Working from home makes sticking to a healthy eating plan much easier.  The more healthy food I eat, the more I want to eat!  Bizarre but true.  So this morning I really wanted to have a super healthy start to the day.  I have a new brand of Goji berries and they are particularly good.  More flavoured than the ones I bought in Waitrose and more chewy.

1 tbsp Goji berries 

plus cayenne pepper, the juice of half a lemon and a tea bag.  Makes a delicious cuppa full of antioxidants to start the day healthily.

With the bonus of sweet, plump and juicy Goji berries to enjoy at the end. Sweet, hot and sour, it gets your taste buds going too.  The more I drink this tea, the more I love it. It has approximately 40 calories per cup which is similar to the calories in a cup of tea with semi-skimmed milk.

I soaked 15 g almonds, 10 g cashews and 5 g flax seeds in water for a couple of hours.  It makes them easier to blend smoothly and digest.

After the nuts were ready they went in to the blender with the soak water and a large slice of water melon.

Plus half a pomegranate.  I kept the pomegranate and watermelon seeds in the smoothie too for extra goodness.

This made a pink smoothie, which makes a change from green ones 🙂  This was actually a bit watery and lacking in flavour but it was full of healthy nutrients so I drank it and was kept full until lunch time.  On only 251 calories too so even better.

I spent my lunch hour on a walk in the spring sunshine with my children and dogs which was the best lunch time I have had for a while.  When we got home Lara cooked us a delicious lunch so I could get back to work.

Using the New Covent Garden Soup green recipe book, she made the recipe for ‘ Lentil and Lemon Soup’ but without the lemon.  The recipe was for 6 people but we didn’t have any bread or other accompaniments so the three of us shared the amount made and it was the perfect portion size.  333 calories per bowlful.  It was absolutely delicious and very healthy.  Lara used a chicken stock but you could easily use vegetable to keep it vegetarian.

Red Lentil Soup

Ingredients (serves 3 – 6)

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 150g red lentils, washed
• 570ml stock
• 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 2 tsp tomato puree
• 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Heat the oil and cook the onion and garlic gently for 10 minutes without allowing the onion to brown.
2. Add the lentils and stir so the lentils are coated in oil.
3. Add the stock and bring to the boil, skimming off any scum that may form.
4. Add the tinned tomatoes, tomato puree and 3/4 of the thyme.
5. Bring back to the boil and simmer, covered for 15-20 minutes , stirring occasionally.
6. Taste for seasoning and add the rest of the thyme.

This was excellent.  Full of flavour, low fat and full of protein and fibre.  I really recommend this soup.  It also has the added bonus of being very cheap.

Mid afternoon I was peckish so I snacked on an apple with 20 g Goji berries (this brand is so delicious I can not stop eating them!), 15g walnuts and 5 g pumpkin seeds.  This snack was approximately 250 calories.

That did the trick until supper time.  Dinner will not win any healthy eating points but it was really good.  Lara had some friends over and cooked them spaghetti carbonara with a salad.  She made extra so we could have some too.  I resisted the extra cheese she had grated to put on top and had a modest portion.  The salad had a homemade French Dressing on it.  I estimate this meal to be 697 calories.I went to Fat Fighters tonight to be weighed.  I knew I had put weight on during my binge around Easter but was hoping I had lost it all with my excellent eating this week.  I was relieved to see I have lost a pound since I last went which means I have lost 13 pounds this year which I am pleased with. Very pleased actually and it is good to be reminded that I have done well this year.  The naughtiness and weight gain of the latter part of last year is well and truly behind me.