WIAW #30

Hello, hello wonderful people!

It's Wednesday, I'm hungry and I'm ready to bombard this space with several pictures of food sublimity. :) Thanks to peas and Crayons as usual for this amazing link-up that connects so many of us bloggers and make sure you head on over (after squizzing through mine first, of course) to check out what everyone else has been nom-ing!

Lettuce begin!
Breakfast:
You know something's going to taste good when it turns out this colour:

 Today's breakfast featured some delicious vanilla protein powder steel cut oats (1/3 cup steel cut oats + 1 sliced banana + 1 scoop vegan vanilla protein powder +  big dash of cinnamon + sprinkle of chia seeds + about 1 1/2 cups almond milk- let bubble away for 15-20 mins and then stand for another 15 mins) along with some blueberry fro-yo (big handful of frozen blueberries + 3 big scoops of greek yoghurt- whazzed up in a little food processor)

 These are probably my favourite type of oats. Topped with some cashew butter:

 I made the fro-yo about 45 minutes before eating it so I could put it in the fridge to harden up :)

 It was like eating a Bulla frozen yoghurt ice cream!

 Just because I felt like my oats were feeling left out:

Fueled, filled and off to school we go!
*Edited to add* school was tough, tiring and my brain was hurting by 2nd period- exam revision, why you so hard?

I was ready for a Snack:Today's snack was this... but red:

Yes, I may have forgotten to snap a pic:)
Lunch:
Lunch was yum-ly yum! It was brown rice + red quinoa + steamed pumpkin + mixed four beans + peas + pesto! (this pesto was made with kale instead)

 Super yummy and filling- I get so excited for lunch when I'm at school that I want to eat it at recess! Although my humongous breakfasts keep me super full, so I don't even think I could!

 I just love the combo of rice, beans, pumpkin and pesto!
I also love the jealous looks I get around the lunch circle ;)

After a tiring day at school and an afternoon filled with some more homework/ revision, I needed a little something to brighten my day!
Snack:

This fruit couldn't have tasted better! Again, I was fueled and rip-roaring to go (as much as is possible for a tired 15-year old;)

Dinner:
Come dinner I was in a weird mood, didn't know what to eat and changed my mind repeatedly until finally deciding on this:

A big ol' plate of veggies- who says veggies should only take up half your plate?
On said plate was an oven roasted sweet potato (I pierce mine with a fork, microwave for 2 mins and then place in an oven at 180 degrees celsius for 40 mins) with it's insides mashed up with 2 of the best veggie sausages ever.

Some oven roasted brussles, cauliflower and broccoli: (I steamed these for 10 mins then placed them in the oven- 180- for 30 mins)

Lastly some tomato... just coz I felt like it :)

Perfectly ripe tomato is divine, I would eat it like an apple. (Trust me I've done it before- let's just say my lunch box was a little different to all the other 7 year olds ;)

Aaaannnddd.... that's what I ate!
How about you? Any super yummy eats recently?
Favourite fruit? Don't make me choose! Oh wait, that's right I'm making you choose! Haha, mine would be a tie between mango, grapes, water melon and banana :D
Favourite motivational food? I'm not sure, personally. Food in general seems to keep me pretty motivated :)

Thanks again Peas and Crayons!

See your lovely faces later! :D

Rhubarb- so underrated

Hey what's up ladies! (name that movie)
Random survey time! Raise your hand if you like rhubarb. Ok, raise your hand if you've never tried rhubarb. Raise your hand if you hate rhubarb. Right, so if you raised your hand for the last one... GET OUT! that's fine, we all like different things :)

 Now I'm sure there were a few of you who had never tried rhubarb and I totally understand. I'd never had it until a few months prior when I just wanted to experiment. Now there's no turning back- I love it! I just think people forget that it exists.

It's a strange thing rhubarb. First of all it's technically a perennial plant that appears to have stalks like celery. Even though it is a vegetable it is prepared and served as though it's a fruit! I bet you didn't know that you could eat it raw. I've never tried this because personally I preferred it stewed and made into delicious creations... such as:
A rhubarb/ apple crumble:

Rhubarb and Muesli Cookies:

Baked rhubarb oatmeal:

And most recently chopped up and stirred into my typical bowl of whipped banana oats:

Topped off with some crunchy peanut butter :)

Why do I love it so much?
It's not sweet, it feels like you're eating a tart dessert (especially if you balance the tartness with something sweet like banana) and I'm not a fan of overly sweet things so I love rhubarb in my desserts breakfasts ;)
There are so many other great rhubarb recipes out there besides my small selection listed above (trust me, I've book marked a fair few!)
Like this Rhubarb Pie Smoothie for instance:

 Or even this crazy looking Strawberry Rhubarb Soup!

Why Rhubarb?
Benefits:

• Not only is it low calorie, but it contains heaps of vitamins and minerals!
• Stalks are rich in several B vitamins
• Vitamin A- a powerful antioxidant that's good for eye health
• Good amounts of vitamin K

So make sure you hop on the rhubarb bandwagon, because it seriously is a delicious, nutritious, illustrious (ran out of 'ous' words:) food that everyone should try!

Food for thought:
Do you like rhubarb?
Do you love rhubarb?
Do you think rhubarb is a fun word to say? Just me?

Bye for now guys! :D

P.S. The movie was grown-ups, well done to those who got it!

Fat is my friend!

Hello friends. We're all friends here right? I'm friends with you, you're friends with me... we're all friends with fat.
Wait.
What?
That's right- I don't know about you, but fat is my friend and I'm proud of it!
I'm not talking about the bulging squishy stuff around the belly or the soggy burgers and fries from fast food joints. I'm talking about healthy fats- one of my BFF'S!
Why all the sudden love for fat? I've always been a fan of healthy fats and their filling qualities and tasty... tastes, but recently a few of my peers have gone off the important nutrient, weary of the high calorie count found in high fat foods.
But remember there's a difference!

Saturated fats should be consumed with caution and trans fats... shouldn't be consumed full stop, but monounsaturated and unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats shouldn't be feared! Unsaturated fat is encouraged as part of a healthy diet for a reason!

Not only do they make you look great (think strong hair, healthy skin + good complexion and strong nails) but your internal-ness will thank you too! Your brain is mainly made of cholesterol and fat so better brain function is inevitable and another result is stronger bones and eye health. I mean, there's a reason it's on the healthy living pyramid: 

The other thing that ticks me off about this new diet plan (come on teenage girls- think healthy!) is the substitutions. If they're gonna eat, you're gonna bet it's low-fat!

Producer- 'Ok, let's take the fat out!'
Worker- 'Ok, but what will we put in instead?'
Producer- 'Anything that makes it taste good but contains no fat!'
Worker- 'Sugar, salt, artificial fillers and unheard of ingredients taste good!'

Me- 'Why are people allowed to do this?'

I'll say it again. Fat is my friend and I love the taste of it, whether it's:
Nut butter on toast:

Roast veggies

Vanilla protein powder Oats with peanut butter

Scrambled eggs with rice and salsa, steamed veggies and mashed avocado with organic blue maize tortilla chips:

Give me all the fat!

Now, I'm not saying eat fat all the time in vast amounts. Healthy fats are high calories and like absolutely everything in life (including water!) too much of a good thing is bad. But that is the same for anything you eat.

I love this. This is the only diet I believe in. There's no special trick or strange diet no one's heard of before that will make you happy, healthy and lovin' life like the one mentioned above :) I like how forward it is.

Food for thought:
Have you ever avoided all fats because of the calories? I will admit I've been there before.

Do you still? Nowadays healthy fat makes up a big part of my diet.

What's your favourite healthy fat? Hello peanut butter!


That's it from me! See you later! :D

Berry good pancakes!

I LOVE PANCAKES! PANCAKES I LOVE!
Sorry about the shouting, but I needed to express my feelings for pancakes and caps-lock seemed the most appropriate :)

As it is Sunday I had pancakes for breakfast.
Not just any pancakes.
Pink pancakes.
Pink, berry pancakes,
Vegan, dairy free, nut free, wheat free, no added sugar, pink, berry pancakes.
DELICIOUS PANCAKES! Who wants some?

These little guys were so fluffy, a bit chewy and definitely berry-y :)
And seriously... pink pancakes; does it get any better?

Ingredients:
25g wholemeal spelt flour
15g rolled oats
5g oatbran
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup milk of choice (I used oat milk)

Berry mixture:
1 cup fresh/ frozen mixed berries
1/2 tablespoon chia seeds

Method:
1. Make the berry micture by getting your berries:

Either microwaving them for 1 min 30, or placing on the stove until cooked through:

Then place in a small food processor with the chia seeds and whaz until smooth:

2. Place all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and stir to combine.

3. Add half of the berry mixture (save the rest for later or top pancakes with it) and milk. Stir until smooth:

Leave to sit and thicken.
4. Now, these pancakes are great with ice cream, so if you have a frozen banana lying around, chuck it in the food processor and whaz until smooth (scraping down the sides if necessary)

5. Your pancake batter may appear to have little bubbles now- and that's good! It means you will have fluffy pancakes!

6. Heat a non stick frypan on medium head, place a bit of oil in the pan and then spoon on your mixture:

7. Once quite a few bubbles start to appear, flip! (around 2-3 mins)

8. Cook on other side until golden brown
9. Top with anything (leftover berry mixture, nut butter, coconut butter, syrup, butter, etc.)

I went with cashew butter and coconut butter:

10. ENJOY!

The tartness from the berries pairs quite nicely with the sweet banana ice cream :)

 Yum :)

Food for thought:
What's your favourite pancake flavour?
Favourite pancake topping?
Favourite colour? Then I'll see if I can make pancakes that colour!

See ya later! :D