Tag Archives: healthy snack

Have I introduced you to the Lara Ball?

July 20, 2016health, healthy snack, homemade, lara balls, Paleo, Whole30Debbie

If you’re in any Paleo/Whole30/Vegan circles, no doubt you’ve heard about the Lara Ball? And if not, well then, let me enlighten you.

This is quite simply one of my all time fave snacks for when you’re trying to be good (so you’re not spontaneously making fudge, or homemade custard to eat out of a mug, or tackling that tub of Haagen Dazs in your freezer – yup – been there). I hadn’t made them for a while and then when a group of girlfriends were keen on a month of paleo, I remembered my long lost friend and made some last night. And I’ve eaten about 24 in the last 8 hours.

So Lara Balls. So good, so sweet, so healthy, satisfying and ah, they just hit the spot when you need it most.

WHAT YOU NEED:

1.5 cups Almonds (I know they’re expensive at the mo, but trust me)
1.5 cups Dates (pitted, always pitted)
3 or 4 tablespoons soft/melted Coconut Oil
2 tablespoons Raw Organic Cacao Powder (optional)
However much you feel like adding Chia Seeds (optional)
Again, however much you feel like adding fresh Coffee Grounds (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

Easy as. You throw your almonds into a food processor and switch on FULL BLAST. It’s loud. Really loud. So switch it on and run out the room. Once it calms down and those nuts have been crushed into small cous cous-like prices, add your dates. Then your coconut oil and then the optional extras. And blend blend blend. (My hubby loves the coffee ones, I’m not such a fan, but cacao and chia seeds – YUM!)

Once everything is nicely mixed, grab them in your hand and squish them into balls and pop them in the fridge. If you find they’re too dry then add a touch more coconut oil so they hold firm when you make balls. On the flip side, if they’re too oily, no harm, you can simply use less oil the next time. And when I say ‘next time’, I mean the next day because you’ll probably finish them all today.

Enjoy xxx

Image credit: www.chocolatecoveredkatie.com

Banana Chips, and how they can save your Life.

July 10, 2016banana chips, food, fresh produce, Healthy eating, healthy snack, homemade, PaleoDebbie

My sister-in-law totally shows me up. She is like the most intentional mom I know, and I know a lot of them. She is so down to earth (so you can’t hate her) makes EVERYTHING from scratch, is like super creative with her kids, all the while being a patient wife (me, not so much) and super calm mother (again, I don’t make that list). She’s constantly calm. How? I don’t know.

And while being awesome, her and my hubby’s brother bought my husband a biltong maker one Christmas. Because, of course, it makes so much more than just biltong. It dehydrates just about anything and so your options are endless. As I type this, I can hear it humming next to me dehydrating slices of banana.

We got through 6 weeks traveling from Vancouver, to New Zealand, to Australia and then finally Cape Town thanks to BANANA CHIPS. Banana chips saved our lives. Banana chips were the then-toddlers premium choice of snack and would do anything for them. You know how you’re all like “hubby, have you packed the dummy?” before you leave the house with a baby? Replace ‘dummy’ with ‘banana chips’ and that was us.

All hail the Banana Chip. It saved us. It saved us on airplanes (that alone means it should receive some kind of Nobel Peace Prize), and in people-movers traveling across the south island of New Zealand. It saved us in supermarkets, on boat trips, during half marathons and when mom and dad just needed.a.break. That crispy little yellow (gold) ray of light was our go to.

And I know what you might be thinking… banana chips… gross. And maybe (if you’re grabbing them from the bulk bin at your local grocery store). But not if you make them yourselves. Ohhhhh no. Delicious, and (somewhat) healthy, and cheap, and e-a-s-y, and don’t forget – top quality bribery tool.

HERE’S THE HOW TO:

What you need: bananas. (No additives!)

IF you have a food dehydrator:

Slice the bananas and place them on the dehydrators shelves/wracks. Pop them in and turn your dehydrator on. Leave them around 12 hours, and when you have a moment, take them out, flip them over and put them back in for another 6-8-ish hrs (all depends on how thick you cut your banana). Be careful when flipping them as they can still be soft underneath and can break.

IF YOU DON’T have a food dehydrator:

Pre-heat your oven to 120C and line your slices of banana on parchment paper. Pop them in the oven for 30min. Take them out and flip them over. They can be a little tricky to flip, but you can do it. Use a thin blade to get under them if need be.

Once they are all tuned over pop them back into the oven and allow them to dry for another 30 minutes. When the time is up, take them out of the oven and set aside to cool. Your chips will still be drying out slightly when you take them out from the oven.

After 10 or 15 minutes you are ready to have a taste. I usually store mine in an air tight mason jar in the grocery cupboard. Done.

Now go for it and throw yourself this lifeline.

Picture credits: www.thecarameljar.com, www.recipeshubs.com.

Absolutely Delicious Homemade Salsa

October 4, 2015family recipes, food, Healthy eating, healthy snack, homemade, Paleo, salsa, Whole30Debbie

One Christmas, our pastor’s wife gave us a jar of homemade salsa and it was absolutely delicious. So as soon as I had finished the jar I needed to find a recipe to make some more. So I did, and thanks to Two Peas and Their Pod Blog the deliciousness continued…

Here’s what you need:

Ingredients:

1 can whole tomatoes with juice
1 can diced tomatoes with chilies and herbs (or something similar)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 whole jalapeño, sliced thin (more if you like it hot hot hot!!!)
1/4 teaspoon sugar (omit this if eating paleo)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 cup fresh coriander (or more to taste – I LOVE coriander)
1/2 whole lime, juiced (I usually add more lime, since I LOVE lime)

Directions:

In a large food processor or blender, combine whole tomatoes, tomatoes with chilies, onion, jalapeño, garlic, sugar, salt, cumin, lime juice, and coriander. Pulse until you get the salsa to the consistency you’d like. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Refrigerate salsa for at least an hour.

You can eat this with tortilla style chips, or throw it over some nachos. We recently added it to delicious Mexican tortillas – with homemade spiced mince, tomatoes, lettuce, guacamole, cheese, sour cream and coriander. Yummmmm!!! You can add it to your burger or on your homemade pizza or on some crackers with cheese. It’s also a great Christmas gift if you’re doing the homemade Christmas gift thing.

Yum. It is also paleo approved (if using no sugar). I can eat this with a spoon, it’s that good.

Enjoy!

The Yummiest Paleo Recipes EVER

July 31, 2015beetroot, family recipes, food, fresh, fresh produce, fruit, health, healthy snack, homemade, juicing, Paleo, recipes, salad, soup, Whole30Debbie

We have only one more day to go friends, and so I’ve rounded up my favorite Paleo recipes of all time. I find myself coming back to these again and again, even when intentionally eating Paleo is far from my mind…

Most of these recipes can be found on my Paleo Board on Pinterest. Pinterest is an amazing resource for Paleo recipes and inspiration. Included in this blog post are just a handful of the gazillions of recipes that are all amazingly delicious and easily found online. So make friends with Google and enter a world of deliciousness. I’m currently also re-reading Pete Evans‘ book Family Food.

Please try to make as MUCH of this as you can at home. Homemade is BEST. Cooking, baking and almond milk making gets your creative food juices going and is so healthy for the soul.

Michael Pollan says something along the lines of, ‘take as much time to prepare your food, as you do to eat it’. I like that quote. And I think he’s right.

RECIPES:

BREAKFAST: (I usually have fruit and nuts on weekdays and save the bacon and eggy kinda brekkie for the weekend).

– My all time fave is Paleo Granola. Basically 1 cup of each of the following: almonds, cashews, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, and coconut flakes. You can throw some linseed and sesame seed in if you like (maybe half a cup of each). Mix all the nuts/seeds in a large bowl (except coconut flakes) and mix in about 1/4 cup melted coconut oil. If you want, you can squeeze in the juice of an orange for a touch of sweetness. Spread it out over a baking dish (or two) and bake at a low temp (110 degrees) for about an hour, mixing once in-between. Toast the coconut flakes separately as they burn quickly! Add the coconut flakes to the rest of the granola and store in airtight container.

This is best served over cut up fruit (apples, oranges, pears, strawberries etc). Since this is oat-free and nut HEAVY, you really only need a couple tablespoons of granola over your fruit. This amount of nuts might seem expensive initially but it will last you a fair while since you don’t need that much – not nearly the amount you would usually use when eating granola (museli). Also, if you find the nuts too big, you can chop them roughly in the very beginning.

– Classic bacon and eggs, with balsamic grilled cherry tomatoes, garlic fried mushrooms, creamy avo and sweet potato hash. YUM.

– Spinach Beef Frittata. (I sometimes make these in cupcake pans so you have portion sizes that are just right!) Make up your own combinations too.

SNACKS:

– Banana chips (homemade)
– Apple chips with cinnamon (homemade)
– Cherry tomatoes
– Cut up apple and almond butter
– Beet dip and cucumber and carrot sticks
– Boiled eggs with paleo mayo
– Yam fries and aioli (paleo mayo, garlic and lemon juice)
– Kale chips. I know it is not everyone’s cup of tea but I love them.
– Spice-free biltong
– aaaaaaaaaaaand… Lara Balls (throw 1 cup almonds, 1 cup pitted dates, 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil into a food processor and blend to smitherines. Grab handfulls and squish into balls. Keep them in the fridge and nibble as you need. You can add a tablespoon or so of organic cacao powder or ground coffee beans if you’re wanting to add extra flavour). Lara Balls were essential in both my previous Whole30’s.

LUNCHES & DINNERS (I find these quite interchangeable):

Your alternatives to a carby base: cauliflower rice, sweet pot/ yam hash or mash, zucchini ribbons and broccoli and cauliflower florets. You can also make spaghetti squash – but I can’t find spaghetti squash in South Africa. Hmmph.

You absolutely have to make cauliflower rice and sweet potato hash/mash as your hearty meal bases (where you would have used noodles/rice/bread etc.) Omit the lime and coriander from the cauliflower rice recipe if you don’t like those flavours – but I find them super scrumptious. Also, zucchini ribbons (peeling a zucchini like you would a carrot) and broccoli florets or roasted cauliflower are very versatile as bases for a spaghetti type mince or juicy vegetable something-or-other.

Soups: (while you’re at it – make double and freeze extra portions so you have spare for the following week, or for an unpredictably busy day).

– I cannot get enough of this Roasted Butternut Soup. I can now make it with my eyes closed.
– Curried Cauliflower Soup (I buy cauliflower like its nobody’s business).
– Sweet Potato and Bacon Soup (with Ras el Hanout – take the time to make this – it’s easy and so worth it).
– Basil and Tomato Soup (with basil from your garden, obviously).

Salads: (Rule of thumb for salads in general: include 1 green, 1 fruit or vegetable and 1 nut. Usually I would say add 1 cheese, but not while on Whole30).

– Chicken, Avo, Mango, Cilantro, Lime, Mint, & Toasted Cashew Salad. Oh my wooord – one of my all time best.
– Bacon, Lime and Sweet Pot Salad
– Grilled Chicken Citrus Salad

Meaty Options:

– My BEST EVERRRR: Chipotle Chicken Sweet Pot Skins. Your friends will love you forever. Leave off the cheese. It’s a touch high maintenance, but so, so worth it.

– 2nd BEST: Homemade Burgers in Lettuce Wraps. Make it up as you wish. Add whatever tickles your fancy – but keep it dairy free. The crispy lettuce crunch with the warm homemade patty with juicy tomatoes and creamy avo. Stop it. It is so good.

Patty: Throw together minced beef, diced onion, salt, pepper, one egg, a handful of almond flour (leftover from your almond milk), coconut aminos (optional), herbs from the garden, balsamic vinegar, and crushed garlic. Shape into patties, pop in fridge for a while to let the flavours set in and fry in EVOO/Coconut oil on stove. Make extras as snacks.

– 3rd BEST: Fish Tacos. I have now started ordering fish tacos in (reputable seafood) restaurants I love them so so much. I adapt this recipe. I leave out the sugar, dairy and carb component and replace it with homemade paleo mayo and crispy lettuce as the wrap. Make this with a mango salsa. A taste sensation.

Fish & Chips: If you don’t feel like making tacos you can just cook the fish and serve it with yam fries. Yum.

– 4th BEST: Moroccan Meatballs. Yum. Over and Over (on cauli rice). This is another recipe I have continued to make again and again long after our Whole30’s ended.

– 5th BEST: Warm Veggie Salad. The hub is not a huge fan of this one, but I love it. I adapt this recipe (swap the potato for sweet potato or yam). I serve it on baby spinach and mix a couple more flavours into the sauce such as red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and chilli flakes.

When you’re lost for ideas, a frittata is always a safe bet (with whatever you have left in your pantry). Also, how about a delicious roast chicken with roasted veggies? So easy. Use the chicken carcass to make homemade chicken stock (in your Wonderbag) for your soups. So versatile huh?

BEVERAGES:

– Water, drink it with lemon, or not. Just drink LOTS of it.
– Coffee and Tea with Almond Milk or Coconut Milk. These milks are SO easy to make and have no hidden sugars, preservatives etc. unlike store bought. Also roast the left over coconut and almond flours. They’ll come in handy.
– Soda Water with Lemon (my evening drink of choice)
– Naturally Flavoured Water
– Smoothies (so easy to make)
– Juices in your juicer – such as my fave: Beet, Apple & Ginger
– I’m allowing Kombucha since there is no hard and fast rule if it is allowed. I love it for its probiotic and gut health benefits and so feel it’s a great addition. It’s also a good thing to drink when you feel like a glass of wine.

NEW RECIPES I can’t wait to try:

– Healthy Taco Salad in a mason jar with this deeeelicious salsa.
– Roasted Sweet Pot Salad
– Thai Coconut Soup (I love Thai flavours, and ginger is so good for you)
– Coconut Crusted Chicken Patties (how have we not had these before?)

Pheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeewwwww. That’s a lot of info to take in. I did so much research on my first Whole30, I put this PDF together with a shopping list, meal plan for my 4 weeks and it really helped me when I was feeling inspiration-less. Print it out and pin it up in your kitchen for when you’re needing ideas: Whole 30 – Schedule (Week 1,2,3,4).

Now it’s your turn! Please share your winning recipes, and your total failures (so we know to, errrmmm, give them a skip). Be inspired to do your own research and create your own meals.

Good luck and enjoy!!

xxx

Healthy Homemade Marshmallows

June 5, 2015food, healthy snack, marshmallowsDebbie

On Fridays, my 3 year old has music lessons at school. And often when I pick him up, he says to me ‘if we sing, we get marshmallows’, or alternatively ‘I didn’t sing today so I didn’t get a marshmallow’ – the latter makes me chuckle under my breath imagining the poor music teacher trying to get my fairly strong willed child to do something (anything!) he doesn’t want to do.

Either way, marshmallows have become quite the new treat for my toddler who barely ever gets sugar (unless its the weekend, we’re rewarding him for wearing his eye patch, we’re at a party, or gran is feeling heavy handed on the sugary goodness). As a self diagnosed sugar addict, I do want to keep these little bodies away from sugar as much as I can. Don’t all parents want to protect their children from such enticing temptations…

So, I went on the hunt for a healthier option, a homemade marshmallow recipe – which I found easily thanks to Wellness Mama. It is super easy to make, super delish and you can adapt it as you wish. You even have the option of adding probiotics (for those of whose kids don’t drink kombucha.. so… most of us then?) – what a win.

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons of pasture-raised gelatin powder. (Gelatin is incredibly healthy for you!!)
1 cup of water
1 cup of honey (we buy local)
1 tablespoon of Marshmallow Root (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla or other flavor optionals (mint extract, lemon, cocoa powder, etc). Please get pure vanilla extract. Vanilla essence is just a flavoured chemical.
Optional: 4 capsules of probiotics. (I use The Real Thing)
Equipment: A small sauce pan, plus a hand mixer & a metal bowl – or a kitchen aid mixer if you have one.

Instructions:

Optional Step: Combine 1 cup of warm water with the 1 tablespoon of Marshmallow Root and let sit for 5 minutes (or as long as overnight in the fridge), Stir well and strain. Make sure that the liquid makes a while cup.
Pour ½ cup of water (marshmallow mix if you used it) into the metal bowl or mixer bowl and add the gelatin. Whisk slightly to incorporate and let sit.
Pour the other ½ cup of water and the 1 cup of honey into the small saucepan.
Slowly bring the water and honey mixture to a boil. If you have a kitchen thermometer, you want it to reach at least 240 degrees. If not, just keep boiling, stirring constantly for 8 minutes. This will boil over really quickly if you don’t keep a close eye on it. Beware!
Slowly start pouring the honey/water mixture into the bowl with the gelatin mix (which will be hardened by now).
Turn on the mixer or hand mixer and keep on medium as the honey mixture is added.
When add honey mix is added, turn the mixer to high and blend with the mixer for another 10-15 minutes or until it forms a stiff cream the consistency of marshmallow cream (it should form gentle peaks).
Add the probiotics and any flavor ingredients for the last 2 minutes of mixing (except cocoa powder which can be added to the honey mix in the saucepan).
Grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with coconut oil, or line with parchment paper, leaving some on the sides to be able to pull up.
When marshmallows are whipped, pour into the lined/greased dish and smooth evenly.
Let sit at least 4 hours (overnight is better).
Flip on to a cutting board and cut with a well oiled pizza cutter or knife.
Store in an airtight container.

Should you want them powdery then you can mix icing sugar with some corn starch and sprinkle it over your marshies, but I try not to since its defeats the point of them being process-sugar free.

IF, like me, out of pure excitement, you over-beat your marshmallows and it goes a bit bumpy, do not fear! Turn it into Rocky Road Marshmallow. Throw on some toasted almonds, slightly roasted unsweetened coconut flakes and raw cacao nibs. Yummers.

– Keep your eyes peeled for my upcoming blog on healthy hot chocolate options. It’s the obvious follow on to this post. Marshamallows… and hot choc.