Lucky for me, Kady is also an amazing recipe blogger and she immediately shot out two recent recipes she had created involving seafood, offering to share with me so I could try and blog it for others feeling fish-challenged. Clever girl that Kady!

I can honestly say that we all LOVED this dish, I wasn’t sure I’d get the kids over the line with the babaganoush, so I did mash potato (or as I like to do a cauliflower, sweet potato and potato mash) for them instead, but they tasted the baba and loved it too.

Kady recommends using the same recipe for the crunch, to make a granola – she keeps the mix in an jar and uses it on everything!

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Salt
Pepper
Coconut oil
Oats
Quinoa
Walnuts
Hazelnuts
Tahini
Parsley

Print

Crunchy Gemfish with Babaganoush

Servings 2

Author Kady O'Connell

Ingredients

• FISH
• 2 x fillets of gem fish or any other meaty white fish
• sea salt
• pepper
• CRUNCH TOPPING
• 1 tsp coconut oil
• 1 tbsp oats
• 1 tbsp quinoa
• 1 tsp walnuts crushed
• 1 tsp hazelnuts crushed
• BABAGANOUSH
• 1 eggplant choose a heavy dark one - they have less seeds
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 1/2 lemon juiced
• 1 small garlic clove
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 tbsp flat leaf parsley

Instructions

• Turn the grill on to the highest setting and put the whole eggplant under it. Leave for 5-10 minutes then turn sides - it should be completely soft and the skin starting to burst when its done.
• Take the eggplant out from the grill , cut off the top and peel away the skin.2. Place crunch mix in the oven at 180 degrees celsius for 10 minutes. Then add all crunch ingredients to food processor and blend to a crumb.
• Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Rub the gem fish with a little coconut oil on both sides and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the crunch mix on top of the fish
• Place the fish in the oven at 180 degrees celcius for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the fillet. Use a knife to check if its cooked through.
• Place the eggplant meat into a food processor/ blender with the other babaganoush ingredients and blend until smooth.
• Spoon the babaganoush onto 2 plates and top with the gemfish.

Another seafood recipe the whole family loves which packs a power punch of goodness is this one for Sweet Potato, Corn and Wild Salmon Fritters.

Enjoy!

Bren x

Ok, now back to apples. I really didn’t think we were ready for the change from Summer to Autumn. Surely the kids would mourn the end of summer’s succulent bounty of stonefruits like mangoes, peaches and nectarines, wouldn’t they? Well, no, actually. As much as they love those fruits, they seem to have naturally and instinctively followed the rhythym of the seasons to embrace the sweet flavours provided by Autumn’s apples and pears. Because we try to eat seasonally, the replacement of Summer fruits with Autumn fare follows a natural progression, and we are always ready for the introduction of a new set of tastes. Out with the old, and in with the new. We’ll be naturally craving our mangoes soon enough, but for now, it’s all about the delicious, crispy sweetness and juiciness of the pome fruits.

So cue the ritual of cooking with apples and the endless ways they can be used in recipes. And as the air starts to chill, wrap yourself in a blanket and try this homey Autumn fare by some of my favourite real foood bloggers.

Let’s kick off with my Apple Crumble Slice

Apple Cinnamon Upside Down Cake by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Choc Chia Quinoa Crumble by Naughty Naturopath Mum

Easy Gluten-Free Apple and Fig Crumble by Natural New Age Mum

Apple Berry Custard Crumble by Quirky Cooking

Apple Rhubarb Pie by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Upside Down Apple Cake Puddings by Alexx Stuart

Anyone salivating yet!!!!

Carrot and Apple Cake by The Nourished Psychologist

Apple and Lemon Cinnamon Ginger Quinoa by The Wholefood Mama

Apple and Cinnamon Brown Rice Waffles by Wholefood Nutrition and Wellness

Apple Oat Fritters by Quirky Cooking

Sweet Potato Apple Hash by Barefoot Kitchens

Chia Apple Porridge by Healthy Natural Changes

Cheesy Chicken Apple Balls by Barefoot Kitchens

Turkey Leg Confit with Cranberry Vodka Sauce and Baked Apple by The Wholesome Cook

There you go, now you can put those big bags of apples to good use.

I wonder which recipe will be first cab off the rank? I’d love to know in the comments.

Enjoy!

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I have great memories of hot summer days spent at the beach, running to the kiosk to grab a Split or Banana Paddle Pop. If only my mother knew what was in them!

There’s no need to deprive our kids completely, but be warned – most store-bought ice blocks are full of preservatives and refined sugars, and pose more of a health risk to them than a benefit. Sure, eating the occasional one is alright for our healthy kids, but the reality is that in summertime, our kids can easily hoover down more than one a day. That’s where the Zoku Quick Pop Maker comes in, where you can whip up your favourite healthy ice-blocks within minutes!

It has taken me some experimenting to figure out the Zoku and what will work (I can be daft like that). In the end, I opted for the ‘keep it simple, stupid’ approach and created a couple of recipes that cooled the kids down, provided a well-balanced snack, and tantalised their tastebuds all at once!

The other day my kids could not hide their disappointment when I brought out the old ice blocks that we had previously made in plastic moulds. They like to be involved in the spontaneity and magic of the Zoku – creating, mixing and pouring the mixture and watching it freeze before their eyes.

In only seven minutes you have an icy, delicious flavour explosion!

The recipes I created make a fruit-filled snack full of fibre, vitamins, good fats and protein (yoghurt, milk and little extras to boost the nutritional content of the ice blocks).

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Banana Choc-Honey, Mango Lime, Blueberry Smoothie, Mango Surprise!

Mango Lime

1 – 2 mango cheeks (to taste)
1 cup natural yoghurt
1/2 lime
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Blend all the ingredients, pop into fridge to chill, then pour into the Zoku

Miss 7 loved the mango suprise

Mango Surprise (variation of Mango Lime!)

Chop 1 mango cheek into small cubes
Blend yoghurt, lime and maple syrup
Drop 2-4 mango cubes into bottom of Zoku, pour over the yoghurt mixture and repeat until the top

Could they look any happier?!

Banana Choc-Honey

1 large banana (fresh or frozen)
1 cup milk (I use raw or unhomogenised)
1 tablespoon cacao
1-2 tablespoons raw honey

Blend all the ingredients , pop into the fridge to chill, then pour into the Zoku

Berry Smoothie

I used leftovers from the bluberry version of this recipe so just popped it in the Zoku. No waste and great taste!
Halve the recipe if you just want to make it specifically for the Zoku.

Thank you LimeTreeKids for sending me the Zoku, we plan to have lots of fun beating the heat this summer!

Do you have a Zoku? I’d love to hear your favourite recipes?

Bren x

While strawberry daquiri immediately sprung to mind, it was only 2pm … anyhow, for the second punnet, I took the sensible option and decided to use them to make muffins for school lunchboxes this week.

Mr 9 was in the kitchen lending a hand as usual. He just loves it so much! And he’s getting used to me snapping photos of him for my blog and social media, as you can probably tell by his wry smile.

Inheriting another munchkin after nippers, I soon had all three of them circling the hot-out-of-the-oven strawberry muffins like a pack of sharks. And I kid you not, the first bite sent their eyes rolling into the back of heads and into orbit. But all good things come to an an abrupt end, and it was a case of “Sorry kids! I’m a busy lady. The rest are for lunchboxes this week!”

I hope you all enjoy them. And just a little tip, it might be worth making a double batch : )

For 40 more scrumptious sweet and savoury recipes which are nut and refined-sugar free grab your copy of my Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes recipe book here. 

Print

Strawberry Yoghurt Muffins

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 12

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 1 cup white spelt flour
• 3/4 cup wholemeal spelt flour
• 3/4 cup coconut or rapadura sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarb of soda
• pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup butter melted
• 3/4 cup yoghurt
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1.5 cups of washed and sliced strawberries

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 175 degrees and grease 12 muffin hole tin.
• Mix dry ingredients together - flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarb of soda, salt, cinnamon. Make a well in the middle.
• Mix wet ingredients together - butter, yoghurt, egg, vanilla and pour into the dry mixture well.
• Add sliced strawberries and gently fold mixture until combined. Don't over mix.
• Divide batter into muffins holes and top with extra strawberry slices and a sprinkle of sugar.
• Pop in oven for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer poked into middle of the muffin comes out clean.
• Rest the muffins in the tin for 5 mins then turn out onto cooling rack.
• Muffins come out a little soft but will firm up on cooling.

If you make this recipe and share on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek.

Otherwise feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook. I get a total kick out of seeing you bring my recipes to life.

Some other delicious muffin recipes you might like are these Apple and Carrot Muffins and these Date and Cinnamon Muffins. Or you might like this Strawberry and Coconut Crumble.

And it’s packed with all the beneficial ingredients needed to feed the gut bacteria, making for a happy digestive system : )

Swiss nutritionist Dr. Bircher-Brenner believed that the raw, natural ingredients of his muesli brew (brewsli!) would have healing properties for his patient’s health.

Bircher Muesli was born!

Soaking the oats and nuts and seeds overnight reduces the phytic acids. This not only makes them more digestible but also allows the body to absorb the nutrients more efficiently.

This is my family’s favourite homemade combination for bircher muesli, which is jam-packed full of goodness and a great way to start the day. There’s some in the fridge right now!

Got picky eaters? The Fussy Eating Bundle was created to help as many parents as possible instill positive eating habits in their children and provide a lifelong joyful relationship with food, thus creating peaceful, stress-free mealtimes. FIND OUR MORE HERE.

This is a big batch that will be enough to last for breakfast, snacks, and lunchboxes for the week. Top it with My Favourite Homemade Granola recipe to add some texture and crunch.

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Brenda's Big Batch Bircher Muesli

A delicious breakfast option to make mornings run smoothly.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 5 x cups of rolled oats
• 3 x cups of milk or coconut water or a combination of both
• A couple handfuls of almonds
• A couple handfuls of sunflower seeds
• 2 tablespoons of chia seeds
• A couple handfuls of sultanas
• 2 x cups of natural yoghurt
• Juice of one orange
• 1 x grated apple
• A good shake of cinnamon
• A good pinch of vanilla powder

Instructions

• Mix all of the above together, cover and leave pop into the fridge overnight.
• In the morning, serve with extra milk and/or yoghurt, fresh seasonal fruit and a swirl of raw honey or pure maple syrup.

Notes:

* Fresh fruit is a fabulous source of fibre and has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer and other diseases. In this recipe, I use grated apple, which is packed with vitamins like A, B1, B2, and C, as well as minerals like calcium, potassium, iodine, iron, and phosphorous.

* Oats can be powerful in lowering cholesterol and, therefore, fighting heart disease. Oats contain insoluble fibre which lowers blood sugar and control diabetes.

* Nuts and seeds are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are associated with numerous health benefits including the development of the nervous system and reducing bad cholesterol. They are also are a great source of protein which is important for building and repairing muscles.

* Chia seeds deserve a special mention as they are highly nutritious and a natural source of Essential Fatty Acids, a great source of fibre, full of antioxidants, protein, amino acids, essential minerals, and vitamins.

* Yoghurt provides good bacteria for the digestive tract, is a good source of protein, and is loaded with vitamins like calcium, vitamin B-2, B-12, potassium, and magnesium.

So let’s think outside the cereal box and enjoy this nutrient-rich, healthy wholefood breakfast that is exploding with goodness!

Other breakfast recipes you might like Date and Walnut Bircher Muesli and Spiced Quinoa Porridge.

The combination of pumpkin with root vegetables makes this a delicious, comforting soup, easy to digest soup for the whole family.

The picture you see is before the milk was added, it was my serving as I’ve never been a fan of milk. Omitting the milk just means the soup will be thicker and chunkier. Adding the milk makes it silkier and smoother, the way the rest of my family like it.

Easy to make everyone happy at dinner time with this one, but also perfect to pack for work or lunchboxes in an insulated container.

I’m often asked how to keep the food hot until lunchtime.

Well, it’s as easy as 1, 2, 3:

1. Boil the kettle and then pour the water into the thermoses, be sure to pop the lids on
2. Heat up the food
3. Pour out the hot water  add the warmed up food into the container,  then pop the lid on immediately.

Here are my fave insulated jars which have lasted me years:

Thermos double wall food jar 475ml 16oz
In these containers I pack soups, pastas, any hot meals and also cold salads.

Kleen Kanteen TKCanister with insulated lid 8oz 237ml
I like this smaller size option to keep things cool like yoghurt, granola and fruit, overnight oats or to keep things warm like the chicken nuggets or smaller serves of things like soup, stew, pasta.

And f you’re looking for more lunch inspiration, take a look at my new recipe ebook, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes. It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved!

There’s even a delicious recipe for Kale and Cannelleni Bean Minestrone which my kids love taking to school in their insulated container.

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favourite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

Coconut oil
Chicken stock
Nutmeg
Salt and pepper
Milk

Print

Pumpkin & Root Vegetable Soup

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 4

Author Brenda Janschek

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 1 large onion chopped
• 1 large carrot chopped small pieces
• 1 large potato chopped medium pieces
• 1 medium sweet potato chopped larger pieces
• ¼ large pumpkin chopped larger pieces
• 2 cups homemade vegetable or chicken stock
• Good pinch of nutmeg
• Freshly ground salt and pepper
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Instructions

• Heat the butter and coconut oil in a large saucepan and fry the onion gently over low heat until soft
• Add the carrot, stir well and sweat over low heat for 5 minutes, add potato, sweet potato and pumpkin and continue to sweat for another 5-10 mins
• Stir occasionally to prevent them from sticking to the pan
• Stir in the stock, nutmeg and salt and pepper and bring to the boil and simmer until vegetables are tender (approx 10-15mins)
• Once slightly cool, pour into food processor and blend well
• Pour back into saucepan heat gently and add milk and lemon juice
• Serve hot
• Top with chopped parsley, natural yoghurt and sunflower seeds

Notes

Serve with buttered sourdough bread or toast
Double the batch for freezer, leftovers or school lunchboxes

If you make this soup please do take photos and send them to me.

If you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek. Otherwise feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook. I get a total kick out of seeing you bring my recipes to life.

You might also like to check out my favourite soup round up, 7 Soup Recipes to Soothe the Soul.
Bren x