Pregnancy Food Diet: Week 16

This week the nausea really has lifted which is a huge relief all round, it makes cooking and actually eating so much easier.

As I don't like to take an iron supplement as find this just plays havoc with my insides and clogs me up, I've tried to up my iron intake this week with lots of leafy green veg. Some batch cooking over the previous weekend has been a life saver for a couple of mid-week nights where the tiredness has really kicked in too - thoroughly recommend this.

There have been a few more treats than usual this week too - I blame the bank holiday weekend :-)

Breakfasts:

This has continued to be a combination of smoothies with either yoghurt (this week I've been having the Liberte with blueberry) or granary toast with Marmite. As I've been hit by a bit of an energy-slump, particularly after a day at work followed by an event in the evening, I've been adding either a teaspoon of raw cacao or coffee to my usual Nutriblast for that little early morning caffeine energy boost. A favourite this week has been a banana, a handful strawberries and walnuts, a teaspoon of raw cacao topped up with water - gorgeous.

Mid-Week Meals:

1. A treat of a meal out at The Real Greek with my friend Larni saw ne tucking into halloumi, tarramasalata, pork belly and flat breads - divine.

Halloumi at The Real Greek

2. Pesto Topped Salmon with Spaghetti, rocket and a handful of cherry tomatoes was a winner for the three of us this week.

3. At the work event I had a lovely pea and lemon risotto at The Happenstance with a few small canapes and a delicious cupcake from Doilies 4. A divine looking cheese board at the work event really charged my blue cheese craving - one of the off-limits items during pregnancy, unless thoroughly cooked. So I made this lovely Creamy Mushroom and Blue Cheese Risotto and served with plenty of rocket.

Creamy Mushroom and Blue Cheese Risotto

5. Friday night was a treat of homemade lasagne from the freezer that I'd batch cooked at the weekend and served with a salad - again lots of leafy rocket.

Weekend Meals:

Saturday Glen, Bridget and I ventured to Southend for the day, and had a lovely seaside fish and chips along the seafront - delicious. Sunday we enjoyed a roast pork dinner with lots of crispy roast potatoes and vegetables at my parents’ house cooked by my Mum, and on bank holiday Monday I had a couple of friends over and made the Bruschetta for us to share followed by Seabass en Pappillote, dauphinois potatoes, asparagus and spinach. Missing our usual wine but I'm obviously abstaining, Jem was driving and Steph was suffering from her Sunday night intake!

Roast pork at the Cheungs

Seabass en pappillote

A great week for food - less treats next week.

Pregnancy Food Diet: Week 15

When searching the internet for 'pregnancy diet' the findings aren't the most inspiring. Several websites offer advice in terms of what you should be having generally, such as two portions of fish a week, with one portion being an oily fish (such as salmon, mackerel, sardines), and lots of dark green vegetables and lean meats and pulses for the iron levels, there seems to be a distinct lack of recipe or meal ideas specifically for pregnancy.

So I've decided to offer a weekly pregnancy food diary from here on in, with meal ideas that are suitable for the whole family and that hopefully offer a varied, balanced diet with some naughty treats in there too for good measure.

I try to cook from scratch most days, but am not averse to a meal out or a takeaway so this is my honest account of pregnancy food. I hope it helps to inspire a few ideas for other pregnant ladies at a loss for what to cook for their families during this busy time when tiredness can be a key factor in turning to convenience.

Breakfasts - I've still been feeling fairly queasy this week, so breakfast has been a combination of different things. I've had Greek natural yoghurt with honey, blueberries and flaked almonds a couple of days, but most days it's been wholegrain toast topped with Marmite and a Nutriblast with a piece of fresh ginger to try and help keep the nausea at bay. I try to mix up the ingredients for my daily smoothie as it gets boring otherwise, and include a mixture of both vegetables and fruit. These are a great way of starting the day with a good fix of fibre and hitting half of your 'five a day' target. Here are three different variations I've enjoyed this week:

• Half Kale, small piece of ginger, handful each of blueberries, blackberries and strawberries and half a nectarine topped up with water
• Handful of Strawberries, a nectarine, handful of walnuts and coconut milk
• Half an avocado, small piece of ginger, handful kale, handful pumpkin seeds and handful blackberries Tuesday 16th August:

Lunches:

As I've been at work most of the week, this has been a variety of grab-and-go options, such as soups, salads and sandwiches from the likes of Pret, Marks & Spencer and Itsu. 

For a weekend brunch, I had my usual smoothie but with a slice of toast topped with mashed avocado, a handful of dried chilli flakes and a pinch of coarse sea salt - delicious.

Avocado on toast

Evening meals:

Mid-week I generally get home between 6:45-7:15 most evenings so Bridget will have already eaten, but Glen and I always sit down to a meal together, which I'll cook while he reads a bedtime story and does bath-time. I try and keep the meals under 30 minutes for both preparation and cooking time so that we eat by 8pm the latest every evening, where possible and here are some of the quick and easy meals we had during the week.

• Cajun-spiced pan-fried salmon (I use a Schwarz rub) with a selection of green vegetables and a 'jewelled couscous', which I whipped up whilst the salmon was frying. I top with the appropriate amount of boiled water and top with a plate for this and then chop up all my seasonings - in this case, cucumber, orange pepper, spring onions and fresh mint leaves, plus the seeds of an entire pomegranate for that 'jewelled' effect. Delicious.

Cajun spiced salmon with jewelled couscous and vegetables

• Quick chicken curry using Marks & Spencer Jalfrezi Paste, onions, garlic, ginger and fresh chilli with green pepper and mushrooms, plus chicken thighs - frying all off which the curry paste then topping with tinned tomatoes and serving with microwave rice.
• Inspired by my brother's Instagram posts of Mykonos followed by Athens, I was craving Greek food and made this Greek Chicken One Pot.

• Jacket potato with cheese and coleslaw plus a generous salad on the night that Glen had football training as I didn't have much energy.
• A quick bolognese with lean steak mince and topped up with lentils served with spaghetti (onions and garlic fried gently in olive oil, the mince and finely diced carrot added with a pinch of salt and pepper. Once browned a teaspoon of cinnamon was added then a tin of tomatoes and a tablespoon of tomato puree plus a teaspoon of red wine vinegar. Cook for 20 minutes and add a teaspoon of dried oregano for the last five minutes).

Weekend Meals:

On the Saturday I prepared 'fish, mash and liquor' or to those who aren't so familiar with this meal, cod poached in a mixture of whole milk and water served with creamy mashed potato and peas and a parsley sauce made directly from the fish cooking liquor. Topped with lots of chilli vinegar and white pepper - this was fantastic and helped me hit my 'two portions of fish' target for the week.

Fish, mash and liquor

The Sunday was my youngest brother, Dean's birthday so we had a treat - dim sum feast at Dockland's Yi Ban.

Energy Fix Nutriblast

This is my go-to smoothie or Nutriblast when I need an injection of get-up-and-go - such as this morning!

The slow release energy from the banana and oats helps keep my stomach to feel fuller for longer and the caffeine and raw cacoa give a much needed caffeine boost for that energiser effect. The spinach is packed full of goodness, such as iron which is so important to keep your energy levels up and is also a great source of Vitamin A, B, C and K, manganese and magnesium and vitamin B13 and folic acid (especially important during pregnancy). The pear acts as a great -high-fibre but low calorie fruit to bulk the juice up and add a lovely sweetness whilst providing a great source of vitamin C too.

Here's how:

• 1 small banana (Fun size or children's ones)
• 1 small pear (Fun size)
• 60g spinach
• 25g porridge oats
• 1 tsp raw cacao
• 1 tsp instant coffee (I use Nescafe Azeera)
• 10g sunflower seeds
• 120ml water

Peel the banana and core the pear then add all the ingredients to your blender or Nutribullet. Blast for 20 seconds, check if everything is blitzed, if not blast again for another 20 seconds. Enjoy!

Sweet Tomato Smoothie

I've been enjoying a Nutriblast most days for breakfast during this healthy eating phase in a bid to lose weight. I love the fact they are so simple to prepare and the clean-up operation isn't too taxing.

Here's a lovely, sweet juice to start the day with. It comes in at 224 calories.

Sweet Tomato Smoothie

• 2 tomatoes
• 4 frozen strawberries
• 65g mango (fresh or frozen is fine) 
• 1 orange
• 1small pear
• 10g sunflower seeds
• 100ml water

Firstly peel the orange and throw into your Nutribullet or blender. Now remove the stalk and the core from the pear (no need to peel) and also add. Pop everything else in and adjust the water according to the consistency of smoothie you prefer.

Blitz for twenty seconds. Enjoy!

Here are some of my other favourite smoothie ideas:

• Green Goodness Smoothie
• Sunshine Bright Smoothie
• Apple and Mango Mojito
• Berry Blast Smoothie
• Banana Mocha Smoothie

Apple and Mango Mojito Smoothie

This healthy eating lark doesn't all have to be kale and garlic smoothies - although I'm getting quite into the more 'greens' based nutriblasts, variety is most certainly the spice of life and helps to keep me motivated, that's for sure. 

This juice/smoothie is a take on a mojito cocktail and frankly anything that reminds me of cocktails during diet and healthy eating regimes is a good thing. It's 308 calories and is really delicious. You can of course use fresh mango, but I like to use frozen as gives a lovely smooth and creamy texture to the juice and the chill is reminiscent of a drink in a bar!

Apple and Mango Mojito Smoothie

• 1 Granny Smith apple
• 1/2 avocado
• Whole lime (peel removed)
• 70g frozen mango 
• Handful fresh mint leaves

Add to the Nutribullet or blender the half avocado, frozen mango, mint leaves, the peeled lime and the cored apple. Top up with water (approx 100-150ml) and then blitz for 20 seconds. Enjoy.

Sunshine Bright Smoothie

There is something rather fabulous about brightly hued smoothies first thing in the morning and this Sunshine Bright Smoothie just reminds me of more tropical climes - I think it's the combination of the banana and mango. The porridge oats help keep hunger at bay for a few hours too. It's a winner.

This smoothie contains 367 calories if you stick to the measurements below. 

Sunshine Bright Smoothie

• 1 banana
• 80g fresh mango
• 50g cucumber
• 10g sunflower seeds
• Handful mint leaves
• 25g porridge oats

Peel the banana and mango and throw into the Nutribullet or blender with the cucumber, sunflower seeds, porridge oats and mint leaves and blitz for 20 seconds. Enjoy!

Banana Mocha Smoothie

This is my favourite smoothie or Nutriblast by far for pre-workout, or if you know you have a hectic morning planned. The caffeine from the raw cacao and coffee granules gives you a real energy boost and the porridge oats and banana act to give slow-release energy which will keep you fuller for longer.

Not to mention this smoothie looks, tastes and feels (consistency-wise) like an indulgent milkshake but is simply 281 calories.

• 1 medium banana
• 1 tsp coffee granules or powder (I use Nescafe Azera Americano)
• 1 tsp raw cacao powder
• 10g sunflower seeds
• 10g Porridge Oats
• 1 tbsp 0% fat natural yoghurt (I use Yeo Valley)
• 100-150ml water

Peel the banana and add to the Nutribullet or blender with all of the other ingredients. Blitz for 20 seconds. Enjoy!

Green Goodness Smoothie

This is my Green Goodness smoothie and incorporates kale, kiwi, pear and lime plus some sunflower seeds for a hit of morning protein. It has 244 calories so saves plenty of calories for the rest of the day. The lime and ginger give it a really sharp and fresh flavour too.

Green Goodness Smoothie

• 50g kale
• 1 kiwi
• 1 pear
• Juice of a whole lime
• 1 tsp pumpkin seeds
• 10g fresh ginger
• 100-150ml water

Core the pear and then add all of the ingredients to your Nutribullet or blender and blitz for 20 seconds. Enjoy. 

Berry Blast Smoothie

Here’s another smoothie or Nutriblast (juice) idea. This one isn’t vegetable based and does use a ton of berries, so mix it up on other days. Berries are full of antioxidants and since I’ve been enjoying a combination of smoothies, I’ve really noticed my skin is brighter and feels nicer, so hopefully it’s refreshing my insides too.

This one is 372 calories and is enriched with Goji berries and sunflower seeds. Using just 1 tbsp of 0% fat natural yoghurt helps to give a creamy consistency too which makes it taste absolutely delicious. The banana gives you slow-release energy so this helps keep you full up for a few hours too.

Berry Blast Smoothie

• 100g mixed berries (I use frozen but you can use a combination of your favourites)
• 1 banana
• 1 kiwi
• 1 tbsp goji berries
• 1 tsp sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp 0% fat natural yoghurt (I use Yeo Valley)

Peel the banana and add to the Nutribullet or blender, then add all of the other ingredients and 100-150ml water. Blitz for 20 seconds – enjoy!

Green Zinger Smoothie

As with most of the UK, I have resolved to begin the new year a little healthier and shed the last stone of baby weight that I’m still holding onto 15 months later. I have added a couple of exercise sessions a week to my lifestyle and so far, so good, but most importantly, I’ve started making some small changes to my diet, as I do like to indulge and so am restricting calories and cutting down on carbs whilst trying to still enjoy a balanced diet.

Late in 2015 I invested in a Nutribullet and I have loved experimenting with flavours and fruit and vegetable combinations. The rule is that these should be at least half vegetable based to avoid being a sugar-laden start to the day which I do follow as much as possible.I like to start my day with a Nutriblast/Smoothie/Juice - whatever you call them, they are great.

Here’s one of my favourites which I like to call the Green Zinger – the ginger gives it a lovely zing (hence the name) and the avocado makes it a lovely creamy consistency. It’s 376 calories which is quite high compared to some of the others, but it’s a great combination that is filling and full of green goodness.

Green Zinger Smoothie

• ½ avocado
• 1 kiwi
• 10g ginger
• 40g kale
• 10g sunflower seeds
• 100-150ml water (depends on which consistency you prefer)

Remove the avocado from its shell/skin, pop the kiwi (no need to peel), kale, sunflower seeds and fresh ginger into your Nutribullet or blender. Add the water and blitz for 20 seconds.