Why should vegetables be at the heart of your diet?

vegetables healthy eating

We all know that eating vegetables is important. But just how important?  Here at Foodilic HQ vegetables are one of the focal points to our menu and we try to offer mouth watering combinations that will make even the hungriest man happy and fulfilled.

The health benefits are obvious. People who eat more vegetables as part of an overall balanced diet are likely to have a reduced risk of diseases. We know that vegetables provide nutrients vital for the healthy maintenance of our bodies, potassium, dietary fiber, folate (folic acid), vitamin A, and vitamin C to name the most important. And here are our top 5 reasons why you should up your veg intake each week:

1. It may reduce the risk of heart disease, heart attacks and strokes and can protect you from certain types of cancer.

2. The fiber in vegetables such as, squash, spinach and kale may reduce obesity, and type 2 diabetes. Fiber is important for proper bowel function. It helps reduce constipation and diverticulosis.

3. Potassium high veg, like sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, white beans, soybeans, lima beans, spinach, lentils, and kidney beans help to lower blood pressure and could also reduce the risk of developing kidney stones.

4. Vegetables have hardly any fat or calories and none have cholesterol.

Folate (folic acid) helps the body form red blood cells. Women of childbearing age who may become pregnant should consume adequate folate from foods, and in addition 400 mcg of synthetic folic acid from fortified foods or supplements. This reduces the risk of neural tube defects, spina bifida, and anencephaly during fetal development.

5. And of course, the magic Vitamin C helps heal cuts and wounds and keeps teeth and gums healthy. So eat lots of Broccoli, Cauliflower, fresh herbs and sprouts.

Of course, if you are lacking imagination, check our recipe board for ideas or even better, swing by to Foodilic for the healthiest, most delicious meal of your life!

The Joy of Vegetables: #beetroot

beetroot beet it

The Joys of Fruit: #avocado

Avocado-licious

Guest Recipe: Couscous Salad @riceandbread1

couscous salad

This weeks recipe comes from riceandbread:

Couscous Salad

Couscous is a recent discovery for us. I know we are really slow on this healthy food trend! However after our first taste of couscous, we just cannot get enough of it. It is our go-to dish whenever we want something quick and easy.

The best part about this dish is that, we often make way more than we can finish and pack them for lunch the following day. To be honest, the salad tastes better the following day because the vegetable will release fluid, which bind the flavor of the salad together.

Ingredients (serves 4 pax if eaten with bread as main dish)

  • 1C of couscous grain ( prepare according to instruction on box)
  • 1 can of chickpeas
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 cucumber, chopped
  • 1 tomato, chopped
  • Handful of parsley
  • 1/2C of feta cheese (or as much as you like, I simply use a pack), chopped
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 lemon juice
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper

In a large bowl toss everything with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.  Enjoy!

By: riceandbread

GUEST RECIPE: @noodlesoup1

Ema from Chip Butties and Noodle Soup shares one of her recipes with us… do you have one you would like to share?

celeriac and courgette cake 017

 

A bit of spice in our lives…

The UK is a melting pot of different cultures and populations who bring with them their own recipes, styles of cooking and spices.  In a recent poll the famous chicken tikka masala was knocked off it’s top spot by the stir fry.  A favourite in many of our homes – quick, easy and healthy.  What’s not to love?  This is a promising move towards spicier horizons. However I think we can push our boundaries further and there is always room for a little more spice in our lives.

There is a curiosity in the air, our love of spice and all things nice is all around us.  The boom in street food and pop up dining has also fed our curiosity and allowed us to try ‘little bites’ of different foods with producers keen to let us ‘try before we buy’.  The new BBC series The Incredible Spice Men also highlights our willingness to try new tastes and flavours.  It all helps in broadening our culinary horizons.  We are ready to explore  and move away from our take-away favourites and start looking at more exciting uses of spices in our own kitchen. So go on – give it a go, and add some more spice to your life.

My recipe is a quick and simple celeriac salad with panch phoranan easy way to incorporate a bit of spice into your day.

Panch phoran (or Indian 5 spice as it is also known) is a blend of cumin, brown mustard seeds, fenugreek, nigella seeds and fennel.  You can buy it ready blended but you can easily make your own with equal quantities of each spice.

1 celeriac

1 tsp panch phoran

juice and zest of 1 lemon

2 tbs mayonnaise or Greek yogurt

salt and pepper to taste

  • wash, peel and finely grate your celeriac
  • roast the panch phoran in a dry pan until the essential oils are released and the spices become fragrant
  • add the panch phoran to the celeriac, add the zest and juice of a lemon, 2 tbs of mayonnaise or Greek yogurt and then salt and pepper to taste

Enjoy as an interesting, spicy alternative to coleslaw.  Great as a side dish at a BBQ or a light Summer lunch.

I hope our adventures and exploration with spice are only just beginning.  There is a whole spicy world out there we are only just starting to discover.

Let us know how you spice up your cooking?

Guest post by: http://chipbuttiesandnoodlesoup.blogspot.co.uk