Hello Beautiful Nut!
How are you doing in this quarantine time? Have you managed to go out already? Honestly, it is a hard time, but about all it is a different time. I am getting to see this situation as a very challenging- opportunity given time. I am learning a lot! I am learning a lot about myself, about my partner, my relationship with my family, friends, job, and also the way I picture my future.
Today, I am bringing you… let’s call it an anecdote, something I was sure of, because I have experienced it myself, also something that has been shown in many studies but that I think my boyfriend could never imagine that it will happen to him! Hahaha
Because of the quarantine, he is weirdly spending all the time at home (he usually works abroad, travel a lot), eating the food I cook everyday, and in the same way I like to eat, he never can have a consistent healthy diet, as he travels and there where he goes is always difficult to find a quite good-fair healthy place to, more or less, keep a good habits on track.
The other day, we were like usual (now) having lunch at the roof terrace. I made a very, very simple chickpeas salad, not too fancy, but with lots of colours coming from the different ingredients I tossed in it. Fresh spinach, cherry tomatoes, baked beetroot, olives, some orange, fresh dill, cooked chickpeas, some avocado I believe… all dressed I guess with a mustard and tahini dressing (my favorite at the moment), when suddenly he said, “Oh my God, how good is that, I am really really enjoying this food so much! But not only this one, since we have been in quarantine, you have made so delicious food that I am really enjoying this time now…” . I was… ok, I think it is good, but not supreme! I mean an everyday salad (one of my salads). However, the next few days, he always repeated the same… Until the other day, talking about that more deeply, what he said is that he is tasting so much the flavours, much more than before… and I think I know why now.
After a bit of research and the things I have already studied and I have tried for myself, there are two main things that are really important in these facts that allows whoever is eating to enormously enjoy food without much fancy recipes for spouse or additives to make it tasty, and it is… are you ready?
- 1. Cut out in Sugar!!
- 2. Practice mindful eating!!
He actually did not realise before, he always liked to eat small sweet things with his two coffees, and maybe add some honey on it. But also from time to time to get a treat, not very much looking into nutritional labels and also not getting picky when he eats out. However, back home, he is not eating any of that. I know I look like the most evil witch, but seriously I just try to avoid those at home and make my own. I mean snacks without sugars, refined cereals or added “gratuite” sugars. Instead I use ripe bananas, or cinnamon or dates as much. And really trying to leave this kind of food even if healthy for occasional days or special events.
So as many researchers, he finally realised that, on one hand you can leave without sugar, you will enjoy the rest of the food much more… even the blandest broccoli will taste AMAZING! And on the other hand, you will take all the health benefits associated with cutting out sugars like first of all you will detox yourself from a very addictive substance which actually makes you be dependent of it (that’s why when you radically stop you can experience exhaustion, headaches, brain fog, irritability, even gastrointestinal distress), avoid inflammation in the skin, get better sleep in the long run, lose weight as you will eat less empty calories, dental health, future diabetes type 2 or obesity, even cancer. I think it is worthy…
The second habit he has realised is incorporating now is (one of the topics I have talked about the most) mindful eating. Just seat at the food table and look at the food without distractions, stay calm, giving yourself the time to process every bite to extract the flavours in it, is just something that’s really important if you wanna have a healthy relation with food, you want to enjoy eating, lower your stress levels and get all the nutrient enclosed on food, and….refine your palate!!! So brocoli just tastes amazing.
So… my next challenge for you is… could you stay far from added sugar and eating your homemade food mindfully for the next month and see what happens??
Very soon I will start a Challenge that will be called “ The Power of 5 Ritual” in which we will go through a structured change in our mindset, our habits, our palate in order to achieve a respectful way to nourish yourself in many ways. It will be all set in a few weeks so stay tuned if you wanna go a step further on the way you take care of yourself and get ready for flight
In the meantime, here is a recipe to start avoiding those sugars at the start of your day by cooking your own, “easypeasy” homemade GRANOLA, just with accessible and nutrient dense food. You will really enjoy making it but also feeling the reward of having a crafted breakfast ready each morning!
Take note!
Ingredients:
- 250 grams Oat
- 50gr Almonds
- 50 gr Walnuts
- 50 gr cashews
- 50gr raisins
- 50gr pumpkin seeds
- 150 gr coconut flakes
- 50 gr flax seeds
- 1 orange zest
- 1 orange juice
- 3 tablespoons virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon of: cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and turmeric
Method:
- Preheat the oven at 180ºC.
- Mix all the ingredients in a big bowl. First the dry ones, them the liquids.
- Spread the mix in an oven trail, quite spread!
- Put into the oven for a total of 20 minutes but after the first 10 minutes, give it a shake, move around, to avoid humid parts or too dry ones!
- Take it out of the oven and leave it cold down.
I stored it in a glass jar, just to make sure it can be closed properly and also is a dry, fresh place.
Enjoy it in every breakfast, snack or any time you want!
Dance me Nuts! 