AUBERGINE, TOMATO AND PECAN SALAD

I made this vegan dish for a girl’s brunch and it went down a treat (even with the fussy eaters). Roasted aubergine works so well with a spicy tomato melt and the pecans gives it an extra caramel crunch! 

It really doesn’t involve much prep and is great if you want to make a big batch and eat throughout the week!

I'd love to see some of your creations - just tag @headoverhealing :)  

Ingredients; serves 4-5 people;  

4 aubergines  

6 large tomatoes  

1 bag rocket (grams?) 

1 tbsp. chilli seeds 

1 tbsp. mustard seeds 

Handful of pecans  

¼ cup olive oil 

Salt and pepper 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees. 

Chop the aubergines into chunks (1 aubergine = approx. 6 chunks) and place in an oven proof dish. 

Season aubergine with salt, pepper and olive oil and oven for approx. 30 – 40 minutes. 

Chop tomatoes into chunks and season with salt, pepper, chilli seeds and mustard seeds. 20 minutes before the aubergine is ready to come out, add the tomatoes on top of the aubergine and oven for a further 20 minutes (until it becomes a tomato melt). 

Once cooked, remove the dish from the oven and plate up a bed of rocket, season with a little olive oil and add the aubergine bake on top. Sprinkle with crushed pecans for an extra crunch!

BANANA AND PEANUT BUTTER CAKE

This peanut butter and banana cake is so tasty and it's the easiest cake to make! Just mix all the ingredients listed below into a bowl and bake for 40 minutes! It goes perfectly with a cup of tea or coffee in the morning to help keep our blood sugar levels balanced and energy levels up.

Traditional cakes are made with lots refined flour and processed sugar, which sends our blood sugar levels into a frenzy! 

This one, however is free from; wheat, gluten, dairy and sweetened with natural sugars that offer certain nutrients that white sugar does not. It's also loaded with plenty of potassium from the bananas and is rich in energy from the peanut butter.

I promise you won't be able to tell it is healthy! 

I would love to hear what you guys think of it.

Ingredients: 

2 bananas 
2 eggs
1tbsp. flaxseed
1 cup coconut flour
2 tbsp. cinnamon  
1 tbsp. nutmeg
1 tbsp. honey / maple syrup - optional
1/2 cup walnuts
1/4 cup raisins 
1/4 cup peanut butter - to top
Pinch of unrefined salt

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 190 degrees.

Mash the bananas in a bowl and crack the eggs in. Whisk together with a folk until blended.

Add the remaining ingredients, apart from the peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.

Place batter in a greased* bread tin and oven for approx. 40 - 50 minutes. Keep an eye on it after 40 minutes. 

Once cooked, allow to cool and lather the top with peanut butter. 

*I used organic coconut oil for greasing.

ONE PAN ROASTED VEGGIE BOWL

This bowl is absolutely bursting with goodness perfect for detoxing after the festive season. It includes crispy, salted kale and herb seasoned carrots, sprouts, parsnips, red pepper and potato wedges.

Many people boil veg which can be boring and tasteless. By roasting and seasoning them, they become so sweet and crispy. It’s definitely my favourite way to load up on greens!

After all the festive indulging and boozing our bodies often lack nutrients in January, so it's really important to load up on plenty on fruit and veggies. Sprouts are definitely not just for Christmas anymore, they’ve become extremely popular since being deemed a super food, owning to their valuable nutrients. 

Kale is also up there as a super food and is extremely high in fibre, which helps keep the digestive system functioning properly. The peppers and parsnips will also load you up with with plenty of Vitamin C and potassium.

Try adding a fried egg on top for an extra protein boost! 

Ingredients: Serves two

1 potato

2 carrots

2 parsnips

1 red bell pepper

1 cup brussel sprouts

Handful of kale

Knob organic, unsalted butter or 2 tbsp. olive oil

2 tbsp. mixed herbs

Handful of fresh thyme

Salt & pepper to taste

Method:

Peel carrots and parsnips and chop into chunks, along with the red pepper, sprouts and potato.

Add veg into an oven proof dish and season with butter / olive oil, mixed herbs, thyme, salt and pepper.

Oven at 190 degrees for approx. 30-40 mins (until crispy) – stirring occasionally. 

5 minutes before the veg is ready to come out the oven, sprinkle the kale over the top of the veg and oven until crisp (keep an eye on it as it can burn very quickly).

Once cooked, remove from oven and plate up.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF EATING THIS WAY?

Happy New Year to you all! The New Year is always a great way to reflect on the past year and set intensions for the year ahead. 

As with every New Year, following all the festive indulging, we see A LOT of restricted diets - something I am not a fan of. Restrictive dieting can not only be harmful, but is also a short term fix and unsustainable. 

Check out my previous post on ‘why restricting food intake can be detrimental’, which explains how prevention and restriction diets often leads to overindulging and binging. 

For me, sticking to a whole-foods approach where you consume as much natural healthy ingredients as you desire is a far more maintainable (and enjoyable) approach.

Many people have different reasons why they incorporate a healthy lifestyle, mine was to help heal my body. I am so blessed that I came across this way of living as not only did I notice improvements in my symptoms but my mood and energy lifted dramatically.

I absolutely never judge what people eat and think everyone should eat what makes them happy and feel good. Below I have highlighted just a few of the reasons why eating a whole-foods diet benefits me and how it makes me feel good;

Boost in energy: I’m sure most of you can relate to that 4 o’clock slump feeling. Fuelling your body with sustainable food helps keep your blood sugar levels balanced, which in turn keeps your energy levels up. Eating lots of natural, wholesome ingredients provides me with tons more energy than I had before.

Thicker, glossy hair and glowing skin: A few years ago, my diet was pretty poor and mainly revolved around refined carbs and processed food.  My hair at the time was thin and brittle, however I never made the link with food. Since incorporating lots of natural ingredients into my diet, my hair is thicker and shinier and various people comment on how my fresh my skin looks. So it is true, nourishing foods really do make you glow!

Leaner and Slimmer body: After cutting out all processed and refined food, my body became leaner and slimmer. My workouts became less of a struggle and I noticed my results were coming quicker too!

Happier mind: Good food = good mood. Before changing my diet, I used to feel very low and anxious at times. I suffered from terrible mood swings and ended up having major ‘melt downs’ in high pressure situations. I feel much calmer and relaxed these days. When you nourish your body with goodness, it makes your mind clearer, happier and more focused.

Healthier body: You will notice that you haven’t caught that office cold flying around as your immune will become much stronger. The stronger your immune system is, the less likely you will develop other, more serious conditions.

Whatever you decide to eat, just make sure it makes you feel good!

Here's to a fabulous year ahead. xx