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Lunchbox, Sides

That Beetroot Salad

Beetroot has long filled the cells of mankind with mega antioxidants, and enough iron to make Popeye quake.

Beetroot puts the super into superfood (and sometimes the hell into healthy, if not cooked adequately). Sometimes I wish Vanilla Ice had included them in his big hit.

This earthy vegetable is a real friend to the kidneys, we’re told. So don’t freak out when your pee turns crimson. That red plant pigment holds a compound called betacyanin, commissioned to do all sorts of fancy ripostes in your bloodstream. The Russians have long known beet’s secret. This might help explain how the Russians can survive Siberia’s winter temperatures, and yet another term of Putin.

Freshly juiced, beets appear to enjoy great repute in cancer care clinics across the globe. I reckon it’s because they taste so sweet and gorgeous, rather than their nutritional currency. Nevertheless, beets are still ranked as one of the most underused and misunderstood veggies. Both cooked and raw beetroot are easy to find in supermarkets, yet doesn’t always mosey their way into our shopping trolleys. Shame that.

 

beet salad healthy 

 

A side of beet, yoghurt and almond

Beetroot ain’t that fussy, so long as it has a lick of olive oil and lemon. This purple veg has helped propel Avoca into celebrity status on the restaurant circuit (you know the dish? Thinly sliced beetroot, thick yoghurt and flaked almonds). My husband once sang the soundtrack to Frozen in Polish for an extra helping from the dinner lady.

It really isn’t necessary to put your husband through that, so here’s the recipe. From them to me, and from me to you. Go bonkers.

Serves 4

3 tablespoons flaked almonds
4 tablespoons of natural yoghurt
Squeeze of lemon, plus a little zest
A few twists of the salt and pepper mill
1 small clove garlic, crushed
4 cooked beetroot (vacuum pack are handy)

 

Start by tanning your flaked almonds in a hot oven for 6 minutes until kissed by a golden zephyr. 200 Celsius will do the trick. If they turn a shade darker, your taste buds will be deeply disappointed.

While the flaked almonds are on the clock, whip your yoghurt with a little lemon and zest to taste, salt and pepper as you like it, and the crushed garlic.

Take the almonds out to cool.

Thinly slice the beetroot and let the yoghurt join the party. Finish with a flurry of tanned almonds on top. That’s all there is to it.

Change it up from time to time with capers, segments of orange, diced red onion or grated boiled egg. It’s a fabulously handy recipe.

 

July 19, 2016
Events, Treats & Snacks, x For Freezer x

Kickass 5-Ingredient Cookies

I’m greedy and desperate enough to have alchemised my favourite junk food snack into a nutritional fox trot.

So here it is … an unreasonably tasty cookie that has been shamelessly flirting with me everyday for the past 3 months.

 

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

 

Check out this recipe – no hydrogenated fat, white sugar, artificial shite or additives. Just pure, unadulterated goodness with added omega 3 and calcium from some swanky chia.

The best part?

It doesn’t taste “pure” my friends. These cookies are not just for geezers (me) who fetishise loose leaf tea. It’s full on nasty. I’m not interested in sacrificing my taste buds just to put something healthy in my mouth. No thanks. Misery ain’t no ingredient in my pantry.

 

susan jane peanut butter chocolate chip cookies

 

These are a version of the American Peanut Butter Cookies I have in my second cookbook. #plug . Adding chocolate chips, extra baking powder and chia seed turn them into a very different sonata. Think opera.

Scientists, look away while I mutilate your language: one teaspoon of baking powder will produce a rounder, firmer cookie (see above). Pretty groovy. But then! Two teaspoons of baking powder will significantly inflate the cookies in the oven, making them flatter and significantly chewier once settled (see picture below). It’s science, innit?!

Have a good summer y’all! Let me know how you get along with this recipe – just tag them in your Instagram account and I’ll hunt you down.

 

Makes 20

3/4 cup good quality peanut butter (200g)
3/4 cup coconut sugar or rapadura sugar (100g)
1-2 teaspoons baking powder (see note above)
2 tablespoons milled chia seed
1 egg
Handful of dark chocolate chunks

 

Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.

Blend all the ingredients together in a large bowl with a fork and tenacity. Roll into little ping pong-sized balls, and flatten with the back of a fork or your palm. Not too skinny though – you’re looking for uniformity so each cookie bakes at a similar rate. You can cook one tray, and freeze the remaining dough no problem.

Cook in your preheated oven for 10–12 minutes, before they turn brown or crisp. Don’t panic if they appear soft – you’re on the right track, as they harden and deflate once cooled.

Resist the temptation to wolf them hot from the oven. I’m still nursing my sore tongue.

 

peanut butter cookies

July 13, 2016
Events, x Skin Food x

Skin Food: part 1

Given that our body absorbs 60% of what we put on our skin, I think my skincare has inadvertently become part of my diet.

And yours has too.

*silent gaping*

Take a look into your bathroom cupboard. Grab your favourite product, and Google the ingredient list. Go on!

Freaked out? Let’s change that. I’m here to help.

I ditched nasty skincare and junk food over a decade ago. The biggest surprise of all? I look and feel younger now, than I did when I was 25, and I’ve a heck of a lot more energy too.

Rethinking your skincare regime is much easier than reformulating your diet. It’s a quicker journey with fewer steps, and involves complete indulgence. Score! If you’re worried about a pal’s health, skincare is the quickest way to convert them to a wholefood diet. Crazy, right? It’s the great gateway drug my friends. Once you start to glow from the outside, imagine what food could do for your body from the inside?

There are amazing green companies and indie brands revolutionising the beauty industry right now. I wanted to give them some credit here, and to share with you my favourite finds since I first loafed my cheap skincare regime.

With retrospect, I must have smelled like a dirty brothel during my twenties. When you make the change from conventional, mass-produced skincare products to organic, mindfully crafted products, you’ll see what I mean. It’s like comparing Peter Andre with Damien Rice. Once you find the latter, you’ll wonder what in the name of Goofy did you see in the former.

So here we go. A suite of skincare blog posts, with kickass small companies treading lighter on the planet and genuinely giving a toss about your skin. They deserve our support. So does your body.

Let me know what your favourites are in the comment section below. I’d love to hear your thoughts too.

xxx SJW

susan jane beauty reviews

 

> Carrot & Sweet Almond Oil by Fushi <

Crazy cool experience, and a very reasonable beauty fix for €13. Strong taste of carrots – pretty trippy (yes, this is an oil used for dressings, just like avocado oil and olive oil. But perfect for the face).

HORRAY FOR …

… its stash of super powers. This specialised oil is practically humming with carotenoids, considered Mother Nature’s retinol. Luckily, plant derived vitamin A (beta carotene) is always much safer and softer than the synthetically derived vitamin A. Albeit a much more diluted form.

Fushi is very reasonable too, and do a range of other venerable raw ingredients to make your own personalised skincare range including shea butter and argan oil. Here’s the link.

OH DRAT …

Can stain your pillowcase if it’s not thoroughly absorbed into your skin at night. Good excuse to stay up and read the latest Caitlin Moran though.

LOVEBOMB FOR …

Mature or sun damaged skin. Sweet almond oil has a moderate comedogenic rating, which means it doesn’t block pores like you might expect, nor does it actively clear pores.

 

 

> Skin Food body butter by Weleda <

It’s on the cheaper side of the natural green skincare range, available at your local health food store or savvy pharmacy for €14.

HORRAY FOR …

Feels deeply nourishing like a margarita after a long day at work. Flipping brilliant stuff. Absorbs quickly, leaving a glorious sheen. Great overnight foot treatment this time of year too.

OH DRAT …

No drats.

LOVEBOMB FOR

Everyone, from nipper to grandpa.

 

weleda skin food review

 

> Absolute Jasmine by Neals Yard <

I’ve been wearing this neat (erm, apparently you’re not supposed to use it neat) for over 10 years now. And I levitate when I smell me. So too, does my hubbie. You can add it to shea butter to create a perfume salve for necks and wrists.

HORRAY FOR…

The whiff. Peerless stuff.

OH DRAT …

Neals Yard don’t have branches in Ireland. Despair! However, I find their online service is very swift.

LOVEBOMB FOR …

Hot blooded felines

 

 

> Children’s Chest Balm for coughs and colds by Neals Yard <

It’s posh Karvol, that really works. No un-pronounceables in the ingredients list. Organic, natural, and pure – exactly what you want for your little nippers. Does the job beautifully to help decongest snots and chesties.

HORRAY FOR …

The absolute integrity behind the product, and the effectiveness of the balm. This is also true of Neal’s Yard’s portfolio of other products.

OH DRAT …

Online only for Ireland (although there are select pharmacies across Ireland now stocking NYR, see comment section below).

LOVEBOMB FOR …

Our little kiddies and their vulnerable immune systems

 

 

> 100% Barbary Fig Oil (prickly pear oil) by Poppy Austin <

Prickly Pear has even more vitamin E and antioxidant powers than argan oil. Thunderous hurrah!

Vitamin E is hailed as one of the most hydrating and important beauty vitamins. Particularly good for my sleep-deprived peepers. Costs around 150€ here but currently cheaper on amazon.co.uk with Poppy Austin.

HORRAY FOR …

The serum glides on very easily, soaks in immediately, and doesn’t block pores. These are great virtues for a face oil. Prickly pear seed oil has started a crazed frenzy among the green beauty industry. It’s the new argan, apparently. So I had to try it. I’m a little bored of it now, so I’m hoping this oil will freeze until I resuscitate my enthusiasm. Besides, I’m hooked on something else right now (more on that in September!)

OH DRAT …

It honks. And it’s pricey. Best to go “halvers” with a pal and share the bottle. Combine with your favourite facial serum like cold-pressed organic avocado oil, hemp seed oil, argan oil or rose hip seed oil. You might need a few drops (maximum) of top class frankincense essential oil to distract from the woof. Or jasmine. Or neroli. Bergamot good too.

LOVEBOMB FOR …

All skin types. Especially new mamas and sleep deprived sistas.

 

 

 

goji heart

 

And finally, from the Department of Disclosure:

1.     I will only review products I like, and whose work ethics I dig (ingredients derived by nature, organically or mindfully, with no hidden nasties). My grandma always says “if you’ve nothing nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.” While generally this advice can be very unhelpful in many situations, especially if you count yourself as a modern woman or feminist, I think it’s probably spot on for my blog post.

2.     I do not receive freebies, payment, nor contra in any form for the products that I review on my website.

3.     If I receive sample products to review for my site, you will be the first to know. Full disclosure. You are my friends. I have no intention to mess with your mind.

 

 

 

 

July 6, 2016
A special announcement

Join me on Substack

Howdy! I’ll be deleting this website shortly. Gah! But please stay in touch – I so appreciate your loyalty and lovebombs.

You can continue to access my recipe drops over on Substack.  Hope to see you there, and to continue frolicking on this veggie-fueled dance floor.