I found another great website for food inspiration http://www.veganricha.com/, so I took it for a test drive by making their delicious mocha cookies. They turned out awesome! No baking powder, baking soda or unnecessary ingredients - they are nice and simple and take no more than 10 minutes in the oven :) 

Serve on it's own (who said salad can't be a meal on it's own?!) or scoop into a healthy wholegrain wrap for some grain-on-grain action. This colourful, protein rich salad will leave you SAT-IS-FIED :D The ingredients don't have to be exact...you can use up what ever raw veggies you have.

Vegan omelette - a first for me :) I wasn't sure how it would turn out but it actually turned out great! The mixture was a little too fragile for the pan, but baking worked a treat. The omelette is a light, fluffy texture and you can add whatever herbs and spices you like. The caramelised onions a naturally sweet and the portobello mushrooms are a "meaty" and hearty addition.

Just as there are foods I operate much better without, there are certain foods that when added to my diet, make a noticeable difference in, for example, energy levels, digestive health or recovery times after exercise. Eliminating unnecessary or damaging foods can be hard sometimes, but adding in extra nourishing foods is easy. The more of the good stuff you add in, the more of the bad stuff it will drown out because there simply wont be any room left for it! My main goal eating-wise is to make my diet as colourful as possible and I find this approach supports my body best. So in addition to the large amounts of vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, wholegrains and legumes I eat, here are a few of my favourites that I really notice a difference with.

I've survived on a whole spectrum of diets from omnivore to vegan and all the "shades" in between. Now, I've settled on a combination of foods that serve my body best for strength, energy, digestive happiness and long term health. I feel satisfied I've experimented and given all those other eating habits their fair chance. By this I mean, I've spent a minimum of months to years (not just a week or weekend ;)) eating any particular way, to find out what works best for me. I'm convinced that most people do not know how good they are really supposed to feel physically from their food. Now that I have found a way of eating that suits me, I understand how energized and sustained after eating you should feel, rather than  like you need to lie on the couch for 2 hours afterwards. Here are the top foods (in no particular order) that I benefit physically from the most, by either eliminating or drastically cutting back on. 

Super satisfying. Nutritional Info per serve (2 cups): Calories: 138.2, Total Fat: 0.4 g, Cholesterol: 0.0 mg, Sodium: 375.0 mg, Total Carbs: 23.9 g, Dietary Fiber: 8.4 g, Protein: 9.8 g.

If you haven't done the avocado mousse trick yet, you are missing out - haha! It's so easy! Blending avocado with cacao and a natural sweetener makes a super smooth, velvety mousse that everyone will love. And it's healthy (so long as you don't put too much sweetener in it)! Today I experimented and made an almond and banana base to turn it into a luscious slice/dessert. Mmmmm......

Now that feijoa's are coming into season in New Zealand, start using them in your smoothies :) YUMMMMM! Using avocado doesn't really add flavour but it does make the smoothie smooth and creamy. 

A new study published in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health reviewed the eating habits of 65,226 people representative of the English population between 2001 and 2013. They found that eating seven or more portions reduces the specific risks of death by cancer and heart disease by 25% and 31% respectively. This is the first study to link fruit and vegetable consumption with all-cause, cancer and heart disease deaths in a nationally-representative population, the first to quantify health benefits per-portion, and the first to identify the types of fruit and vegetable with the most benefit. 

Avocado's never fail me. I'm obsessed with avocados. They contain an amazing array of carotenoids. They are also anti-inflammatory. They help digestion, are high in vitamin K, fiber, folate and vitamin C. Avocados are also high in fat but it is considered to be the good fat that helps you absorb nutrients, protects you from inflammation, and helps lower your risk of heart disease. This pesto is super fast and super tasty. If you want to make it a 100% raw dish, make zucchini noodles instead :)