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No churn chocolate and almond icecream

Today I came to the conclusion that I do like almond butter, as long as it is mixed with dates, chocolate & coconut milk and then frozen. Basically I like it if it is turned into icecream!
I’ve never been able to get on the almond butter train till now, or the peanut butter train…and whilst I’m confessing I also don’t like avocados or plain coconut water or bullet proof coffee. I know they are all “superfoods” but in my mind, if they aren’t super for me, then they aren’t a super food.
Almond butter has, despite my aversion, often found its way into recipes. It works wonders in a dressing for Asian inspired salads or noodle dishes and it’s great in cookie dough as it yields a chewy consistency. I thought about trying it as an icecream ingredient because it’s high natural fat content makes it ideal for freezing as it will set but not rock solid.
This simple 7 ingredient ice cream is vegan, refined sugar free & also no churn, (because who needs another piece of kitchen equipment). I used almond butter and cacao but you could use peanut butter or maybe even seed butter if you are a nut free kitchen, you can even leave the nut butter out totally & sub in another milk. Instead of cocoa you could add in espresso and you can add in things too like cacao nibs or chocolate chips or freeze dried berries and chopped nuts.

We just put decking down in the garden and it’s been blissful to sit outside in the evening sun & eat icecream. It’s also surprising what a huge difference it makes to have icecream cones!!! Seriously an icecream at home game changer.

Next on the list is definitely homemade icecream cones….maybe with buckwheat flour? But I’m also currently obsessed with baked donuts so who knows what will be next out the kitchen

Ingredients
2 cans coconut milk chilled in the fridge overnight
16 dates pitted
80g raw/unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
40ml unsweetened almond milk
4 tbsp almond butter
1 tbsp cinnamon

Method
Place the dates into hot water & leave to soak for 10mins until soft
Drain & then place into a food processor
Process until you have finely chopped dates then add in warm water until a thick paste forms
Open the coconut milk & with a spoon remove the solid top “cream” and place into a mixing bowl
Add in the rest of the ingredients including the date paste
Blend or mix well until all ingredients are well combined (easier with an electric blender)
Pour into a shallow dish & place into the freezer
Freeze overnight
Remove 15 mins before serving

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Using chia seeds

While chia may not make the best omelette and would almost certainly struggle with clafoutis, you can easily use them to replace eggs in baking and in one rather simple step you can add a super boost to your favorite baked treats.

Chia seeds have no taste but they pack a huge amount of nutrition. They contain calcium, manganese, and phosphorus, and they are an excellent source of healthy omega-3 fats. They are also high in fibre & high in protein.

They are a perfect boost sprinkle atop of porridge or thrown into a bought or homemade smoothie.

What I especially love about chia seeds is that you can use them to replace eggs in baked goods – this is a really easy way to adapt a cake recipe to one that would suit a vegan or someone with an egg allergy.

Ingredients
1 tbsp chia seeds (or one tbsp per egg replacing)
3 tbsp water

Method
Grind the chia seeds in a coffee or spice grinder (or using a pestle and mortar)
Stir the chia into the water and leave for 15 minutes – it will form a thick gel
Use to replace one egg in a recipe

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DIY deodorant

Eating right is self care but self care is not limited to eating right. Self care, is for want of a more simple description, the act of taking care of yourself. Eating foods that nourish, that help you thrive, that feed you are vital but self care has many strings to its bow. Self care is the sleep you get, the company you keep, the relationship you have with yourself. It is the voice inside you and whether you feel loved or not. Self care is exercise and movement, it what you choose to fill your day doing. Self care is also physical. How you take care of your own physical body. Do you stretch it when it is stiff? Do you listen to it? Do you respond to its calls?

When I coach about health all of these come into play. It is never enough to drink a green juice and be on your way. Health is a mind set, it doesn’t come in pill form. It is inhabiting a mind and body that offers you freedom and joy. One step to self care is being aware of your body and the products that you use on it. Today it is just as easy to buy a chemical, paraben and sulphate free product as it is to not, and so i would implore you to look at the labels.Chemicals are easily absorbed by the skin, our largest organ, and it therefore makes no sense to eat clean, but wash dirty.

It is so easy to make this deodorant and since I have been using it, there has been a rather unexpected side effect… I sweat less! I have tested this in every situation. Packed London tube, coffee date with an ex boyfriend I hadn’t seen in 10 years, morning runs, HIIT training, long days and warm evenings. This deodorant can quickly be mixed up and stored in a jar. I like to keep it at home in a cool place, then simply warm a little on your finger tips and use where needed.

The shea butter has a higher melting point that the coconut oil and so it helps keep the deodorant in a solid state. Vitamin E oil can be bought at health food shops but if you have Vitamin E capsules then just break one open and use that. Adding essential oils helps to give the deodorant a natural smell, but it also gives it antibacterial properties which help fight bacteria and sweat – thats a win win!

Ingredients
3 1/2 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil
2 1/2 tablespoons shea butter
1/2 teaspoon Vitamin E oil (optional)
6 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons baking soda
10-15 drops essential lavender oil

Method
Place the coconut oil into a clean jar place into a pan filled with boiling water
Let the coconut oil melt and then simply stir in all the other ingredients mixing really well
Leave to cool
Store in the jar in a cool place

 

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Homemade toner

This is a quick ‘how to guide’. A DIY beauty hack to making your own homemade toner. I am very basic with my skin care I always have been. I dont use cleanser or soap, I dont exfoliate or scrub. I wash my face with, I spritz with rose water, I moisturize. It is nothing revolutionary but its what I have always done. Now that winter has set in and I have hit 30, I decided that I needed to add toner into my life. Toner, in its best form, can help balance out your skins pH levels, and dissolve dead skin cells. During the colder months, when you go from cold harsh temperatures, into hot, dry, stuffy indoors, your skin can really struggle.

This toner uses a base of organic raw apple cider vinegar.  Apple cider vinegar has a pH of 3 and when it is diluted, it can help restore your skins natural pH levels. This will help improve your complexion and help your skin function optimally. Our skin is naturally acidic so when our levels are balanced our skin is neither oily nor dry. When you pH levels are out of balance it can cause breakouts, clogged pores or itchy, irritated skin.

This homemade toner will help ward off bacteria and allow your skin to shed dead skin cells at the proper rate stopping your pores from getting clogged and keeping your skin healthy. Many people find that this natural toner helps improve the skins overall appearance and reduce marks and scars.
Apple cider vinegar does have a distinct smell but this dissipates as soon as it has dried. You can add essential oils to your toner – lavender or hazel work well. You can also boil green, white or camomile tea in the water, leave it to cool and then blend with the ACV.

Ingredients
100 ml of raw apple cider vinegar
300 ml of filtered water (you can dilute it further if you have sensitive skin)
4 drops of essential oil

Method
Blend all the ingredients in a sterile kilner jar
Store in a cool place and shake before use
After washing your face, apply the toner using cotton wool
Leave to dry and then moisturize as normal

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A few of my favorite things

Beetroot – I’m happy this made it to the top of the list alphabetically. I love beetroot. I love it juiced, I love it as carpaccio, I love it roasted on salads. Beetroot is an excellent liver tonic and they are packed with iron and too. Like bananas they are an great source of potassium. Don’t discard the beetroot leaves, you can use them too and they too are dense with iron, Vitamin A & C and even calcium.

Berries – I love all fruit but berries top my list. Blueberries on porridge, strawberries in salads, blackberries fresh off the bush. Picking berries is one of life’s greatest treasures for me. Try to buy organic and local where possible and always wash them well. If you have an abundance lay them on baking sheets and freeze overnight before pouring into bags and storing in the freezer – summer goodness all year round!

Broccoli – or rather all cruciferous vegetables. I love them all: Swiss chard, kale, kohlrabi, cabbage. To me they are one of the most versatile groups in the kitchen and they boost the goodness of any meal.

Buckwheat  – one of my favourite seeds to cook with or use raw. A seed rather than a grain, buckwheat is closely related to rhubarb. Its easy to digest, packed with protein and naturally gluten free. It is one of the easiest flours to use in baking and I think it makes the yummiest, crunchiest granola.

Cocoa – oh raw cocoa. I love you. I love the fact that you are packed with antioxidants and flavanoids, but most of all I love that you make chocolate. Raw cocoa is different from standard cocoa as it has not been heated and thus the nutritional benefits are far higher. Cocoa is a great mood booster and can help slow down the ageing process. Making your own chocolate is easy and takes five minutes and best of all – you control the added ingredients.

Coconut oil – you only need to massage coconut oil into your skin to know how amazing coconut oil it. You can heat this oil to high temperatures without affecting in and you can use it in place of any butter or oil in baking or cooking. It has a sweeter, mild taste which i love with roasted root vegetables. The fat in coconut oil is a preferred source of energy for the body (rather than being stored) and so when used properly it can actually help with weight loss. Outside the kitchen you can use coconut oil to clean your teeth as it has antibacterial properties (oil pulling), give your hair a deep condition or simply as the most natural moisturiser.

Dates – these are natures sweets to me. I use them in place of sugar in so many baked recipes. I use them instead of honey to bind ingredients together, I put them in tajines to give a sweet undertone and I stuff them with walnuts or pumpkin seeds and snack on them on rainy afternoons. Dates have a perfect calcium:magnesium ration which i find can help promote restful sleep…a few dates blended in warm milk is the greatest insomnia tonic ever!

Legumes (and beans) – I don’t know where I would be without them most days. Lentil stew, homemade hummus, black bean chocolate brownies, baked falafel. They are one of the best sources of fibre and thus an amazing blood sugar regulator. Its best to buy heirloom varieties and if you are buying them dried make sure they have been dried in the last year and store them in a cool dark place. If you are buying them tinned make sure the cans are safe.

Nuts – yes they are high in fat but it is monounsaturated fat which can actually help protect your heart.  When buying nuts try and buy organic as many commercial nuts are sprayed to extend their shelf life. You can also buy (or make) activated nuts. These have been soaked and then often baked and are easier to digest.Walnuts are my favourite for snacking on but almonds still make the best milk.Homemade nut milk, nut butters, nut crumble, power balls and bars – nuts have a permanent place in my kitchen.

Oats  – porridge makes me happy as does baked oatmeal. I grind my own oatmeal flour to bake with and love making bircher muesli and overnight oats. I also use them in homemade face masks and soaks as oats are naturally anti-inflammatory

Turmeric – I had to sneak a spice onto this list. Turmeric has amazing health benefits, it is a powerful anti-inflammatory and is known for alleviating joint pain. Turmeric, in Ayurveda medicine is used to support the liver and aid in detoxification. I love it in lentil stews or coating roasted cauliflower.

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