I was recently given the opportunity to delve into the finer side of Ayurvedic beauty.

Ayurda delivers more than a few beautiful beauty products.  Rather it provides a personalised service to ensure your body and soul are treated with the correct nutrients, relevant to your skin.

Combining the wisdom of Indian Ayurvedic philosophy, Ayurda identifies that every woman is unique – and what may work perfectly on one skin may be to the detriment of another.

I love their customised approach – before purchasing, you complete an online quiz that delves not only into skin traits that you hold but also vital personal characteristics that define you. The result is a regime that is completely reflective of your specific needs.

Interestingly, before I even completed my online quiz, the consultant predicted what products would best suit me, having seen a long distance photo of me as well as chatted to me at length on the phone. The quiz merely confirmed what she already saw of me.

My approach to my skin is now much more refined and simple – knowing that I only need a few essential products, rather than a plethora of unessential shelve wasters has left me with an easy routine that has left my skin glowing.

For those of you who have read my blog for a while, you are also probably aware of my love for simple ingredients – with a moisturiser containing eight ingredients, including sesame oil, saffron, rose petals, turmeric and licorice root (many of which I use in my recipes!). Add to that a toner of rose and basil and a cleanser whose main ingredient was coconut oil and you have a very beautiful and toxic free product.  The total range of Ayurda skincare is 100% natural, free from synthetic chemicals, SLS, artificial preservatives and Parabens. Ayurda does not test on animals.

 For more information about their skincare products visit the website.

Chocolate Nut Butter Cups

I love it when I find a cookbook that reduces me to recipe overwhelm.

More often than not – when scouring through recipe books I am left with only a one or two post it notes sticking out after I discover that the recipes in the book are mostly too difficult, don’t work out the way they are supposed to or full of  allergy promoting ingredients.

I was given the opportunity to review and get stuck into the recipes in Sarah Wilson’s IQS Chocolate Cookbook.

The book is littered with so many delicious chocolate recipes from breakfast right through to the requisite afternoon treats that I have decided to approach it as I would a literary novel, starting on page one and finishing at the end and working my way through all of the recipes section by section.

From Chocolate Protein balls to Sweet Potato and Macadamia Brownies and a whole chapter on reinventing classics – the emphasis on health means that you won’t need a celebration to cater for in order to enjoy chocolate!

If you like chocolate, and love the idea of inventive chocolate creations using minimal ingredients – then I really do recommend this book.

Filled to the brim with chocolate delights delivered in the typical minimalist fashion and ethos Sarah Wilson so perfectly espouses.

You can own your own copy here…

And if you missed it in the last newsletter here is a yummy Beetroot Red Velvet Cupcake Recipe...

Beetroot Red Velvet Cupcakes

Makes 12

Ingredients:

• 2 large beetroots grated raw (don't bother peeling)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla powder
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• pinch of sea salt
• 1 1/2 cups of almond meal
• 4 tablespoons raw cacao powder
• 3 tablespoons coconut oil (or olive oil)
• 1/4 rice malt syrup
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder

Method:

Preheat oven to 170C (340 F) and line a cupcake tin with 12 cupcake cases. Blend all ingredients (in a blender or with a stick blender) until it's a smooth batter, then divide between the 12 cases and cook for 40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Serve alone or topped with thick Greek yoghurt or cream cheese frosting (with the rind of one lemon added to the mix).

Click here to buy Sarah's new book.

Here’s a recipe from my brand new book Supercharged Food for Kids.

It’s crackle time! You’ve probably all witnessed the unhealthy versions of these hanging around on the table at every kid’s birthday party, loved unconditionally by children and parents alike.  These crunchy, crackles of puffed rice are essentially an old fashioned treat that I have always yearned to recondition for a real food 21st century. 

Using real food will teach your child to appreciate food’s natural flavours and develop and understanding of what real food actually tastes like and this recipe is the perfect example.  If you skip the sugar-filled, artificially flavoured party treats and instead opt for a healthier version it will ensure you are meeting your child’s nutritional needs with a good supply of magnesium and iron from the raw cacao and B vitamins from brown rice puffs.  Coconut oil and butter will add stickiness and sweetness and provide a great all round anti-fungal and anti-bacterial element. (more…)

Gee whizz. This recipe has only three steps. Whizz, chill and scatter.

It's funny what emerges when you combine hazelnuts, avocado, berries and cacao. Enter  a spankingly delicious pud that’ll rock the socks off any pudding seen sitting around in coffee shops and cake stalls, whispering in honeyed tones inviting you in, but then leaving you and your gurgling stomach with discomforting memories and promises of never again.

The quiet, shy hazelnut, often outshone by the more headstrong and petulant almond, sits quietly on the sidelines awaiting an opportune time to make her presence known and in this melt-in-your-mouth dessert her sass twinkles and gleams. You really have to take your hat off to the hazelnut, grown in a tough and protective outer shell, it’s only when taking the time to scratch beneath the surface, that you are able to reap the many nutritional benefits that this self-effacing nut provides.

Dig a little deeper and you’ll discover a vitamin and mineral live-wire, containing...  (more…)

My usual approach to vegetables is to bake, steam or stir-fry them with garlic but this year I’m determined to improve my culinary skills when it comes to cooking vegetables.

This recipe comes straight out of my Eat Clean, Green and Vegetarian recipe book.

I’ve used a healthier oil, coconut oil and substituted activated almonds. Homemade curry paste works really beautifully and it’s a gorgeous curry, richly layered, warming and packed with melding flavours. (more…)

Ingredients: