Better still, pumpkin is a superfood for skin and hair health. It’s a great source of vitamin C, which ease wrinkles and boosts collagen production, while the carotenoids (which gives pumpkin its beautiful colour) can help to reverse UV damage and improve skin texture.

Ingredients

150g buckwheat flour
60g cornstarch
1tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground ginger
1tsp ground cinnamon
125g diced pumpkin, boiled and pureed
60ml pure maple syrup
2tsp honey
1tbs coconut oil
1 egg
1tsp vanilla extract
120ml almond milk
20g cacao nibs

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6
2. Grease a 9inch loaf tray with coconut oil.
3. In a large bowl combine the buckwheat flour, corn starch, salt, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and cinnamon. Set aside.
4. Prepare your pumpkin puree by blending your boiled pumpkin in a food processor or blender. If you are using a blender you may need to add a small amount of water to the blender to make the puree.
5. In a separate bowl combine the pureed pumpkin, honey, syrup, coconut oil, egg and vanilla extract, mix until smooth and then gently whisk in the almond milk.
6. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix only until combined. Do not over mix. Gently fold in the cacao nibs.
7. Pour mixture into the loaf tray and bake for around 50-60mins or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
8. Remove from oven, place on a rack to cool.

Looking for more recipes? We are always busy developing new recipes so Join my Health Tribe to make sure you’re the first to hear all about them!

I wish you good health!

Consult your doctor or health care practitioner regarding any health problems, before embarking on any new health regimes, using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications or food programmes.

Dairy free Gluten-Free no added sugar

The post Choc Chip Spiced Pumpkin Bread appeared first on London Nutritionist - Angelique Panagos, DipION FdSc mBANT CNHC.

I’m thrilled to return to ‘ASK Angelique’, the series that sees your wellness questions answered! We’ve already explored the rules on sugar in baby foods; now we’ll turn our attention to one popular table staple – tomato ketchup.

Here’s our question:

“Could you please give me a recipe for sugar-free ketchup or even a reduced sugar? I have made several home versions now from various websites and sources – my children have not liked these, and I tend to agree with them. I am desperate to move away from the Heinz types of sauces.” – Ashley

I’m delighted you asked, Ashley! Despite the popularity of ketchup and our #sugarfreeevolution, it seems even the organic options contain some form of added sugar. In my research I’ve found raw cane sugar, wheat syrup, glucose syrup, rice syrup…so many different sweetening options.

I’ll save my sweetener by sweetener analysis for another day, yet for now, I’ll say this: every form of sweetener primes our taste buds to demand more sugar. The more that’s in the bottle, the more we’re primed!

And it’s not just the sugar that causes me concern. All too often we find a high salt content and, at the cheapest end of the market, added processed ingredients. Why eat partially reconstituted tomato when you can eat the real thing?

Put simply, I’m with you Ashley! I don’t want to find these ingredients in my ketchup and I’d far rather make my own whenever possible.

You’ll find my favourite sugar-free tomato ketchup here.

I truly hope this recipe pleases your family. I’d love to hear what you think and if there’s anything I can do to give it a tweak for you.

Thanks again for your question, Ashley. Everyone, please feel welcome to add your thoughts and product discoveries in the comments. You can also submit your own ASK Angelique questions below, or send these by Email, Twitter, Instagram or Facebook using the hashtag #AskAngelique.

Stay up to date with all the conversation by joining my Health Tribe newsletter list.

Nourishing well wishes,

Angelique

Consult your doctor or health care practitioner for any health problems, and before embarking on any new health regimes, using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications or food programmes.

Dairy free Gluten-Free no added sugar Sugar Free

The post ASK Angelique: sugar-free tomato ketchup appeared first on London Nutritionist - Angelique Panagos, DipION FdSc mBANT CNHC.

Ingredients

1kg ripe tomatoes, blanched and skinned
2 carrots, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp sea salt
7 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp all spice
120g oven dried/sunblush tomatoes, halved

Method

1. If you are making your own oven-dried tomatoes, preheat your oven to 180 degrees. If you’re using store-bought sunblush tomatoes, skip straight to step 3.
2. On a flat baking tray, evenly spread 120g of tomato halves, sprinkle with salt and a little pepper, and place in the oven to dry for around 20 minutes.
3. While the tomatoes are in the oven, gently pan-fry the garlic in olive oil for a couple of minutes.
4. Add your bay leaf and apple cider vinegar to the saucepan and stir for a minute.
5. Add the remaining ingredients, including the sunblush/oven dried tomatoes, and turn up the heat.
6. Once your saucepan starts to bubble, turn down the heat down and allow to simmer for around an hour.
7. Check for seasoning and adjust accordingly.
8. Remove from the heat, remove bay leaf and allow to cool.
9. Place the mixture into a blender and process until smooth.Store in the fridge until needed.

Looking for more sugar-free recipes? We are always busy developing new recipes so Join my Health Tribe to make sure you’re the first to hear all about them!

I wish you good health!

Consult your doctor or health care practitioner regarding any health problems, before embarking on any new health regimes, using any supplements or before making any changes in prescribed medications or food programmes.

Dairy free Gluten-Free no added sugar Sugar Free

The post Sugar-Free Tomato Ketchup appeared first on London Nutritionist - Angelique Panagos, DipION FdSc mBANT CNHC.