See you in 2012 :)

New Camera!

I got a brand new camera for Xmas (thanks to my Big Sis and Brother-In-Law)! I'm so excited because it means I'll get back to cooking and taking nice pictures of my healthy meals...

In the mean time, I made these not-so-healthy cookies on Christmas day ;) Thanks to Vickii's step-by-step recipe here:  http://vickii-ibakethereforeiam.blogspot.com/2011/12/puffy-peanut-butter-chocolate-chip-and.html

I launched my camera and I'm very impressed with the picture quality:

Vickii bakes amazingly yummy cakes and cupcakes for special occasions so stop by her blog to contact her... Of course these should only be treats, as always ;)

Have a wonderful time with your loved ones! :)

Currently Loving...

Hi! I'm in America for my Christmas/New Year's break and if I LOVE it here! Yes it's great to be with family (of course) but I love the range of products and food here... I also love that everything's a little cheaper here. Don't get me started on the sales - because I won't stop!

On to the reason for this post, I bought these and had to share:

• Nature's Gate Aloe Vera Velvet Moisture Liquid Soap:
  
  I usually mix my body wash (using Castille soap as a base) but once in a while I like to buy body washes so I was happy when I found this and at a discounted price (God bless America!)
  
  This liquid soap smells yummy and it left my skin feeling clean but not dry :) It's sulphate and paraben free and I'll be taking a couple back to London with me. I bought mine at Sprouts Farmer's Market but it should be available at Whole Foods and Target. It can also be purchased from the Nature's Gate website HERE.

• Tazo Lemon Ginger iced tea
  
  This is a very refreshing drink and it was $1 for a bottle at Sprouts. I wish I could take some back to London with me but it's in a glass bottle!

Hope you are enjoying the festive season and not over indulging ;) I worked out yesterday and that is so unlike me during the holidays! I'll attempt another session tomorrow... fingers crossed.

Merry Christmas!!!

Photo Credit: Nature's Gate and amazon

Love Milk?

My friend, Keris (of Fitter London) sent me this link: http://theconsciouslife.com/top-10-anti-inflammatory-foods.htm and here is an extract from it:

"Processed cow’s milk. Non-organic milk carries antibiotics and growth hormone residues that can irritate immune system when they are consumed long-term. Many people, especially those in the East, also cannot digest milk properly, causing distress to the digestive tract."

Side Note: I've had to make a few changes to my diet including swapping the usual meat and chicken for organic alternatives to avoid the growth hormones (and antibiotics) in them. For example, most non-organic chickens are 'grown' from chick to full chicken within 2 weeks, that is unnatural and the only way this is possible is by accelerating the growth process with hormones. These same chickens and cows, that are pumped with hormones, produce the milk, dairy and eggs that we buy!

I should have made these changes ages ago because I was educated enough but I was trying to save money...

 What's more important - your health or your bank account? The answer is obvious! 

Instead, Try: Raw Milk, Goat's Milk.

I'm lucky I have this information shared with me constantly, hope you find this useful :)

Moin Moin

A fellow tweep (twitter friend) mentioned she was cooking moin moin today so that inspired me to do the same :) The great thing about moin moin is it's quite a healthy Nigerian meal. Beans are high in protein and contain a moderate amount of carbohydrates :) Unlike akara, which is fried, moin moin is steamed and can be eaten on it's own as a snack or with vegetables and meat  or chicken.

Recipe was a modified version of this: Moin Moin Recipe to make it a little healthier:

• I used coconut oil instead of vegetable oil
• I replaced Maggi with Rock Salt and Herbs
• I used crushed chillis

Ingredients

• Brown Beans (~ 500-600g)
• 3 tablespoons of virgin coconut oil
• 4 tablespoons of ground crayfish
• Salt and Mixed Herbs
• 2 Red Onions
• 1 tablespoon crushed chillis
• 2 red bell peppers
• 3 eggs (optional)
• 2 tins of sardines/mackerel in spring water or brine (optional)

Moin Moin

• Soak the beans in water for 20 minutes. Now this is the most annoying part: You have to rub the beans between your hands to get the skin off, I did this while watching X Factor so it didn't feel as bad.
• Leave to soak for another 2 hours to soften the beans:
  
  
• Boil 3 eggs, peel and slice. 
• Peel and chop the onions and chop the bell peppers. Add to the bowl of beans, also add chillis and crayfish.
• Fill your blender halfway with the mix. Add a little water and blend, note that if you don't have a strong blender, this will take forever.
• Pour the mix into a bowl and repeat this process till it's all blended.
• Now add the mix back to the blender (still filling it halfway) and add 2ce blended mix into another bowl. Repeat till you've 're-blended' it all.
• I repeated this process one more time and this was the result:
  
  
  
• Melt the coconut oil and add to the mixture. Also add your salt and herbs.
• I used aluminium foil, check out this easy tutorial to make the aluminium cases: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVdFyxK8Qd4
• Fill each container halfway with the mixture and as much or as little of the sliced eggs (1-2 in my case) and sardines. Seal. Continue till the mixture is used up.
• If you own a steamer, use this instead. My home-made steamer: Add some water to a pot (I added 2 cups) and I used a pot stand (similar to the image below but minus the wheels:
  
  
  I inserted it into the pot of water and boiled the water
• I placed the moin moin (bags) onto the pot stand, covered the pot and cooked on medium heat for 1 hour. I made sure I checked the level of the water every 15 minutes and refilled as required.