Do you have a New Year’s resolution?

Is it to get more energy, to have balanced moods, or to control your weight?

Maybe I can help. Read on, my friend.

Cooking your own food is one of the best things that you can do to improve your own health, for so many reasons:

• You cut out packaged food, which means you will be reducing the amount of additives such as sugar, salt and preservatives
• Cooking your own food means that you retain more of the important vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin B group and vitamin C which normally would be lost in processing and deteriorate on the shelf during storage
• You generally get a bigger variety and serve of vegetables
• You’ll be able to take control of your own portion size

If you can get comfortable at cooking your own meals, you will make the biggest and most long lasting changes you’ll ever make that will benefit your health.

‘I’m not a good cook’, I hear you say. You’re probably rolling your eyes, audibly groaning and about to close this window. But wait! I implore you – read on!

I get it, if you’re not a whiz in the kitchen, cooking for yourself can be overwhelming, boring and stressful.

Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be this way – the better you get at cooking, the more you come to enjoy it.

That’s why I made this ebook and meal plan – to help with one of the biggest hurdles of health, the struggle of cooking for yourself – this was created for the kitchen beginner.

In my clinical experience I realised that one of the key barriers to people improving their health was their diet, and one of the biggest barriers to improving their diet? The ability and enjoyment of cooking.

‘What can be done about this’, thinks I. ‘I need to provide people with the tools to learn how to cook, but there’s so much more they need to know with this!’

So I got to work and created a 3 week meal plan and nutrition guide designed to help people who struggle to know what to do in the kitchen, but it’s also going to be great for those people who want to know how to eat well, how to eat mindfully, and how to plan their own meals. If you’re a good cook, you’ll still enjoy this ebook and meal plan.

Something you might not know about cooking is that it actually helps to improve digestion – did you know that digestion begins in the mind? This is called the cephalic phase -here is when we start to think about food, anticipate food, and that’s when we start to make all of our digestive acids and enzyme. If we have good production of acids and enzymes this means the better we will be able to better digest our food and therefore the less bloating and digestive symptoms we will have.

This meal plan has been built around the concept of whole food. Whole food essentially means that food in itself has been minimally altered by processing and so it retains the more nutritional goodness.

While one the biggest things that you can do to improve your health is to start cooking for yourself, there’s so many barriers today – one of which is the lack of confidence in the kitchen. In my meal plan and ebook I have threaded throughout tips on how to cook so that you will finish this guide with more confidence to keep navigating the kitchen, as well as making your own meal plan.

There’s so many other things in this meal plans such as a guide to mindful eating and knowing how to balance your nutrients throughout the day.

This ebook and meal plan has been 3 years in the making (most of the delay comes from having had two kids in the process of writing it) but it’s also because I’ve put a lot of love and effort into it – writing the content, creating and testing the recipes, balancing the meals and menus nutritionally as well as designing a shopping list to go with the meal plan.

But ultimately what I want is for you to find it easy to follow, and simple to implement. What I want is for you to have to do minimum effort for maximum gain.

So if your goal is to lose weight, or to get more energy, or to feel better in yourself, then I strongly suggest checking out this meal plan.

For those with food intolerances, you can make substitutions if you need to be dairy free or wheat free, but currently this meal plan is not designed around avoiding food intolerances or allergies. It’s also not suitable for vegetarians or vegans (but I do have something in the works for for you guys).

All you need to do is follow this link and purchase the meal plan.

And because I love you so much I’m going to give you a discount for January – just enter the code newyears at the checkout and you’ll get 25% off (that’s a pretty awesome discount!)

Happy Healthy New Years!

CLICK HERE to buy the Kitchen Novice Meal Plan and eBook – valued at $24.95 (use code newyears in January ’19 to get 25% off)

The post One of the most effective and long-lasting ways to improve your health appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

Need some inspiration for gift giving this Christmas? I’ve compiled a list of present ideas for those people in your life who are interested in looking after the environment, reducing waste in their household and looking after their health. These gift ideas aren’t just good for Christmas, they’re good for any time of the year really – Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthday presents, you name it!
With present ideas ranging from $4 to $149 there’s plenty of options for everyone.

Beauty and Body Care

Massage voucher

I don’t know many people who don’t enjoy massage. I think that a voucher for a pamper session may get you more brownie points than a pretty or useful object, because it sends the message to your recipient that you care, you think they deserve some pampering, and you’re acknowledging all the things they do for you that makes them need that pampering.

You can purchase a voucher for a massage with myself here.
30 minutes – $55
60 minutes – $100

Silk pillow

While initially the idea of gifting a silk pillow might seem a bit strange, silk pillows are a great way to look after the delicate face on your skin, as well as your hair. Cotton absorbs moisture from your skin, can cause friction on the surface of the skin which can lead to wrinkles over time, and can pull on your hair, which leads to more fly aways and split ends. Silk doesn’t do these things and so can be a simple way to look after your skin. They are more expensive than your typical pillowcase but when it comes to the investment that many women put into their skin care, its worth it in the long run.

Go-To has a pure silk pillowcase for $65, or Slip has a variety of colours and patterns at $85

Foam Roller

One of the things I recommend to my massage patients frequently is to stretch and foam roll. Using a foam roller helps you to reduce tension and tightness in muscles, and is also good for fascia.

There’s lots around, but this one is more affordable and straight forward. – Foam roller

Weleda Skin Food and Lip Balm

If you haven’t tried the Weleda Skin Food, then you’re missing out. This gorgeous cream is great for all sorts of skin issues, I love it for all the drier areas such as feet and elbows. This pack is good value and comes with a soothing rose fragranced lip balm.

Weleda Gift Pack – Beauty Essentials – $24.95

Lip Gloss & polish Kit

I use this mineral lip gloss a lot and it leaves a lovely feel, and is a pretty colour. This is a good price with the polish as well.

Mineral Fusion Lip & Tip Kit – $18

Waste Less

Stainless Steel Lunch Box

I’m a fan of a stainless steel lunch box as a way to reduce the amount of plastic we’re exposing out kids to. Most companies will use BPA free plastics, but I’m leaning towards the ‘better safe than sorry’ mentality and avoiding as much plastic as I can, because we don’t have the long term safety data on the new plastic that has replaced the old BPA type.

I like this one because it seals nicely – Seed & Sprout $44

Reusable coffee cup

Given that we know how big an impact disposable coffee cups are making on our landfill AND we want to reduce plastic exposure where possible, reusable coffee cups are a great idea for my fellow caffeine lovers.

I love my glass KeepCup and it gets used more than my other reusable coffee cups because of it’s sturdiness and lack of leaks, however my favourite is my very pretty Pottery for the Planet cup.

KeepCup Medium LongPlay – $34

Joco Medium Glass Cup – $29.95

Biome Ceramic Coffee Cup – $34.95

Metal straws

A great stocking filler is a metal straw – it looks pretty but it’s good for the environment. The more people using less disposable plastic straws, the better. There’s different colours and shapes to choose from, and prices range from $3.50 to $16.95.

Reusable Food Wraps

Instead of going through gladwrap like there’s no tomorrow, reusable food wraps are gentler on the environment, but also your health (less plastic exposure).

I use beeswax food covers like these ones but for a vegan alternative you can use these silicon wraps – $27.

Handkerchief

Save all those tissues heading into landfill and look cute at the same time by using a hanky. There’s lots of reasons why carrying a hanky is a good idea, and it’s not nearly as gross as some may think.

If you accidently leave it in your pocket it won’t cover your clothes in lint. It’ll just get clean.

If you haven’t blown your nose on it already you can mop your brow with it, use it as a barrier for unclean doorknobs, clean your glasses or phone screen and more, plus you can offer it chivalrously to a friend in need.

Ideally you’d have one for every day of the week, and change to a fresh one every day, washing at the end of the week. Hankies are pretty big so if you do need to blow your nose a few times on it there’s plenty of space.

Check out these gorgeous designs at $11.95.

 

Produce Bag

A lightweight string bag is a great option for putting your fruit and veg into at the grocers, because it won’t add too much onto the scales.

Choose one like this and you’ll be looking trendy at the same time.

Organic Cotton String Shopping Bag – $14.95

Composters

I’ve asked my parents to get me a pet waste composter for Christmas. Yes a bit strange I know, but that’s me.

I like that it will save the plastic bag usage in collecting the poos (I have a Labrador so have to collect daily), but with time it will improve my soil.

Just dig a hole, bury the composter and then start adding the dog poo along with the starter grains and it will start composting the poo down into the soil.

For a more traditional type of composter you have plenty of options.

I love my worm farm – since I’ve gotten the hang out how much to feed and water the worms they are thriving and I’m regularly getting liquid fertiliser for my garden. I got mine with a discount from my local council through https://compostrevolution.com.au.

Books

Recipe Books

Who doesn’t love a nice fresh bit of cooking inspiration! I for one love getting a new recipe book, and will keep it on the bench for weeks at a time while I chip away at the new recipes.

There’s endless choices, but here are some of my favourites.

Deliciously Ella The Plant Based Cookbook: 100 simple vegan recipes to make every day delicious  by Ella Mills – this has some gorgeous flavour combinations and is very inspiring for increasing the diversity of ways you have vegetables in your diet. I will have the meals as a side to a serve of meat or it’s fine to have it on it’s own. I love the Harissa Eggplant and the Cauliflower and turmeric salad.

Living the Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel – Gorgeous recipes and a lot of healthy eating and lifestyle tips as well. A very pretty book to look at and the recipes as tasty and easy to make.

Wholesome Child by Mandy Sacher. This one is a great choice for people who have young kids, because it’s meals are family focused as well as being great for cooking for kids. I’ve written a review of this book here, so feel free to check it out.

Kitchen Novice eBook and Meal Plan by Alison Mitchell (that’s me!) – Oh and did you know that I have a meal plan and recipe book? It’s designed around whole food for people who are getting familiar with cooking, so if you like the idea of a recipe book and healthy eating but don’t feel confident in the kitchen, check this one out. It also has a guide on learning to eat well, a meal plan and a shopping list, all for $24.95.

Other Books

Not everyone wants a recipe book, so here are some other great books you can consider.

One Bite At A Time by Sarah Lantz & Tabitha McIntosh – This book delves into the issues facing our health and our environment as a result of chemical exposure. It is a gorgeous book as well so would make a beautiful coffee table book, something that will certainly be a conversation starter.

The Barefoot Investor by Scott Pape – Touted as being the only money guide you’ll ever need, this could be a great idea for friends or family alike. This book has ranked #1 on Amazon multiple times and is currently still #1 in wealth books. Financial stress is a big one and cutting this down will make this gift recipient grateful for your thoughts.

Idaho by Emily Ruskovich – There’s nothing quite like sitting with a good book and a cup of tea to relax and take your mind off the worries of life. Sadly I haven’t read a fiction book in over a year, so I asked my book loving husband what his favourite book of the last year was, and this was it. I asked ‘What do you like about it’, and true to his English Teacher form he replied: “An engaging story with well written prose and emotional poignancy.” Sounds good to me.

Audiobooks

Since having kids I don’t get much time to sit down and read, but not prepared to give up my fantasy novels I turned to audiobooks. When I’m cooking, driving by myself or going for a run I will put on an audio book and it helps me to chill out, but I’m still getting things done.

Audible books vary in price but if you get a membership you get a credit each month, making the books much cheaper in the long run.

I have gifted Audible Memberships before and it’s been well received. But you might just want to get it for yourself. I love my audiobooks – I went through the entire Outlander series on Audible, and my recent favourites are The Millenium Series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), The Kingkiller Chronicles (The Name of the Wind) and The Sellout.

I’ve also done a fair few non-fiction books on Audible such as Work Rules by Lazlo Block, Eat The Yolks, Gut and Food Politics.

Gift a membership here.

Other

Seed Card

A seed packet and gift card all in one, these cute little cards are a great gift for all ages.

Sow ‘n Sow Seed Card $9.95

Herbal Teas

I’ve tried a lot of different herbal tea blends and I keep coming back to Burton Health Tea. I love the herbal blends in each of them, but the flavours of the teas are carefully thought out and well executed. A 30 serve bag of tea is very cost effective and a great gift idea.

Perhaps you might like to give the TeaStress blend to a person who is under a bit of pressure in their life.

Or perhaps you know someone who gets sick all the time, in which case Immunitea might be a good choice.

Rest and Digest is one of my favourite blends – it helps to get he nervous system and digestive system talking to each other again, switching you back into a parasympathetic nervous system state.

Or the other option is Dandy Chai, a delicious blend that is warming and good for your digestion.

Check out the teas here, and if you use code NATNSW at checkout you will receive a 10% discount.

Burton Health Tea – from $9.00

Spiraliser

Spiralizer – Making zucchini noodles can be loads of fun, but if you get a good quality spiralizer you can make noodles out of loads more vegetables. Increase your vegetable intake and have fun doing it.

Water Filter

Remove the bad stuff, and put back in the good stuff with a water filter. I like this little one because it’s cost effective and can be carried around with you when travelling. It is made from plastic but you could fill it up, let it filter through them tip it into a stainless steel or glass bottle.

Mini Waterman Water Filter Bottle 600ml – $79.95

Why would you want to filter your water?

Chlorine in tap water is thought to negatively affect our gut bacteria balance, and it can also affect our iodine levels. Flouride is another chemical that can affect iodine levels and thyroid health, but if you’re still wanting to get the fluoride for your teeth, the amount you’re exposed to when rinsing your teeth when brushing them is enough to do it’s job. It also helps to filter our pesticide residue and other heavy metals.

Blue Blocking Glasses

Did you know that we are constantly exposed to blue light through TV screens, computers, phones and tablets. It affects our melatonin levels, a hormone that we make through our eyes in response to orange light. Altered melatonin levels can cause issues with hormone balance but mostly affects our sleep.

Blue light from the sky is actually important in the day to normalise our circadian rhythms and promote mental wellbeing, but when we’re being exposed to excessive amounts of it from our screens this can be a problem, and in addition the wavelengths from the screen are different to the blue in our natural environment which makes them harmful.

Clever people have found ways to counter this effect by tinting glasses – these glasses used to be very uncool, bright orange safety type glasses, but now there are glasses that look like normal glasses, and they even come with the option to put your prescription into them.

BLUblox is an Australian company that has created three types of lenses – the standard clear lense filters blue light from your computer screens which reduces eye strain and reduce the impact of the blue light on melatonin and other hormones.

You’ve also got the option of red lenses for that extra melatonin boost in the hours before bed, and yellow glasses to promote a heightened sense of happiness in the day.

So if you know somebody who works in front of a computer screen all the time, why not share this with them or pair for Christmas.

BluBlox – $149.95

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I make a small commission if you make a purchase from using that link. This helps contribute to the ongoing costs of running this website. Thank you for your support.

The post Gift Guide for the Health and Environment Conscious appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

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I can’t think of a better sounding combination than brownies and peanut butter. Add the jam component in there and it screams deliciousness.

It’s pretty exciting to see a tasty brownie recipe that’s a bit of a healthier option. As will all desserts, even the healthified (yes I made that word up) versions, they’re still a sometimes treat.

This recipe is from the latest IQS Chocolate cookbook, which you can purchase here.

Serves: 24

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

These originated as peanut butter brownies. It wasn’t until Sarah suggested the addition of “jelly” that they became really special.

Ingredients

• coconut oil, butter or ghee for greasing
• 1 1/2 cups almond meal
• 1/4 cup raw cacao powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup rice malt syrup, melted
• 3 eggs, lightly whisked
• 1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup raspberries, mashed with a fork

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Line a 9×9 inch lamington/brownie tin with baking paper.

2. In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients, except for the peanut butter and raspberries, until smooth.

3. Pour the batter into the lined cake tin. Dollop peanut butter into mixture and use a skewer or knife to create a swirl pattern. Repeat the process with mashed raspberries.

4. Cook for 20-23 minutes, checking at 15 minutes to ensure mixture is not burning. Brownies are cooked when top is slightly firm to the touch. You want them to be gooey so try not to overcook.

5. Allow brownies to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan and slicing.

This recipe is from the latest IQS Chocolate cookbook, which you can purchase here.

*I am an affiliate for this eBook and as such receive a small commission on every purchase made by way of this post. Do know however that I only choose to align myself with products and services that I feel add value to my followers.

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The post Molten Peanut Butter ‘N’ Jelly Brownies Recipe appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.