Celebrating Banana Bread

Rainy Saturday morning.  Hubby's birthday and I had no idea what cake to bake. I saw bunch of ripe bananas in the fruit bowl and there it was - my ingredients for banana bread!  

There's something heart-warming about banana bread.  It's great for breakfast or to enjoy with a cup of herbal tea.  

Free from gluten and refined sugars. 

• 3 ripe bananas
• 160ml organic honey 
• 60g organic unsalted butter (you can also use melted coconut oil) 
• 2 eggs
• 250g gluten-free flour (I mixed buckwheat and almond flour)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 100g chopped pecans
• 2 tbsp ground flaxseeds
• 1 tbsp grated lemon zest

Preheat oven to 180C and grease loaf tin with little coconut oil. Put butter bananas, eggs, honey, flour, baking powder and bicarb soda into bowl and blend with hand blender until smooth. You can also use a food processor. Add chopped pecans, flaxseeds and lemon zest and mix in with a wooden spoon. Pour the mixture in the tin and bake about 40min until cooked through (insert a skewer or little knife into centre and if it comes away clean, it's ready). Allow to cool before taking out of the tin.

Slice and enjoy!

Apple & Blackberry Crumble

This week has been all about apples. My family went apple picking over the weekend and brought home 6 kilos of organic apples!  

Apples are packed with phytonutrients that can help to regulate blood sugar and contain fibre to keep your gut regular. Low in calories apple is a perfect snack! 

Try this gorgeous apple & blackberry crumble!

Dairy, gluten and refined sugar-free 

• 6 apples, cored and peeled
• 2 cups of blackberries 
• 1 cup of gluten-free oats
• 1 cup of peeled almonds
• half a cup of organic runny honey 
• 2 tablespoons of coconut oil

1. Chop apples and put these into a pan with blackberries, add little water and sprinkle of cinnamon and few tablespoons of honey.  Simmer for about 6 minutes until soft. 
2. Make the crumble.  Put oats and almonds into a bowl and blitz with hand blender until resembles of breadcrumbs.  You can also use food processor for this. 
3. Melt the coconut oil and honey and pour onto almond-oat mixture.  Mix in well.
4. Put apple-blackberry mixture in a baking dish and place almond-oat mixture on top.
5. Bake in 185C for about 30 minutes or until golden. 

Healthy and perfect dessert for the colder autumn days! 

Healthy lunch box

Packing lunch boxes can be a huge stress for parents and many of us are at loss what to make. I usually start thinking about lunches the day before but never get around to do these until the morning, when I only have about 15min to make them. 

Sandwich has been a staple school lunch for my daughter for some time as for many here in Holland.  I try to keep it healthy and done variation of the fillings; tuna, boiled egg, hummus, avocado etc.  Recently however she has gotten bored with bread and asked for alternatives (yay!). 

Bread, especially refined wheat (where that bran is removed), has little nutritional value as the processing removes fibre, minerals and vitamins.  Eating white bread does little to support your child's energy levels and mood.  Wheat can also cause digestive issues. If making a sandwich, choose  wholegrain or spelt bread.  

This morning I made really easy and simple egg muffins.

Yummy Egg Muffins (makes 6. 5min to prepare)

5 organic eggs

Splash of almond milk

Handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped

Half a red pepper, chopped

Whisk the eggs and milk together. Add the chopped vegetables and mix. Pour into muffin tray and bake in 200C for about 15-20min until golden on top.  

Chocolaty Energy Balls

I made these little bites for a client who recently had a baby.  These are packed with protein and good fats to keep  energy levels up and raw cacao (high in magnesium and antioxidants) to give extra nutrient boost.  

A perfect little snack when tiredness hits or when out & about with the little one.

Pure deliciousness!  

Make 12.

1 cup of mixed nuts (I used raw cashews and macadamias)

8 Medjool dates, pitted

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 tbsp hemp seeds

1 tbsp raw cacao

Blend all ingredients in food processor until well combined.  Roll balls with your hands and pop in a freezer to firm up.  You can also roll the balls in a shredded coconut.  

Chocolaty Energy Balls

Gluten-Free Gingerbreads!

I took my grandmother's old gingerbread recipe and changed it to gluten-free and less sugary.  The kids love cutting out the shapes (if you don't mind bit of mess!).  The smell is so Christmassy!  

Makes around 25-30

100g of organic butter (or use coconut oil for dairy-free)

100ml of organic maple syrup

500g of gluten-free flour – I used about 200g of buckwheat, 300g almond flour. 

1 tsp of baking soda

Pinch of ground black pepper

Spices: I used 1 tablespoon of koek & speculaas mix (Albert Heijn).  You can also make your own mix: 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ground clove, ½ tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp ground cardamom

1. Put butter / coconut oil, spices and maple syrup in a pan.  Stir and bring to boil only for a few seconds. Take off heat and let it cool.
2. Mix baking soda and flour.  Add this in with butter mix and mix until the dough is solid.  If you need, add little more flour.    
3. Cover the bowl and refrigerate overnight.
4. Take a piece at a time and soften it with your hands on a floured surface.  Roll dough out around 5mm thickness and cut out shapes.  Use more flour on the surface or rolling pin if dough’s getting sticky. 
5. Bake gingerbreads at 200C for about 8-10min, until slightly browned.  
6. Let gingerbreads cool down.
7. For icing: I used 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, 1 tablespoon of almond flour and 1/2 tablespoon of peanut butter and blended all together. Decorate with raisins and cranberries. 

Christmas baking 

Energize Your Morning!

A healthy morning shapes up your entire day. Not only it will give you plenty nutrients to keep going all day but also lifts your mood!  Here are my 5 tips how to create a healthier morning:

1. Give yourself a head start.  Night before make the kids lunch boxes, choose clothing for next day and set the table for breakfast. This saves you time and less stress!
2. Wake up 15 minutes earlier. Slowly wake up, take a moment to think what you would like to achieve that day.  Avoid checking your emails the first thing as these can cause rise in stress levels. 
3. Do gentle stretching in bed before getting up.  This gives your body a nice gently wake-up call.
4. Make yourself a cup of warm water, slice of ginger and lemon.  This warming and energizing drink wakes up your digestives system and gives your immune system a boost. 
5. Eat breakfast!  Your body needs refuelling after a sleep so make it nutritious.  Have a a protein-based breakfast; oatmeal with seeds and berries, scrambled eggs with spinach or a green smoothie with chia seeds.