This Saturdays healthy start was oven baked portabello mushrooms that I filled with red onions, tomatoes, an egg and some feta cheese on top! Yummy goodness.
I also saw my dietician yesterday for a monthly checkin and she was happy with the progress and we are well on our way to reaching my goal!! It’s been a bit of a journey but ultimately around eighteen kilos need to go. I’ve also recruited a couple of friends to join the journey so once we’ve hit our goals we will all venture to Stockholm for a girlie weekend!
Enjoy some food porn below and stay healthy and fit?
oven baked mushrooms
On one of my recent travels across the pond to NY, I had some extra time to write this post. Amongst the heavy travels it’s a well known thruth that KLM is amongst the best in the world, if not THE BEST in the world at inflight dining. A privilege of my work and heavy traveling is that I have the luxury of traveling business class. I could definitely spend a long post just discussing the joys of flying business class, however as this post is around food I’ll restrain myself from this.
On the food note, those of you who have been flying KLM as of late may have noticed that the resident chef of the past few months is Librijes Jonnie Boer. I’ve had a few airplane meals however this beats most of them!
On the flight over I started off with a type of smoke salmon roll, named “cream of smoked salmon”, followed up with a signature dish of Librije, oven baked cod in spiced juice. After this experience teamed with my previous enjoyment of the Librije inflight food I had in February flying down to Cape Town a real life visit to the famous food destination restaurant Librije is in the cards eminently…just after I squared off Beluga in Maastricht. It’s a pain to have this many lovely restaurants to visit but somebody’s got to do it;-).
If you want to check out Librije restaurant do so here
A few pictures of the dishes and the menu!!
Main course
Starter
Menu
I just had to share below beautiful picture of Zug! It’s like being in a fairyland…I think a swim in the lake is in the cards tonight!
My first health entry will be on the topic of starting a longterm healthy lifestyle as opposed to dieting. After a few years of traveling and enjoying far too many Guide Michelin stars, my weight was unfortunately soaring so I decided to seek advice from a recommended dietician, Esther hence the name of the posting:-).
So effectively my challenge was:
- I didn’t want a “fad” diet, i.e. starve myself to a good weight or go for a carb only diet or similar. With my lifestyle of at least 100-150 travel days a year I need to make the right choices as opposed to controlling my food intake to specific nutrition
- I need to lose 15kg minimum however I don’t have the luxury of taking a few months off work to do so
- I want to stay in strong physical form, although I sometimes live by the device (nothing tastes as good as skinny feels” (thank you Kate Moss), I would always prefer a good six-pack to losing another couple of kilos
So I trotted down to my dietician de jour, appreciating this may be the first day of a challenging journey however also committed to reaching my goal. After a weigh-in and a run through of the principles of the diet, I called my boyfriend and said…Saturday is the starting day. I forgot to mention my boyfriend was the one who recommended me to see her. The principles are very simple, I need to stick to a diet of around 1250 kacl every day with a varied choice of carbohydrates, fats, protein, greens and fruits. This is broken into units, so I’m keeping a log on my iPhone to take note of all the units I consume in a day. It sounds pretty simple, but I’ll be the first to admit, if you’ve been logging perhaps 1800-2000 kacl a day, a cut to 1250 is a steep change of lifestyle. Additionally to this I’ll maintain my training routine with my personal trainer, making sure I work out at least three to four times a week.
The first meeting was three months ago…and it’s been as they say one of those long roads…but I’m almost there!! Since I’ve started I’ve now lost 13 kilos and I’ve decided I have another 7 to go before I’m satisfied. Granted I said 15 kg to begin with but I think 20kg in total would just have been a step to far! I haven’t done any before or after picture yes but I’ll be sure to post it!
Last Friday I was entertaining myself with finally trying out the Outnet app. Designer shopping for less cash…does it get better thank that?!! The Outnet is the little sister of Net-a-porter. The service is excellent, delivery in two days even though they said 4-5 days delivery. The app is super easy to use and you don’t even have to register an account. Lastly of course they have free return, however I think my gorgeous pieces are staying with me! How do you like my new Current/Elliott studded jeans, Iris & Ink cropped cashmere sweater and a super easy to wear black Sandro cardigan! Bring on autumn wear!
Hi all, ”finally” home after a few days on the beach and since I still haven’t reached my target weight and it was a standstill on the scale while in Schiermonnikoog I quickly hit the kitchen and whipped up below deliciousness!
carrot and crab salad with fruits and dressing
I just mixed together:
- Blended carrots with a splash of orange juice
- One tin of crab meat
- Harissa baked stone fruits such as plums or peaches
- Yoghurt and tahini dressing
- Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top
Pure yumminess I have to admit. I came across the recipe when my sister brought the latest edition of Top Hälsa! It’s rare treat that I get my hands on some Swedish magazines so I really make sure to make the most of them when I do!!
Truly, try the recipe. It’s fab, healthy and took me literally fifteen minutes to whip together?
Try saying Schiermonnikoog ten times if you’re not Dutch! Schiermonnikoog is however an absolutely gorgeous little island off the coast of Holland and part of Friesland. To get to ”Schier” you need to take the boat from Lauwersoog on the mainland where you also need to leave your car, as if you’re not a local cars aren’t allowed on Schier.
Not to worry though, if you’re like us, staying at one of the hotel (we were staying at Hotel Bernstorff) they will pick you up at the ferry harbor with a bus and drop you off at the hotel. Bernstorff is the perfect location and a four star hotel. To be fair you’re not staying at a W Hotel and there’s no minibar but the hotel is fully refurbished and the perfect starting point to explore the island.
Once on the island I recommend renting a bike, I got mine from Soepboers and make your way around the islands beaches and restaurant.
I’d say in three or four days you’ve really explored the island and had time to go to my favorite hotspots including:
Marlijn for a long Sunday brunch/lunch. Marlin is located on the dunes and serves out of this world delicious scampi Caesar salad and other treats such as the most gorgeous Dutch shrimp salad below
shrimp salad at Marlijn
view over the activity beach on Schiermonnikoog
Noderstraun is another fabulous lunch restaurant after a day on the kite surfing beach and activity beach. I devoured some local oysters and a salad nicose! ?
gorgeous oysters at Norderstaun
If you prefer old school and local charm try out v/d Werff hotel restaurant. It’s a truly traditional and very classic dining. It’s friendly on the wallet to and after 11 the bar is packed!
When you’re not focusing on eating alone take your bike and cycle around the island. It’ll only take you an hour but you’ll be awestruck by the beauty☀️?
Yesterday was gay pride in Amsterdam as well as Stockholm and the mood was high! Since the parade is on Prisengracht canal the party mood and duration of the parade is a bit longer than in Stockholm.
In the background of the canal though I warmed up with lunch at one of Amsterdams best terraces at the Amstel Hotel the A Bar. They have the most unbeatable view of the Amstel, delicious wines and cocktails and lastly and surprisingly never too packed…but probably depending on the price point which indeed is slightly higher than the average. I enjoyed a Caesar salad…which I forgot to take a pic of. I’m new to this blogging?, and a nice glass of white!
Now I’m off with my better half on a road trip to Schiermonekoegg!
Vacation mood with palm trees of A Bars terrace.
I just have to share the amazing dinner I prepared for myself. Super easy and packed with spices. Cut up some cauliflower, toss them in garam masala spices (or whatever other spices you like) and some chili oil. Put it in the oven for around 30 minutes @ 200 degrees. In the meantime fry up a couple of pork chops, ideally marinated to pack in even more flavor. Put it all together and finish off with a dollop of goat yoghurt (because it’s low in calories and fat and healthy?). Enjoooooy?!
I’ve had a quick stop over in London the past couple of days…or I should clarify I’ve been on the outskirts of London, well o be fair it doesn’t even qualify as London. Either way key conclusion of this excursion is that cultures are truly different and when you ask for a glass of wine at the bar in the UK…it’s truly a full glass?
I did stay at a lovely hotel in Maidenhead, four star by the official rating, but I’d say is give them a strong four! It’s called Fredricks and apart from the bar staff having a bit of a tiff I had a lovely Caesar salad and slept like a baby. I probably think it’s a lovely place if you want a quiet weekend away with your better half. Quiet, friendly and they hav a spa…which I unfortunately didn’t get to explore.
Then of course a quick stop at Fortum and Mason’s seafood bar at Heathrow. One of the worlds best inventions in my opinion is a bar seat at the airport and some seafood. Salmon House really tapped that market?. Needless to say I love seafood…because it’s healthy and yummy, and secondly I love enjoying my dinner at a bar, give you a great buzz and you can watch life pass by at the bar.
Long and the short of it…love a short stop in London, managed to shop a bit at Heathrow…and left with the question…why is it called a dressed crab? Looks pretty naked to me?
