All posts by holisticwellnessforlife

Holistic Nutrition and Wellness Coach with a focus on food as medicine and life balance. My website is a reflection of the health journey l have been on and the importance that l place on achieving wellness in life. I am a Primal Blueprint Certified Expert and have a special interest in Paleo Nutrition and Primal Living. A clean eating diet and lifestyle where your health is at the centre of everyday decisions. I am sharing this passion and journey with like minded people who are empowering themselves with knowledge and challenging the traditional medical system and health model and who desire to contribute whole heartedly to their own wellbeing.

Raw chocolate and coconut slice

Unbelievably good! 

A delicious chocolate slice free from gluten, dairy and processed sugar, while also being incredibly nutritious.

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This will be gone in a flash!

This is a simple raw slice that l made using the food processor in just minutes. A taste test of the processed ingredients was delicious.

Ingredients:

1 cup of organic almond meal (blanched)

1/4 cup rice malt syrup

1 cup organic shredded coconut

1/2 cup organic raw coconut oil

2 generous tablespoons of organic raw cacao

6 organic medjool dates (seeds removed)

1/2 cup flaked almonds

1/2 cup macadamia nuts

Place all of the ingredients in the food processor. (The nuts could be substituted for any other kind of nut you like)

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Give all the ingredients a quick whiz in the food processor.

Place the mixture into a baking dish lined with baking paper. Push it down with a spatula so there is a nice even layer of approximately 1 cm thick. Smooth the surface with the spatula.

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The mixture is sitting on baking paper and has been smoothed out with a spatula.

Place in the freezer and when frozen cut into individual pieces. The slice freezers in about an hour and can be stored in an appropriate container in the freezer where you can just take a piece or two out as required.

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Cut the slice into individual pieces.

Note: You can buy blanched and natural almond meal. I have been using natural almond meal in most of my recipes which is almond meal with the skin on. I have now switched to blanched almond meal as it is so much softer in my baking. 

You can follow me daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo

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Mini quiche: A meal or a snack!

Bake a batch of mini quiche and discover how delicious they are! Fantastic for the whole family.

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A small quiche can be part of a meal or a great snack.

The basic ingredient of the mini quiche is eggs (preferably free range or organic). What you add to the mix is entirely up to your preferences. This could include seeds, nuts, vegetables, cheese and seasonings as examples.

Broccoli quiche:

Mix in a bowl eggs, grated carrot, spring onion green tops, parsley, a meat such as tuna (optional), pink rock salt and black pepper. Grease the pan very well or use patty pans. Pour the mixture into each hole in the pan and place a piece of raw broccoli in the centre of each. Cook in a 200 degree celsius oven until firm and golden.

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These muffins are poured directly into the pan. Ensure you grease it well.
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Nice and golden,. Use a knife to cut around the edges and gently pull out.

Egg and bacon quiche are delicious straight out of the oven.

Place a strip of bacon into the greased tray and crack an egg into each hole. Season with pink rock salt and black pepper.

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These simple egg and bacon snacks are so easy to make and the bacon makes them easy to lift out of the pan.
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Cook until the eggs are just cooked
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Fantastic served with vegetables

Mini quiche are also a great snack and lunch box filler. Have the leftovers the next day with a salad for lunch or grab one for morning tea. Alternatively enjoy the quiche the next night by gently reheating in the oven and serving with a delicious salad or roast vegetables.

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Small broccoli quiche with a beetroot spiral salad, sweet potato chips and bacon. Quite a combination.

I hope you have enjoyed this post. You can follow me daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo

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Beetroot, Sweet Potato and Pumpkin Soup.

This soup has a wonderful balance of flavours with the most important element  being a beautiful home-made chicken stock. It is such a delightful colour and looks so much like tomato soup but has a very distinctive flavour of beetroot with a lovely sweetness. 

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A thick and delicious soup with a surprising flavour.

Ingredients:

Check the recipe-soup section of the website for the chicken stock recipe.

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1 litre of home-made chicken stock, 2 small beetroot or 1 1/2 large, 1 medium sweet potato, 1 large brown onion, 1/2 teaspoon pink rock salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper.
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Just a small amount of pumpkin to thicken up the soup.

Method:

Prepare the vegetables by washing, peeling and chopping.

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Add all ingredients except the stock, into a medium-sized saucepan with some olive oil.
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Cook until the vegetables are starting to soften and stir the ingredients every few minutes.

Add the stock and put the lid on and let simmer for about 60 minutes.

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When the vegetables are soft take off the stove and blend with a hand blender.
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Blend well so that there are no lumps. Place back on the stove on a gentle simmer for approximately another 30 minutes. Check the seasoning and adjust as required.

This is a very thick and filling soup. It has the most delicious sweet flavour and the colour is enticing. The main tips for this soup are to brown the vegetables before you put the stock in, use a very good quality home-made stock and use fresh vegetables.

You can follow me daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo

Home made chicken stock

Home made stock is so handy and can be used as a base in dishes such as soups, casseroles, sauces or as a broth. It is extremely nutritious and adds a lovely flavour to your cooking. 

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A clear and beautiful stock.

When l had a colonoscopy recently l strained it through a muslin cloth and had it before the procedure and it helped me get through the fasting period.

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Here it is as a broth with garlic and parsley.

It freezes very well and if you put it in lots of small containers is easy to add to your favourite dishes. Alternatively freeze it in a couple of larger containers and use it as a base for a soup or casserole.

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A lovely vegetable soup.
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Apricot chicken (The recipe is in the main meal section)

To make the stock start off with a good quality organic or free range chicken which you can cook using your favourite method. I usually roast mine and have a meal or two with it then use the leftover bones, meat and skin to make the stock.

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A delicious roasted chicken

Place the chicken carcass, left over meat and skin in a large stainless steel pot and cover with cold filtered water.

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Put all the leftovers in the pot and cover with filtered water. Don’t use tap water if you can avoid it.

Add the following to the pot:

1 onion or spring onion chopped up

2 or 3 celery sticks chopped into a few pieces

2 medium sized carrots chopped up

Several bay leaves

A small dash of organic apple cider vinegar

A few black peppercorns

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Everything is in the pot now.

Put the lid on and bring to the boil. Let the pot simmer most of the day and overnight if you can. When it has cooled slightly strain into a large pot or bowl.

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This part is a bit tricky.
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It is so golden and looks delicious.

Carefully pour into the storage containers. I usually freeze most of it and keep a small amount in the fridge for use during the week.

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This size is handy to add to smaller meals
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This size container is good as a base for a soup or casserole.

Some of the stock can be used straight away to make a delicious soup.

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Vegetables prepared for the soup
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Cooking nicely and the smell in the house will be lovely.
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A delicious home made soup.

Do yourself a favour and make your own stock. It is very quick to make and the taste is sensational.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. You can follow me daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo.

Rolled Chicken Breast with a herb, nut and vegetable filling

I feel quite clever making this dish as it is quite fiddly, but well worth the effort. The filling is a selection of lovely flavours and textures but you can easily change the ingredients to suit your own preferences. I used two chicken breasts which meant l had enough for a hot dinner when it is first cooked and then cold with a salad the next night. Each rolled chicken breast serves three people if you have a portion as in the pictures below which highlight how important it is to balance the meal out with healthy vegetables.

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Have it cold with a salad!
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Rolled chicken served with roasted swede chips, steamed brussel sprouts and roasted pumpkin slices topped with raw organic honey and organic sesame seeds.
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Served with steamed pumpkin, brussel sprouts and cauliflower.

You can use as many chicken breast as you like but l buy the free-range breasts in a pack of two. Give them a good wash with filtered water and pat dry.

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Place the chicken breast in between two pieces of cling wrap. Put a tea towel under the chopping board in preparation for the flattening of the chicken as this will make the noise less and stop the board moving on the bench.
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Flatten the chicken so that it is a nice shape by gently pounding it with a wooden rolling pin.

Make the filling by combining all of the ingredients in a food processor, or alternatively cut and chop them by hand and mix in a bowl. Change any of the ingredients if you don’t like the flavour combination or add in some more spices. The ingredients below don’t have to be exact as long as there are a good mix of flavours.

Ingredients for the filling:

4 brussel sprouts

2 spring onion green tops

1/2 cup raw activated walnuts

1/4 cup raw activated pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

Pink rock salt and ground black pepper

1 tablespoon organic coconut oil

1/2 cup fresh parsley and mint (or any other herbs you have)

A few leaves of silverbeet(use spinach, kale or bok choy as an alternative)

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A food processor is convenient here but not essential.

Spread the filling on top of the chicken breasts.

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The free range chicken breasts flattened and topped with the filling.
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Roll the breast around the filling

Use kitchen string to gently hold the breast in place. Tie the string at each end and push in any filling that has come out. Gently lift onto a lined baking tray and drizzle with your favourite oil, pink rock salt and black pepper.

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The rolled and tied chicken breast drizzled with extra virgin olive oil, pink rock salt and black pepper.

Cover with foil and place in the oven. Cook until the chicken is golden and then take the foil off and let it brown or place under the grill ensuring it doesn’t dry out.

Another option is to pan fry the rolled chicken which will give a more golden appearance.

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Cook on a very low heat with the lid on.
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Both the oven and fry pan methods work well.

Carefully cut the string along the length of the chicken and remove. Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving.

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Golden and delicious!

There are so many fillings that would be delicious with this recipe. I am going to try a pumpkin or sweet potato filling next, but the combinations are really endless.

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Have one for dinner and the second one cold the next day. A great way to add variety to the same dish and the flavours are quite different between the warm and cold versions.

If you have enjoyed this post please share it with a friend. I also post my recipes and wellness tips daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo.

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The versatility of sweet potato!

Sweet potatoes are versatile, sweet, nutritious and affordable!

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A simple dinner with sweet potato as the centre piece.

Oh, how l love the sweet potato which is also known as kumara or yam. Not much to look at in the shops, but once cooked the flavour is enticing.

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The orange sweet potato is always in my fridge.

Sweet Potato is a good source of complex carbohydrates, dietary fibre and beta carotene, and this root vegetable also has modest amounts of Vitamin C, Iron, Calcium, Vitamin B6 and Magnesium.

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A sweet potato mash with silverbeet, parsley and spring onion adds some colour to this meal.

Since l stopped eating processed sugar l like to include foods which are naturally sweet as part of my everyday diet. The sweet potato is a lovely addition to a meal because of its beautiful sweet taste, soft texture and bright colour. It is extremely easy to cook with and difficult to ruin. I am amazed at the lovely flavour it adds to baked goods such as cakes and pancakes and although l prefer it cooked it can be a good addition raw to a smoothie.

sweet potato noodles with soup
Sweet Potato noodles with soup
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Sweet Potato and Walnut cake.
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A Paleo, gluten, dairy sugar free pancake with grated sweet potato mixed through the batter.
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Raw sweet potato in a juice tastes a lot like carrot and makes it creamy.

I can’t remember when l first ate a sweet potato but it certainly wasn’t until l was an adult. It has some similarities in flavour and colour to the pumpkin but holds together better when cooked and is especially delicious cut into chips. Sweet Potatoes can be bought quite small or enormously large, and the surprising thing is that in my experience the flavour is the same whatever size you buy. They are also available with a red skin and a white flesh and this is one of those times when your taste buds can get very confused as the taste is the same as the orange version. I have to admit here that l have on occasion tricked my children into thinking they were eating normal potato when in fact it was the red sweet potato just to get them to try a new vegetable.

How many ways can one vegetable be used in recipes? 

Here are a few more pictures of how l have used the sweet potato in my cooking:

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Sweet Potato Chips as a snack. Coat them in olive or coconut oil and season before cooking.
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Sweet Potato and vegetable soup. See the main meals section for a soup recipe.
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Sweet potato chips are my favourite.
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Sweet Potato casserole. This has chicken, vegetables, coconut and spices. It cooks in the slow cooker all day and is lovely. The recipe is in the main meals section.
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A gluten free pizza with sweet potato.

I hope you can enjoy the sweet potato as much as l do and make it a regular part of your meals.

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Roasted sweet potato with salmon is delicious here. I roasted it with the skin on and then sliced it before serving.
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Vegetarian lasagna with sweet potato layers.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. You can follow me daily on Instagram at holistic_paleo.

Here is a link to a great online book store where you can purchase some Paleo and wellness books.

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Just click on the logo to see some great books.

Lemon, walnut and silverbeet quinoa risotto

Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah) is a nutritious gluten-free grain alternative and is in fact a seed from a vegetable linked to swiss chard, spinach and beets. It is considered a super food and is high in protein, with a good balance of all 8 essential amino acids, making it a good choice for vegetarians. It is also high in fibre and has a low-GI, beneficial for keeping blood sugar levels stable as well as having a slightly alkaline effect on the body.

This dish was very quick to make as l pre-cooked the quinoa and the flavours in it were lovely. There was a strong hint of lemon, a crunch from the walnuts and a flavour kick from the addition of fresh ginger and cumin.

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The risotto is quite sticky so it held together nicely when l placed it in a glass ramekin to shape.

I was inspired to make this risotto as l have a vegetable garden filled with greens including masses of silverbeet. There is no need to follow my recipe to the letter as part of cooking is having fun and experimenting with new ingredients and flavours, and my cooking is quite plain due to food intolerances, so you may wish to spice it up a bit more.

Ingredients:

2 cups organic quinoa (l used white)

Filtered water

Olive oil

1 tablespoon organic tomato paste

1 small tomato diced

1/2 red capsicum diced

1/2 teaspoon cumin

3 large leaves of silverbeet

Fresh parsley and basil chopped

1 cm fresh gInger finely sliced

2 spring onion green tops sliced

5 snow peas sliced

1/2 carrot finely diced

1 cup roughly chopped raw activated walnuts (or another nut)

Lemon juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 tablespoon Organic apple cider vinegar

Pink rock salt and ground black pepper (season to taste)

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White quinoa

Cooking quinoa requires some pre-planning as it needs to be soaked and rinsed prior to cooking. I soaked 2 cups of quinoa in filtered water all day and then rinsed just before cooking to remove the bitter tasting saponins. You can soak it for a shorter time such as 30 minutes if that is all the time you have. I placed the rinsed quinoa in a saucepan and covered with filtered water so that there was about an inch of water on top of the grain. I brought it to the boil, then let it simmer with the lid on until the water was absorbed and the seeds had popped open. You can turn the heat off at this point while the rest of the dish cooks.

In a fry pan place a splash of olive oil, the organic tomato paste, tomato, red capsicum and cumin. Let that cook for a minute then add the quinoa and mix well. Now add the rest of the ingredients and season well to taste with pink rock salt and ground black pepper.

Give it a good mix for a couple of minutes and serve. I spooned mine into a ramekin, then turned it upside down and let it slip out onto the plate. It looked lovely when it was on the table garnished with lemon rind and parsley.

If you don’t have the ingredients listed just use what you have in the fridge and you can also make the risotto the traditional way by adding the liquid in small intervals to the uncooked quinoa.

Below l have included a link to my favourite supplier of all organic goods such as quinoa and other pantry essentials. They offer a great service and very good prices with free delivery if your purchase is over a certain amount which is listed on their website depending on your location.

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A fabulous online store for my Australian followers.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. You can also follow me on Instagram at holistic_paleo where you will get daily photos of the meals l prepare and a few other interesting things aimed at inspiring a healthier life.

Chicken and vegetable cauliflower rice

A budget friendly, nutritious and easy to prepare meal. I used a whole cauliflower for this recipe and was amazed at the plentiful quantity it made. Cauliflower rice is a great alternative to real rice, and you will be amazed at how similar it looks and tastes. 

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Enough to feed the whole family.

Ensure that you use fresh ingredients. You can use your favourite vegetables but l used mostly greens in this one such as bok choy, celery, broccoli, spring onion tops and snow peas, plus some carrot and bean sprouts.

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A beautiful fresh cauliflower.

This is a dish that can be pre-prepared early in the day so that at dinner time it will take a very short time to cook. It is a matter of processing the cauliflower, washing and chopping all of the vegetables and dicing the chicken. This can all then be kept in separate bowls or containers in the fridge until required.

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Preparation is the key! One whole cauliflower, 2 free range chicken breasts and your favourite vegetables.

My favourite way to make cauliflower rice is to cut the fresh cauliflower into smallish pieces and then blend it in the food processor. This takes about 10 seconds to turn into cauliflower rice. You don’t want it in the food processor too long or it will be a pulp and wont cook nicely.

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Wash the raw cauliflower and cut it into pieces that will fit into the food processor.
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Process the cauliflower until it resembles rice and is an even consistency.

Steps:

I used a largish fry pan which l pre-heated on a low temperature and added some olive oil. You know the pan is too hot if the oil is smoking. High heats will damage the oil so go gently with the heat.

Add the diced chicken to the pan and lightly brown. Next add the cauliflower rice and let it cook for a few minutes, followed by the vegetables and any spices you are using. I just used pink rock salt and ground black pepper, but l have in the past added fresh garlic, ginger and lots of spices such as tumeric, cumin, paprika and cinnamon. You can also add some sauces such as a fish sauce or Tamari, but l have been having food intolerance reactions to a lot of spices at present so kept this dish plain. The cauliflower rice often changes colour depending on the spices or vegetables you use and can look so stunning.  Don’t over cook the vegetables or rice to retain the nutrients. I put mine on a nice large platter to serve and it looked wonderful.

You can take this to work the next day for lunch to have cold and use different meats, or just have it as a side dish. A very fresh and clean cauliflower is essential to the success of this dish and it is so light and healthy that it is a great meal to have at night when you don’t want to overload your digestive system.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I am on Instagram at holistic_paleo and Twitter at Holistic Paleo@carolynlgray

Orange and poppy seed cake with whole oranges (gluten and dairyfree)

I am reposting the recipe for this delightful cake as l have had so much wonderful feedback. This is a lovely moist cake which uses whole oranges to give it a beautiful flavour and texture. I don’t normally cook with stevia but l had some in the cupboard and thought it would add a nice sweetness to the cake and used it in conjunction with Rice Malt Syrup which worked well.

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A moist and lovely cake-gluten free/dairy free

This recipe makes 12 cupcakes and 1 whole cake so it could be halved if desired. To make this cake all of the wet ingredients plus a few extras are placed in one bowl and the dry ones in another.

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The wet ingredients plus the poppy seeds

Ingredients:

Place these ingredients into one bowl and mix together.

2 whole Navel oranges chopped and blended-skin left on (Navel oranges are so sweet. Just chop them into smallish pieces and place into the blender until a smooth consistency).

3/4 cup filtered water

4 free range eggs

1/2 cup stevia granules

1/2 cup organic coconut oil gently melted

1/3 cup poppy seeds (more or less depending on your preference)

1/3 cup rice malt syrup

1/2 teaspoon organic vanilla essence

In another bowl mix:

2 cups almond meal

1/2 cup coconut flour

1/2 teaspoon Bicarbonate Soda (Bob’s Red Mill)

Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix gently. If making cupcakes place spoonfuls into patty pans as below.

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Ready for the oven!

If making a cake pour half the mix into a greased and lined cake tin. Bake both in a 180 degree celsius oven until firm to touch. The cake will take quite a lot longer than the cup cakes.

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A cute cupcake display. Add some orange pieces to compliment the cupcakes.

Let the cake cool in the tin for a few minutes and then place on a cake cooling rack. I drizzled the cake with some fresh orange juice and topped with sliced orange. I admit to having a cupcake and a piece of cake and my preference is for the cake as the extra juice and orange slice really added to the flavour.

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Drizzle the cake with fresh orange juice and freshly sliced Navel orange.

This is a delightful cake and the flavour turned out really delicious and it is a wonderful treat for those of us living on restricted diets.

If you enjoyed this post please share with a friend. You can also follow me on Instagram: holistic_paleo, Facebook, Pinterest, Tumblr, Twitter or Flickr.

Green smoothies: A masterpiece every time!

A few hashtags to describe a green smoothie!

#nutritious #fibre #filling #colourful #healthy #fun #vegetables #fruit #raw #vitamins #minerals #antioxidants #tastesamazing #healthychoice #green

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Filled with green goodness.

Mental and practical roadblocks people use to not have a green smoothie in their life.

It it scary to drink a green smoothie

I don’t want to drink vegetables, especially green ones

There are things in there l won’t like

I’ve never had a chia seed

I don’t have a blender

The ingredients are expensive

It will taste awful

I’d rather have a normal fruit smoothie

Do any of these sound familiar? They can all be overcome if you can think out side of your comfort zone. If you don’t have a blender they can be purchased very cheaply or you can borrow one, and if you grow your own green leafy vegetables that is another one crossed off the list.

Take the plunge and try a simple recipe for your first smoothie that is guaranteed to be delicious. You can even leave the chia seeds out.

Cos lettuce (fill up half the blender with this, but make sure it is well washed), one small banana, one navel orange, 1 tablespoon chia seeds (optional), some fresh mint and enough plain coconut water to give a good consistency to drink or you can eat it with a spoon.

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Just pile all of the ingredients into the blender and process. Pour it into a glass and enjoy!

 

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An amazing colour with a wonderful sweet flavour.

A green smoothie is different to a green juice. A juice has most of the fibre removed and is much lighter to drink and digest. When l was very unwell last year l loved having a green juice as the nutrients were quickly and easily broken down and absorbed for use in the body, whereas a smoothie was too heavy for me and l just couldn’t digest them.

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A green juice made with the Cold Pressed juicer.

Part of the joy of drinking a green smoothie is that it is green!

A green smoothie can quickly turn a not so nice colour if you add certain ingredients to it such as raspberries, blueberries or blackberries. It could go a brown colour and will taste great, but won’t look so appetising.

Choosing your ingredients:

1. Start by picking your choice of greens. You can have just the one such as cos lettuce, kale, spinach or silverbeet or a mixture. Cos lettuce is so sweet and lovely and l love the smaller green spinach leaves.

2. What liquid are you going to have in your juice? I would advise either plain coconut water or filtered water.

3. Choose the fruit you are going to add. This could be banana, apple, peach, apricot, pear, mango, pineapple, orange and mandarin as examples. Citrus is wonderful as it will help your body absorb the iron from the greens.

4. Add a few interesting things to your smoothie. Limes and lemon’s with the skin on will give the smoothie a kick, while fresh ginger and herbs such as parsley and mint will help to enhance the flavour.

5. Add additional nutrients such as chia seeds, green powders or nuts.

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This smoothie has lots of greens, a few strawberries, chia seeds, activated almonds, orange and filtered water.
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This was such a filling smoothie and there are speckles of red through it from the strawberries.

A way to combine a green smoothie with a more colourful ingredients and still have it looking good is to have some fun putting it together as in the one below. Both the green and pink sections tasted wonderful, but when mixed together were a not so nice brown colour.

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A green smoothie with a dash of colour!

The green section is cos lettuce, banana, green apple and coconut water. The pink layer is strawberries, blueberries, acai berry powder, chia seeds, banana and coconut water. I make the green part first and pour it into two glasses and wash the blender, then make the pink part. The decorative pointy bits l do with a stainless steel straw and it looks nice to drink!

A smoothie can easily be a meal if you add in good sources of protein such as chia seeds and nuts. I drink them slowly as it is a lot of liquid going into the stomach all at once and adding the nuts and chia seeds make it a bit heavier and thicker as well as slowing down the digestion of the sugars in the drink. Sometimes l have a handful of nuts with the smoothie if it has a lot of fruit in it and this balances out the snack.

The best way to get started on your smoothie adventure is to fill up your fridge with lots of healthy fresh food. Here is a quick snapshot of my fridge as it looks most of the time.

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I really need a bigger fridge!

If you have enjoyed this post please share it with a friend. You can keep up to date with my daily meals and wellness tips on Facebook: holistic wellness for life, Instagram at holistic_paleo as well as Twitter, Flickr, Tumblr and Pinterest.

Beetroot and walnut cake!

A lovely cake which is Paleo friendly, gluten, dairy and processed sugar-free. Before this cake is cooked it is the loveliest pink colour which unfortunately disappears after it has been baked in the oven. 

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The end piece is always so crunchy and delicious!

Ingredients:

2 cups almond meal

1/4 cup organic coconut flour (no need to sift, just squash the lumps))

6 free range eggs (700g)

A generous 1/4 cup organic coconut oil (gently melted)

A generous 1/4 cup raw organic honey (gently melted)

1 teaspoon organic cinnamon

1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda (Bob’s Red Mill Aluminium free ).

One small fresh beetroot peeled and grated

1/2 cup raw activated walnuts chopped roughly (or just raw walnuts)

Extra whole walnuts for the top of the cake.

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Ready to be mixed

Place all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and gently combine with a spatula.

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The colour is lovely

Place the mixture in a greased and lined baking tin. Smooth the top with a spatula and then place the extra whole walnuts on top of the cake

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I greased my tin with coconut oil.

Bake in a 180 degree celsius oven until golden and quite firm.

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The cake will be golden and smell delicious

Remove the cake from the oven and run a knife around the edge of the cake to separate it from the tin. Turn the cake gently onto the cooling rack, remove the baking paper from the bottom and turn over.

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Let the cake cool and then sample a piece! I use a serrated knife to gently cut a piece.
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The cake is lovely eaten warm!

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Rustic Apple Crumble

Something sweet! My favourite flavours combined!

#apple #coconut #honey #almond #cinnamon #yum

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A sweet and comforting dessert.

I have never been a lover of apple crumble or of cooked apple in general but l do like to eat something sweet once in a while. I have seen a few apple and berry crumble dishes on Instagram recently and they have been sitting in the back of my mind as l have been contemplating how to make a healthy version that would appeal to me. I literally got my favourite ingredients out of the pantry and layered them on top of one another with a wonderful result. The whole family pounced on this dish as soon as it came out of the oven and the flavours mixed together beautifully.

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Once you have peeled and sliced the apples this dish takes just a minute to put together.

Ingredients/Method: Everything organic if possible.

Apples- I used four small apples but if they are very large just two might do. It really depends on the size of the dish and your family. I peel the apples because of the horrible waxy coating but you could leave the skin on if they are from your own tree as an example. Core and slice the apples and place randomly in a baking dish. I used a smallish oval ceramic dish.

Coconut flour Sprinkle 1 tablespoon over the apples.

Coconut flakes- Add 1 generous tablespoon over the apples.

Cinnamon- I didn’t measure this as l just sprinkled a really generous layer over the whole dish.

Almond meal- Sprinkle 2 tablespoons over the apples (you could rub in the coconut oil here if you want)

Flaked almonds- I didn’t measure this either but just sprinkled a generous hand full over the dish. There really isn’t a limit as to how much you can put on as they go a lovely brown colour and add some crunch.

Coconut oil- I placed one generous teaspoon over the entire dish. I just put little bits all over the top and you can use more if you want an extra coconut flavour or you could rub it into the almond meal before you add it.

Honey- I used a raw organic honey and drizzled 1 generous teaspoon over the whole dish.

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Ready for the oven. Just layer all the ingredients on top of each other.

Cooking instructions:

I covered the dish with aluminium foil and placed in a 180 degree pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes and then took the foil off and cooked it until the whole top was golden and looking delicious.

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I had this plain but you could top it with a healthy ice-cream or fresh fruit.

The serving looks quite small in the photo but it is a sweet dish and l was completely satisfied after eating this. The recipe could easily be adapted by using different fruits such as peach or adding some berries to the apple.

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