Tag: risotto

Sugar Free Me

This week I’ve been cutting sugar out of my diary, as I am in a full blown sugar addiction. Its scary to think how easy it is to get addicted to the sweet things, and yet as a world we do nothing to prevent this addiction, for me its more addictive than alcohol, tobacco and drugs. And its so easy for our children to access sugar in so very many forms.

So I’ve put together a 12 Step process which I have followed this week to help cut out my sugar intake.

LISA’S 12 STEPS TO A SUGAR FREE LIFESTYLE

  1. Stop buying processed foods – If it comes in a packet, a bag or a box, there is a good chance that it will contain added sugars.
  2. Make your own sauces – The amount of sugar which is hidden in premade sauces eg. bolognaise sauces, is absolutely shocking. We wouldn’t add it to our own sauce if making from scratch, so why would we accept it in premade sauces?
  3. Swap fruit juices for fresh fruits – grab fresh oranges and squeeze your own rather than buying bottled juices because as to be expected based on the rest of this post, they contain hideous amounts of hidden sugars. Think of the affect it would have on your teeth too!
  4. Avoid flavoured yoghurts – buy natural yoghurts and add your own fresh fruits rather than the premade varieties
  5. Make your own dressings – to go along with point 2 above, pre bottled dressings also contain hidden sugars. So making your own and this will rid you of sugars that you don’t realise you are consuming
  6. Give yourself a quota – If you need to add sugar to your drinks limit yourself to a certain number of teaspoons or if you want to eat some chocolate limit the number of squares you will eat per day/week
  7. Set rules – especially when it comes to desserts!!
  8. Don’t keep treats or sweets in the house – this is a massive one for me, If its in my house I’m going to eat it, so its better for everyone if I don’t buy chocolate. Because I have literally NO willpower when it comes to chocolate.
  9. If you want to use sugar, consider a substitute – if like me you take sugar in your tea, try a sugar substitute instead. It comes in a powder form or a tablet which goes much better in hot drinks.
  10. If chocolate is your downfall, eat dark chocolate. My drug of choice is chocolate, but I know a massive bar of dairy milk isn’t going to work in my favour so I have will be using a few squares of dark chocolate to satisfy those desperate chocolate cravings
  11. Avoid Mixed Alcohol Drinks – Premade alcopops like Smirnoff Ice or WDK and mixed fruit ciders are full full full of sugar. In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if they contain more hidden sugar than they do actual alcohol. If you have to have a drink, ideally a spirit with a mixer is the best option for you. Even our go to wines are full of sugar!
  12. Cut out all fizzy drinks – Even diet fizz contains enough sugar substitutes to ensure a great flavour, and lets not even talk about how much sugar is in a full fat coke!! Even thinking about it has set my teeth on edge. Do you ever drink a fizzy drink and it feels like your teeth a furry? That’s the sugar reacting with your poor teeth enamel.

To help you out, listed below are some of the ways sugar can be listed in the ingredients list of our pre packed foods:

  • Sucrose
  • Glucose
  • Fructose
  • Invert Sugar
  • Fruit Juice
  • Molasses
  • Hydrolysed Starch
  • Corn Syrup
  • Honey

And when it comes to understanding food labels, here is a quick guide to help you judge the sugar levels in your foods.

A food is high in sugar if it contains 22.5g or more of sugar per 100g

A food is low in sugar if it contains 5g or less of sugars per 100g

I really hope that the tips above prove useful and that it helps you understand and also reduced your sugar intake. I am providing many more details of my sugar detox which you can find on Instagram using the handle @babebariatric

I look forward to finding out how going sugar free works for you!!

 

Tasty Tomato Risotto

Have you ever made a risotto from scratch? Well let me tell you if you need help toning up those bingo wings, 25 minutes of continuous stirring will most definitely help!!

But even though it might seem like hard work to make, it really was a lovely dish to eat. And knowing that its super healthy and is a great pre-op dinner makes it one of my favourite meals.

If you’d like to find out how I made this dish, please continue to read this post as the recipe is below.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED: To make 2 portions

  • 1/2 White Onion – Chopped
  • 1 Garlic Clove – Grated or Pressed
  • 2 Vine Tomatoes
  • Green Beans
  • 3 Chicken Thighs
  • 1 Lemon
  • 2tsp Dried Oregano
  • 750ml Water
  • 15g Tomato Puree
  • 175g Risotto Rice
  • 1/2tbsp White Wine Vinegar
  • 40g Parmesan Cheese

METHOD: 40 Minutes Cooking Time

  1. Preheat your oven to Gas Mark 6, Halve, peel and chop the ONION into 1/2cm pieces. Peel and grate the GARLIC (or used a garlic press). Chop the VINE TOMATOES into 1cm chunk. Remove the ends from the GREEN BEANS and chop into thirds.
  2. Put the CHICKEN on a foil-lined baking tray, drizzle on some oil, grate over some LEMON ZEST and sprinkle on the DRIED OREGANO. Season with salt and pepper, squeeze over some LEMON JUICE and massage in the flavours.
  3. Heat a drizzle of oil in a large saucepan on a medium heat and add the ONION. Stir and cook until soft, 3-5 minutes. Then add the GARLIC and TOMATO PUREE, mix well and cook for a further 1 minute. Add the RISOTTO RICE and stir to ensure its fully coated with the garlicky mixture. Add in the WHITE WINE VINEGAR and let it evaporate.
  4. Bake the CHICKEN on the top shelf of your oven and cook for 25 minutes. Halfway through cooking sprinkle over half of the grated PARMESAN CHEESE, then pop it all back into the oven.
  5. In the meantime, add the TOMATO CHUNKS and a ladle of the water. Stir continuously until the water has been absorbed by the rice. Continue this process with the water until all 750mls have been added. This should take 25 minutes. Add the GREEN BEANS to the pan for the last 5 minutes of cooking.
  6. Once the rice is cooked, stir through the remaining PARMESAN CHEESE and a squeeze of LEMON JUICE. Season with some SALT and PEPPER to taste. Spoon the RISOTTO into bowls and lay the cooked CHICKEN on top.
  7. ENJOY!!!

Tomato risotto .JPG