Put yourself up for the challenge! #junkfreejune is upon us, designed to raise awareness of healthy eating and to raise funds for the cancer society.
Global research shows that about a third of the most common cancers can be prevented through a nutritious diet, maintaining a healthy weight and regular physical activity. So swap out bad stuff for the good stuff and do yourself a favour.
Junk food is avoidable when you think about it. Much of the time is down to poor planning: lack of time to prepare a meal, lack of ingredients or a lack of inspiration. It doesn’t take much to enjoy the carefree feeling that a take-away may otherwise offer you, by making it yourself. By default it is healthier, cheaper and you know the cleanliness of your kitchen! Ohh, that counts for plenty.
Here is our easy top 6 to get you started:
- Burger: swap your greasy take-away version for a home-made mushroom burger, layered with avocado, tomato, lettuce, spring onion, cucumber and cheese. It has so many vegetables your #5aday vegetable count will be looking wonderful.
- Toasted Sandwich: swap for a vegetable stack with single wraps layered with virtually anything you love: black beans in chipotle, mashed cauliflower, spaghetti squash, leek & mushroom, creamed corn & cheese — the list goes on. Baked it has all the crunch you may yearn for and taste delicious (great for using up left-overs too).
- Ice-cream: swap for fruit sorbet which has all the flavour but no dairy and oh-so light (or a ‘nice-cream’ which is a frozen banana thrown in the blender with a few favourite ingredients).
- Potato chips: swap for kale or broccoli leaf chips which, despite being green and foreign looking, are very delicious and take less than 10 minutes in the oven. They are GREAT as a side dish. Go on, surprise yourself.
- Thick shake: swap for a smoothie any day! A banana, a dollop of yoghurt, milk and a little bit of whatever you fancy usually works. Try a green smoothie for the adventurous, or 1/4 cup of oats for those in need of a breakfast booster.
- High sugar drinks: swap for fruity ice-cubes and allow them to subtly flavour the water as they melt (and something to munch on afterwards)!
And more to keep you going:
- Chocolate: swap for raw balls with all the deliciousness of dark cocoa and maple syrup for sweetness, but packed with nuts and fruit.
- Fish & Chips: swap with lightly floured grilled fish & oven baked wedges (yes, home made!)
- Pizza: swap with home-made version using wraps as a base and piling on delicious fillings (sundried tomatoes, artichoke, olive, roasted kumara, capsicum, feta, salmon etc)
- Pie: make a pastry-less pie packed with your favourite filling, served in serve sized ramekins with a sprinkling of breadcrumb and grilled cheese to top it off.
- Fizzy Drink: swap for squeezed fruit juice topped with soda water.
To find out more about Junk Free June and how to get involved to help support a worthy cause, check out their website www.junkfreejune.co.nz
