Chocolate Truffles

These chocolate truffles are THE BOMB! And I really don't think they could be easier to make. They are so allergy friendly I think I'd marry them if I could.
Dun dun, dundun...

Here's the good part:
Raw
Gluten Free
Vegan
Dairy Free

....CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES!
I am rather excited about these, they're delicious, I've had two just while writing this up and I won't apologise! (to you, myself or my digestive system)
The girls have tried them, it resulted in smiles and arm flapping, I find this response to be universally good through all ages. Not to be confused with confusion faces and arm flapping, that's a whole different story. :P
You'll notice I haven't even told you anything about the actual truffles yet, that's because they're o quick and easy you'll be done before I can say Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
For a recipe with NO SUGAR in it I am bouncing with energy. OK, OK, I'll share the secrets.

INGREDIENTS:
4 tbsp shredded coconut (I had chunks in my cupboard and grated them)
15 medjool dates
2 tbsp coconut oil
3 tbsp cacao powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon (add more to taste)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6 mint leaves finely chopped (this can be swapped out for any flavouring you prefer)


METHOD:
Put it all in the blender

Blend for a couple of minutes until its one big ball.

Scoop it out into a fridgeable container and leave for 10 minutes in the fridge. At this point I had to try some, and that's when the excitement began.

After the 10 minutes bring it out and make into little balls, you decide the size. 

Now just roll them in cacao powder. I love cinnamon so rolled mine in both, you could mix it up a little and try ground almonds, more coconut, mint, chilli powder if you're a crazy cat, even rock salt would work.

Stick in the fridge for another 20 minutes, and they're ready to eat. I would happily eat them in any state ;)

Feel free to thank me later.     
 

  

Watermelon Sorbet

As you know, the other day I went to a local fruit and veg market and got very excitable, coming home with arms full of summery fruit. It's not very sunny today so I decided to make a little sunshine of my own.

I mentioned in a previous post about how to cut out the crap in your diet (you can read it here) that you should make your own naughty food. OK, OK, it contains sugar, but its ten times better than you gorging your way through a giant tub of vanilla ;) And besides you have to be naughty sometimes. If you're like me you'll be really good for two weeks then get in bed with Ben and Jerry and be a VERY naughty girl. Instead I would rather have some tasty homemade treats stored away. They taste just as naughty as that two-some but they won't result in you falling off the cliff and tumbling into heaps of sweety wrappers and icecream tubs. So lets get making.

INGREDIENTS:
1 average sized watermelon (4lbs or 6 cups)
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
2 tbsp lime juice
1 radio station with your favourite tunes

METHOD:
I would suggest making this recipe when you have the whole day off and intend to make other treats too. The actual prep doesn't take any time at all, but you have to refrigerate it for quite a long time and check on it quite often. So get cosy in your kitchen, you're here for the long haul guys!

Turn on radio.
Chop the entire Watermelon.
Remove all the seeds.
Dance.
Put the sugar and water into a saucepan and bring to the boil, turn down the temp and simmer for 5 minutes.

This is my measuring cup for my recipes.  I feel it deserves a special mention...

Now take off the heat and leave it on the side to cool (this is when I would start making something in the meantime)
Now just transfer into a fridgeable tub and whack it in there for an hour.
Once your hour is up it's time to blend the watermelon, now I found that there was a ridiculous amount of liquid sloshing about when I was doing this so I blended it in bits.

 Next you have to sieve it, I won't lie to you this part of the process took so much time I think I may have lost some of my marbles in the process! 

 Once that's all done it's time to whisk the sugar syrup that you made earlier into the Watermelon and then put it into metal containers to be frozen. 
You're at the home straight now, all you have to do now is stir the frozen outer edge into the centre every half an hour until the consistency is just right! Here you can see it's nearly done....

 Mine has just reached that stage now and I just tasted a little bit. Oh its like a summery party in your mouth!

Now all I need is some sunshine and my girls!

Say "Goodbye" to acne with the help of these 7 Foods.

At some point or another we will all suffer with acne to some extent. So I thought I'd do a little help sheet about foods that can help to clear up or possibly prevent break outs. 

1. SWEET POTATO
Because I have a Potato allergy, but I can eat Sweet Potato I do eat quite a lot of these. Sweet Potatoes target spots because they lower your blood pressure. Acne tends to occur when your blood sugar spikes after eating high glycemic carbs, this causes your hormones to imbalance and then the dreaded spots appear. :( Then in swoops the Sweet Potato, lowering your blood sugar levels, stabilising your insulin secretion and being sweet and tasty at the same time. SWOON. 

BEAUTY TIP: Eat one a day and you'll get a lovely healthy glow that will make you look tanned. And they're packed with Vitamin B which is great for the skin too! Winning all round really.

2. CARROTS.
Carrots have the same benefits for the skin as Sweet Potatoes do. They are so easy to incorporate into a diet too, chomp on them raw, slice, grate, juice or bake them. Delicious! Carrots also contain Vitamin C which is a fantastic anti-oxidant for skin!

3. GREEEEEEEENS.
Listen to your mumma! Eat your greens! I've always loved veggies as far back as I can remember but if you're having trouble getting your kids to eat them tell them they'll get horrible spots if they don't. I'm half joking ;) Try to include greens in every meal, I tend to eat Spinach atleast once a day. I am bonkers for a good smoothie so I always put a couple of handfuls in those. Most doctors will subscribe acne sufferers with Accutane, this is a chemical version of Vitamin A, why not cut out the middle man and eat them in yummy salads and smoothies! Greens also have lots of Vitamin K which promotes healthy blood flow and will give you a lovely glow to your skin.

4. SALMON
Salmon is one of my favourite fish. There are a few main things that your skin needs to be healthy, they are Omega 3 Fatty Acids (which are rich in Protein) Protein helps to produce Collagen, Collagen stops your skin from aging so fast, b'bye wrinkles!
Magnesium and B12 help to calm your nerves and therefore level out your hormones. Lastly try to buy Wild Alaskan Salmon for example, it won't be filled with toxins from polluted water! :)

5. PAPAYA.
These fruits are almost show offs. Yep, they're that good! Not only do they help reduces acne they also aid digestion (they will be on my next shopping list) 
Here's why they are so great:
(a)You can buy them all year round
(b)They contain lower levels of sugar than most fruits
(c)They are rich in Beta Carotene which kicks acne's butt
(d)Full of anti-oxidants that fight skin repair, cellular regeneration, and digestion.
(e)The seeds are edible and contain all that goodness too, so put them on your smoothies, on a salad, whatever really.

6. EGGS.
I'm not vegan, (but I love vegan recipes due to my dairy problems) so I eat quite a lot of eggs. They contain all the sparkly awesome stuff I have just spoken about. My only advice with eggs is if you can buy Free Range or even better Organic, please do. This just means that they won't have used any of the pesticides that can actually seep through the shell into the egg. Gross!

7. AVOCADOS.
Avocados are a bit of an acquired taste, my mum LOVES them and I just couldn't get my head around them until very recently. Now I substitute them into my diet quite frequently. You can use them mashed up instead of butter, (great on a wholegrain oatcake) I also just read an article that said if you put half of one into a smoothie it can give it the thick, creamy consistency of a milkshake without the dairy. Music to my ears!! They are also great at stabilising your blood sugar levels too as they contain lots of fibre.

VEGANS: Try increasing your intake of chia seeds, hemp seeds, and flaxseeds.

I really hope this helps you guys, spots really can put a downer on your day!
I shall post some homemade face masks soon too I promise!
 

To New Beginnings...

At the end of my previous post I touched on how I was off to do something exciting, well I can now tell you all about it!  My love for food has been an on going thing, but realising that it was a career path only happened about a month ago. And I'd like to thank my boss and colleagues for making it a possibility. I really couldn't have done it without your support. OK, soppy bit over! 
Two weeks ago I got the chance to speak with a guy at Radisson Hotels, and he set up a trial for me, that's what I was heading off to the other day, and it went amazingly! They offered me a position on the spot and I start in a week! I am SO unbelievably excited to start this next chapter in my life! And I hope you will enjoy the journey with me!

It just shows that if you don't like something, you can change it.  If only I could be so strong against Icecream... ;)

Let the adventurous begin!!!

Summer Time: Lets Cut out the Crap!

Right so we all know I didn't quite do the whole 14 days kickstart for my Clean and Lean Diet Plan, however the principles of it are well and truely programed in. The main ones being, No Alcohol, Processed Foods, Caffeine, and Refined Sugars. Now you're probably thinking, oh great, there goes all my fun! 
Nuuuhhh Uhhhhh...WRONG! All the food you've seen on here has been in keeping with this plan and quite frankly I've never been more excited about food!

Here are a few top tips to help you out. I personally found it easier to go cold turkey, just woke up one morning and said "No more junk!"

1. GET YOUR SPECTACLES ON.
Read your food labels, if you can't pronounce, understand or count with one hand all the ingredients, put it right back on the shelf.

2. WHOLE FOODS.
Get educated on your fruits and veg, if you eat more of these, they'll be no counting of calories and grams of fat, the more fruit and veg you eat the less hungry you'll be for processed foods. And the more you indulge the easier it will be to buy healthily! 

3. GET TO KNOW YOUR LOCALS.
This does not mean a trip to the local pub ;) Take a little wonder around your neighbourhood, check out the butchers, the bakery and family run places like this. You'll find that products from these places will have all the goodness and none of the crap. I can't imagine that lovely little lady in the bakery shoving chemicals into the bread rolls can you? Besides, she wants you coming back in a few days to buy more, so she won't be ramming things in your pastry to prolong the shelf life!

4. BECOME ADVERTISEMENT SAVVY
Don't fall for the jargon. When it comes to grains you want WHOLE GRAINS. Don't get tricked by the word "refined" that ain't nothin' refined about'em.
Refined grains include things such as White Flour, which is just high in calories and low in nutrition. Even if you're intolerant of gluten you can still have Whole Grain so make sure you only eat the best!

5. STEER CLEAR OF HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP
This is just clever wording for sugar essentially, its put in all highly processed foods and its gross. Also if it, or any other sugar or sweeteners appears in the top three ingredients put it down.

6. HOW WOULD I MAKE THIS?
If you are not sure whether something is processed or not, think about if you were making it at home, would you need to put all those ingredients in, if you would, and you would still be happy to eat it, it should be fine. I can't see us tipping loads of "stabilisers" into our Beef Stroganoff can you?

7. NO MORE "KIDDIES MENU".
The majority of the time kids meals are made up of precooked meats. Mainly chicken nuggets and such, which are packed with salt! YUCK!  So if you want your kids to eat as well as you, maybe order an extra side and a plate, and share out the grub.

8. BE KIND TO YOUR ENVIRONMENT.
Visit your local farmers market, if you've read one of my recent posts you'll know it's like Disneyland to me! There are so many advantages to this! You'll be supporting local businesses, getting more nutrition from your foods as they'll all be in season, they won't be covered in yucky pesticides, and if you go to a proper one they'll be cheaper than supermarkets too!


9. REDEFINE "NAUGHTY"
Naughty foods don't have to be foods full of crap, the way I think about it is, they are the foods soooo tasty, they make you want to be naughty ;)
So instead of reaching for a sugar injected Chocolate Bar why not try my Chocolate Brownies, they're gluten free! So take the day one weekend to gather your troops and make some naughty food of your own. Then you can get naughty one evening with a box of homemade cookies knowing the whole times exactly whats in them. If you are feeling uninspired check out my Naughty But Nice Section.

 

North End Rd Fruit and Veg Market

OMG I am officially such a food nerd, strolling along looking at all these different types of fruit and veg was heaven to me! I must've driven Amelie made with my chat about new recipes and ideas. It also really made me miss my childhood trips to France, and visiting those markets. Something I need to rectify with a holiday I recon! All the bright colours and smells were fantastic, and don't even get me started on the bargains and sunshine...What more could a girl want?!

£1 for a Watermelon, and £1 for all those Bananas...I'll take them all!!
 

I discovered so much new fruit and veg, this beast is called a Bread Fruit, and next to it, a cousin of the Sweet Potato, Mr Puma Yam.

 PINAPPLES- One of my diehard favs, which is why I gave both of these a home! ;)

The beautiful colours continued on our way home, with us stopped every 100 yards, ditching all our bags and whipping out our cameras!
 

I am in THE BEST MOOD after this little adventure, tasty smoothie for breakie, wandering in the sun for a few hours, buying a Watermelon a wooohoooo! And now up on my roof terrace soaking in the rays with a fresh mint tea.

Yep, that's just mint leaves and water! SO refreshing in the sunshine, calming and great for you!
Does my excitement show?

 
The Pinapples are hiding in this photo I noticed! Shy, prickly, little things clearly!

All this and more for £5!! No wonder I'm smiling! I also bought myself a little flask, for smoothies on the go!

Ok, I'm off on another little adventure now, I'll let you know how it goes afterwards! Hope you're all having fun in the sun and don't get burnt....like my shoulder...yes just one shoulder! :P

Green Smoothie: Blueberries, Orange Juice, Greek Yoghurt.......

This morning before heading off to the Fruit and Veg market, Amelie and I enjoyed a lovely Summery tasting Green Smoothie. It's also filled with anti-oxidants to help with digestion and general healthy and also prevents bloating! One of my number one priorities of all time! :P To make this yummy little number you'll need:

2 handfuls of spinach
2 dullops of greek yoghurt (i used Rachel's Greek yoghurt with honey- it's bio too)
4 handfuls of blueberries
a few good slurps of orange juice (NOT from concentrate)
3 scoops of my Dairy Free Icecream (recipe here)

 This one is great poured over ice, and enjoyed on a sunny rooftop. 
I'll be up on mine soon for the first time this year! And I CAN'T WAIT!

Now, off to the Fruit market so sniff out some deals!