Happy New Year! (and some dairy-free mint choc chip ice cream)

Hooray it's 2017!

Can you feel it?

There's an excitement in the air - like the coming year is a blank slate just waiting to be filled with all sorts of awesomeness. Like this awesome mint-choc-chip ice cream! But more on that in a moment.

While I am not really into setting resolutions, at the beginning of a new year I think a certain amount of reflection is good.

Some people set goals, some choose a guiding word, some cross their fingers and hope for the best.

Me? I've found 3 little questions to be really helpful:

1. What do you want more of?

2. What do you want less of?

3. What do you want to introduce?

If you sit with each of those questions for a few moments the answers do make themselves known.

For me personally, I want more fun activities with my kids, more focus on my relationship with my husband, more meditation (I've committed to a 365 meditation challenge this year), more personal development, more reading of fiction, more gluten and dairy free cooking because this way of eating is serving me well, and more mindfulness and gratitude

I want less fear, stress and worry about things that I can't change, less self-recrimination, less feeling that I have to do it all.

I want to introduce - more movement, more date nights, a dedicated self-care ritual, to incorporate essential oils more into our daily lives, more fermented foods and a real focus on gut health for myself and Mr 6 especially.

I also want to eat more ice cream - if it tastes as good as this one does!

I've used a tin of coconut condensed milk here but if you have a Thermomix you can of course make your own with whatever sweetener you choose. I usually would but being time-poor on New Year's Eve and also wanting a very white base I chose to buy some. Totally up to you!

Dairy-free Mint-Choc-Chip Ice Cream 

3 cans Ayam coconut cream (chilled in fridge upside down for 24 hours before you begin!)
1 can coconut condensed milk (also chilled in the fridge for 24 hours)
5 drops peppermint essential oil*
100g Lindt 85% cocoa chocolate, chopped into small chunks

Insert the butterfly into the thermomix bowl.

Take your already chilled cans of coconut cream, open them carefully and place only the thick creamy parts into the thermomix. Depending how you stored your can in the fridge you may be able to scoop off the cream leaving some watery milk in the tin, or you could pour off the milk leaving the cream behind. Just don't use the milk for this ice cream or it won't work!

Beat the cream for 30 secs / SP 4.

Add the (already chilled) condensed coconut milk and peppermint oil and whip for another 30 secs / SP 4.

Add the chopped chocolate and mix on reverse / SP 2 for 10 seconds.

Pour into a freezer safe container and chill until firm. Or serve immediately for a (very) soft-serve style ice cream.

My kids went nuts for this on New Year's Eve and there were arguments over who got to lick the bowl and spatula!

If you don't have a Thermomix then a good food processor or blender will work well too!

*Not all essential oils are safe for ingestion. Click here for more information on the brand I use and love!

Peppermint is one of my all-time favourite essential oils and to help you experiment with it I've done up a handy printable with some of the best uses for this wonder oil. Just click on the image below to grab your copy!

Do you use essential oils at home? What are your favourites? xx

Christmas Menu 2016

Well, we're really on the countdown to Christmas now!

This year I have made a concerted effort to get organised early for Christmas.

We bought a few presents during the year and then I made sure I had all the kids presents bought and wrapped before school finished. Go me!

I've had lists upon lists of gifts, shopping and food prepared so that this week has just been crossing things off. I've even got a timeline prepared for all the Christmas Eve cooking to make sure everything gets done.

This year we are hosting both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Normally we wouldn't do both but that's just how it's worked out.

This is the 4th year now that I've posted our Christmas menu and it's so helpful to be able to look back at previous years and see what worked and what didn't, and importantly what we can cut back on.

Our Christmas food this year is quite traditional - all our favourite things, homemade of course, and with lots leftover so I don't need to cook for a few days.

It's going to be great.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Honey, mustard and ginger glazed ham
Pigs in blankets (by special request from the kids who saw Jamie Oliver make some on one of his Christmas cooking shows)
Duck fat roast potatoes
Roast carrots
Steamed greens with almonds

Tapioca Christmas pudding (GF, DF)
Coconut vanilla bean custard


Christmas Breakfast

Scrambled eggs with leftover ham and garlic spinach
Spiced fig gingerbread


Christmas Lunch

Nibbles - nuts, pate, GF crackers, Christmas bliss balls

BBQ side of salmon
Prawn and chorizo salad
Mango and avocado salad

Mango and raspberry trifle (similar to this one I made last year but with a few changes to make it both GF and DF)

So that's it!

I wish all of you a very happy and safe Christmas 2016.

What's on your Christmas menu this year? Do you do a hot or cold Christmas lunch? Tell me below

Healthy Christmas Rum Balls

Now I know I'm venturing into dangerous territory here.

It seems like everyone's mum or nanna makes rum balls at Christmas - and everyone thinks their version is the best!

Some have crumbled cake, some use crushed biscuits or weetbix, all have chocolate and of course, rum.

My previous favourite back in my BW days (Before Wholefoods) was this version I made with Madeira cake and condensed milk. So good but so bad!

I've tried a few different variations and this one is a definite winner.

It has the fewest ingredients and tastes out of this world!

They are rich, intensely chocolatey and have a lovely warmth from the rum. Just perfect.

So I started these a few days ahead of time by soaking the sultanas in the rum and leaving them to steep. As soon as the rum was gone and the sultanas were plump and juicy they were ready to use.

If you don't have time for that (or just don't want to), you can place the sultanas and rum in a small saucepan, bring to the boil and then simmer until all the liquid is absorbed.

Despite it being school holidays I have somehow managed to keep these hidden from the kids in the freezer. They are definitely adults only and if I'm honest, just to good to share!

Healthy Cacao Rum Balls

1/2 cup organic sultanas*
2-3 tbs rum
250g organic raw almonds (or almond meal)
2 heaped tbs raw cacao + 1/2 cup extra
2 tbs coconut oil
pinch salt

*See the post above for details on how to prepare the sultanas and rum - by either steeping or boiling. When you are ready, follow the instructions below to make the rum balls.

Place the almonds into your food processor and blend to a fine meal (Thermomix 10 secs / SP 9).

Add all remaining ingredients (except the extra cacao) and blitz until the mix is sticky and clumping together.

Place the extra 1/2 cup raw cacao into a bowl.

Roll spoonfuls of mixture into balls and then drop into the cacao. Toss until covered and place into a storage container.

Makes approximately 16 balls.

Store in the fridge or freezer.

Do you have a favourite treat that it just wouldn't be Christmas without? Tell me below!

Christmas Bliss Balls

4.57 am.

Why do I always wake up at 4.57am these days??

Today I got up straight away and crept downstairs to enjoy the extra quiet time by myself. And at the bottom of the stairs, I took a deep breath and smelt ... Christmas.

After going to the markets on the weekend our fruit bowls are full of mangoes, pineapples and peaches and the smell instantly transported to me my childhood Christmas holidays on the Gold Coast!

The power of smell is truly amazing don't you think?

I can't quite believe it but today is the last day of school for the boys. All the breakup parties, concerts and swimming carnivals are done and Christmas will be here before we know it.

This year I'm easing myself into some Christmas cooking with some simple and oh-so delicious bliss balls that have some of the best flavours of Christmas time.

These little beauties are free from gluten, dairy and refined sugar and taste fabulous. I defy you to taste one and not get a smile on your face!

They were also a great way to use some of the blackstrap molasses which I bought but then couldn't remember why!

I've just included the Thermomix ingredients here but of course a food processor or high powered blender will also do the job.

Super quick and no baking - the perfect Christmas treat!

Christmas Bliss Balls

3/4 cup rolled quinoa
3/4 cup organic sundried dates
1/2 cup raw almonds
A thumb-sized piece of ginger (grated)
1 tbs blackstrap molasses
zest of 1 orange
1/2 ts vanilla extract
1/2 ts cinnamon
14 ts salt
1/8 ts ground cloves

Place the quinoa flakes and almonds into the Thermomix and blitz for 8 seconds / SP 9.

Add all remaining ingredients and process for 30-40 seconds / SP 8, or until the mixture is sticky and holds together.

Roll spoonfuls into balls and store in the fridge.

Makes 16-18 balls.

Do you have a favourite food or smell that reminds you of Christmas?

Review: Reshape Your Body with Real Food Challenge

You know, as much as I tout the benefits of menu planning, the actual process of doing it bores me to tears.

It is one of my least favourite jobs!

So the past few weeks were an amazing breath of fresh air as I completed the 21 day Reshape Your Body with Real Food Challenge with naturopath Jessica Donovan from Energetic Mama.

I've written before that I've been feeling fat, frumpy and tired this past Winter.  All of this has been due to some health issues I've been having and while I definitely wanted to lose weight, what I really wanted was more energy and to just feel a little better.

I've been on Jess's mailing list for years and wasn't actually going to do this challenge until the 11th hour when she sent an email detailing how her program can help women with thyroid problems, oestrogen dominance and adrenal fatigue.

Umm, that's the exact trifecta I'm dealing with. I signed up on the spot and couldn't wait to get stuck in!

There was a daily email for the 3 weeks covering the menu, shopping, meal prep, mindset, exercise and some naturopathic advice on the specific conditions so many of us are struggling with.

So 3 weeks later, was it worth it?

In a word, YES.

Within the first few days I could see where some bad habits had been sneaking in.

I could see just how often I was reaching for something sweet, that I wasn't having a substantial enough lunch and then snacking before dinner, and that I'd become too reliant on carb-heavy foods like potatoes and brown rice.

Pros:

1. It is run by a naturopath so you know the nutritional information is sound. Plus Jess is always available to answer any questions in the private Facebook group during the challenge which was great.

2. Jess specialises in treating mums and this program is designed for women with hormonal, adrenal and thyroid issues. Like I said, this is exactly what I need.

3. It got us out of a food rut. Despite eating well, lately we've been busier and tending to make the same things over and over again. The whole family appreciated some different things on the menu and they have been easily adaptable for our gluten and dairy free way of eating.

4. I loved not having to decide what was for breakfast, lunch and dinner each day. The menu and shopping list were provided and all I had to do was check the menu and cook. No thought involved!

5. The food was delicious, very fresh, great variety and easy to prepare. Some of the dinners have become new family favourites and I've made them several times since the challenge.

Cons:

1. The cost of the food. This was something I didn't even consider. We already a eat whole foods/no junk diet but we eat simply, and we buy and cook in bulk. Our food bill essentially doubled for the period of the challenge which was hard for us to absorb. But if you buy processed food and a lot of takeway chances are you would end up saving money.

2. The exercise program was way beyond me. If you already exercise no doubt you would be fine. But coming from a background of chronic fatigue syndrome and no regular exercise for years this was completely, and totally beyond my capabilities.

3. No ongoing access to the exercise videos. While all the menus, shopping lists and exercise planners are downloadable, the exercise videos are not, which is a shame because I would have liked to be able to work up to doing them and track my progress.

My results:

• 1.4 kg weight loss in 21 days
• No more bloating
• 3.5cm off my waist measurement so my jeans are comfy again, and
• I gained a new repertoire of fresh and delicious meals

They say it takes 21 days to form a new habit, and I have to say I have been sticking with this way of eating quite easily.

I'm now not only planning dinners, but breakfasts and lunches as well and finding I don't really need to snack at all. I'm also more tuned into my body and only eating when I'm hungry, rather than when I'm tired or bored. This is huge!

I think this has been the perfect way to get back into healthier eating, especially with Christmas coming.

I'm not sure when Jess will run the challenge again but you can go here to get on the waiting list for next year.

Thanks Jess! It was a great investment and I'm so happy I signed up.

* This is not a sponsored post. I paid for the challenge myself and was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own. You should seek medical advice before embarking on a diet and exercise program.