Jo's Healthy and Yummy Crunchy Granola - nom nom.....

I made this recipe up using the best a few recipes I found on line... And it turned out delish. Actually, I don't eat cereal for breakfast, and haven't done so for about 7 years!....  ever since I lived in Japan for 3 months, and was converted to savoury breakfasts...... which made me feel so much better, gave me more energy for the day, and helped to considerably reduce my intake of sweet food overall.... mmmmm.... dried fish, egg, rice, and pickles for breaky.... The memories are swarming back..... he he ;-) .... (go on, you should try it)...... Anyway, cereal is my go to in the afternoon when I feel like a quick and healthy snack.... When I say 'cereal', I mean the healthy type, not the type you find in a box with 15+% sugar!.....

Picture to come...

Dry Ingredients
- 2.5 cups oats, I used half and half rolled and whole oats
-  1/2 cup seeds: pumpkin, sunflower, chia, linseed, sesame
- 1.5 cups nuts: bashed almonds, walnuts and cashews
- 1/2 cup coconut thread
- 4 dates, chopped finely

Wet Ingredients
- zest 1 orange
- grated vanilla pods
- 3 soup spoons* honey or golden syrup (I used 2 honey, 1 syrup)
- 3 soup spoons* oil (I used a mix of almond and coconut)
- Pinch salt

Method
Pre heat oven to about 120 degrees. Prepare dried ingredients, and mix. Melt and mix 'wet' ingredients. Slowly pour wet into dry, whilst stirring. The put in a couple of trays (be sure to lay thinly, so that it can dry effectively). Put in oven for 1 hour**, stirring every 15 minutes. Turn the oven off, and leave over night to dry further.

* My soup spoons are small than a table spoon, but bigger than a tea spoon.
**Note that it's better to put it in the oven for longer, at a lower heat, as this dries it out better, making it more crispy, and reduces risk of burning.

Balance is key - article on orthorexia

http://i.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/teach-me/74589314/The-quest-for-wellness-that-is-making-us-sick

I just read this thismorning. It proves how important balance is....

Mixed Sprout Salad with Tahini Dressing

Want to know what to put the Spicy tahini dijon dressing on? How about a mixed sprout salad? Yum... The tahini dressing complements the sprouts really well.

Ingredients:
Mixed sprouts (I used a mix of home made spicy sprouts (alfalfa, broccoli, clover, mustard and radish), and store bought mixed crunchy sprouts (lentils and peas), basically the more the merrier)
Julienned carrot
Julienned capsicum
Finely sliced red cabbage
Finely sliced red onion
Black sesame seeds
Spicy tahini dijon dressing

Spicy tahini dijon dressing

A nice alternative to mayo or balsamic on coleslaw :)

1 tablespoon tahini
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon honey
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or juice of 1/2 lemon
3 tablespoons water
pinch cayenne pepper
pinch of fresh cracked pepper

Lemony Quinoa with Almonds and Kale

So, I didn't get a pic of this one, as we were half way through it before we thought "ooo this is actually really nice, lets put it on the blog!"!!.... Hopefully I'll get a pic next time I make it. Turns out this is a great mid week meal, taking only around 20 min.

Ingredients
- 1 cup quinoa
- About 1/4 cup toasted almonds, bashed into pieces
- About 1-2 leaves kale (from the garden in my case), finely diced. You could use any greens (spinach, broccoli etc), but make sure you chop them finely.
- About 3-4 cups vege stock

Dressing
- 1 dried medium chilli, deseeded, finely diced
- Oil for frying, and about 2 Tbsp for the dressing
- 1/2-1 lemon
- 1/2 tsp crushed garlic
- Salt and Pepper

Rinse the quinoa, then cook in the stock on a medium heat for 15 min. Once the quinoa is on the go, make the dressing - fry the chilli and garlic in a bit of oil, then tip that into a jug, and add the lemon juice and olive oil. About 3 minutes before the quinoa is cooked, add the greens (to cook them aldente). Then drain the quinoa and greens, add in the almonds and dressing and mix well. Serve topped with parsley (or other fresh herbs), salt and pepper.

Scrummy roast vegetable medley

This is really simple, but the combination of vegetables works really well together.... Try it with baked salmon.

Veggies:
- Fennel
- Red onion
- Carrot
- Garlic cloves
- Beetroot
- Potatoes (I used Desiree)

Method:
Preheat oven to about 180. Chop up veggies, nice and big (see pic). Coat them in olive oil, and a little bit of salt and pepper. Note I oiled the beetroot separately, which significantly reduced the spread of colour. Cook for about 45 minutes, or until soft and delicious. If you're cooking salmon, put that in the oven (in tin foil with lemon) after about 30 minutes.

That sugar Film - A Must See

Recently we watched That Sugar Film - IMDB on DVD.

For those of you who already know about how evil sugar is, this movie is still well worth the watch..... The cinematography looks like it would reach a wide audience, and hopefully it does!!!....

Beetroot Cabbage Soup (Borscht)

Don't you just love the colour?......

Ingredients:
- 50g butter
- 1 small onion, 1 small carrot, 1 stick of celery, peeled and cut into small dice
- 2 medium waxy potatoes, cut into small dice
- 1/4 cabbage, shredded
- 300g beetroot, peeled
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 2 grains allspice
- 1 bay leaf
- 1.5 litres beef stock
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- Sour cream and fresh dill, to serve

Method:
1. Cut ¾ of the peeled beetroot into small dice (you may want to wear rubber gloves to do this) and set the rest aside. Melt the butter in a large pan, and then soften the onion over a gentle heat for 5 minutes.
2. Add the carrot, leek, celery, diced beetroot, allspice and bay leaf and stir well to coat with butter. Cook for another 10 minutes, adding a little stock if the vegetables begin to look dry. Meanwhile, grate the remaining beetroot.
3. Pour in the rest of the stock and the potatoes and simmer for 15 minutes, then add the cabbage, garlic and grated beetroot. Cook until all the vegetables are tender (about 10 minutes).
4. Add the vinegar, sugar, pepper and a pinch of salt and taste. Add a little more of any of these if necessary, then serve with a dollop of sour cream, a sprig of dill, and some ciabatta on the side.

The Nummiest Chorizo and Mushroom Risotto

A few weeks ago I had some harissa to use up, and so I decided to create a risotto with it. Tim says it's one of the most tastiest meals I've ever put on the table, so I guess it must be good...... It does take at least an hour from woe-to-go, so make it a Sunday option, and eat the leftovers during the week..... The good bit is that it's a one-pot-meal, so minimal cleaning up. Yay!

Serves 2, plus a bit leftover for lunch

Ingredients:
- 1 Cup rice (1/2 Arborio 1/2 medium grain brown)
- 1 portion harissa (see recipe here: Easy Harissa)
- About 1/3 cup passata or crushed tomatoes
- 5 medium mushrooms, roughly chopped
- 2 chorizo sticks, sliced
- 1 onion, diced
- 500ml vegetable stock
- 1/2 cup frozen peas, defrosted.
- To serve: Lemon wedges, sardines (I use King Oscar brisling) and/or rocket

Method:
Fry onion until caramelised in a tablespoon or so of oil from the harissa. Add the rice and sauté for about 5 minutes until slightly crispy, but definitely not brown.
Add in everything else except peas. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a medium-to-low heat (I use setting 3), and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring every 5 minutes of so. Add water as necessary to prevent sticking.
Just before serving, add the defrosted peas (there is no need for cooking).
Serve with lemon wedges and sardines on top.

Easy Harissa

Ingredients
- 1 garlic clove, mashed
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne (dep on taste)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds, ground in a spice grinder
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- salt

Method:
Put garlic paste into a small bowl and stir in the tomato paste and lemon juice. Add the smoked paprika, cayenne, cumin and caraway. Gradually stir in the oil and season with salt.

 

Can be refrigerated for up to 1 week.         

 

Delicious and Nutritious Kumara and Cauliflower Curry

If found this recipe in the Australian 'Nourish' magazine, which is full of healthy yummy recipe ideas. This curry had a great balance of flavours. Although I wouldn't make it during mid week, as it takes a while to prepare.

 

Ingredients:
- 1tsp each fennel, coriander, cumin seeds
- ½ tsp turmeric
-1 tsp garam masala
- oil (I used coconut oil)
- 1 brown onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 long red chilli, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato pate
- 2 x 400g tins tomatoes
- 2 cups vegetable stock
- 600g kumara, chopped into 2 cm cubes
- ½ head cauli, broken into florets
- 2 x 400g tins brown lentils (or 3/4cup dried lentils, cooked)
- dry toasted cashew nuts, crushed, natural yogurt, and coriander leaves to serve

Method:
Place fennel, coriander, and cumin seeds in a non stick frying pan over medium heat and cook for 1-2 min or until fragrant. Transfer to mortar, then add the turmeric, garam masala, and pinch salt, and grind to a fine powder.

Heat oil in a large heavy based saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and pinch of salt and cook, stuirring often, for 3-4 min until softened.

Add garlic and cook for 3 min, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Stir in ground spice mixture and chilli and cook for 2-3 min, then stir in tomato past, tomatoes, and stock.

Add kumara and bring to boil over a high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 25-30 min or until the kumara is just soft.

Add cauliflower, stir and continue to cook for 8 min, then add the lentils and cook just long enough to warm them through.

Season and serve with cashews alongside, brown rice, natural yogurt, and coriander leaves.

Pumpkin almond loaf

I found this in the Jan/Feb edition of Life and Leisure magazine, and not only does it have no refined sugars, and is full of healthy stuff, but it's yum too!

Ingredients:
600-700 g butternut pumpkin
250 g  almond meal (or for a cheaper option use 1/2 wholemeal flour)
2 tablespoons of chia seeds
2 tablespoons of ground linseed
half teaspoon cinnamon
half teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
quarter teaspoon sea salt
2 carrots
half cup sultanas
half cup pumpkin seeds plus extra to garnish
quarter cup coconut oil, warmed to the consistency of soft butter
3 eggs at room temperature
Method:
Preheat oven to 175 degrees celsius and line a loaf tin with baking paper.
Chop pumpkin into 2 cm cubes, steam or boil until slightly tender and set aside to cool
In a small-to-medium sized bowl, combine almond meal with chia seeds, linseed, spices, baking soda and sea salt. Set aside.
Grate carrots into a large bowl.  Add cooled pumpkin, sultanas, pumpkin seeds, coconut oil and eggs and stir until a runny batter is formed.  Add dry ingredients and stir gently until just combined.
Spoon batter into prepared loaf tin and garnish with extra pumpkin seeds.  Bake for 60-85 minutes or until firm to the touch and a skewer comes out clean
Enjoy!

Super Easy Paneer Curry

So I'm currently in "simplify my life" mode. With a particular attention on cutting down my cooking time whilst keeping it healthy on the week days. And sometimes, as we all know, this can be a challenging balance. But I'm managing to knock up a few goodies, and this is one of them: A super easy paneer curry, which can be prepared from woe-to-go in about 15 minutes, and only requires 1 pot. ENJOY!

Ingredients:
- 1/2 (150g) pack paneer (I used the fresh stuff, from New World)
- 1 can (425g) whole peeled tomatoes
- 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1 Tablespoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon each garlic and onion powder
- Cooking oil, and salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Put the curry powder, garlic and onion powders in a medium pot, with a swig of cooking oil, on medium heat. Let them sizzle a little. Then add the tomatoes and paneer, and cook for 5 or so minutes. Then add coconut milk, and peas, and cook for about 5 minutes more. To make this super easy, I served this with pre-cooked rice!

Jo's Yummy Blueberry Bread

After doing lots of googling last night, and taking the best bits of about 3 recipes, I came up with this. And it was so good, I made another straight away!

Dry
1/2 C oats
1/2 C wholemeal or spelt flour
1/3 C Linseed, almond flour, and wholemeal flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt

Wet
1/4 C oil (I used coconut oil for one, and butter for the other)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2.5 Tbsp honey or golden syrup
3/4 Cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1/3 Cup yogurt
1/4 C coconut milk (other milk of your choice)

Preheat oven to 170deg. Mix the dry ingredients.  Then warm the oil/butter, and mix the wet ingredients.  Combine together (being careful to not over mix). Line a loaf tin and pour in batter. Bake for 45min, or until skewer comes out clean.

Tuna Patties with Seasonal Slaw

Tonight I wanted something easy. I also had some mashed potato sitting in the fridge, from last nights' casserole. So this is what I did.....

Serves 2

For the patties

1 185g can + 1 95g can tuna in brine

About 300g mashed potato from a previous night

Dried bread crumbs

Milk (depending on how dry the mashed spud is)

Fresh parsley, finely chopped

Oil, for frying

For the slaw

Use what's in season.

¼ fennel bulb

1 spring onion

1 carrot

½ celery rib

¼ cucumber (if cheap enough)

Fresh coriander leaves

For the Dressing

½ lemon, squeezed

About ¼ cup olive oil

1 garlic clove

Putting it all together

Mix the tuna, mashed potato, and parsley. If the mix is quite dry, add a bit of milk. Create 4 evenly sized patties, and coat in breadcrumbs. Then saute on medium heat in a bit of oil.

While the tuna patties are cooking, prepare the salad: Chop up the coriander, finely slice the fennel, then julienne the remaining vegetables and put into a bowl. To make the dressing, mince the garlic clove, and combine with the olive oil and lemon. Pour over the salad.

Serve the patties on top of the salad.

Pumpkin and Black Bean Risotto

This was the result of a fridge with hardly any fresh food, and a desire for something healthy....

Ingredients:
- 250-400g pumpkin, cubed
- 500ml vege stock
- 1/2 cup arborio rice
- 1/2 cup medium grain brown rice
- 1/2 can black beans
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- handful of fresh herbs or greens of your choice (I used parsley from the garden, but you could use rocket, mizuna, baby spinach)
- Pumpkin seeds to garnish
- Olive oil and/or butter

Method:
Fry the rice for 2 minutes in a little olive oil/butter, on a medium heat, in a frying pan or saucepan. Then add the vegetable stock, pumpkin, thyme and nutmeg. Check every 5 minutes or so, and add water if necessary to stop the rice sticking. After about 25 minutes, the risotto should be ready. Take off the heat, and add the black beans and chopped greens. Top with pumpkin seeds.

Thank you!

A Balanced Kiwi Lifestyle has now been going for just over 1 year.... Since my first post on 7th March 2014 I have found and created some great new recipes, I have continued learning about living a balanced lifestyle, and I've definitely improved my food photography a weeny bit B-)
I'd like to take the opportunity to thank all of my subscribers and readers for your continued support and contributions... Without you, this blog wouldn't be what it is. xx Jo

Healthier nutty slice

This is a relatively healthy slice (well, compared with other snacks), moist and tasty, and packed with nuts and fibre......

 

Ingredients:

- 3/4 cup nut oil of your choice. I used peanut the first few times, but next time I'll try almond. 

- 1 cup yogurt

- 1 cup oats

- 1 1/2 cups wholemeal / spelt flour (I used half and half)

- 1/2 cup almond meal

- 2 eggs, beaten

- Juice of an orange

- 1/3 cup honey / golden syrup

- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon or mixed spice

- 1/2 cup mixed nuts, eg: walnuts, pistachios, almonds.

Method:

Keep the nuts aside while preparing the rest of the slice.   

Whisk the eggs with the yogurt, honey/syrup, and orange juice.  Add the spice.

Add all the dry ingredients and mix lightly, just enough to combine the ingredients.

Line a small baking tray with baking paper and pour in the batter.  Add the nuts over the top of the slice.

Bake in a moderate oven for 25 minutes or until lightly golden brown.  

This slice is best served once cooled and will last well if stored in the fridge.

Source:

http://thecookingbug.com/oat_nut_slice

Cashew Lentil Patties/Burgers

This is the best recipe I've found so far for vegetarian burger patties. In fact, I like these much better than any meat patty I've had!

The recipe makes 12 patties. You could double the recipe and put some of the patties in the freezer for easy week-day meals.

Ingredients
4 c veg stock
2 c diced carrots
1 c red lentils, rinsed and picked through
2 c raw cashews
4 T oil, divided
2 medium onion, chopped
2 clove garlic, minced
2 T curry powder
2 c bread crumbs, (I used 1 c oats and 1 c dried breadcrumbs)
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Method
1. Combine carrots, lentils, and stock in a saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cover and simmer until the lentils are tender and broken down (about 12-15 minutes). Drain in a sieve, pressing out excess liquid. Transfer to a bowl and cool to room temperature, about 20 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, toss the cashews in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat or in the oven until golden and fragrant. Let cool completely.
3. Heat 1 T of the oil in a pan. Add the onion and saute until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the garlic and curry powder and stir for another minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
4. Place the cooled cashews in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the lentils and the onion mixture; pulse until the mixture is cohesive but still somewhat textured. Transfer to a bowl and add enough bread crumbs to create a consistency that enables you to form cohesive patties. Season with salt and pepper to taste. With moist hands, form the twelve 1/2″ thick patties. (At this point, you can refrigerate the patties until needed.)
5. When you are ready to serve the burgers, heat 1 T oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the patties until evenly browned and heated through (about 4 minutes per side).

Serving suggestions:
Pita minis
Tomato, lettuce and cheese
Beetroot / beetroot relish and cucumber raita
Hummus, beetroot hummus
Oven-baked kumara or potato chips
Coleslaw

Original recipe sourced from: Michelle's Blog - Cashew Lentil Burgers

mud spring smoothie

I made this with leftovers and it was one of my favourite.  So I thought I'd share it.... And yes, it really does look like the rotorua mud springs :-D

- pinch seaweed (karengo fronds)
- pinch salt
- half avocado
- handful mesclin
- Handful mint leaves
- 2 cups water
- Handful blueberries
- Half banana
- 1 T chia seeds
- 1 T cashew nuts

Weeknight pasta salad with chorizo and summer veg

This was one of my spontaneous mixes, using what I had in the fridge..... Quantities are not exact.

For the pasta:
- Wholemeal Penne pasta
- Fresh basil leaves (or whatever herbs you have to hand)
- Kalamata olives, pitted and halved
- Red capsicum
- Courgette
- Chorizo
- Spring onion

For the dressing:
- Anchovy or 2
- 1/4 c Extra virgin olive oil
- 1-2 Tbs Red wine vinegar
- 1 Tspn Dijon mustard
- Fresh cracked pepper

Saute the chorizo (if it needs cooking). Then remove from pan. Saute red capsicum and courgettes. Boil the pasta until aldente. Whisk the dressing together. Combine everything together in one bowl.

Spelt Pancakes, and Topping Ideas

So, the last few weeks, we've been having pancakes on a Sunday. More recently I've been making them with spelt flour.... and what a difference that makes. 2 pancakes with white flour keeps me full for about 2 hours if I'm lucky, while 2 pancakes with spelt flour keeps me full until lunch....

Pancakes with white flour

Pancakes with spelt flour

Pancake Mix (makes about 5 small-medium pancakes)
- 1 C Wholemeal spelt flour (or wholemeal flour, or white flour)
- 1 C milk
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 egg, beaten
- Pinch salt
- (Optional) 1 Teaspoon cinnamon
It doesn't seem to matter how you put them together, just don't over mix.

Topping Ideas
- Banana, almond butter, cinnamon, raspberries, blueberries, fresh cream, and pecans.
- Banana, almond butter, cinnamon, cocoa nibs, pecans and/or hazelnuts, chia seeds, cream
- Refresh: grated apple, coarsely chopped almonds, cream, chia seeds.
- Watch this space for more toppings ideas.

About Me and My Blog

Who?
Hi, I'm Jo. I live in Wellington New Zealand, the most beautiful little capital in the world...  I'm a Data Analyst and Workflow Co-ordinator by day, and a food blogger and health enthusiast by night.... This is a picture from one of the meeting rooms in my office..... What a view huh.....

What?
The main purpose of this blog is to be a central repository for all my recipes. It replaces my old arch lever file of recipes, with the added bonus of being able to multi-categorise!

I am passionate about nutrition. I regularly read books about nutrition, attend seminars on health topics, and am beginning to study nutrition. My food philosophy is to eat food that is: Natural, wholesome, nutritious, fresh, seasonal, organic or local / wild. My food pyramid looks a bit like this.

I also strive for a balanced lifestyle, with moderate exercise, plenty of time in the outdoors, yoga, and relaxation.... In my view, moderation is key....

Why?
I'm not 100% sure why I'm so passionate about balance, moderation, and nutrition, but being an Analyst, and having probably over analysed it, it's possibly influenced by:
- My mother dying at the age of 37 from cancer
- Both grandmothers dying before their time
- A father who's always been disciplined about health and fitness
- My cousin also being passionate about nutrition ;-)
- Seeing the dangerous effects of stress on my body
 

I hope you enjoy my blog. If you have any questions, comments, or ideas, I'd love to hear from you.