Tag: healthy
A Healthy Breakfast
As a family we do love our organic oats. I make Healthy Flapjacks with oats to take out as a snack and every morning Daddy makes three large bowls of porridge. You wouldn’t be wrong for mistakenly thinking we are the three bears in Goldilocks.
I thought we’d stop eating porridge during the summer months but we just kept going! I like my summer porridge breakfast with a topping of grated apple and cinnamon or with a handful of summer berries (which turn the porridge a delightful red colour).
And in winter a good bowl of porridge with raisins keeps us going throughout the morning.
Porridge is so easy to make. Gently heat some milk in a pan, add the oats and some water, sprinkle in some raisins and gently keep stirring as the oats soak up the liquid and the raisins soften. A delicious and healthy breakfast!
Mummy and Me Magazine: Nov 2013
Alternative Advent Calendar
Christmas is almost upon us and I’m already thinking of some wonderful ideas to fill my daughter’s homemade advent calendar. This year I’ll be making a personalised advent calendar with a little treat for each day. And there won’t be any chocolate in sight.
I’ve bought some small striped paper candy bags that will be numbered 1 to 24. These will be strung up on some red wool in the style of bunting and inside each bag will be a little surprise to count down the days to Christmas.
Some ideas to include in an alternative advent calendar are recycled mini cards (cut outs of old cards we have) with a special message inside tied to some string so they can be hung on the Christmas tree as decorations and printed colouring pictures (there are plenty for free on the internet that you can print out).
Other little treats could include a bouncy ball, crayons, a mini tub of PlayDoh, hairclips, a cookie cutter, marbles, a Christmas decoration for the tree and a selection of dried fruit (which is sweet but without the refined sugar).
If you want to include some delicious natural, sweet and chewy treats in some of the days of the advent calendar my Healthy Flapjacks are simple to make. They can be kept in the fridge for up to 4 days so you can add a piece each morning before your child opens their advent calendar.
Healthy Flapjacks
Makes 15
Ingredients
- 1 large Apple
- 60 ml 100% Orange Juice
- 1 cup Whole Rolled Oats
- 1/3 cup Raisins and finely chopped Dried Apricots
- 3 teaspoons Sesame Seeds
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
Method
1. Heat the oven to 180 C. Line a 22cm cake tin with baking paper.
2. Wash and core the apple. Cut into thin slices and place in a pan. Add the Orange Juice and bring to the boil.
3. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes, uncovered and stirring occasionally until the apple is soft.
4. Puree the Apple and Orange juice with a hand-held mixer or in a food processor.
5. Stir in the Cinnamon, Oats, Sesame Seeds, Raisins and Dried Apricots into the Apple puree and mix well.
6. Tip the mixture into the tin and spread out evenly.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until firm and golden brown.
8. Let it cool before cutting into wedges.
Lydia Oliver, Nutritional Advisor
This article was published in the November 2013 edition of Mummy and Me Magazine.
I offer one to one nutrition programmes for breastfeeding, post pregnancy weight loss, weaning advice, weight management and health. Contact me.
Banana Muffins Recipe
It’s cold and raining outside. Time to whip up some quick and healthy Banana Muffins for everyone to munch on. This recipe is a favourite of mine and is super easy.
Makes 12 Banana Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups Brown Self-Raising Flour
- 2 free-range Eggs
- 1 Orange
- 2 large Bananas
- 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
- 3 Dried Apricots
- 1 teaspoon All Spice
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease a 12 cup muffin tin or line with paper muffin cases.
2. Finely chop the dried apricots, mash the banana, squeeze in the fresh orange juice and mix together.
3. Add the vegetable oil and stir into the mashed banana and apricots.
4. Add the eggs and mix well.
5. Gently stir in the flour and all spice.
6. Bake at 180 C for 20 minutes or until a cake skewer inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean.
7. Leave the muffins to cool on a wire rack for a few minutes.
These Banana Muffins are great for the family to enjoy at breakfast time, as a tasty snack during the day or pop one into the children’s lunch boxes.
