This salad packs a punch for healthy fats, protein, vitamins and minerals, keeps you super satisfied, takes minimal preparation and oh, not to mention tastes AMAZING. The baked eggs take on a kind of crusty outer layer, which when you cut into reveal a gorgeously oozing yolk combined with the creamy avocado - a match made in heaven.
You will need:
1 ripe avocado
2 eggs
Salad bits and bobs (I used baby leaf spinach, cucumber and plum tomatoes)
Poached salmon fillet (I used the chilli ones from Tesco just because that's what I had in the fridge! Plain works well too though)
A twist of black pepper
Fresh chives (optional)
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to about 180C. Meanwhile, arrange the salad bits in a bowl, along with the poached salmon fillet.
2. Cut the avocado in half and scoop out about half of the flesh from each side. You can chop this up and add it to the salad.
3. Arrange the avocado halves in a small heatproof tray or muffin tin - something small enough so they're tightly packed but with a little room left around the edges for any extra egg spillage.
4. Crack the eggs into the avocado halves. Whack the tray in the oven for 15 minutes.
5. Remove, take out the avocado halves and any extra egg around the edges and add to the salad. Sprinkle black pepper and chives, tuck in and foodgasm!
This is a really good lazy but super nutritious meal which doesn't require any fancy food shopping at all. Most of the ingredients are cupboard or freezer staples, so I always eat this when I'm feeling low on the cayshhh but don't wanna eat crap. Packed with iron and protein, this is perfect for the low budget food snob!
You will need:
One large orange flesh sweet potato
A couple of handfuls of frozen spinach
A couple of handfuls of frozen soy beans
Half a pack of chilli and coriander prawns (Tesco's do two packs for £5 - sounds expensive but that's 4 meals in total! Don't be a scrooge)
A twist of salt and pepper
Preparation:
1. Whack the soy beans in a microwave-proof bowl and add water until just covered. Microwave on full for 2 minutes. Remove and drain.
2. Whilst the soy beans are draining, put the frozen spinach into the microwave-proof bowl, cover with cling-film and microwave for 2 minutes. Remove and drain.
3. Microwave the sweet potato for 2 and a half minutes or until soft. Cut in half, scoop out the flesh and add to the bowl with the spinach and soy beans. Add a twist of salt and pepper and stir until well combined.
4. Spoon into the sweet potato skins. Arrange the prawns on top and dig in!
Variations
- Instead of soy beans and spinach, peas and kale work well too. Pretty much any green, leafy vegetable you can find will be okay.
- Instead of prawns, try a poached egg or salmon with some fresh chilli and ginger.
Rather than crash dieting or being forever hungry, I believe it's important to be able enjoy good, honest food yet still feel satisfied as well as healthy. To lose weight naturally and maintain a healthy body, I present to you my 5 best diet tips that I've acquired over the years (ooh that makes me sound so old and wise but no. I was just a super vain teenager)...
1. Drop that sandwich! Yes you.
After spending a year living in Japan where the only bread available was hideously thick, processed white sandwich loaves, bread has pretty much been cut out of my diet. Yeah, I missed it at first and spent most days craving sandwiches, but now my body has adjusted to the change I'm really thankful that it's been cut out from my diet. An 'empty carb', bread often leaves you unsatisfied and bloated compared to some of the much more fibrous, nutritious carbohydrates such as quinoa and bulgar wheat. By switching from sandwiches to grains, it gives you a chance to increase your protein and veg intake and reduce your carbs, meaning you're satisfied for longer and will lose those pounds. Yeah, it may take slightly more effort to knock something together than just grab a sandwich, but what would you prefer - 5 more minutes spent making your meal or 20 minutes extra working off that BLT flab in the gym? Thought soooo.
2. Protein is your God
Make sure to always eat more protein and veg in your meal than carbs (my ratio is usually protein 50%, veg 30%, carbs 20%). Lots of fish, eggs and chicken breast if you eat meat. Protein fills the body up much quicker than carbs, meaning it's virtually impossible to overeat. Google the Leptin effect if you need more convincing - protein is rife with this fabulous 'fullness' hormone. Berries and bananas, green veg such as spinach, kale, broccoli etc are also great meal fillers - fibrous fruit and vegetables will keep you satisfied longer, plus the best bit; even if you eat an absolute sh*tload, it's pretty much calorie free. Less carbs, more protein and fibre and you're sorted.
3. Go paleo!
The paleo diet - i.e. eating like a caveman - actually has some grounding to it. Although it may be costly and frankly ridiculous to get every single thing organic, have your own chicken and care for your own vegetable patch conditioned with your own excrement or whatever, by sticking to the simple rule of 'one ingredient' food, you can benefit your body, increase your metabolism and will have much more energy. For example, instead of eating those 'diet biscuits' which contain a huge amount of ingredients (most of which I'm often doubtful of being real words), have a handful of walnuts and a banana. They contain much more nutrients and none of the nasty additives which keep your body hooked to those processed treats, no matter how "healthy" they are marketed as. Think natural! Your body will thank you for it.
4. Don't be scared of natural fats
That brings me to my next point - don't shy away from natural fats! Fat has had a bad rep in the media in recent years, but actually "low fat" products often contain more sugar and chemicals, which in turn will increase your cravings and go straight to your thighs girlfriendddddd. What's more, foods like avocados, nuts and eggs contain 'good' fats which actually speed up metabolism and replenish your body with vital vitamins and nutrients. Just because something has a high saturated fat label, don't panic and run back to the low fat, sugary processed crap. Think logically - if it's a natural, one ingredient product, it's most likely to be good for you. Cavemen didn't have an obesity problem.
5. SUGAR = the enemy
Fat and calories have been marketed as the bad guys for a while now, but sugar has somehow escaped the media grasp...dunno why though, cos that stuff is EVIL. Ever since sugar imports began to Britain in the 18th Century, we were all hooked on the sweet stuff aaaand things have gone downhill ever since. Sugar is the reason that you diet yourself silly but still don't appear to lose any weight - it sticks to your wobbly bits like glue. It's everywhere - in those delicious "low fat" yogurts you think help fight fat cells in your tummy and will turn you into Beyonce, in those "vitamin water" drinks that you think will cleanse your system of impurities and give you skin like Gweneth Paltrow, even in your breakfast cereal just waiting to give you bingo wings and a muffin top. Although this is definitely the hardest tip, try to lose that sweet tooth! Gradually reduce your sugar intake and your sweet tooth should adjust to find things like fruit and nuts to be "sweet", and those processed things will soon become unpalatable and too sickly to you. Sugar is literally like a drug, but once you stick with it and ignore those cravings, your body will worship you.
Cheesecake is by far one of my favourite desserts, but the real deal can definitely make you feel more than a little guilty diet-wise. So you can imagine, when I found this quick and easy healthy version I was super excited because it means you can incorporate cheesecake into your diet as a more frequent treat, minus the extra calories and preparation time! To tell the truth, I actually prefer this version to 'real' cheesecake as it's SO YUMMY and sweet, but doesn't leave me with that horrible bloated feeling that heavy cream does. Trust me, this is genius!
You will need:
2 digestive biscuits
50g Total 0% Greek Yogurt
50g low fat soft cheese
A dash of vanilla extract
1 tsp sugar or sugar substitute (I use Candarel)
+ fruit of your choice (strawberries, raspberries and blueberries work a dream)
Preparation:
1. In a dessert tumbler, crumble the digestive biscuits.
2. Mix all other ingredients (if you are feeling less indulgent, add less cream cheese and more yogurt to make 100g - sometimes I use 30g cream cheese + 70g yogurt).
3. Spread over the biscuit base, add your fruit and enjoy!
A twist of black pepper
