Active Nutrition

Drink

Vegan Healthy Hot Chocolate

Yes you did hear correctly ‘healthy’ and ‘hot chocolate’ and ‘vegan’ in the same sentence!

At this time of year there is nothing more comforting than a warm hot chocolate, however some coffee shop brands having a whopping 24g of sugar in a medium cup! So I decided to play around and create a healthier version that you can enjoy at home.

This vegan healthy hot chocolate is great to help you wind down in the evening but I would suggest having it early in the evening as sugar close to bedtime can prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep.

Almond milk is a source of calcium and tryptophan which help the brain to produce melatonin which is important for sleep regulation. Both cashews and almonds contain magnesium which acts as a natural sedative and help to relax your muscles. Whilst cacao also contains tryptophan helping to balance the body’s serotonin levels

I have not specified how much maple syrup to add to this hot chocolate as ideally you want to make it to your taste. However, be aware that maple syrup is still recognised by your body as a form of sugar, and so your body will respond to it as sugar so use as little as possible. For a more chocolaty taste you can add more cacao but it is bitter so the more you add the more maple syrup you are likely to need.

Vegan Healthy Hot Chocolate Ingredients:

  • 300ml almond milk
  • 1 tsp cashew nut butter
  • 1- 1.5 tsp Cacao powder (to taste)
  • Drizzle of maple syrup (to taste)

Method:

  1. Heat the milk and cashew butter in a pan
  2. When it is hot place into a blender with the remaining ingredients and blend until frothy
  3. Serve in a mug and enjoy

A great variation to this recipe is to add a drop or two of peppermint oil to give you a delicious mint hot chocolate!

If you’ve enjoyed this recipe then why not email me for a consultation to find out more about natural ways to help you sleep

Dinner

Chicken and tomato curry – dairy-free and gluten-free

This curry came about when I realised I didn’t have the spices I needed for my usual curry so I thought I’d experiment a bit. It’s a great one if you don’t have much time, you can throw it together and then leave it to cook whilst the rice cooks. The heat from the chilli makes it a lovely dish to warm you up as the colder evenings draw in. If you’d like to make a vegetarian version simply swap the chicken for chickpeas.

Tomatoes are a fantastic source of Vitamin C as well as lypocene. Lypocene is part of the cartenoid group of antioxidants. Lypocene can help to prevent and treat a number of conditions including cancer, diabetes, cataracts, osteoporosis and heart disease.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

  • ¼ tsp fennel seeds
  • Chicken and Tomato Curry
  • 3 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tsp curry powder
  • 1 green chilli (adjust depending how hot you like it)
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1” piece ginger
  • 2 onions
  • 200g mushrooms
  • 1 courgette
  • 1 green pepper
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 tin chopped tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 350g skin and boneless chicken
  • 1 tsp fenugreek leaves
  • Small handful of fresh coriander

Method:

  1. Chop the garlic and chilli finely, grate the ginger and dice the onion
  2. Place in a pan with a splash of water and cook the onions out
  3. Add the cumin seeds, cumin powder and curry powder. Stir the spices to coat the onion and add more water if needed so it doesn’t stick to the pan
  4. Cut the chicken into cubes and then add to the pan, stir frequently and add more water if the chicken starts to stick, cook until sealed on all sides
  5. Chop the mushrooms into chunks and add to the pan stirring to coat with the spices
  6. Chop the courgette and peppers into chunks and add to the pan
  7. Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and the juice from the lemon
  8. Reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked
  9. Add the chopped fresh coriander and fenugreek seeds and stir well

Serve with brown rice