Showing posts with label oats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label oats. Show all posts

Monday, May 27, 2013

Just let go


Go with the flow....




Top 5 Things I LOVED This Wk:

1. The sweetest little apron a friend made just for me. A vintage doily front pocket and cream buttons, a little frill along the bottom and even ‘Little Em’ embroided across the straps with red thread. Love you Rena Rae xx My vintage apron fetish continues to flourish.
2. The flock of black butterflies that followed me on my beach walk today.
3. The satisfaction of cleaning a super dirty car.
4. Gushing over the cakes and slices the little old lady makes at the Thursday morning farmers market with my herbalist at my appointment this week. Hang on, aren’t we meant to be health professionals?! Oh but that’s right, we’re humans too ;)
5. My long raspberry red yoga tights making a comeback now that Autumn has truly set it.

Emma the Naturopath xx

PS. Try and be aware this week of letting go of things that you cannot control with a big exhaaaaale. You’ll feel lighter. I promise.






So me right now. 

Is anyone else starting to follow their heart more instead of just doing what you think will make other happy?






Top 5 Things I LOVED This Wk:

1. Witnessing two “Chiko roll girls”. They followed a group of guys down the beach with straightened hair and wearing what seemed to be denim undies. When the guys came in from the surf the Chiko roll girls handed them their towel, a box of bbq Shapes and a bottle of lemon squash. I thought this was just a Puberty Blues myth!
2. About ten seconds of sheer panic when I thought my feet had dramatically shrunk!! “How could this have happened?!”  I soon realised that my husband has identical blue Bonds socks like mine. Crisis averted.
3. A fancy midweek double date with beautiful friends.
4. A pair of suede fringed ankle boots for $29 from the markets. One pair + my size = score!!
5. Having a chat with the friendly owner at our fave Thai restaurant about hot curries. He disappeared then returned 5 mins later with some chillies he’d picked from his own plant which he wrapped in a serviette and gave to us.

Emma the Naturopath xx

PS. For various reasons we have gone out for dinner SO MUCH this week. So we’re really looking forward to eating some delicious home cooked meals next week. This week really savour dinnertime with your partner/family/own company and cook something wonderful made with love xx




FOOD AS MEDICINE: Lowering cholesterol

1. OATS: Porridge weather is creeping up on us! I cook mine with water on the stove at a low heat then add a splash of milk (or sometimes coconut cream) at the end to make it creamy! Choose rolled oats over “quick oats” and add in some cinnamon, a piece of fresh fruit and some LSA.
Throw a handful of oats in your smoothie or make up my awesome little oat slice below to have for morning tea.

2. FISH: Eat 2 serves of fish per week. No not fish and chips. Go for mackerel, trout, herring, sardines, tuna, salmon or halibut. Preferably locally caught.

3. NUTS: Snack a on a handful (42.5 grams if you’d like to be pedantic) of nuts each day. Choose from almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachio nuts and walnuts.  Make sure the nuts you eat are raw (not roasted) and aren't salted or coated with sugar. Keep a jar on your desk or a little zip lock bag in your purse (or man bag).

4. COCONUT OIL: What’s not to love about coconut oil?! Use for cooking like you would any other oil, use as a dressing, in smoothies, bliss balls, add to porridge, spread on toast, off the spoon… 2 tablespoons is the goal.

5. HIGH FIBRE FOODS: chia seeds, psyllium, oat bran, brown rice, LSA.



Here's a great cholesterol lowering recipe!!

BANANA BLUEBERRY OAT SLICE

THE GOODS:
3 cups of organic oats
3 Tbsp coconut oil
2 bananas
2 eggs
2 Granny Smith apples
2 Tbsp chia seeds
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 cup organic frozen berries

TO DO:
1. In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork then whisk in the eggs and coconut oil.
2. Throw in the oats, cinnamon and chia seeds.
3. Grate the apples and add to the bowl along with the berries.
4. Line a baking tray with grease proof paper and smoosh mixture down with a wooden spoon.
5. Bake for 30mins in a 180C oven. Boom! That's it!

Such a great lunch box snack or yummy for brekkie with yoghurt on top. Try it! Substitute oats for quinoa flakes to make it GF.
Enjoy!

Emma the Naturopath xx

Head over to Facebook and give the 'like' button some love on the Essential Health Coffs page :)

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Get the most out of oats.




It's the last week of Winter!! So make the most of delicious hot breakfasts while you can! I made up a porridge handout for the shop after I realised that nearly every person was making "quick oats" in the microwave and adding brown sugar to it. Some people even add butter!! I felt like it was time to intervene...



What are the benefits of eating porridge?
Oats are a wholefood that are packed with protein to stabilise blood sugar levels, fibre which binds to cholesterol and eliminates it from the body and measurable levels of magnesium, tryptophan and B vitamins to improve mood. They also have a thermogenic effect on the body which means they keep you warm! When you microwave oats (or anything!) the nutritional value is lost.



How do I cook porridge for one?
Add half a cup of rolled oats (or brown rice flakes if coeliac) to a small saucepan, cover with water and leave for 10 minutes. In a perfect world we would soak them overnight, but 10 minutes will do for busy people. This will “pre-digest” the oats for you, making them easier for your body to break down. Place the saucepan on the stove and add ½ a cup of water and ½ a cup of milk and simmer on a low heat until creamy and tender. Add extra milk if you want it creamier.



What sort do I buy?
Try to buy organic rolled oats, not flavoured “quick oats” that have had their goodness steamed out of them and have artificial flavours and added sugar.



Banana and coconut porridge
Add 1 chopped banana and 2 teaspoons of shredded or dessicated coconut. At end squeeze on honey and a tablespoon of coconut cream.


Gourmet Aussie Porridge
Add 1 tsp of wattle seeds to soaking porridge and cook as per usual, add maple syrup and squeeze of lime to taste.



Chai spiced Oats
Let a chai teabag steep for four minutes in one cup of boiling water. Remove the teabag and use this water/tea to soak the oats in instead of plain water. Add honey and cinnamon to taste.


Mixed Seed Porridge
Soak the oats in water for 15 mins with a mixture of seeds, such as pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and linseeds. The seeds swell and are delicious when cooked in the porridge this way.


Cran-Hazelnut Oats

Combine 1 Tbsp of dried cranberries, a little orange zest and ¼ cup of crushed hazelnuts to your morning porridge.



Apricot-Almond Oats
Dice 4 organic dried apricots (black in colour) with 1 Tbsp of toasted flaked almonds.


Canadian Porridge
Add 1 Tbsp of chopped walnuts, stewed apples, cinnamon and a drizzle of maple syrup.



Cinnamon-Sultana Porridge
Add 2 tsp of sultanas, a Tbsp of LSA (linseed, sunflower, almond meal) and a sprinkling of ground cinnamon. Yummy served with some stewed apple and Greek yoghurt.


Strawberry-LSA Porridge
Add 1 Tbsp of LSA and 3 sliced strawberries at the end of the cooking time.


Pear-Pecan Porridge
Add ¼ cup of chopped pecans with some stewed pear


Jaffa Porridge
Add 2 tsp of cacao powder (raw unrefined powder from cocoa beans that has that bittersweet dark chocolate taste) and some orange zest.



Peach-Nutmeg Porridge
Add a few sliced of chopped tinned peaches with a sprinkling of nutmeg.



Date-Walnut Porridge
Add 4 chopped dates to your soaking oats and ¼ cup of chopped walnuts.




Which one to choose first??