Infused Spirits - Chamomile Vodka

I'm slowly building up my recipe list of Infused Spirits, with this fourth vodka recipe infused with chamomile tea. It's a whole new take on Iced Tea!

This herbal, fragrant tea is known for its many health benefits including soothing and relaxing both the mind and body. It aids sleep and eases muscle ache. Thanks to its antibacterial properties, it can also calm inflamed and sensitive skin.

Infused Spirits - Chamomile Vodka
Makes 9, 50ml / 1.5oz servings
Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
- 3tbsp / 6 chamomile tea bags
- 480ml / 16floz vodka
- 20g / 1tbsp honey

Method:
Cut open the tea bags and place chamomile in an air-tight jar/container.

Pour in the vodka.
Store in a cool, dry place for 3-5-7 days, shaking the jar (not vigorously) one or two times each day.

Depending on the preferred 'strength' or flavour of the infused spirit, after 3, 5 or 7 days, strain the vodka.

Pour the chamomile vodka into a storage jar or bottle.

Serve in a chilled glass or over ice. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information:
A 50ml/1.5floz serving vodka contains 96 calories.
A tablespoon of honey has 64 calories and 17g carbs, all of which is sugar!

On-the-Go Snacks - Sweet

I am always eating! One of the difficult things about this fact is planning ahead and ensuring I have sufficient, appropriate and healthy foods (and drinks) throughout the day. It does take time, effort and preparation. If I didn't do this, I'd end up wasting money - and making poor nutritional choices - at supermarkets and cafes grabbing snacks to keep me going when I'm out and about.

Below are my top 10 recipes for 'sweet' on-the-go snacks. Another blog post coming soon will feature 'savoury' snacks.

A full list of snacks on my blog can be found here.

On-the-Go Snacks - Sweet

Apricot Oat Slice

Banana Oat Energy Bars

Banana Walnut Bran Bread

Beetroot Brownies OR Courgette Brownies

 

Black Almond Fudge

Chia or Flaxseed Lemon Bread

Chocolate Chickpea Dough Ball Cookies

Oatmeal Energy Bars

Peppermint Chocolate Squares

Sunshine Muffins

Black Bean Spaghetti Squash

Spaghetti Squash is a great vegetable to roast in the oven and then eat by itself, as a side dish, or mix with other ingredients for a tasty lunch or dinner. It's also a lighter and more popular alternative to spaghetti pasta, especially when watching carbohydrate intake.

It can be roasted in the oven within an hour. I usually set the temp. to 200C / 425F and roast cut-side-down on a baking tray for 40-45 mins. I then turn the squash cut-side-up for the last 5 minutes.
Lots of recipes call for olive oil but I find a light spray of cooking oil and some seasoning - ground black pepper - is perfect. Once the squash is tender, using a fork, the flesh can easily be scraped out in long strands. More black pepper seasoning,  plus a sprinkling of red pepper flakes and/or parsley is very complementary.

The recipe below bakes the squash in the oven using water which helps the speed of cooking. Spices and traditional Mexican ingredients (black beans, corn, jalapeño pepper, cilantro) are cooked in a pan and mixed with the spaghetti squash. The dish tastes great served warm but is also ideal as a cold on-the-go snack!

It's diary free, gluten and wheat free, vegetarian, high fiber and 100% delicious!

Black Bean Spaghetti Squash
Makes 4

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:

- 950g / 34oz / 1 spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded

- 5ml / 1tsp olive oil

- 110g / 4oz red onion, chopped

- 30g / 1oz / 1 medium jalapeño pepper, minced

- 85g / 3oz red pepper, chopped

- 250g / 9oz black beans, drained (no added salt)

- 90g / 3oz sweet corn

- 1tsp chili powder

- 15ml / 1tbsp lime juice

- fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)

Method: 

Place the squash in a baking dish, cut-side-down. Add 1/2cup (120ml) water to the dish and cook in the oven at 190C / 375F for 30-40 minutes until the flesh is tender. Rake the flesh with a fork. Set aside.

Whilst the squash is cooking in the oven, in a pan heat the oil and cook the onion, jalapeño and red pepper and cook for 3-5 minutes. 

Add the black beans, sweet corn and chili powder and cook for another couple of minutes.

Stir in the cooked squash, lime juice and cilantro. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information:

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

A second butternut squash soup recipe. The first one is a simple classic and this one contains apple and nutritional yeast.

The veg and fruit is mixed with ginger and roasted in the oven, which intensifies the flavours, whereas my first recipe boiled the veg in a saucepan. There's also quite a bit of garlic, but it tastes delicious with the sweetness of the roasted butternut squash and apple.

This soup is dairy-free, low sodium, vegetarian (if using vegetable broth) and low-fat - almost 0g!

I adapted the recipe from the Whole Foods Market website. They suggest using a variety of winter squashes (such as kabocha, acorn or delicata) for a more complex taste!

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup
Makes 4
Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
- 1400g / 50oz / 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed
- 280g / 10oz apple, chopped (I used one royal gala and one peeled granny smith)
- 110g / 4oz onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, halved
- 1tsp ground ginger
- 720ml / 24floz chicken OR vegetable broth, reduced sodium
- 240ml / 8floz water
- 16g / 2tbsp nutritional yeast
- fresh or dried parsley to serve (optional)

Method:
In a large bowl, mix the squash, apple, onion and garlic with the ginger.

Spread the mixture on two baking trays and roast in the oven for 45 minutes at 200C / 400F. Switch the baking trays between oven racks halfway through.

Remove from oven once the veg/fruit is tender and slightly browned.

Purée the squash mixture with broth, water and nutritional yeast. In a saucepan stir the soup, adding more water if needed, to combine all ingredients.

Garnish with parsley if desired. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information:

Banana Oat Jam Cookies

These cookies are so simple, healthy, wholesome and quick to make. They take less than 15 minutes to bake too so are great to whip up for a mid-afternoon snack or make in the evening ready for an on-the-go breakfast the following morning.

I adapted the recipe from the Oh She Glows blog, with the original recipe here. I used one banana and some applesauce instead of two ripe bananas (as I only had one left in the pantry). I also didn't have any pre-blended oat flour so I just added whole oats to the mixing bowl. I used sugar-free jam but if using regular jam, the sugars per cookie will be a little higher. I also used unsweetened apple sauce as one ripe banana has plenty of natural sweetness for these cookies.

Banana Oat Jam Cookies
Makes 8
Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Ingredients:
- 1 banana, ripe
- 56g / 2oz applesauce, unsweetened
- 80g / 3oz oats
- 20g / 3tbsp flaxseed meal
- 1tsp cinnamon
- 34g / 2tbsp jam, sugar-free

Method:
In a mixing bowl, mash the banana and stir in the applesauce.

Add the oats, flaxseed and cinnamon.

Mix to form cookie dough. Spoon out 8 cookies on a baking tray and then make a small indentation/thumbprint in the center of each cookie. Add a little jam into the small hole.

Bake in the oven at 175C / 350F for 11-13 minutes, until the cookies are slightly firm and golden brown on the outside. They should be soft and doughy in the middle. Cool on a wire rack. ENJOY!

Click HERE for a printable recipe card.

Nutritional Information: