Why reducing salt is good for me

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A pinch here and a grind there, salt on our food is a habit many of us can’t break, but maybe we need to think about putting some restrictions in place.

While we need some salt in our diet to keep our hearts, bones, muscles and brains working well, too much isn’t a good thing. Going OTT with the salt shaker can raise your blood pressure which increases your risk of developing heart disease, so you need to keep an eye on things.

We know that people sometimes think that going without salt is tasteless, but this isn’t the case, so we have looked at what you can do to keep the salt levels down and your health levels high.

Check it out
When you are shopping, read the nutritional information on labels and where you can, go with low-salt options and ingredients. You will be amazed where salt, like sugar hides. Ketchup, bread, cereals, crackers and even pizzas are packed with the white stuff, so do your research and start to make sensible swaps.

Change habits
Like most things, making small changes and taking things one step at a time is the key to salt reduction success. Add less salt to your food when you are cooking, and don’t even put the salt on the table when you are eating. Cutting down this way means your taste buds will adapt and over time you will simply get used to a new normal when it comes to salt and food.

Look at spices
You don’t have to flavour your food with salt, there are healthier options out there. Black pepper, herbs, garlic, spices like turmeric as well as garlic and lemon juice all pack a flavour punch but without the health hazards of salt. With this said, do read those labels again when it comes to things like soy sauce and seasoning packets as some of these are very high in salt and worth avoiding.

Go meat free
A lot of processed meat comes with a lot of salt, so just look at how much you are eating and where changes can be made here. Those gammon steaks, bacon butties and sausage casseroles might taste great, but part of that comes from all the salt. Even if it is once or twice a week, go meat free and look at some of the veggie and vegan options that are out there, and you might find you actually prefer them.

Salt swaps
We all know that snacks like crisps and some nuts come with a heavy salt serving, so swapping for chopped fruit and vegetables with dips, and make salty foods such as bacon, cheese, takeaways and ready meals a treat rather than an everyday occurrence.

Just think about it, with the experts saying that we should eat no more than six grams of salt each day – that’s about one teaspoon – if we want to be healthy, maybe it’s time we went back to basics and looked at just how much we are eating and where changes can be made for a brighter future.

Team Pure Beauty

How to pack a healthy lunchbox

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apple, bacon, balanced diet, balanced midday meal, Beef and broccoli, bows, brie, brown, carbs, carrot and coriander, carrots, cheese sandwich, cherry tomatoes, chicken noodle, chicken pasta, chocolate, chocolate bar, cold, cucumber, delicious, easy, egg, flapjack, flask, flatbreads, fridge, ham, healthy, High-fibre brown, hot, hungry, lentil, lunch, lunch staple, lunchbox, meal, Mexican bean, microwave, midday, Mixed beans, napkins, nutrient-dense sandwiches, nuts, olive rolls, packet of crisps and an apple, pasta, peppers, pickles, pitta, Protein pots, quick nutritious options, rice, rice salads, rumbling tummy, salad, salmon, Salmon pasta, sardines, satisfied, sauces, shapes, smoothie, soda bread, soup, spinach, sweet, sweetcorn, tortillas, tummy, tuna and tomatoes and teriyaki chicken, vegetable, veggie sausage pasta, veggies, white, wholemeal bagels

A cheese sandwich, packet of crisps and an apple might be a throwback from the ‘80s but for many of us it’s whatever we can make quickly, or buy, that gets put into our lunchbox.

While we know we need to eat a balanced midday meal, the reality can look very different, often grabbing something on the go that will only leave us hungry and reaching for a chocolate bar come 4pm.

We have had a look at some easy, quick nutritious options that will keep hunger at bay and they taste pretty good too!

Pasta pack ups
We know people worry about carbs, but pasta can be a brilliant lunch staple that can be eaten hot or cold. Whether you go for white or brown, lentil or rice in bows or shapes is up to you, but there is so much choice out there you can have something different each day of the week. Salmon pasta, chicken pasta and veggie sausage pasta can be made the night before and eaten straight from the fridge at midday or popped in the microwave and you’ll have a hot meal in minutes. You can add veggies or salad as well as sauces and pickles to create a lunch that is healthy and nourishing and won’t leave you with a rumbling tummy come 2pm.

Rice salads
High-fibre brown rice is a really good way to ensure you are left feeling satisfied all afternoon. Just as with pasta, there are a lot of ingredients that can be added from sardines, egg, ham and cheese and if you throw in some cherry tomatoes, cucumber, peppers and nuts, you will be the envy of the office.

Protein pots
We all know that we need protein for a balanced diet, but we don’t always get enough to help us get through the day without flagging. Beef and broccoli, tuna and tomatoes and teriyaki chicken are all tasty, easy lunchtime eats. Mixed beans, spinach, sweetcorn and sweet potatoes can all be added to pack out the protein and prevent you from running on empty during the afternoon.

Have a wrap
If bread isn’t for you but you want some energy giving carbs, flatbreads and tortillas are a good alternative. Peanut butter and carrots, salmon and veggies as well as humous and peppers are good ideas and you can load them up with salad to help get to your five a day. Warning; take napkins as these can get messy but they are so worth it.

Soup on the go
If you are busy but want something warm and filling, soup in a flask is a good option. Yes, you can open a can and bung it in the microwave but Mexican bean, vegetable, carrot and coriander and chicken noodle are super easy to make and if you cook in batches and freeze you will have something ready and waiting for you to take to work. Add in an apple and a smoothie, and you will be keeping bugs and hunger away as you boost your immune system with vitamins!

Super sarnies
OK, we can’t go without mentioning sandwiches, but there is more to this lunchtime basic than white sliced as soda bread, pitta, olive rolls and wholemeal bagels are all there for the taking. Bacon, brie, turkey, cottage cheese and avocado are the ingredients of lunchtime dreams and make delicious, nutrient-dense sandwiches that will make you want midday to come around fast.

Something sweet
You don’t have to stick to savoury at lunchtime. A fruit salad, yogurt with sliced banana, homemade flapjack with dried apricots and even a square or two of dark chocolate will give you something sweet to enjoy without overloading on nasties.

Why not make a batch of blueberry muffins on a Sunday, put them in an airtight box, or freeze half, and you will have something sweet a tasty to add to your lunchbox all week long.

Team Pure Beauty

Laundry hacks you’ll love

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We are always looking for ways to do chores better, faster, smarter and cheaper and when it comes to laundry, every little trick helps.

We have some savvy shortcuts to share that we hope will keep nasty smells away and save you time, money and effort.

Colour coded baskets
Yes, we know this sounds a bit OTT but it works. Buy three laundry baskets and colour-code them as whites, colours and darks. On wash-day, simply empty one basket into the machine and press go leaving you free of stinky sorting.

Stain free
Go easy on chemical stain removers, and trying rubbing a little chalk into stains before you put your clothes in the wash and everything from lipstick, grass and bacon will be gone.

Bright whites
To get your whites bright once again, slice several lemons, put them into a pot of water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat off, add your clothes and let them soak for an hour before washing as usual. To get glowing results, let them dry outside in the sunlight.

Make it quick
If your laundry is pretty much stain free, go for a quick wash setting which will clean and refresh but won’t take forever or add to your utility bills.

Inside out jeans
Washing and drying is tough on denim and washing can see colour and shape being lost. To keep your jeans looking and feeling new, turn them inside out before they go into the machine and leave them like this as they dry.

Towel fresh
We all love soft, fluffy towels but keeping them in pristine condition can be tricky. Forget
fabric conditioner and instead add a cup of white vinegar to your wash load and as well as bringing towels back to life and keeping them soft and absorbent, the vinegar will also help keep musty smells away.

Go for a spin
If you want to aid the drying time of your washing, go for an extra spin during the washing cycle. Adding just ten minutes to a wash will actually cut down drying time later.

Keep your machine clean
From time to time it is worth cleaning your washing machine if you want to keep it in good working order. To do this, simply add half a cup of bicarbonate of soda to the machine drawer with half a cup of white vinegar and put it on a quick, low temperature wash.

Tumble faster
If you want to speed up drying time, and bring down costs, add a couple of clean tennis balls, dry towel or scrunched up balls of foil in with your clothes and the job will be done in flash.

Bed bundles
Once your bedding has been laundered, rather than simply stuffing back in the cupboard, why not make life easy and pack it into ready to use bundles? Put a clean folded fitted sheet, duvet cover and pillowcase in a pile, then carefully place this into one of the pillowcases and next time you change your bed, everything will be there ready and waiting for you. Add a little lavender and it will smell good too.

Got a tip that works for you? Get in touch, we would love to know what it is.

Team Pure Beauty

Five Super Soups for Autumn

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autumn, bacon, chicken, cold, comfort, decleor, dermalogica, ham, minerals, nutrition, pea, soup, tomato, vitamin A, Vitamin C, wild rice, winter

One of the best things about the changing seasons is the different produce which becomes available and now that the weather is starting to cool down, our thoughts are turning to comfort foods. Soups are excellent in so many ways; not only are they warming and comforting, they’re easy to make, use fresh ingredients and can help us to get several of our five-a-day in one meals. We’ve got five suggestions for seasonal super soups which contain huge amounts of nutrition for our skin and hair whilst making you feel like you’re getting a hug in your bowl!

Butternut Squash with Chilli and Crème Fraiche

Butternut squash is the perfect example of a tasty seasonal offering and epitomises autumn for us here at Pure Beauty. As well as offering an enormous amount of Vitamin A (over 200% of your RDA in just 100g!), the hint of chilli will give you a warming boost and the crème fraiche will give you a creamy touch and a calcium boost without adding millions of unwanted calories.

Tomato Soup with a Grilled Cheese Sandwich

This is probably one of the simplest yet most popular suggestions for soup and is packed with essential vitamins and minerals. The grilled cheese may not be the lowest-calorie option but it won’t hurt to indulge every now and again and the tomatoes contain lots of vitamin C, which is important for cell growth and skin healing.

Pea and Ham Soup

This retro-tastic soup may not be such a popular option these days but you can bring it up to modern day by using split peas and a whole load of bacon! The beauty of soup is that you can add pretty much anything you want to make it to your taste and the saltiness of the extra bacon combined with the freshness of the peas will combine to make a flavour explosion.

Sweet Potato Soup

Sweet potato is another amazing ingredient to use as the base of a soup as it contains a whole load of vitamins and minerals, and gives a sweetness which can be built upon to create an amazing flavour. Experiment with flavours and textures such as avocado and kidney beans for a truly different and tasty creation.

Chicken And Wild Rice Soup

No list of soups is complete without a chicken soup on it, but we’ve gone for something a little different to the usual plain old cream of chicken soup. Chicken and Wild Rice soup has a delicious flavour, a creaminess thanks to the starchy rice and is also super filling and packed with protein. It’s really simple to make and contains at least three of your five-a-day in just one bowl!

Pancakes – How Do You Eat yours?

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bacon, batter, butter, cheese, chocolate, creme fresh, dollop, eggs, flip, ham, healthy, jam, lemon, Lent, lover, minute, pancake, prawns, savoury, Shrove Tuesday, strawberry, sugar, sweet

We don’t know how it has come around so quickly, but it is time get flipping, as Tuesday February 9 is Pancake Day.

Officially known as Shrove Tuesday, this is one day when you can be as creative as you like and concoct food combinations you might otherwise steer clear of.

Ever wondered why we celebrate Pancake Day and what it’s all about?

Well, let us explain.

Pancake Day isn’t just about stuffing ourselves silly, it is in the calendar because it marks the day before Lent, a period of fasting and prayer, before Easter.

The tradition of eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday started out as a way to use up ingredients including butter, milk and eggs that would otherwise go bad during Lent. Pancakes, particularly thin and buttery crepes, were a great way to clear the cupboards in one easy and indulgent dish with no waste to throw away.

The tradition has carried on and one many people around the world look forward to and enjoy.

We have a fail safe batter recipe to share with you so you will have perfect pancakes on the big day and can carry on this tradition.

Ingredients
140g plain flour
200ml whole milk
2 eggs
25g butter (unsalted) melted, plus extra for greasing

Method
Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a medium-size bowl. Create a well and then mix in the milk and eggs and slowly start to whisk. Add the milk and water, whisking constantly and add the flour as you do so.

Whisk the batter until it is smooth, then set aside to rest for half and hour before whisking the melted butter into the batter.

Heat the pan over a medium heat and lightly grease with melted butter. Using a ladle, pour around two tablespoons of batter into the pan and swirl around the bottom so it is evenly coated.

You are aiming for a delicate, crepe like pancake so cook for just under a minute one each side and try not to drop the pancake on the floor as you flip it.

Slide the pancake out of the pan and get working on the next one as your testers try out toppings.

Talking of toppings, there are so many we don’t know where to start.

You can go simple with lemon and sugar, just sugar, strawberry jam or chocolate spread.

If you are more a savoury pancake lover how about ham and cheese, crispy bacon and maple syrup, prawns or cheese and broccoli.

If you are still on that New Year health kick, add berries, bananas, mangoes with a squeeze of lemon and a dollop of crème fresh.

Enjoy and let us know how you get on.

Oh, and don’t forget to give something up for Lent!