THE BEST HEALTHY "FAKE"AWAY RECIPES

Hello everyone! I know i am not on my own when i say that they love a good takeaway from time to time, but don't love the calories that they contain. Ever since switching up my lifestyle and the way i eat, i barely eat takeaway or eat out in general and since doing so i have discovered a ton of different recipes on Pinterest, that are great healthy alternatives to our favourite takeaway food choices. With that in mind for today's post i thought i would share with you a selection of my favourites, as they are not only a lot better for you but they also work out a lot less expensive in the long run than getting a takeaway would...

1. pizza

Pizza is one of my favourite foods ever and it just something i can't go without having on a regular basis, whether that be eating out or at home. Pizza can be super calorific (especially a naughty Domino's or Pizza Hut) but this doesn't have to be the case, so much so i have been having homemade pizzas at home for years now and i enjoy them so much more.

vegan caprese pizza - click for recipe

three ingredient sweet potato pizza base - click for recipe

easy healthy tortilla pizza - click for recipe

2. burger

Second close favourite in cheat meal favourites for me is a good burger and fries, especially if it contains cheese. It is quick and easy to head to McDonald's and get a heavy in calorie burger that won't fill you up but it won't be as satisfying as making your own at home for more than half the calories and will keep you full up for longer.

mushroom burgers with chickpeas - click for recipe

sweet potato quinoa burger - click for recipe

halloumi burger with sticky chilli sauce - click for recipe

3. indian and thai food/curry

I love nothing more than a good Indian takeaway from time to time and for me the spicier the better, but i do also love the classic tikka masala with a yummy naan bread to dip. Just like pretty much all restaurant/takeaway foods even these run high in calorie, which can be avoided by making your own at home.

chicken tikka masala - click for recipe

thai butternut squash red curry - click for recipe

thai noodle salad - click for recipe

sweet potato, chickpea and spinach curry - click for recipe

4. mexican

A restaurant favourite of mine (Italian food aside) is definitely Mexican food, anything from fajitas to enchiladas and burritos which all happen to include tortilla wraps. Tortilla wraps if eaten more than one at a time can bump your calories up a fair bit, as most contain anything from 90-150 calories each. That being said limiting yourself to one or two over four, is a lot better.

shrimp sheet fajitas - click for recipe

mexican street style corn stuffed peppers - click for recipe

one pan mexican rice - click for recipe

cilantro lime shrimp tacos - click for recipe

xo.

THE BAKES OF CHRISTMAS PAST

Hello everyone! In previous years by now i would already got at least two or three Christmas themed baking posts ready to go, oh how times have changed. Since changing the way i eat/lifestyle at the start of the year (which i have touched on in previous posts), i have obviously cut down the amount of unhealthier options by a lot. That being said i do plan on squeezing an all new baking post before the big day later on in the month, until then i am trying to hold off. Keeping in mind that not every one likes to resist the urge to indulge at this time of year, i thought i would share with you a round up of some of my personal favourite festive bakes...

carrot and gingerbread cupcakes | click to bake |

First up is a twist on a cake that Nigella Lawson did last year, but rather than one large cake i made the recipe into cupcake form. Personally for me carrot cake is hands down one of my favourite, along side gingerbread so combine the two together and you are in for a treat. Cupcakes are such an easy thing to make, as you basically have a classic base then all you can do to switch things up is add in any flavouring and decorate how you choose.

mincemeat, pecan and cinnamon crumble bars | click to bake |

Just looking back and remembering how yummy these crumble bars were, just makes me want to either lick the screen or cave and make them right now. I am such a mince pie fan when it comes to Christmas desserts and this is the perfect twist on a classic, which is just a little more modern with the added flavours and textures from the pecans and cinnamon. 

chocolate holly cupcakes | click to bake |

Next up is definitely one for any chocolate lovers out there and even more so if you love both cupcake and anything chocolatey. Yet again this is another cupcake recipe that you can use and decorate as you choose to do, but i personally love how with the added holly shaped icing on top makes the cupcakes look more like Christmas puddings. Another great decoration topping idea is to add some different coloured M&M's placed around and on-top of some black pen icing, for the appearance of fairy lights.

Want another Christmas themed read? Catch up on my previous post for more:

winter scents: the christmas candle edit

xo.

WHAT I ATE IN A DAY

Hello everyone! Something i didn't even realise until i was prompted the other day, is how we are in September and i am still yet to do a "what i ate in a day" post this year. This is a type of post that i love to personally watch/read about myself, because lets face it who doesn't love food? and who doesn't love snooping at what other people are eating? With that in mind for today's post i thought i would share with you everything that i ate in a specific day, from breakfast, lunch and dinner.

A lot of the time now my breakfast is usually an on-the-go type of breakfast, as i would sooner have something a little later rather than straight away when i wake up, doing this fills me up until lunch rather than wanting something in-between. So for breakfast i had one of my favourite types of yogurt by SKYR and this was a blueberry and elderberry flavour, i love these yogurts as they are quite thick in consistency. I also had one of these Graze cocoa vanilla protein bites, which was my first time having this particular one and they are so yummy much like most of the Graze products. One of my favourite parts of breakfast is a smoothie or juice and i usually opt for a green juice, but they didn't have any this particular day so i had to go with a different one.

For lunch this particular day i ate out at Loch Fyne, which is a seafood restaurant. Seeing as i went there i just had to get my favourite thing to get whenever i go and i believe i have shared that in a previous post at some point. So as you can probably tell i opted for one of my favourite dishes to have and that is king prawn spaghetti, with roasted chilli oil, lemon and garlic. You could also choose a side to go with dish, so i decided to be naughty and double up on the carbs with some french fries ha (which i did share). I also had a desert which i completely failed on and forgot to take a picture for it, but i had créme brulée.

Seeing as i ate out at lunch time and had both a main and a desert, i didn't want too too much to eat in the evening time. So i decided to just have something that i have been loving having for lunch a lot recently and that is a veggie burger, these particular ones have a bunch of different veggies in from red pepper, peas, carrot to sweet potato, onion, beans and some spices.

I hope you enjoyed my first "what i ate" post in a long time and i hope to do more soon...

xo.

CHEESECAKE BROWNIES

85% of the time if brownies are on the menu at a restaurant and i'm having dessert i will have them. I love me some brownies. Here is a quick and easy cheesecake brownie recipe to cheer you up if you are either having a rubbish week, fed up with this winter weather or you just love you some chocolate goodness.

For the brownie mixture you will need:

225g/8oz dark chocolate (minimum 70%)

150g/5½oz unsalted butter

3 free-range eggs

225g/8oz caster sugar

100ml/3½fl oz strong espresso

100g/3½oz plain flour

For the cheesecake mixture you will need:

150g/5½oz full fat cream cheese

50g/1¾oz caster sugar

1 free-range egg

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas-Mark3. Grease and line a 8in/20cm square cake tin. For the brownies, melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water (Making sure the base of the bowl isn't touching the water.) Remove the bowl from the pan and set aside to cool slightly. Whisk the eggs, caster sugar and coffee in a bowl until well combined. Sift in the flour and chocolate mixture and mix until well combined.

For the cheesecake, beat the cream cheese, caster sugar and egg until smooth.

Spoon the brownie mixture into the cake tin then spoon the cheesecake mixture on top and use a knife to cut lines into the mixture to create a marble effect.

Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes, or until just set. Remove the tin from the oven, set aside to cool completely, then cut into squares.

When all the above is completed all that is left to do is sit back, relax and enjoy.

Hope you are all having a happy Wednesday...

Katie♥