How To Be Healthy and Control Emotional Eating

Hey everyone,

 Eating bad food can be an addiction. I used to be an emotional eater. So I Would get really low and turn to food for comfort and then get really down about bindge eating and the vicious cycle would go round and round. I would easily eat a pack of cookies and feel no way until the next morning when I woke up starving and bloated. I put on a lot of weight and at the time you don't notice until months later and you jeans don't do up! It soon became an addiction and everyday after work I would go and buy something sweet to eat for when I got into bed. Also I picked up a bad habit of having a Cappuccino and a Croissant every morning. Something had to change and I knew I was the only one in control of that. So here I am today sharing some of my tips to stop emotional eating and to become more healthy. 1 year in august it will have been since I gave up meat and stopped buying those double chocolate cookies and have become so healthy. I no longer feel the need to have food to make me feel happy instead I have food to make me feel light, energised and nourished. 

1. Replace sugary foods with natural sugars. I found these bars called Nakd. They are delicious and sweet made with only  few ingredients. They are sweet from using dates. Dates are good for you rich in nutrients, vitamins and do not contain excessive ambit of fat. The bars also contains nuts which are also good for you a healthy fat. 

2. Have a healthy breakfast. Make time in the morning to make your self a protein packed breakfast that will keep you going until lunch time. Even if you have to get up 15 minute earlier it is worth it. I like to make wholegrain oats with 1 table spoon of meridian peanut Butter and a chopped Banana or a smoothies with Kale, Spinach, Banana, Apple. These are super quick to make and will stop you from getting something on the way to work like a sugary croissant that won't fill you up.

2. Drink lots of water. Buy a 2 litre bottle of water and make sure you drink it every time you feel peckish. Water fills you up and stops your hunger and cravings. It also flushes you out and keep you hydrated and energised. 

3. Drink peppermint tea after your dinner. This curbs sweet cravings, helps with digestion and bloating. 

4. Replace starch foods with wholegrain foods. White potatoes with sweet potatoes, white rice with brown rice, pasta with wholegrain brown pasta. Starches can increase your blood sugar levels. 

5. Have 70% of the food on your plate as vegetables and salad. You can never have enough vegetables. They fill you up and keep you super healthy. They are packed with nutrients and essential vitamins. They do not have to be boring you can make them as tasty as you want by adding seasoning and herbs. 

6. Find a hobby to distract you from thinking about food. When you feel down find something else to lift you up. Try meditating to some calm music, even just breathing deeply for 5 minutes can change the way you feel. Exercise for 10 minutes when you feel down. Exercise releases serotonin the happy hormone. Dance to your favourite song.

 Just try and control your thoughts. When you notice that your feeling down say to your self I got this and I won't feel down I will do something right now to feel happy again. Don't turn to food it won't help and it will make you feel worse. It takes 21 days to form a habit. Stick to these tips for 21 days and see how much better you feel. Set yourself the challenge. Write a moon board and place it next to your bed so when you wake up you feel motivated. 

I hope I have inspired you to make that change. 

Sending you love and good vibes 

x

Garam Masala Aubergines

Ingredients

2 Aubergines

1 tbs of Garam Masala

Dozen cherry Tomatoes

1 red onion

1 red pepper

3 Spring Onions

Turmeric

Water

Vegetable Stock

Corriander

Coconut dairy free yoghurt 

Nigella seeds

Method

1. Cut Aubergines into 4 strips. Mix the Garam masala with a tsp of oil and place the oven for 25 mins.

2. Chop the red Onion, red Pepper, Ginger and half of the Garlic

Place them into a pot with 1 tsp of oil. 

Saute for a couple minutes until they have softened 

Add the rice, Turmeric and water with the vegetable stock. Stir it, bring to the boil and simmer fir around 20 mins.

3. Whilst the rice is cooking Chop the spring onions, cherry tomatoes, Garlic and coriander. Place them into bowl and mix to make a salsa.

4. When your rice is cooked add half of the salsa to the rice and mix it in. 

5. Serve the rice then add the Aubergines on top of the rice and the remains salsa. Add the Nigella seeds to the Coconut yoghurt and mix well and pour over the top. 

Crunchy Peanut Cookies

Hey Everyone

I have the worst craving for sweet things. Especially around that time of month. I try so hard to resist but the more I try not to think about it the more I do lol First world problems. I try to make sweet teats that re healthier than buying something from the shop and not many shops do nice vegan healthy treats. Last night I kept looking in my cupboards to find something. You know when you keep looking as if something will magically appear lol. All there was that I could work with was a big jar of Meridian Peanut Butter, Coconut sugar and Coconut flour so I thought, I know lets make Peanut cookies. OMD they were sooo nice my daughter literally loved them my son wasn't to keen as they weren't chocolate lol. They were so easy to make and 100% Vegan. 

Here is what you need

130g Crunchy Peanut Butter

60g of Coconut Sugar

4-5 Tablespoons of Oat Milk

150g of Oats

30 - 40ml of Maple Syrup 

1 Tbs of Vanilla Essence 

3 Tbs of Coconut Flour 

Set your oven to 180 degrees

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan on low heat and stir together thoroughly until all the ingredients melt and are well mixed.

Grease a baking tray with Coconut Oil 

Get a handful of the mixture (or less depending how big you want the cookies) and form a cookie shape then place on the baking tray and put them in the oven for 10-15 minuets. Turn half way thought and keep and eye on them so they don't burn (mine nearly did)

Once they are ready let them coo down completely and enjoy! 

Tips

Add the oat milk gradually you want to use this to bind the cookie mixture but not t make it runny

Add the maple syrup gradually as you don't want the mixture runny 

Vegan Chilli Con Carne

Hey everyone,

I have had a lot of people ask me what I eat and if I miss eating meat. The answer is no lol I have recreated most meat recipes without the meat but with the flavour still there. Its really simple when you find an alternative that works. I really fancied a chilli con carne the other day so I came up with this recipe. Its exactly how you would make a meat chilli con carne but with chickpeas. The flavour is there and the consistency. It's literally mouth watering. You can make it as hot as you like I didn't go too crazy with the chilli as my 2 kids ate this as well. I hope you like it. Comment and let me know if you tried it.

You will need

Coconut oil/ Rapeseed Oil

3 Tbs Tomato Puree

4 Garlic Cloves

1 tsp Ground Cumin

1 tsp Of Paprika

1 Tsp of Chilli's

2 Cups of Baby Tomatoes

1 Can Of Chopped Tomatoes

2 Can Of Chick Peas

2 Tbs of Mustard seeds

1 Onion

Pinch of Salt

 Black Pepper

3 or 4 Sweet Potatoes

Method

Preheat oven to 180

Wash and pierce Sweet Potatoes, place on a tray. Drizzle over some oil and put in the oven for 30 mins

Add Some oil to a pan Add garlic and Onion for sauce for a minute until soft

Add seasoning and Mustard seeds and stir for another minute 

Add Tomatoes, Chopped Tomatoes, Chickpeas, Salt and Pepper and simmer for 15 minutes  

Once the Sweet Potatoes are ready add the chilli to one and serve with a side salad 

What I eat in a day Protein world

Hey Everyone

I have uploaded a new video to my youtube channel. It is a what I eat in a day protein world video. I replace 2 meals with 2 Protein World Slender Blend smoothies and have 1 healthy vegan dinner. I hope you enjoy this video and you feel inspired to try it out. I wouldn't advise anyone to try this if you are not wanting to loose weight.

xx

Healthy Vegan Dinner

Hello everyone,

I have been creating some really quick, healthy vegan dinners that I wanted to share with you all. A lot of you are starting the 30 day healthy challenge so I thought I can help inspire some of you. Sometimes we are too busy to cook but we want to eat something nourishing and healthy. You still can! It can take up to 30 mins to throw something together. The key is prepping. Anything you do in the kitchen you should prep. If you are using a lot of vegetables that need peeling and chopping then do that first. Get the herbs and spices ready and cook a big portion so you can have some left over for the next day. Plan your week of eating so that everyday you know exactly what you need to make the food and set times of the day that you can make it. Get your self a black chalk board to help you plan. I usually cook dinner around 4pm on my days off and 6pm on the days I work. Of course on my days off I will cook something that takes a bit longer but after work I have 0 energy so I need easy and quick meals.

In the picture above I made Raosted Butternut squash, Quinoa and Avocado.

It took no longer than 30-40 mins.

Butternut Squash

Peel it and cut it into wedges or squares. Season with salt and black pepper and drizzle over some oil. I used rapeseed oil. Then place in a roasting tray in the oven on 220 degrees for 30-40 mins,

Quinoa

Add 100g of Quinoa in a pot and add 400 ml of water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 15mins or still all of the water has absorbed.

Add 1 can of black eyed beans to a pan with some oil, red onion and 3 coves of garlic. Season with cayenne pepper and a pinch of oink Himalayan salt. Heat on medium heat and stir fir around 20mins.

Once the quinoa is cooked add it to the beans then add a handful of raisons and mix it all together.

Serve with a Avocado or a salad.

xx

My first you tube video

Vegan Shopping Haul

Hey Everyone

If you follow me on Instagram you would have seen this photo and as promised I am going to write a post of a food shopping haul. I went to Aldi last week for my weekly shop. I usually go to Tesco but I spend a fortune and wanted to try something cheaper. As you know when your buying fresh fruit and vegetables along with vegan/healthy cupboard stables it can mount up your bill. I was pleasantly surprised when I shopped in Aldi and brought more than I would buy in tech for less the price. My shopping bill came to 32.57.

Here is a list of what I brought 

Coconut Oil 2.49

Bananas 48p

Peppers loose 47p

Apples Breaburn 1.09

Green Beans 95p

Kale 69p

Sweet Potato 89p

Carrots organic 95p

Baby Spinach 1.39

Baby Plum Tomatoes 79p

Spring Onions 47p

Red Cabbage 65p

Cauliflower 89p

Broccoli 39p

Chestnut Mushrooms 95p

Courgettes x3 85p

Beetroot in  packet 99p

Strawberries 1.29

Asparagus 89p

 Raw Cacao Powder 1.99

Avocado x4 1.65 

Easy peelers Nectarines 89p

Red Seedless Grapes 1.69

I haven't included everything only the food I brought I did buy a few other personal things. But as you can see the majority of the Vegtables and Fruit is much cheaper. After tasting it I am happy with how it tastes in comparrison to Tesco. However Aldi didn't have good quality Peanut butter, Nut Milk, Sweetner and Chickpeas so I did have to take a trip to Tesco after. But overall I saved at least 30 pound. 

So my point of this post is you can eat healthy a without spending a lot and you have to start somewhere. Don't feel like you have to go to the fancy supermarkets because everyone else is or because you think its better quality. You have to do what you have to do. I hope you liked this post and it has inspired you. 

xx 

Peanut Butter Flapjacks

Ingredients

Flapjacks

1/4 cup of crunchy peanut butter I like the Meridian one 

3 cup of Oats

Pinch of Salt

1/4 cup of Honey

1 tsp Vanilla Essence

Add all the ingredients to a mixing bowl and mix together using a spoon then told together using your hands until it forms a oaty looking doh. Add 1 tbs of water if needed

Add the mixture to a baking tray and freeze for half and hour until it is set.

 Chocolate Layer

1 cup of Cacao Powder

1/4 cup of Honey

1/4 cup coconut sugar

1/4 cup of peanut butter

1/2 cup of coconut oil

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla essence

On a low heat add the ingredients to a pan and stir together until all melted. leave for 10 mins to thicken up then add on top of the Flapjacks and place back in the freezer for about 45min.

Once they are ready cut them in squares and store in a container in the fridge.

xx

  

Chickpea Curry

Chickpeas have become a staple in my house. Before I gave up meat I didn't really eat Chickpeas and know what I could do with them. I soon found out all the ways you can add them to your diet. I wanted to eat a lot of protein and When I found out 1/4 of a cup of them is equivalent to 1oz of meat I literally stocked up. The good thing is they only cost 50p from Tesco.

Being brought up eating meet I used to always eat curry especially chicken curry and my all time favourite was Jamaican curry chicken. Caribbean food is one of the best kind of foods. The flavours are just so mouthwatering. So I wanted to recreate this curry chicken without meat. It super easy and super quick to make. It fills you up and has the flavours of curry chicken so you feel like you're eating the curry chicken.

The ingredients you will need are
1 can of chickpeas
1 handfuls of cherry tomatoes
1 onion
4 table spoons of medium curry powder (dunns river one)
3 Cloves of garlic
1 can of coconut milk
1 sprig of thyme
1 tsp of cumin seeds
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp of ketchup
   pinch of salt

1. Add a tablespoon of coconut oil to a pan then add in your crushed garlic and diced onion. Saute until onion turns soft.
2. Add the curry powder and cumin seeds and stir in for 1 minute.
3. Add the tomatoes cut in half, coconut milk, Chickpeas drained and washed,  thyme, 1 tsp of black pepper and a pinch of salt and ketchup.
4. Bring to the boil then turn hear down and simmer for 15-20 mins.
5. Add more seasoning if needed you can taste it along the way.
Serve with coconut rice and Avocado or salad

xx

Roasted Vegetables

Raosted vegetables

Sweet Potato

Red Onion 

Courgette

Mushrooms

Baby Plum Tomatoes

Kale

Brown Rice

Avacado

Cut all the vegetables up then place in a roasting dish

Add coconut oil, salt, pepper and garlic

Place in the oven for 40mins at 200oc but depends on your oven

Add your rice to a saucepan then add the water so it sits about 1cm above the rice 

Bring to the boil then simmer for about 20min 

Once all the ingredients are cooked mix the together 

Serve with Avocado or a side salad

xx

Cocao Breakfast Bars

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. I wake up excited to know I will eat lol. When I have more time my hands and not running around like a headless chicken I usually make a vegetable fry up or avocado on toast but sometimes time just gets the better of me and I find my self leaving the house without eating breakfast which isn't good for my mood I get real hangry as they would say. I end up grabbing something from Waitrose that doesn't fill me up and feel starve before lunch time.
I decided to experiment and see what I could make that would be healthy and quick to make. I came up with these Oat Cacao bars.

They are so simple with only a few ingredients and no need to bake. You must store them in the fridge as at room temperature they will go soft and crumbly.

Ingredients
1 cup of oats
1cup of ground almonds
2 Tablespoons of Raw cacao powder
2 tablespoons of honey
1/2 of a cup of coconut oil

Mix all the ingredients together in a saucepan on low heat until all melted. Add the mixture to a baking tray and press down so its all compact and even then place in the freezer for about an hour to set. Once set remove, cut into squares or bars then store in a container in the fridge.

I hope you enjoy these.

Please send me ay feedback and tag me in picture if you make them on my Instagram.

xx

What I have been cooking

Lentil Curry with Peas, Sweet Potatoes and Onions 

This recipe is the same as my previous Lentil Curry Recipe I just added Sweet Potatoes in with the lentils and 10 Mins before its ready I added 1 cup of frozen Peas. 

Kale Stir fry

 Mushrooms

 Red Onions

 and 

Baby Plum Tomatoes. 

Garlicky Red Kidney Beans With Sweet Jacket Potatoes. 

5 cloves of garlic

olive oil

1/2 teaspoon pf cayenne pepper 

Half of one lemon juice

2x 400g red kidney beans

3 tablespoons of tomato puree

Bake Sweet Potato in the oven for about 45 mins

15 mins before the Sweet Potato is ready 

Add crushed Garlic cloves to a pan with Olive Oil and saute for a minute

Then add the rest of the ingredient apart from the Lemon.

 Heat up for about 15 mins then add Lemon juice. 

At the same time your making the beans make the kale stir fry which takes around10 mins.

Raw Brownies

Add 1 cup of Medjool Dates (12 dates) to a food processor

2 tablespoons of raw Manuka Honey 

3 tablespoons of raw Cacao powder and 1 cup of ground Almonds

Blend together until it turns into a sticky texture

Put the mixture onto a baking tray, press it down so its about 1 cm thick then set it in the freezer for a hour. 

Cut into square and store in the fridge.

Chocolate Yoghurt

1 smashed avocado

2 or 3 tablespoons of raw Cacao powder

2 table spoons of raw Manuka honey

200mls of Coconut Milk

Half a cup of berries (any berries)

Blend all the ingredients together in a blender until it turns smooth. 

These Recipes are all super healthy and good for you. 

How I changed my diet

Hey Everyone

As you may know I have changed my diet by cutting out processed foods and meat. I have gone from not caring what I eat to being extremely aware of what I feed my body. Growing up I have always eaten junk food and was raised to eat meat. After doing a lot of research and speaking to people about being vegan, vegetarian, Pescatarian etc I had decided to change my eating habits. I learnt that people with hormonal acne had cleared their skin from cutting out meat, dairy and gluten. I studied this for a while and realised that there was a lot of evidence behind these claims. Not only were people clearing their skin but they said they felt better from the inside out meaning they had more energy and less brain fog! 

So how did I give up meat and dairy? 

Its not easy at first. I struggled to find good alternatives. I am quite good at sticking to something if I form a good routine but I was a bit lost and didn't know what to cook. I started off with finding lentil curry dishes as this was comforting and easy to make. I knew that I had to get my protein in so I was searching for protein foods. I stuck to 1 or 2 dishes for the first few weeks as it was easy to make and I was getting used to the change. I then got easily bored as you can imagine and I found out about Deliciously Ella and her amazing informative cookbooks. This literally changed my life. I discovered so many different recipes and ingredients that I had never before tried. I started cooking different vegan recipes everyday and before I knew it I hadn't eaten meat for like 2 months. 9 Months down the line I still haven't eaten meat. I have replaced it with some really enjoyable meals. I have also replaced dairy milk with oat, coconut and rice milk. I don't eat cheese and I have replaced sugar with Honey and Coconut sugar. My main protein sources are Beans and Lentils. I have a lot of good fats such as Avocado and I still eat carbs but I have replaced white rice and pasta with brown and I eat sweet potatoes more than white potatoes. If I fancy something sweet I use cacao powder to make raw brownies etc.

I feel so so so much better. My energy levels have increased, my skin is glowing, my hair and nails have got stronger. I and so happy I have made this changed and I can control what I eat. I look at food differently now and the more time that goes on the more I learn about different ingredients. I keep my self motivated by looking at lots of vegan cookbooks, Instagram feeds and speaking to people who are vegan. My ultimate goal is to have a plant based diet. I have a link to Deliciously Ella cookbook on my page in the sidebar.

Below are some examples of what I eat.

What I have been cooking

Lentil Curry, Roasted cauliflower and Sweet Potatoe Wedges, Green Beans and Fried Plantain.

Click on the link for how to make the Lentil Curry.

Season cauliflower with 1 teaspoon each of Ground Cumin, Cayenne Pepper and  Tumeric. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and mix it together well. Cook on medium heat in the oven for 25mins.

Season Sweet Potatoes with onion salt. Add 1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook on medium heat in the oven until crispy 40min.

Boil Green Beans and fry the Plantain 15 mins before the potatoes are done.

Healthy Simple Meals

 Salmon, Roast Baby Potatoes, Broccoli, Mushroom and Vine Tomatoes 

 Spiced Roasted Cauliflower 

Roasted Caulifower with fried Salmon, kale, Mushrooms, Tomatoes and Avacado 

MY SKIN SAVIOUR

Hey everyone

Its been a while since I updated you all with my skin care regime. I have completely changed what I use after breaking out quite bad. As much as I loved using the Epiduo, once I had stopped using it my acne came back. I feel like most chemically harsh treatments this happens to me personally. Anyway I discovered Skin Accumax when I started a new job in a  lovely Blowdry/Beauty bar Blush and Blow. Which is my current job as a  Blow dry specialist. My boss who is a absolute beauty queen (you can find her here http://blushingbeautyblogger.com/mother-of-the-bride-makeup) told to me I have to start taking Skin Accumax, that it will clear my skin and make it look plumed and glowing. Curiously I asked what Skin Accumax was.

Its a skin supplement which contains vitamins a, c and e and a highly active plant compound called DIM found in Broccoli. It works by balancing out your hormones and targeting the hormone causing the acne. So it has no harsh chemicals but can clear my acne?! Very excited, I brought my first multi pack and started taking them straight away. You have to take 4 a day for moderate acne and 2 a day for mild acne/breakouts. I took 4 a day as my skin was breaking out quite bad. It's now been 9 months and my skin has transformed. I have hardly any breakouts maybe like 3 spots on my chin when my period is due but that's all. I don't need to apply a lot of makeup as my scars have faded and the texture of my skin has noticeably improved. It's recommended to take 4 a day for a year and then go down to 2 a day and then 1 a day.

I honesty couldn't recommend this enough. Even if it doesn't work, Which I doubt, you are still getting the benefits of taking the vitamins which I'm certain have made my hair grow and my nails stronger. Please do tell me if you have taken Skin Accumax before and how it was for you.

 

What I have been cooking

Since giving up meat and dairy I have come across a variety of different ingredients, herbs and spices. I never knew vegetables could taste so nice.




I have replaced meat with beans and lentils to ensure I am still getting enough protein. Chickpeas, Red kidney Beans, Butter Beans are some of the few that have protein. One of my favourite dishes is lentil curry. It's super easy to make and very quick. The kids love it too.




It's ingredients are

1½ tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil

1 cup diced onion

1 cup dried red lentils

½ teaspoon ground turmeric

1 tablespoon mild curry powder

1 teaspoon ginger powder

1 teaspoon garlic salt

½ teaspoon Himalayan Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

3½ cups water

1 cup of coconut milk


You just need to brown off the Onion then add the rest of the ingredients, bring to the boil and then simmer for 25 minutes until lentils are soft.


This is a very basic lentil curry. You can add vegetables and potatoes to it. I added sultanas which gave it a sweet taste. Also I didn't make it too spicy so the kids can eat it so if you wanted to spice it up you can add cayenne pepper or chilli.


The spices in this curry are super good for you. Turmeric is anti-inflammatory and a antioxidant. Ginger is also anti-inflammatory. It helps with digestion and nausea. It also has been proven to lower blood sugar levels.

                                                           

I'm Back

Its the 8th of April 2017, 2 years since I posted on my blog and it feels so good to be back. I have had a very long break from blogging for various reasons. I had to take time out to work on my self and my personal development which is continuous as we are always learning.  I also was struggling to juggle having 2 children, blog and take care of my home. I felt like the content I was posting was a bit scattered. Although I look back, read it and makes me happy to see actually how much I have changed and grown as a person it also does make me cringe a little. So here I am and I have so much to share with you. So much has happened in 2 years. I'm a pescatairian and 70% vegan, I have a new job as a Blowdry specialist and my skin is remarkably better. That's just a few of the big changes that has taken place. I have so many new skincare products to share with you and the most mouthwatering vegan recipes.