A ‘Berry’ Great Event

April 19th, 2016BlogNo Comments »

Well I don’t know about you but I had an amazing weekend! The cherry on the cake (the gluten and sugar free cake of course) was the Kiss The Berry Wellness Detox Workshop I attended on Sunday afternoon. Held at the trendy Autumn and Co. in Southbank, myself and some gorgeous, likeminded girls got together to learn some fascinating things about health and nutrition, finishing the day off with an amazing stretch and relaxation session by Kiss The Berry Fitness Ambassador Lillian Beth. I was also lucky enough to meet the stunning @the_unrefined girls Nicola and Lindsay, and Katherine from the delicious blog @kbsugarfree.

Kiss The Berry Event with the @the_unrefined girls

We received a very cute goodie bag, sampled some delicious, healthy dishes and were given recipe cards so we could make the dishes ourselves at home. Nutritionist Jackie Morgan from Well Hub Nutrition dished the dirt and gave us a brain dump of her wealth of nutritional knowledge. I, of course, scribbled copious notes which I have since deciphered and thought I would share with you.

I need to soak my beans:

Beans and legumes are nutritional powerhouses. They’re full of protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals, however they can be hard to digest. You may have experienced gas, bloating, cramping or indigestion after eating them. Soaking beans and legumes reduces the amount of oligosaccharides (which are sugars that remain undigested until they get to your colon) and decreases their phytic acid content. Phytic acid binds to vitamins and minerals, making them less available for us to use. My tummy bloats and gets extremely hard and tender after I eat beans so from now on I will be soaking my beans and legumes in warm water overnight. 

Broccoli is my friend:

Broccoli contains phytochemicals called indoles, which play a role in Estrogen metabolism. Estrogen levels in can become high in the body due to obesity, stress and the pill, and too much Estrogen can increase the severity of PMS, cause unexplained weight gain, hot flashes, allergies, osteoporosis and depression. As someone who has been on the pill her entire life until a year ago, this was extremely interesting to me. 

Spices are more than just flavour:

I have always thought of spices as something you add to food to make them taste better, but there are actually some that can be a real boost to the body, and help it rid itself of toxins. Two that particularly interested me were ginger and cayenne pepper. 

Ginger helps the body absorb the nutrients and minerals taken in by eating and is also really great for the digestive system as it can help reduce the symptoms that come from detoxing, including flatulence and bloating. I add ginger to all of my fresh juices – it tastes amazing! 

I am a huge fan of cayenne pepper and have been using it regularly for over 6 months now. I use it in place of pepper for seasoning and add to my veggies, eggs, salmon and chicken. If you follow my snap chat you would have also seen that I love to add it to my daily detox drink. It’s said to speed up the metabolism and aid your digestion. 

There is no end to the benefits of coconut oil:

I’m sure you have all heard a gazzilion times that coconut oil is amazing for hair, skin etc etc. What I didn’t know is that it also increases our body’s absorption of many beneficial substances such as calcium and magnesium. Seriously – is coconut oil the elixir of life!? I use coconut oil for all of my cooking and also add a teaspoon to smoothies. Note: don’t use the spray version coconut oil, organic and unrefined only!

The best news of the day:
It was music to my ears when Jackie said that coffee is ok! Apparently it’s not the coffee itself that can be bad but the milk and sugar you add to it. Opt for almond milk if you can and steer clear of sugar and artificial sweetens.

There is so much to know about food and the amazing benefits of so many delicious ingredients. The day just cemented to me how important everything that we put in our bodies is. We should be eating to nourish the body, not punish it.

With that being said, now you MUST go and make this ridiculously delicious soup packed full of nutritious ingredients. It was my favourite recipe of the day and, with the weather getting a little bit cooler here in Brisbane, soup is the perfect dinner option:

Cashew Detox Soup

Lots of love from me xx

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