Pancake Day

Hahaha, the last blog post I wrote was all about diets and healthy eating (which is still going very well), and this post is about the most indulgent thing I think I have ever made.

Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day (as it is commonly known in the UK), is always a firm favourite in our house. Last year, we had sweet and savoury pancakes all day, and I was sick of them by lunch time. So I thought that this year I would try something different.

My husband and son are confessed Nutella addicts, and so after seeing the idea of a pancake cake on pinterest, I decided to attempt a cream and Nutella pancake cake.

Here is the recipe:

• Pancakes - you can find my recipe from last year HERE. I used about 8-10 pancakes, and they were about the size of a side plate.
• Nutella (A medium sized bottle)
• Double Cream (FRESH!) - whipped until it is stiff
• Hot Chocolate Powder, Chocolate and Berries to garnish

Once the pancakes are cooked. You need to put cream under the first one, and 'stick' it to the plate. You then put Nutella on the base pancake; and then alternate chocolate and cream layers, piling the pancakes on top of each other. Mine ended with cream, so I put an extra layer of Nutella, then covered the whole 'cake' with cream, sieved hot chocolate powder on top, and grated chocolate over that. You might as well go all out. :)

You can use jam and berries, or cinnamon and sugar, if you prefer. I had friends over yesterday and they couldn't believe how light this pancake cake was, and they really raved about it.

Enjoy! x

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Battling the Bulge

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/helga/3249036871/

I have always been pretty average, in terms of my weight. I have had some very skinny phases and some slightly chubbier phases. I have always been quite sporty - at school I played hockey, tennis, girls cricket, girls soccer, did swimming, surfed with my sister, played squash and went to gym a few times a week; and then did dancing three times a week and went to gym at University.

After having my son, I lost my pregnancy weight rather quickly, as I got married when my son was 9 months old (we wanted to wait). Every girl wants to look her absolute BEST on her wedding day - and so I had loads of motivation to lose all the weight. A few months later, we moved to Malta - where our diet consisted of mainly breads and pastas; and while we were walking a lot more than in South Africa, I still put on a lot of weight. I have tried dieting on and off for the past two years, but just wasn't motivated enough.

That was until December 2012. I saw a photo of myself, and was shocked at how much weight I had put on. I was always tired, had a short temper, was sad and would indulge in junk food more often than is healthy. I was also the heaviest I have ever been.

On New Years, I decided that I WOULD cut down my portion sizes, eat less carbs, drink more water, eat healthier, eat more fruit and vegetables, and exercise. I know that I do not do well with diets - as the restrictive nature of the makes me feel like I am starving myself. I eat in moderation now - so if I want to eat something; I have a taste, instead of eating it all.

On the 7th January (I was seriously sick until then) - I actively started 'changing my lifestyle' (not dieting). :) I am now down 5.5kgs (12.12lbs), have dropped a dress size and I am feeling much more energetic and happy. I have been exercising every other day, for two weeks now. I do 15 minutes jogging on the treadmill, followed by 20 minutes yoga or 20 minutes pilates/yoga/abs/weights routine.

I cannot believe how little changes and a different mindset have changed so much in my life, and that I am now actively on my way to my goal weight.

WOOHOOO...