SUNDAY BRUNCH: Banana & Egg Pancakes

I'm on a bit of a health kick at the moment, and trying to make better choices about what on earth I put in my body. The thing is though, I have a sweet tooth and love food that feels naughty to eat. So, that's why this morning I decided to try banana and egg pancakes. Boy-oh-boy. These are goooood! And with pancake day next week, this is a great low cal version.

So here is my own take on the most scrumptious healthy pancakes.

Ingredients: 
1x relatively ripe banana - the general rule is the riper the banana the sweeter the pancakes
2x free range eggs
FryLight
Sprinkle of Cinnamon powder (optional)
Honey & fruit for serving (optional)

Method: 
- Peel and mash the banana until it's pretty smooth and creamy in texture
- Whisk 2 eggs in a bowl
- Add the banana mixture to the bowl and mix
- Add a few sprinkles of cinnamon if you want (I'd highly recommend you do - it was delicious!)
- Heat up a frying pan
- When the pan is hot enough, spray a few sprays of FryLight or any other low calorie spray oil
- Add a ladle full of the pancake batter to the pan and wait for air bubble to start forming
- Flip, and make sure that both sides are lovely and golden
- Add to your plate, and cover with a tea-towel to retain the heat whilst you cook the others

This mixture made about 5 pancakes for me, and they were the perfect amount to satisfy my sweet tooth, whilst still coming in at less than 300 calories.

Let me know if you make these, and tag me in any photo's on instagram @regardingjemma

Being healthier

With summer very much here in the U.K. I've been trying to make that little bit of effort to be more conscious of what I'm putting in my body. I'm currently obsessed with salad (as mentioned before I'm in love with Mary Berry's salad dressing - soooooo good!). I never really stop myself from having things that I want, but like everyone says - it's all about moderation. Along with eating a little better, I've started doing more walking - especially around the golf course whilst my mum plays. I'm obsessed with walking barefooted on the neatly kept grass, it feels so lovely. It's also really peaceful and just gives me time to think and take in how beautiful the areas I live. Another good thing to do, that adds up, is reduce the amount of sugary drinks - I've even stopped having sugar in my tea and coffee's!

What's your secret to being more healthy - especially in the summer?

Pukka Peppermint and Licourice Tea

 I am such a herbal tea lover - I usually go for the Green Tea with a fruit flavour (apple and pear is usually my favourite). However, when I was browsing the shelves of my local supermarket I found these, and to say I instantly fell in love is the biggest understatement ever. I'd been wanting to try a liquorice tea for a very long time and it just seemed like fate.

Pukka was a brand that I'd never heard of, and so that made me want to try them even more. They were also on offer and so were around £1.99 and so I really couldn't say no. The box comes with 20, individually sealed, tea bags in a very beautiful box. It's pretty self-explanatory, but I boil the kettle and fill my favourite mug with the hot water, then add in the tea bag and let it steep for around 5-10 minutes. At this point you can take the teabag out - I like to keep it in though so that the flavour continues to pack a punch. I've also been known to let this tea go cold and enjoy it on a hot summers day with a lot of ice - refreshing, easy and different drink to cool down with!

Unlike the herbal teas I had tried before, this tea had a lot of flavour and natural sweetness that just made it so refreshing and wonderful to drink. The flavour itself has a lot of natural sweetness from the liquorice and yet the peppermint cuts through leaving a fresh flavour on the palette.

Alongside its heavenly taste, there are many health benefits to this tea. The liquorice in the tea makes it a very mild laxative (always helpful to keep you regular *cringes*), helps as a mild natural anti-depressant, and can be used to help with low blood pressure. The peppermint element makes it a natural relaxant (perfect before bed), soothes the stomach, and can improve the immune system. If all these benefits don't sway you then I don't know what will.

Lastly, Pukka tea is made in accordance to fairtrading standards and using such good herbal ingredients. their website has their full range of teas and they have all the health benefits of the teas. I can't wait to try more of these teas - they're incredible teas and an incredible company!

Pukka Tea's website