Watercress,avocado and sweet potato soup

Hi Bloggers, I hope you enjoyed my last recipe.

I try to put together foods that are nutritional quick and easy.

Here is a wonderfully nutritious soup, I think it's absolutely delicious, I hope you think so.

Watercress, avocado and sweet potato soup

This is how I make it,

Add stock to two and a half pints of water.

(If you are buying a stock go for low salt variety. I always make my own, that probably sounds like I am a 'kitchen Goddess' but it is very simple. When you cook a roast chicken, (more about a perfect roast chicken another time) save the stock from the chicken and freeze it, now you have your own stock for your soups!)

Four large sweet potatoes

(Sweet potatoes are a great source of beta-carotene, fibre, potassium, and will help keep you feeling fuller for longer so perfect to aid weight loss!)

Three bunches of watercress,

(Watercress is very underrated and I think we often overlook it. Watercress is a power house of nutritious vitamins B1, B2, B6 also vitamin C and E and many minerals. Also containing fibre which may help in lowering cholesterol, the list goes on!)

One celery stick

(Celery is low in calories and high in fibre and contains antioxidants and another plus is that celery stops the craving for sugary foods.)

One Medium avocado

(I am often asked if avocados are OK to eat if you are trying to loose weight. I personally think you should include avocados in your diet as they contain mono-unsaturated fats which may help to lower cholesterol as well as containing potassium which helps to regulate blood pressure. Also containing vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre. So they are tasty to eat and good for you too.)

For the topping

50g of pumpkin seeds 50g of pine nuts 50g of flaked almonds.

Dry fry these luscious little nuts and seeds and set aside ready to sprinkle on top of each bowl of soup with some shavings of parmesan cheese, add a pinch of Anglesey sea salt and black pepper.

Here's the easy bit !

Peel and chop the sweet potatoes, place in a large saucepan add the stock and cook until soft, then blend together and set aside.

Add the watercress, celery, avocado and a little of the blended sweet potato to a food proccessor and just enough stock to moisten the mixture. When processed add to the stock in the saucepan and stir together.

Gently heat through and serve. Sprinkle the roasted nuts and seeds to each bowl with parmesan and serve.

enjoy !

Corinne's Oat Lemon and Chia Flapjacks

Hi bloggers!!!

I hope you enjoyed my last recipe.

I always think food should be as natural as possible, in fact as nature intended.

When I think about food I always try and think of the health benefits to be gained from that food.

I hope you find the information as interesting as I do.

These flapjacks are delicious, quick and simple.

If you enjoy eating as nature intended then you will love this raw food recipe. Its take about 5 minutes to put together and one hour to chill in the fridge then its ready to enjoy.

Ingredients

Dried dates 50g

Truly delicious, full of vitamins and minerals, a true super food.

Dried apricots 50g

Great for slow releasing energy. Helps with weight loss too. Also great for the digestion and packed full of vitamins and minerals.

Sunflower seeds 50g

These are wonderful seeds, full of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. We all need plenty of antioxidants in our diet to help fight those free radicals (more about this later).

Raisins 100g

Raisins are full of natural sugar which means lots of energy.

Porridge oats 100g

Oats contain lots of slow releasing carbohydrates and will keep you feeling fuller.

Milled flaxseed 75g

I buy a mixed flaxseed which also contain nuts, omega 3, selenium, magnesium, fibre and vitamin E.

One tablespoon of organic honey

I always try and buy local honey.

One whole lemon (including skin) cut into very small pieces. (discard the pips)

Lemons are rich in vitamin C and also a great immune system booster.

Two tablespoons of hemp oil

Hemp seed oil is full of omega 6, 3, and minerals.

Two tablespoons of Chia seeds

This is a new discovery for me and what a find.

This little seed was used over 4,000 years ago by the Aztecs and the Incas. If it was good enough for them I thought I would give it a try!

Chia also helps keep you hydrated so that is another plus and they are full of vitamins and minerals; what a clever little seed!

Next is the easy bit...

Mix all ingredient in a food processor until it forms a dough, press the dough into a baking tray and chill in fridge for one hour.

Cut into square size treats and enjoy!!

Use a 20cm non stick baking tray.

The flapjacks can be stored in the fridge for up to a week in an air tight container.

Corinne's Kitchen Recipes

Hi, I am a nutritional therapist and over the past twenty years I have helped a lot of people to lose weight and most importantly keep it off.  Over the course of my career I have created a lot of healthy and nutritious recipes. People keep asking me for them so I thought that I would put them in a blog.  (you have got to keep up with the times!) I always enjoy inventing meals that look beautiful on the plate as well as being yummy and I have created everything from complete meals to cakes, tasty snacks and on the go treats. I thought I would share them with you and I hope your enjoy my recipes! I shall be adding more on a regular basis. Let me know what you think of them and remember they are all good for you in moderation!!!! enjoy!