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Beauty starts on the inside

February 14, 2012 By

As everyone knows, looking good is an important part of feeling good. If we are happy with how we look on the outside, we have more self-confidence and give off a more confident vibe.

So how do we make sure we look and feel our best every day? Well the good news is that it’s not all about spending huge amounts of money on expensive beauty products and luxury spa treatments. There are plenty of everyday beauty treatments you can try out to start feeling and looking your best from today, without breaking the bank.

One of the simplest things you can do is to make sure your body is healthy on the inside, as this will reflect on the outside. Ensuring you eat a variety of good foods and enjoy a diet that is high in fibre, low in fat and contains plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables and the right amounts of calcium and other vital minerals will do wonders for your looks as well as for your sense of general wellbeing.

Many processed foods contain a whole host of unnatural additives, preservatives and flavourings, so cook from scratch where possible and if you can grow any of your own foods, even better! Eating as naturally and healthily as possible will make you feel and look ten times better than if you rely on junk food and live an unhealthy lifestyle.

Choose foods high in the minerals and vitamins needed for healthy hair and skin and top up your natural beauty regime up with reliable skin care and hair care products.

Moisturising every night from a young age will make a big difference to the condition of your skin in years to come, so use a well-trusted product such as Olay and begin your new regime today. For healthy and beautiful-looking hair, use a product such as Pantene on a regular basis and treat yourself to deep conditioning once a week. Having regular trims will also keep your hair looking great.

Filed Under: Healthy Eating Tagged With: , , , , ,

Nourish your skin from within

January 19, 2012 By

One of the best make up tips ever must be to drink plenty of water. By doing so, you keep your skin hydrated from the inside.  Of course, there are plenty of other things you can do to keep a glowing, healthy complexion.

You’ve probably been following the ‘cleanse, exfoliate and moisturise’ skin care routine on autopilot since you were in your teens. It’s advisable to do keep your cleansing routine to just once a day, and just splash with lukewarm water at the other end of the day – otherwise there’s a danger of removing too many oils from your skin and allowing it to become too dry.

It’s also important to support your complexion with the food you eat. Making sure you have plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables in your diet to supply your skin with the vitamins it needs. Eating foods that contain essential fatty acids (EFAs) like sardines, salmon, soya beans and nuts and seeds will keep your skin and hair in tip top condition.

Of course, as you get into your twenties and thirties, motherhood comes along at some point and the lovely, pampering cleansing rituals you may have become accustomed to during your hedonistic youth have to take second place to the chaos that a new baby brings. Pretty soon, though, you’ll recover your routines – even though you may have to reduce the time you spend on yourself.

In fact you may end up spending more of your day up to your arms in Fairy Liquid bubbles, rather than relaxing baths, keeping up with all the washing-up that children create.  But if you can still make time for a reasonable skincare routine in the evenings when they’ve gone to bed, your face will thank you for the effort in years to come!

Filed Under: Health Issues Tagged With: , , , ,

Ideas for a nice christmas meal

December 27, 2011 By

It’s that time of year again… Christmas is fast approaching and in the rush to buy everyone’s Christmas presents and get the Christmas tree sorted, you’ve all but forgotten about Christmas dinner. So now what?

Well, to create a lovely Christmas dinner this year read the following tips for creating a smashing festive feed, then get your kitchen units cleared and get ready to cook!

The much maligned sprout is a festive fixture, but tends not to be to everyone’s taste, especially the younger members of the family. Serve this little veg a little differently by peeling and frying the leaved in butter. You’re bound to have a few converts to the humble sprout when served this way! If you are cooking the traditional turkey this year, remember this bird has a tendency to be quite dry. To avoid running out of cranberry sauce and gravy as your guests attempt to combat the dryness, make sure you baste the bird regularly. This will ensure it is moist and tasty once cooked.

For a bread sauce that will be the envy of your friends and family, avoid packet mixes and have a go at making your own. Follow the traditional recipe, but use sourdough instead of a normal loaf. It will taste divine!

For any vegetarian guests this Christmas, or if you are a vegetarian yourself, a good tip for delicious roast potatoes that don’t require goose or duck fat is to cook them in olive oil then serve with a small amount of butter and paprika. You can also whip up wonderful homemade vegetarian gravy using vegetable stock, madeira wine and red wine.

Finally and most importantly, to create a nice Christmas dinner, you need the right kitchen equipment and a decent kitchen! Find kitchen accessories and more at Wrenkitchens.com to make sure this year’s Christmas dinner is one to remember for all the right reasons.

Filed Under: Food for Families Tagged With: , , ,

Eating right could prevent hair loss

December 26, 2011 By

“We are what we eat” is not just an old wives’ tale. Our diet really does influence everything from our physical health and mental wellbeing to our appearance. And that includes our hair too.

Many women suffer from the distress of hair loss and whilst many turn to products such as Viviscal.co.uk others are keen to see whether nutritional changes can arrest the thinning of their tresses.

Hair is constituted in the main from protein so make sure you include plenty of protein in your diet. Too much red meat brings its own problems so steer clear of steak at every meal. Instead opt for fish and chicken. Other good sources of protein include eggs, low fat cheese, beans and tofu.

Sufficient iron is vital for hair growth so whilst you may not be a fan of liver try to get enough iron from eggs, raisins (excellent for a snack on the move), spinach and whole grain breads and cereals. Your body needs sufficient Vit C to absorb the iron so have a glass of orange juice with your meal.

Zinc, sulphur and calcium are also key to preventing hair loss. Pulses, meat and poultry all contain zinc whilst sulphur can be obtained from garlic, pulses and grains. Dairy products are best known as sources of calcium but it is also present in fish such as sardines and whitebait, as well as certain nuts and fruit.

Caffeine and fizzy drinks are definitely the enemy in trying to prevent hair loss as they leach important vitamins and minerals from the body so stick to water, fruit juice or green tea.

We all want to maintain a healthy weight but avoid crash diets since they can lead to nutritional depletion which has an adverse effect on the hair as well as the rest of your body.

Filed Under: Healthy Eating Tagged With: , ,

Beer can be good for you

December 19, 2011 By

If you have always fancied settling down at night with a beer but worry about the risks to your health, you need not worry – beer can be enjoyed as part of a healthy lifestyle.

Obviously the operative word when it comes to any alcohol is ‘moderate’. In moderation, beer can actually be good for you and even good for your liver!

That sounds ridiculous on the face of it, but it is true. Beer can get rid of poisonous heavy metals like lead and copper and alcohol causes the small blood vessels in the liver to expand which speeds up metabolism.

Drinking beer also reduces the risk of having a heart attack. Medical studies have found those drinking beer on a daily basis, between one to three beers per day, have a low rate of heart attacks.

Now I have touched on a couple of the reasons why beer can be consumed as part of a healthy lifestyle, let’s take a look at the best and tastiest beers out there.

Fruit beer has become increasingly popular over the past few years. There are all kinds of different flavours and fruit beer offers a sweeter alternative to traditional beer. The underlying fruity taste supplements the attributes of traditional beer nicely.

Premium beer has been the mainstay of the beer industry. Brands such as Stella Artois, Carling and Fosters continue to lead the way in the UK. Fosters has recently launched a new premium bottled lager, Fosters Gold Beer. That is well worth a try.

There is so much choice out there – from real ale to beers of the world – it can be really enjoyable sampling different beers. Just remember, beer is a well-balanced, relatively low-alcohol drink and can be used to supplement a healthy lifestyle. Next time you fancy a beer, don’t hesitate.

Filed Under: Food and Drink Industry Tagged With: , ,

Fancy making bread?

November 23, 2011 By

As regular readers of this blog will know, I enjoy growing food and cooking meals from scratch wherever possible. It’s not always successful, but there is nothing quite like rolling the sleeves up with the kids and having a go at making something new. Experimenting with food is a fun way to bond as a family and a great way to spend a drizzly Sunday afternoon.

Recently, we made bread together as a family, and thoroughly enjoyed the results. If you’ve never made bread before, I strongly suggest you give it a go. Follow my tips for a basic bread recipe, and you’ll be experimenting with focaccias and ciabattas in no time.

Firstly, decide whether you would prefer to make white bread or wholemeal bread, as this will of course dictate which type of flour you need. Along with 1 ½ cups of flour you’ll need the following:

  • 1 level teaspoon of salt
  • 1 level teaspoon of sugar
  • 1 level tablespoon of soft margarine
  • 1 sachet of dried yeast
  • 2/3 cup of warm (not hot) water

In a large mixing bowl, rub the margarine into the flour, sugar and salt with your fingers and then stir in the dried yeast. Stir in the warm water using a wooden spoon until the dough becomes tougher. Once it binds together, place the dough on a floured surface and knead with your hands for about five minutes until smooth.

Shape the dough into however you want your loaf to turn out and then place on a greased baking tray and cover with oiled cling film. Leave in a warm place until the dough has grown to about double its original size and then cook for 20-25 minutes in a preheated oven at 230°C /gas mark 8. Remove from the oven and leave to cool (ensure your loaf’s ready by tapping the bottom; it should sound hollow). Then all that’s left to do is eat, and enjoy!

Filed Under: Baking Tagged With: , , ,

Eat your way to health!

November 7, 2011 By

One of the easiest ways to ensure you have a healthy diet is to make small changes to the things you already enjoy. There are a million and one fad diets around, some proclaiming to guarantee you instant weight loss if you give up carbs, with others promising you a slimmer waist if you ditch the dairy.

Fad diets such as these are likely to see you drop the pounds, but will the results be long lasting and are the diets sustainable? With so many self-titled experts out there and so much conflicting advice, it can be baffling to know where to start.

The best advice I can give is, rather than concentrating on losing pounds, concentrate on eating healthier and feeling better, and the weight loss will then happen as a side-result anyway.

Instead of cutting out huge swathes of foods or full food groups, concentrate on having healthier versions of the food you love. For instance, if you’re a big bread fan, there’s no need to give it up for life. Simply opt for healthy sandwiches instead of fatty or sugary options.

What this means in practice is that, instead of a cheese sandwich in a floury bap with butter and full-fat mayonnaise, you could try soft cheese and salad in sliced granary bread. Filling your sandwiches with fresh and tasty salad ingredients, such as lettuce, radish, tomato and spring onion (even better if they are home grown) is a brilliant way to bulk out your meals and keep you feeling satisfied without the additional fats and sugars.

Making these little changes to your favourite sandwiches will not only make them healthier, it will mean they keep you going for longer, thanks to the long-lasting energy that these foods provide. And the good news is, they will taste delicious too!

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Let tomatoes take centre stage

August 30, 2011 By

I love to use my home grown tomatoes for dishes such as spaghetti bolognaise or a Rogan Josh but sometimes I think it’s nice to let the tomatoes take centre stage rather than being hidden in a sauce. After all there is nothing to compare with the flavour of a freshly picked tomato, something quite unlike that of some of the tasteless specimens bought in the supermarket.
Of course tomatoes are good in salads but what about making them the centre piece and have a salade de tomates to give it its French name. It is simple to make but delicious. Apart from slicing the tomatoes and adding some chopped chives (or finely chopped onion)  and fresh basil you need to make a tasty vinaigrette with olive oil, wine vinegar, garlic, mustard, salt and pepper. Just shake the ingredients together in a screw top jar and drizzle over the tomatoes.
For a slightly more substantial tomato treat why not try bruschetta, the scrumptious Italian snack of toasted bread rubbed with garlic and topped with chopped tomatoes, basil and olive oil?
For something even more filling, Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall’s recipe for tomato gratin hits the spot. Sliced tomatoes are cooked in the oven with cream, garlic, thyme and cayenne pepper, then topped with cheese such as parmesan. Served with bread it makes a meal on its own.
Tomatoes are also great in tarts, using either puff or short crust pastry. You can adjust the tomato filling according to your own taste. Add a few fresh herbs such as basil or alternatively cheat and use some of the range of Schwartz dried herbs. Top with grated cheese but choose one which will not overwhelm the taste of the tomatoes.
Tomatoes might not be the first thing that springs to mind when you are planning a barbecue but cooked in a foil parcel with a little olive oil, chopped parsley and seasoning, they make a delicious dish.

Filed Under: Food for Families

Things to do with tomatoes

August 30, 2011 By

If you grow your own tomatoes you may well wonder at some stage in the season what on earth you are going to do with them all if you have a bumper crop. Luckily tomatoes form the basis of many a tasty dish and best of all they have great health giving properties.
A tin of tomato soup is all very well if you are in a hurry but there is no comparison to a bowl of home made tomato soup. Everyone has their own favourite recipe but my personal favourite uses chopped bacon, onion, garlic and basil along with a pound of tomatoes and some chicken stock. Cook until everything is soft and whizz it in the blender for as long as it takes for you to get the consistency that you like. It freezes well so make a big batch and decant into individual portions.
Tomatoes are also excellent in pasta sauces whether you prefer a nice meaty spaghetti bolognaise or a simple tomato and basil or tomato, garlic and chilli sauce. I must admit to having a few Schwartz packets and Dolmio jars in my cupboard to help me out when I am short of time but making a pasta sauce from scratch is well worth the effort.  A tasty pasta sauce with a difference is asparagus, pancetta and tomato served with grated parmesan on the pasta of your choice.
Tomato chutneys are an excellent accompaniment to cold meats and also make good Christmas gifts for busy people who don’t have time to make their own.  There are all sorts of recipes for chutney available in cookery books and on the internet.
Your kids might prefer Heinz tomato ketchup but have you ever tried making your own tomato sauce? It is easy to make with the help of a blender and will keep in the fridge for up to three months. Vary your ingredients according to your own taste but my favourite recipe includes onion, garlic, chilli, root ginger, red wine vinegar and brown sugar.

Filed Under: Healthy Eating