I’d never been a huge fan of pork but that changed as soon as I tried pulled pork. It was at the Martinborough fair where my husband ordered a smoky slow cooked bbq pulled pork burger and it tasted amazing!  Tender, succulent and full of flavour,  I probably ate more than just a bite when I asked to try it!

After that I went on a mission to create delicious pulled pork at home. The good news is melt in your mouth, full of flavour bbq pulled pork is actually simple to make, especially using the slow cooker Crock-Pot.  You can use cheaper, tougher cuts of meat and the slow cooking process makes them deliciously melt in your mouth tender.

The Crock-Pot I used is the Lift & Serve CHP450 model which is perfect for help yourself style meals like pulled pork.  The liftable lid makes it easy to serve your own without having to take the lid on and off all the time.   You can check out the new models of Crock-Pot here.

This makes a delicious easy workday meal or something tasty for the weekend too.

 

 

Here’s the recipe:

BBQ Pulled Pork

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BBQ Pulled Pork

Coursedinner

Ingredients

• 1.5kgpork shoulder or leg
• 1tablespoonsmoked paprika
• 1teaspoonmustard powder
• 1teaspoonthyme
• 2teaspoonsoregano
• 1teaspoongarlic powder + 1 extra teaspoon
• ½teaspooncumin
• Salt and pepper
• ½cupapple cider vinegar
• ½-1cupBBQ saucedepends how saucy you like it

Instructions

1. Cut the visible fat layer off the pork.  Rub over the herbs and spices and season with salt and pepper.  Place the pork into the Crock-Pot.  Pour around the apple cider vinegar and put the lid on the Crock-Pot.  Turn to low and leave to cook for 8 hours.
2. Pour out the liquid and reserve ½ cup.  Place the liquid in a small bowl and scoop any fat from the top (sometimes I add some ice cubes to cool it down and coagulate any fat which can make it taste a bit greasy) then mix through the BBQ sauce.
3. Using two forks, pull apart the pork in the Crock-Pot. Season with salt, pepper and sprinkle over the extra spoon of garlic powder.  Mix through the BBQ sauce mixture.

 

WIN WIN WIN -competition closed

I’m giving away the Crock-Pot Lift & Serve CHP450 model so you can create delicious slow cooked meals at home. To be in the draw, simply check out the Crock-Pot website and tell me what recipe you think you’d try out if you won.

Competition closes 14th July 2017 is open to NZ residents only.

This post was made possible thanks to Crock-Pot

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Succulent, flavourful smoky paprika garlic chicken has been a hit in my house this week.  It’s especially a huge hit with me because it’s been so easy to prepare thanks to my Crock-Pot slowcooker. Simply pop it on in the morning then enjoy a delicious meal at the end of the day with little fuss or preparation.

This smoky paprika garlic chicken is coated in a simple but tasty herb and spice blend, then served with a yummy yoghurt feta sauce on the side.

With the Crock-Pot Sear & Slow CHP700, you can use the insert over a stovetop so you can sear your meat without creating extra dishes. I seared my chicken thighs first which helps lock in the flavour. This Crock-Pot model also has a cooking timer so you can set this and it will then revert to the ‘keep warm’ function once the cooking time is over.  It’s super handy for those days when you might be running a little late or need to keep it warm for others who are coming home later.

And the good news is you can WIN a CrockPot for yourself too (details to follow…)

Smoky paprika garlic chicken

½ teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Zest from one small lemon
Juice from one small lemon
Salt and pepper
4 skinless chicken thighs, bone in
½ tablespoon olive oil

 

For the yoghurt feta sauce:

¼ cup Greek yoghurt
Finger sized piece of feta cheese
¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
2 teaspoons of lemon juice

 

In a small bowl, add the herbs, spices, salt, pepper and lemon zest.  Mix to combine and rub on the chicken thighs.

Place the Crock-Pot insert on an element over a medium heat.  Add the olive oil.  Once the oil is hot, place the chicken thighs in, ‘good’ side down to sear for 2-3 minutes.  Remove from the element and place the insert in the Crock-Pot.  Flip the chicken thighs so the fleshy side is facing upward.  Squeeze the lemon juice around the chicken.

Turn the Crock-Pot to low and cook for 7 hours.

To make the sauce, crumble the feta and mash with a fork so it is finely broken up. Add the feta and the remaining ingredients into a small bowl and mix well. Store in fridge until dinner is ready to serve
Serve the chicken with a dollop of the sauce along with roast vegetables and some greens.

WIN WIN WIN

I’ve got a Crock-Pot to give away to one lucky reader.  To be in the draw simply comment below with your favourite Crock-Pot recipe. You can check out the Crock-Pot website here for inspiration.

Competition closes 20th June  and winner will be published on this post and notified by email.

CONGRATULATIONS TO VANESSA E!

This post was sponsored by Crock-Pot

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We grew up with plenty of Crockpot meals, and in fact, mum’s Crockpot only just gave up the ghost after more than 20 years of cooking us regular meals. I love the ease and convenience of Crockpot / slow cooker cooking and there’s so much you can do with it – including vegetarian nachos!

Nachos might be an easy dinner but with the Crockpot they are even easier! Created with plenty of vegetables and served with a delicious salsa, they’re a healthier twist on the original.  Black beans and kidney beans provide antioxidants, fibre and plant based protein and are very filling and economical to buy.  The most time consuming part of this recipe is crushing the garlic cloves and chopping the onion!  You can literally make these in 5 minutes before work. Then after work, prepare the salsa and you’re ready for a delicious crowd pleasing dinner.

Even though the ingredients list is fairly long, it’s very simple to prepare.  If you wanted you could even use some premade Mexican seasoning which you can find in the herb and spice area at the supermarket.  Cocoa may seem like a strange addition but it is really delicious in nacho beans and adds a nice richness to it.

Here’s the recipe:

Vegetarian Nachos

Ingredients (serves 4)

2 tins of tomato
1 tin black beans
1 tin kidney beans
4 portabella flat mushrooms, chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons cocoa
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
1 tablespoon sweet chilli sauce

For the salsa:
2 chopped tomatoes,
6 chopped jalapenos
½ avocado, chopped
1 small red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon coriander, chopped

To serve:
Tortilla chips (I used Mission Mexican brand)
Sour Cream or Greek yoghurt
Lime wedges

Method:

Add one of the tin of tomatoes to the Crockpot.  Drain the second tin of tomatoes and add this too. Draining the second tin stops the bean mix from being too wet.

Drain and rinse the beans and add this to the Crockpot along with the mushrooms and onion.  Sprinkle over the herbs, spices, cocoa, and chilli flakes.  Stir in the sweet chilli sauce and mix to combine the ingredients. Sweet Chilli Sauce isn’t very Mexican but it adds great flavour.

Turn the Crockpot to low and leave for 6-8 hours.  Cooking the bean mixture in the Crockpot really allows those delicious Mexican flavours to develop, but because everything is cooked you can eat it before this if you want.

Serve with the salsa, tortilla chips, sour cream, lime wedges and garnish with coriander.

This post was sponsored by Crockpot

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When I had to eliminate dairy for Elise’s food allergy, probably the one thing I missed the most was yoghurt.  As an alternative, I learnt to make my own coconut yoghurt.  I became a bit of a coconut yoghurt connoisseur and tried a few different flavours as well as learning how to make coconut yoghurt for myself. If you’re wondering how to make coconut yoghurt, the good news is it’s pretty easy once you know how.  A coconut yoghurt recipe is super simple and you only need two ingredients coconut milk and probiotics.

Nutritionally, coconut yoghurt is quite different to standard dairy yoghurt.  It’s much higher in saturated fat and energy,  lower in protein and doesn’t contain the calcium, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 found in dairy yoghurt.  It still contains beneficial probiotics and it makes a nice alternative if you can’t have dairy.

One of my favourite dairy free breakfasts was banana, blueberries, almonds, walnuts and coconut yoghurt.  It is also delicious with this home made granola.

Anyway,  it isn’t cheap hence why I figured out how to make coconut yoghurt.  I did a bit of experimentation and  it’s actually really easy.  I experimented with a few different coconut milks.  Firstly I used Ayam’s coconut cream.  This was super thick and not really yoghurt like because of that.  Then I used a 400ml can of TCC premium coconut milk.  This was nice but a wee bit runny for my liking.  My happy medium was mixing a small can of Tcc Premium coconut milk with a can of Ayam coconut cream.  I also found just using Ayam coconut milk worked well – the tin is quite small so I used almost 2 cans to fill my 400ml jar.

Here’s the recipe for coconut yoghurt (if you can even call it a recipe!)

Method 1: Probiotic Capsule

I used two probiotic capsules for my first batch, then tried another batch with one and they both worked, the batch with one capsule just took a little longer.  These capsules contained a fairly high amount of bacteria (75 billion) so if you were using a lower count, then you’d probably need two capsules. The probiotic I used was this one.

Simply add around 400ml coconut milk to a jar that is the same size as your tin of coconut milk.  I used a 400ml preserving jar.

Gently open the probiotic capsule at the join and sprinkle over the coconut milk.  Shake.

Place lid on the jar and leave at room temperature for approximately 24-48 hours.

Method 2: Coconut Yoghurt

You can use coconut yoghurt as a starter for another batch of coconut yoghurt.  Here’s how:

Simply add two tablespoons of coconut yoghurt to a jar.
Add 1 tin of coconut milk.
Shake to combine.

Place lid on the jar and leave at room temperature for approximately 24-48 hours.

Troubleshooting and tips:

• Taste your yoghurt to test if it’s ready.
• If it doesn’t work with the probiotic capsules it’s likely your probiotics are not active – aka the bacteria are all dead!!
• Make fruit flavoured yoghurt by crushing freeze dried plum slices and mixing this through the yoghurt.  It adds a nice intense flavour.
• The coconut yoghurt will be runny when it’s on the bench but it will thicken up when it’s put in the fridge.
• If you want it thicker, you can buy coconut yoghurt thickener and a coconut yoghurt kit at HealthPost here (affiliate link)
• Sometimes your coconut yoghurt can seperate.  This often happens if the coconut milk you buy has lots of added water.  Sometimes it will seperate if it gets too warm.   Mine did seperate once and I just drained out a bit of the liquid, then mixed it.  It still tasted yummy!

If all else fails, my favourite brand of coconut yoghurt was Raglan Coconut Yoghurt.  I decided to try them all to do a review:

Here’s a wee review of the flavours:

Plain:  Thick and creamy, the plain coconut yoghurt is very versatile. It doesn’t have an overpowering coconut flavour and it has a nice tang.  It contains a small amount of added honey, but the overall sugar content is low (2g per 100g). I used this as a replacement for sour cream as well.

Blackcurrant and vanilla:  I LOVE this flavour.  Tastes great.  That’s all I have to say 🙂

Mango:  This was nice, but the mango flavour isn’t that prominent.  If you’re put off by the turmeric, it gives it colour, but you can’t taste it.

Banana Chai (not pictured):  Personally, I didn’t really enjoy this flavour.  The chai was a bit overpowering for me, and I felt like it had a slightly gritty texture too. If you’re a lover of chai then you may enjoy this.

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At this time of the year I love to make salads for meals.  When it’s hot and you don’t feel like spending hours in the kitchen (which is all the time for me haha!), a quick throw together summer salad makes a delicious meal or accompaniment for the BBQ.  In my opinion, key to a good salad is both a mixture of textures, flavours and colours. Think  crunch from cabbage or nuts and seeds, sweetness from fruit, colour from brightly coloured vegetables and the saltiness of feta or halloumi.  Mixing together a few of these different tastes and textures makes for a delicious meal.

Here’s some of my favourite combinations that have been getting great reviews.

 

Rice and quinoa salad with halloumi and summer roast vegetables

This has been one of my favourite dishes this Summer (except I’ve had to cut the halloumi out for reasons I’ll explain later – boooo!).  I’ve had lots of rave reviews including this comment on my blog. Click here for the recipe.

This was delicious. Made my own modifications to the oven roasted vegetables and the dressing made with honey rather than pomegranate. But even my anti- vegetarian dishes husband ate this as a main meal!

Citrus Chicken Salad

Fresh, fruity and delicious is how I’d describe this summer salad. I like to add some cooked kumara to make a filling, nourishing lunch or dinner.  Check out the recipe here.

Brown Rice Salad with Broccoli, Cranberry and Almond

Getting your five plus a day be a totally delicious experience and this brown rice salad with broccoli, cranberry and almonds certainly fits into that category.  Cranberries pair really well with the broccoli and almond and add a nice touch of sweetness to the salad.

You can find the recipe here.

Roasted pumpkin, spinach & chickpea salad with halloumi

When I make roast vegetables, I always try to do some extras for leftovers.  This is a salad I make when pumpkin is in season.  The salad is a good source of fibre and it provides protein to help keep you feeling satisfied.  Click here for the recipe.

 

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Warm and sunny summer weather is perfect for salads and this rice and quinoa salad with halloumi and summer roast vegetables is a new favourite I have created.  This recipe mixes brown rice, quinoa, roasted vegetables and halloumi with a delicious zesty dressing and is a yummy dish alone or as a side dish for dinner.  I love the colour and flavour of capsicums and they’re especially delicious when roasted, as are zucchini which get that delicious, melt in your mouth texture.  These, along with the mushrooms, brown rice and quinoa plus a little halloumi gives you a nutrient packed salad that I’m sure you’ll love.

Some people avoid brown rice as they think it’s hard to cook.  But it’s actually quite easy – it just uses a little more water and takes a little more time.  My favourite method is the boil method where you just boil in plenty of water as per the packet instructions and then drain.  It’s perfect every time.  The SunRice pack of rice and quinoa is an easy way to get a mix of nutritious grains plus if you’re in a hurry you can buy the steamed bags and cups which are ready in literally minutes.  The rice and quinoa blend provides a source of protein and fibre – perfect for helping keep you feeling full. It is also a source of magnesium and niacin.

For the dressing, I used pomegranate molasses.  It has a unique sweet flavour and there are lots of different things you can use it for once you have it.  But if you don’t want to buy it you could use honey instead.  This mixed with lime, soy sauce, avocado oil and balsamic vinegar creates a zesty, slightly sweet dressing that complements the salad well.

Here’s the recipe:

Rice and quinoa salad with halloumi and summer roast vegetables

Ingredients:

1 cup SunRice Rice & Quinoa, cooked per instructions on packet.
3 zucchini
1 red capsicum
1 yellow capsicum
10 brown button mushrooms, stems removed
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
1 small handful of basil, chopped
2 tablespoons oil (olive or avocado)
100g halloumi

Dressing:

1 teaspoon pomegranate molasses
4 tablespoons of avocado oil
Juice from 1 lime
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons soy sauce

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius.  Wash the vegetables.  Core the capsicums and cut into chunks then cut the zucchini into rounds.  Place on a baking tray and drizzle with half the oil (1 tablespoon).  Place in oven to cook for 15 minutes.  After the 15 minutes is up, drizzle the remaining oil over the mushrooms. Take out the capsicums and zucchinis, flip them over and add the mushrooms.  Cook for a further 10 minutes.

While the vegetables are roasting, cook the SunRice Rice & Quinoa as per packet instructions. To save time you could also use the pre-steamed bags instead.  Place the cooked rice and quinoa in a bowl and mix through the pumpkin seeds, chopped basil. Add the dressing ingredients to a small jar, shake and drizzle some over the rice and quinoa mix to taste.  Next, mix through the roasted vegetables.

Heat a non stick fry pan over a medium heat.  Cut the halloumi into bite sized pieces and pan fry each side until lightly browned.  Mix the halloumi through the salad and serve.  Delicious!

Rice and quinoa salad with halloumi and summer roast vegetables can be enjoyed alone or as a side dish.

This post was sponsored by SunRice.

 

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Cranberry, cashew and chocolate muesli bars are a delicious, crunchy bar that keep well and are easy to make.  Breastfeeding is hungry work and I like to have a few options for on the go snacks.  Often I’ll have fruit, nuts, yoghurt or bliss balls but I wanted to give something new a go so I flicked through my recipe books for some inspiration and came up with these. I based the recipe on Chelsea Winter’s recipe from Homemade Happiness (which is a great book by the way -you can buy it here).   I used cranberries, pumpkin seeds, and cashew nuts to give them a festive look and used dark chocolate to coat the base because lets face it, things are even better when they have chocolate!!

These keep pretty well and you can double the recipe to make two trays if you want to keep a good supply up.  I like to store them in the freezer as they are nice and crispy that way.

Here’s how to make them:

Cranberry, Cashew and Chocolate Muesli Bars

1 cup of rolled oats
1 cup of desiccated coconut
1/2 cup cashew nuts, chopped finely
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1 cup dates
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup brown sugar (or you can use honey or even leave out all together)
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
1 cup rice bubbles or puffed quinoa
100g dark chocolate, finely chopped

 

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celcius on fan bake.  Line a large oven tray with baking paper and add the oats, nuts and seeds.  Toast in the oven for 5 minutes, then mix then up, and add coconut for final five minutes.  Remove and leave to cool slightly.

Chop up the dates very finely, as well as the cranberries.  If you have a food processor, use this to chop them finely.

Add the dates, cranberries, coconut oil, sugar, water and vanilla essence to a pot over a medium heat.  Simmer gently for about ten minutes stirring regularly until the fruit is really mushy.   Leave to cool until it’s warm.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the oat/nut mixture, the rice bubbles and the dried fruit mixture using a wooden spoon.

In a lined slice dish, sprinkle over the finely chopped chocolate.  Add the slice mixture and press down really firmly with either a spoon or clean fingers.  Press it down as hard as you can so it stays together.

Place in the fridge for at least one hour.  Remove and slice into bars.  Store the Cranberry, Cashew and Chocolate Muesli Bars an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

 

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Can you believe it’s December already? With December comes summer, Christmas, long nights and warm days plus plenty of time for entertaining. Something delicious and nutritious for nibbles and main dishes over the festive season is salmon.  It’s high in protein, packed with Omega 3 fatty acids, it tastes great and there are so many ways you can use it. To help you kick off the festive season I’m sharing two new recipes using Regal Salmon – crispy turmeric garlic pancakes with manuka smoked salmon and roast kumara, and beetroot salad with lemon herb salmon and raspberry vinaigrette.

The pancakes are an impressive looking appetiser that are something a little bit different yet delicious and the roast vegetable salad is simple yet still that little bit special thanks to the salmon.

Regal Salmon have a wide range of products that are really easy to use and are packed with flavour.  I’ve used Regal manuka smoked salmon slices and Regal Lemon & Herb Wood Roasted Salmon to create no fuss recipes that are both quick and easy to make.

Here are the recipes!

Crispy turmeric pancakes with manuka smoked salmon slices

These gluten free crispy pancakes have a neat honeycomb look thanks to the use of soda water. Topped with garlic and chives sour cream, sprouts and Regal Manuka Smoked Salmon, they’re a delicious change to the usual salmon pancakes. The manuka smoked salmon is from the Regal Artisan range and it has an amazing flavour that really make these outstanding.  These are best eaten on the day of making, or the pancakes go a little soggy.

Makes 15 small pancakes – simply double the recipe for more

For the pancakes:

½ cup rice flour
¼ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
1 heaped dessertspoon sour cream
½ cup + 1 tablespoon cold soda water
Olive oil for the pan

For toppings:

2 tablespoons sour cream
3 teaspoons chopped chives
Sprinkle of garlic powder

Radish sprouts

Avocado

Regal Manuka Smoked Sliced Salmon.

Method:

In a medium sized bowl, beat together all the pancake ingredients with a whisk so that the sour cream is well broken up and the mixture is smooth.  It should be a fairly runny batter.

Heat a non-stick fry pan over a medium heat.  Add 2-3 tablespoons of oil. When the oil is hot, add tablespoons of the batter and fry until the edges start to go brown and it looks crispy. Then flip and cook the other side.  Place on paper towels to blot up any excess oil.

To assemble:

Mix the sour cream, chives and garlic powder.  Place about half a teaspoon on each pancake.  Top with a chunk of avocado, sprouts and a slice of Regal Manuka Smoked Sliced Salmon.

Roast Kumara and Beetroot Salad with Lemon Herb Salmon and Raspberry Vinaigrette

For an easy but impressive dinner or lunch this roast kumara and beetroot salad with Regal King Salmon Lemon & Herb Wood Roasted Salmon is quick to make yet looks and tastes impressive.  The salmon is already flavoured, so it’s just a matter of roasting vegetables, making a dressing and assembling it on the plate.

Makes four serves

2 beetroot
3 large orange kumara
3 large golden kumara
50g feta cheese
Fresh dill
1 bag of baby spinach
1 orange sliced into thin segments.
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 x packets of Regal King Salmon Lemon & Herb Wood Roasted Salmon Portion

For the dressing

2 tablespoons raspberry balsamic vinegar
Juice from one large orange
Juice from one lemon
1 teaspoon honey
2 tablespoons oil

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.  Peel the beetroot and kumara then slice into evenly sized thin slices.  Grease oven trays with olive oil, then lay out the vegetables and drizzle with olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.   Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked through and the kumara is lightly golden.

On each dinner plate, add a couple of handfuls of baby spinach.  Layer over the roast vegetables and orange slices.  Sprinkle over the feta.  Cut the salmon into chunks and spread evenly across the four plates.

To make the dressing, add all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  Add as desired just before eating.

WIN WIN WIN!

Thanks to Regal Salmon, I’ve got two salmon hampers to giveaway valued at $50 each!   If you’d like to win one of these, simply comment below with your favourite way to eat salmon.

Competition will be drawn December 19th and winner notified via email as well as announced on the blog.

Congratulations to Kate McCormick and Julie Marsh! You are the lucky winners. Check your emails 🙂

This post was made possible thanks to Regal Salmon

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Chocolate nut bliss balls are an easy to make, nourishing sweet treat that have been my go to lately as a quick snack if I feel like something sweet.. This version uses three different types of nuts to provide a range of nutrients – including selenium from Brazil nuts and omega 3 fats from the walnuts.

I created this recipe before I had baby using mainly 1/3 cup measurements so I could remember it off the top of my head!!  The result is a chunky style bliss ball that’s chocolatey, crunchy and delicious – and easy to eat with one hand which you need to do when you’re breastfeeding!  I’ve made a couple of batches now and I keep them in the freezer. The nuts are really crunchy that way and they taste kind of like truffles.  My husband eats them too which is always how I know that something must really be nice as he’s not always a fan of my healthier sweet treats!

I used medjool dates for this which are softer and larger than dried dates, but also more expensive.  You can also use dried dates, just soak them in boiling water for about 10 minutes before hand and make sure you drain them really well.  I have done it both ways and they both taste delicious.

Chocolate Nut Bliss Balls

Ingredients:

1/3 cup Brazil nuts

1/3 cup walnuts

1/3 cup almonds

1/3 cup coconut

1/3 cup muesli

2 tablespoons cocoa

7 medjool dates or 1/2 cup tightly packed dates, soaked in boiling water and drained very well (use a few more if the mixture doesn’t come together well)

Optional – 30g dark chocolate to melt and drizzle on top, or extra coconut to roll them in

Method

Place all the ingredients (except chocolate and extra coconut) in a high powered blender (I used my Vitamix) or a food processor and blend until the mixture comes together.  If you want a finer bliss ball, keep blending until the nuts are fine – I left mine quite chunky as I like the texture.

Roll into small balls. You can leave them as is, or drizzle over melted chocolate, or roll in coconut.

Store in an air tight container in the fridge or freezer.

If you’re a fan of bliss balls I’ve also got another  yummy recipe using dried apricots here. Enjoy!

 

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Water is always my first drink of choice to stay hydrated, but there are the times when you just feel like something a little different. There are also those times when you are out socialising and you want to take something nice to drink that isn’t alcohol.  So many drinks are packed with sugar, but something that is refreshing, tasty and much lower in sugar than fruit juice is coconut water. It contains about half the sugar of juice, and also provides some potassium.   It makes the perfect base for mocktails, and adds a lovely flavour to nourishing green smoothies.

Recently I was sent some CoAqua coconut water to try out and it is really delicious.   Their coconut water is from Vietnam, taken from young coconuts at 6 months and you can actually taste the difference between this and other brands (I didn’t believe it would taste different, but it does!).  It tastes really fresh and has an amazing, pure coconut taste that I’ve been enjoying. I like that it also comes in recyclable bottles and nice slimline cans which are the perfect measure for making drinks and smoothies. You can find this brand at New World Supermarkets and Farro Fresh.

I’ve been experimenting with some new drinks and today I’m sharing with you a couple of my favourite simple coconut water based drinks – firstly the best ever tropical green smoothie and some ‘mocktail’ type drinks which are great for summer entertaining or a refreshing drink on a warm evening.
I’m a bit particular when it comes to green smoothies – if I’m going to be drinking my greens, I also want them to be tasting good too.  I’ve had some horrible green smoothie combinations, but this smoothie is a goodie!  It’s a yummy way to boost your fruit and vegetable intake for the day.

Tropical Green Smoothie

Since being on maternity leave, I’ve been enjoying this regularly as an afternoon drink as it’s refreshing, tasty and hydrating plus it’s an easy way to get an extra serve of fruit and vegetables in my diet.

The pineapple and coconut water are all that are needed to give this a yummy flavour, the vegetables added don’t have a strong flavour and the avocado adds a delicious creaminess.

Ingredients:

Approximately 1 cup fresh pineapple chunks
1 handful of ice cubes
¼ cucumber
4-5 cos lettuce leaves
2 florets of broccoli
1 can CoAqua coconut water
¼ small avocado
½  tablespoon chia seeds
Juice from ½ a lemon
Optional:  1 sprig of mint

To make: simply place all the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth.
Makes 1 large glass

 

Coconut water mocktails

The CoAqua drinks taste great by themselves, but they’re also delicious blended with some fresh fruit to create fruity ‘mocktails’.  My favourite is the cranberry and mango – frozen cranberries taste amazing and are also a source of Vitamin C and high in antioxidants.  These are the perfect Friday night drink to relax with and are super simple to make too.  Here’s the recipes.

 

• Lemon, lime and passionfruit
  Juice from ½ lemon
  Juice from 1 lime
  Passionfruit pulp (You can buy this frozen and I scoop about 3 teaspoons in)
  1 can of CoAqua coconut water
  1 handful of ice cubes

 

• Cranberry and mango
  ½ cup frozen cranberries
  ½ cup frozen mango pieces
  1 can of CoAqua coconut water

 

• Coconut and pineapple
  1/3 cup chopped pineapple pieces
  2-3 teaspoons coconut milk
  1 handful of ice cubes
  1 can of CoAqua coconut water

 

To create the drinks, simply blend together ingredients in a blender until smooth. Garnish with fresh fruit and herbs.

These all make one serve, but you can double, triple the recipe etc as required if you have guests.

Enjoy.

WIN! WIN! WIN!

I’m giving away a case of the new slimline CoAqua cans.  That’s 24 cans so you can try CoAqua and whip up some of these recipes for yourself.

To be into win, comment below with what recipe you think you’d try out.

Winner will be drawn November 25th and notified via email. Their name will also be published on this post.  Open to NZ entries only.

This post was made possible thanks to CoAqua.

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