Low-sugar healthy recipes Archives - Page 5 of 20

Beet Herbal Smoothie – Fasting For Gut Detox

Beet herbal smoothie is a delicious one that is soothing. Rose petals are edible flowers that you may have seen dried for herbal tea.

And this is a good way to open up your gut after fasting…

Fasting (temporarily) is a way to do gut detox (…more on this below). And then appreciate preferred foods like a rose smoothie… with beet or strawberries, or both that’s berry-hard-to-beat. 🫜🍓

Fasting is a practice that I’m proud of.

…I no longer freak out when I haven’t eaten. I look at not eating differently than my younger self would have.

I now know it’s healthy detox.

So now it’s my choice to fast occasionally.

And fasting is a form of empowerment.

(…And it can be for you too if you choose).

It’s a smart move.

Because living today, we are exposed to so many daily toxins like microplastics, bacteria, and pesticides.

And they end up in our gut and food.

That wreaks havoc on our gut health and how we daily feel.

So an easy way to at-home detox is to simply fast: to not eat temporarily and occasionally.

Fasting is countercultural to western world upbringings where we eat, eat, eat. And snack, snack, snack.

…Which never gives our bodies a break.

But fasting once a week or even once a month does a world of good for the body.

If you choose a day to stop eating at a certain time like 4 pm (like I do) and then resume back at 9 am the next day in time for breakfast (to break the fast), you’ll have turned your body into a healthy cleaning machine.

And it’s really not that difficult from a discipline perspective since you’re sleeping (and not eating anyway) for most the time.

It’s more about breaking old habits and mindsets.

You probably (surprisingly!) won’t even be hungry in the AM… and could even go to the afternoon or 24 hours if you had a reason.

Those additional hours of fasting reaps even more healthy body benefits.

But I find that a 16-17 hour fast is the sweet spot, doing wonders, and doesn’t disrupt my life.

Around that 17th hour mark (that’s more or less for some people), the body switches energy sources from glucose (blood sugar) to fat.

You may have heard of this process (ketosis) from the Keto Diet. But fasting is not about a Diet (with a capital “d”). Because in fasting, you’re simply not eating, temporarily.

Then when you start eating again, it’s about resuming regular eating… hopefully with healthy foods like in an anti-inflammatory food diet.

…Where the type of healthy food matters most (when eating)… much more than counting fat and protein calories, and avoiding high carbs that can cause a yo-yo diet effect.

You lose weight from not eating at all temporarily (when fasting) and not because you’re eating less carbs and calories.

And while fasting is helpful for losing weight, I don’t fast to lose weight… I do it for the healthy benefits.

It’s good for anyone.

Even thinner people (aka Vatas) like me can use a beet herbal smoothie like this. 🥀

…It’s like doing some cardio is good for anyone with a beating heart.

And fasting is part of a healthy lifestyle.

…And one that’s changed my life.

I no longer freak out when I haven’t eaten for some hours on a day I choose to fast.

I look at not eating totally different than I was taught growing up.

And if I have low blood sugar during the day when I’m not fasting, but because I don’t have anything in my stomach or I forgot to pack a snack, I know I’ll be fine.

…Because I know I do the same thing when I purposefully fast.

I’m not eating in both cases.

But the body doesn’t know if I’m choosing to be hungry for fasting healthy reasons or if I forgot to pack a snack.

But my calmed mind does. And I do.

As long as my mind and I know, that’s all that matters. And my body is happy with me.

I’m letting it do its full reset and cleaning job, uninterrupted.

Then the next morning, my body rewards me.

I wake up feeling refreshed… like I’d slept for days.

That’s when I’m humbly reminded of how it feels to have energy without needing cups of coffee to get going!

Without missing a beat, I’m also never more excited to taste a beet smoothie 🫜and start my day, besides this rose and beet herbal smoothie.

And I know I’m not the only one. 😊 Roses are a lovely start. I learned about edible flowers from my catering days. They are also pretty on a food table or pressed as art. 🏵️

Herbal Rose Smoothie

Rose is a soothing herbal element and rose petals are edible and can be added to a smoothie.

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

Magic bullet or similar blender

Ingredients

2-3 oz beets, cooked (or whole strawberries)
1/2 tsp rosewater, splash
4 oz water
1-2 rose tea, dried and crushed (for zhugh)

Instructions

Blend cooked beets and rosewater. A splash is strong. You can find rosewater in international grocery markets.
Zhugh with rose petals that are used for tea.

Cabbage Wrap – Light Chicken Salad with Healthy Spices

Cabbage wrap and chicken salad is a delicious light food pairing. Great for anytime of year for losing weight, and gaining protein and fiber. And you can make your own tasty version with mustard that lasts in your lunch bag.

A cabbage wrap is great option for lunch, dinner, brunch, or an afternoon snack.

You can get a bite of sweet, savory, and crunchy in the recipe below. 🥬

Boy, I wish I knew how to make my own chicken salad when I was younger and hungry ravenous for something to eat before dinner.

It’s a snack that can be made very inexpensively and fast. Often you find grocery rotisserie chickens that are already cooked. So all you have to do is assemble. Or you can cook your own chicken breasts and even make chicken nuggets.

To shred the chicken, work along the grain pulling apart longer pieces. Then to make smaller and shorter pieces, with a sharper knife cut the long pieces straight across. Or pull the long pieces into even smaller pieces. You decide.

And you decide what goes in your chicken salad. Celery is a good pairing. And if you don’t have celery on had, lettuce pieces are also a great filler add in.

Onions and grapes are also good and healthy together in synergy. You can think of it as a superfood anti-inflammatory pairing. 🍇+🧅

Grapes bring sweetness to the chicken (or you can sub fish) cabbage wrap.

You can use red or green grapes but usually if you use red grapes, then red onion is good and green grapes with white or yellow onions for color effects.

But you do you deciding how to slice and dice up your onions and grapes.

I like the red onions because they’re more mild. If you cut the pieces small, they will not stand out …and for more fine, you can use a grater or a zester tool.

Then for seasoning I add salt and pepper. And to complement, I add a little anti-inflammatory turmeric powder.

Turmeric and black pepper together are another powerful anti-inflammatory healthy duo. 🎉 Tip: great for pain in joints!

And for tastes to further elevate the chicken salad: you can give it a lemony taste vibe with coriander. You wouldn’t want to use lemon juice here because it would be too sour and add to much liquid, and you wouldn’t want to use lemon zest because then it’s too lemony and overpowering the other tastes.

Coriander is a good dry compromise.

I like to use coriander seeds that I crush with my fingers and eat give a burst of bright lemony flavor when you bite into.

And to to give a French bistro vibe, I add tarragon from spice.

And that goes well with the mustard tastes where you have choices.

I like to lean into my Ayurvedic needs that show up in food preferences that I let decide the choice.

You can use a honey mustard for a sweeter chicken salad or a Dijon mustard to go with the French bistro tastes. Or a plain yellow mustard.

And to give a nice texture crunch 🤩, slivered almonds (or crumbled cashews) complement best with crunchy cabbage! You can also substitute with other nuts and seeds but slivered almonds crush (and in your mouth)! 🧡

Because of the vinegar acid in most mustards, it’s a practical condiment choice because it won’t go bad in room temps. Although after opened, it is better refrigerated to preserve taste.

So whatcha waitin’ for?

You can prep your chicken salad, and then put your salad to (cabbage) bed rest for tomorrow’s lunch (?). 😋

Cabbage Wrap with Healthy Lemony Spices Chicken Salad

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

6 oz cooked chicken, finely shredded
1 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp grapes, quartered in size
1 tbsp onions, minced
turmeric powder
salt and pepper
1 tsp coriander or lemon pepper
tarragon (optional)
slivered almonds
Plate: cabbage (Napa, red, Italian, or Bok Choy)

Instructions

For chicken salad: finely shred cooked chicken and mix in remaining ingredients (except cabbage leaves).
Then plate on cabbage leaves.

Easy Shrimp and Grits – 15 Minutes Healthy Spice Recipe

Shrimp and grits is one of my favorite Southern dishes. And it’s healthy! It’s a fast meal to prepare and have on the tasty food table too, anytime of day.

Because 5-minute grits cook fast (7-10 minutes on medium-high heat). You can also go for the Old Fashioned version that’s less processed and takes about 15 minutes on higher heat.

Either way, grits are a healthy corn grain and are easy to digest. They are considered good on a low FODMAP diet (like rice).

And you can’t mess up cooking grits. They are dry to begin with, so as long as there’s enough water in the skillet for cooking, you’re good to go! And even if you run low on water, you can revive your grits easier than say rice.

And you can even microwave grits without worry about texture consistency.

And shrimp and grits is a dish you can get your flavor and spices in. Grits are a great base because grits are mildly tasteless.

So, Old Bay spice blend is a great addition with paprika, celery salt and pepper already built-in as some base notes.

I douse Old Bay on anything seafood! It’s a no-brainer for me. 😊

And coriander is a good way to bring in lemony-summery notes, especially if you’re feeling summer nostalgic or your summer flew by and you wanted an endless summer. It’s a good way to preserve the enjoyable feelings.

You can also substitute with lemon pepper if coriander isn’t one you have in your stash.

I also add tarragon on the shrimp for French bistro vibes. And I add either white pepper or a mushroom spice blend for umami tasting vibes. I’m never shy on the flavors.

Tip: Keep in mind if you use spice blends, they usually have salt in them to optimize flavor, so you may not need to add any more salt. And you may have added salt in the grits while cooking.

You can add the Holy Trinity (pepper, onions, and celery) like in Cajun or Creole-style cooking for a healthy trifecta. But if you want to do less chopping and spend less time preparing this meal (like 15 minutes total), you can find diced pimento peppers (sweet) already cut like in this bowl:

If someone handed me a bowl like this and said, “enjoy” or “bless your heart,” I’d be grinning from ear-to-ear saying, “thank you and yes, ma’am.” 😋

And if you like this shrimp and grits bowl idea, you may like a 20-minute paella you can make with lobster or shrimp seafood that’s low in calories and high in protein and Omega-3 anti-inflammatory goodness. 🧡

Shrimp and Grits

Ingredients

1 cup grits, cooked
4 cups water
10-12 large shrimp
spices: tarragon, coriander, Old Bay, white pepper
coriander seeds (or lemon pepper)
Old Bay spice blend
fresh onions and peppers
cayenne (optional) for heat

Instructions

Prepare grits. Follow instructions on the package (or 1 cup of dry grits to 4 cups of water).
Add spices in grits. Spices is tasty art work so add the amount you would like.
Cook shrimp separately (or about 6-8 minutes on medium-high heat)
Arrange shrimp ontop of grits. Add more spices and fresh onions and peppers (if adding). If you're serving for others, keep some spices on the side so they can add to their tastes.

Salmon Salad – No Mayonnaise (Lunch Idea)

Salmon salad is something you can enjoy anytime on bread or by itself. And it can be made deliciously without mayonnaise, in case you’re not a fan. Or if you want to try a different healthy way like this version on an open face toast… toast to that!

And any way you prefer, it’s a great protein snack or meal. Especially for lunch for all ages. As salmon salad is universal and can be eaten anywhere unlike an egg salad (…where I still remember a classmate’s bag lunch).

Cooked salmon has no fish aroma that your companions next to you can detect, (and that can make you feel self-conscious about your lunch).

It also has a more subtle fish taste. So it could be the new tuna salad sandwich… if it isn’t already on your menu!

…This also reminds me of my days as a teen working in a deli where it was all about the scoops. But the scoop wasn’t an ice cream scoop… it was tuna, chicken, or shrimp salad… and served like this salmon salad one on the plate that fits in a 4 oz cup (recipe below 👇).

In the deli, it was served on the side of a bed of lettuce or grapes, or on a sandwich.

And you can smear this salmon salad like butter.

But without butter. I personally like my dinner salmon with a béarnaise sauce, with a French Mediterranean vibe (no butter).

And this version for lunch.

For variety and fresh healthy ways, you can also serve your salmon salad with or without mustard, like Dijon mustard.

And if mustard is what you’re craving, you can substitute the horseradish or add ontop of the salmon salad.

It’s also delicious with crackers, multigrain, rye bread, or sourdough.

And what makes this one different is the lightness. Unlike heavy duty mayo (as in full fat), this version is salad light.

It uses yogurt, so you can hold the mayo. And no eggs.

But you could make an egg salad layer (if you want) for a Smorgastorta effect, or sandwich cake to go with your salmon salad.

That goes hand-in-hand with these 2 Swedish concepts I can get behind:

Lagom is a way to balance and moderation.

Fika is a Swedish concept for a coffee break with pastries and while you’re on yours, you can enjoy a Swedish finger sandwich or smorgastorta. This concept is kinda like afternoon English tea or an American brunching on the weekend (one of my fun things to do!).

And a salmon salad is perfect fit for a brunch. It’s light and protein-full. And if you want to give it a building-an-autumn-fire tasting vibe 🍁, you can add fiery orange color turmeric-spice that has ember burning smokey flavors… in case you didn’t know what the turmeric taste is like.

Black pepper and turmeric are a healthy spice combo so it makes sense too.

You can also substitute with Spanish smoked paprika that’s sometimes harder to find. Now that you have some good ideas, maybe it’s time to make your salmon salad sandwich! 🥪 You can make it today and eat tomorrow.

I bake the salmon and then decide!

A good tip is to decide what you will do with the salmon when it is still warm cooked or baked 🐟 . Because it will finely crumble easier when it’s warm and soft.

Drizzled with olive oil and a little salt and pepper, on 350°F/180°C it’s to my baked doneness liking in 3o-40 minutes depending on the fish filet thickness.

You can also cook on the stovetop if that’s your preference. But don’t add too much EVOO if you plan to make it into a salad, as it leaves the salmon more oily. Vs. baking that will dry out and soak in the oil quicker.

But no worries, you can’t go wrong…and all who love salmon will love. 😋

Salmon Salad - Yogurt (No Mayonnaise)

A healthy salmon salad that can be added to a sandwich.

Course brunch, fika, lunch

Cuisine American, swedish

Servings 4 oz

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

2 oz salmon, cooked
1 oz Greek yogurt (use both liquid and thick portions)
1 tsp fresh dill (or spice form)
1/4 tsp black pepper and salt, or lemon pepper
3/4 tsp fresh horseradish
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (optional)

Instructions

Crumble salmon in a bowl into fine pieces.
Make the yogurt mixture: Mix yogurt, dill, horseradish, and other dry ingredients to a separate bowl.
Mix in salmon with yogurt mixture. Add to your sandwich bread or enjoy as a scoop on a plate or green salad.

Notes

Tip: Crumble the salmon for salmon salad when it is still warm. Let cool and then make the salad.

Bloating Symptom Foods – Low FODMAP

Bloating symptoms from acidic foods are no fun that trigger and bother the gut lining. Following a low FODMAP list of food helps to recover quicker.

It’s a part of living.

And when you feel bloated, that’s not the time to try new foods.

When that happens, restoring the gut with a list of healthy, and selective food choices that will please and soothe the tummy is the fastest remedy.

It’s easy to do when you know what to do and which foods are safe.

And following a low FODMAP diet (at least temporarily) is a good food map to follow.

You can start with simple foods, but that’s generally good for 1-3 days and then you want to get back to some other foods with vitamins and minerals.

When you have bloating flare-up, that can also be a time to do a digestive reset, supporting a healthy eating lifestyle.

The safer foods to eat are mostly all plant-based and anti-inflammatory. 🌱

So a low FODMAP diet can be a reset diet to optimize healthy eating year round.

It helps to lowering gut acidity that can show up as heartburn, upper GI inflammation, or lower bloating abdominal discomfort.

Many of our American or Western world diet foods are higher acidity and can tip the cause to a condition called GERD… that I can attest to feels like amped up heartburn. Like eating tomatoes often is not acidic helpful, even though it’s a healthy food.

…So it’s good to keep a handy list of Low FODMAP foods that won’t 🌱 exacerbate stomach acidity.

Some foods are tricky.

Coffee is one such example. It’s a Low FODMAP healthy ingredient. But the way it’s prepared (like as a regular hot brewed coffee) makes it more acidic.

That’s why daily home cold brew coffee is my safer choice so I don’t have to give up the healthy caffeine starter. Cold brew is easy to make and an easy tweak change from regular coffee. But I still cushion with food like a banana. 🍌

Because I learned from my experiences that coffee alone on an empty stomach can play gut havoc.

Another example is nuts where walnuts and peanuts can be good and okay… that is, assuming you can even eat nuts.

But then other types of nuts, like cashews can be digestive havocs.

There’s no specific, easy rhyme or reason way to remember which foods are better and ones to avoid (other than with a handy list) or from memory recall from your past experiences.

And, I’ve had many adult experiences.

Where even healthy foods and that are good for triggered food bloating gut issues, that didn’t play well with my gut.

It was timing related.

Your gut looks at what else is not digested in the gut or if you have an empty stomach. Those can be sensitive times for the gut, and can cause heartburn symptom triggers.

Or if you eat at a time you don’t normally eat that breaks routine like just before bed. The gut likes a break and then in the morning likes to have an an opener.

Like you waking up, the gut is waking up to a new day.

And with any food going down at the wrong time to the gut, we can feel poked and burdened with the weight of lead after it goes down. It’s always after the chewing part in the gut.

Which is important too, to try and chew your food more to be able to digest foods better.

…Early on, we relied on a B.R.A.T. diet that were simple to digest foods: bananas, rice, apples and toast. It was easy to remember and you didn’t have to break out a list.

It was so short and easy to remember that I also added yogurt on my stomach-friendly list.

Yogurt has probiotics and protein.

And finding the lowest sugar (no added sugar) yogurt option optimizes the good bacteria count.

And the B.R.A.T.Y. (I added the “y”) simple digestive diet still works today.

But these days… NOT ALL SO SIMPLE with all the food choices we have.

So a personal bloating food or Low FODMAP list that works for your palate and body is good to compile, so you can reach for the safe decisions made when needed. You can even set the list in your pantry cupboard for your emergency convenience.

I keep a label on my Five-Spice and this article list as my reference.

Another one that has worked for me that’s a bit controversial is apple cider vinegar that naturally is an acidic ingredient.

But it works for heartburn symptoms. It’s best to mix apple cider vinegar with water.

It’s a passed down tip from those of the past and I was brave enough to give it a try.

In my world, it works. But everyone is different. So it’s always good to test.

How it works…

Apples cider vinegar signals to the stomach to stop producing acid that it does. And if you have heartburn symptoms, if you try, you may even get some burping up trapped gas that’s needed relief. Babies burp a lot. Adults need to too.

Our bodies are all about being counterintuitive mystery curve balls where the best proof is our baby steps and trial-and-error.

That’s how we learn specifics that work in our lives.

We test the apples…

And apple fruit is another one that is low FODMAP food questionable depending on the apple type (for us apples).

I like unsweetened applesauce as it’s like baby food so there’s no issue.

But another tip is do not, not eat. Your stomach will work better with some food.

Most guts aren’t happy on an empty stomach and that delays our happy restoration.

Our guts have been very forgiving… otherwise none of us would be still be on the planet.

Variety in food helps our gut.

And is a good diversifying principle of not putting all your eggs in one basket.

Eggs, btw, are generally ok too. 🥚

And even if we make a one-time triggered bloating food mistake, we can cushion with foods and ingredients that are generally safe on a low FODMAP list, including:

-bell peppers and most veggies

-avocado

-many fruits (and believe it or not… green bananas are lower FODMAP than soft, ripe ones).

-Yogurt (low-sugar Greek yogurt)

-quinoa, oatmeal, cooked soft rice (e.g. white rice)

Amaranth is one grain I discovered to be super gut-friendly. It has a Cream of Wheat bowl texture… but is gluten-free.

If you’re a sourdough or bread making person, for Low FODMAP you can even add amaranth to your whole grain roll or bread loaf.

And, some other Low FODMAP list adds:

-herbs/spices: fennel (in Five Spice powder), anise, peppermint

-teas: green, black, and some herbal teas (chamomile, chicory root, peppermint).

Peppermint tea is something I always keep in my “food-as-medicine” cabinet. It does wonders for some stomaches and other body aches like headaches. If it’s heartburn you’re experiencing, it will not feel like it’s helping so much and then it’s good to use food variety with the teas in the list above.

I have found peppermint is good for middle (or general) stomach aches and ginger tea is good for upper-stomach pains (e.g. bloating or heartburn) and chicory is good for lower stomach or upper intestine discomfort. But again, test on yourself.

And instead of reaching for candy or sugar sweets, you can chew on an anise star (like licorice) or make a simple applesauce blueberry cobbler.

Eating low FODMAP foods are healthy foods so you can eat them when you’re feeling 100% too. You can also check out a GERD grocery list to help healthy food guide you next time you’re food shopping.