*Ad/Werbung. This post is not sponsored by any of the mentioned brands. I simply thought you would want to know which brands I love and trust.

You guys, I have a confession to make. Up until last week, I probably didn’t have a smoothie for three months! Or maybe even more. I realized that I need it to be warm and sunny outside in order to really „feel“ the smoothie vibe. I guess this has to do with me getting into the whole smoothie-world back when I lived in North Carolina. It’s really always sunny in North Carolina, and so I literally made myself a smoothie every day for lunch during the last year of my bachelor’s degree. Given that temperatures and humidity can reach extreme highs in this place of the world, drinking a smoothie packed with nutrients was so much for appealing to my sweat-drenched body than eating a huge lunch most days. Of course, I would not only have a smoothie for lunch, but the smoothie was the part I was most excited about.

But I realized over the years, that I am such a summer-time smoothie person and that I forget about my blender all from October through March. Totally stupid, I know, but I am just always cold (due to my blood pressure meds) that I really prefer warm meals and hot drinks in the winter. I am not saying that this is a smart idea, it’s just how I feel.

So now that we’re basically experiencing summer in May this year here in Northern Germany, I am totally back at my smoothie game. So back, you guys. So back. For the past week, I have had this craving for blueberries, and so I have been making this blueberry zucchini smoothie every single day. Like every day. And you will, too, once you have tried it!

This smoothie is packed with so much goodness, I don’t even know where to begin. Let’s have a quick reign check:

• Blueberries: major source of antioxidants, which protect your cells from damage, aka: protect from UV radiation, protect your skin from getting early wrinkles and other signs of age. Amazing! Also, the dark pigments in blueberries, called anthoyanes, have shown to protect the body from cancer!
• Zucchini: Mainly in this for the volume, but zucchini are also packed with minerals such as magnesium and calcium.
• Cucumber: mostly water infused with delicious enzymes.
• Banana: high in potassium, which is important for a healthy heart function.
• Avocado: high in heart-healthy fats, avocado is one of the best healthy fat sources available. It is also a real skin-food!

Are you ready for more goodness?

• Turmeric: The root is one of the best anti-inflammatory foods out there. If you can, use the fresh root.
• Spinach: one of the best sources of Vitamin K, a bone-strengthening vitamin! But spinach also contains a good amount of iron, loads of vitamin A (think eye health!) and folate, which is especially important for pregnant women and their unborn children.
• Lemon: probably the most well-known antioxidant out there. The vitamin C in the lemon also helps make the iron of the spinach better available for absorption.
• Lineseed oil: first of all, every vegetable-containing smoothie needs some sort of fat in order for the fat-soluble vitamins (ADEK) to be absorbed. And Lineseed oil is one of the best sources of omega-3-fatty acids, which fight inflammation in the body and strengthen the cell membranes and the skin barrier for one. Omega-3 fatty acids are also vital for a healthy brain function.

Enjoy this blueberry power smoothie!

The post The ultimate blueberry power smoothie appeared first on Heavenlynn Healthy.

I’m strolling though London with my sisters today, but I nevertheless prepared this blueberry bircher muesli parfait with coconut yoghurt so you can add another recipe to your To-Do list or save the bazillions-th recipe to Pinterest. I realized, that there’s actually not that many breakfast recipes on the blog yet, so I’ll try to come up with more creative ways to start the day in the near future. 

So I have developed a slight obsession for breakfast in a jar last week. I don’t know why it has never occurred to me before, but if I eat my breakfast out of a jar, and layer it in a pretty way, I feel like having breakfast in a nice healthy hipster café. Which is exactly what we are doing here in London right at this moment (at least I hope so, we’ve got SO many healthy eating places on our list, my sisters are probably already annoyed by my healthy eating obsession). I’ll be sure to make a healthy eating in London guide, when I’m back home.

Anyways, now to this blueberry bircher muesli parfait with coconut yoghurt. What good does it do to your body? First of all, it’ll keep you satisfied in the morning as it’s full of fiber from the oats and nuts. The later also provide healthy protein and mono-unsaturated fats, which keep your heart healthy. Blueberries are basically antioxidiant goddesses (I’m just assuming here that they are ladies), because they get the glow on your skin and help fight free radicals that can cause oxidative stress in our body. Coconut yoghurt is amazing for your gut as it contains probiotics, which aid digestion. Be careful when you buy your coconut yoghurt though, you want it to be free of nasty preservatives and added sugars.

If you can’t find coconut yoghurt, then any other plant based yoghurt works just fine. I am just not a big fan of soy yoghurt, as it is often full of nasty ingredients. In the USA I would probably opt for almond or hemp yogurt. Or, if you’re not completely plant based like me, you could also go for greek yoghurt instead. No matter what yoghurt you pick, it’s gonna taste great.

If you want to know how to make the healthy bircher muesli for the base, just check out my YouTube video and subscribe to my YouTube channel if you like it.

Enjoy!

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE OR HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?

Feel free to leave a comment below, and don’t forget to tag your creations on social media using #heavenlynnhealthy.

I’d love for this blog to be a dialogue.

The post Blueberry Bircher Muesli Parfait with Coconut Yoghurt appeared first on Heavenlynn Healthy.

Summer has finally decided to show up again (at least over here in Germany) so today let’s celebrate summer with these blueberry coconut yoghurt popsicles. The popsicles are similar to the healthy strawberry coconut popsicles I recently posted. However, I tried them with coconut yoghurt instead of coconut milk this time, which really makes them taste like yoghurt popsicles. 

Healthy popsicles are the best summer snack, they keep you cool, fuel you with nutrients and are so easily prepared. Even though I photographed them with two different layers, I recommend blending the two layers together as this makes them extra creamy, and you’ll have all the deliciousness in every bite.

The difference between coconut yoghurt and coconut milk is that coconut yoghurt contains probiotics (healthy gut bacteria) that are important for a healthy gut and bowel system. When you decide to go completely plant-based, but do not want to miss out on yoghurt, then coconut yoghurt is your new best friend. Compared to soy yoghurt or other plant-based yoghurt, co-yo is completely natural and comes without nasty additives such as colorants, sugars or preservatives as the commercial dairy industry has not yet picked up on this trend yet.

There are only a few companies in Europe that sell coconut yoghurt, all of which promote clean eating, and a healthy lifestyle. Coconut yoghurt is still pretty expensive, and I’ve tried making it myself before, but I wasn’t quite lucky the first time I tried it. I’ll continue to try my best at creating a recipe that works, and I hope I’ll be able to present it to you soon. Until then, you’ll just have to go with Co-Yo or Harvest the Moon coconut yoghurt, which both taste delicious.

Enjoy!

Did you make this recipe or have any suggestions, questions or comments?

Feel free to leave a comment below, and don’t forget to tag your creations on social media using #heavenlynnhealthy.

I’d love for this blog to be a dialogue.

The post Blueberry Coconut Yoghurt Popsicles appeared first on Heavenlynn Healthy.

I realized the other day that my blog lacks a good waffle recipe. Which is crazy, given that I love all sorts of waffles. Being German, I normally don’t have waffles for breakfast, but rather for dessert, but as I have lived in the United States for a decent amount of time, I’ve come to appreciate hot and delicious blueberry waffles in the morning as well. I’ve recently developed this recipe for SodaStream*, and I thought that it would definitely be a great fit for the blog as well. 

Now, what does SodaStream* have to do with waffles, you may think. Let me tell you: a lot! Have you ever baked with sparkling water before? If you haven’t then you’ve definitely been missing out. Sparkling water makes every batter better. Ok, enough with the word games. But seriously, sparkling water adds a nice “fluff” to baked goods such as pancakes or waffles. In the plant based kitchen, it can even substitute eggs as a fluffy-making ingredient. The carbonation vanishes while the goods are baked, leaving a fluffy, and light dough. I use my SodaStream* mainly for baked goods as I prefer to drink still water, but for baking, it’s one of my best friends.

These healthy blueberry buckwheat waffles are obviously made from clean, natural ingredients only. I love the mix of oat and buckwheat flour, as it is a naturally gluten free flour mix, but does not make the waffles as crumbly as your typical gluten free versions. Buckwheat and oats are also a very good source of plant based protein and fiber, which help to keep us full for longer, and prevent our blood sugar levels from spiking. Instead of butter, these waffles contain almond butter, which adds a good amount of healthy fats that protect our hearts from cardiovascular disease. The blueberries then add a welcome touch of sweetness in these otherwise not overly sweetened waffles. Therefore, it is fine to have not one but even two of them for breakfast.

What makes these waffles even better is the berry chia sauce that goes so well with it. Please do not skip the sauce as it is not only a really affordable sauce (if you use a frozen berry mix), but also a really quick one that can easily be prepared while the waffle batter has to sit. The berry chia sauce complements the blueberry waffles so well as it gives it a delicious sweet and sour taste.

I can’t wait for you to try them, because they really are a favorite of mine.

Enjoy!

*This post is brought to you by SodaStream. Thank you for supporting the brands that make hour-long recipe testing sessions in the Heavenlynn Healthy kitchen possible. 

Did you make this recipe or have any suggestions, questions or comments?

Feel free to leave a comment below, and don’t forget to tag your creations on social media using #heavenlynnhealthy.

I’d love for this blog to be a dialogue.

The post Healthy Blueberry Buckwheat Waffles with Berry Chia Sauce appeared first on Heavenlynn Healthy.

If you’ve been following my blog or my Instagram account then you’ve probably noticed that I have a thing for delicious breakfasts like porridge or granola, and also for blueberries. I just love blueberries! They’re amongst my favorite berries because they are just so naturally sweet and delicious. Especially in the summer when you get them locally I go through at least one big batch a day. As all other berries, blueberries are great for your health as they are packed with antioxidants , which protect your whole body from free radicals. That’s why I like to think that berries make you pretty and help you glow from the inside out.
Since blueberries are about the sweetest berries you will find, they are perfect for this recipe as they make this granola naturally sweet. They also make your granola purple, which I love.
For a little extra goodness I added some millet to this recipe. This might sound very strange especially since I used it raw, but it just adds that extra crunch to the granola, which I love. In my opinion there’s nothing better than sweet and crunchy granola.
Millet is not only crunchy, it also has great health benefits. The gluten-free grain has a high iron content (about 1/2 cup (100g) provide more iron than the same amount of red meat), and it is packed with good minerals such as magnesium, manganese, copper and zinc. Millet is also extremely skin-friendly, and won’t cause break-outs or pimples as other grains do. Thus millet is really a beautifying grain – one more reason to add it to your morning breakfast bowl. I hope you enjoy this homemade granola just as much as I do.

Health benefits in this blueberry millet granola:
– copper (important for the development of the myelin sheath that surrounds the nerves; important for the transformation of melanin which is involved in the pigmentation of hair, eyes and skin)
– iron (important for healthy red blood cells that transport oxygen through your body)
– lauric acid (prevents heart diseases and lowers blood pressure)
– mono-unsaturated fats (decreases risks for breast cancer, important for heart health)
– magnesium (important for a healthy nerve system, muscle health, energy production)
– potassium (lowers cholesterol levels and blood pressure)
– vitamin B (lowers blood pressure, important for healthy nerves, and energy production)
– zinc (important for growth, skin, and a healthy immune system)

  
Ingredients:
– 2 cups (160g) (gluten-free) oats
– ½ cup (80g) millet
– 1 cup (120g) sunflower seeds
– ½ cup (60g) pumpkin seeds
– ½ cup (75g) raw unpeeled almonds (with skin)
– ½ cup (60g) flax seeds
– 2 tbs virgin coconut oil
– 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
– 3 tbs maple syrup or agave

Preheat the oven to 180°. Start by putting the almonds into a food processor and crush for 2-3 pulses until they are broken into pieces. They should not be completely crushed, you still want to be able to identify them as nut pieces. Place the crushed almonds into a large bowl. Add all the dry ingredients except blueberries, and stir well until the ingredients are combined.

Next, melt the coconut oil in a small sauce pan. Add the agave, and stir well until everything is dissolved. Add this sticky mixture to a blender together with the fresh or frozen blueberries and mix well so you have a nice smoothie-like texture.

Now pour the sweet blueberry mix over the dry ingredients and mix well until everything is slightly sticky.

Pour the granola on a baking sheet which you have aligned with parchment paper, and bake for about 30-40 minutes. After 10 minutes or so, take the pan out and stir well so the outer edges do not get burned. Repeat this every 5-10 minutes for the rest of the time.

After 40 minutes, take out the tray and leave it to cool for about 20 minutes.
By this time the granola should be nicely crunchy but not burned and your kitchen should smell devine.

Serve with milk, non-dairy milk, yoghurt or non-dairy yogurt, top with fruits. Stored in an air-tight container it should taste amazing for 3-4 weeks.

Enjoy!

The post Blueberry Millet Granola appeared first on Heavenlynn Healthy.