Chocolate chia pudding

I posted a photo of my little chia creation a few days ago and now I finally got around to writing down the (very simple) recipe :)

This is one delicious dessert/snack!

Mix about 2 tbs chia seeds with about 3/4 cup chocolate soy milk. (you can use any other chocolate milk as well- rice, almond,..it's all good!) Put it in a nice glass or cup - the one you're going to serve it in :) Now- fridge time! put is in the fridge for at least a few hours or even better- over night. Before you serve it, just top it with anything you like. I chose mixed berries and it worked like magic :)

YUM!

Coconut and buckwheat bread

So, I’ve been having lots of problems with digestion, low energy leves, and skin-acne lately. And I decided to get tested for candida overgrowth and food intolarances, and surprise surprise…All of my problems were eplained by candida and lacose and gluten intolerance. Happy about it? Nope. But it’s nice to finally know whats wrong and start making a change. 

And I have been seeing slight changes since I started watchig my diet, which is amazing :D No more bloating, no more stomach pains - well, almost, but I am still figuring this out…and my skin is already looking a bit better yaaay :D

So, now the problem is: is there ANYTHING I CAN EAT?? I admit it, I was a bit depressed for the first few days, especially because all of this happened during the holidays, and we all know there is no worse time to be told you can’t it something…and I felt like I was told I can’t eat anything…sucks, right? 

But after the initial shock was over and I started doing some research I found out there is actually loads of delicious thing I CAN eat :D and this is the first, of hopefully many recipes, to come your way. 

It’s a gluten free, dairy free and candida friendly bread loaf that looks amazing and can be made savoury or sweet, WHAAAT? Yup, it’s true :D

Here’s what you’ll need:

- 1/2 cup coconut flour

- 1/2 cup buckwheat flour

- 1/2 cup coconut milk - only use the creamy part

- 5 eggs

- 2 tbs coconut oil

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1 tsp baking powder

* If you want to make this a sweet loaf, which is also delicious and perfect as a snack or to go with your afternoon tea, just add STEVIA to taste 

HOW TO:

Mix together the eggs, coconut oil and salt (and stevia if you’re making a sweet loaf). Now add coconut flour, coconut milk, buckwheat flour and baking powder. I recommend you add the dry ingredients one at a time, mixing inbetween. Once everything is mixed together take a loaf pan and lightly gease it with some coconut oil. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan. I sprinkled mine with some pumpkin and sunflower seeds and coconut flour, to give it a nicer look and crunch, but this is completely optional :D Bake for 30min on 175C or until golden brown 

Bon apetit :*

COCONUT FLOUR

This is a great way to sub your wheat flours, it doesn’t contain gluten and it’s delicious. It’s consistency makes bread or any other product you make with it more airy and light.

The bread made with cocout flour is a low carb one and it’s high in fiber, which helps your digestion, also making is perfect for candida.

Why crunches and situps aren't giving you flat abs

So, you've been doing situps and crunches religiously for years, and you just can't get the abs you want? No, there's nothing wrong with you and you're not the only one. The problem lies in your approach. 

Flat abs are a result of a regular cardio, resistance training, core strength traingin and of course - diet. A saying that hasbeen going around quite a lot is- abs are made in the kitchen. Which is true. Partially.

Most people don’t realize that without a strong core, it’s unlikely you will achieve flat, sixpack abs. And,for a strong core you need to strengthen much more than just your abdominals. It includes your hips, lower bach, glutes and of course the inner core muscles - areas that crunches alone are missing. 

Try out this Kayla Itsines' ab workout and visit her web page for for her complete bikini body guide. Seriously this girl is amazing.

Now, lets talk about diet. No amount of training will help if you don't do the work in the kitchen as well. You may have a strong core and abs, but to get them to show, you need to lose fat. And that cannot be done in just one part of the body. If you want to show off your abs you need to get your body fat % down. Total body fat, not just abdominal fat. To lose fat you need to create a calorie deficit - now this is a whole new topic for a whole different post. But in short- please do not starve your body- you will not get abs this way as he body starts to eat its own muscles when it doesn't get enough nutrients. So eat. But eat clean. Avoid things that will cause cravings - like processed foods, simple carohyrates, sugar... And include more fruits, veggies, complex carbohydrates- wholewheat, rice, oats,...and lean protein- beans, fish, soy, chickpeas, eggs, cottage cheese...

A post on clean eating will be up soon, but if you have any questions at all just ASK :D

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

Winter time is coming and with it all the joys of the season. I love love loveee the time of year before Christmas <3 I know, I know, it’s only November, but I just can’t help myself. I just love it and I’m not ashamed to admit it. When November begins that’s my que to start planning Christmas presents for family and friends and watching Christmas movies, of course! Watching Love Actually during the first weekend of November has become sort of a tradition of mine and it marks the begining of Christmas season for me :P just to be totally honest, I might watch Love Actually at least every two weeks untill Christmas…Actually, I probably will. Okay, okay…I know I will, cause I do every year :D

But this isn’t a post about Christmas or Love Actually. It is however a post about something delicious and hot and something that smells great and something that makes me feel wintery and christmasy and lovely…I’m babbling…

This is a post about CHESTNUTS :D Chestnuts roasting on an opeeen fireee…

Okay, so..Chestnuts. Love them. But how much do you really know about them? 

- They are relatively low in calories - compared to other nuts - around 200 Kcal per 100g

- They are starchy in contrast to other seeds and nuts, their nutrition composition is similar to other staple starch foods such as sweet potato, sweet corn, potatoes, 

- They are a good source of dietary fiber; provide 8.1 g (about 21% of RDI) per 100 g. Fiber diet helps lower blood cholesterol levels by limiting excess cholesterol absorption in the intestines.

- They are exceptionally rich in vitamin-C. 100 g nuts provide 43 mg of vitamin C (72 % of DRI). 

- They are rich in folates, which is quite a rare but unique feature for nuts and seeds. 100 g nuts provide 62 µg of folates (or 15.5% DRI). Folic acid is required for the formation of red blood cells, DNA synthesis. Adequate consumption of food rich in folates is especially important before and during the first trimester of pregnancy as it helps prevent neural tube defects.

- Chestnuts contain high levels of essential fatty acids, including linoleic acid, which are beneficial to cardiovascular health and proper neurological development in infants,

- The nuts are an excellent source of minerals such as iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus and zinc, besides providing a very good amount of potassium

- Further, they are also rich in many important B-complex groups of vitamins. 100 g of nuts provide 11% of niacin, 29% of pyridoxine (vitamin B-6), 100% of thiamin, and 12% of riboflavin.

Plus, they are delicious and smell nice and when they start selling roasted chestnuts you know it’s the time of year to be jolly :D