Raw salted caramel sauce

 Am a huge fan of salted caramel sauce - it's always the first flavour I reach out to when it comes to ice cream or chocolate treats. I love the combination of the milky popcorn-like flavour with a hint of sharp salt, it's very strange but I am so glad it was invented! 

Now that I am eating more 'cleaner' I decided to try making some gluten free, dairy free flapjacks & the main sauce I was craving for was salted caramel. 

This sauce tastes just like the real deal but without the double cream & sugars, it's a perfect guilt free sauce for a treat! 

You need :

• 1 cup of dates (go for natural/organic) 

• 3 tbsp almond butter

• 3 tbsp agave or organic honey if you can't find it 

• 1/4 spoon of himalyan salt or sea salt

• half cup water

I use everything as organic as possible to make it more beneficial for your body to absorb. I never use table salt , himalyan salt & sea salt has more minerals in which is much better for your body! 

To make:

Soak the cup of dates in half cup of water for 1-2 hours, add all the mixture into a blender (including the water soaked in the dates). Blend until there's no lumps and taste. If you prefer more salt then add it & keep blending until it's all mixed together.

It's easy right? You're all done! 

This can last in your fridge for up to a few weeks so don't forget to label the date you make it - but I don't think it will last too long as it's so yummy !! 

Good luck & have fun

Strawbeefull

XOX

Gluten free matcha chocolate flapjacks

Ever fancied a sweet treat but felt bad about the calories & sugar content? I always crave for a sweetener after my meals especially if the meals were salty, it almost feels like my body is telling me I need to neutralise it. Having said that, I have been trying to cut out the sugars from my diet as my body is having too much, once I start on a sweetener I have too much! Anyone else out there who does the same thing?

Today I had a sudden craving of something nutty with cacao but healthy snack, thanks to a lovely person I met recently she has totally inspired me to make these - Thanks Jayne! 

What did I make? I made a gluten free, healthy-ish flapjack which contained hazelnuts, oats, almond butter, organic coconut oil, raw cacao & natural agave. Combined together it ended up like this!

I also added some matcha powder sprinkled on top to add some extra flavour and altogether it tasted delicious! 

Matcha powder is full of anti oxidants if you buy the real matcha powder - in total

This whole snack idea was totally beneficial! 

I don't have the full recipe just yet as I added things randomly but next time I make them I will add my full recipe as this one was just an experiment !

Love, Strawbeefull

XOX

London trip today

I spent majority of my day in London today spending quality time with one of my friends who has come from Hong Kong to visit England for a few weeks - had a brilliant day!

I love London and EVERYTIME i visit , i love it more and more. 

Of course I managed to do some shopping! I managed to get my hands on the limited edition Selfridges exclusive MORE MORE MORE NARS set! I have been on a waiting list in the Birmingham Selfridges for a few weeks now and I was so glad they had the one I wanted in Londob! I got the pink box set called "climax" 

Nars product names are so funny ! 

I also found a new shop which sell some really cute items .....

Check out the basket !!! 

Here are some more photos of my day.....

Frozen Yoghurt at Meecha

Huge trend in America,  Asia, and now in England - it is like an alternative to a meal or as a snack, depending on my mood but usually I have it as a treat.

When I travel, I always find my nearest frozen yoghurt kiosk and luckily I have one near-by which have endless options in their toppings and sauce for a set price!

 I am never disappointed in the freshness of their fruits and their chocolate brownies are always soft and chewy, perfect infusion as a treat!


Meecha is famous for their bubble tea drinks as well as their frozen yoghurt's, there aren't many places in Birmingham or England for that matter so it is dissapointing to not find one when I visit a different city or country.  Luckily for me, I have frozen yoghurt kiosk nearby called Meecha (use to be called Moocha if you are confused about the names).

Meecha offer a choice of 4 different sizes starting with mini, small, medium and large. I usually go for a small as it is very satisfying with the toppings for just an extra 80p, unless if you have a large and you want toppings then it's £1 extra. 

There are 2 choices of flavours for their frozen yoghurt's, original or vanilla (very similar to ice cream as it's sweeter). I usually go for the original as I like to mix up my toppings and one reason out of many reasons why I *love* Meecha's frozen yoghurt's is simply because their original flavoured frozen yoghurt isn't sour. When someone mentions frozen yoghurt, we automatically assumed its going to taste like frozen probiotic yoghurt which is oh-so-sour, but no, it isn't. You will be suprised how yummy it tastes! The texture is very important for me and it strikes the right balance between icy and creamy.


If you are a fan of sweet deserts or love fruit with ice cream then I would highly recommend a frozen yoghurt as they are satisfying and a real treat on a sunny day.

There is a choose-your-own-toppings service and the staff are very approachable when it comes to recommendations which is very helpful as there are sooooooo many choices.

Prices start from £2 without toppings
mini - large size tubs

Choice of toppings is endless, I love their variety because as a treat, I would have the chocolate brownies and/or chocolate buttons as well as the blueberries and/or strawberries ( you got to weigh the good with the bad hey! ) but depending on my mood I may add the popping pearls. The flavours for the popping pearls are unique because they have lychee, mango, passion fruit and more. I usually go for passion fruit to go with my blueberries.

The popping pearls can be quite weird at first because no one really knows what to expect but they are addictive as they're fun to eat and fruity - if you like fruit syrup then highly recommend this! You can have as much flavours as you like for the same price which is fantastic!

various sauce for the topping - I opted for butterscott today!

Meecha offer a loyalty card for any of their products, which means everytime you visit, you present your loyalty card and they stamp to indicate your visit, after 9 purchases, your 10th is free. Not only this is a great offer but if you work in the Bullring or have a valid NUS card, you get 10% off - Meecha are generous and love customers going back for more than 1 visit.

my final product - yummeh!!! I definitely did enjoy this out in the sun! 

If you're visiting Birmingham then this is a place I would recommend to try as Meecha is only available in Bullring Birmingham at the moment. Suitable for all ages, male and female. Did I also mention to you that the toppings are gluten free and also vegetarian friendly?

Check out Meecha Website for more information.

Enjoy!!

XOX

Homemade hummus and red velvet macarons

I enjoy cooking on my days off and today was a well deserved day off so I decided to make these ......

Homemade Hummus with Grilled chicken, oven baked sweet potato and aubergine

Red velvet macarons

XOX

The Tavern Co in Liverpool Review

It's always a decision when it comes to family meals for my family because I live in a totally different city to my family but I do go back to visit home atleast once a month. I planned to take my family out for my late birthday celebration and also because it's Fathers Day tomorrow so I wanted it to be abit extra special therefore the location and type of food was very important.

I decided to go try eating at The Tavern Co which is in Liverpool on Smithdown Road, my brother has been there to have breakfast and he says it's amazing. In the evening there's a choice of Mexican food or burgers/alsorted meals including steak with choice of potatoes so I knew there would be a lot of choices.

We decided to share some Mexican foods because I knew I wouldn't be able to eat a full meal & knowing there would be a lot of carbs, I would be mega full!!

Burger & chips - kids meal

We have never eaten out at a Mexican restaurant before and pleased to say, the Tavern experience was amazing ! The service was excellent, friendly scousers!!! Price was very reasonable, quality of food was brilliant, interior was fantastic, speed delivery of drinks & food was times excellent, toilets were immaculate & has more than 1 cubicle with 2 sinks and big mirrors, it wasn't too hot or too cold inside, overall it was an excellent meal - no wonder this restaurant is a multi-award winning restaurant for their friendly service, also review from Trip Advisor been awarded for excellence!  I would highly recommend it to those who love trying out new food or enjoy Mexican food. The choice is endless & the drinks menu is absolutely mind blowing! Lots of cocktail choices ranging from ice cream cocktails to fruit pinches to fresh orange juice (with bits) and the choice of starters was pretty impressive!!!

why don't you visit their website and check it out!

XOX

Day 20 of the TR90

Today I am on day 20 of the 90 day challenge I set myself up for, together combining with healthier eating plans, supplements and working on the body engine (AKA metabolism).
As promised, I will complete a diary entry, which I have a book for that I use to jot down what I eat, and whether I have hunger or cravings for it, and also where I eat it. This allows me to keep track of how I feel during a day of work as time goes on.

At first, I struggled with the eating because on some days I would eat very little and just snack on high energy foods in between what I do, or some days I would eat big portions of meals, 3-6 times a day. Usually every 2-3 hours I get really hungry, and when I say hungry, I mean like my stomach rumbles for feeding. I do tend to get abit moody when I am hungry as I am demanding for food and do have dizzy spells when I don't eat within a few hours. I just need food all the time basically, my handbags always have emergency food and I am always cooking and eating hehe.....

Following the TR90 food plan is tricky at the start as you have to cut out certain foods and replace it with protein. I cut out crisps over 3 months ago as I was eating 3+ packets per day!! I love crisps, I would happily sit there and eat 3 packets in one sitting! The last time I ate crisps, I ate 28 packets of Hula Hoops in 4 days! I said to myself ' I have got to stop ' and I did! I feel better for it and as soon as I started the TR90 program, I knew I would have more of a challenge as my favourite foods would be constantly on my mind.

I have no self control when it comes to eating, I don't know when to stop and I dont know if I am hungry unless my stomach growls at me, and sometimes when my stomach does growl, I dont feel like eating so I dont. The TR90 helps to work on the mindset, perfect for me as that's where one of my main problems are!! I keep a track record of my cravings and hunger and I can see now my cravings are less and I know when to stop eating now. Every meal is measured in portions simply by using your hands.

I have put on 4kg but my body is more defined and I can feel my stomach is not as flabby as before which I am loving, I am not an exercise type of person as I know during the day/night when I work, I am constantly running about and up on my feet. However, I have started spending atleast 4 whole minutes on 100 reps atleast per day to help me lose the fat quicker!
 I am continuing to be constantly up on my feet and using weights to tone up my arms, am not hungry as often anymore but I do have cravings for vegetables even more than usual, which isn't a bad thing I suppose!

Sweet potato seeded salmon salad with a dollop of light cream cheese

Here is an example of one of my meals this week......




I have bought sweet potatoes before but now I eat it a few times a week as part of my non meat protein options. Sweet potatoes are high in anti-oxidant beta carotene which may help slow the ageing process and reducing the risk of some cancers. I really enjoy eating them now!

 XOX

Green Tea Vermicelli

The first time I ever tried green tea vermicelli was at a korean restaurant in Hong Kong a few years back! I love green tea anything!! I have this obsession with anti-oxidant foods and I love the taste/scent of green tea!!

I like noodles from time to time, although I am a very fussy eater, I favour in japanese or korean noodles. I only eat noodles that are thick like udon or flat like 'ho fun' chinese ones.I love the texture and how they look, especially when I cook them with vegetables, tofu and an egg!

Green tea vermicelli tastes pure, unique in flavour and kinda weird to look at but I assure you, it looks interesting in a bowl or on a plate! but for some people it can be quite off-putting because of the colour and possibly the smell if they aren't a fan of green tea. I like to try these weird and wonderful things!

I found these unique noodles in a chinese supermarket in the Korean section, I was super excited to buy these and cook them at home!!

In the pack there are 5 handfuls, each handful consists of quite alot for one serving, I would recommend to split them in half if you are cooking for one.
They are seperated with the paper band around them, which is a clever idea because when it comes to cook noodles, we just put in more than we need, especially when you are hungry lol!

Each time I cook these noodles, I use one handful and make 2-3 meals out of them, I cook them with vegetables, tofu, fried egg and sometimes meat so realistically, you don't need that much noodles!

They cook quite fast, within 3-5 minutes they are cooked and they go soggy and stick to the pan so you have to be quick with these bad boys!

It is impossible to boil them then pan fry them as there is too much water in the strands, therefore , they stick to the pan!

Pro's:

• green tea is known for it's anti-oxidant
• fun colour on your plate
• fast to cook

Con's:

• suitable for noodle soup or dry boiled noodle style
• sticks to the pan if it gets too soggy
• unsure how much green tea is in each meal
• hard to find

  I must admit, the flavour for the noodles aren't as intense as I expected, the freshest green tea noodles have a heavy taste of green tea but this one didn't and i was quite skeptical about finding out how much green tea was actually in these noodles?  I felt like I was conned lol.
Nevertheless, I found something I didnt expect to find and I was so happy to have had the chance to cook it at home and re-live that memory of tasting green tea noodles again!!


I had so much fun cooking with this and it has made my meals very interesting to look at!! I serve mine with slight soup base, tofu, chinese vegetables like pak choi or gai lan, and also a fried egg.


If you are looking for a unique dish and you like noodles or green tea then try this!

XOX