Here's to adding some colour!

Sunday 14th March 2021

Everything I am, my mom helped me to be.

Well her gift to me today is sleep, once we'd had got over the dementia devil and toilet issues, she's let me have a good 7 hours I reckon, yay!  Mothers day today and if you think about it, we've switched places haven't we and I'm doing some of the things for her that she did for me when I was a child and we both did them with love.

Yesterday I enjoyed a catch up zoom with some lovely ladies and we decided that this week we were going to do our best to make our plates colourful - in content not the actual plate of course (but watch this space on the latter because I've had an idea, just waiting for a response to my message).

As always does when I'm inspired and motivated my brain got working this morning about how to improve the colours in my diet and straight away I thought about an eat the rainbow eating challenge.

Why bother?  What are the benefits of eating the rainbow, why eat fruit and veggies of different colours?  Simply put, it  will increase your intake of different nutrients to benefit various areas of your health.  What benefits? Loads, google it if you're really interested or just take my word for it cos I've googled and can't be doing with replicating the information. 

Need a reminder of different foods and their colours, let's be honest lockdown has made our brains die a little!  Here's a few; 

Red - Apples, strawberries, tomatoes, watermelon, red peppers, cherries, pomegranites, red grapefruit, cranberries, raspberries, rhubarb, beetroot, red cabbage, radish, red lentils, red lettuce, grapes. 

Orange & Yellow - Oranges, Grapefruit, Lemons, Mangoes, Papayas, Carrots, Sweet potatoes, squashes, Cantaloupe, Corn, Orange and yellow peppers, Golden beets, Pineapple, Peaches, Persimmons, Pumpkin, Apricots.

Green - Broccoli, Leafy Greens, Kale, Romaine lettuce, Collard greens, Brussels sprouts, Green grapes, Green apples, Asparagus, Spinach, Swiss chard, Arugula, Green beans, Peas, Zucchini, Kiwi fruit, Avocado, Edamame, Celery, Lime, Cucumber, Pears

Blue and Purple - Blueberries, Blackberries, Red (purple) grapes, Red (purple) cabbage, Eggplant/Aubergine, Plums, Prunes, Figs

White and Browns - Cauliflower, Garlic, Onions, Mushrooms, Potatoes, Parsnips, lentils

Now we've got the list of course there are other foods like proteins so they count too, chickens white, beefs red lol - cos you needed that explaining!  We could say porks pink!  You get the gist, for the veggies tofu white.  Anyway it's all about variety and balance. 

What to eat it from, well personally I love a bowl and I like the idea of eating from a ... wait for it.....

A Happy BOwl - get it?  Happy Owl eating from a Happy BOwl - only a letter different - what can I say I'm easily pleased.  

Nothing better than eating a happy bowl of food from an actual happy owl. 

How to Make a Happy bBOwl 

Step 1: Begin with a base, layer at least one item from each of the following list; 

Base: Anything green [Examples: Lettuces, Leafy greens, spinach] 

Veggies: Chopped, grated, cooked or raw, anything goes here. 

Protein: you can use whatever protein you want, don't forget the plant based type. 

Complex Carbs: such as corn, sweet potatoes, and peas. 

Sweet: Add some fresh fruit to your bowl for a sweet component. 

Crunch: Texture is as important as taste. Be sure to include a crunchy option to keep things interesting. 

Flourish: This is your finishing touch – your sauce, your sprinkling of fresh herbs, etc. 

Step 2: Enjoy!

Okay so I've reinvented the Buddha bowl here but hey - steal with pride I say!  Here's a couple of visuals to get you thinking; 

You can even do it at breakfast too. 

Here's to a week of Happy bOwls full of delicious food.  I'm even going to be painting my own Happy BOwl, once I get a response from Posty Pansy, it'll give me something fun to do, you can do the painting at home now with lockdown!  She has a set of two bowls on her facebook page which is an option.

Anyway, it's almost 8am and mom and Alfie are still asleep - yay!  I think I may have just worked out part of the reason I have painful shoulders, the table I'm typing on is too high for the chair I'm sitting in so my shoulders are in an awkward position.  Will look at that today. 

Here's to nipping to the shop to get some rainbow food as I know there's not loads in the fridge, having said that, I know these look beige but I hate a couple last night and they're delicious, the colours inside! 

Have a wonderful day, much love to all the moms out there, hugs to those that have lost their moms and a big cuddle to every one today - we need them right now. 

Mwah, luv ya 

Love me xx