Raw Cashew Coconut Lime Cake!

(Makes one 20cm cheesecake) Receipe specified for Thermomix, you can use any fast blender or food processor. I was inspired by quirkycooking's Macadamia Lime Cheesecake but decided to use cashews as they are cheaper! Also changed a few small elements to make it easier for myself. 

The Shopping List

450g Raw Cashew Nuts 

70g Shredded Coconut

120 g Pure Maple Syrup

10 Dates, Pitted

1.5 tsp Natural Vanilla Extract

2 x Limes

55g Raw Coconut Oil

320g Fresh Avocado

150g Ayam Coconut Cream (I used the 'light' version)

Salt 

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Method

Base:

130g raw cashew nuts

70g shredded coconut

10 dates

Pinch of salt

Blend the above ingredients in the thermomix on speed 9 for 20 seconds. 

Grease your cake tin (preferably spring form) with some coconut oil. Pour the base mix into the tin and press down firmly, I use a glass with a flat base to get the mixture nicely firm and flat. 

Filling:

Half a tsp vanilla extract

Zest from two limes

Blitz the above ingredients together on speed 10 for 10 seconds

Add 150g raw cashews and blend on speed 10 for 8 seconds

Add flesh of 1 lime, 320g fresh avocado, 90g pure maple syrup, 55g raw coconut oil, a pinch of salt and blend on speed 9 for 1 minute. 

Pour into the cake tin and spread gently over the base. Put the whole thing in the freezer for about thirty minutes. 

Topping:

150g raw cashews

150g Ayam coconut cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

Juice of 1 lime

30g pure maple syrup

Mix the above ingredients on speed 9 until smooth and creamy

Pour over filling and smooth with spatula. I keep the spatula still and rotate the tin to get a nice even spiral.

Decoration:

Crush some of the remaining cashews and sprinkle over the cake with some lime zest.

Place in the freezer for about two hours. 

It should be served semi frozen, thawed just a little so that you get that great cheesecake texture. Store it in the freezer and presumably it lasts for a long time... I wouldn't know because it all got eaten within a day!

Breaking into a healthy eating cycle can seem tough, after a couple weeks of poor eating choices I thought I'd post this as a bit of motivation for myself. 

Here are some things that really help me when I'm changing my eating habits. 

DRINK WATER

I found that Kai Lelion from yourzenlife.com summed this point up very well. His whole article on the importance of water can be found here.

"Much of the time, if we feel like we want to keep eating when we’re full, it is because we are actually dehydrated, and our body is trying to receive water from food. The same can be said of snacking, and having a sweet-tooth...

If you want to do something easy, and healthy, and you don't know where to start, try drinking more water. Next time you feel like snacking, drink a glass of water first, wait 5 minutes, and you hunger will likely subside. Likewise, whenever you’re thirsty, drink water first. Try only drinking other beverages when you want to enjoy their flavor, and not to quench your thirst. Not only will you be decreasing your caloric intake, you will also be replenishing your body, something it will be grateful for."

Take some vitamins

This has the same principle as water. Your body is craving certain nutrients and vitamins and won't feel satisfied until it starts getting some!

A good place to start can be with any or all of the following or a good multivitamin

Vitamin B

Vitamin C

Vitamin A

Vitamin E

Cold turkey

It really is the best way to go. First things to go for me are refined carbs, processed sugars and butter.

I don't think you need to cut out coffee at this stage (don't be adding sugar though) as the caffeine helps with saying no to sugary snacks.

Eat a lot

Not what you were expecting? I always do this when I am starting off with eating a healthier diet. I allow myself to eat as large a portion as I want for the first few days, as long as it is a very healthy meal.

Tell people you are changing your eating habits 

Nothing like the fear of failure to keep you motivated! I'm kidding. It does help though and people won't rap on you so hard for saying no to a trip to maccas. 

Don't think of eating healthy as 'going on a diet' or with the goal of losing weight 

It's a lifestyle choice that says you value your body. You want to give it what it needs. Some reasons I choose to eat well are to improve digestion, improve quality of skin and feel energised.  

Remember... food should be peeled, chopped and/or cooked. Not unwrapped and zapped. 

Keep in mind I'm not a nutritionist - this is what works for me, everyone is different and may require different things to keep their body running at prime time. 

Here's a little something to keep you going. I am a big lover of smoothies! It's a great way to get a lot of vitamins and energy into one quick meal! I can't remember the site where I found these images but boy, I am thankful. Now all I need is a vitamix. 

Bad Blogger!

I've started back at university and have been very time poor! As a result I've been eating all manner of processed foods. I feel sluggish and terrible! I'll update the blog properly tomorrow and share some tips on breaking into a healthy eating cycle. I definitely need to revisit those tips myself!

Dairy-Free Blueberry Smoothie

This is a breakfast I have when I am in a hurry to get out the door. At first almond milk tasted a little strange to me but now I find the smoothie really tasty. Make sure to read the ingredients of your almond milk, as a lot of brands have really high sugar content... sneaky, right?

The recipe below makes one cup of smoothie. I pour all the ingredients into the measuring cup that came with the Braun Stick Blender set. It's my most used kitchen appliance.

Ingredients

Frozen Blueberries - just under 1/2 a cup

Oats = three tablespoons

Flaked Almonds - three tablespoons

Almond Milk - to fill cup to 250ml

Honey - one teaspoon

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Method

Put all the ingredients into your blender and whiz. Done!

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If you like your smoothies with a thicker texture, just add some more oats and/or almonds.

Oats do have gluten in them, a type of gluten called Avenin that most people with Coeliac can tolerate but if you're in doubt just swap the oats out for more almonds. 

This one I make is dairy-free, the oats are good source of fiber and the almonds add protein. 

Finding Your Zen, and other things you can say now that you are a Yogi Bear.

Every one can have the best intentions when it comes to exercising. However, when push comes to shove, and you were up late and its raining and you don't have enough time to make it to the gym, it can easily fall by the wayside. 

I recently came across this site. It has so many yoga videos that are completely free to stream on your computer. All you need is a couple of square metres, maybe a candle or two (preferably placed out of your range of motion) and you've got yourself a free private lesson. It has classes for every level from geriatric to contortionist, so not to fret if you've never done yoga before.  

Practicing yoga can decrease stress, release muscle tension, improve circulation and digestion, increase strength and flexibility, and open you up to a multitude of new catchphrases. See below.

So people, find your zen... FIND YOUR ZEN!

In You

Comedowhat?

I have quite an obsession with skin. I am insanely jealous of anyone with smooth, clear skin a la natasha poly, as pictured. I'm not even a jealous person. 

Having suffered from mild acne from the age of 12 I've tried a lot of products and medications to try and attain that elusive, velvety, glowing, epidermis. 

The past year I have been more focused on health than ever before and basically found my extremely-frustratingly-persistent-but-admittedly-mild acne may just be due to the products that I was using to try and get rid of it. So many ingredients found in your well known beauty brand products are comedogenic. That means pore clogging. So hold up on slathering your face with whatever you usually do and check out the link below

http://www.zerozits.com/Articles/acnedetect.htm#inglist

The page rates ingredients by level of irritants and also by how comedogenic it is. They recommend that if you have acne prone skin, you shouldn't use anything with a rating higher than three or more.

I've been trying to  stick to very gentle, mainly all natural or organic products and oil free makeup for quite a few months now, my skin has definitely calmed down and I'm trying out a more alkaline diet to do the rest of the job.

So, I hope this saves you some time in researching the ingredients of your future cosmetic purchases. I certainly could have used it while emptying out my bathroom cupboard a few months ago. 

Avocadeggs/Eggocados

I love this idea! I'm going to give it a go tomorrow morning. 

It's from the folder in my photos called 'ohm nom nom'. I peruse said folder when I feel like eating cookie dough and it changes my mind 99% of the time. Real food just looks so much better than junk food, not to mention it actually nourishes your body. 

I just found the picture online so I'm not sure what the method is. I'm just going to poach the eggs and hollow out the avocado a little more, add a lil' salt and pepper and I think we'll have a winner. 

Pseudo Spaghetti

I am a lover of pasta. At any given time, at any given restaurant, I will order the pasta. This has proved to be a bit of a problem for my stomach, which generally objects to starchy carbs after about 1 pm (I think this is psychosomatic). Cue my pseudo spaghetti, the recipe follows...

To serve two:

Two large zucchinis (use 3 medium or four small) - I use a turning slicer but initially used a vegetable peeler which created more fettucini like strips, if you are into this pasta alternative, I recommend getting a less loathsome appliance than ye olde knuckle shucking vegetable peeler. Try to get relatively straight zucchinis, trust me, it makes life easier.

One small brown onion - chopped finely

One carrot - grated very finely

One garlic clove - chopped or crushed

Pasta sauce - I'm lazy, I'm using the bottled stuff. I use Spiral Foods Organic Garlic and Basil Sauce.

Some basil

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Method

I sauté the onions and garlic in coconut oil to begin, the onions should just turn translucent, not brown.

Then I add half a jar of pasta sauce and leave to heat up while I begin making magic with the slicer.

I slice and dice the zucchini into strips and pour a liberal amount of salt over the top and toss it about.

Then I add the carrot to the sauce and any pieces of zucchini that didn't make the cut to become fake pasta.

I let this bubble for a little bit while either blanching the zucchini in hot water or just running it under the hot tap, nothing in here requires it to be cooked long at all, to be honest I usually just chuck the zucchini noodles into the sauce and start stirring so they absorb the flavour.

Final thing is to add some shredded basil and stir again.

Ready to be served.

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This takes next to no time to make also is delicious the next day, I don't know what happens after that as it has never lasted more than 24 hours without being eaten by someone! The great thing about it is that it has the texture of skillfully cooked al dente pasta and soaks up the sauce so well that you hardly taste the difference. The BEST thing however is that it is extremely low calorie, coming in around 150 calories per serving (according to the myfitnesspal app).

It's safe to say regular pasta is a thing of the past(a) in my kitchen...