Christmas Vegetables - make them special

Christmas is this time of year when food treats are all around us. It is very easy to slip and start eating unhealthy high-fat foods. Make sure you have plenty of vegetables available for your Christmas dinner.  They could be really exciting and full of taste.

Here is a rainbow of recipes for you to really enjoy your veg:

This receipe is good because you can make initial preparations the day before to take some pressure off the Christmas Day.

Maple Mustard Roots

• 800g small carrots , peeled and halved or quartered lengthways if large;
  
• 800g parsnips , peeled and cut into long wedges;
  
• 3 tbsp maple syrup;
  
• 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard;
  
• 2 tbsp rapeseed oil or sunflower oil;

1. Bring a large pan of salted boiling water to the boil. Tip in the roots, bring back to the boil and cook for 3 mins. Drain well, then tip onto a large, lipped roasting tin. Whisk together the syrup, mustard and oil with some seasoning, then gently toss with the veg. Cover with cling film for up to 24 hrs.
2. Bring to room temp before cooking. After the turkey comes out, roast at 220C/200C fan/gas 7 for 30 mins until golden and sticky. 
   Source: BBC Good Food http://www.bbcgoodfood.com

St Clements Carrots
 

• 800g carrots , peeled and trimmed
• zest 3 clementines , plus a few slices
• zest 2 lemons , plus a few slices
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
  
  

1. Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 and bring a large pan of water to the boil. Cut the carrots lengthways into halves or quarters, depending on their size. Tip the carrots into the pan, wait for the water to simmer again, then cook for 4 mins. Drain well, then tip into a large roasting tin.
   
2. While the carrots are still hot, gently toss them with all the zest, oil, butter, seasoning and the lemon and clementine slices. Poke the slices in among the carrots, so they're not left on the edges of the tray. Roast for 40 mins until the carrots are golden and tender.
   Source: BBC Good Food http://www.bbcgoodfood.com

Sticky Spiced Red Cabbage

This recipe can be made up to two days ahead and reheated with a splash of water, or you can make it up to a month ahead and freeze.

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium-size red cabbage , quartered, cored and shredded
• 1 finger-size piece fresh root ginger , finely chopped
• 2 onions , sliced
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 1 tbsp mustard seed
• 100g golden caster sugar
• 150ml red wine vinegar

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan, add cabbage, ginger, onions, allspice and mustard seeds, then cook for 5 mins until just starting to wilt.
2. Scatter over the sugar and pour in the vinegar. Cover pan, gently cook for 10 mins, then remove lid and turn up the heat to medium. Simmer the liquid in the cabbage for about 20 mins, stirring occasionally, then stir continuously for the last few mins until all the liquid has evaporated and becomes sticky on the bottom of the pan. Tip cabbage into a large bowl and serve.
   Source: BBC Good Food http://www.bbcgoodfood.com

Brussel Sprouts

Love 'em or hate 'em - you just can't have Christmas dinner without having Brussels sprouts!

Brussels are now at their seasonal best. Make sure you choose bright green, firm sprouts as these will taste freshest.

• 500g Brussels sprouts , trimmed
• 75g cubetti di pancetta or bacon lardons
• 50g butter
• a handful walnut halves, snapped in two

1. Steam the sprouts until tender but still bright green. Cook the pancetta in the butter until crisp and golden.
2. Add the walnuts and cook until golden and toasted. Add the sprouts and toss everything together.
   Source: BBC Good Food http://www.bbcgoodfood.com

 
 Roast Potatoes from Jamie Oliver

• 1.5kg King Edward potatoes, peeled and halved
• ½ bulb of garlic, separated into cloves and crushed with the back of a knife
• a small bunch of fresh rosemary, separated into sprigs
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 tablespoons good-quality olive oil


Preheat your oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7. Parboil your potatoes for 10 minutes. Drain in a colander and toss around to scruff up the outside of the spuds. Toss with the garlic cloves, half of the rosemary, salt and pepper to taste, 4 tablespoons of the olive oil, and 30g of the butter in a large bowl. Arrange in one layer in a roasting tin and roast for 45 minutes until golden.
Source: Jamie Oliver Recipes: http://www.jamieoliver.com 

Healthy Eating Christmas Tips.

The festive Season is about to begin. When it comes to Christmas dinner dieting and healthy eating  usually are the last things on people’s mind. However you can still have a healthier dinner and enjoy the foods you eat.


Get our unique healthy eating guide absolutely free here to help you make right choices.

It is difficult to keep eating healthy and to maintain your weight during Christmas with so many treats around. Here you can find some very good tips:

1. Eat Breakfast on Christmas day. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It will fill you up and you will be less likely to have unhealthy snacks.

2. Include Fruit in your snacking. Satsumas, apples, dried fruit and unsalted nuts make brilliant snacks.

3. Don't go to a party hungry. Have some healthy snacks before you leave to avoid overeating.

4. Go for healthier options, limit high fat food items. Stay away from fried food, processed meats, pastries.

5. Serve Christmas Dinner with heaps of vegetables.Vegetables and fruit have lots of nutririon value and no fat. Try to avoid putting too much salt. Use herbs and spices instead.


6. Cut potatoes for roasting into larger chunks – they’ll absorb less fat. Roast in a small amount of unsaturated (e.g. sunflower) oil for a healthier choice.

7. Have smaller portions. This way you can sample all the different foods without overeating.


8. Try other versions of alcohol: instead of beer, cider, Bailey's and Kahlua, try dry wine, Bloody Marys or spirits with diet mixer which have fewer calories.

9. Drink pleanty of water. Alcohol and coffee may de-hydrate your body.

10. Avoid feeling uncomfortably full by eating more slowly.


11. Get active  - take a brisk walk, play an indoor
game or maybe just turn on the music and dance away those calories!

Calorie Counting made easy

Calories, calorie counting, calorie management. We hear this everywhere - on TV and radio; we read about calories in the newspapers and on the internet; there are many books devoted to this topic. Our friends count calories and scrutinise every label for calorific values.

Have you ever felt dizzy when you think about calories? The whole subject seems so daunting. It must be a real science and people surely are spending most of their lives just counting calories..

Well, the good news is, it just seems difficult. In reality after only a week or two you will become an expert in calories. All you have to do is follow our simple instructions.

So what is a calorie?

A calorie is a unit of energy. Very simple: food gives you energy and energy is measured in calories.

1. One gram of Carbohydrate is 4 calories;
2. One gram of Protein is 4 calories;
3. One gram of Fat is 9 calories;

Now that we know what a calorie is, let's start counting!

There are many resources on the web, which make counting calories a much easier job. Here, for example, is UK food database, which has many products listed http://www.food-database.co.uk with their nutritional values. Most products now have caloric values on the label. Make sure you really read the label as some of them have traps of showing calorie values as "per serving".

Here's how we count calories:

Let's say I like pasta. The portion size is 60 grams. Calories per 100 grams = 346. So my calorie intake if I have a 60 gram portion will be: 346 divide by 100 and multiply by 60 = 207 (346/100*60)
If for example I have prawn crackers. The calorie value is 215 calories per portion. The portion is 40 grams. If I have a packet of crackers with 100 grams in it, my intake will be: 100/40 - here we find how many portions are in the packet. Now we multiply number of portions by calories per portion: 2.5*215 = 537.5 calories.
Once you get the idea, it's really easy! It takes very little time and helps you to manage your eating.

Keeping Weight Management Diary

Just counting your calories is not enough. You need to keep a record of it. There are various types of Weight Management Diaries. Paper Diaries, Online Diaries and phone apps. Choose the one that is easiest for you to use.
Make sure you write down everything that you eat or drink! You must write EVERYTHING every day.
This is how you keep track of your progress. More importantly, you have to stick to your daily calorie allowance and resist the temptation to cheat.
Keeping a diet journal motivates you and the progress is much faster as it keeps you from cheating.
For the first few weeks you will have to do a lot of counting and writing, but you will notice that foods repeat and it get's easier by the day.

How does all this help me to lose weight?

Now, this is a very good question! You lose weight when you consume fewer calories than you use. So the math is very simple: if you eat 2000 calories per day and use 1500, you will GAIN weight. If you eat 1700 and use 1700, you will MAINTAIN your weight. If you eat 1400 and use 1700, you will lose weight. Counting your calories is really important!

How many calories do I need per day?

Here, we need to do some more calculations. Very easy again! There is a special formula, which calculates your Basic Metabolic Rate (BMR). It tells you how much energy (calories) your body needs to function routinely.

The formula takes many facts into consideration: your age, sex, height, weight and physical activity.

BMR for Women:

655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)

Here's an example:

You are a woman, aged 40, 66 inches tall and weigh 160 pounds, your BMR will be calculated like this:

655 + (4.35 x 160) + (4.7 x 66) – (4.7 x 40)

655 + 696 + 310 – 188

Your BMR is 1473

Now we need to include your activity into our calculations:

Choose your normal activity level:

1. Sedentary = BMR x 1.2 
2. Lightly Active = BMR x 1.4
3. Moderately Active = BMR x 1.6
4. Very Active = BMR x 1.7
5. Athletic = BMR x 1.9    

Let's say you are moderately active, then to function your body needs:

1473 x 1.6 = 2357 calories

BMR Formula for Men:

66 + (6.3 x weight in pounds) + (12.97 x height in inches) - (6.8 x age in years)

Here's an example:

You are a man, aged 40, 70 inches tall and weigh 190 pounds, your BMR will be calculated like this:

66 + (6.3 x 190) + (12.97 x 70) – (6.8 x 40)

66 + 1197 + 907.9 – 272

Your BMR is 1899

Now we need to include your activity into our calculations:

Choose your normal activity level:

1. Sedentary = BMR x 1.2 
2. Lightly Active = BMR x 1.4
3. Moderately Active = BMR x 1.6
4. Very Active = BMR x 1.7
5. Athletic = BMR x 1.9    

Let's say you are moderately active, then to function your body needs:

1899 x 1.6 = 3038 calories

Now you need to decide how much weight you want to lose and how fast 

Here's one fact you need to know: burn 3,500 Calories more than you consume and you will lose 1 pound of fat or total caloric deficit of 3,500 calories results in a 1 pound weight loss.

If you burn 500 calories more than you consume a day through exercise or consume 500 Calories less than your daily caloric requirement, you will lose 1 pound of weight a week i.e 500 X 7 = 3,500

Knowing all these figures will help you to manage your calories effectively and reach your target weight.

Healthy Tasty Pumpkin Recipes

Now that the pumpkins are carved and photos sent for the Pumpkin Carving Competition, we can think of Halloween Menus and what are we going to do with all the pumpkin flesh left after carving.

Here's some very tasty, very simple, full of delightful pumpkin ideas for you.

Share your Pumpkin Cooking Experience, your favourite recipes and feedback with us!

PUMPKIN SCONES

 'These puffed up nice and were so fluffy and moist. And not too sweet... just right!'

Preparation Time: 15min
Cook Time: 15min



Ingredients:

2 cups pureed pumpkin
1.5 cups flour
baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1-3 tsp ginger powder
1/2 cup margarine
1/2 cup sugar

Preparation:

In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and ginger). Cut in margarine adding a bit at a time until mixed. Add pumpkin and mix well.

On a lightly floured surface, knead dough a few times, pushing it into a large circle, a few inches thick.

Cut into 12 or so triangular pieces (similar to pizza slices).

Bake at 425F or 220C degrees for 12-15 minutes, or until done.

From Vegetaian Recipes

CARAMELISED ROAST PUMPKIN

Serving Suggestions:

• Serve it as it is. Delicious!
• Make a salad
• Use in Risotto

Preparation Time: 5min
Cook Time: 40min

Ingredients:

1 butternut pumpkin / squash
1 head of garlic
olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Cut the pumpkin into cooking sized chunks.

Place the pumpkin in a roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil. Tuck the garlic in between the pieces of pumpkin and sprinkle salt and black pepper over the top of the pumpkin and garlic.

Add any optional flavourings if you are using them – stalks of rosemary, oregano or marjoram, some cumin seed, a few bayleaves tucked amongst the pumpkin. Not necessary.

Roast in a 250 degree Celsius oven for 30 – 40 minutes, until it has a lovely caramelised brown surface.

From A Life (Time) of Cooking

PUMPKIN SOUP WITH CHEESE TOASTIES 

Ingredients:

For the soup:

1 Litre of Vegetable Stock
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 onions finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 kg pumpkin flesh deseeded and cubed
4 springs thyme
200gr natural youghurt / soured creme / creme fraiche

For the Toasties:
40g soft butter
8 slices of bread
200g Sage Derby Cheese coarsely grated
2 tbsp snipped chives

Preparation: 

For the soup: heat the stock in a small saucepan or the microwave. In a large saucepan, heat the oil and fry the onion, garlic and pumpkin over a gentle heat for 10 minutes until the onion has softened. Pour over the hot stock, stir in the thyme, cover and simmer for 30 minutes, until the pumpkin is tender.

Remove the woody thyme stalks from the soup and leave the soup to cool slightly before puréeing with a hand-held blender. Stir in the crème fraîche and heat through gently without boiling. Check the seasoning, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper if necessary. 

For the toasties: butter the bread and make up four sandwiches with the cheese and chives on the inside, but with the butter on the outside of the sandwiches. Preheat a griddle pan or large non-stick frying pan and fry the sandwiches, two at a time, for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden-brown and molten inside. 

From UKTV GoodFood

Halloween - Pumpkin Carving

Halloween - is not that far away and we've announced a Pumpkin Carving Competition to celebrate the Summer's End Festival! Halloween is perfect for taking pictures. This blogpost is to give a helping hand to our contestants!

Everybody reading this blog is welcome to take part. Please visit our Facebook Page to post your photos

General Pumpkin Carving Advice:

1. Cut a hole in the top for the lid.  Make sure you angle the saw inwards so your lid sits on top of the pumpkin and doesn’t just fall through;

2. Scoop out the seeds and strings with a spoon;

3. Scrape some of the flesh from the inside so your pumpkin is about an inch thick all the way around (or at least wherever you’ll be carving).  You can poke  a straight pin through it to estimate the thickness;

If you are thinking of a  fancier design pumpkin, then:

4. Print out the pattern.

5. Trim off excess paper

6. Tape or use pins to affix the pattern to the pumpkin.

7. Trace your pattern by poking holes with a sharp object like a nail. Be patient here, it may take a while.

8. Rub flour or chalk dust all over the part where you poked the holes so you can see them better.


9. Push a nail through the pumpkin skin where you want to start carving. Turn and push until it’s all the way into the pumpkin, then remove. Repeat for all parts you will be carving out before starting the carving to avoid breaking the pumpkin.

10. Using your nail hole as a starting point start cutting the design. Use a sawing motion to cut out your design and a  very light pressure… take your time and allow the sawing to do the work rather than applying pressure and forcing it.

11. When making curves, just slightly turn the saw.  When making sharp corners, remove the saw and re-insert it at an angle.

12. To remove pieces, push them out from the inside.  For larger pieces, you may want to cut them into smaller bits and remove them in sections

13. If you are using candle, light the candle and place it on a piece of tinfoil inside the pumpkin.  Put the lid on.  Let it sit a minute

Remove the lid and there should be a smoke mark on it. Cut a vent in the lid where the smoke mark show.

Here's a few templates for your beautiful pumpkins to make the competition even more fun and challenge:

Tree Template

Spider Template

Jack Template

Pumpkin King Template

Ghost Template

Pumpkin Face Template

Bat Template


If you are a skilled Pumpkin Artist, you might try the Haunted House Template or Cat Pumpkin Template Witch Template


Good Luck and looking forward to receiving photos of your wonderfully carved pumpkins! You may also try to take some photos in the process and send us your Pumpkin Carving Story!

How to lose weight?

Do you know how to lose weight?

Most people do, but when it comes to actually doing it, not many succeed despite all the knowledge.

Let's start with the basics. We'll share some useful tips to help you with your weight loss.

The concept is simple - you need to expend more energy than you consume and watch what you are eating.

Here is an example.

Calories Eaten	Calories used	Result
2000	1500	Gain weight
1500	1500	Maintain weight
1000	1500	Lose weight

There's nothing more to it. Eat less, expend more and you will lose weight.

You can find a fantastic diet guide on our website http://www.nscclinics.co.uk, which will give you plenty of advice and tips about weight loss, nutrition and recipes.

You may ask - if it is that simple, then why do we have so many books written about dieting and losing weight or why do we have so many health and nutrition clubs and yet  there are still thousands of people overweight?

What do I need to do to lose weight?

You need to change your Lifestyle.

Fad Diets, quick fixes, 'miracle aids' may give you a short-term weight loss, but they won't help you to lose weight and stay that way.

What you really need is to change is your lifestyle!

Instead of 'dieting' change your eating habits. It's not just for a week or two, it's a lifetime commitment. The good news is, once you've changed, you will enjoy healthy eating and exercising, you will never look back. Shift from having to do things to wanting to do them - put yourself on track for long-term success and weight maintenance.

Take before and after pictures.

It is difficult to look at the 'before' photos, but you will really see the results and it will motivate you. Don't be afraid to share. The slimmer you will get, the more confident you will become to share your latest 'after' photos.

Read Labels!

It takes time and effort and a lot of concentration, but nobody will do it for you! You must know what you eat. Be very careful with ingredients and calories intake. Calorie counting is really important. Make sure you understand how to count calories.

Find your exercise.

No two exercises are the same. Try to find the one that you really enjoy and you will find it easy to keep doing it. It shouldn't take all your willpower to put your trainers on and then 10 min into jogging to lose it completely and give up forever.

If you love swimming, find a local swimming pool. If you love games try tennis or squash. If you always wanted to dance, join an aerobics class.

Set realistic goals

 

You should remember - there's no quick fixes, so don't have unrealistic hopes. It takes time, but it will last. If you set very high goals and never reach them, you may get de-motivated. Motivation is a large part of success, so set realistic goals that you can reach, but not too low either as you will feel like a cheat. Step by step you will achieve your 'big targets'. But do it in small steps.

Watch your weight.

Find a pattern which suits you: you can either weigh yourself once a week or watch your changes daily, whichever you are comfortable with but do it regularly to monitor the changes to be able to adapt routines if necessary.

Set your priorities:

Is it more important to add that spoon of mayo, which will moderately change the taste of your food or is your goal of losing weight, feeling and looking great more important? This is a choice you'll have to make every day, so you're better of setting your priorities right in the beginning.

Drink lots of water

We often confuse thirst with hunger, leading to loading our bodies with unnecessary calories, when what we really need is a glass of cold water. If you prefer, you can add some lemon slices to a jug of water for extra flavour, or to drink tea with fruit flavour but no sugar. It is a simple and healthy trick that will help you a lot in your weight loss efforts.

Enjoy your favourite foods

Do not remove your favourite foods completely. You shouldn't feel that you are 'not allowed' to eat foods that you like. Just be sure to buy them in small amounts and eat them less often.

Food Cravings - Dieting tips

How to overcome Food Cravings.

If you require slimming pills or other diet information, please click here.

Food cravings are intense yearnings for a certain type of food. Sweet or salty foods are common food cravings as are protein foods such as meat or cheese. Food cravings are thought to be caused by:

• hormones
• fluctuations in blood sugar levels
• emotional and psychological reasons 
• or sometimes by nutritional deficiencies

Stress, depression and a lack of sleep can cause "junk" food cravings. We sometimes may turn to "comfort foods" we associate with pleasant feelings and overeat these foods when we are stressed, depressed or tired. Food cravings for quick sugar energy, alcohol foods or drinks containing caffeine or carbohydrates are common when we are tired and want to feel energized.

How to manage your food cravings (Diets)

You could try the following tips to help you cope and resist temptation:

•  Don't skip meals as this will make you more likely to crave other foods and snack because you are hungry.

•  Don't starve yourself as this is most likely to lead to you experience cravings and to give in to temptation. Keep healthy snacks like fruit or carrot/celery sticks handy at all times.

•  Drink plenty of water as dehydration can sometimes be mistaken for hunger and can increase cravings, especially for sweet foods. Water will also make you feel full, so you would feel less hungry.

•  Don't keep foods you crave in the house, and don't go shopping when you're hungry as you're more likely to buy foods that are bad for you.

•  As with any craving, distract your attention from it - go for a walk, have a bath or watch TV.

•  Indulge once in a while so that you don't deprive yourself completely as this could be your downfall. If you crave chocolate allow yourself a fun size chocolate bar occasionally and don't feel guilty.
  
  
• If you need extra help with food cravings and trying to reduce food intake, try SlimSlim slimming pills. It's a 100% natural slimming aid helping you to keep the calories under control. Find SlimSlim here