Category Archives: Wellness

Banana, Coconut, Lemon and Poppy seed cake (gluten, dairy and processed sugar free)

June 22, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-20 19.15.00 — A piece or two for morning tea!

This cake is made with real ingredients and as a result each of the flavours can be tasted when enjoying this cake. The fresh banana, lemon juice, lemon zest, organic shredded coconut and poppy seeds give this cake a lovely balance and depth of flavour which is extremely satisfying. When making this cake l used the base recipe that l have for all of my Paleo cakes and l was heading in the direction of a banana or lemon cake, when the idea came to combine them. I couldn’t resist adding poppy seeds as they go so well with lemon, and l adore coconut and the flavour is already in the cake from the organic coconut oil.

Place all of the dry ingredients into a bowl and mix with a spoon:

2 cups of almond meal

1/4 cup of organic coconut flour

1/2 cup poppy seeds

1/2 cup organic shredded coconut

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Place all of the wet ingredients into another bowl and mix gently until combined:

6 free range eggs

1/4 cup organic coconut oil gently melted

1/4 cup raw organic honey gently melted (organic honey is fine).

2 large bananas mashed with a fork

Lemon zest and juice. I used 4 small lemons but you could use 2 large ones. Grate the zest into the mix and add the lemon juice.

2014-06-20 18.04.57 — The dry and wet ingredients combined.

Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl containing the dry ingredients and mix gently but thoroughly with a spoon.

2014-06-20 18.09.05 — Ready for the oven!

Place the mix into a greased and lined loaf pan and cook in a 180 degree celsius oven until golden. Use your own visuals and experience with your oven to determine if your cake is cooked and when done gently turn onto a cake rack.

2014-06-20 19.02.05 — Just out of the oven!

I have tried this cake warm, just out of the oven and cold the next day. The banana flavour is more intense in the cake when hot and l preferred it cold the next day for that reason. It is quite a dense cake and held together very well. You could ice it with your favourite mix if desired but l just left it plain as there was so much flavour already and it is a very moist cake.

2014-06-20 19.03.37 — I cut this cake as soon as it was out of the oven and the smell was lovely.

If you enjoyed this post please share it with a friend. I am also on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter daily where l share recipes, wellness tips and reflections. I would love you to follow me. Thanks Carolyn

Recipes, Wellness

Raspberry and coconut pancake (free of gluten, dairy and processed sugar)

June 22, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-17 07.17.31 — Topped with walnuts, frozen raspberries, flaked coconut and organic maple syrup.

A pancake is an enjoyable start to the day and this one is free of gluten, dairy and processed sugar. I like to use the same basic mix for all of my pancakes and make enough that it will last for a few days stored in the fridge. To change the flavour l just add different ingredients, and l find that this is a good way to add some variety to my Breakfast dishes whilst addressing my need for a diet free of gluten and which will not cause me to suffer a food intolerance/sensitivity reaction.

Place the following ingredients in a bowl and mix well with a spoon.

1 cup organic buckwheat flour

1 cup organic coconut flour

1/2 cup organic quinoa flakes

4 free range eggs

1 tablespoon black chia seeds

1 cup of frozen raspberries

Filtered water: enough to make a moist mix as the quinoa flakes and chia seeds will over time thicken the mix. You can add other types of berries here instead of raspberries depending on your preference.

Place a small scoop of the mix onto a pre-heated non stick pan coated with a small amount of olive oil. Cook slowly until golden and then carefully flip over. To make the topping for this pancake l mixed in the blender a handful of frozen raspberries and a handful of walnuts so they were combined and l sprinkled this over the pancake. I then topped it with some flaked coconut and organic maple syrup. You can vary the toppings and another idea is to add some raspberries and water to the blender to make a liquid raspberry topping that can be poured over and around the pancake. Add just enough water until the blender will mix it and blend until a smooth consistency is achieved.

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Wellness

Rolled Chicken Breast with a tasty herb, nut and vegetable filling

June 17, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-14 19.40.41 — Just out of the oven and smelling amazing!

Rolled Chicken Breast: A lovely centre piece for a main dish.

2014-06-14 19.45.28 — Rolled chicken served with roasted swede chips, steamed brussel sprouts and roasted pumpkin slices topped with raw organic honey and organic sesame seeds.

This was my first attempt at using a chicken breast like this and l was motivated by all the wonderful roulage recipes l have seen on the television show Master Chef recently. While not to the same standard it was delicious and met all my dietary requirements.

2014-06-14 18.45.43 — The free range chicken breasts flattened and topped with the filling.

I flattened two free range chicken breasts by placing each one inside cling wrap and pounding with a mallet. To do this l placed cling wrap on the chopping board, placed the washed meat on top and covered it with more cling wrap. I gently pounded the meat with a kitchen mallet and you could also use a rolling pin to gently get it a bit flatter at this point. I did this for each breast separately.

I then made a delicious filling in the food processor which was a handful of raw walnuts, a couple of spring onion tops (the green parts), two large brussel sprouts, 1 tablespoon of organic coconut oil, a handful of flat leaf parsley, a small handful of pepitas, ground black salt and Pink Himalayan Crystal Salt. I processed this until it was evenly chopped and then placed half on each chicken breast. I used organic coconut oil in this mix as l do not eat dairy but if you do eat dairy then an organic grass fed butter would be very nice in its place.

2014-06-14 18.51.38 — The rolled and tied chicken breast.

I pulled the two sides of the breast together and wrapped some twine (cooking string) around the chicken as in the picture above, Be sure to tie it at each end and push the filling in as you go along. Place the rolled chicken on a baking tray lined with baking paper and drizzle generously with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and place in the oven. Cook until the chicken is cooked and then take the foil off and let it brown or place under the grill ensuring it doesn’t dry out. Carefully cut the string along the length of the chicken and remove. Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving. Each rolled chicken piece will serve a few people if you add vegetables or salad and l had a piece cold the next day which was lovely.

2014-06-15 12.56.15 — Cold rolled chicken breast. Just as nice as when it was first cooked.

I cooked up some roasted swede chips and they were very delicious. I like their unusual taste and they were nice cold as well. Pumpkin dressed with honey and sesame seeds is really nice, but drizzle the honey on in the last five minutes and only quickly cook the sesame seeds so they don’t lose their nutrients.

I hope you enjoy this recipe. Experiment with the filling to suit your tastes and serve it with your favourite vegetables or salad.

If you have enjoyed this post please share it with a friend. I also share my recipes and wellness tips daily on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. I would love you to follow me. Thanks Carolyn

Recipes, Wellness

Chilli Dipping Sauce

June 16, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-15 18.10.13 — Not too spicy, refreshing, tangy and best of all made with nourishing ingredients.

This is a really nice dipping sauce and is just right for those of us who are sensitive to most things in a bottle or package. It is a recipe taken from the Gawler Foundation Cook Book ‘eat well: be well’ which l recently reviewed on another blog and is a book l can highly recommend.

2014-06-15 17.16.52 — Amazing ingredients!

Gather together the ingredients shown above:

3/4 cup Organic Apple Cider Vinegar which l keep in the fridge.

1/2 cup Raw organic Honey (any honey is fine but l like this one)

1/8 teaspoon dried chilli flakes or 1/ fresh chilli finely diced (I used the dried chilli and used the smallest amount which l cut finely with a knife. The amount added will vary for each person).

5cm piece fresh ginger (grated)

1 small red capsicum or 1/2 a largish one (Finely diced. I did this in the food processor)

1 spring onion finely chopped (I only use the green tops due to a food sensitivity)

Method:

In a small saucepan bring the honey and vinegar to the boil, then add the chilli and let the sauce simmer for 20 minutes.

Place the red capsicum in a bowl and squeeze the grated ginger so the juice falls on top of the capsicum. Give it a gentle mix.

The original recipe now says to pour the honey mixture over the capsicum mix and let it cool and then add the spring onion, but l did something different here. I let the honey mix cool first and then poured it over the capsicum as l wanted the capsicum to remain raw and then added the spring onion, so up to you as to which method you choose.

2014-06-15 18.44.48 — Dumplings (chicken, vegetable and herb)

I used the sauce to pour over these small steamed dumplings l made using rice paper sheets. The rest of the family had the sauce with my crispy cinnamon chicken (see recipe section on website) and basmati rice.

2014-06-16 13.26.29 — Lunchtime healthy salad. I drizzled the chilli sauce over the salad. It was a taste sensation!

This is a very versatile sauce and really easy to make as long as you have the ingredients on hand. Adding flavour to a meal can be a challenge when you have food intolerances or sensitivities and this sauce will definately added some brightness and flavour to those of us living on a restricted diet.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I am also on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook and would love you to follow me. Thanks Carolyn

Recipes, Wellness

Refreshing sweet smoothie

June 7, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-07 15.28.40 — A sweet and delicious smoothie! I actually ate this with a spoon as it was too thick for the straw.

There is something about mixing up a batch of smoothies for the family that is fun and exciting! Changing the colour of the smoothie by using different ingredients is part of the enjoyment, but if you mix greens with berries such as raspberries the taste is good but the colour is a not so enticing brown. I made this smoothie in a large blender as l wanted enough for the whole family, but l have also been making a lot of individual smoothies lately as l have a new blender that makes smoothies to go.

2014-05-20 12.30.22 — Smoothie to go blender!

These containers are good when l am just about to go somewhere in the car or l am sitting at my desk. The blender came with two containers so l will often make one for myself and one for my youngest daughter who loves smoothies.

I have problems digesting too much fruit at once so l try to balance my smoothies with leafy green vegetables and chia seeds and l don’t have too large a serving. The smoothie below was for my daughter and contains yoghurt. I don’t eat dairy so wouldn’t put yoghurt in my smoothies, but my daughter loved the creaminess of this smoothie.

2014-06-01 14.54.27 — This is a smoothie that l made for my daughter which was fruit, water, raw organic cashews and yoghurt.

To make the featured green smoothie l placed the following ingredients in the blender:

1 large banana or 2 small ones

A good chunk of pineapple

2 green apples. I took the skin off because of the wax on the skin which l find hard to get off

Some spinach and cos lettuce leaves

A few pieces of fresh mint. Pull the leaves away from the stem.

1 tablespoon of black chia seeds

About 3/4 of a cup of filtered water. It will depend on the size and amount of the other ingredients. You can always add more if it is too thick but you can’t take it out if you add too much. I had to add some water as the blender needed the liquid to get mixing and the blender was so full l had to push the lid on. I also like a thick smoothie and eat it with a spoon, but if you like a thinner smoothie and want to dilute the sugars then add more water.

2014-06-07 15.23.53 — This was enough for 3 serves.

Smoothies are a great source of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre. They can be made to suit each person’s tastes and they are fun to make. I don’t have a smoothie every day, but l have them a few times a week. Sometimes l just feel like eating the whole fruit such as a banana or orange and this is usually when l am really busy or l might make a juice instead. It does take more time to make a smoothie or juice than to just grab a piece of fruit, but l love that l can mix it up and have something different each day.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I also share daily recipes and wellness tips on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Thanks Carolyn

Wellness

Frozen chocolate balls

June 3, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-06-03 11.47.08 — Frozen chocolate balls. Almost like chocolate ice-cream!

These little balls are very sweet and delicious. I have a few on the plate here but l would just eat one at a time. You can eat them when they are freshly made, but l like to keep my snacks in the freezer, and these taste quite like chocolate ice-cream (remembering that l actually haven’t eaten any chocolate ice-cream for a few years now).

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon raw organic Cacao (I use the Loving Earth brand)

1 frozen banana

1/2 cups almonds (activated if possible)

1/4 cup organic coconut flakes

4 medjool dates (seeds removed)

Place all of the ingredients in the food processor and mix well. Roll into small balls and cover in raw organic cacao. I have had these in the freezer in an air tight container for a few months and they are still tasting great. When they are frozen they are still just soft enough to bite into and the flavour is a mix of coconut and chocolate. The dates and banana bind them together and they are jam packed full of nutrients as well as making you feel good because they taste so great!

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I am also on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter where l share daily wellness tips and recipes.

Wellness

Morning pancakes- Paleo (dairy, sugar and gluten free)

May 31, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

I really enjoy my morning pancake and make a new batch every few days. I have a base recipe that l add different ingredients to including frozen berries, sweet potato, carrot, pumpkin, apple and cinnamon. I usually top them with activated walnuts and maple syrup.

Base Recipe:

1 cup organic coconut flour

1 cup organic buckwheat flour

1/2 cup organic quinoa flakes

1 tablespoon black chia seeds

4 free range eggs

Flaked almonds (optional depending on what else you are adding)

Lots of filtered water (The quinoa flakes and chia seeds will soak up the water so you will need to make it a bit too moist to start with and let it sit)

To this basic mix you can make:

Berry pancakes by adding blueberries, blackberries, raspberries or strawberries as examples. You could have just one type of berry or a mix. You can blend this up to make a really colourful pancake or use whole berries. You can also keep the mix plain and add the berries to the pancake when in the pan which will stop the colour bleeding into the mix and keep the berries fresh. Frozen berries are good for this purpose.

Apple & cinnamon pancakes by adding one or two green apples with a good teaspoon of cinnamon.

Sweet Potato by grating a medium sweet potato into the mix

Carrot & Pumpkin by grating some of each of these into the mix.

2014-02-22 07.24.30 — Grated carrot, sweet potato or pumpkin is a delightful addition to the mix.

If the mixture is quite firm you can make a ball in your hand and then flatten it and place in the pan. If it is moist then use a spoon and shape it into a neat circle in the pan. I use olive oil to cook my pancakes and have a tub of activated walnuts in the fridge. In the morning l just take the pre-prepared mix out of the fridge, cook it up and add my toppings within a few minutes. I try not to run out of mix in the mornings and make it the night before. Eating a pancake without gluten, sugar or dairy does take some getting used to but our taste buds adapt very quickly and l find these pancakes very satisfying and filling.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I share daily recipes and wellness tips on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and would love you to follow me on these media. Thanks Carolyn

Wellness

Wake me up, morning juice!

May 30, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-05-31 06.10.41 — Sweet, tangy, invigorating, stimulating, nutritious, alive, enticing and smooth.

Take the juicer out of the cupboard, borrow one or buy one and put making a juice on top of your list of things to do this weekend!

Which juicer to buy is another blog which l have already done, but whether it is a centrifugal juicer or a cold pressed juicer, you can make a delicious refreshing and nutritious juice that will liven up your day. You can experiment with ingredients and use whatever suits. Don’t be afraid to add in vegetables such as beetroot, cos lettuce, spinach, kale, sweet potato or broccoli. You can make this a fun activity to share with family members or challenge yourself to try new and interesting flavours. Juices can literally be the colours of the rainbow!

The first step in making a juice is to get all of your ingredients ready. If you have a centrifugal juicer then it is a matter of washing them, peeling and a bit of chopping. A cold pressed juicer required more preparation, but it is very good for leafy greens and retains more nutrients.

2014-05-31 06.03.01 — This morning’s juice: Cos lettuce, 1/2 lemon, small piece pineapple, one green apple, mint and 4 carrots.

Have all the fruit and vegetables ready to go!

2014-05-31 06.06.08 — Mix up the soft and hard ingredients and process the greens first.

The pulp is most of the fibre from the fruit. You could compost it or use it for some baking.

Once your juice is finished it is time to wash your machine parts. Don’t wait until you have finished your juice as this is a job that needs to be done as soon as possible. The filter is a delicate piece of equipment in any juicer and can become blocked. Clean this first with warm water and the little brush that comes with the juicer.

2014-05-31 06.18.44 — Lay all the clean pieces on a t-towel to dry.

I find it hard to just make enough juice for one person and usually have some to share. This morning’s juice was very sweet and just what l needed for an early start to the day. One glass of a sweet juice is enough for me and l would have it with a protein to balance my blood sugar levels and for me this will be my morning healthy pancake.

The main thing is to enjoy your juicing. If you put too much fruit in it and find it doesn’t agree with you, then add in some more greens or other vegetables. Everyone’s taste buds are different. Try adding ginger or herbs to the mix and see how wonderful the flavours can be. This is a way to get the whole family involved and living a healthier life.

If you have enjoyed this post please share with a friend. I also share daily recipes and wellness tips on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Thanks Carolyn

Wellness

Crispy Baked Cinnamon Chicken

May 24, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

2014-05-23 18.11.59 — Crispy Cinnamon Chicken served as part of a delicious salad

This chicken is moist on the inside and crispy on the outside with a lovely rich spicy flavour. When l say that, remember that l eat quite plainly so my version of spicy is very mild. I have cooked this chicken several times now and the combination of cumin and cinnamon is delicious. You could add a dressing to your salad which would add another element to it, but l actually think that this salad had everything. There was crunch from the greens, moisture from the avocado and tomato, crunch from the seeds and spice from the chicken. The combination of raw and cooked ingredients really gave this dish a good balance of flavours.

This was enough to serve two adults and three children. You will need two free range chicken breasts. Give them a wash and place them in a glass baking dish. Drizzle the chicken with Olive Oil and sprinkle with ground black pepper, Pink Himalayan Crystal Salt, a good pinch of Cumin and a teaspoon of Cinnamon (I used organic Cinnamon). Turn the Chicken fillets over a few times in the oil and spices so they are nicely coated. Cover with Aluminium Foil and bake in a 200 Degree oven until the chicken is cooked through. Place under a grill and brown both sides of the chicken until golden.

2014-05-21 17.33.44 — The Free Range chicken is oiled and spiced. Top with Aluminium Foil and place in the oven.

Place the meat on a chopping board and slice as desired. I had this lovely chicken with a green salad, seeds (sesame & Pumpkin), avocado and roasted beetroot chips.

2014-05-23 18.05.34 — The cooked Chicken was looking and smelling so good!

You can pile the sliced Chicken on top of the salad or spread it out more as in the first picture.

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Wellness

Sensational Seed and Nut bars

May 24, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

Healthy, easy to make seed and nuts bars, or just seed bars if you leave the nuts out as the ones above. This recipe is very flexible and l know there are heaps of other bar recipes on the web but this one suits me, my lifestyle, tastes and food choices. The ingredients are all wonderful and you can add more or less of each seed and it wont matter. To be adventurous you could add herbs, raw cacao, cinnamon or garlic and l may start experimenting a bit now l have this basic recipe worked out. The ones in the picture above do not have nuts or coconut, but l prefer the batch l made today which included them. I use organic and activated ingredients but it is up to you and your preferences. Regular nuts and seeds will work well, but l need to support my digestion and overall health as much as possible so use the best ingredients l can.

Ingredients:

1 cup activated organic sunflower seeds

1 cup activated organic pumpkin seeds

1 cup organic sesame seeds

1 cup black chia seeds

1 cup activated mixed nuts (I used walnut, almond and brazil)

A generous 1/2 cup organic shredded coconut

8 Medjool Dates seeded and chopped (roughly chop just to make it easier for the food processor)

A good 1/2 cup raw organic honey (use organic or regular honey if that is what you have or even rice malt syrup)

A good 1/2 cup organic coconut oil

Place the nuts, seeds, shredded coconut and dates in the food processor and chop until roughly chopped. Tip this into a good sized glass bowl. I used the same measuring cup for the organic coconut oil and raw organic honey and with both in there it should look really full. Put the coconut oil in the cup first so it is easier to remove.

Melt the coconut oil and honey in a saucepan on very low heat. You don’t want it too hot so remove from the heat just before it is all melted. Give it a stir and then pour it into the seed, nut, date and shredded coconut mix. Stir well and taste test. It should be delicious and sweet.

Place a sheet of grease proof paper over a baking tray and run your finger around the edge to make a crease. Pour the mix onto the tray and flatten with a soft spatula or the back of a spoon. Make sure it is quite even across the whole tray and give special attention to the corners.

I have tried a few different oven temperatures and times but basically you don’t want the oven too hot as you will burn the seeds and lose lots of nutrients, and you want to just cook it until the edges are going golden. I cooked mine today in a Fan Forced Convection Oven at 170 Degrees Celsius for 30 minutes. You will be able to check this after your first batch.

Remove the tray from the oven and let cool until cold. I left mine for about 1.5 hours.

Use the edges of the baking paper to carefully remove the bars as a whole from the tray and lay it on a flat bench. Cut the bars while still on the baking paper into whatever size suits you using a very sharp knife and wiping clean after cutting a row. I think it is better to have the bars quite small as then you have more of a choice over serving size.

Carefully lift each bar into the container for freezing unless you are going to eat them all fresh. If they are a bit crumbly you can place the whole lot into the freezer with a cutting board underneath so they harden a bit before placing in the tub.

The best part of the whole cooking experience is eating the crumbs. Scrape them off the baking paper and into a bowl. Enjoy! You could dip something into these crumbs such as a banana or use them as a topping.

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Recipes, Wellness

Walnut and Sweet Potato Cake

May 10, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

A cake that is free of dairy, processed sugar and gluten!

I like to cook in bulk so that l don’t have to do any more cooking than l already do, and so that l have snacks in the freezer for the busy times. On the days l am working l grab a piece of this cake from the freezer and put it in my lunch box. There is also an apple and cinnamon cake on the website which l make as well. To make these cakes today l tripled the recipe, but the ingredients listed just make one cake. This is a firm cake with a sweet flavour. You can substitute the nuts with another kind or swap the sweet potato to something like pumpkin or carrot. This recipe cuts well and when the cake is cool l cut it with a serrated bread knife and wrap each piece individually with cling wrap and freeze. My husband has discovered how nice my cakes are and is also taking a piece to work each day which means that l am having to make them more often.

Ingredients:

2 cups organic almond meal (keep this in the fridge)

1/4 cup organic coconut flour

5 large eggs (700 grams) (These should also be kept in the fridge)

A generous 1/4 cup organic coconut oil

A generous 1/4 cup raw organic honey (or organic honey)

1 teaspoon organic cinnamon

1 teaspoon Bicarb Soda (Bob’s Red Mill Brandon is good)

1/2 cup walnuts (this measurement is when they are whole and not ground). Process these in the food processor until in small broken up pieces.

1 cup shredded sweet potato (This measure is the sweet potato loosely filling the cup)

Method:

Place all of the dry ingredients in a bowl. Place the eggs in another bowl and whisk. In a saucepan warm up the coconut oil and honey until a liquid. Let cool. Add the liquid to the egg mix then add the shredded carrot and walnuts. Add this mix into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until combine.

Place in a greased square or rectangular metal or glass baking dish which has the base lined with baking paper. I grease the inside of the baking dish with the organic coconut oil. Bake in a 180 Degree Celsius oven until the outside of the cake is golden and the middle firmish. Don’t let the cake burn but the outside will be quite darkish brown when done.

This cake is lovely warm, but also freezes well. If you like it you can multiply the ingredients and make several as l did today so that they are on hand when needed. You can freeze them whole or in single slices as l do. It is surprising how lovely the organic coconut oil is in baked goods and the cake still has a sweetness to it even though it has only a small amount of honey in it.

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Wellness

The Joy of Cos Lettuce

April 10, 2014 holisticwellnessforlife Leave a comment

You can’t go wrong with this versatile and healthy vegetable.

Cos lettuce or alternatively known as Romaine lettuce is my new favourite lettuce. After spending years eating Iceberg lettuce and then sorting through the many new varieties on the market, l have now settled on Cos lettuce as my new favourite. I have seen short stemmed and long stemmed varieties, but prefer the long stemmed ones for the versatility of their leaves. I really like that the leaves are so big and soft and then the lower part is really crunchy. You can just pick off one leaf as you need it, especially if you are growing your own, or cut the bottom off the whole bunch and watch the leaves just move apart. I used to battle with the Iceberg lettuce trying to make lettuce cups as the pieces were hard to pull away in tact, and it was so difficult to store as it was a big round shape. The Cos lettuce can be laid flat and fits nicely in lots of small places in the fridge.

Grow your own.

It is so easy and handy!. Not sure about the cost saving but definately a healthier option for you and fun for the whole family.

The leaves are so versatile

The challenge for me lately has been to find a suitable lettuce, not to put in salads as those are plentiful, but to use as an alternative to wraps. Removing grains from the diet does pose a meal planning challenge to those who like to have wraps as a meal and the Cos Lettuce is marvelous for this purpose. The first photos show the larger leaves laid out to use as wraps, while the second photo uses a smaller Cos lettuce where the leaves have a natural cup shape to them and are perfect to fill with your favourite ingredients.

2014-04-02 19.22.16 — All laid out for self-serve. Looks nice. Salad, free-range roasted chicken and roasted sweet potato.

2014-04-02 19.27.57 — Larger leaves used as wraps.

2014-03-31 19.25.55 — Lettuce wraps filled- chick peas, egg, snow peas, carrot, avocado and tomato with a small piece of fish

Nutrition Facts:

Low Calorie and great taste
High in Vitamin A(Beta-Carotene), Calcium, Vitamin C, Iron, B Vitamins and a good source of Omega 3 Essential Fatty Acids
A complete protein so that it has all 8 essential amino acids
Composed of 17 % Protein
Is heat tolerant so great on top of those home made pizzas just out of the oven
Excellent to use in smoothies
Low in the anti-nutrient Oxalic Acid
Rich in the minerals Selenium, Zinc, Copper, Magnesium, Manganese, Potassium and Phosphorous

What’s not to love! Do yourself a favour and add this delicious and nutritious food to your daily diet.

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Holistic Wellness for Life

Category Archives: Wellness

Raspberry and coconut pancake (free of gluten, dairy and processed sugar)

Rolled Chicken Breast with a tasty herb, nut and vegetable filling

Chilli Dipping Sauce

Refreshing sweet smoothie

Frozen chocolate balls

Morning pancakes- Paleo (dairy, sugar and gluten free)

Wake me up, morning juice!

Crispy Baked Cinnamon Chicken

Sensational Seed and Nut bars

Walnut and Sweet Potato Cake

The Joy of Cos Lettuce

Live & eat mindfully. Gluten & dairy free recipes.