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Apple flapjacks – makes 16 or so depending on how you cut them

• 3 dessert apples
• 400ml 100% pressed apple juice
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon or to taste
• 2cm piece fresh root ginger, grated
• 250g whole rolled oats
• 200g sunflower/pumkin seeds
• 160g raisins
• a couple of dessertspoons dessicated coconut (optional)

Slice and core the apple, but leave the skin on for a good source of pectin. Place the apples in a pan with the juice and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered and stirring occasionally, for 25 to 30 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Puree in a food processor or with a hand-held mixer.

Meanwhile heat the oven to 180 C / Gas 4. Line the base of a 22cm cake tin with baking paper. Or use an unlined, ungreased, Pyrex or ceramic square casserole dish. They don’t stick and burn to this.

Stir the grated ginger, cinnamon, oats, sunflower seeds and raisins into the apple puree and mix well, then tip it into the tin and spread out evenly.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until firm and golden brown. Cool slightly, cut into wedges then leave the flapjacks to cool completely in the tin.

So no sugar and no butter flapjacks. No fun to eat? Correction – great fun to eat!! I was pleasantly surprised at how well the apple puree mixture held everything together. If you’re into gooey flapjacks, these should go down a treat. I (and my guinea pigs found at a friend’s birthday party) found them sweet enough, but if you really can’t resist making them sweeter then add a little agave nectar or a squeeze of honey.

And the nutritional benefits of these healthy snacks? Well, no refined sugar and no butter means your blood sugars and your waistline might be grateful. The combination of soluble fibre from the oats and the apples is great for your digestive tract and also for your energy, providing you with slow-releasing carbohydrates to encourage fat-burning rather than storing. The added protein from the seeds contributes to the slower energy release too, as well as the seeds providing vital minerals such as magnesium for stress and constipation, zinc for the immune system and of course B vitamins for energy production. They are also a good source of essential fats.

Apples are also rich in polyphenols which are great for your immune system and pectin which is beneficial for digestion and may help create a healthy balance of bacteria in your gut.

Ginger and cinnamon both have anti-inflammatory properties and cinnamon may also help modulate the insulin response and keep your blood sugars happy.

Quick, easy and healthy! A great addition to a lunch box, a pre-sport snack. I’ve been having some with natural yoghurt and a few extra chia seeds for breakfasts this week. Yummm!!

Constipation?
Bloating?
Diarrhoea?
Bad breath?
Wind?
IBS?

Many of us suffer from embarrassing or uncomfortable digestive symptoms from time to time, or in some cases, nearly all the time. I’m offering a free 60 minute informal talk/workshop with some solutions to these problems.

Friday 22nd February 4pm to 5pm
Balanced Physiotherapy
1 St. Bernard’s Row
EH4 1HW

Drop me a quick email or text if you’d like to come. All welcome!!

It’s grey, windy and cold outside my window and it’s February – a month when I need to do some nice things for myself! The days are getting longer but Spring is not quite yet open us and here in Scotland it can seem like winter goes on forever. So tonight I thought I’d make some extremely yummy, whilst totally healthy (possibly not everyday fodder!), brownies. Principle ingredient? Beetrooot!!!

It is a recipe I spotted in the January newsletter of the Institute of Optimum Nutrition and at this current moment, all the ingredients are cooling, waiting for me to cut into squares, resist them, and take them with me to a Health Fair at Herriot Watt University tomorrow. The lure of chocolate and ….beetroot, should see the students running over to talk to us I shall of course try just one (to make sure I’m not going to poison anyone), but if the taste of the mixture (approx 10% of which probably never made it into the oven) is anything to go by, I may be doing these again.

Brownies are on offer everywhere and when you buy them from supermarkets or pre-packaged in cafe chains, they are likely to be very high in sugar and hydrogenated fat – neither of which does us much good. Hydrogenated fat is, in fact, best avoided: it’s found in some margarines, processed cakes and biscuits and some savoury snacks.

What are the nutritional virtues of the brownies below?
1.They are full of beetroot and beetroot is pretty much a superfood. It’s rich in iron, vitamin C and some B vits, it contains betacyanin which is fantastic for helping the liver do its job of toxin breakdown and elimination and also may help make serotonin- which our brain needs to help us feel happy. It’s a great source of fibre, and has also been shown to reduce high blood pressure.

2. They contain dark chocolate and cocoa! Many of us know that eating chocolate makes us feel good. Why is that? What is it that chocolate contains? The answer could lie in the fact that it is rich in phenylethylamine (PEA), which releases endorphins (feel-good chemicals) into the brain. PEA is also released when we are falling in love, so making these brownies for your Valentine this week could leave you feeling doubly good! Among other things, dark chocolate is very high in flavanols, potent anti-oxidants that have been linked to protecting against cardiovascular disease and cancers. Do remember that it does contains some saturated fat and sugar so other sources of flavanols, such as green tea, red grapes and oranges should be widely consumed.

3. They are full of almonds and walnuts – providing vitamins E, magnesium, calcium, some essential fats and protein for energy stability.

4. They don’t contain any sugar – instead, Xylitol and Agave Nectar are used to sweeten: both are much lower on the GI and GL index, meaning fewer fluctuations in blood sugar and better weight control.

5. They don’t contain any gluten or dairy, so are fine for people suffering on dairy or gluten-free diets.

INGREDIENTS

400g beetroot (whole, washed but unpeeled)
150g dark organic chocolate
200g ground almonds
200g walnuts (roughly chopped)
50g organic cocoa powder
1.5 tsp baking powder
140g agave nectar
50g Xylitol
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 medium eggs

METHOD

Set the oven to 160F, 330F

Boil the beetroot until soft (about 45 mins depending on size), then peel allow to cool a little, peel with fingers and cut into chunks.

Grate the chocolate (in a processor if you wish) and add to chunks of beetroot. Cover so the chocolate melts.

In a jug, whisk the eggs, agave, xylitol and vanilla extract together.

Place the beetroot and chocolate into a processor and blend to a puree. (If you don’t have a processor, then grate the beetroot when cooked and mix with the chocolate.) Add the ground almonds, cocoa powder, baking powder and egg mixture and blend. Fold in the roughly chopped walnuts.

Pour into a baking tin (approx 22cm by 22cm) linked with baking paper and bake in the centre of the oven for approx 30-35 mins. You can test with a skewer but as these are meant to be moist it’s unlikely to come out completely clean.

Allow to cool in the tin before cutting into squares.

Share with friends, family and loved ones and enjoy!!!!

NB. I chose to make these while wearing a cream arran jumper (an interesting choice when working with chocolate and beetroot) – I would recommend an apron and dark clothing!

I have now tried them and I will, indeed be making them again!

On Tuesday February 12th between 16.30 and 20.30, I’ll be at Herriot Watt University, at the Sports Academy on Ricarton Campus, offering free nutritional advice for 15 minute sessions.

If you have any queries regarding an aspect of your health and the impact your diet could be having on it, get in touch and I’ll book you in. What you eat and drink can affect many ailments and illnesses – from digestion to depression, fibroids to fibromyalgia, acne to alopecia.

Also pop by if you want some advice on nutritional supplements: What to take, which companies are better or do we really need them?

I’m also available for sports nutrition advice. Whether you’re an athlete at a professional level or training to keep yourself fit, nutrients and their timing can make a big difference to your health and performance.

And, of course, if you can’t make next Tuesday, and would like to have a chat, do get in touch either by email or phone.

I’m giving a free talk this Wednesday eve between 5.45 and 6.45 at the Healthy Life Centre, 35-37 Bread Street, Edinburgh.

It’ll be an informal and interactive session with tips on how following one way of eating can help you improve your energy, lose weight and balance your mood….should be good!!

Do let me know if you’d like to drop by.

Ok, so we’re only halfway through January and I have to admit I’m going to cheat today and instead of offering you a new recipe, I’m going to upload a tried and tested favourite. True, until today I hadn’t had it for numerous months (that could even be over a year!) but, I admit, there was a time I cooked it often and so today’s dinner failed on the “increasing my repertoire” score. However, it passed on many other accounts. This month I said we would focus on weight loss and detox (let’s call that an early winter mini-cleanse – it sounds far more doable) and this spring green and lentil recipe contains many ingredients beneficial to both those themes.

Serves 4

• 350g spring greens or curly kale (the kale is more in season at the moment)
• 1 large red pepper
• 1 red onion
• 1 inch piece fresh root ginger
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 tsp sesame oil
• 1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 400g cooked Puy/Green lentils (or one can)
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted

Sauce
• 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp chili sauce
• 1 tbsp runny honey
• 3 tbsp water

• wholegrain rice, pasta or quinoa

This is a great recipe to help manage your weight as it’s low GL (glycaemic load), meaning it doesn’t cause spikes in your blood sugar which encourage foods we eat to be stored as fat. What makes it low GL? The key is there’s enough protein in the form of green lentils and sesame seeds, some good fats (olive, sesame oil) and it’s served with slow-releasing wholegrain carbs. Of course, it’s also high fibre with the lentils and veg – which helps with the low GL and has the added bonus of supporting our digestive system!

Are there any other nutritional benefits to this meal? Of course! The kale and red pepper are packed with beta-carotene and vitamin C, both great antioxidants. Kale is also really high in magnesium, which is deficient in many of our diets and can help us to relax.

Sesame seeds are packed full of calcium (as well as other minerals) and so are a great choice if you don’t tolerate dairy too well.

Onions and garlic are members of the sulphur family. Sulphur’s needed for the liver to do its job properly and fully break down and get rid of toxins- so use them freely. And of course, garlic and ginger both have powerful anti-inflammatory properties. So go on, get cooking and I’ll get a picture up there very soon!!

Happy New Year!! Another year upon us, good intentions set and possibly already broken or maybe not quite started. One of my intentions as a nutritional therapist in Edinburgh (and one of course that I shall keep) is to have a different nutritional theme to this blog each month.

January will be weight loss and detox
February will be mood
March will be energy

And the rest to be decided!

As well as nutritional tips and snippets of research, what I plan to do is try 2 new recipes each week related to the theme and post these with my comments. It’s so easy for us all to stick to cooking or knocking up the same things at meal times and this will be a great way to expand my repertoire and hopefully yours!!

So Weight Loss and Detox – 2 things on lots of peoples’ minds at this time of the year. If you’re determined to lose weight then do bear in mind that we store toxins in our fat cells and so as we lose the fat cells, those toxins can be found floating around our system, not doing us any favours. Keeping your diet full of fibre and antioxidant rich colourful vegetables and fruit can help you expel these toxins and feel good while losing weight, whereas adding in “diet” foods and drinks, packed with artificial sweeteners adds to your toxic load and can make it more difficult to lose weight long-term.

Here’s a great recipe that’s low-fat, high protein and packed with anti-oxidants (courtesy of The Optimum Nutrition Cookbook). Tried this week and went down pretty well!!

Grilled Carrot and Tofu Cakes – serves 2

1 red pepper – chopped very finely
200g firm tofu, mashed
125g carrots, scrubbed and grated
50g fresh breadcrumbs ( I used sourdough – wholemeal or rye are good)
25g ground almonds
4-5 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tbsp soy sauce or tamari
1 large handful finely chopped coriander (optional – my addition, I love coriander)
1 tbsp sesame seeds
freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl mix the chopped pepper with the mashed tofu, grated carrots, breadcrumbs, ground almonds, spring onions, coriander and garlic. Stir in the soy sauce or tamari and black pepper. Then shape the mixture into 4 cakes and press down so that they are not too thick. Coat each side with a few sesame seeds.

Place on some foil under a hot grill and cook for about 10 mins on each side.

Serve with a winter salad with chicory and beetroot (both fabulous for your liver)

If anyone else tries, let me know what you think Enjoy!!!!