The Healthiest Easter Egg Ever

Hello everyone,

Happy Easter!

I know there are more temptations at this time of year than usual, but I want to urge you all to try to stay away from the chocolate this weekend. Remember, a nibble is enough! There are plenty of ways to celebrate Easter without eating chocolate eggs. This weekend I’m going to treat myself to Easter eggs – real ones that is!

Eggs are a rich source of protein, so they keep you feeling fuller for longer and help to build muscle tissue. They’re full of vitamins – including vitamin A and many B vitamins such as folic acid. Best of all, an egg is already calorie and portion controlled for you, at around 76 calories per egg – so you don’t need to do a thing!

There’s nothing boring about an egg, and with a little imagination they can be a great way to celebrate Easter! I have two perfect recipes for you to choose from this Easter Sunday –whether you’re hosting the whole family, or won’t have much time to cook!

Breakfast: A Full English – The Jane Plan Way

Serves: 2

Calories: 152 per serving

This is a lovely way to start Easter Sunday, and will keep you feeling full all morning (making it easier to resist those chocolate treats!) Plus you’ll really feel like you’re treating yourself. It’s perfect even if you’re hosting the whole family, as you can just add in extras like toast and sausages for everyone else.

Ingredients:

• 2 large Portobello mushrooms
• A little olive oil
• 2 large beef tomatoes
• 2 thin rashers of back bacon with fat removed
• 2 medium free-range eggs
• 2 handfuls of watercress
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Lightly brush the mushrooms with olive oil and add a touch of salt and pepper. Cut the tomatoes in half, season and put skin-side down under a hot grill, together with the mushrooms and bacon rashers.
2. Meanwhile, pour about 2.5cm boiling water into a small frying pan or saucepan. Return to the boil, reduce the heat to medium-high, crack the eggs open then carefully tip them into the pan, keeping them well apart. Cook for 3-5 minutes until done to your liking. (Alternatively, use an egg poacher according to the manufacturer’s instructions.)
3. Put a handful of watercress on each plate, add the egg, mushroom, tomato and bacon rasher on top and season.

Lunch or Dinner: Fluffy Prawn Omelette

Serves 2

Cals – 200 per serving

Been out with family all day and arrive home hungry and exhausted? Don’t be tempted to turn on the toaster for an easy and quick dinner – this will hit the spot and it couldn’t be simpler!

Ingredients:

• 115g cooked, peeled prawns
• 4 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 small courgette, finely chopped
• 4 medium free range eggs, separated
• A few dashes of Tobasco, to taste
• 3 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 25g Cheddar cheese, grated
• Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Mix the prawns, spring onions and courgettes in a bowl and leave to one side. Put the egg yolks in a bowl and beat with the Tabasco, milk and pepper to taste. Leave to one side.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff, then fold in the yolk mixture.
3. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and pour in the egg mixture. Cook for 4-6 minutes until lightly set.
4. Preheat the grill. Spoon the prawn mixture on top of the eggs and sprinkle with cheese. Grill for 2-3 minutes.
5. Cut into wedges and serve

My Top Tip: add in a green salad – it doesn’t take much effort (you can buy them ready-made!), and will contribute towards your five a day.

I hope you all have a lovely Easter weekend,

Jane xx

Managing your weight loss expectations

Hello everyone,

I know how hard it is to lose weight and keep up the motivation to change to a healthier lifestyle. But unfortunately weight loss isn’t something that happens overnight, as lovely as that would be! When thinking about a diet, it ‘s easy to forget how important it is to approach weight loss with realistic expectations and the right attitude. Losing 2 pounds in a week is healthy and sustainable and should be celebrated, not viewed negatively!

Have realistic expectations

At the beginning of any weight loss journey, weight loss does tend to be higher (this is generally because you lose water weight before the body starts to burn fat stores).  So you can get into the mindset that you’ll lose 4 pounds every week – only to later find out that your weight loss has slowed down, not because your diet isn’t working, it’s because you are now losing ‘fat weight’ as opposed to ‘fat and water weigh’. The slower weight loss on the scales can be demoralising, but in fact, it’s a good sign – a sign that you are losing weight in a healthy and sustainable way. If the slower loss on the scales does make you feel down you have to pick yourself back up and not lose heart. Negative thinking can lead to cheat days, which definitely doesn’t help your weight loss!

Remember: there’s more to a healthy diet than weight loss!

After making a change to a healthier lifestyle, whether it’s something small like swapping your bacon sandwich or croissant for porridge at breakfast, or reducing your calorie intake to 1,200 a day, it can be all too easy to focus on what the scales are telling you. But having a healthier diet shouldn’t just be about what you weigh, try to think of the wider benefits! Increased energy levels, clearer skin, improved sleep and mood are just some of these.

So this week I want you to be kinder to yourself. You’ve taken steps to make changes towards a happier, healthier you – and you deserve a pat on the back! Treat yourself and celebrate – no, I’m not talking about Easter eggs! Find a way to celebrate and love yourself, that doesn’t involve food! What about getting a new haircut this weekend,  trying something new, or even a little retail therapy? Go on, you deserve it!

Have a lovely weekend,

Jane xx

 

The Very First Jane Plan Supper Club

Hello everyone,

In case you hadn’t heard, we held the first Jane Plan Supper club a couple of weeks ago at The Décor Café, a hub of independent home experts network who come together to share their skills and experiences in decorating homes. Make sure you check them out on Twitter and Facebook! The Supper Club was hosted by the founder of the Décor Café, Debbie, and it was a great evening of delicious food and interesting conversation.

The Jane Plan Supper Club is where a group of people come together to enjoy delicious and healthy home cooked food. I cooked some of my favourite dishes, including a cooling coconut and avocado soup, ‘no rice’ sushi and Malaysian butternut curry, accompanied by cooling cucumber & coriander salads, aubergine with tahini & lime and a deliciously moorish marinated chicken dish. I’ve included the recipe for my ‘no rice’ sushi below!

I really want to encourage Jane Planners not just to eat healthily, but to come together. Jane Plan isn’t just a diet, it’s a whole way of life – a community of like minded people who love food and want to be healthy. We already have a community of Jane Planners supporting each other and swapping experiences on Facebook and Twitter, but I want you to go one step further! We’re hosting a series of supper clubs in some beautiful venues, and we really hope you can join us and meet people who have changed to a healthier lifestyle like you.

Have a lovely weekend and check out my recipe below!

Jane xx

 
‘No Rice’ Sushi

This is just one of the beautiful dishes I created for the first Jane Plan Supper Club last Tuesday. It’s sushi without the rice, which means that you savethe calories.

Cut up a cucumber into thick slices big enough to hold between your thumb and index finger (about 2-3cm each). Then make a well in the centre of the cucumber, so that it can act as a canape holder.

Then chop smoked salmon into tiny pieces. Add spring onion, small chunks of avocado, red chilli, natural yoghurt and a squeeze of lime juice into a separate dish. Spoon this onto the cucumber slices and top with zested lime and poppy seeds to finish.

Eat For Energy

Hello everyone,

Have you ever felt tired and lethargic during the day, but you’re not quite sure why? I definitely have! The causes of tiredness aren’t always straightforward – lack of sleep, fluctuating blood sugars levels, low iron levels or even thyroid hormone symptoms could all cause this unusual fatigue during the day. But making a few simple c
hanges to your diet could help you regain some energy and banish tiredness. Obviously eating a healthy, balanced diet (making sure your diet contains the main food groups, in the right proportions) is the best way to banish tiredness.

But if you want to boost your energy levels further, here  are my top 5 tips to help:

1. Eat at regular intervals

If you eat at regular intervals, your body knows when your next meal is coming and will be able to sustain energy levels and manage feelings of hunger. Try to eat 3 meals a day and limit snacks between meals – especially high-fat ones.

2. Don’t skip breakfast!

Up to one third of us skip breakfast – even though it gives you the energy you need to face the day. I recommend eating porridge, because it’s high in complex carbs which release energy slowly, keeping you feeling fuller for longer.

3. Sugar steals your stamina

When you’re feeling tired and in need of an energy boost, it’s easy to turn to sugary snacks and drinks. But whilst they do give you a rush of energy, it wears off quickly and can leave you feeling tired again soon after. Cutting down on food with added sugar, such as sweets, cakes, biscuits, fizzy drinks and chocolates, and replacing them with healthier snack options could help you feel less tired; as they’ll give you longer term energy rather than a ‘quick-fix’. Plus your skin, teeth and waistline will thank you!

4. Add in iron-rich foods

1 in 4 women in the UK have low iron stores in the blood, which can cause tiredness, feeling faint and paleness. Eating a range of food and balanced diet should help increase your iron intake. But if you want to increase your intake, good sources are red meats, green vegetables like kale, fortified breakfast cereals, beans and pulses.

5. Stay hydrated

I’m sure you’ve heard it before – but staying hydrated is such an important part of a healthy lifestyle. Dehydration can trigger hunger-like feelings and fatigue, as well as impairing our mental performance and physical coordination. So try to drink on average 6 to 10 small glasses of water a day.

I hope you find these tips useful!
Have a lovely weekend,

Jane xx