LIST | HEALTHY HOMEMADE MEALS

As it already is Wednesday again - gosh, time does really fly - I give you a list of some of my favorite things. And today I am talking food. Because to be honest with you, the past three weeks I have been obsesses with food stuff. And although I have never been a bench eater or sugar addict, I think I never felt this passionate about cooking. Especially cooking without sugar and (too much) salt and preparing my foods as pure as I am able to. That means that granola bars from the super market and take away roti are history, but also that I am discovering a whole new range of recipes that I have not tried before. 

Like I said, I prefer everything to be homemade. But as I know that we sometimes just do not have the time to prepare everything ourselves, I am keeping it simple. No difficult recipes, everything has to be ready to eat or drink in less than thirty minutes. And maybe most importantly, it will have to make you feel magnificent. So if you are looking for an easy health fix, here we go!

1. Homemade granola bars and crackers

So easy to make and it only requires some tossing together of different seeds, oats and dried fruits. I actually just popped my crackers in the oven and I guarantee that the smell is already enough to convince you of the fact that homemade is waaaay better than prepacked. Additional plus, you are in control of the ingredients and therefore decide how healthy your baked goods will be.

2. Homemade juices

I have sworn off all juices that were not prepared in the last fifteen minutes. The lack of vitamins and the huge amount of sugar do not do anything for your health - although it might seem so - and will even ruin your healthy diet when taken substantially. And to be honest, if you are used to freshly juiced fruits you will not even enjoy juice from a package anymore. To prepare my juices, I use a slowjuicer that easily gives me the best juice within limited amount of time. No fuss.

My favorite combination?

Banana, spinach, apple, oranges, carrots

Ps. I also started taking wheatgrass shots. Curious of the effect of those in a few weeks.  

3. Meat substitudes

Although I really love a good piece of meat, over the years I noticed that I am not eating as much meat as I used to. Maybe two nights a week, but definitely no more. It started out as a budget issue. When you are a student and money is tight, you eat cheap. As that means you have more money to spend shopping or going out with friends. And as meat is expensive, I will let you do the math. Anyway, I got used to eating less meat and I realized that I actually did not miss it. And so I am still cooking more veggies than I am cooking up burgers. Unless I have an irresistible urge or if I can prepare a meatless burger. Meatless burger? Yes! I am talking about a meatless burger. And when I tell you that my boyfriend was kind of skeptical about the concept until he tried it, you know it is gooooood. You can find the Yellow Lemon Tree's recipe here. 

4. Vegan roti

I used to go for take out roti at least once a week. But as take out roti that often does not come cheap, I decided to make it myself. And when I found out that roti - or at least the version I make - is as easy as boiling an egg, I was hooked. Two weeks ago, I cooked this dish three nights in a row and was still craving it. But when the whole house started smelling like an Indian restaurant, I knew it was time to take a break. I will be back in the kitchen preparing this dish soon though. Promise! All you need is some curry powder, stock, potatoes, green beans, unions, flower and garlic. Easy as that!

5. Quinoa with shredded coconut and homemadepeanut butter

This one I discovered accidentally. One day I made whole batch of quinoa with shredded coconut and did not know what to do with it. So I took it to work to have it there for breakfast. As the ensemble was a little boring, I decided to add some peanut butter. Not too much, but just enough to give it some taste. It actually turned out to be delish and I finished the whole batch of quinoa in the next couple of days. I have to admit that this peanut butter was not homemade, but as I made my own a few days ago I now know that it is so easy to make. Just grind some cashews or almonds - so no peanuts! - in a food processor, add a little natural sweetener and you are done. 

So, these are some of my experiments over the last couple of weeks. Did I persuade you to try some new recipes too? :-) 

Would love to hear about your healthy recipes!

-xoxo-

JP

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Ph. credits Me / Yellow Lemon Tree / Me / De Groene Meisjes / Gimme Some Oven