We reveal sneaky food tips and recipes from Mrs Crunch to keep you eating healthily and feeling great
Most of us struggle to eat the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables each day - but Mrs Crunch is here to help
TRICK yourself into eating better in 2018.
If diets don’t work for you, learn a healthier lifestyle with these sneaky tips.
EAT THE RAINBOW
Eating different coloured fruit and veg will give you a wider range of nutrients.
Start with Waitrose Essential Galia melon, now half price at 94p and Waitrose pineapple fridge pack, down from £3 to £2.25.
Morrisons butternut squash, delicious roasted or added to curries, is now 50p, saving 26p.
PACK IN SOME SUPERFOODS
Go all out for goodness with fruit and veg that pack a really powerful punch. Leafy kale is the king of veg and Morrisons prepared kale, 200g, is down from £1 to 67p.
Avocados are packed with vitamins, minerals and good fats. Morrisons has a large single avocado down from £1 to 67p.
Kiwi fruits punch above their weight when it comes to goodness and are down from 35p to 29p at Lidl.
MAKE SENSE OF SNACK
Snacking is where many of us might fall down when it comes to reaching for healthy food.
Keep fruit or nuts with you when you are out or get Morrisons Eat Smart beetroot or apple crisps, 20g, 70p. Buy two for £1.
GET YOUR FIVE A DAY
Most of us struggle to eat the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables each day. But by having a little with each meal, it is achievable.
Start as you mean to go on by bagging the best deals on fresh produce this month.
Aldi’s super six deals include iceberg lettuce and packs of radishes, salad tomatoes, celery, spring onions and beetroot for 39p each.
SWAP FOODS
Pack in extra fibre by swapping for healthier options. Switch sugary cereal for porridge, white bread for whole grain and baked potatoes laden with butter for sweet potatoes with a dollop of natural yoghurt.
Get a two-pack of sweet potatoes at Waitrose for half price, now 94p.
EAT BERRIES
Berries are packed with goodness, including antioxidants and fibre. Add them to natural yoghurt or porridge or have a handful as a snack. Get two for £3 at Asda on Grower’s Selection raspberries and blueberries, as well as red and green grapes.
Apple, Orange & Banana Smoothie
(Serves two)
Start your day as you mean to go on.
YOU NEED: 1 apple; 1 orange; 1 banana; 120ml fresh orange juice; 1 handful ice cubes, optional
METHOD: Peel the orange, removing as much of the white pith as possible with a sharp knife. Chop the orange into small chunks, discarding any pips.
Peel the banana and chop into slices. Peel the apple and chop into small chunks, before discarding the core and pips. Put all of the fruit, orange juice and ice, if you are using it, into the blender. Blend for 20 seconds or until smooth.
PICK UP MORE PROTEIN
Morrisons has a new range of meals bursting with protein to build and maintain muscle. They are £3 each, down from £3.25, and include Thai green curry and peanut chicken noodles.
LUNCH WITH PUNCH
Ditch white bread and a packet of crisps and choose grains and veg instead. Try Asda’s microwaveable pouches of beetroot, spinach and grains or super grains, lentils and greens, £1.50 per pouch.
Morrisons’ new Fresh Thinking vegetable pots can also be popped in the microwave. They include Mexican rice and beans with spicy harissa sauce, £2.25 or two for £4.
FILL YOUR FREEZER
Always keep your freezer stocked with healthy ingredients, such as frozen sweetcorn, fruit, peas and spinach. An XXL bag of frozen fruit from Lidl, £2.39, is a great starting point for morning smoothies.
GIVE YOURSELF THE GREEN LIGHT
When it comes to healthy eating, greens are a girl’s (and boy’s) best friend. Serve a large side of inexpensive cabbage with whatever you are eating, with 27p off Morrisons white cabbage, now 50p.
You can also add a couple of handfuls of spinach to everything from stews and curries to omelettes and salads. Fresh spinach is down from 89p to 69p at Lidl.
MAKE CONVENIENCE COUNT
We all need a quick dinner now and again. Instead of reaching for the takeaway menu, choose a calorie-counted ready meal.
Stock up now while there are great deals, including two for £4 on Co-op low-fat chilled ready meals.
Or you can save 50p on Tesco Healthy Living ready meals until January 16, including chicken in mushroom sauce, 370g, down from £2.50 to £2.
Chinese-style beef in oyster sauce
(Serves four)
MAKE the takeaway favourite at home for a healthier dish.
YOU NEED: 1 tbsp sunflower oil; 400g frying steak, cut into strips; 1 onion, peeled and sliced; 2 red chillis, deseeded and sliced; 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced; 200g carrots, peeled and cut into matchsticks; 200g mushrooms; 100g canned water chestnuts, drained and sliced; 200g pak choi, separated into leaves; 120ml oyster sauce
METHOD: Heat oil in a large non-stick wok or frying pan and add steak. Stir-fry over a high heat for 2 minutes then add onion, chillis, garlic, carrots, mushrooms and water chestnuts to the pan and stir. Stir-fry for a further 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender but still crunchy. Toss in the pak choi with the oyster sauce and 4tbsp of boiling water, before stir-frying for two more minutes until the juices are bubbling and the pak choi has wilted. Serve straight away.
- Recipes from
MAKE YOURS MEAT-FREE
Cutting back on meat could mean making a vegetable curry or bean stew. You could also replace your favourite meat with vegetarian alternatives.
New By Sainsbury’s mushroom mince is down from £1.50 to £1.20, and By Sainsbury’s cauliflower steaks with a chimichurri marinade are down from £2 to £1.80.
Aldi organic bean spaghetti, £1.99, packs in the goodness of edamame, black beans or organic soy beans. Top it with a tomato-based sauce for extra goodness.
ROAST YOUR VEG
Cook up a batch of roasted vegetables and serve them as a side dish, turn them into a soup or keep some handy for a speedy lunch. Courgettes, carrots, squash, aubergines and red onions are perfect for roasting.
Stock up now and save 26p on Morrisons butternut squash, now 50p, down from 76p, and Morrisons loose purple aubergine, down to 50p from £1.
MOST READ IN MRS CRUNCH
FISH
Few of us eat the recommended two portions of fish a week. The Saucy Fish Co has the answer with £1 off its frozen basa with Asian BBQ sauce at Tesco until January 29, with just 124 calories per serving.
For home cooking, Lidl has two XXL Lighthouse Bay cod fillets, 300g, for £2.99.