Raw key lime cheesecake

I've been asked by so many people to come up with this recipe, and after reviewing my blogposts I did in fact make one a couple of years ago! Here's an updated, even yummier version! And so easy to make!  

I made mine in a pie/flan dish and covered the base with cling film to make it easy to remove.

Ingredients :

Base :

400g mixed nuts (you can use them raw, you can activate them, roast them, whatever you like) 

6-8 medjool dates

4 tbsp raw cacao powder

2-4 tbsp coconut oil - I use LucyBees

Pinch sea salt

4oz dessicated coconut (you can toast this too first if you like)

Topping :

3 ripe avocados

1 pack of coconut cream

3 limes - zest and juice

1 tbsp raw honey

1 tsp vanilla extract (the proper stuff not vanilla flavouring)

1 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp Xanthan gum (to help it set) optional - you may not need this

Method : 

Whizz all the base ingredients up in a food processor- I use a Vitamix or my Nutribullet .

When it's formed a paste, not too wet, not too dry,  tip out into the lined pie dish. If it's too dry add more oil/dates, if it's too wet add more dessicated coconut.

Press down into the sides and base with the flat of your hands so that it's even.

Place in the fridge to firm up.

Topping Method :

Whizz all the ingredients in a food processor (as above) - it's that simple! 

Remove the base from the fridge, and pour the greeny topping over the base and spread with a knife.

Return to the fridge until set, or freezer if you're in a rush.

Decorate with lime slices if you like, it looks pretty, or you could dust with raw cacao powder.

Slice up and eat.

Enjoy. 

Rx

Morning Rituals

This morning I went to meet my best mate for a walk with her dog, early. When I got home after a lovely walk, cup of tea and a 'put the world to rights' natter I went home and realised something. I hadn't done what I usually do every morning ; my morning ritual. I'd never really thought about it as a 'ritual' before but guess I have been doing the same things most mornings for the last few years. It suits me, it works, and now it's what I do on automatic pilot- until today! 

So I thoughts I'd share with your my little routine, and would love to hear what you do each morning too, and your views on my mine!! 

My partner gets up ridiculously early, not my bag! I'm so not a morning person really so I start my day with a ten minute meditation using Headspace, it's an App I have on my phone (www.getsomeheadspace.com), and there are 10 days worth to choose from, so I select one at random. It helps me sort out my mind for the day.

I have the following quote by the side of my bed; I'm challenged sometimes with negative thoughts (aren't we all?) and find if I read this first thing it really helps to get things into perspective "You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way you choose your clothes every day. This is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on your mind. That's the only thing you should be trying to control." Elizabeth Gilbert . 

Oil pulling

This is an ancient Ayuvedic remedy for mouth health, overall detoxing, and one of the first things I do when I get out of bed. I use coconut oil by LucyBee, for the yummy taste, and texture, but you can use any cold pressed oil.

You swish oil around your mouth, getting into all the nooks and crannies for a minute or so (depending on how long you have, you can do up to twenty minutes - needless to say I've never managed this) , and it pulls harmful bacteria, and other nasties out of the mouth, and possibly lower down the body, and the you spit it out. Do not swallow! 

Next up : Warm water with lemon. 

Warm water with lemon is my first drink of the day, it helps kick start the digestion after sleep. Lemon is a great digestive aid, and liver cleanser. Lemons are antibacterial, antiviral, have immune boosting powers and taste great.

I also take evening primrose oil, fish oils, probiotics, aloe Vera  and a liquid multivitamin drink . Sometimes I add milk thistle, magnesium baths, and enemas. I also do a liver cleanse twice a year.

Then it's yoga time ...I do at least ten minutes of yoga first thing every morning (and more later on in the day) to help start my day the gentle way! I either make it up as I go along, or I'll go to youtube and select a routine by Tara Stiles. She is yoga guru extraordinaire, and I love her dulcet tones in the morning too, as well as her amazing routines. Check out her handstand blog - what balance! The beauty of yoga is at you can do it to suit your mood - balancing, energising, sleep inducing, strong, gentle...  Tara has a great website www.tarastiles.com. 

And that's me ready for my day! And ready for my children... Lol!! 

My morning ritual is included in my new ebook Soups, Juices and Smoothies available to download at www.payhip.com/b/LgGs. 

Looking forward to hearing about your start to your day! 

Please leave comments!

Rx 

Wetherby's Pilates Lady...

Today's guest blogger is non other than the Pilates Lady of Wetherby... Lindsey Jackson. 

Lindsey and I met when we both lived on Raby Park ,in Wetherby, and our children Sam and Lauren were in the same class all the way through primary school (also both little brain boxes, always coming joint top in tests etc.) . We realised we both come from a background of wanting to give our body's and mind the respect they deserve, with nourishment through food and drink, through movement, and through positive thinking... Lindsey is often better at the latter than I am! She is an eternal optimist! 

She's answered the regular blog questions I pose to people, and I'm sure you'll be really interested to read her replies. Thank you Lindsey - I was looking for the photo of us drinking champagne at the Year 6 leavers party, but thought maybe it wouldn't be appropriate... not that we do that very often (may dig it out if I can!)

1. Tell us how you got into this field of work? 

I've always had a deep feeling inside that it's not fair if people don't have their health. That life is for living to the full - so we can contribute to others. But I guess I moved away from the NHS (where people are treated after becoming ill) to Pilates, and my Forever business, because I'd rather shut the door before the horse bolts. I want people to experience energy, vitality and movement. I do what I do because I can at least help people with this skill.

2. Can you explain how you help your clients to improve their health and well being? 

I always start with the person in front of me. By teaching individuals and groups in my Pilates I hope to help them improve their flexibility, get stronger, and counteract poor postural habits we all get into with our more sedentary lifestyle . Most of us sit too much, me included. My Forever business allows me to support those who want great nourishment and strong immune systems ...starting with a healthy gut. 

3. What are your top three health and lifestyle tips?

Remove packaged food from your diet. Move (in whatever ways you can ). Find something that really matters to you to do in life and do it with all your heart, with belief and passion.

4. How do you start your day? 

Aloe, hot water, and supplements... Then if I'm not teaching I run Max (labradoodle and oodles of fun) or I take the boys to school, teach and then crack on with building the business. I'd like to say I meditate every morning, but it usually ends up being on the hoof or an evening thing.

5. What's currently in your fridge ? 

Blimey, a mish mash of : salad, veg, homemade carrot soup, cheese, rice milk, smoked salmon, ginger, garlic, wasabi paste( love it on sushi) , home made chutney from last year, sugar free jam.. Give you an idea? 

6. What is your guilty food pleasure, go on tell us, you must have one? 

Early Grey Redbush. Addicted! But when I'm tired/need comfort I grate Willy's Venezeulan Black 100% cacao into rice milk and heat it to make a filling hot chocolate. Hemp milk good too, but rice milk sweeter. My other guilty pleasure is Jane Nichols raw chocolate cheesecake . Quite often eat that when no ones looking!  Oh, and your chocolate, courgette buns if you've made any, I could eat three or four of those. 

7. How do you keep yourself fit? 

Run the dog, walk everywhere I can, use my Pilates reformer abit, teach classes, occasionally go to a class at the gym... But generally it takes up too much time. I'm afraid I have to have functional fitness these days. I'd love to get to more classes. Yoga especially! 

8. What is your biggest daily challenge? The one thing that can pull you off course if you let it? 

A feeling of panic, when by mid day I've still not achieved much...and my list is so long it's unrealistic. I'm a dreadful optimist about what I can achieve in a day/hour/minute!

9. How do you relax? 

Walk...watch a film...meditate. Enjoying Deepak Chopras free 21 day mediation challenge just now. 

10. If you had three wishes that would help the planet, what would they be? 

That we live from love and not fear. That we get back to food in its natural state. That we find ways to reduce our energy use. 

Thanks so much Lindsey ! 

Rx

Silky Smooth Skin

Given  my long term digestive challenges, it's not surprising my skin has suffered. They say your skin reflects what's going on ,on the inside.... well all I can say is, I've come a very long way! 

I've always loved lotions and potions, and over the years have taken great pleasure in buying the latest face creams, sold along with an anti ageing miracle we all know will never come true. I've used Clarins, I've used Body Shop, I've  used Clinique, Estée Lauder, Creme De La Mere even... And I honestly don't think any of them made a difference that was positive. 

I've finally come to my senses; no more chemically enhanced beauty products for me. I need simple, I need cost effective , and although I use some branded products I'm liking the idea of using the products I eat, to put on my skin. This way I get a double whammy - feeding my skin from the inside out, and the outside in..

I've been hugely inspired by David Wolfes book Eating For Beauty... So many tips too many to mention. I highly recommend the book! 

So, a couple of days ago I set about making an all over  moisturiser using three ingredients ; yes, you read that right, just THREE ingredients. Try looking on the side of bought products, not only is there a long list of ingredients but half of them I can guarantee you won't be able to pronounce, let alone have heard of.

The first ingredient is Raw cacao butter ( the same I use in Raw chocolate so you can imagine the smell...). I melted it in Bain Marie style, gently until runny.

The next ingredient is coconut oil, again a lovely smell, and a product I use every day in meal preparation; and the third one is cold pressed organic olive oil- I use this in food lots 

too.

Mix these three ingredients up well  and then place in the freezer for a little while until they begin to set, approx 20 minutes.

Using a food processor, I use a kitchen aid, whizz up the mixture, until really creamy! Taste it, it's yum! 

And store in a jar... It will keep for months.. 

My children were all treated to a leg massage with this moisturiser, and loved the feel,   loved the smell, and loved the silky smooth feel of their skin afterwards.

An all round winner. Next time I'll experiment with putting essential oils in it..

Rx

Dinner Party Dessert- Raw Berry Bowls

So happy with the beautiful little treats! I think they'd be superb for a dinner party served with a fresh raw coconut cream or drizzled in raw white chocolate! The idea came to me in the night having seen a baked berry something or other in a magazine a while ago.

I put coconut oil in the base along with the figs/date and ground almonds, but actually it was quite oily so I've omitted it from the recipe. If you find it's a little dry you could always add a little to yours.

The vanilla custardy filling  sitting underneath the berries is to die for. I deliberately put quite a lot of vanilla extract in, to replicate custard and it's worked a dream. I also added some chia seeds as they plump up puddings so well and help them 'set'. I made the sprinkly xylitol on the top by whizzing it up in the Vitamix to make it like icing sugar. 

I put the 'bowls' in the fridge for a while to slightly harden before adding the filling, and then returned them to the fridge before adding the berries on top so they didn't sink too far down into the custard.

I wanted to use blackberries as well but couldn't find any locally so ended up with blueberries and raspberries. I guess sliced strawberries would look good too. 

So here's the recipe :

Base :

 1 cup of ground almonds

  1 cup of mixed figs/dates , or fruit of your choice

Vanilla Custard : 

1/4 cup coconut cream

1/4 cup cashew nuts

1 tbsp chia seeds

1 tsp Maca powder

1tsp vanilla extract

1tbsp Raw honey

1 tbsp coconut oil

Fresh berries for the topping

Ground xylitol 

Method:

Whizz up the  ground almonds and figs/dates to a soft paste

Press into individual cases, I used a bun tray

Place in the fridge to firm up

Whizz up all the topping ingredients in the Vitamix until it's a custard consistency

Spoon into the individual 'bowls' 

Return to the fridge to firm up

Place berries one by one on top of the vanilla custard, and sprinkle with ground xylitol. 

Enjoy!!! 

Rx

Honestly Healthy Cleanse - My Thoughts

I'm thrilled with my 5 day Honestly Healthy Cleanse, and so is my partner John. We planned, bought and prepared every meal we ate from scratch following Natasha's recipes, and there were only a couple I wouldn't rush to make again. In the main they were tasty, easy to make, nutritious beyond belief, and left us both with a 'clean' feeling.

Johns a big meat eater, and didn't miss it one bit! How amazing is that. He went to work with a spring in his step every morning after a juice and a breakfast, and his colleagues commented on the fabulous looking lunches he was eating in the the staff room each day.

My overriding favourite meal was the falafel wraps with tomato salsa! A massive success, and one I'll be making in bulk to freeze. 

This buckwheat granola is a fave too, I've had it several times since as we made loads, and it goes with any milk. Today I made cashew nut milk, and sprinkled some cinnamon on the top. Yum! 

The watercress, roasted onion and pistachio salad was yummy too - and the Aubergine dip absolutely delicious. So easy to make if you have a Vitamix! I thank the Angels every day for mine. They are expensive but worth the best investment. 

All the juices on the cleanse tasted great; I'm used to juicing but even if you're not I think you'll find them all very palatable. Not too heavy on the greens for beginners!! 

I'm now a fully fledge convert to fennel thanks to Honestly Healthy. It's never really appealed to me but having had it loads over the five days it's now going to be a regular addition to my diet.

Had to give my beautiful daughter Lauren a little slot in my blogpost, she helped with the juicing. She's asked lots of questions all week on the recipes, and even though she's not eaten everything we've had, it's raised awareness for her of how to keep balance in the body. Children are like sponges, and mine definitely learn best through getting involved! 

Overall I did I lose a few pounds, which wasn't the aim but is always a welcome side effect! I felt clean on the inside and out, and my energy levels were constant throughout the day, even though I'm used to eat two snacks a day. 

We're carrying on using the book, and loosely following the Lifestyle phase but really just picking out a recipe for each meal  for now. and we'll see how it goes. Tonight we're having mini pizzas, I'm taking the kids,  and my best mates dog to the woods after school so they'll be quick to make when we get back. Last night I also made the sweet potato brownies, OMG to die for!! Almost as good as the nutty ones in my first Ebook Bakes, Bites and Bars - available at www.amazon.uk. 

So  a big thanks to Natasha and Vicky for highlighting the importance of eating the alkaline way - sure we can all make some changes to bring our body more in balance, and this book makes it really easy to do.

Have a great day and if you just do one thing different today to move you towards greater healthy and vitality - JUICE!!! 

Rx

Honestly Healthy Cleanse Day 2

Feeling great after yesterday's alkaline meals, up early this morning to begin again with some more! 

Hot water and lemon started the day, followed by another green drink- today's was The Ultimate Morning Wake Up smoothie. Verdict : Delicious!!! Mango, seeds, greens, super green powder and more. Mine was really thick, not sure if it was meant to be! It was like a meal in itself! 

Breakfast followed: Quinoa porridge with Macadamia nut milk. I made the milk myself in my new nut bag, it was so simple! Had goji berries with the porridge, and pomegranate (not had this for years, my gran used to give me a pin to pick out the seeds!) and felt satisfied all morning. 

Verdict : porridge has never been top of my breakfast list. This was good though, and the pomegranate added another dimension. Not sure I'd make it again though. 

Went for a long walk this morning with my mum and Millie , the golden retriever she looks after, and had plenty of energy! 

Lunch today was not something I ever would have picked - the combination of pear and fennel really didn't excite me at all. However, I'm determined to do these five days and stick to the HH recipes so I got stuck in and made it and ate it straight after. Verdict : It was amazing! It was so fresh, so creamy, so wholesome tasting, and the chunks of pear worked wonders in lifting the fennel to another level! I've frozen the rest and looking forward to more already. 

I put a pic on Instagram, and Natasha, from HH, commented that this is her 'fave'. It's rating pretty high on my list too! 

No pics for this afternoons snack - forgot again. Duh!!!! Hormonal brain very much in evidence this week. Anyway, suffice to say the spinach and hummus dip is the most vibrant green ever, and tastes like it's doing a power of good. I made the Raw Flax Seed Crackers to go with it, and started them off on the lowest temperature in the oven, but they appeared to be drying too quickly, so I tried to transfer them to the dehydrator. Not the best move; they were pretty stuck to the baking tray! Managed to get them off in bits, and once dehydrated the 'bits' tasted great, I just wouldn't be presenting them at a dinner party any time soon. 

Verdict : both tasted fab! No presentation prize for the crackers! 

Did PiYo this afternoon, hard core - with Melissa Mcallister. Lots of energy, still. 

Dinner: I gave John, my partner the book to make Watercress, roasted onion, and pistachio salad, with an oil dressing. Verdict : Simply delicious. 

So, day 2 over, thoroughly enjoyed it. Tummy not as flat as I feel it should be on such wholesome, fresh food, but that'll be my hormones again.... 

Rx