Healthy Cookbook Saviours

I am a big believer in eating healthy 80% of the time and indulging for the other 20%. This generally translates to eating healthy, high protein and vegetable packed meals during the week and allowing myself to a treat or two over the weekend - hello cheeseburger, fries and a sneaky glass of wine. But once Sunday evening rolls around and I've almost devoured a whole block of Cadbury's Black Forest chocolate, I am well and truly ready for a detox. For the most part I like to think I follow a gluten and dairy free diet, not strictly of course, but I do my best to avoid foods that contain these and opt for alternatives like spelt spaghetti or zucchini noodles instead of pasta and A2 milk instead of regular HiLo milk. I don't do this for any reason other than my digestive system simply doesn't do well with these foods and they heighten my allergies. Although most foods I can find a decent substitute there are some things that are irreplaceable - yes I'm talking about my favourite food in the whole wide world, cheese! My Mum is the chief cook in our household but I do occasionally help make dinner and 99% of the time we're eating something from the pages of these incredible cookbooks.

These are from Mum's collection, she has a slight addiction to purchasing cookbooks but we'll let her be, I'm sure there are worse addictions to have in the world these days. I wouldn't say our family is on a strict paleo diet but we do eat a lot of paleo based meals or dishes low in sugar, gluten and dairy. And so the majority of these cookbooks are based on the above but I promise you they have some delicious recipes packed with all the good stuff. I don't always eat three full meals everyday, I mean I always have dinner, but I often opt for a larger breakfast and smaller lunch or vice versa depending on my appetite that day. Some of my favourite recipes for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner are listed below:

BREAKFAST
Chia Pudding with Granola and Mixed Berries and Baked Pears with Coconut Porridge (The Happy Cookbook by Lola Berry), Banana, Blueberry and Oat Smoothie (Davina's Sugar-Free In A Hurry by Davina McCall), Sweet Potato Fritters Five Ways (Happy Go Paleo by Irena Macri).

LUNCH
Chicken, Carrot and Chickpea Salad (Davina's Sugar-Free In A Hurry by Davina McCall), Roasted Carrot Hummus (Family Food by Pete Evans), Zucchini and Mint Soup (The Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel), Thick & Creamy Peanut Butter Acai Bowl and Cauliflower & Brazil Nut Soup (Living The Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel).

SNACKS
Chai-Spiced Carob Balls (The Happy Cookbook by Lola Berry), Carrot and Seed Crackers and Frozen Chocolate Banana Popsicles (Davina's Sugar-Free In A Hurry by Davina McCall), Gluten-Free Banana Bread (The Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel).

DINNER
Epic Heirloom Tomato Salad with Basil and Goat's Feta (The Happy Cookbook by Lola Berry), Chicken Schnitzel with Slaw and Butter Chicken (Family Food by Pete Evans), Cauliflower and Pomegranate Salad (The Healthy Life by Jessica Sepel).