This is a real crowd-pleaser that an Italian lady taught me to make when I was au-pairing in Rome. Rather then being fried, the meatballs are actually cooked in the tomato sauce. You really need lean meat for this otherwise you’ll have a lot of fat floating on the serface. Its up to you (and incidentally saturated fat is not the demon we were led to believe – much scientific evidence now to prove it).
If you would like to reduce the quantity of meat in the recipe, substitute cooked puy lentils for some of the meat. Raw meatballs freeze well too – just thaw thoroughly before cooking in tomato sauce.
For 5-6 big eaters
For the meatballs:
350g lean beef mince, organic if possible
350g lean lamb mince (or use extra beef mince if you prefer)
2 tbs freshly grated parmesan (if avoiding dairy, use 100% wholemeal gluten-free breadcrumbs instead of the cheese. If you eat gluten, normal brown crumbs are OK)
1 heaped tsp fresh thyme leaves
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
A few good grinds of black pepper
1 organic egg, beaten
A pinch of himalayan or Atlantic sea salt
For the sauce:
1 litre passata (sieved tomatoes)
1 onion, peeled and halved.
1 dsp extra virgin olive oil
Small bunch fresh basil, rinsed, if you have it.
1. In a bowl combine all the meatball ingredients and mix well – the quickest way to do this is with your hands.
2. Shape into balls about ¾” in diameter and place in a single layer on a plate in the fridge to solidify for at least ½ hour if possible.
3. To make the tomato sauce combine the passata, the peeled halved onion and olive oil in a wide-bottomed saucepan or deep frying pan, bring to the boil, then simmer until the onion is translucent – usually about 20 minutes. This sauce can be made up to 2 days in advance if you wish.
4. To cook the meatballs, bring the tomato sauce up to the boil in your wide bottomed saucepan or frying pan, then gently slide the meatballs in so they form a single layer. Do not stir (or you will break up the meatballs), just shake gently if necessary to distribute the meatballs in a single layer.
5. Cook on a medium heat for around 20 minutes until the meatballs are cooked through.
6. Remove the stalks from the basil, tear up roughly and add to the pan. Serve in bowls.
Serve with:
A large salad of green leaves and radicchio, cucumber and thinly sliced red onions
Optional extra (if you don’t want weight loss). Choose one:
A slice of gluten-free wholemeal bread or (if you eat gluten) some 100% wholemeal sourdough bread
2-3 baby boiled potatoes per person
Why this is good for you: Cooking meat at low temperature in the sauce avoids the production of the harmful oxidation products. Oxidation by products from charring food cause free radical damage, linked to digestive and skin problems, inflammation and premature ageing. Tomato sauce is very rich in lycopene, a potent anti ageing, anti-inflammatory antioxidant. Red meat is a good source of iron so for many people it’s useful to eat once or twice a week.
This is a nice, comforting weekday recipe and is great value too. It freezes well to give you a stash of ready meals.
Indian lentil dhal
For 3 See “larder & shopping” section for unusual ingredients
1 rounded dsp extra virgin coconut oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 pint boiling water (or water leftover from steaming vegetables)
1 tsp Dr Coy’s Vegetable Bouillon (for SC Diet). Otherwise Kallo low salt veg stock cube (optional) or 1level tsp Vecon vegetable bouillon
28g creamed coconut, grated or chopped up – or 2 tbs thick tinned full fat coconut milk
Black pepper
1 level tsp (teaspoon) turmeric
1 rounded tsp garam masala (from Asian shops or make your own by grinding 25 g each of cardamom seeds, cloves, cinnamon sticks, black peppercorns in a coffee grinder or mini food processor to a fine powder)
225g/1 cup/230ml red lentils
Optional: a handful of fresh (rinsed and destalked) coriander leaves to garnish
Put onions, oil, 1 tsp water into a saucepan, cover and sweat 5 mins until onions are softened.
Add spices, garlic, cook 2 mins. Add a tablespoon or two of water if the mixture is dry.
Stir in the lentils, cook 1 min, add the boiling water. NB Don’t add stock cube or salt-containing vegetable bouillon before lentils are cooked or they will toughen and take forever.
Bring to the boil, cover and cook on a gentle heat for 20 mins or until soft.
Meanwhile dissolve the veg stock cube or bouillon if using in a little boiling water. Stir the chopped/grated coconut or thick coconut milk and the dissolved stock cube (if using) into the cooked lentils until dissolved. The mixture should be soft but not sloppy.
Season to taste, adding more water if you want the mix thinner.
Scatter over the coriander leaves if using
Serve with:
At least 1/2 a plateful steamed greens and other vegetables per person (e.g. shredded cabbage, broccoli florets, mange tout peas, sugar snaps, green beans and cauliflower, sliced carrots or sliced/diced turnips) and optionally (if you’re NOT on SC Diet) a little brown rice
Why this recipe is good for you: Spices and herbs lower inflammation and delay the onset of wrinkles! Soluble fibre in lentils and beans feeds good gut bacteria needed for a healthy immune system, good digestive and bowel function and hormonal balance. This type of fibre lowers cholesterol, and helps eliminate used hormones and toxins by sticking to them in the gut, carrying them safely out through the bowels. Coconut oil contains medium chain triglycerides that go to help energy production rather then being stored in your body as fat. These medium chain triglycerides are also helpful for brain function, especially for anyone experiencing age-related memory decline. Lentils and brown rice are also rich in B vitamins needed for energy production, libido, stress control and mood. Deficiency of B vitamins is common if you are stressed or regularly eat refined foods, stimulants or drink excess alcohol.
The most gorgeous crumble I ever ate was made by my flatmate John from a glut of Victoria plums in the front garden. This jewel-red crumble from apples and berries reminds me of it. Use apples and blackberries, raspberries or even blackcurrants, or apples on their own, or plums. If you use plums it’s a good idea to quarter them and take out the stones before cooking. Just make sure you have around 1000g of fruit in total – it doesn’t have to be exact though. Remember to taste the fruit mix as soon as it has softened in the pan, adding more sweetening if you need to. Here I have used 900g apple and 100g of blackberries.
For 6 servings:
Fruit mix
1kg cooking apples (or add some red fruits and reduce the amounts of apple)
4 tbs water
Sweetening to taste: I use 30 drops of stevia or a couple of tablespoons of xylitol/erythritol (health shops)
140g blackberries (about a mugful) thawed or fresh
Crumble topping
30g virgin coconut oil, ghee, avocado oil (or, if you eat dairy, normal butter, organic if possible)
100g ground almonds
100g gluten-free oat flour (make by whizzing GF oats in your food processor) or use normal oats if you have no problem with oats
1 heaped tbs xylitol or erythritol (or a little more to taste, if you like)
A little extra oil for greasing
Pyrex/ovenproof dish/small roasting pan (I use one 17 x 27 x 6cm high and the quantities work well.
1. Preheat oven to 170c.
2. Prepare the apples by washing, peeling and slicing. Grease your dish with whatever sort of oil you are using. Layer the apples and blackberries in your dish, sprinkling over some xylitol/erythritol on each layer until all the sweetening is used up. If you are using stevia drops instead, put them in about 3 tbs of water and use this to sprinkle over the layers until everything is used up.
4. In a bowl or food processor mix the oat flour, ground almonds and xylitol/erythritol. Rub in or process the coconut oil, ghee or butter or mix in the avocado oil until the whole thing looks a bit like breadcrumbs.
5. Pour the fruit mix into the dish, spread the topping over evenly, and bake in the oven until the top is lightly browned, about 30 minutes.
Why this is better for you: Cooked apples are a rich source of pectin, a type of prebiotic fibre that feeds your beneficial gut bacteria so critical for your immune system (and your whole body). Prebiotic fibre in oats, berries and plums also feeds good bugs. If your weekly eating contains many different types of plants, herbs and spices you will be working wonders for your gut bacteria and your health. Different beneficial bacteria need different plant fibres.
The crumble topping in this dessert is gluten-free. Gluten is difficult for anybody to digest, not just people with gluten-intolerance or coeliac disease. Gluten grains, especially wheat, are also high in phytates. Phytates are natural plant substances that inhibit you from absorbing important minerals in your diet (e.g. zinc, needed for efficient immunity).
If you are dairy-intolerant, you can still enjoy dairy in the form of ghee (clarified butter). This is where the butter is heated until it seperates. The milky white liquid on the bottom, underneath the pure butter fat, is discarded. This gets rid of the casein (dairy protein) that is a problem for people with dairy intolerances. Avocado oil is also a good choice for crumbles as it isn’t converted by the heat of the oven into a toxic fat. Avocado oil and olive oil are monounsaturated fats so much less damaged by heat then nut/seed oils like rape, sunflower or vegetable oil.
Virgin coconut oil iis also good as it contains capryllic acid and medium chain triglycerides. Capryllic acid helps inhibit overgrowth of disease-causing yeasts/candida in your gut. Medium chain triglycerides are a good source of energy which are easily digested and are burnt for energy rather than being converted into body fat.
Just concocted this for breakfast today. I had lots of foraged blackberries in the freezer and had taken out a cupful to thaw overnight. I have to say it was fab, and SOOO SIMPLE. I make mine so thick I eat it with a spoon, but you can also make it thinner with more liquid. This will keep you full for ages with its generous amounts of healthy protein, good fats and only small amounts of carbohydrate (sugars). It’s also a genius way of incorporating the fermented superfood, keffir, into your diet. Blueberries or mixed frozen berries also work fine instead of the blackberries. For the ground seeds, I grind organic seeds, keeping them fresh in a glass screw top jar in the fridge. It’s best this way but you can of course buy a good cold-milled ready-made brand like Linwood’s and store airtight in the fridge.
What you need (for one person):
1. Liquid: 200ml liquid + extra to thin: additive-free almond/coconut milk with no added sugar. (If you eat gluten, you can use unsweetened oat milk instead if you like and if you eat dairy you can use kefir or cow/goat milk)
2. Protein and good-for-you fats: One scoop high quality protein powder – my favourites are Sunwarrior Warrior Blend Vanilla and Solgar Whey to Go vanilla (which contains dairy). You could also use sprouted rice protein, hemp protein or pea protein or a mixture of them to give a more neutral flavour. 1 tbs ground seed blend – pumpkin, flax, sesame and sunflower
Optional: 1/4-½ a ripe avocado
3. Antioxidant-rich fruits: 1 cup fresh or thawed frozen blackberries, blueberries or mixed berries.
4. Optional sweetening if needed:
If you use Sun Warrior protein powders they usually contain stevia so you don’t need extra sweetening.
Stevia drops/powder or, if you don’t have it, Xylitol to taste
To make:
Blitz everything together for a minute or two. If you like a thinner drink, add more liquid. Enjoy…
Why this is great for you Berries are a great source of bioflavonoids, naturally occorring plant substances that help build and maintain collagen in your skin, bones and connective tissue. This means firmer, younger looking skin and stronger bones. Berries also contain salicylates. Salicylates are substances related to aspirin, that also have an anti-inflammatory effect. Making this a thick breakfast that you eat with a spoon means you will eat it more slowly, allowing the food to mix with the digestive enzymes produced in your mouth. This allows you to digest it even better than simply knocking back a thinner drink in 5 seconds.
Avocados are a good source of monounsaturated fats and vitamin E, both of which are good for your heart and skin health. Vitamin E helps dampen down allergies and inflammation (eg hives, eczema). Vitamin E is also important to help vitamin C be used in your body. This again helps build collagen, bones and keep your blood flowing properly to all areas of your body. Vitamin E moisturises your skin from within. If your skin is healthy you will never need to use moisturisers except maybe on your feet, where slight natural hardening of the skin protects your feet. Ground seeds and lecithin produce essential fats for better skin, hair and general health. Non genetically-modified (non GMO) lecithin provides phosphatidyl choline, crucial for cognitive function. Phosphatidyl choline is found in organ meats and organic egg yolks. So if you don’t often eat those foods, lecithin is really important. Good quality protein and good fats are important to eat at breakfast and every meal. Low protein, high grain diets are the main cause of weight gain, diabetes and cognitive/mental health issues as well as digestive issues and skin problems. For more information, read “Grain Brain” by David Perlmutter.
This super-simple dessert used carob powder to give a lovely, chocolatey flavour. Carob is a tropical pod that contains a sweet, edible pulp and inedible seeds. After drying, the pulp is roasted and ground into a powder. It has a flavour a bit similar to chocolate. The sugars in cashew nuts, bananas and carob make this dessert very sweet. You will get the smoothest texture if you grind the cashew nuts very finely on their own in a coffee/spice grinder before adding to the other ingredients but its still lovely if you don’t bother. I never do. the recipe is from “Cooking without” by Barbara Cousins.
For 4
115g/1 cup raw cashew nuts
15ml/1 tbsp carob powder (health stores and gourmet shops), sifted
140ml filtered water or unsweetened additive-free non-dairy milk (e.g. almond, hemp milk, coconut)
2 large bananas
1 tbsp flaked almonds
1. Blitz everything in a small food processor for 2 minutes until smooth and creamy.
2. Spoon into 4 ramekins/glasses and refrigerate minimum 20 mins or overnight.
3.Toast flaked almonds lightly on a dry frying pan until very slightly coloured. Just before serving, sprinkle on top of the carob cream.
Variation:
If you are feeling fancy, add a sprig of fresh mint and serve with a side of fresh raspberries.
Why this is better for you: This dessert is a good, easy to make “treat”. Its not intended to be eaten every day as it has far more natural sugars than you need in a healthy diet. Carob is a great substitute for chocolate. Chocolate contains at least 2 stimulants – caffeine and theobromine. These stimulate your nervous system, which, in turn, increases heart rate and contracts muscles. It’s a lot like the fight-or-flight response. The better quality chocolate (over 70% cocoa and ideally organic) contains some good antioxidants but eating more than a couple of small squares once or twice a week would be loading you up with stimulants – just like drinking coffee does.
Cashew nuts contain some protein and beneficial fats help keep your blood sugar levels (and energy and mood) even. Although bananas are high in sugars and not much else, they do contain fructo-oligosaccharides which can help feed beneficial bacteria in your gut. Beneficial bacteria are needed for mood, clear skin, healthy digestion. They are also important for your immune system to protect against infections, colds and abnormal growths.
These are a simple-to-make confection from Sarah Jane White, whose book, The Extra Virgin Kitchen, is a favourite of mine. I made them today and they turned out a totally delicious treat that’s bright green. As the author says, they are idiot-proof. Although you are supposed to freeze them I didn’t bother and just chilled them down to harden them a bit. Yum!
If you are gluten-free, remember that vanilla “essence” can contain gluten while vanilla extract (made from actual vanilla) is gluten-free.
Buy matcha green tea powder in Asian shops or health stores.
Makes 16
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or a generous pinch of vanilla powder)
3 level teaspoons matcha green tea powder
125g desiccated coconut
2 tbs coconut flour
Pinch sea salt/Himalayan salt
3 rounded tbs coconut oil
2-4 level tbs honey
Pinch dried ground turmeric
Quick squeeze fresh lemon juice (2 dessertspoons, give or take)
Food processor
Line a flat plate or baking sheet with greaseproof paper.
Add the ingredients to the food processor and blitz for 30 seconds, or until the mix starts to form a ball.
The next thing you want to do is shape the dough using 2 dessertspoons or small soup spoons. Scoop out a small spoonful of dough and form it into a mini macaroon or madeleine shape using both spoons. As Sarah Jane suggests, you could also use one of those special metric tablespoon you can buy from kitchen suppliers, to give a professional looking shape.
Freeze the macaroons until they are solid, then transfer to your fridge.
Why these are good for you: Green tea has health benefits as they are laden with antioxidant catechins. Green tea promotes the growth of beneficial bacteria in your gut which are helpful for clear skin, super-efficient digestion and absorption of nutrients. Good bacteria are also responsible for helping remove toxic chemicals and used-up hormones from your body quickly and safely. Green tea also contains L-theanine, an amino acid that can be super-helpful for reducing stress or anxiety. Coconut oil is a great source of medium chain triglycerides. These help feed your brain and also supply ready energy to your body without being converted to fat! Lemon juice has antioxidant properties and helps boost liver function, to help rid you of all those natural and man-made toxins your body works to get rid of every minute of every hour.
This unctious, tangy pesto is one I’d call a real crowd-pleaser and people will think you spent hours making it! Today we grilled some salmon darnes and had a huge dollop of this on the side with some steamed veg for a quick weekday dinner. The pesto keeps for about a week in a clean airtight glass jar in the fridge. It is fantastic served with some steamed carrots/pak choi/spinach/courgettes and a grilled or steamed piece of fish or chicken. For a snack or decadent breakfast spread it thickly on some wholemeal gluten-free or (if you eat gluten) 100% rye 100% sourdough toast with perhaps some sliced tomato (and a little crumbled goat/sheeps feta chees if you eat dairy) on top.
For a generous jar with 6 servings
4 small green chillies, stalks removed (optional)
100g fresh coriander, stalks and leaves, washed and cut up in 2-3cm lengths
25-30g organic raw pumpkin seeds or half pumpkin half sunflower seeds (you could also use almonds or walnuts if you don’t have any seeds)
2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and roughly cut up
Extra virgin olive oil (about 150ml)
Pinch of Himalayan/Atlantic sea salt
Juice of 2 limes (or use juice of a lemon if you cant get limes)
1. Combine all the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor, grind until smooth.
2. Add the olive oil as you go until you achieve a thick, consistency. If you want a pouring consistency, add more oil.
Why this is good for you: Fresh coriander binds to toxic metals in your gut and gets them safely out of your body. So if you have mercury dental fillings, for example, this is a great thing for you to eat. Coriander and lemon juice have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory properties to keep your skin clear, younger and fresher longer. Lime or lemon juice also aids digestion at mealtimes. As many people struggle to make enough digestive juice to fully break down their food, it can be a helpful addition to a meal. Garlic helps kill gut infections such as candida overgrowth and parasites, which are REALLY common, even in Ireland! But garlic also encourages growth of beneficial bacteria in your gut. Harmful candida and parasites cause many digestive problems, skin disorders and even mood problems that I make dealing with them a priority in nutrition clinic. Extra virgin raw olive oil is also packed with antioxidant vitamin E, which helps reduce your tendancy to allergy as well as moisturising your skin from within. Eating this pesto helps balance your gut bacteria in favour of the good, helpful ones.
I made these raw protein bars for snacks a few weeks ago, adapted from Christine Bailey’s recipe. I meant to bring the leftovers in to my nutrition clinic to share with colleagues but somehow we just couldn’t bear to part with them. We ate the lot over the following week. These are quite like the Nakd bars you find in health stores. This bar is perfect when you are short of time and need something to support your blood sugar levels and you want something sweet. These are a good emergency breakfast option, post-gym snack or lunchbox treat. These can be frozen in batches for up to a month.
Makes 12 large bars For unusual ingredients, don’t forget to check out “larder & shopping”
200g/1½ cups raw Brazil nuts
60g gluten-free organic porridge oats or buckwheat flakes
30g ground chia seeds (buy ready-ground or use a coffee/spice grinder)
250g dried unsulphured apricots, soaked overnight in filtered water/250g dried apricots plus 6 tbs water/freshly squeezed orange juice
3 heaped tbs unsweetened or vanilla protein powder (Nua Naturals rice protein, Nuzest Clean Lean Protein or Sunwarrior Classic/Warrior blend are all great. Solgar Whey-to-go vanilla is another option if eat dairy and are using this snack for sports nutrition/muscle recovery.
Zest of 1 orange, organic if possible
Pinch of Himalayan or Atlantic Sea Salt
Essential equipment: food processor
1. Chop the apricots roughly. If you have not already done so, grind the chia seeds and set aside.
2. Place the nuts and oats in a food processor and process until fine. Add the chia, apricots, protein powder and orange zest and process till well mixed. If you have used soaked apricots this will usually form a dough. If your apricots are unsoaked then you will need to start adding the orange juice or water about 2 tbs at a time, pulsing in between, until the mixture forms a dough. The amount of liquid needed will vary depending how dry the apricots are.
3. Press the mixture into a 20cm square tin lined with baking parchment and freeze for at least 1 hour so it firms up enough to cut neatly.
4. When frozen, cut into 12 bars. Store in the fridge or freezer until needed.
Note: It’s important that the chia seeds be ground. This helps the bars stick together really well.
Variations:
For a gingerbread version, add 1 level tsp each of ground ginger and cinnamon along with the protein powder.
For a chocolatey version, add 2 heaped teaspoons pure cocoa powder along with the protein powder.
Why these bars are better for you: Because these bars contain protein from the nuts, seeds and protein powder, they help keep you feeling fuller much longer. The fact that they are raw means more nutrients such as essential omega 3 and 6 oils. Brazil nuts are a rich source of magnesium which helps relax the bowel to prevent constipation. The bars are rich in crucial minerals such as selenium and iron which are important for the thyroid gland, brain function and energy production. Buying unsulphured (brown) apricots in the health store avoids the sulphur dioxide that causes unpleasant digestive symptoms for so many people. Sulphur dioxide is added to many dried fruits as a preservative and is always listed on the packet so its easy to avoid by paying attention to labels.
Christine Bailey is a successful nutritional therapist who published The Functional Nutrition Cookbook in 2012. It contains over 130 tasty recipes that are super-healthy but also delicious.
This is a gorgeous, thick smoothie and really creamy. It’s my favourite breakfast at the moment. I like to make it so thick I can eat it with a spoon but that’s just me. To thin, add more non-dairy milk. Or more avocado to make it even thicker. The stevia drops are important here because otherwise there will not be the slightest hint of sweetness. I love this smoothie because it fits in well with a paleo way of eating, which makes me feel SO much more energetic. This smoothie will keep you going for hours because the good fats keep you fuller longer.
For 1 big eater
200 ml unsweetened additive-free coconut milk (or use 3 tbs full fat coconut milk from can and top up with water)
1 heaped tsp raw cocoa powder, organic if possible
1 tbs whole flax seeds, soaked overnight in half a cup of water (or use 1 dsp cold-milled flax seeds)
1/2 a ripe avocado
2 dsp protein powder (hemp protein or dairy-based Solgar Whey to Go from health stores or Sun Warrior protein powder which is already sweetened with stevia – you might not need more sweetening)
20 drops pure stevia (a non-toxic sweetener)
1/2 tsp Ceylon cinnamon for sprinkling
Throw everything in the liquidiser and blitz till well smooth. The flax seeds will give you some “bits” and texture. If you don’t like this, use finely ground flaxseeds instead. For an extra health boost and flavour, sprinkle with ground Ceylon cinnamon.
Variations:
For a change from chocolate, use 50g raspberries instead. If you are not on a ketogenic diet, you can add even more raspberries if liked. 50g raspberries contain 2.3g of carbohydrate.
You could use erythritol or xylitol to sweeten (not suitable for a very low carb/ketogenic diet)
Why this is good for you Avocados are a great source of vitamin E and monounsaturated oils. These help dampen inflammation, keep you fuller longer with their healthy fats, and keep your skin young and smooth. Raw organic cocoa is free of chemical contaminants and like, cinnamon, has powerful antioxidant properties. Antioxidants help keep your digestive system well and reduce inflammation. A bit like long-acting paracetamol but without the dangerous side effects. cinnamon also has antioxidant action and also helps balance blood sugar. This is good news if you are diabetic, pre-diabetic, or struggle with energy peaks and slumps throughout the day. Flax seeds, especially when soaked, emit soluble fibre, a type of mucilage that feeds the beneficial bacteria in your gut. These bacteria manufacture vitamin K (for healthy bones and wrinkle-free skin), and butyric acid which keeps the lining of your bowel healthy and free of tumours. High quality protein is important at breakfast because it keeps you satisfied and helps weight management. Having enough protein helps you be more resilient to stress, maintain muscle mass, and detoxify chemicals, hormones and waste products we make or take in all the time. Did you know that pure cocoa posder is classified as a spice – it’s packed with antioxidants, as is Ceylon cinnamon. If the packet says “cinnamon” then it’s not the useful Ceylon cinnamon, but cassia cinnamon, which does not have the health benefits and in large amounts over a long period of time, can have negative effects.
I was looking for something nice to do with carrots yesterday, found this recipe and adapted it slightly. We didn’t have the coarse-grain mustard or the honey so we left both out and thought it was still nice. I like to make up large bowls of salady things like this in the summer, to keep in the fridge for dipping into at mealtimes. Who wants to spend all evening in the kitchen when the weather’s so nice…
For 2 people (with plenty of leftover dressing):
4 medium carrots
2 tbs sesame seeds
For the dressing:
1 large clove garlic, crushed
Large pinch freshly ground black pepper
1-3 teaspoons of raw honey (optional)
3 heaped dsp coarsegrain mustard (optional) – if you are gluten-intolerant, make sure you check the label!!
400ml virgin cold-pressed sunflower or sesame oil. Dont be temped to use toasted sesame oil, the burnt flavour will be far too strong.
200ml red or white wine vinegar (or you could use apple cider vinegar).
200ml extra virgin olive oil
First toast the seeds on a dry pan over a medium heat, shaking every so often, until slightly golden. Remove from the heat.
Put the dressing ingredients in a large screwtop jar and shake well to mix.
Grate the carrots, add the seeds and enough of the dressing to moisten the whole lot. Stir and serve.
Why this is good for you: Carrots are a brilliant source of carotenes which help protect your eyesight and also give your skin a golden glow, making you look more suntanned. They also help your skin protect itself against UV rays, like a sort of edible sunblock. Raw, unheated (virgin) sesame and sunflower oil are high in omega 6, which helps balance your hormones for increased energy, better mood and even smoother, more moisturised skin. It’s even helpful in reducing PMS. Extra virgin olive oil, while not high in omega 6, is packed full of vitamin E which moisturises your skin from within. Vitamin E helps your body conserve and reuse the vitamin C you get in your diet – increasing its benefitial effects. Vitamin E from olive oil also has an anti-allergy effect. This means it can help reduce symptoms of hayfever, asthma and skin allergies. Mustard is a spice andlike most spices has antioxidant properties linked to slowing ageing, soothing inflammatory conditions and balancing your immune system.
