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HEALTHYFRENCHWIFE

healthy vegan recioes

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Recipe

Vegan Rustic Strawberry Galette

Spring is on its way and I couldn’t be happier after a very cold and long winter here in Orange. It is still really cold at the moment but it feels like it is the end. I look forward to seeing leaves and flowers on trees because I know it also means my little baby will come very soon!

 

Anyway we found some very cheap strawberries in the shops the other day and bought 2 trays so I could freeze a lot of them, we ate most of them in 2/3 days and I used a little bit for making this delicious, simple and healthy vegan rustic strawberry galette. It was a big hit with my dad and the twins.

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Rustic Strawberry Galette with a wholemeal olive oil crust

  • Crust:
  • 1 1/2 cup of wholemeal wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup of cold water
  • 1/4 cup of olive oil
  • Strawberry filling:
  • 1 large punnet (500gr) of strawberries rinsed and dried
  • 1 tbsp of arrowroot
  • 1 tbsp of coconut sugar
  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
  2. Rinse and dry your strawberries then cut off the greens and slice them in 2 or 3.
  3. Mix in a bowl with coconut sugar and arrowroot powder. Leave them in a bowl for 10 minutes to release some juice and make your galette less watery.
  4. While the strawberry filling rest make your dough by mixing in a bowl the flour, cold water and olive oil until it forms the dough.
  5. Between 2 sheets of baking paper, roll your dough in a large flat circle shape using a rolling pin and place on an oven tray.
  6. Remove the strawberry juice and assemble your galette by spreading the strawberries in the middle of your crust.
  7. Fold the edges in a rustic manner overlapping and cook the galette in the oven for 35-45 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.




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Recipe

GF Vegan Black Bean Walnut Brownies 

I forgot to include this yummy recipe on my blog! sorry! This was a big hit in my house and on my Instagram page. These brownies are fudgy, GF, vegan, low sugar and made with black beans. I promise you can’t tell that these brownies have beans in them!

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GF Vegan Black Bean Walnut Brownies 

  • 1 can of black beans- drained and rinsed.
  • 3/4 cup of GF flour (I used Teff flour)
  • 1/3 cup of soy milk
  • 1/3 cup of melted coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup of maple syrup
  • 100gr of vegan cooking dark chocolate melted
  • 2 tbsp of cacao powder
  • 1/2 tsp of baking powder
  • 1 tsp of vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp of salt
  • 1/3 cup of chopped walnuts
  1. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius
  2. Blend a can of black beans in a food processor then add the rest of the ingredients apart from the walnuts.
  3. Line a brownie tin with baking paper then spread the brownie batter and add in the walnuts.
  4. Cook at 200 degrees Celsius for 30-35 minutes.

 

Recipe

Matcha Chocolate-Chip Muffins

Do you like matcha? I find people either love it or hate it. If you like it you would like these healthy vegan muffins with chocolate-chips!

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Matcha Chocolate-Chip Muffins 

makes 6 muffins

  • 1 1/2 cup of wholemeal (whole-wheat) flour
  • 1/2 cup of sugar/sweetener of choice (I used coconut sugar)
  • 1 tsp of baking soda
  • 1 tsp of apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp of matcha powder
  • 1/4 cup of coconut oil melted
  • 1 cup of nut milk/soy milk
  • 4 tbsp of dairy free chocolate chips + more to top
  1. Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius
  2. Line a muffin tray with muffin cases.
  3. In a bowl mix the dry ingredients together
  4. Then add the nut milk and coconut oil and whisk gently together.
  5. Fold in the chocolate chips and spoon the batter into each of the 6 muffins cases.
  6. Top each muffin with more chocolate chips.
  7. Cook in the oven for 25 minutes at 180 Celsius.

 

Let me know if you make them by tagging me on Instagram @healthyfrenchwife or in comments below.

Recipe

Raw Choc-Peanut Slice

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I could tell you how delicious this is all day long but really you need to make it for yourself if you are a peanut/chocolate fan!

This raw vegan choc-peanut slice is vegan, raw (ish- I used maple syrup), gluten free, soy-free and quite easy to do if you have a high speed blender or food processor.

We ate half of the slice over the weekend and I am keeping the rest in the freezer for when the baby arrives and I get super hungry when breastfeeding! Plus so handy having treats in the freezer when visitors pop over 🙂

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Raw Choc-Peanut Slice Recipe:

Base:

  • 1 cup of raw almonds (or nuts of choice)
  • 1 cup of pitted dates
  • 1/4 cup of raw cacao powder
  • 1/4 cup of water
  1. Mix the nuts in a food processor then add the dates and blend further.
  2. Add in the cacao and water and blend further until a sticky dough is formed.
  3. Press the dough down in a slice tin covered with plastic wrap or in a silicon mould and pop in the freezer while you make the next layers.




Peanut Layer:

  • 1 cup of soaked cashews (ideally overnight)
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
  • 2 tbsp of maple syrup ( add 1 more if you have a very sweet tooth)
  • 2 tbsp of melted coconut oil
  • 5 tbsp of peanut butter (smooth)
  • 1 tbsp of water
  1. In a food processor blend your cashews and the rest of the ingredients until you get a smooth peanut cream.
  2. Spread on top of your base and pop in the freezer while you make the chocolate layer.

Chocolate Layer:

  • 1 cup of soaked cashews
  • 4 tbsp of maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup of raw cacao powder
  • 2 tbsp of melted coconut oil
  • 1 tbsp of water
  1. In a food processor blend your cashews and the rest of the ingredients until you get a smooth chocolate cashew cream.
  2. Spread on top of the peanut layer (optional add in extra peanuts in between both layers).
  3. Leave to set in the freezer for 1 hour then slice it in small squares and add the toppings.

Topping:

  • drizzle some raw/dark chocoalte on top and extra peanuts.

Store in the freezer and take out 30 minutes before serving.



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I would love to get your feedback if you make it. Either leave a comment below or tag me on Instagram @healthyfrenchwife.

Thank you 🙂

Recipe

French Vegan Crepes

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Happy late French Bastille Day! I celebrated with these homemade vegan French Crepes with Orange zest. I loved sharing them with my family.

These French crepes are so delicious and they truly reminded me of my childhood eating crepes in the street. They smell absolutely delicious and were easy enough to flip despite not having any eggs. For me crepes have to be super thin to be called crepes so it is a matter of making the batter very liquid and pouring it/spreading it very quickly in a hot pan. I hope you will enjoy them. The orange zest gives them a delicious taste too.

My recipe is as always vegan, dairy-free, low sugar. The maple syrup is needed to give them a nice colour and for sweetness.

ps: Go France today in the world cup!



Vegan French Crepes IMG_3558:
Makes 8 thin crepes. Double recipe if needed.

1 1/2 cup of soy milk
1 cup of all purpose flour (I used wholemeal)
1 tbsp of maple syrup
2 tbsp of melted coconut oil
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp of sea salt
1 tsp of orange zest
1 tbsp of cold water



  1. In a bowl mix the ingredients together with a whisk to remove all the lumps.
  2. Add more cold water if needed (it needs to be thin but not too much.)
  3. Spray a hot flat pan with coconut oil or neutral oil and pour a ladder of the batter on your pan away from the heat – quickly moving the batter around the hot pan to spread it thinly. (Being fast and not pouring too much batter is the key in making proper thin French crepes)
  4. Leave to cook on medium heat for about 1 min per side then flip with a spatula and cook the other side.
  5. Keep the crepe on the side and cook the remaining crepes the same way.
  6. Top with your favourite toppings: orange zest and maple syrup or jam or vegan notella!

 

Let me know in the comments below if you liked this recipe 🙂

Recipe

Raw Vegan Protein Chocolate Cakes

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All I want at the moment is chocolate! I can’t believe that for pretty much the whole first trimester I barely ate any chocolate- I am definitely making up for it now in the third trimester! I try to keep my chocolate cravings healthy by either indulging in dark chocoalte covered pumpkin seeds or healthy homemade vegan desserts like these protein packed raw vegan chocolate cakes I made using MorLife plant-based chocolate protein powder.

These yummy cakes are so easy to make, low sugar and packed with protein with 10gr of protein per cake. They also only require 5 ingredients to make!

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Raw Vegan Protein Chocolate Cakes 

Makes 6

  • 1 1/2 cup of raw cashews soaked overnight
  • 3 tbsp of cacao
  • 3 tbsp of melted coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp of Morlife chocolate protein powder
  • 3 tbsp of maple syrup
  • Half a block of dairy free dark chocolate or raw chocolate for topping the cakes and a fee strawberries.
  1. Soak your cashews overnight in water then drain and rinse them.
  2. Blend them in a food processor with the maple syrup and coconut oil.
  3. Then add the cacao and chocolate protein powder.
  4. Spoon the mixture into a silicon muffin tray and leave to set in the freezer for one hour.
  5. Top with melted dark chocolate or raw chocolate and add a strawberry on top.
  6. Keep in the fridge before serving.




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Let me know if you plan on making them or if you have liked them in the comments below or on Insta @healthyfrenchwife xx

children nutrition

How To Improve Iron Levels

How To Improve your Iron Levels

Vegan, pregnant or not, low iron is a very common issue especially for women. Pregnancy, growth spurts, poor iron consumption, poor iron absorption, gut health issues, hormonal issues and big heavy cycles all can contribute to iron deficiency.

The main symptom of low iron is a feeling of being tired and weak. Some people also experience heart palpitations. In pregnancy, low iron increases risks for preterm delivery, low birth weight as well as immunity and cognitive development issues.

The most important time to increase iron for pregnancy is during the last 10 weeks of pregnancy when baby build his or hers own body iron stores to use in the first 6 months of life before solid foods are introduced.

The Australian Dietary guidelines recommend a daily intake of 27mg/day for pregnant women, 18mg for women and only 8 mg for men.

Source: https://www.nrv.gov.au/nutrients/iron

4 easy tips to improve your Iron levels:

1) Combine iron rich foods with Vitamin C-rich foods.

unnamed-2Vitamin C is proven to help the body absorb non-haem iron. Adding a piece of fruit or high in vitamin C vegetables alongside your iron-rich foods is a great way to help your body actually absorb the iron you are consuming.

2) Drink Coffee/ Tea one hour after your meal

 Coffee and tea inhibit iron absorption so make sure to drink your tea or coffee 1 hour after or before a meal and try to limit them if you have very low iron. Also limit dairy intake as it is proven to inhibit iron absorption so if you have low iron you might want to rethink having a dairy flat white coffee at the same time as your breakfast.

3) Eat Wholegrains

 Amaranth, sorghum, Quinoa, Teff, buckwheat, brown rice, spelt and whole wheat are all good choices of wholegrains with good iron content. Amaranth, spelt and quinoa have the highest iron content.

Cereals and wholegrain crackers are also an option. Make sure to soak your grains like quinoa and brown rice as non-soaked grains have higher phytic acid content which inhibits iron absorption.

4) Increase intake of Iron-rich foods

  • Dried apricots
  • Hemp seeds- I like adding them to smoothies, cereals, pasta, salads and pretty much anything! They pack 7.95mg of iron per 100gr compared with only 3mg per 100gr of steak!!
  • Dark chocolate
  • Pumpkin seeds
  • Wholegrain crackers/ fortified breads and cereals
  • Leafy green vegetables

Sample menu:

Breakfast

  • Smoothie with hemp seeds, soy milk and berries or
  • Fortified cereals such as weetbix or peanut butter toast
  • 1 piece of fresh fruit

Snack:

  • 3 dried apricots + handful of nuts

Lunch:

  • 2 cup of salad greens
  • ½ cup of good fats (olives or avocado)
  • 1 cup of chickpeas canned
  • 1 piece of fruit
  • 1 tbsp of hemp seeds.

Afternoon snack:

  • Wholegrain crackers, hummus and vegetable sticks
  • Or hemp seed based bliss balls or smoothie.

Dinner:

  • 1 cup of brown rice
  • 1 cup of beans
  • 2 cups of mixed vegetables (including some greens)
  • 1 citrus fruit

optional: 2 squares of dark chocolate (dark chocolate is high in iron! (11.9mg per 100gr !) Win win!)

I hope you enjoyed this article to help improve your iron levels. Let me know in the comment below or per email if you liked this article or have more questions.

Recipe

Vegan Sweet Potato Tahini Brownies

Nothing beats a mid-week chocolate treat- even better when it is made with some nutritious healthy ingredients. I have been making these healthy sweet potato tahini brownies for 2 years almost and I absolutely love them. They were way overdue  for featuring on my blog . Also today is World Chocolate Day so quite fitting to celebrate with this yummy (but healthy) chocolate recipe.

Let me know if you make them by tagging me @healthyfrenchwife on Instagram. I love seeing your recreations and knowing I am not just posting it for myself!

Vegan Sweet Potato Tahini Brownies

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I used a square brownie pan.

  • 450gr of puree sweet potatoe- about 2 medium potatoes
  • 1/2 cup of almond milk
  • 1/2 cup of buckwheat flour or all purpose flour
  • 2/3 cup of almond meal
  • 1/2 cup of coconut sugar or any other sweetener
  • 6 tbsp of raw cacao powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1/3 cup of tahini + more to swirl on top.
  1. Steam or boil your sweet potato, drain and leave to cool.
  2. Pre heat your oven to 175 degrees celsius and line a small brownie pan with baking paper.
  3. In a food processor add in the potatoes and all the other ingredients;
  4. Mix until very well combined.
  5. Spoon into your pan, drizzle some extra tahini and make swirls using a knife.
  6. place in the oven and cook at 175 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes.
  7. Keep it in the fridge for up to 1 week.



children nutrition

5 Meal Time Tips for Toddlers

5 ways to make meal time a success with little kids

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Are your kids making meal times a nightmare? Are you fighting them to eat their vegetables? Is the whole plate from your toddler going in the bin? Or on the floor? As a twin mum I know how toddlers can be- especially at meal times.

I must say that apart from the odd dinner- our dinners together are pretty enjoyable and the twins have started the habit of telling their dad what we have done during the day. I love hearing what they remember from the day! They are also pretty good eaters so I might be double lucky but I also think following the 5 points below has helped us in creating a nice dinner time. And do they eat their vegetables and finish their plates every night? Nope! But pretty often and I am happy with that.

I have written this blog post to hopefully help a little to turn crazy meal times into happier peaceful family moments.

  1. Eat as a family around the table

When we lived in Perth the twins used to have dinner on their own at 5h30 and be in bed at 7h30 the time their dad and I would sit and have our dinner together. It was good in some ways for some nice adult time but it wasn’t teaching the twins how to eat, communicate and share a meal. They use to throw all their food on the floor and drive me crazy!

Since we moved to Orange and my husband’s work hours have changed (he finishes work around 5h30/ 6h these days instead of 6h30/7h) and the twins being able to wait for a later dinner and bed time, we usually have dinner at 6h30 and they go to bed at 8 o’clock. Sharing dinner as a family has helped the twins to try new and different foods and accept the same dinner as us. It has improved our family connections and communication and it is good to be 2 adults against 2 kids to help with flying forks and pasta when they go about crazy!

  1. Limit snacking 

I know this tip worked particularly well for my son James. He likes to eat a lot but only a little at a time and he prefers snacks over meal times. I used to just give in and offer him foods whenever he wanted but when he turned 2 I started giving a proper more filling snack 2-hours before meal times instead of lots of small ones. He gets nice and full from his snack and gets hungry again for dinner!

(Ideas for good tummy-filling snacks are: smoothies (with good fats and protein), PB sandwich, avocado or vegemite sandwich, fruit & nut platter with bliss balls, pop-corn and a fruit.)

Grazing all day is not beneficial for little tummies as they fill up on lots of small snacks and are not hungry anymore for the more nutrition-dense meals.

  1. Lead by example

This is simple. If your child never sees you eat vegetables they are very unlikely to do so themselves. So make sure to always serve yourself a nice serve of vegetables and fruit and don’t be scared to tell them how delicious it is and how much you love them. This is proven to help little children in trying out new foods and vegetables.

  1. Serve vegetables first

If your children are really not good vegetables eaters I would recommend serving them to begin the meal as opposed to serving them as a side. You can serve some “crudites” like raw salads, carrots and hummus or roasted vegetables. (It is also important to vary the ways you cook and serve vegetables and fruits and try different cooking methods and recipes). A hungry child is more likely to eat them and start appreciating them. I know even for myself this works well!

If your child is a little older they could also help you in prepping, cutting and cooking them.

  1. Don’t push and keep serving the difficult foods.

 

Eloise loves cauliflower and broccoli. But only on certain days! It drives me crazy but some days she can eat a whole broccoli and others she will pick it out and says she doesn’t like it. Because I never know what day it is going to be I keep serving it but I don’t force her to eat. I never ask them to finish their plates –only taste and eat until full. I remember long horrible meals as a child being forced to finish my plate. It is not the recommended method anymore to force children in finishing their plates or tasting foods. These days it is recommended to for the parent to decide when food is offered and what type of food is offered and the child can decide if they are going to eat and how much they are going to eat.

 

Bribing and getting angry won’t lead to your child getting over their fear of vegetables. Positive reinforcement along with leading by example and lots of availability of consuming vegetables are the best ways to create healthy and happy relationships with food and vegetables in children.

 

Children are usually scared of new foods and may need to see a food 10 times or more before they decide to try it. I always serve the vegetables (and other foods) we are having on their plates even if I know it will might not be touched. After repeat exposure, seeing you eat it and positive verbal reinforcement to try or taste the food they are more likely to try it. It might take a while but you will get there!

 

 

I also found cute new plates, cutlery, asking them to plate up along with being more relaxed with the mess they make good ways to create happier meal times for everyone.

Recipe

Creamy Vegan Mushroom Pasta

I had made this pasta ages ago and never got around to sharing the recipe. I love a simple creamy vegan pasta and I absolutely love mushrooms in pasta. So I hope you enjoy this recipe of mine.

Otherwise life is pretty busy here, I am 29 weeks pregnant and currently have my in-laws visiting. I haven’t made them any of my sweet recipes yet but tomorrow I am attempting a vegan gluten-free orange loaf as my mother-in-law is coeliac and they brought over from Mildura some homegrown organic citrus fruits.

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Creamy Vegan Mushroom Pasta

  • 1 packet of pasta of choice
  • 500gr of brown mushrooms sliced
  • 3 cloves of garlic – chopped finely.
  • 1 onion- chopped finely.
  • 2 tbsp of chopped parsley
  • 1 tbsp of olive oil

Cashew Sauce:

  • 1 cup of soaked cashews (for a few hours or in boiling water while the rest cooks if no time)
  • 1 tsp of salt
  • 1 tbsp of nutritional yeast
  • 3/4 cup of unsweetened soy milk
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder

1. Cook pasta as per the packet’s instructions.

2. In a pan cook the chopped garlic and onion in 1 tbsp of olive oil. Stir often.

3. Once the onions are clear add the sliced mushrooms and cook stirring until brown.

4. Add in the parsley and cook for 1-2 minutes.

5. Blend your cashew cream ingredients in a blender and pour into your pan stirring for a few minutes.

6. Pour on top of your pasta, add more parsley and serve.

7. Enjoy!