Sheryl Macdonald returns for her regular feature on health and diet – and offers another couple of tasty suggestions.
We are officially in Spring which means Summer is just around the corner – and it can feel like forever away but it will be here before we know it.
So how do you want to feel? It can feel like the weight will never come off or that you will never see the difference but it will. I love hearing member’s happy moments, moments when they realise they are seeing the benefits of losing weight.
Last year a member was going on a plane and had to ask for an extender belt. You feel like all eyes are on you ‘the fat person’, the person who needs an extra-large belt.
This year after losing over two and half stone this member was ecstatic to find that not only did the belt go round without the extension but the tray was all so able to go down and lay flat as well.
These are the moments we all emphasise with at class, we all have our own embarrassing seat belt moments. Since losing weight we’ve had many more ‘happy’ moments and these are so important on your weight loss journey! They make you see that the difference is not just at the scales but in your daily life.
It’s not just the weight you lose it’s what you gain as well.
This month’s recipes:
Chicken and Mango Kebabs
- 8 wooden or metal skewers; wooden ones soaked in cold water for 30 minutes.
- 4 Raw Chicken Breast
- 2 Mango, cut into large chunks
- 3 tbsp. Freshly squeezed orange juice
- Handful of Rocket Lettuce
- 2 Peppers, Any Type, deseeded and sliced
- 1 Carrots, raw, peeled and grated
- 1 tbsp. Coriander, fresh, chopped
- 250g Cabbage
Preheat the grill to high. Cut the chicken into large pieces and thread onto skewers along with the mango.
Brush the orange juice over the kebabs. Put under the grill for 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally until the chicken is cooked through.
Meanwhile, make your coleslaw. Toss together the pepper, cabbage and carrot with the Greek yoghurt. Sprinkle with the coriander
Serve kebabs on a bed of rocket with the coleslaw on the side.
Sticky Gingerbread
- 115g Low Fat Spread, plus extra for greasing
- 225g Plain White Flour
- 1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
- 1 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 200g Molasses, dark
- 2 Egg, whole, lightly beaten
- 75g Stem Ginger in Syrup, drained and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp. Maple Syrup
Preheat the oven to 180°C, fan 160°C, gas mark 4. Lightly grease a 20cm square tin and line with baking paper.
Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon into a bowl.
Melt the spread in a pan over a low heat, allow to cool slightly then stir in the molasses and eggs.
Mix the molasses mixture into the dry ingredients, and then stir through most of the stem ginger (reserve 1 tbsp. for decoration and 1 tsp. syrup).
Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
In a pan, warm the reserved syrup with 1 tsp water. Pierce holes over the top of the warm cake and then brush over the syrup. Decorate with the reserved stem ginger then leave to cool completely before turning out of the tin and cutting into 16 squares.
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