Article by Raw Food Chef, Urban Rabbit.
Now that the Christmas madness and new year parties are over do you feel like you could give something back to yourself and your body? I think we all can.
December and January are crazy times for us and to be frank I wouldn’t recommend starting any diet/ fitness/lifestyle programs until the middle of January or even the beginning of February so you can collect yourself, get your house and kitchen sorted for an easy breezy week(s) of getting yourself back on track with your daily routines. Of course, if you are ready, start now!
If you have followed a few of my articles you know that there’s no point trying a diet or program until you have the basics in check;
- Are you drinking a 2-3 litres of water a day?
- Are you consuming large amounts (min 70%) of fruits and vegetables? (your best sources of vitamins and minerals)
- Are you moving everyday?
- Are you getting enough sleep?
- Are you getting 20 minutes of sunlight and fresh air?
Check in and get back to basics. This will begin wonders.
Talking specifically food and diet, however, there are few things that can lighten the load and help you regain more energy after Christmas.
1) Start your day with 1 litre water.
2) After an hour upon waking and drinking your water begin your day with a 500ml-1000ml freshly squeezed juice or smoothie. Fruits and leafy green vegetables are so nutrient and water dense. This will help kick start your kidneys and bowels.
3) When choosing your meals throughout the day keep it 100% clean whole plant based foods. You don’t have to cut out any animal products but your digestion system would benefit from not having these items for at least 3-7 days to begin with. They take longer to digest than plant based foods and the idea of lightening the load is to assist our digestion system and our organs from working so hard by providing it with clean easy foods.
One of my favourite herbs at the moment has been mint. Not only does it have a beautiful smell and flavour but it promotes and soothes digestion and inflammation and helps to clear up congestion of the nose and throat. Sounds like the perfect herb for this time of the year.
Here are some recipes to get you started!
Mint Moment
- ¼ watermelon, rind removed
- 1 punnet strawberries
- 2 stalks mint leaves
Place all the ingredients through a juicer and enjoy with a few ice cubes.
Green Smoothie
- 4 cups freshly squeezed apple juice or water
- 1 mango, skin and seed removed
- 1 lebanese cucumber
- 2 stalks of mint
- handful of baby spinach
Place all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. I like to add a tablespoon of flaxseed oil for omega 3 and good fats.
Quinoa Pumpkin Salad
- 750g pumpkin, seeded and cut into 1cm thick wedges
- 2 teaspoons dukkah
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 2 cups water
- 350g fresh or frozen broad beans
- 2 celery sticks, sliced
- ¼ cup dried cranberries
- 4 small radishes, sliced
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
- 1 bunch watercress, leaves picked
- ½ lemon
- *50g feta (optional)
Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan forced. Place pumpkin on a lined baking tray in a single layer. Spray with oil and sprinkle with dukkah. Roast for 25-30 minutes until tender.
Meanwhile, place the quinoa and water in a saucepan. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes until the water has evaporated and the quinoa is just tender. Set aside to cool.
Cook broad beans in a saucepan of boiling water for 3 minutes until tender. Refresh under cold water. Drain. Peel skins and discard.
Place cooled quinoa, broad beans, celery, radish, cranberries, pepitas and watercress in a large bowl. Drizzle with lemon juice. Option here is to add feta. Drizzle with a of olive and toss to combine. Place pumpkin on plates, top with quinoa mixture.
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