Sunday 23 March 2014

Chocolate Mousse

My preparation for this weekend will be "Chocolate Mousse".

Very easy. Prep. 20min. Rest 3hours

In a sauce pan, break the chocolate in pieces and butter. Let in melt on low heat.

Separate in two different bowls white and egg yolks.

In 1 bowl, mix the yolks with powdered sugar. Add the choc-butter mixture and mix everything.

In the other bowl, whisk the egg white with a bit of salt. And slowly pour into the choc-butter mixture.

Cover up with a plastic film and let it rest for at least 3 hours in the fridge.

What you need
225g of dark chocolate
90gr of butter
5 eggs
1 tablespoon of powdered sugar
Salt

image from lepetrin.fr


Saturday 22 March 2014

My saturday diary

930am
Saturday kick start with a fresh juice made of carrots, apple and orange.

image from livelearnloveeat.com











10am — Breakfast Time
With an apples pie oatmeal and black coffee











1045am — running Time




Ready to go for a 40minutes run with the runkeeper apps which will tell me (calories, duration and pace per km) while listen to Oliver Schories'podcast. 






1315 — Lunch time
Chicken fillets with a zucchini, 2 tomatoes, an onion and natural yogurt





Thursday 20 March 2014

Beef fillet with mushrooms

I am going to prepare a beef fillet with mushrooms

Prep. 15min

Wash and cut mushrooms in slices.

In a pan, cook the mushrooms for about 10minutes with 15gr of butter.

In a cup, spin out flour, milk and beef stock. Once the mushrooms cooked pour the cup in the pan. Salt, pepper and mix everything.

In another pan, melt the other 15gr of butter and cook the beef fillets for 5 minutes.

Serve out with some parsley.

What you need:
2 beef fillets
6 Paris mushrooms
30 gr of butter
Beef stock
1 tablespoon of milk
1 tablespoon of flour
Pepper and salt
(Parsley)

Pictures to follow x x














Wednesday 19 March 2014

Apple Pie Oatmeal

I found this recipe on kitchendaily.com and it looks amazing and so easy.

Place the water, milk and salt in a sauce pan. Cover and set on high heat.
Prepare the apples, melt butter in a small pan on medium heat and toss diced apples for about 5-7minutes.
Once cooked, removes apples from the heat and sprinkle sugar and cinnamon on top of them.
Once the water and milk are boiling, drop in your oats and cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes. Once cooked let it rest for 5minutes. Then, pour the apples into the oats and stir to combine.

Serve immediately with maple syrup and cinnamon

Ingredients for 1serving

8 tablespoons of rolled oats
1 firm crisp apple, peeled and diced
4 tablespoons of milk
4 tablespoons of water
2 teaspoons of butter
4 tsp cinnamon
1 tablespoon of brown sugar
Salt
Extra cinnamon and maple syrup for serving







Sesame chicken

My recipe tonight will be chicken sesame with brown rice.

In a bowl, marinated chicken fillet with soya sauce, vinegar, brown sugar and sesame seeds for 30minutes.

In a wok, stir the chicken with some olive oil for 5minutes.

Serve out with some parsley or coriander.

Bon appetit!

What you need (2people)
250gr of chicken fillet
2 tablespoons of brown sugar
4 tablespoons of soya sauce
2 tablespoons of sesame seeds
2 tablespoons of rice vinegar
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Brown rice

image from brownyedbaker.com







Tuesday 18 March 2014

Chemical cocktail

Coca Cola is the most famous brand in the history. Commonly called "Coke", this soft drink is a real poisson for your body and the human metabolism.

In term of acidity, Coca Cola is really close to sulphuric acid which is a same component used to clean surfaces. Coca Cola can be used to clean your house, toilets, stain etc (please see list below) and sometimes even better than some of households (toxic) products.

The Coca Cola is often cheaper and easier to buy in some third world countries than water. Coca Cola fools his consumers and entire nations by claiming that they are environmental focus but in reality, they are related to pollution, water shortages and some diseases.

People that consume soft drinks are 48% more chance to have a heart attack and stroke compare to those that never drink them or only occasionally. A study proves that consuming fizzy drinks are also related to lungs cancer and asthma. Oesophagus cancer was really rare two generations ago but nowadays its very current. Mechanical cells damages are a big factor of risk for cancer. All soft drinks engender gastric reflux and production of acid in the oesophagus. More you drink them more acid you will have and more risk to get a cancer.

Plus, the sulphuric acid contained in Coke slows down the human system which result of digging into calcium. In other terms, the carbonation and sulphuric acid that Coca Cola holds, will soften and weaken your bones.

The carbonation (which the components are dioxide of carbon and water ) contained in Coca Cola leads to a loss of calcium in bones which can be explained in 3 steps.

1. The carbonation irritates the stomach
2. The stomach treats those irritations with antacid (calcium) that the body gets from blood.
3. The blood will then get weak in calcium and will want to restock from the bones. If this whole process wasn't done automatically by the body, our muscular and cerebral functions would be severely compromise

Without counting that Coca Cola is very bad for your waistline but also for your teeth, it acts as an acidic cleaner, enough to damage teeth and make them weaker to dental caries.

Coca Cola shouldn't be drunk but rather used wisely. Did you know that Coca Cola can:

Get rid off grease or blood stain on clothes and/or floor
Remove rust
Kill insects (snail, slugs etc)
Clean burned pans, leave it soak and rinse
Descale kettles
Remove gums from hair
Smooth out your hair coloration with diet coke
Clean toilets, etc...

Now think about what it does to your stomach when you ingest it? Have you ever think what do Coca Cola is made from?

Hope you will think twice before opening a can of Coke now ...  x x

image from frot.co.nz


Source from lecoinbuzz.com












Fish fillets with mushrooms

My dinner preparation for tonight will be a fish fillet with mushrooms (recipe from unjourunerecette.fr)

Very easy. Prep. 15min

1. Wash and cut mushrooms in slices.
2. In a pan, melt 3teaspoons of butter and stir the mushrooms with for about 10minutes
3. In another pan, stir the fish fillets with some olive oil
4. In a bowl, pour 20cl of milk mixed with a bit of flour (to replace fresh cream) and add mustard. Mix all together.
5. Salt and pepper.
6. Pour the sauce on cooked mushrooms and mix.

Serve out with some parsley.

What you need:

4 white fish fillets
300gr of Paris mushrooms
20cl of fresh cream (replaced with milk and flour) 13tbs
1 teaspoon of mustard
Parsley, salt, mustard, pepper and butter

my version














Monday 17 March 2014

Banana cake walnuts and chocolate chips

My preparation tonight will be a banana cake and chocolate chips, recipe from unjourunerecette.fr

So easy
Prep. 15min
Baking: 40minutes
1 slice 365 kcal

I always count on tablespoons. 1 tablespoon = 20grams

First peel and mash 3 bananas

In a bowl, mix 3 eggs, 6.5 tbs of flour, 1tbs of baking powder, 5tbs of brown sugar.

Then, add 7tbs of milk and 2.5tbs of melt butter, the mashed bananas, 7tbs of crush walnuts and 5tbs of chocolate chips.

Butter and flour a cake pan. Pour the mixture and put in the oven for 40minutes at 180 degrees.

What you need:

3 bananas, 100gr of chocolate chips , 100gr of crush walnuts, 225gr of flour, 100gr of brown sugar, 50gr of butter, 10cl of milk, 1/2 of baking powder, 3 eggs

Prep.











Friday 14 March 2014

Banana bread

Its friday which means — treat day :)

My treat today was in CRUSSH again.

A blueberries/banana smoothie with a slice of banana bread (182kcal).

Banana bread explanations
Baked wholegrain bread, moistened and flavoured with bananas. Banana bread will provide a full of  healthful nutrients. If you want make your own always use healthy ingredients. Bananas itself are excellent with low fat and cholesterol free, source of fibre, potassium, vitamin C and B6. In most of bananas bread figure nuts which are good source of omega 3, fatty acids and excellent source of protein too.


Source. livestrong.com



















Apple coffee cake

I am gonna try this apple coffee cake recipe very soon!!!  It looks HEAVEN

I found it on simplyrecipes.com, but have slightly changed it though — to make it lighter and healthier.

Start to pre-heat the oven (200 degrees)

In a medium bowl mix flour, baking powder, butter, egg and milk. 

In a smaller bowl mix 4 tablespoons of brown sugar with cinnamon. 

Pour half of the first mixture (flour one) on a baking dish and lay the apples slices (in order to cover all the dish).

Sprinkle the apples with the second mixture (cinnamon-sugar), reserving a little bit to add on top of the cake.

Spread the rest of the flour mixture over the apples. Sprinkle the remaining sugar mixture on top with some dark chocolates chips.

Bake for 20-25minues

What you need:

16 tablespoons of flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
5 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
2 tablespoons of butter (salted)
2 beaten eggs
8 tablespoons of whole milk
1 baking apple
Dark chocolate chips

Bon appetit!















Thursday 13 March 2014

Grilled salmon with sesame

I found this recipe on unjourunerecette.fr which is a french website. I really like this website very easy and quick to prepare.

So this weekend i am going to prepare a grilled salmon with sesame — It looks amazing.

Prep. 15minutes

First prepare the sesame caramel sauce:
Add the sugar powder in a sauce pan with 5cl of water, add the nuoc nam, soya sauce and ginger.

When the sauce get thicker, add the green lemon juice and sesame seeds. Mix and remove from heat.

Depose the salmon steaks on an oven dish, spread the sauce on the salmon and put into the oven for 15minutes (180 degrees).

Serve out with some fresh coriander and eggs noodles.

What you need (2people)

4 salmon steaks
1 pax of noodles eggs
6.5 tablespoons of powdered sugar
6 tablespoons of green lemon juice
4 tablespoon of Nuoc Nam sauce (fish sauce) 
2 teaspoon of ginger powder 
3 teaspoon of soya sauce
Sesame seeds
Fresh coriander





Wednesday 12 March 2014

Stupid sugar

What could possibly makes you fat, stupid and sick? Apparently an high daily sugar intake have the capacity to do that.

Everybody knows that excess of sugar can damage body and health by developing diabetes conditions or obesity. However, a recent study proves that an high diet in fructose can also harm brain and memory by decreasing their natural functions and making you unable to think clearly.

Consuming high amounts in fructose may block insulin capacity to control how brain cells store and use sugar for the energy needed to fuel thoughts and emotions.

So what happen to us when we consume sugar? What makes sugary food so hard to resist?

Sugar activates the "sweet" button in the cerebral cortex, the activation of this area is not a problem as long its occasional. However, when this zone of the brain is over-activated (high sugar intake) it makes you hooked to it and unable to control your cravings anymore. Its a vicious circle — getting too much sugar, too often will increase your sugar tolerance which will result of craving it even more.

Sugar speeds up the release of dopamine in your brain as does drugs, alcohol and nicotine and make some people always seek this high, in other words, make them addicted to it.

Sugar its a class of molecules call carbohydrates found in a wide varieties of sweet products and drinks. Check the label — lactose, fructose, sucrose, maltose, glucose are all form of sugars. Sugar is not only found in cakes, tarts or chocolate but EVERYWHERE such as cereals, yogurt, dried fruits, granola bars etc. which make you consume an high amount of sugar every day without maybe realising it.

Please click on the link below to watch the video that will clear up everything explained above.

http://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-sugar-affects-the-brain-nicole-avena#review

Thanks for reading x x






UP Coffee

UP Coffee is a free application made by Jawbone to measure your caffeine intake.

It shows you how much caffeine affects your sleep according to your gender, weight, height, caffeine sensitivity and taking into consideration your bedtime target. Its also interesting to see how your caffeine levels change throughout the day and how long it will take your body to get ready for bed.

There is also a rubric with some interesting facts such as did you know that women generally metabolise caffeine faster than men, but not if they are on the pill — Good to know.

I am not a big caffeine consumer, i have got two cups of black coffee a day maximum which are widely enough to keep me awake until bedtime – I really like Ice coffee (slim version, no cream) during the summer though :)

Depending on your sensitivity to caffeine, even a small amount may engender undesirable effects such as anxiety and sleeping problems. Heavy daily caffeine use (more than 500 to 600mg) a day may cause insomnia, nervousness, irritability and stomach upset.

So watch out your daily caffeine absorption by downloading this app x x

image via jawbone.com



Tuesday 11 March 2014

Tapas in London

Obviously, the best tapas and spanish cuisine are made in Spain!

But as we can find decent Thai, Malaysian or Peruvian food, I am still hoping to find a good Spanish Tapas/Restaurant in London. I have been living in London for 4years now and haven't found anything close to what we can find in Spain.

I have tried the Tramontana Brindinsa in Old street wasn't overawed, I went to Meson Don Felipe in Southwark wasn't impressed went to Last Sangria on upper street, wasn't even good — I gave up.

However, after some researches, I have discovered that there is 4 new style Tapas Bars in London and very much enjoyable according to the timeout magazine (timeout.co.uk).

All of them are owned by the same young company — Salt Yard in Goodge Street, Dehesa in Regent street, Opera Tavern in Covent Garden and the new one in Soho, Ember Yard.

They also have a bar snacks with house cocktails and a nice selection of wines.

As the company is the same I guess that one's worth the other. I will probably go for the Ember Yard and let you know and if you did try one of them already please drop me a line x x


  



   








image via emberyard.co.uk


Monday 10 March 2014

Soya beef

Try this recipe •  So easy and delicious.
Preparation only 15minutes
Calories. About 400kcal

Wash, seed and cut the peppers in half and then cut thin strips, peel and slice the onion
In a wok, add 3tb of olive oil and stir chopped onions and peppers for about 8minutes
Add the beef and let it cook for 2minutes
In a bowl, mix the soya sauce with flour and pepper. Shed the sauce on the beef and mix everything. Turn down the heat to the minimum and leave it for 1 more minute
Serve out with rice or quinoa (add some yogurt nature on the quinoa)

What you need:
500g of stir Beef, 6 tablespoons of soya sauce, 1 red and 1 green peppers, 1 onion, 1 teaspoon of flour, pepper and olive oil.

Lovely!


Sunday roast dinner

First sunlight in London this weekend — surprisingly warm and sunny day yesterday.

Perfect day to have couple of Pimms outside in a very pleasant decor following by a roast dinner after an heavy drinking night...

My recommendation for you today is The Smokehouse in Islington. Smokehouse's got a sister in Angel, the Pig and Butcher which is pretty good too.

Obviously, they do a special menu for Sunday. My recommendations are Chopped brisket roll for starters, Grilled Barnsley Chop (medium rare) for main and the Double D tart for dessert.

Here are some picture of our dishes

Try it x x

smokehouseislington.co.uk
thepigandbutcher.co.uk
Roasted Highland beef

Grilled Barnsley chop






Saturday 8 March 2014

Pancakes mania

I have discovered this healthy pancake receipt made of bananas couple of days ago and was very excited about the idea of making it this weekend — from the pictures it looks so easy.

Mixing one banana with 2eggs wasn't the tricky part but flipping the pancake on the pan properly was pretty sporadic this morning.

The result looked more crumbled eggs than pancakes. Didn't dare to take a picture of the slaughter... Ive got to find the trick of flipping pancakes properly. Any idea?




Friday 7 March 2014

Fresh juices

I have just received my new juicer from Bosco, cant wait to prepare fresh juices.

Juices are very good and healthy as they help you pre-digesting aliments and absorbing all the nutriments needed which isn't the case when aliments are cooked (as previously explained,  in a process of cooking, ingredients lose a big part of their nutriments) — The best would be eating them raw. Also, juices could be the solution for people unable to ingest the minimum recommended of 5veg/fruits per day.

However, most of juices contain no protein which means it shouldn't be used as a meal replacements but more as a meal supplements (unless you are into a special detox diet).

In order for you to get all nutriments, its also important that you drink your juice straight afterwards — The fresher, the better!

Also make sure that your juicer is properly cleaned every time you use it.

There is so many juices combos that you can create — Here are some ideas that i want to share with you.

For those who want to lose weight:

1. Celery, apples and orange
2. Apple, celery, spinach, Kale and lemon
Kale — powerful in antioxidants (detox food) low in calories, high in fibre, calcium, iron, vitamin A, C, K and obviously zero fat which make Kale the queen of greens. 
3. Apples, cucumber, kale, spinach and Lemon

For those who feel tired and need a boost
1. Tomatoes, celery, cucumber, carrot, parsley, green pepper and spinach
2. Celery and honey
3. Carrot, broccoli and celery

Nausea and/or hungover
1. Carrot, apples, ginger and lemon
2. Celery, apple, tangerine and lemon
3. Watermelon, tomatoes and lemon

Detox?
Apple, strawberry and lime
Orange, beetroot and carrot
Carrot and broccoli

Please give us your special receipts juices too :p

Picture to follow......

Source. http://juicerecipes.com/

image via med-health.net




Protein Blast

I don't often to CRUSH as I find their products and juices quite expensive. However, today is my friday treat.... :)

I had a purifier juice made of celery, carrot and ginger and this peanut butter ball from Bounce for the natural energy (this could be related to my previous post about lacking energy).

This peanut butter ball is 100% natural, gluten free, 0 fat and 14g of protein (200kcal) — That protein ball will give you a real boost and blast before the weekend.

http://www.crussh.com

x x


Thursday 6 March 2014

Feeling tired?

Yes winter may be arduous and interminable for those who doesn't live in a Caribbean resort where the sun shines 365 days a year (and if you are, lucky you).

The cold weather, lack of lights and abuse of heater probably contributes of our lack of energy and don't help us to be energetic, ready to get up and start the day when is all dark outside.

Here in London, its pretty bad considering that we have got 7 months of greyness, cold, wind and endless rain versus 4 months of uncertain weather mitigated between sun and rain. Anyhow, London is not a city made to be 30 degrees anyway it'd be unbearable if it was the case.

Although we are in March now and i can finally see lights at the end of the winter tunnel. At the end of the month we will be changing hours and we could stated winter behind us. Woooop.

What i am trying to say is making a good thing of a bad thing and don't let the weather affects our mood and energy. Indeed, we should be more focus into things that we can control as our alimentation and lifestyle choices to make the best of it.

Having a good quality sleep is essential as a lack can issue of a weight gain which result of being more tired and hungry which outcome of gaining even more weight — Its a vicious cycle.

Take into consideration your alimentation and lifestyle and break this cycle — Food is our energy source.

Please avoid prohibits processed food and remember that natural knows best! What you need is vitamins C (natural one as peppers, kiwi, mango, orange etc and/or supplement of vitamins my favourite are "haliborange" from boots they really give you a boost), vitamins B (eggs, nuts, whole-grains) and folic acid (as green vegetables, lentils, fruits, rice or soya milk, sunflower seeds).

Raw vegetables and fruits are much better than cooked (avoid fried) as a large percentage of nutriments and vitamins reduced in baking.

Your sensitivity to certain food may be another reason of your tiredness, exposing your system to certain aliment and chemicals may blown your body (for example intolerance to lactose).

Having too much refined carbs (quick sugar) in one go wont be good for you rather go for complex carbs (low sugar) which will be a much clever choice by bringing you high fibre and protein which is the energy your body needs.

source. fitday.com





Wednesday 5 March 2014

Nicotine effects

If you are following my blog you must know that its all about healthy lifestyle choices, sports and consuming wholesome ingredients — Cigarettes don't fall into the same basket.

Saying that, I've always been eating healthy but have always been a "social smoker" too. I started very early, around 16 whilst I was out and about on both during week and weekend. I  smoked most of the time and quite a lot so the "social smoking" in this occasion felt more like a "regular smoker".

Although i've never been an addict and rarely felt the need to smoke on my own. It was often cigarettes/alcohol or after meals but weirdly I never liked the coffee/cigarettes combo.

Anyhow, I am 26yrs now, 27yrs this year, and it was the right time for me to stop completely. Its beneficent for everything and i am not the first one to claim it. Now that i have quitted completely (5months ago) I can try to put you guys straight.

I find it very paradoxical and oddly funny those women who spend a lot of money on beauty products/treatments, hairdresser, clothes etc but carry on smoking. Girls, start to stop smoking and you'd be prettier and for longer.

I know the major problem for you now, its the weight gain that may happen if you stop smoking (although i haven't put weight on when i stopped). But its true that you may gain weight by snacking to replace cigarettes and even if you don't eat more, because smoking increase slightly the metabolism, makes your body burns 200kcal a day (heavy smoker) and cut down your appetite.

But think of all risks and hassles below that you can reduce and/or avoid by quitting. And if you exercise more (at least half an hour daily), have healthy snacks (vegetable sticks, fat free popcorn, drink a lot of water and herbal teas), avoid alcohol (high in calories) all that will reduce the weight gain you may engender when you quit without making your health at stake as cigarettes does.

Stop to mess with your life, body and health, you've got only one, so start to take care of it. Smoking put you at high risk of cancer (lung, breast, throat etc.), problems during pregnancy and many more.

Think of your skin, do you know that every time you take a puff your create irrevocable damages to your skin (that you cannot get back). Smoking speeds up the overall ageing, causes wrinkles, shrinks your lips and creates yellowish complexion and if you think that wont appear before age 50 you are wrong - after only 10yrs of smoking you can already see the effects of cigarettes on your face.

Think of your teeth and everybody knows how teeth are important and how expensive and painful is to fix them, so think of your wallet too.

It make your nails weaker and your fingers yellow, it dries your hair, makes your breath smell like a cold ashtray, makes your less resistant, tired and breathless and reduces the ingredients flavour....which is sooo bad.

Without counting that its bloody expensive, think what you can buy with the money you spend on cigarettes.

Smoking affects your look and life so badly. So yes it was fun to smoke but at some point you gotta quit.

So drop this cigarette now, throw this cigarettes box away and start to live an healthier life.

image via justkickitnow.com















Tuesday 4 March 2014

Craving unhealthy foods?

Keep in mind that the more the ingredient is natural, the better it is. For your health and body.

First, identify your food cravings - Food cravings result to a lack in your diet.

Craving chocolates? Lack of magnesium.
If you are craving chocolates go for nuts or fruits. If the cravings don't go away go for dark chocolates (why dark? Its better and healthier than white or brown). With moderation, dark chocolates (which is my favourite) have health benefits as preventing heart disease, improving mood and protecting your skin from UV light.

Craving sugar? Go for long term energy (slow sugars) as proteins and complex carbs - ex. brown rice and whole grain pasta, basically anything with wholewheat in it. Carbs break down into quick sugars which our body will metabolise very quickly which result of a lack.

Craving fried foods ? you need good fat (calcium and omega3). Ex. fish, cheese and eggs.

Craving something salty? - Drink water

The best is removing all temptation in your home and never go to the grocery shop when hungry. When you go to the store buy healthy foods and break bad habits.

We all have food cravings and we all deserve a treat from time to time as long as it stays occasional its all good, don't feel bad about it and savour the guiltiness. Do not go for diet products or a supposedly healthy variant to minimise the calories intake - it will left you disappointed or worse, it will make you eat twice more than what you'd eat normally (thinking thats ok, its low-fat).

If you feel to have a delight in Starbucks, go for the normal Blueberries muffin - skip the skinny one which is probably not much less calories than the normal one anyway. And please avoid CRISPS, they are probably the worst as they are the result of deep- fried potatoes slices baked in oil.

And if you cant resist temptation on a day to day basis, go for diet products. If you cannot live without your daily can of soda, definitely go for the diet version, to reduce damages. Drinking diet sodas every day may be better than a regular can of soda for your waistline but worse for your health and teeth. A regular can of soda contains between 140-165 calories, if you can cut this habit down you will definitely see the difference on your scale and save money repairing dental email.

Be aware that diet products are fake friends sometimes, eating a lot of artificial sweeteners could increase tolerance for sweetness and increase cravings for sweets. So eat healthy, drop diet products and from time to time fully enjoy your naughtiness by eating what you really like which certainly wont left you frustrated.
image via telegraph.co.uk

source. caloriessecrets.net and wikihow.com

The no-no food list

There is 3 categories of aliments

The good that you must include in your diet plan with no moderation as they are full of nutriments and vitamins. Ex.  Fruits, veggies, lean proteins, legumes

The healthy fats which are good fat but with moderation. Ex. Avocados, olive oil and nuts etc.

The bad which are empty calories and should be ban from your diet plan. Ex. Junk food, pizzas, cake, sugary drinks etc.

List of aliments to avoid if you want to lose weight:

Sugary drinks like alcohol, soda and concentrated juices are full of sugar and calories which will encourage your body storing fat. Plus, drinking those drinks wont satisfy and fill you up as a smeal would for the same calories intake - the 250kcal of your can of soda wont surfeit you.

Pre-made meals, there are usually untasty, full of preservatives, very saucy and salty. There is some exceptions (the ones to put in oven are alright) but for those that have to be warmed up in a microwave is a no-no. Read carefully the ingredients label before buying.

White bread and all refined grains like bakery products which are high in carbs and sugar (incline fat storage) and low in fibre (good for the satiety) will make you eat larger portions. Stay away from those packaged baked products although they have been labelled low calories.

Balanced your diet by avoiding meals that are only one food group (ex. only pasta). Mix it with a fibre source (fruits/veggies) and/or whole-grains, lean protein and healthy fat.

For example.
Spinach (veggie) +  Fish (lean protein) and/or wholegrain pasta with a fruit for dessert
Salad (like lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber) + chicken (lean protein) and/or brown rice (wholegrain)

To conclude, ban false marketing and supposedly fat free labels, stick with balanced and varied meals that provide fibre, protein and healthy fats. The combos from food can help stabilise blood sugar and keep you satisfied for longer.

image via inserbia.info










Monday 3 March 2014

Brazilian barbecue

My restaurant recommendation for you today is the Cabana on upper street in Angel (they have got several restaurants all around London).

We were a bit suspicious as the reviews weren't very favourable but the menu looked interesting so we gave it a try and we weren't disappointed.

Very nice food with generous portion, vibrant atmosphere and helpful service. Very fulfilling and a paradise for meat lovers (which I am).

Most of the starters are unfortunately deep-fried (which i am not a big fan of) but anyway it was good.

I recommend the Guaca-molho with plantain crisps (made of banana), the hanger steak (medium rare) massy and delightful (but spicy). For the dessert try the peanut butter frozen yogurt (omg) - incredible.

http://www.cabana-brasil.com






Social drinks

Can we really escape from drinking alcohol without to be taken as dull? To be honest, with 7calories per gram i don't mind to be the last loser at the table.

However, I personally have fun drinking and looking forward a glass of wine or two afterwork (red or white). Even after knowing that a bottle of white is 500kcal, a glass is equivalent at 4 cookies and a pint of Lager is as much calories as a slice of pizza.

I like wine at home but when I go out i like to have long drinks or cocktails (bad) so yes i try to minimise the disaster by choosing the lowest in sugar and calories and work my ass off the next day.

I am really trying to avoid beers (like my flat belly too much) and cider (1/2 Pint for 105kcal). Luckily winter is almost done as Mulled vine is a KILLER with 227kcal for a glass/120ml. So go for spirits (gin, rum, vodka mixed with diet soda or tonic), wine or champagne  and avoid beers and cocktails which are the worst.

Drinking alcohol also reduces the amount of fat your body burns as your system is too occupied dealing with the alcohol which it cant store. Your body makes processing alcohol a priority and slows down the process of digestion. This makes having a big meal and drinking alcohol a bad idea.

To give you an idea of how much calories you can ingurgitate per night (or day).

Per serving 1glass (125ml)

Gin and vodka are 72kcal
Bacardi/diet coke is 52kcal (very good choice)
Wine red or white is 85kcal
Mojito is 160kcal
A margarita 168kcal

Alcohol is high in sugar but also in fat with 9kcal of energy per gram (considering that most ingredients have 4per gram). And obviously there are "empty calories" with no nutritional values.

Plus, drinking alcohol makes us hungry and a 2am's burger/chips are very tending at this stage. And if this wasn't enough, the next day, being hungover makes us want fatty and salty aliments - welcome to a weekend at more than 4000kcal. I hope that was worth it :)

So some tips for heavy nights out: Have a light but consistent meal before drinking (protein is the best), think of drinking water during the night as alcohol dehydrate you a lot which makes you have a headache the next day, try to stick to one alcohol per night, if you start with gin, stick with gin. Apparently you can also stick with colour. Gin/vodka/martini together and rum/whisky works also together.

To conclude, the key is moderation. A glass or two from time to time is great and very enjoyable! Saying that i am the first one to open the bottle and finish my drink ;)

Share with us your experiences, we'd love to hear them.

x x

image via dailymail.co.uk


source. caloriessecrets.net



Fruits tart

I loooove apple pies and even more my mums one. Unfortunately she doesn't live in London so have to make mine now (but with her receipt) :) that i have tried to reproduce this weekend.

It was good, but not as good ;)

Buy a dough already made (unless you want to prepare your own)
Get a round baker plate
Spread butter all over the plate et display the dough
Makes holes with a fork
Sprinkle ground coconuts (or ground hazelnuts)
Peel and cut apples into thin slices, spread them all over the plate
In a bowl mix 2 eggs, 1tbs of flour and some milk.
Spread all over the apples
Sprinkle some sugar and cinnamon on top
Put in the oven at 200 degrees for 45 min

Bon appetit!

I have tried a variant pear/blueberries.
Same receipt just the fruits have changed.










Sunday 2 March 2014

Sleep and health

The gap between getting just enough and getting too little may affect your health, mood, weight and sex life. It will also affect your lifespan and its quality.

Did you know that a lack of sleep will increase the chance of weight gain and depression and will also reduce your muscle mass (they shed similar amounts of total weight regardless of sleep). Keep in mind that sleep and metabolism are control by the same zone of the brain.

The recommended is 7-8 hours depending on person. A good night sleep improves your memory, reduces stress and inflammation, invites creativity and concentration and if you are an athlete it will really improve your performances. The sleep that you get before midnight is the best sleep and the most regenerated, so go to bed an hour earlier tonight.

Now what to do to improve your sleep:

Cut your caffeine intake throughout the day. Before going to bed, avoid  having a big heavy meal, prepare the ambiance of your bedroom by making it dark and cosy, set your spirit on "bed mood" by bringing the light down, do not do any intense activities (sport, watch extreme movie, struggle with your monthly expenses etc.). Watch your afternoon drinks too by avoiding caffeine and vitamin C (orange juice) after a certain time. If you are hungry late at night try a bowl of cottage cheese with some bananas slices - the combos health carbs and protein will help you.

Apparently hot bath before bed wont help you to fall asleep but the contrary. Doing anything that raises your body temperature before bed will make you struggling to fall asleep. Indeed, your body needs to cool down to benumb. You can have a bath after work but not straight before bed. Personally i am not a big fan of bath. Hot water is very bad for your circulation.

Skip the wine (nooooo, me being an adept of my weekly glass of vine). You actually can have it with your meal but not after 9pm as its a fake friend - it will at first make you tired and fall asleep faster to make your second half of sleep restless.

Try some stretching - it will help by normalising your breath and reduce tension muscle.

Ban your phone from the bed (another of  my habit as is probably half of the planet - the other half dont have smartphones). Typing and scrolling in bed may arouse you and having your phone "on" or on vibration may disrupt you sleep so turn "to not disturb" before bed. The ideal will be investing in a real alarm clock to avoid any temptation to grab your phone while in bed but some people love their "snooze" too much.

Personally i usually have no problem to fall asleep i knocked out at 11pm latest and struggle to stay awake on weekends. Lie-in is a battle for me though cant sleep longer than 9am but as the famous quote says "the future belongs to those who wake up early" :)

To conclude, keep in mind that your bedroom is designed to sleep and sex ONLY so avoid doing anything else in there. 

Bonne nuit!

health.com


image via zmescience.com/