It's the super-yummy green juice recipe you need to bookmark
Get an instant health kick for 2016 with nutritional therapist Amelia Freer’s amazing green smoothie recipe. Plus, we’ve got two more healthy recipes from her brilliant new book Cook. Nourish. Glow. So what are you waiting for? Go green for 2016…
Green Smoothie - Serves 2
Ingredients:
230g ripe pineapple,
peeled and cubed flesh of 2 large or 3 small passion fruits
70g baby spinach leaves
250ml coconut water
1 teaspoon coconut oil
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Method:
Make sure the ingredients are at room temperature – if they are too cold, the coconut oil will harden. It’s fine to refrigerate the smoothie afterwards. Blend everything in a food processor.
Super Green Soup With Cashew Cream – Serves 4
This simple soup really is a celebration of all things green. Courgettes, kale and leeks also work well, along with any other greens from the fridge that need using up. The cashew cream is a lovely trick for your taste buds.
Ingredients:
olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 head of broccoli, cut into florets
3 handfuls of fresh or frozen peas
700ml vegetable or chicken stock
1 small bag of baby spinach (approx. 250g)
1 green chilli, chopped, to sprinkle on top
For the cashew cream:
150g raw cashews
300ml hot water
1 clove of garlic zest of
1 lemon a small handful of fresh parsley, chopped, to serve
Method:
A few hours before making this soup, prepare the cashew cream. Put the cashews into a bowl, pour over the hot water and leave to soak for at least 2 hours. Once the cashews are tender, drain and put into a food processor, along with 300ml fresh water, the garlic and lemon zest, and blitz until completely smooth and creamy. Set aside.
Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saucepan, and sweat the onion until translucent. Add the broccoli and peas to the pan, cook for 5 minutes, then add the stock – the vegetables should be just covered (you may need to add a little extra water). Bring to the boil, then simmer until the broccoli is tender, roughly 4 minutes. Don’t overcook the vegetables or they will turn a dull green.
Using a stick blender, start blending the soup, adding a handful of spinach at a time – the spinach will cook as it’s mixed into the soup. Blend until the soup is smooth and thick, then stir through half the cashew cream.
Serve in bowls with a swirl of cashew cream on top and fresh parsley and chilli, if using, scattered over.
Mini Carrot Cakes – makes 20
If I were going to eat cake, it would always be carrot cake. This is a slightly healthier twist on an old-fashioned version, made in miniature sizes so you don’t overindulge.
Ingredients:
300g almond flour
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 teaspoons ground ginger
a pinch of sea salta pinch of vanilla powder or
½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
6 medium carrots, washed(unpeeled) and finely grated
2 medium eggs, preferablyfree-range or organic, whisked
300ml coconut milk (from a tin, not a carton)
1 teaspoon coconut syrup
For the icing:
250g no-aroma coconut butter (not oil) – remove from the fridge 10 minutes before using
juice of 1 orange,
zest of 2 oranges, with some kept aside to garnish
a pinch of vanilla powder or a teaspoon of vanilla extract
Method:
Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Line a tray with 20 cupcake cases.
Mix the dry ingredients together in one bowl. Mix the carrots, eggs and coconut milk together in another. Combine the wet and dry mixtures and spoon into the cases – you can fill them to the top, as these cakes don’t rise very much.
Cook for 30 minutes, until they are golden and a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle. Then leave to cool.
To make the icing, whisk all the ingredients together until smooth, reserving a little of the zest to sprinkle over the top. Spread on top of each cooled cake with a knife. Put into the fridge for 10 minutes for the icing to firm up, then serve.
Hungry yet? Thought so! Cook. Nourish. Glow by Amelia Freer is published by Michael Joseph, £20