Rise-and-Shine Smoothies

This morning a good colleague approached me and asked me what he should eat for breakfast. He really wants to eat something but he usually doesn't have too much appetite in the morning. Martyn - this post is for you :-)

But before I give you the recipe for my Rise-and-Shine Smoothies I have a couple of things to say. If you are not hungry in the morning it can either be a sign that your metabolism doesn't work optimally - or that it works very well (if you carry too much body fat it's probably reason number 1). I used to be unable to eat breakfast and often skipped it altogether, only to be absolutely starving and craving carbohydrates at 10 or 11. But when I started eating "clean" I also started a habit of eating a little bit every morning and gradually as my metabolism started working properly again so did my morning appetite. During a period of about 6 months where I lost a lot of body fat I woke up at 6 am absolutely starving. These days my appetite is a bit more subdued because my body can access its fat deposits (read more about that here) whenever it needs energy. 

I usually make a smoothie in the morning. Not only is it super quick, but I can also pack a lot of goodness into it and it sets me up for the rest of the day so I'll not be as easily tempted into making unhealthy choices. Start clean and stay clean!

Some of the ingredients might look a bit odd but just try it out and experiment until you find your own favourite combination (please share the recipe!). Here we go: 

200 ml non-fat Greek yoghurt

2 oranges

1 mango

2 tbsp cod liver oil (for omega-3 - you will not be able to taste it, I promise)

50 ml coffee or 1 tbsp coffee beans (for taste - optional) 

2 tbsp green tea leaves (for anti-oxidants)

almond milk (for fat i.e. brain food)

3 tbsp milled flax seeds or chia seeds (omega-3 and fibre). 

spinach (fibre again because fibre is key and the more you add the better as it will keep you fuller longer and yes, spinach is a much better source of fibre than any morning cereal. You can also use kale but that has a very strong taste.)

Blend it all and keep adding water until it has the texture that you like. 

You can replace the oranges and mango with other fruits or perhaps some berries. Check out the food list to see which ones I recommend. You can also add protein powders with different tastes (try the combi frozen blueberries, 2 oranges and a scoop of banana protein powder... better than any muffin!).

Bon appetit and have a lovely day!

Mango pickles

Mango is without comparison my favourite fruit. I eat it several times per week and I am trying different recipes where mango can be incorporated.

This recipe is for pickles which can be used for... well in my opinion almost anything. I like it hot, spicy and not too sweet so I have used red chillies, lots of spices and very little sweetener. Below I'm just going to list the ingredients and then you can use chilli, spices and sweetener as per your own preference.

Mango pickles - photo by Rikke Wend Hartung

2-3 ripe mangos cut into cubes
red chilli whole if you want to remove it after cooking or sliced if you want it to stay in
coriander and cumin seeds - roasted on a dry pan
apple cider vinegar (100-120 ml)
xylitol or similar sweetener

Glass jar - boiled off and rinsed with alcohol.

Put all ingredients in sauce pan and simmer for about 20-30 minutes. Then pour into the glass jar. Leave it to cool of and then refrigerate.