Breakfast! Its the best!

Oh how I love breakfast.. breakfast dates, breakfast on the go, breakfast in bed, sunday breakfast with the fam… any type of breakfast! ITS JUST AMAZING! Nothing better than waking up and thinking about all of the endless possibilities breakfast can deliver…and a good coffee.

I will probably will propose to you if you bring me coffee without me asking for one…. Just sayin’

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I have a dream that one day I will open up a cute cafe somewhere, maybs in the country or even in the burbs… but it will be world famous and people will come for miles just to have my coffee and breakfast… & Breakfast available all day, ALL DAY LONG! It’ll happen! … Just someone give me the six magic numbers or sponsor me. Yep!

Breakfast, Don’t you forget about me….

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There are so many benefits from eating breakfast… and as if you dont want to eat breakfast (best meal of the day obv!) When people say that they dont like breakfast or they skip it, I feel as though its a personal attack. I take it sooo personally – only because I cant comprehend why anyone would not want to eat it! Eating breakfast not only kick starts your metabolism for the day, but it fills you up so you’re not binge eating during the day! (…My weakness… you put food in front of me & no doubt i’ll eat it)

Breakfast has been proven to increase your memory – Yep! Studies on adults and young people have shown that people who dont eat breakfast under-performed on short-term memory tests compared to people who ate breakfast!

More than one study done on adults (and young people) found those who had nothing for breakfast underperformed on short-term memory tests compared to those who’d had their first meal.
So lets think of our body like a car – If we dont put fuel in a car, it doesn’t start does it? (Unless its one of those electric cars.. so when the geniuses of the world design a human that can function simply by sitting on a power adapter, we can compare ourselves to the electric cars…but no.) WE NEED BREAKFAST LIKE A CAR NEEDS FUEL!

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But it’s also imperative to make the right choices! This goes with everything else we put in our mouth… Don’t fill up on some cheap sugary cereal or cinnamon toast because that’ll just make you hungry in 0.5 of a second. MUST RESIST…SUGAR…

Flaxseed from health food stores is an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, which you can grind and add to lowfat cereal, yogurt, cottage cheese and smoothies.

  • CoYo (coconut yoghurt) parfait layered with fresh fruit and cereal, nuts or raisins
  • CoYo mixed with fresh fruit in a blender for a vitamin-rich smoothie – Or even a protein shake!
  • Green smoothie/juice
  • G/F toast or Rice cakes with a little peanut butter and banana slices
  • Protein Pancakes
  • Instant or quick-cooking oatmeal or homemade granola (Recipe coming sooon!…watch this space)
  • Poached eggs on toast etc etc…
    Look, the list can go on forever…

I have spent most of my life being bought up around breakfast, whether its been growing up and spending every second weekend at dads house, going to the markets or a quick dash to the grocery store to grab what we needed to make a masterpiece for breakfast! I remember when my older sister and I use to go to dads, we would look forward to the food mostly! While lying in bed we (well mainly me, Jess would think I was lame) would be trying to guess what dad would be cooking by attempting to smell what was coming from the kitchen (I never got it right though!)
My favourite thing he made was spanish eggs.. or pancakes! Yes! Pancakes! They were/still are my favourite! We would experiment with the pancakes.. making them thin, thick, fluffy, australian style, croatian style… ya get ma drift! So we now know that I love pancakes!

So this morning I decided I would experiment with pancakes & make them out of Oats… mainly because i have a huggggeee supply of oats from Costco & I must do somethings with them…

I saw this little recipe the other day on Pinterest for a muffin in a mug… Basically oats, an egg, berries, stevia & a splash of milk. So this morning I played around with the recipe a little bit with what we had (because i’m currently living on rations… i’m a poor uni student & my car just cost me my arm, leg and part of my kidney…) & I came up with this cheeky creation!

oat pancakes

Oat Pancakes

Ingredients 

about a cup of oats blended down into a flour 
1 whole egg & 1 egg white – beaten up nice & fluffy
bitta cinnamon
about a scoop of vanilla protein powder 
a tablespoon of stevia 
splash of vanilla essence
a decent amount of milk (almond or soy… or whatever milk you wanna use)

Method 

Mix all of the dry ingredients together & then combine with the eggs. When adding the milk, make sure you remember that the oats absorb a lot of liquid, so you may have to put more in the mixture while you’re waiting for the pancakes to cook….

My first pancake turned out more like a biscuit, so as I said, you may need to keep adding milk.

To serve, I drowned mine in berries and a splash of maple syrup… so gooooood!

Banana Bread

So I made this by accident one time and so far its been a big hit with all of my fans. My fans being my 2 Best friends and my friends mum… Quality not quantity right? My best friends mum lovess this recipe!

I got home one night & saw that there were a bunch of brown and bruised bananas… made me all giddy inside. It meant only one thing… BAKING WITH BANANAS! I get excited, like a little kid in a candy shop when I discover and make new things!

This banana bread is beyond healthy… no added fats (only natural fats!)… packed with protein & natural goodness!

Banana Bread

Ingredients

Wet Mix ~
3 overly spotty and squishy bananas
2 organic free range eggs
a good squirt of maple syrup
2 Tbs Stevia

Dry Mix ~
~ 2 cups toasted almonds blended into a flour
~ 1/2 coconut flour
A good sprinkle of cinnamon(roughly 1 tsp)
1tbs chia seeds
2 tbs of Gluten-Free Self Raising Flour

(i’m pretty sure that’s it?!)

Method

Mix wet mixture together, then fold into Dry mix…
If it appears to wet… simply add some more flour (doesn’t matter which one.. but i used the GF flour here) just until its a well binded mixture.
Bake in a pre-heated oven of 190°C for about 35-40 mins (or until your skewer comes out clean, yet slightly moist… you’ll have to cover with foil in the oven so it doesn’t burn!)

This cake/bread/loaf whatever is so delicious and moist! Perfect snack for before or after training!

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Oat, almond and date bars

Yep! You guessed it… I decided to bake today after a big day at uni rather than studying! I know, I know priorities… I have my mum and my grandmas voice in the back of my mind all the time telling me that I should be studying! But I can’t help myself… The kitchen and I have this magnetic connection… We’re drawn to each other! … Well not really, but it’s my escape 🙂

I came home and whipped up some pumpkin soup to make me feel better… Ahhh comfort food! Yes!
Then as I went down to open my laptop to start my assignment which was due 2 weeks ago… I got right back up and got the food processor down from the cupboard! This only meant trouble!

Oat, Almond & Date Bars

Ingredients

These are all rough estimations, as I hardly measure anything! Promise I’ll take note from now on!
~ 1 cup Gluten Free Oats
~ 1/2 – 3/4 cup almonds
~ 1 cup Pitted dates
1 banana, mashed
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons chai seeds

Method

So chuck everything except the banana into the food processor! May need to do it in batches so that the dates and almonds are chopped evenly.
You want a rustic texture… So have small and bigger chunks of almonds marbled throughout.
Next stir through mashed banana!
Evenly spread mixture on a lined tray and refrigerate for at least an hour!

These are so quick and easy to make & packed full of good stuff! No added sugar, no flour, no eggs! Ahmygracious amazing!

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New to the blogging world… Be Kind!

Hey Internet…

So i’ve decided to start writing blogs… not for of any particular reason except purely to  avoiding writing assignments and studying!

I’ve been thinking about doing one of these things for a while now, as I am addicted to Pinterest (another method in which i delay my study time) and Instagram. Big fan of social media right here *Puts both hands up* !

My life is preeeety hectic! I’m a full time Education student, Full time athlete, Part-time Career advisor and a self confessed massive food lover. I live with intolerance’s… Wheat & Dairy… which means that everything I cook is Wheat & Dairy free!

I love that I cant eat these foods (although i do have a sneaky Skinny Latte every now and then…. but pay for it later!… so worth it though)…I have a new appreciation of food & have been exposed to an entire new world! Cannot get enough of the fresh fruit & veggies, super foods… it all excited me so much! I’m honestly like a child in a candy store.

Soooo… Is the awkward part of the date where I try and spruik up a conversation which  will keep you engaged? oh right it is! Please dont judge me!

(This is where i fill you in on my life…)

I was born with a genetic condition called Hereditary Sensory Motor Neurapathy (HSMN) Type 2.. it basically means I will die. No only joking… but we all will one day! HSMN is a condition which affects the nerves and muscles in my peripherals. So my hands and Legs. I’ve had roughly 15 surgeries over my 21 years, just to keep me walking & keeping my feet straight, stopping foot drop, fixing my posture, taking something from somewhere and putting it somewhere else… I dont understand doctor language & handwriting. Some of my grade 3 students write better than them !

But I must say the Doctors and staff at the Royal Children’s Hospital Melbourne have been amazing.. and i wouldn’t be anywhere without them! They’re angels in disguise! Honest.

So as the years went on, in & out of hospital, rehab, physio, etc… I grew up. discovered who I was and what I want to be.

I want to live the best life I possibly can… and i am writing my story!

I discovered my love for wheelchair basketball when I was 16… I always wanted to be able to be involved with sports, but since I cant run or jump.. it limited me. I was always the last to be picked at school in team sports which made me feel super cool. Mum always told me she loved me, so i guess that makes everything better.

So now wheelchair basketball is a major part of my life. I love it. Who wouldn’t want to be surrounded by amazing and inspiring athletes? Travelling all around our beautiful country and occasionally across the ocean… Tis the life!

But alas, Being a student & an athlete does put strain on my social life… My friends be like “Where you at El-Dawg?” well they’re not gangster but i think sometimes they think they are… (you never know when you’re living in the western suburbs of Melbourne… I sometimes think I am). I just occasionally want to kick back and hang out without having the thoughts of studying and/or training floating around my brain.. but i wash those thoughts away with a sip of Merlot!

…. Stay tuned for more insights of my majestic life!