My Body Blitz Program is a 2 week kick-start to help overcome cravings for sugar, fat and carbohydrate.

My diet is specifically designed to remove common food allergies as well as those foods that cause inflammation in the body.

By committing to just 2 weeks you can not only reduce the desire for non-healthy foods, but you can lose centimetres and shed kilograms!

This diet is offered complementary to my coaching clients, but feel free to enjoy the recipes and let me know what you think!

This recipe is portion controlled for a single serving, but to cook for more than one or to enjoy the next day, simply multiply each ingredient and cook in the same manner, adjusting your cooking times slightly for the extra volume.

Note that this recipe is high in sodium (salt) so those with high blood pressure should swap out the smoked salmon for fresh or frozen salmon.

Total Time:

15 minutes (approx)

 

Ingredients:

100g Smoked Salmon

200g Asparagus spears, trimmed

1 lemon

Coconut Oil Spray

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Method:

1. Place a small amount of cocnut oil spray into the bottom of a gridle or non-stick pan.

2. Place the asparagus in the pan and cook, turning regularly until slightly browned.

3. In a separate non-stick fry pan, warm the smoked salmon until no longer translucent.

4. Placed the cooked asparagus on a plate and top with the salmon before squeezing over a heft amount of leomin juice.

5. Season with a little sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper and serve.
 

Number of Servings:

1 serving

 

Nutritional Information

1 serving contains:

258 Calories

11.9g fat (of which 7.1g is saturated)

27.9g protein

10.1g carbohydrate (of which 5.6g are sugars)

4.2g fibre

My Body Blitz Program is a 2 week kick-start to help overcome cravings for sugar, fat and carbohydrate.

My diet is specifically designed to remove common food allergies as well as those foods that cause inflammation in the body.

By committing to just 2 weeks you can not only reduce the desire for non-healthy foods, but you can lose centimetres and shed kilograms!

This diet is offered complementary to my coaching clients, but feel free to enjoy the recipes and let me know what you think!

This recipe is portion controlled for a single serving, but to cook for more than one or to enjoy the next day, simply multiply each ingredient and cook in the same manner, adjusting your cooking times slightly for the extra volume.

For a little variation, switch out any of the vegetables for your favourites, swap the nuts to raw Almonds and add 10g of minced Ginger to the recipe.

Total Time:

20 minutes (approx)

Wild Rice and Chicken breasts cooked from the night before and cooled in the fridge.

Ingredients:

80g Poached Chicken breast, shredded

80g Wild Rice or Long Grain Brown Rice

60g Carrot, thinly sliced

60g Brocoli, cut into florets

60g Cauliflower, cut into florets

60g Celery, thinly sliced

60g Green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces

60g Snow Peas, topped and tailed and cut in half

1 tsp Gourmet Garden Mild Chilli paste

30g Cashew Nuts, raw

100mls Chicken Stock

1 lime, zest finely grated plus the juice

1/4 bunch Coriander, roughly chopped

Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Method:

1. Put all the ingredients except the chicken stock, lime and coriander into a non-stick fry pan.

2. Dry fry until a little browning appears.

3. Add chicken stock and continue to cook until vegetables are tender (about 10 minutes).

4. Remove from the heat and add lime zest, lime juice and coriander.

5. Toss and serve.

 

Number of Servings:

1 serving

 

Nutritional Information

1 serving contains:

464 Calories

19.6g fat (of which 3.7g is saturated)

38.7g protein

50.3g carbohydrate (of which 12.3g are sugars)

14.4g fibre

I do love vegetables, pretty much all of them, but sometimes I just don’t feel like steaming them or eating them au naturale, that’s the truth.

It’s on these days I yearn for something a bit more complicated and interesting, something to tempt my taste buds and excite the palate without adding to the hips.

Enter my 40g Salad … in all its limitless variations.

It’s basically 40g of a few different vegetables either cooked from the night before or fresh and raw, plus a little protein and sometimes even a little fruit like orange segments, all tossed together in a simple salad.

The 40g salad is eating at its most basic and healthy. By putting 6 or 7 main ingredients together with a couple of accents and a non-oil zingy dressing it really does the trick.

It’s quick, easy and a great use of leftovers. And I NEVER get sick of it!

Here’s today’s version.

Total Time:

10 minutes prep

Ingredients raw or cooked from the night before and cooled in the fridge.

 

Ingredients:

40g Chicken, lean – grilled and cubed

40g Pumpkin, torn into cubes

40g Snow Peas, steamed and cut in half

40g Green Peas, boiled

40g Carrot, sliced and boiled

40g Cucumber, cubed

40g Lettuce, any kind or rocket

2 springs of Mint Leaves, finely chopped

10g Pine Nuts, toasted

1 tbspn Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tbspn Water

1 tspn Dijon Mustard (or Grain Mustard)

Steva, Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Method:

1. Finely chop the mint

2. In a large bowl mix the vinegar, water, mustard, mint, stevia and salt and pepper.

3. Toast the fine nuts in a dry non-stick fry pan.

4. Prepare the cooked and raw vegetables and add them to the bowl.

5. Toss and serve.

 

Number of Servings:

1 serving

 

Nutritional Information

1 serving contains:

234 Calories

10.0g fat (of which 1.6g is saturated)

18.4g protein

18.3g carbohydrate (of which 10.6g are sugars)

6.5g fibre

So it’s been really cold lately (go figure!) and I’ve been looking for something home-style in a bowl to curl up with at night – especially as hubby’s away on business.

Now I wanted this “bowl’o’something” to be really healthy and packed with nutrition, low in carbs, high in protein and definitely super delicious. I also wanted to ensure it was going to give my metabolism a kick in the ass during this rainy weather, get my inner furnace all ‘fired up’ Pat Benetar-style without causing me any gaseous consequences.

I recalled watching a recent episode of Recipe to Riches in which Sara-Jade’s Chilli Con Carne recipe ‘took the cake’ and it gave me this idea. But not being very fond of jalapenos and allergic to chipotles (and capsicum) I wanted a recipe with much more vegetable content and a little more elegance on the spice front.

So here is my version … Chunky Sweet Potato Chilli Con Carne.

But wait .. there’s more. Don’t run away just yet. If the sound of that recipe has you looking for cover because you’re partial to getting a little breezy from legumes then simply read my article here on how to minimise that issue. That way you won’t have any risk of powering a third world village.

Total Time:

15 minutes prep

60 mins cooking

 

Ingredients:

500g Beef, lean and diced into chunks

400g Sweet Potato, cubed

245g Canned Kidney Beans, rinsed and drained

245g Canned Cannellini Beans, rinsed and drained

880g Canned diced tomato (or use fresh)

120g Celery, finely chopped (can use onion instead)

120g Carrot, fine chopped

4 cloves Garlic, minced

4 teaspoons Garam Marsala

1 tablespoon Ground Chillies

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

400mls filtered Water

Salt to taste

Accompaniments: Extra light sour cream or low-fat Greek yoghurt … if you dare!

 

Method:

1. Using a large non-stick pot saute the celery, carrot, garlic, chilli and garam marsala in the olive oil until soft.

2. Add the remaining ingredients (except the salt) and bring to the boil.

3. Turn the pot down to simmer, seal with a lid and let cook for 1 hour.

4. If the mix becomes dry or is in danger of catching on the bottom add a little more water

5. Season to taste and serve.

 

Number of Servings:

6 x 380g servings (approx.)

 

Nutritional Information

1 serving 380g contains:

316 Calories (plus any accompaniments!)

7.2g fat (of which 1.6g is saturated)

29.6g protein

34.7g carbohydrate (of which 11.4g are sugars)

9.3g fibre

I absolutely love this salad!

Fresh and alive with delicious ingredients I made it the other day when nothing was appealing to me food-wise and I was in real danger of having a carb blowout.

I wanted something simple and quick … and tasty! Fortunately I had all the ingredients already cooked and cooled in the fridge.

This salad is a little higher in calories mostly from the fats in the egg and the feta. It’s especially yummy with some added pepitas and sunflower seeds which add a nutty crunch and take the mouth on a really good textural journey.

The higher level of fat in this salad is actually a good thing as it allows for the absorption of beta-carotine (vitamin A). Sweet potatoes are also good sources of fibre, vitamin C, and vitamin B6. Despite being primarily carbohydrate, some studies have shown that sweet potatoes can help stabilize blood sugar levels and lower insulin resistance.

So if you’re looking for a more substantial lunch virtually guaranteed to address your carb cravings in a healthy way then this could do the trick!

Ingredients:

80g Baby Spinach leaves

70g Cherry Tomatoes, halved

1 Egg, hard boiled, cooled and quartered

120g Sweet Potato, boiled or dry baked, cooled and torn in to pieces

40g Lemnos Reduced Fat Feta, crumbled

Dressing: 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 100ml apple cider vinegar (or similar), 50ml water, salt, pepper, stevia to taste

Accompaniments: 5g Pepita seeds and 5g of sunflower seeds

 

Method:

1. Place the spinach, tomatoes, sweet potato and feta in a mixing bowl

2. Mix the dressing in a separate bowl or jar

3. Dress the salad, toss and place into a serving bowl or plate.

4. Sprinkle over the optional seeds.

 

Nutritional Information

Serves 1 and with accompaniments contains:

395 Calories

18.7g fat (of which 7.1 is saturated)

26.8g protein

26.4g carbohydrate (of which 9.8g are sugars)

6.1g fibre

Muesli can be an excellent source of energy, protein and fibre and a great start to your day.

However the issue with most shop-bought muesli’s is they are packed with sugars, in the form of dried fruits, honeys and added fruit or sugar syrups. 

The truth is it’s a snap to make your own home made muesli with my “Magic Muesli” recipe.

It’s high in fibre, protein and healthy fats, low in sugar, high in antioxidants, has anti-inflammatory fighting additives and can actually help lower your blood pressure.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

20g Organic Raw Rolled Oats (or Steel Cut Oats)

10g Spelt or Oat Bran

5g Pepitas

5g Sunflower seeds

6g Ginger, freshly grated

1 Brazil nut, chopped

4 Walnut halves, chopped

1 teaspoon Cinnamon

¼ teaspoon Vanilla powder

Zest of 1 lemon

Stevia to taste

Accompaniments: 80g Jalna Low Fat Vanilla yoghurt and 50g frozen blueberries warmed.

 

Method:

1. Add all ingredients except the accomaniments to a maxing bowl and mix well.

2. Warm the Blueberries in a 900W microwave for about 1 minute.

3. Whip the yoghurt with a fork for a few seconds until a creamy consistency is achieved.

4. To serve place the dry mixture in a serving bowl, top with blueberries and yoghurt.

 

Nutritional Information

Serves 1 and with accompaniments contains:

334 Calories

14.9g fat (of which 2.3g is saturated)

10.6g protein

43.5g carbohydrate (of which 12.5g are sugars)

6.5g fibre

When I went to visit Michelina recently it was a very cold day and she had developed this gorgeous heart-warming soup, low in fat, high in fibre and packed with metabolism-boosting Cayenne Pepper and Ginger.

We enjoyed it for lunch together and I was thrilled (and a little proud) to see she had embraced the food principles in my book “Half The Woman I Was”.

Feel free to adjust the cayenne pepper and ginger to your desired levels, but as these are the most ‘active’ ingredients in this soup, more is better.

If you’ve got fructose-mal absobtion then don’t use onion or leek, just substitute more celery for them.

For those who have a bean problem result in excessive or uncomfortable wind, you’ll be pleased to read that adzuki beans are one of the lowest gas-producing beans. Most importantly, learn how to prepare them properly by reading my article “Are Legumes A Has Bean” here and you should suffer only minimally, if at all.

Finally if you’re making your own home-made chicken stock, be sure to let it cool in the fridge overnight and skim the fat before use. If you don’t have time then feel free to grab a pack of Campbells Salt Reduced Chicken or Vegetable stock instead. It’s not quite as good as home-made, but it will do nicely.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 cup of Adzuki beans

3 full sticks of Celery

3 medium Carrots

1 leek or onion

3 small cloves of garlic

2” piece of Ginger root

1 litre home-made chicken stock, fat skimmed off

½ teaspoon Cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon Coconut oil

Fresh Coriander and Parsley

Himalayan sea salt

 

Method:

1. Soak adzuki beans over night

2. Put the adzuki beans in a saucepan and cover with water

3. Bring saucepan to the boil

4. Simmer for about 40 minutes until the beans are cooked

5. Once cooked, rinse, drain and set aside.

6. Finely chop the celery, leek/onion and garlic

7. Chop the carrot into slightly larger pieces

8. Roughly chop the fresh herbs

9. Finely grate the ginger

10. Sauté leek or onion, garlic, ginger in coconut oil for a few minutes until the leek/onion is translucent.

11. Add all of the other ingredients and bring to a boil

12. Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until all ingredients are cooked

13. Taste for and additional seasoning

14. Serve and garnish with additional fresh chopped herbs.

 

Nutritional Information

1 Recipe Serves 3 and 1 serving contains:

255 Calories

3.3g fat (of which 2.0g is saturated)

13.5g protein

46.0g carbohydrate (of which 12.5g are sugars)

11.4g fibre

 

Who said you can’t eat chocolate for breakfast? You can if you follow this easy recipe using these deliciously crunchy cacao nibs.

So what are cacao nibs? They are one of the world’s best ‘Superfoods’ – an organic wholefood rich in antioxidants, and magnesium which also increases happy neurotransmitters to make us feel good throughout the day.

Those from Professional Whey originate from the criollo cacao bean from Satipo in Peru and are Fair Trade. But don’t think sweet chcocolate, these tiny super crunchy morsels are very bitter, and may take some getting used to.

This recipe is a raw take on the warming Ginger Spiced Oats I posted the other day. Deliciously moorish, this is a higher calorie recipe designed to be eaten as two half meals, or to serve two.

And with pomegranates in season it’s a great opportunity to boost your antioxidants and fibre intake, keeping you fuller longer. Pomegranates are best when they’re red and BIG! They shrink in size as they dry out making the seeds hard and tasteless. Deseeding a Pomegranate can take a bit of time and effort (Click Here to see the easy way to deseed a pomegranate), but the seeds can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for a week or so.

If pomegranates aren’t in season in your neck of the woods, then usually berries are. So substitute the same weight for blueberries and raspberries.

If you’re gluten or wheat intolerant oats, whilst GF, can be contaminated with wheat product during processing. So to be safe you can substitute the raw rolled oats with Macro’s Rolled Spelt or GF Steel Cut Oats.

For a ‘softer’ more easily digested recipe I soak the oats overnight, particularly if using rolled spelt or steel cut oats. But you can also eat this straight away if you like a more raw texture.

Ingredients

20g Raw rolled oats or rolled spelt flakes (available from Macro)

10g Oat Bran or Barley Bran

2g Ground cinnamon

2g Groung mixed spice

10g fresh ginger root

80g Jalna low fat vanilla yoghurt

60ml milk

5g pepita seeds

5g sunflower seeds

10g Cacao nibs (Click Here for Supplier)

60g Pomegranate seeds

4 raw almonds

1 raw brazil nut

2 raw half walnuts

Method

1. Place the oats, bran, spices, yoghurt and milk in a breakfast bowl.

2. Finely grate the ginger, and add to the bowl.

3. Stir and cover and place in the fridge for 12 to 24 hours so that mixture thickens and softens.

4. Just prior to serving, roughly chop the nuts, add these and the pepitas, sunflower seeds, cacao nibs and pomegranate seeds to the bowl.

5. Stir and enjoy.

Nutritional Information

1 recipe contains:

459 Calories

20.4g fat (of which 4.3g is saturated)

13.2g protein

58.3g carbohydrate (of which 26.3g are sugars)

4.8g fibre

Serves 2

When you’re in a hurry and on the go it can seem simpler just to grab a ready-made shake or breakfast drink. But these products are not healthy, and they’re generally full of wheat and simple carbohydrates which means you’ll be craving more food quickly because your blood sugar is elevated, and this will most likely mean you’ll end up eating more throughout the day!

If you’re going to have a breakfast shake, then you need to learn how to do a healthy version at home – and here it is!

Making a classic creamy smoothie at home doesn’t require complex ingredients or a lot of milk or yoghurt. But it does require the right equipment and a little of the right kind of protein powder, without fillers or added flavourings or sugars.

The right equipment is a powerful blender. The best blender is a Thermomix, but if your budget doesn’t stretch to this marvellous machine then do some research and buy the most powerful blender you can find, one with a chopping function and a good warranty.

As for protein powders there’s a huge array to choose from. With the exception of some Misashi powders, very few are worth using as they are not pure protein, and generally higher is simple carbohydrates which defeats the purpose of using the powder in the first place. When I do use powders (which isn’t that often) I only use them from Professional Whey. Owner Stephen has developed a great range of pure protein powders (all aimed at his main market of muscle building gym freaks, so forgive the masculine looking site).

My favourite is the Micellar Cassein MPI Powder as it’s a slow release protein powder, and it’s low lactose and gentle on the old digestive system. It is, however, a bit grainy, so when I get it I Thermomix it with his Vanilla Bean powder and some of his Stevia for a short time and it becomes a really great addition to this smoothie, making it really creamy, thick and luscious.

Ingredients

15g of Micellar Cassein MPI powder (Click Here for supplier)

60g Raw carrot

60g Raw celery

10g Fesh ginger root

50g raw lemon (no peel)

80g raw orange

80g fresh (or frozen) banana

220ml Water (or ice in summer if you prefer it granita style)

Stevia to taste

Method

1. Roughly chop ingredients and add to blender or Thermomix

2. Add protein powder and water

3. Blitz the heck out of it until it’s smooth. In a thermomix it’s 1 minute on Speed 10.

4. Pour into a large glass, and enjoy.

Nutritional Information

1 recipe contains:

182 Calories

0.4g fat (of which 0.2g is saturated)

16.2g protein

32.8g carbohydrate (of which 25.2g are sugars)

7.5g fibre

Serves 1