Non-GMO

  • Breakfast, Food

    Strawberry & Vanilla Cupcake Protein Shake

    Who loves Strawberry & Vanilla Cupcakes?

    If you like your morning shake with a little bit of yumminess then look no further, today I have a really tasty strawberry and vanilla cupcake protein shake recipe to share with you. This is one you definitely will not want to live without. Like Strawberries? Like Cupcakes? Then keep on reading!

    Nutrition and what I put into my body is hugely important to me and being lactose intolerant pretty much excludes me from a lot (although in hindsight I am glad because I don’t really want to be putting much dairy into my body anyway.

     

    Why protein?

    Protein is an extremely important nutrient to have in our diets and many of us are not taking on enough protein daily. Protein is vital component for every single cell in your body, it helps to build and repair tissue, you need it to make hormones and enzymes and it it is important for building bones, muscles, cartilage, skin and blood. You body needs protein in relatively large amounts to stay healthy because unlike carbohydrates and fat, protein is a macronutrient and you body has no reserves to pull from when you are running low. This is why a daily protein shake can be so beneficial to your health.

    When protein is digested it leaves behind amino acids which are essential for your body and a complete protein will provide your body will all the amino acids your body needs. A protein rich diet comes with a whole raft of health benefits including curbing hunger by making you feel full, building lean muscle and helping you to maintain a healthy weight.

     

    Protein shakes & me

    I try to stay consistent and have a protein shake every day, usually with or after my breakfast and it helps to keep me full all day long. My usual favourite is a chocolate peanut butter cup or my cherry bakewell inspired shake. For todays recipe I stepped a little outside my comfort zone (because that is where the magic happens) and created this yummy strawberry vanilla cupcake flavoured protein shake.

     

    shake

     

     

     

    Strawberry Vanilla Protein Shake Recipe

    Ingredients

    • 1 handful of strawberries, either fresh or frozen.
    • 1 handful of banana.
    • 250ml of coconut almond milk (or any non dairy milk of your choosing).
    • 1 scoop of It Works vanilla protein shake powder.
    • 1 tsp of agave nectar (or Manuka honey for any non-vegans).

     

    Method

    The method is simple – throw it all into your blender and blend until smooth. We used to use a Nutribullet but we are now big fans of the Blend Active.

     

    This shake is absolutely amazing and here is why:
    • Tastes just like a strawberry cupcake.
    • A complete protein so it nourishes you body with 9 branch chain amino acids.
    •  Dairy Free.
    • Gluten Free.
    • Soy Free.
    • Vegan.
    • Plant based.
    • Non-GMO (Meaning no ingredients are genetically modified).
    • 15g of organic plant based protein (Sprouted brown rice & yellow pea).
    • Only sugar is the naturally occurring sugar in the fruit.
    • 5g of Carbohydrates.

    It is clean, healthy and everything your body needs. Stay tuned for my Peanut Butter Cup and Cherry Bakewell inspired shakes coming soon!

     

  • Breakfast, Food

    Peanut butter cup protein shake

    My favourite protein shake…

    After I posted my last recipe, my strawberry and vanilla cupcake protein shake, I did promise that I would come back and tell you all about my chocolate peanut butter cup flavoured Shake, because it is just too divine not to share it. I have been mixing this one up a little recently, and if you ever read my previous post you will have seen that I talked about not only the chocolate peanut butter cup shake, but also a cherry bakewell inspired shake as well. Well I love chocolate, love peanut butter and I love cherries so I have been adding them all in together to make the most amazing tasting chocolate peanut butter cup shake and I am coming to you today with a recipe that will blow your mind. I’m going to talk to you a little bit about why I love this shake, why adding protein to my diet is so important, why you should consider adding protein to your diet too and of course the recipe to make this tasty shake for yourself.

    Why protein is so important for us…

    My previous post about protein and why it is such an important nutrient for us to add into our diets. This is a vegetarian blog so I don’t want to talk too much about anything that’s not vegetarian, but many people would presume on the whole we should get our protein from meat, however we all know that this is not the case. That is, in fact, a very old school way of thinking. Many of us, meat eaters or not, are not getting enough daily protein into our diets. It is such an amazing nutrient and helps the aid the repair every single cell in our bodies. Let that sink in for a moment. EVERY. SINGLE. CELL. It is also great at helping with tissue repair, our hormones, our blood, building lean muscle and much more. Because protein is a macronutrient, which means it is needed in large amounts in our diet, our body often has no reserves on which to use when we are running low. This is one of many reasons why I am a huge advocate of a daily protein shake being so beneficial to your health. Not only is it tasty, keeps you full and provides you with a load of nutrients, it is also going to ensure you get all the protein that your body needs. As you can tell protein is extremely important.

    And what about Amino Acids?

    When we digest protein we leave behind something called amino acids, which are essential for our body and health. Anything that is a complete protein will provide your body with all the amino acids that it needs. The protein that we use has all 9 branched-chain amino acids which are considered essential amino acids for our body and our health. We must get them into our diet from outside means because our bodies do not produce them by themselves. Yet another reason why a protein shake can be so beneficial in your diet. I said in my previous post that I really do try and stay consistent and have a protein shake everyday. Recently I have been using this recipe adding oats and having this for my breakfast. It is fun, tasty, healthy, me all the protein that I need, gives me all the branched chain amino acids that my body needs and it keeps me full until lunch time.
    If you want to read more about protein and why I think it is such an important part of our diet, be sure to check out my previous blog post where I make a yummy strawberry and vanilla cupcake protein shake. I go into great detail there all about protein and why it is so important.
    Ok, now let us get on with the recipe.

    Chocolate peanut butter cup protein shake recipe

    Ingredients

    • 1 large handful of cherries, either fresh or frozen (I prefer frozen because it makes a lovely cold shake).
    • 250ml any non dairy milk of your choosing.
    • 1 scoop of It Works chocolate protein shake powder.
    • 1 TBSP of PB Fit peanut butter powder.
    • 1 TBSP of organic cacao powder.
    • 1 – 2 TBSP of organic oats (optional).

    Method

    • Add your cherries into a blender cup an ad half of your milk.
    • Blend until smooth.
    • Cacao powder and peanut butter powder and again until smooth.
    • Add your chocolate protein shake powder and blend.
    • Add in the rest of your milk and blend.
    • If you are using oats in Wanted 2 tablespoons of organic oats and blend to mix.

     

    shake

    This shake tastes so good and here is why:

    • It tastes just like a chocolate peanut butter cup.
    • Complete protein your body all essential branched-chain amino acids.
    • It is dairy free, gluten free and soy free.
    • It is suitable for vegans.
    • Plant based.
    • It is non GMO, meaning that none of the ingredients have been genetically modified.
    • It has 15 grams of organic plant based protein (organic sprouted brown rice & yellow pea proteins).
    • The only sugar you will find in this shake is naturally occurring from the fruit.
    • Only 5 grams of carbohydrates,
    • The shake alone, if mixed with water, is only 100 calories.
    • It will keep you full and stop you snacking.
    • Give your body the protein that it needs.
    This shake is my absolute favourite; I love the flavour, I love the cherries, it is clean, healthy and enables me to nourish my body with everything it needs.
  • Holistic Wellbeing, Natural Home

    Rise & Shine – Homemade natural sugar scrub recipe!

    Want to make your own sugar scrub?

    When it comes to skincare I am very fussy about what I put onto my skin. It is the same with food, I am, in general, fussy about what I put onto and into my body. Having run out of my favourite peppermint sugar scrub recently (and it is no longer on sale – shock, horror!) I decided that it was time for me to jump in and make my own, knowing all I would need essential oils (which I already have and love), a carrier oil and some sugar! While completing this project I was also making some relaxing bath salts at the same time, so I knew that I wanted to try a sugar scrub that would be perfect for that morning shower, something to brighten your day and wake you up.

     

    Essential Oils?

    While I was looking through my ever-growing collection of essential oils I came across “Boom” and immediately knew that this was the one that would be perfect for a project like this. Boom is the perfect essential oil for days you just need to get up and go – when you need a little extra get up and go! It has sharp peppermint tones as well as citrus notes that will help you feel wide awake, refreshed and ready for whatever the day is about to throw at you. I love these essential oils by It Works because they are 100& pure, uncut and unadulterated oils, meaning they are 100% what they say they are, contain naturally occurring ingredients and do not have any synthetic chemicals of substances.

    It is really simple to make your own homemade sugar scrub and all you need is a few simple ingredients. Once you have made one batch you will want to try more – I promise, it is addictive.

     

    So, let’s get to the main event, how to make your own sugar scrub.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 ½ cups of sugar (you can use any type, I used caster sugar because its fine).
    • ½ a cup of coconut oil as a carrier oil. I used this coconut oil.
    • 20 drops of the essential oil of your choice. I chose the It Works Boom Essential Oil.
    • A clean, dry container to store it in.

    All you need to do is weigh out your ingredients and mix them together until you feel confident that everything is well mixed together. When all mixed, decant it into your container (I chose a glass container) and use a couple of times per week.

     

    Why are we loving this sugar scrub?

    Sugar scrubs are great on your skin when used 1-2 times per week. They are easy on your skin (and less rough than a salt scrub – however you can make your own bath salts, more on that coming soon) and helps you to remove the dead skin cells and this will help you to achieve smoother skin. For the skin coconut oil is an excellent moisturiser, helping to keep your skin smooth and soft. It is also naturally antibacterial and antifungal too. The essential oils are organic compounds which are extracted from plants and provide a number of different healing properties, from physical to mental to emotional health.

     

    Have you ever tried making a sugar scrub before? What are your favourite essential oils to add into it? If you try this recipe let me know how it turns out in the comments below.