Organise your way to better health

In my last post I talked about eating as unprocessed and natural as possible. This week I want to break that down and give you some practical ways to show you how easy that can be. I understand we all have busy lives and that standing in the kitchen for hours preparing food from scratch isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I’m here to tell you that eating healthy doesn’t have to be time consuming; it’s more about being organized.

I love cooking and am obsessed with cookbooks, but have to admit am terrible at following recipes. My eldest daughter gets incredibly frustrated with me when we cook together. I will look at a recipe, close the book and just go ahead and add whatever I feel like. She is a great cook and follows the recipe to the letter; she even measures out all the ingredients! When we are in the kitchen together she relegates me to sous chef position and cheerfully doles out instructions while staying firmly in charge, cookbook in hand.

Needless to say my healthy meals are often thrown together without a recipe. Sometimes this works and sometimes I have complete disasters, but I always enjoy the process. I’m a big believer in keeping it simple, particularly when it comes to lunch. My mornings are generally busy with training my clients and also doing my own training. By the time lunch comes around I’m hungry and want something nutritious and easy to throw together. I make sure i have a crisper full of fresh fruit and vegetables. Being organised stops me eating out and reduces the opportunity to reach for something ready-made and not as good for me. I also don’t like wasting food, so if i have produce that needs eating, then i will make sure i use it.

For those of you who know me well, you will know that Quinoa is one of my favourite foods. Some would even say I’m a bit obsessed with it, which I cheerfully agree with! It is a complete protein and is actually a seed, so is gluten free. It is nutritious, delicious and easy to use in a variety of different ways. At the beginning of the week I cook up a cup of quinoa with two cups of water. I will either add some lemon to the water, or some veggie stock to give it a lovely flavour.

This will keep in the fridge for about 3 days. For lunches I will throw some quinoa in a bowl and then add whatever I have available in the fridge. My standard ingredients are: tomatoes, mushrooms, cucumber, capsicum, red Onions, jalapeno peppers, avocado, chili, spinach, pretty much anything goes. When I am cooking vegetables for dinner, I will always cook extra so I have them ready to add to my lunches too. Sweet potato, eggplant, asparagus, zucchini all go really well. My other obsession is fresh herbs and I always have basil, parsley, mint and coriander in the fridge. I will throw in a handful of fresh herbs, varying them depending on what vegetables I have used. Sometimes they all go in.

I like to keep a jar of homemade salad dressing in the fridge. My standard is Olive oil, lemon juice, ginger and herbs. It is so easy to make and will keep in the fridge for a week. Just throw all the ingredients into a jar and shake. To change it up every now and again I will do a more Asian style dressing by adding Mirin (gluten free soy sauce) some chilli and garlic. This is great if you are putting some tuna or salmon into your salad. Don’t be afraid to experiment with your favorite flavours. For some crunch I will dry fry pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and pine nuts and toss them through my salad. If you don’t have time to fry them, that’s fine you can add them uncooked. The frying just adds to the crispiness and brings out the taste.

I generally alternate between quinoa as my base for lunch and salad greens such a spinach/rocket and Kale. You can throw all the same ingredients into a big bowl of salad greens and pour over your dressing. Adding some left over chicken, fish, meat or a boiled egg is also a great way to get extra protein. If you are plant based, then legumes are a good alternative. If I am tired of quinoa salads (a rare occurrence) then I will use the left over quinoa to make burgers. I have a great recipe for these, which I use as a base then add my own little twist depending on what I have in the fridge.

Another weekly staple I make is hummus. As a snack option with some seed crackers, or vegetable sticks it is unbeatable. I also do a zucchini dip which is made very similar to hummus and is equally as delicious. These dips take about 10mins to make and are great to have in the fridge. You can also use them as a spread if you are having a wrap, or add a dollop of them to your salad. I will attach the recipes to both at the bottom of this blog.

I hope this has been helpful and gives you an idea of just how easy it can be to eat well with a little bit of preparation.

If you have any questions, or would like to do a free 30min Health Connect session with me, then please get in touch via email:

striveforlife@hotmail.com, or contact me through my website.

Hummus recipe: https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/hummus-237832 

I usually use coriander in this recipe instead of parsley, and ALWAYS add more lemon or lime juice. I like it to have a nice tang.

Zucchini Dip recipe: http://www.feastingathome.com/zucchini-hummus/