MISS HOLLY P
A BIT OF ME . A BIT OF FOOD . A BIT OF WINE
cooking

Low Fat Beetroot Hummus Recipe

Everyone loves a good hummus and with the addition of buy whole foods online beetroot powder it adds the fabulous bright pink shade you only get from beetroot! Using the powder is a quick, easy and clean way of adding its superfood benefits to any dish! Hummus is a super cheap, quick and easy thing to make and perfect for starters, snacking, picnics and entertaining! This recipe is vegan too so suits all dietary needs! So why not follow my simple recipe and delight your tastebuds! The best bit… no ACTUAL cooking required!

Serves 3+

Prep Time- 5 Mins

Cook Time- 2 Mins

Ingredients-

 

The preparation really could not be easier! Grab your food processor, open you chick peas, toss them in the blender, add the garlic clove, buywholefoodsonline.co.uk beetroot powder, olive oil spray, tahini paste and almond milk. I also season with salt and pepper. Then BLITZ! After blending check your texture and if it’s too thick add a little more almond milk. The reason I use almond milk is to give it that nice creamy texture without the added fat and calories of the usual olive oil- hence making it lower in fat and calories 🙂

I chose to serve mine up with crudités and homemade tortilla chips but hummus is one of the most versatile things out there! Add to sandwiches, wrap and salads for extra colour and flavour!

 

How easy was that? Are you trying out this recipe? What other types of hummus have you tried or want to see?

I’ve linked to buywholefoodsonline.co.uk so you can grab your beetroot powder and browse all their other amazing ingredients too!

Thanks for reading,

H x

 

blog

Nibble Protein Bites Review

I have been trying out a new brand which I came across on instagram, when I discovered their profile they just stood out from the rest and seemed really interesting to me! Nibble Protein Bites The lovely folks sent me over all their flavours to try out! The thing that stuck out to me that this brand was going to be very different to any of the other ‘health snacks’ and protein and energy products on the market which are gluten free, vegan etc etc was that product contains 1/2 – 2/3 less sugar than the majority of the markets competitors. That’s pretty impressive stats! But how are they doing it? Well for starters these little bites are date free, almost ever other product I have trialled of a similar concept has contained dates, yes most of us love natures gooey, yummy caramel but dates are notoriously high in sugar! Nibble protein bites are sweetened with anti-oxidant dried plum puree and low GI coconut blossom nectar! Fancy eh? So a different type of natural sustained energy release than you may have tried before! Nibble are so proud of their product spec that I even got a fantastic comparison chart included with competitor info! Nibble’s contain just 15% sugar per 100g when the nearest competition is Bounce Bites at 26% and the highest Nakd Cocoa Mint bar at a huge 45%! With 24g of protein per 100g too and the calories at about average of most brands wouldn’t you agree it’s all sounding pretty good, but the question is….do they stand up to the taste test?

These are the 7 different flavours that I was sent and they have just launched gingerbread as an 8th, so there’s something to suit most palettes and I have to say some more unusual combinations which is good to see. My top 3 picks were – in reverse order – Choc Walnut Brownie- I adore walnuts and I loved the little chunks of nut in each bite, Lemon with coconut- gorgeous, light, citrusy and refreshing and then the winner *drum roll please* was Choc Orange Brownie! How these do not have more sugar in is beyond me! They are delicious like a real treat or dessert!

 

If watching sugar is something you are trying to monitor, you need a quick pick me up on the go, you like to have a pre of post gym protein fix or you just love trying healthy snacks this brand is for you. If you fancy getting you hands on some here ‘s a list of stockists! 

Vegan

Gluten Free

Date Free

High Protein 

Fibre Rich

Low Gi 

Have you tried these guys? Why not hit up their instagram and check out what they’re up to… @nibbleprotein or click here 

 

Thanks reading!

H x

cooking

Willy’s Apple Cider Vinegar

I’ve been using ACV for various different uses on and off for a couple of years now and when I came across Willy’s it just sounded so lovely I needed to try it. I got in touch with them and they sent me out some to try, a bottle of their original ACV and a case of their new energy drinks too! Apple cider vinegar has a huge list of uses from cooking, to skin care, using it as a weight loss aid to being an active ingredient in a plethora of home remedies. For your ACV to have all of its benefits is must be raw, unapsteuripsed and with ‘the mother’, the mother is the fermented bits of apple that you will see in your bottle which may look bitty and add to that cloudiness of your ACV. Theres an interesting article on the site for The Academy of Culinary Nutrition about the many different and amazing uses for ACV, check that out here

I use ACV to mainly promote digestion and weight loss and the way that I take it is by using a generous splash diluted in some water and I drink it first thing in the morning before I go about my day. The key difference between Willy’s and other brands of ACV that I have tried is that it tastes more of cider with a real apple taste than it does of vinegar with that real sharpness of other ACVs. It is extremely palatable and no nasty gag faces over here!

Willy’s apples are grown in 300 year old orchards on their own farm and they see through production from start to finish and see that every bottle is live with ‘the mother’ and all her goodness!

I have recently been using this one on a cotton pad as a toner too as my skin has been dreadful and I have found it’s really good for drying out spots and clearing them up a little faster, however obviously your face will smell of vinegar.

I did a previous post on ACV as a new user a couple of years ago which tells you all about my first thoughts and experiences, you can check out here

To sum it up I’m extremely impressed with this ACV, I actually can’t quite believe the difference in flavour to all the others I have tried in the past. They have also launched a brand new energy drink so watch out for a review of that coming soon!

If you fancy trying some of Willy’s products, here’s a link to their shop so you can buy! 

Thanks so much for reading!

Hx

F

The Cultured Collective and Exploring Fermented Foods

Fermented foods are a subject hot on peoples lips at the moment in the health and wellbeing circles and I’m here to look a little further in to why as a newbie to fermented foods myself. I’ll be exploring the full what, why and how! Fermented foods are an important addition to all diets and are something which I would recommend to consider if they are not something that you may have already been eating for sometime now without even knowing! They have been available for longer than we have been around but their amazing health benefits have made all types of fermented foods more trendy and talked about in the current health and wellbeing revolution. These probiotic heavy foods are amazing for a number of different health benefits from promoting good digestive health, to help balance and maintain a good gut bacteria, helping to achieve a healthy weight, boost you immune system and more! So what are fermented foods? The most common and the ones which I am going to be using are sauerkraut and kimchi but theres also kombucha, tempeh, miso, kefir and more! You’ll start hearing about these more and more as they are becoming very popular here in the UK. The process is…Fermentation promotes the growth and life cycle of good bacteria to transform the flavour and shelf life of ingredients.

So its pretty simple! They are packed with flavour and full of all the goodness to promote, maintain and develop good gut health!I’m using in my kitchen The Cultured Collective ferments and I have 3 Sauerkrauts and 2 Kimchi’s to add to my daily eating routine and experiment with. The Cultured Collective are a UK based brand of premium ferments available to buy jarred and infused with a number of different flavors so they are ready and good to go to top a dish a pack more than just the usual pickled punch of other similar products. The Cultured Collective say-

“All our kimchi and sauerkraut is handmade in the heart of the Wiltshire countryside using only the highest quality, natural ingredients. Never pasteurised, each jar is packed to the brim with good bacteria, which can help to keep your digestive system healthy. “

Sounds good to you but not sure what you would eat them with? Keep reading! Because Sauerkraut and Kimchi are cold one of the easiest ways to eat it is to use it as a salads topper, add it to buddha bowls-you get the picture, quick and easy but with their flavour infusions its nice to theme your dish to suit your ferment. I tried tacos with the chipotle sauerkraut, I did a ramen bowl with my white miso and turmeric kimchi, I had a falafel wrap, open deli sandwiches and of course just the humble salad. Here’s a few snaps of my favourite meals!

I’ve used them with at least one meal every day for one week! Some of the things that I have noticed are reduced bloating of my stomach, certain foods that I eat often aggravate my stomach and I bloat easily. Hand in hand with that, my digestion has been much more regular and has become very routine, I have been like clockwork as soon as I get up each day. I know that your gut bacteria can also affect your sleep and general feeling of wellbeing and I have been sleeping much better and less restlessly the last 3-4 nights. Which was just after the first few days of using the ferments and I definitely feel lighter and less sluggish too!

I’ve really enjoyed introducing these new foods into my diet over the last week and its something that I’m going to continue for sure, I would like to share with you my favourite recipe I tried which is an Easy Asian style ramen/pho bowl with white miso and turmeric kimchi.

Easy Asian-style Ramen/Pho bowl

Prep time- 5 minutes

Cook Time- 30 minutes

Serves – 2-4

Ingredients-

  • Cultured Collective White Miso and Turmeric Kimchi
  • soy sauce
  • turmeric
  • ginger
  • fish sauce
  • vegetable stock cube
  • beansprouts
  • stir fry veg
  • mushrooms
  • sweetcorn
  • spinach
  • Noodles- whatever your chosen
  • fresh chillies
  • coriander
  • spring onion
  • Egg (optional, remove if vegan)

Directions-

There’s 2 ways that you can do this recipe, in a saucepan on the hob or in a soup maker if you have one. The soup maker option is very simple and you just literally throw in all of the ingredients you want to be cooked (except the egg) and cook on chunky for about 15 minutes. So with both methods step one is to prep your ingredients so slice your onions, chillies and mushrooms and get all other ingredients portioned and to hand to chuck in the pot, this is a quick and easy recipe so I opted for many things pre prepared but do whatever suits you best ingredient wise. If you are cooking on the hob you want to get your stock going first, so start by bringing your water to heat and then add in the miso paste, soy sauce, fish sauce, turmeric and ginger and a vegetable stock cube, once you have all your ingredients simmering away it’s time to add in your ingredients, so thats your noodles of choice- I go for ‘straight to wok’ rice noodles but any noodles work well in this dish, add your veg, spring onions, sweetcorn, beansprouts, fresh chillies, mushrooms and carry on simmering on a medium heat for about 15 minutes, after around 15 minutes I like to add the greens as they take less time to cook so that’s the mangetout and the spinach (if you are cooking in the soup maker add a few minutes before the end to soften), if you’re lucky enough to be able to get  your hands on pak choi in your area this works perfectly but not always available at all stores. At the same time as cooking your stock get a small pan of boiling water on the hob ready to boil your egg, I like them soft boiled so I cooked for 6.5 minutes with a little salt and white vinegar in the water to ease shelling, after the 6.5 minutes plunge into cold water to stop the cooking process and leave until cooled and ready to shell and serve. Whilst you’re waiting for your soup to cook I like to prepare my raw, fresh toppings so I thinly slice some more spring onions, some fresh coriander, red chillies and beansprouts and have my kimchi ready to add too. By this time your egg should be ready to shell, place to one side and serve your soup into a large bowl, then add your egg and your fresh toppings and you are ready to eat! This is an easily adapted recipe! I’ve tried it also with king prawns, tofu, chicken! The options are endless and you can add different spices and flavours from your favourite corners of the world which inspire you!

Thanks so much for reading! Who’s trying fermented foods? Who already eats them daily? Fancy giving The Cultured Collective ferments a go? Where to buy here!

 

H x

 

 

health

Nims Edible Teas

The lovely people over at Nims Fruit Crisps sent me over a selection of their products as a gift in exchange for a review of their brand new edible fruit teas.

Many of you may have already heard of Nims fruit crisps, they are a 1 ingredient fruit and vegetable crisp and leaders on the market in this category, experimenting with more crisps than just the root vegetable ones you’ll regularly see on the shelves at the supermarket- although they do those too and they’re great! Their fruit crisps are particularly delicious and the crisping process has really enhanced the flavours of the fruit and they’re low calorie as well.

Recently Nims have released a range of 3 flavours of edible fruit tea with a great concept… you infuse your loose fruit and then once the tea is brewed you then take the rehydrated fruit out and eat it. So today I tried the parsnip, beetroot and pineapple tea (the other two flavours are pineapple and kiwi and parsnip and beetroot), my first thoughts were how much easier this whole brewing process would be if I had one of those fancy glass infuser teapots to capture my fruit pieces, I kind of had to awkwardly decant the brewed tea and strain it with a sieve and then transfer over to another cup. It created quite a lot of washing up so to enjoy these I think that the teapot is a must, this does make the product a little restrictive for the masses and could be a good idea for Nims to launch their own teapot or perhaps collaborate with a 3rd party that sells them to link up. If you are keen to try these teas or just like the sound of a super fancy clear teapot I’ve linked the best value one that I could find on eBay and actually coming in at under a fiver its not exactly a huge investment. Check it our here !!

Flavour wise the pineapple and kiwi was my favorite to drink, all of them were quite pleasant to eat, I used them as a porridge topping which worked so well and suited me with the the timing of breakfast and having a cuppa too. I’m not 100% on the flavour of drinking the parsnip and beetroot tea and think that if they launched more flavours in just fruit that it would appeal to more people as a drink.

 

All in all I love the idea, I hate wasting food and throwing away anything unnecessarily so I like how resourceful it is to waste nothing, the flavours could use some extras in the range or development to the current ones to suit different tastes and they either need to link a teapot on their site or develop a solution to maybe encase the fruit in a biodegradable bag that could be opened after infusing so they can be used in a traditional ‘kettle, bag, mug, brew’ method which is really easy for all!

 

Thanks so much for reading my review, if this sounds your cup of tea (no pun intended) head over to the Nims site here and check out what they have to offer!

H x