After the excesses of Christmas there is always much talk of diets, detox and New Year’s resolutions.
I’m not really a fan of any of these things especially the term diet.
To me diets were invented to sell books, classes etc and the problem with them is that as soon as people come off these diets they seem to put the weight back on.
I remember a former colleague at work was voted Dieter of the Year many years ago by some large diet organisation, the following year she reverted back to her heavier weight when she came off the diet.
So to my mind it’s all about eating healthily with the occasional treat as well as keeping active (we weren’t designed to sit behind a desk all day)!
There is no such thing as a bad food but there is such a thing as a bad diet. Everything in moderation is my motto.
However this motto does go out of the window at times eg Christmas so that’s why in January I like to make an extra effort to eat healthily as I must admit to a weakness for both chocolates and marzipan.
So what is healthy eating?
Well to me it means cutting down on things like processed foods, sugar, and red meat and eating more vegetables, fruit, whole grains, pulses, nuts, fish and poultry.
The more colours on your plate the more likely you’ll be getting a broad spectrum of nutrients.
I also believe breakfast is the most important meal of the day as skipping it will just lead to low blood sugar and then you’re more likely to over eat at lunch time.
Eating small healthy snacks throughout the day is far better for you than eating two or three big meals.
Why? Well because our metabolism uses calories to digest our food so firing up this process more often uses up more calories.
Keeping a supply of fruits, nuts, seeds or dried fruits to hand is a great way to keep your blood sugar level throughout the day instead of reaching out for a biscuit (which is laden with calories and devoid of essential vitamins and minerals).
Healthy Recipe Ideas
- Healthy Hot Chocolate Breakfast Smoothies from Ren Behan
- Greener Colada – Pineapple, Coconut & Spinach Smoothie from Fuss Free Flavours
- Sweet Potato & Fresh Ginger Protein Balls from Veggie Desserts
- Chocolate Covered Peanut Protein Bars (Vegan) from Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary
- Carrot & Coriander Soup from Fab Food 4 All
- Kale Roasted Cranberry & Smoked Almond Salad from How to Cook Good Food
- Beetroot Salad with Freekeh Whole Grains from Maison Cupcake
- Chicken Tikka Kebabs – Hungry Healthy Happy
- La Quiche sans Pate from Croque Maman
- Vegan Mint Chocolate Mouse from Blue Kitchen Bakes
I shall certainly be trying out these healthy recipes and I do hope you’ve been inspired too!
What are your favourite healthy dishes? Do let me know in the comments below!
Pin for later!
donnie123
Love the greener colada after a long walk.
Paul Wilson
Vegan Mint Chocolate Mouse sounds nice.
Emily
Another great roundup with some really beautiful recipes. Pinning for later.
Camilla
Thanks Emily, this post has been so popular;-)
Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy
Lots of delicious recipes there – thanks for including mine.
I always say that individual foods are not good or bad (although I don’t eat anything artificial), it is all about consistent choices.
Camilla
Yes Dannii I did think afterwards maybe I should have said no natural foods are bad because anything artificial like sweeteners etc are a big no no to my mind!
otilia
Oh so much inspiration! There is a linky with healthy recioes #foodiefriday on Casa Costelo so please do visit her blog to linkup
ghostwritermummy
Thank you! I’m newly dairy free and have been looking for a sweet treat- love the sound of the vegan peanut bars 🙂 x x
Camilla
Glad I could help:-)
Helen Neale
Thanks for the selection of healthy recipes, there are definitely some I can try here with the kids (and myself 😉 )x
Camilla
Pleasure;-)
ninjacat
great recipes to kick start the new year with
Camilla
Thank you Claire:-)
Anne
I do agree with you about diets and I’m always looking for healthier recipes, so thanks for this. I’m going to make some of those sweet potato and ginger balls for the fridge.
Camilla
Fab, they do sound delicious:-)
Bek Dillydrops
What a great list of healthy recipes. We keep trying to eat more healthily but I think Christmas has made me remember I have a sweet tooth again 🙂 I shall pop back to try out some of these recipes.
Camilla
Yes Christmas is a time of letting go but then the novelty just starts to wear off and you long for a lettuce leaf:-)
Cherished By Me
Oh what a great selection of recipes…you do not want to head over to my last post!! 🙂 After weighing myself this morning I am definitely back on the healthy path!
Camilla
Thanks – that’s good to know:-) I loved your quick banoffee puds and left a comment:-)
Fiver Feeds
Nice collection of recipes! So far my favorite is Vegan Mint Chocolate Mouse but I’m very excited to try this Greener Colada, that seems great!
Camilla
So glad to excite your palate:-)
Kate
you made a good start with the moderation but I disagree.that there is a need to cut back or restrict any food to be eating healthily. Technically you could eat red meat every day, it’s about the overall balance of what you eat, your needs and goals. When you truly accept you can eat any food at any time, you crave forbidden food much less and probably find you’re satisfied after a little. I agree that eating more veggies is a good habit to adopt tho.
Also, people differ. It is only better to eat snacks regularly if it suits you. Some people feel better when they eat larger meals as they prefer the feeling of satiety. Also, I believe there is no scientific evidence to show that eating every few hours increases your metabolism. If you have, I’d be interested.
That said, am going to check out that quiche sans pate. I have a recipe on my blog as I got a similar recipe from my friend who hails from Perpignan.
Camilla
As I said there is no bad food only bad diet so I don’t think our views differ at all. When I studied food and nutrition this is what I learned and having googled the subject this is the 1st page I found mentioning scientific research about eating snacks to improve metabolism: http://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slideshow-boost-your-metabolism no doubt there are many more and my books are all stored away in the garage now.
Petra (@BeHealthyFeelGd)
Love this post! I agree with what you are saying here. Diets don’t work. It’s all about healthy eating and having treats only once in a while. And of course being active is an important part of any healthy lifestyle too.
Petra
Camilla
Thanks Petra – I’ll have to come by and take a look at your recipes when I get a free moment:-)
Urvashi
I get really tired of smoothies and salads at this time of year so thank you for including some nice puddings in this healthy round up!
Camilla
Thanks Urvashi – yes I do believe healthy eating should be a joy not a punishment. As long as your sweet treat is packed with nutrients and not crammed full of empty calories then to my mind that is healthy:-)
Kate @ Veggie Desserts
Thanks so much for linking up to my protein balls. I can’t wait to go through these other recipes!
Camilla
A pleasure Kate:-)
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche
Ooh the beetroot salad looks amazing!
Camilla
It really does:-)
Laura@howtocookgoodfood
This is certainly the best time of year to re-think the way we all eat, especially after Xmas. This is a great collection of ideas and thanks so much for linking to me!
Camilla
A pleasure Laura – love your salad:-)
Corina
We’re doing our best to eat more healthily this year and there are some lovely ideas here. One thing I’d like to do is make more smoothies and I’m going to have a look at the green one.
Camilla
Fab, glad you like the look of the green smoothie, I picked it for its delicious taste and health benefits:-)
Paul Wilson
Some great ideas for this time of year.
Camilla
Thanks Paul:-)