October
October, the month of Halloween and also the month where the leaves start to fall and the weather gets colder.
Autumn is a beautiful season, one of my favourite in terms of colour. The leaves on the trees change to the most beautiful reds, oranges, and browns. My top three favourite things to do in October are …
1/Apple picking, and what better use of apples in autumn than to make apple crumble.
I make crumble with gluten-free oats and the following ingredients. ..
Coconut Oil for greasing too.
1 1/2 cup rolled oats (use gluten-free, if desired)
½ cup almond flour
¼ cup coconut sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ cup (4 tablespoons) coconut oil or grass-fed butter, melted.
Mix together and add on top of 8 sliced and cored apples of season. Oven bake 180 deg for 30 minutes and serve with Oatly cream for a healthy alternative to normal cream or custard.
2/Pumpkin picking, this is the most fun, trawling through a maze to find a pumpkin is a great way to get the kids out and active. Also getting home and making pumpkin soup or pumpkin pie is a halloween favourite in the half term.
SOUP…Pumpkin.
Easy to make, all you need. ..
1 large pumpkin seeded and chopped
1 onion chopped
1/2 tsp lazy gralic
700ml vegetable stock or if you prefer chicken stock
Coconut cream at the end and parsley to garnish
Place peeled pumpkin, onion, garlic, broth/stock and water into a pot; Boil rapidly for 15 minutes until pumpkin is very tender; Use a stick blender or transfer to blender to blitz smooth; Adjust salt and pepper to taste, then add parsley and cream.
I stir in some cinnamon too but that is optional.
3/Parties, where the food tables look amazing with witch fingers made from carrots, apple bobbing, toilet rolling a person into a mummy and various other games that involve the adults also playing, using various vegetables as witches fingers and hummus gives the children healthier snacks.
Few party table ideas. ..
So three favourites all relating to October but this is also the month when the weather changing causes some of us to fall short on our nutrient intake.
We then need a boost to stay at our optimum. So what do we need to do this month?
Hydration
Water intake starts to fall around September and October and our bodies do need less than summer months but we still need to maintain optimum hydration.
Everyone is practically at risk for dehydration, even without any physical activity, so it is important to always keep a bottle of filtered water to always keep you hydrated.
Remember that a healthy person urinates seven to eight times each day, so if you’re not urinating frequently it means that you’re not drinking enough water.
Remember to always listen to your body. Once you feel that urge to drink, opt for structured or filtered water rather than artificially sweetened beverages, which can have dire effects on your health.
Nothing feels more refreshing than cold water to replace the liquids that you’ve lost.
What else?
Maintain vitamin D levels as we will be getting less daylight so Vitamin D is a Must. I supplement here as even when it’s sunny in September and October the sun isn’t actually high enough to give us what we need in terms of vitamin D. If you need advice on what Vitamin D supplement to take please email me as not all supplements are made equal.
Foods high in vitamin D are as follows.
Fatty Fish such as tuna, mackerel, salmon
Beef, Liver, Cheese, Egg yolks, always keep your leafy green foods high too as they will help maintain a healthy immune system, they contain high levels (organic greens if possible) of Vit C and folic acid, potassium, and magnesium to name a few.
So maintaining a healthy diet and supplementing with Vitamin D and staying hydrated. Now the one thing I must insist on is everyone dresses up………Enjoy the month and stay healthy.
Maria
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