash of olive oil. The bread was still warm so I boiled two eggs and had them with some salted butter on toast. I can’t tell you how good it was.

In My Basket

In My Basket

In My Basket

In My Basket

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