The 3 Cores of Healthy Eating

There are so many tips and advice on what to have and what not to have, that we often get confused by the many misunderstood messages flying around making us question every single thing we eat and drink. If you want to be healthy AND happy at the same time (which can be done), follow my 3 core guidelines below. 

RECIPE: Oaty Protein Pancakes

You probably all know by now how much I love pancakes, I am always experimenting and trying to make it more yummy and healthy. I love having pancakes for breakfast especially in the weekend, I do prefer my sweet fruit topped pancakes but I am growing fonder of the savoury ones too. My spinach and feta pancakes are divine! If I do say so myself...check out my savoury pancake recipes. 

Homemade Protein Shake

Since, my brother has become more active; going to the gym regularly and been going to play football (a lot!!), he has been asking me to make him a protein shake for a while. I have made some before and have been experimenting but I think I have finally mastered it.

With people being more health conscious, going to the gym and being doing more exercise, the interest in protein shakes has grown so much over the last couple of years. But what does it actually do? 

RECIPE: Homemade Granola

<<- This is the dessert I usually make with my homemade granola, fruit parfait. Since the first time I made everyone has loved it, even unhealthy sceptics! I usually bulk bake the granola and store it in a airtight container so it there for me to have and use whenever I want, a healthy convenience food! You can have the granola by it self as a snack, with milk for breakfast, top it on your porridge or any yoghurt for a healthy crunch. Try it yourself just to see how simple it is to make, recipe below: 

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Total time: 30 minutes

Serves: 10

Ingredients

·         200g rolled oats

·         2 tbsp of canola/coconut oil

·         3 tbsp of honey

·         100g of mixed seeds

·         50g nuts (of your choice, I used flaked almonds)

·         Dried fruit, pieces.

How to make it:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2. Mix the oats, oil and honey together in a bowl. Make sure the oats are coated and sticking together a bit.
3. Add the nuts and seeds. I usually use a pack of mixed seeds and flaked almonds.
4. Lay the oats on a baking tray, evenly and pop it in the oven.
5. Bake for about 10 minutes, depending on how brown you like your oats. I like it really brown, so I bake it for a few more minutes but careful not to burn it.
6. Give it a mix and bake it for another 10 minutes.
7. Take it out the oven and let it cool. Add your dried fruit pieces.
8. Enjoy! Great for breakfast, snack or dessert. 

To make the fruit parfait dessert: I crushed some berries with the back of a fork, layer it in a dessert bowl or cup with Greek yoghurt (I used Total Greek), and top with the granola. Simple yet scrumptious! 

VARIATIONS: - You could add, walnuts, cashew, pine nuts. – Add honey to the yoghurt for a sweeter taste. 

By Ayshabibi H. ANutr

A H Nutritionist

14th November 2013

RECIPE: Healthy Oat and Raisin Cookies

Oat and raisin cookies are my absolute favourite! I always choose this combo, so I went on the hunt for a healthy version of this yummy chewy cookie. And here I am going to share it with you all! They are nutritious, chewy and have no butter, and SO easy to make. 

EVENT: Nutrition and Health Live 2013

Hi everyone! Hope you are all having a lovely day. Last week Saturday on 2^nd November 2013, I went to my first ever Nutrition and Health Live conference & expo. It’s an event for health professional in the nutrition and health industry, so a nutritionist like myself. It has been running for 14 years now and it is one of the biggest nutrition events.

Drop a Dress Size with these Simple Steps

Want to get toned and trim, but don’t want too much hassle? It could be as easy as having 100-200kcals less every day. Weight loss can only happen if we eat less calories and so finding some unnecessary calories in our diet can help us shift those extra pounds, slowly and healthily. Still not convinced? Here’s the maths:

Food Review: Children's Yoghurts

With all the sugars we are exposed to we should really try to find ways to reduce it, especially as it’s not good for our healthy and only adds to our calorie intake. One way to start getting rid of the unnecessary sugars in our diet is by finding any hidden sugars in the food we are having already.

Halal Food Festival 2013: Healthy Haloodie

As a nutritionist and as a foodie I was very excited to attend the first ever Halal Food Festival, which took place at Excel London from Friday 27^th September 2013 – Sunday 29^th September 2013. I was very excited to see the different food and drinks they had to offer under the ‘halal’ category. As a Muslim, dietary requirement is a very important factor when planning, preparing and choosing meals.

Hello and Welcome!

Hello! and welcome to my new blog, I am still new to this, so please be patient and I will get the hang of it soon (hopefully). I wanted to make a proper blog spot to share my journey as a nutritionist with you all. I will be writing about my thoughts, experiences, sharing recipes, news as well as events that I attend. 

I had a blog on my previous website before, so I am in the process of transferring all my old posts to this new one. I hope you will enjoy reading them all and I look forward to hearing from you soon. 

Thank you!

-A H Nutritionist

 Be Happy, Be Healthy! 

P.S. Any feedback and tips would be much appreciated. Thank you :-) 

Healthy Ramadhan 2013

The blessed month of fasting is upon the Muslims again and the summer days are just starting as we get into this blessed month. Ramadhan is a month where Muslims fast (do not eat or drink) from dusk til dawn. It is a month where Muslims learn to exercise their self-control, refresh and reflect on their life; spiritually and physically.  

With the days getting longer and the nights getting shorter it can be difficult to maintain our health and strength. This is why it is even more important to make sure we eat and drink healthily making sure we keep our body’s energy and fuel topped up with the right foods and drinks.

Allergy Fighting Foods

Just a quick blog to point out some allergy fighting foods. Many people suffer from allergies, like hay fever, which can interfere with their daily lifestyle. With the sun coming out and pollen in the air many people find themselves sneezing, coughing and getting itchy watery eyes. Although you can take some kind of hay fever medication first you can also look at how some foods can help with many allergies too. 

EVENT: Organic & Natural Beauty Show 2013

I got a request by email to attend the Organic & Natural Beauty Show. Being into all things natural I decided to register for a free ticket and go. I went just for a fun day out and to find out what natural products are out there for us to use (and also for the freebies!). ;-)

We use so many products, sometimes we forget how much chemicals we are exposed to. We sometimes think nothing of it as it part of our everyday life, from moisturisers to home cleaning products to hair products.

RECIPE: Savoury Pancakes - Pancake Day 2013

This year I decided to make savoury pancakes instead of the usual sweet pancakes. The great thing about savoury pancakes is that it can be eaten as a meal for lunch or dinner, not just for breakfast. I was so overwhelmed with the different recipes out there for savoury pancakes, I was spoilt for choice, they all sounded too scrumptious that I found it very hard to decide which to include in this blog. Keep in mind that you can vary the recipe according to your own taste and feel free to experiment with different ingredients and spices. Here are the ones I made for me and family:

RECIPE: Spicy Butternut Squash Soup

Being a nutritionist has opened me up to a lot of new foods. I've tried, tested, adapted and liked many new food and drinks. One of them is butternut squash. 

A lot of people have asked me how I make this soup, so I decided to share it with you all. I love making it, it's so easy and taste so good. It will fill you right up even without a wholemeal roll. A great winter vegetable, perfect for those cold nights, it will leave you nice and warm inside. 

RECIPES: Buzzing with Blueberries

My mum brought home a BIG bowl of blueberries last week and I got so excited like a little kid, I started thinking of all the yummy healthy foods I could make with them. Blueberries are very nutritious and count towards you 5-a-day, one portion is about a handful. Blueberries like most berries are high in antioxidants which help to keep your body in balance and a healthy immune system. They also contain vitamin C, B3, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and folic acid. Blueberries are a great body cleanser and improve circulation in our body giving you a healthy glow to your skin.

To Gym or Not To Gym?

My mum got a 1-day pass for a local gym which was due to expire soon and pushed me to use it, as she wasn't going to get the time to go herself. I have never been to a gym to do a proper workout, I did some classes some years ago with my sister, legs, bums and tums, but that was more for moral support and just something to do together.