Weight loss

Studies have shown that weight loss is quicker if fruit or vegetables make up a third of the food consumed each day. This is because fruit helps fill the stomach faster but is low in calories and fat. It is also thought that eating plenty of fibre and eating a wide variety of food will help us burn more energy.

To live a healthy and energetic life our bodies must be fit for the job. This requires a balanced diet that incorporates plenty of fresh fruit.

Five-a-Day
For fruit to have a positive impact on your weight loss you need to eat around five portions of it each day. This can be dried squeezed, bottled or fresh. Try sprinkling dried fruit over your breakfast cereal, eating an apple, banana or pear as a mid-morning snack, or feasting on a punnet of grapes or strawberries instead of heading for the chocolate.
Not only are fruits loaded with minerals, vitamins and antioxidants to keep the body healthy, but they also contain no fat, and very few calories. This means that you can fill your stomach with fruit, and help your body repair itself with all those nutrients, minerals and antioxidants. Because there is no fat involved, your body will start to lose weight naturally.

Water Weight
Fruit also contains no sodium, which is thought to increase what’s known as ‘water weight’. Sodium in the body is mainly found in the fluids around the body's cells, including the lymph fluid and blood. When sodium intake is greater than what the body can deal with, it accumulates in the intestinal region. The kidneys then work harder to flush this excess sodium out of the body, and the body stores the extra fluids in the blood and around the cells. This leads to increased blood pressure and excess weight gain from water.
Western Diets
The average diet in the west is made up of convenient, packaged or fast food. These always consist of high levels of salt, or sodium, as well as fat, calories and artificial chemical preservatives. It is estimated that many people in the UK and USA may carry up to 2.5kg of extra weight due to the effects of a high sodium diet.


Energy
Our bodies need energy to function properly. Traditionally, this energy was absorbed from dietary fibre consumed, but in recent years, this has shifted, and now over 50% of the energy absorbed in the average western diet is taken from sugar, dairy products, alcohol and vegetable oils. None of these foods contains any dietary fibre. This can result in poor bowel movements, but also sluggish behaviour, a lack of concentration and motivation, and an increased risk in developing heart disease and cancer.
Fruit contains plenty of dietary fibre to wake you up and provide you with plenty of energy. This has the double benefit of giving you more energy with which to exercise and burn excess calories, which will help you lose weight even faster.

Fruit is a fantastic source of all things good for you. Vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre and antioxidants are all important in our diets and should be consumed regularly. Eating plenty of fruit can help achieve the ideal weight, and make you feel more alert and energetic too. So what’s stopping you!

Tropical Fruit Recipes

Avocado, Apple and Feta Salad With Mustard Dressing
Ingredients:
2 avocados (peeled, stoned and cut into slices)
2 apples (cored and cut into slices)
4 tomatoes (quartered)
100g (4oz) feta cheese (cubed)

For the dressing
1 tbsp cider or white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp sunflower or light olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method

• Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl
• Mix the dressing ingredients together in a small jug and drizzle over the salad
• Serve immediately

Serves four

Banana Wraps
Ingredients:
2 bananas (peeled)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp caster sugar
2 x 2.5cm (1 in) strips of puff pastry, rolled out
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp salt

Method

• Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F) Gas mark 7
• Sprinkle bananas with cinnamon and sugar
• Wrap strips of puff pastry around bananas
• Whisk egg yolks and salt together and brush over the pastry
• Place the wraps on a baking tray in the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden

Serves 1

Griddled Mango Pieces
Ingredients:
1 mango (peeled and cubed)
2 tbsp sugar
2tbsp white wine
Icing sugar
Sprig of mint
Dollop of whipped cream or Greek yoghurt

Method

• Heat a non-stick griddle pan on high heat
• Add the mango pieces and sprinkle with a light dusting of icing sugar.
• Cook until the mango pieces begin to caramelise
• Pour in the wine to release the mango from the pan
• Garnish with the sprig of mint and serve hot

Serves one

Kiwifruit Jam
Ingredients:
2kg (4lb) kiwi fruit (peeled and chopped)
1 box fruit pectin or 2 apples (peeled, cored and chopped)
1.5 kg (3.3lb) sugar

Method

• In a large pan, heat the fruit for 3 minutes with a dash of water
• Add the pectin or apple pieces and mix well
• Add all of the sugar and bring to the boil, then boil for 1 minute
• Take off the heat, skim any foam from the top of the mixture and place the hot mixture in sterilised jars

Barbecued Pineapple Pieces
Ingredients:
1 pineapple (peeled and cut into chunks)
Rind and juice of 1 orange
1-2 tbsp icing sugar

Method

• In a bowl, mix the orange rind and juice together, and add the sugar
• Stir in the pineapple chunks, making sure they are coated in the mixture (add more orange juice if necessary)
• Cover the bowl and leave to marinade for one hour in a cool place, such as a fridge
• Spoon the cool mixture into a foil parcel, and place on the barbeque grill for 10 minutes
• serve hot

Serves six

Tropical Fruit Smoothie
Ingredients:
1 banana
2 passion fruits
1 mango, cut into small pieces
1/2 a pineapple, cut into small pieces
100ml pineapple juice
Juice of 1 lime

Method

• Scoop out the pulp from the passion fruits
• Combine all of the ingredients in a blender until the mixture is smooth
• Add ice cubes if the consistency is too stiff, and another banana if the consistency is too runny
• Serve immediately

Serves one

Portion Sizes

Fruit portions

Fresh fruit
Small-sized fruit: one portion is two or more small fruit, for example two plums, two satsumas, two kiwi fruit, three apricots, six lychees, seven strawberries or 14 cherries.

Medium-sized fruit: one portion is one piece of fruit, such as one apple, banana, pear, orange, nectarine or sharon fruit.

Large fruit: one portion is half a grapefruit, one slice of papaya, one slice of melon (5cm slice), one large slice of pineapple or two slices of mango (5cm slices).

Dried fruit
A portion of dried fruit is around 30g. This is about one heaped tablespoon of raisins, currants or sultanas, one tablespoon of mixed fruit, two figs, three prunes or one handful of dried banana chips.

Tinned fruit in natural juice
One portion is roughly the same quantity of fruit that you would eat for a fresh portion, such as two pear or peach halves, six apricot halves or eight segments of tinned grapefruit.

Vegetable portions

Green vegetables
Two broccoli spears or four heaped tablespoons of kale, spinach, spring greens or green beans.

Cooked vegetables
Three heaped tablespoons of cooked vegetables, such as carrots, peas or sweetcorn, or eight cauliflower florets.

Salad vegetables
Three sticks of celery, a 5cm piece of cucumber, one medium tomato or seven cherry tomatoes.

Tinned and frozen vegetables
Roughly the same quantity as you would eat for a fresh portion. For example, three heaped tablespoons of tinned or frozen carrots, peas or sweetcorn.

Pulses and beans
Three heaped tablespoons of baked beans, haricot beans, kidney beans, cannellini beans, butter beans or chickpeas. However much you eat, beans and pulses count as a maximum of one portion a day.

Potatoes 
Because they are considered a starchy food, potatoes don't count towards your 5 A DAY. Potatoes should form the starchy carbohydrate part of your meal. Starchy foods are foods like potatoes, rice, pasta and bread.

Juices and smoothies

One 150ml glass of unsweetened 100% fruit or vegetable juice can count as a portion. But only one glass counts, further glasses of juice don’t count toward your total 5 A DAY portions.

One smoothie containing all the edible pulped fruit or vegetable may count as more than one 5 A DAY portion, but this depends on the quantity of fruits or vegetables and/or juice used, as well as how the smoothie has been made.

For a single smoothie to qualify as being two portions, it must contain either:

at least 80g of one variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable and at least 150ml of a different variety of 100% fruit and/or vegetable juice, or
at least 80g of one variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable and at least 80g of another variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable.
Smoothies count as a maximum of two of your 5 A DAY, however much you drink.

Fruit Recipes

Apple and Blackberry Crumble
Ingredients:
250g (9oz) blackberries
400g (16oz) cooking apples

For the topping
225g (8oz) plain flour
175g (6oz) butter
55g (2oz) Demerara sugar

Method
Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F) gas mark 6
In a large bowl, mix the flour with the butter and sugar and rub it all together until it is in tiny, crumbly pieces
Peel, core and cut the apples into small pieces (it’s important that you do this after making the crumble mixture as you don’t want the apples to go brown)
Mix blackberries and apples together and place in a shallow baking dish
Use a spoon to gently spread the crumble topping evenly over the fruit
Bake in the oven for 30 - 40 minutes until crisp and golden
Leave to cool and serve with cream or ice cream
Serves six

Blackcurrant Fool
Ingredients:
450g (1lb) blackcurrants
175g caster sugar
150ml (1/4pt) whipped cream
150ml (5fl oz) plain yoghurt

Method
Place blackcurrants in a non-stick pan
Add the sugar and a little water
Bring to the boil and stir them gently until the sugar is completely dissolved
Push the blackcurrant puree through a sieve to get rid of the pips
Add the yoghurt to the cream and mix together
When the blackcurrant puree is cool, stir it into the cream mixture gently
Pour the mixture into glasses and chill in the fridge for 2 hours
Serves four

Plum Cheesecake
Ingredients:
110g (4oz) plums (halved and stoned)
55g (2oz) unsalted butter
6 digestive biscuits, crumbled
110g (4 oz) low fat cream cheese

For the garnish:

4 orange segments
1 sprig of fresh mint
Icing sugar to dust

Method
Melt the butter in a pan and stir in the biscuits until thoroughly mixed
Take off the heat and spoon the biscuit mixture into a large circular dish or chef’s ring
Place the plums on top of the biscuit mix
Top with the cream cheese and smooth the top using a palette knife
Garnish with orange segments and mint and lightly dust with icing sugar
Serves six

Strawberry Cake
Ingredients:
4 eggs (separated)
175g (6oz) sugar
175g (6oz) self raising flour
1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 tbsp boiling water
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
284ml double cream
500g (20oz) fresh strawberries
100g (4oz) hazelnuts (chopped and toasted)

Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) gas mark 4.
Grease and line the base of a 20cm (6in) cake tin
Whisk the egg whites in a large bowl until stiff
Add the sugar and whisk until the mixture is smooth, then add the egg yolks
Sieve the flour over the mixture and fold in with a metal spoon
Drizzle the oil, boiling water and vanilla essence into the mixture and fold in
Pour into the cake tin and bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes
Cool the cooked cake on a rack then cut it in to two horizontal pieces
Top one of the cake pieces with half of the cream and half of the strawberries and sandwich the pieces together
Spread the remaining cream over the top and sides of the cake and sprinkle with the toasted hazelnuts. Cut the remaining strawberries and arrange them on the surface of the cake
Serves eight

Berry Nice Smoothie
Ingredients:
1 banana
A handful each of blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries (or whatever else you have in your garden)
50ml apple juice
A dollop of ice cream (optional)

Method
Slice the banana into pieces and add the ingredients to the blender and mix until smooth
If the mixture is too runny, add another banana
Serve immediately
Serves one

Food for your man

1. Get your partner to cook vegetable or fruit kebabs on the barbecue – men love barbecueing!
LAUREN GODDARD, SOUTHAMPTON

2. JANETTE MARSHALL, AUTHOR OF THE
NEW EAT FOR LIFE RECOMMENDS:
“Courgettes, marrows and aubergines are all good choices for curries because they absorb the flavours and spices and add texture to sauces.” You could also add cauliflower, tomatoes and peppers to add variety. Chop them into cubes, boil them for 4 minutes and then add spice and simmer for about 5 minutes.
Add tinned tomatoes and heat for a further 2 minutes

3. LUCILLE WONG FROM
LEICESTER RECOMMENDS:
“Get your partner’s taste buds tingling with Mexican tacos with refried beans and a spicy salsa dip with tinned tomatoes, peppers and onion”

4. “If you’re ordering a pizza, encourage your partner to add extra toppings like mushrooms, peppers or onions. I like Hawaiian pizzas because they have fruit as well as the tomato sauce”
MRS EMMA LANE, EXETER

5. AS A FINAL RESORT, TAKE A LEAF
OUT OF CATHERINE SHILTON FROM
BEDFORD’S BOOK:
“Make him feel guilty and tell him he should be eating a variety of at least 5 portions of fruit and veg a day to set a good example to the children!”

Making Juices with Fresh Fruit

Scientists have shown that fresh fruit juices, especially those from grapes, cranberries and apples, are high in antioxidants that are especially beneficial to our health. And a glass of fruit juice counts as one of your 5-a-day.

Fresh fruit juices and smoothies can be made very easily at home with just a little extra kitchen equipment.

What equipment do you need?
You probably have a blender or liquidiser in your kitchen already. A blender is ideal for whizzing soft fruits to make a smooth fruity drink, or to combine soft fruits with yogurt, milk or ice cubes for a healthy milkshake or smoothy. You get the whole fruit and all its fibre and goodness in a form that’s palatable to even the fussiest child.
If you want to make apple or pear juice, carrot or beetroot juice, then you need a juicer. The juicer will take the raw ingredient, such as a carrot, and separate it into the vitamin- and mineral-rich juice and raw pulp. You may drink the juice as it is or combine it with other ingredients in your blender to make a health-giving cocktail.

Grape Juice
fresh grapes, washed
Fill a colander with grapes, stalks and all. Pour a cup of water in the bottom of a saucepan and place the colander on top. Cover with a tight-fitting lid. Bring the water to the boil and then let it simmer very gently for about 30 minutes. Check now and then to make sure the juice is flowing and the pan’s not drying out. Remove from the heat and mash the juice out of the colander into the saucepan. Discard the skins and stalks.

The juice is now ready to drink as it is or diluted with water. While it’s still hot add honey to taste if required. Keep in the fridge.

Preparing Fruit for Juicing and Blending
Use fresh fruit that is ripe, don’t be tempted to use old fruit and vegetables! Wash all fruit and vegetables first unless you are confident that the products are organically grown and pesticides have not been used (you may want to remove the peel.) You should peel oranges, waxed lemons, grapefruits, pineapples, melons and kiwi fruits and remove seeds and stones – except from a watermelon. Cut into pieces that will fit easily into your juicer. Cut the fruit into teaspoon-sized pieces for the blender.

Juicer Recipes
Simply pop the fruit and vegetables through a juicer and serve with ice if required.

Wake-up call

• ½ cup fresh raspberries
• 1 orange
• 1 nectarine

Cranapple

• 2 apples
• 1¼ cups cranberries

Orchard Harvest

• 1 pear
• 1 peach
• 1 apple

Slimmer’s Delight

• handful of lettuce leaves
• handful of spinach leaves
• 2 sticks of celery
• 2 tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon root ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
• ½ cucumber
• 6 carrots
• 1 courgette
• 2 oranges
• splash of lime juice

Blender smoothies
Whizz solid ingredients for a few seconds first and then add liquids and/or ice and blend until smooth.

Blueberry smoothy

• 1 banana
• handful blueberries
• 1 cup milk

Cranberry smoothy

• 1 banana
• 4 oz fresh cranberries
• 2 canned peaches plus their juice (choose peaches in grape juice rather than syrup)
• orange juice
• Blend the banana, cranberries, peaches and their juice until smooth. Add orange juice until the consistency suits your taste.

Children and Juice
While juice is good for children in moderation, taken in excess, the acid and sugar in it can contribute to obesity, tooth decay and gastrointestinal problems. Babies under six months shouldn’t be given juice without the advice of the doctor, and those under 6 years should have a maximum ¼ pint of juice a day. Try to encourage them to eat fruit instead.

10 Money Saving Tips

• Buy fruit and vegetables loose rather than pre-packaged. Loose fruit and veg can be as little has half the price. 
• Look for supermarket deals on fruit and vegetables, such as buy one get one free offers.
• Fruit and vegetables are usually cheaper if they're in season.
• Fruit and vegetables are often cheaper at your local street or farmers' market. You can find your nearest one in this directory of farmers' markets.
• Replace your morning or afternoon snack with a piece of fruit. A banana or an apple costs around half the price of most chocolate bars or packets of crisps. The savings add up and so do the health benefits.
• Don’t throw away vegetables that are about to go out of date. Use them in stews, soups and casseroles, which you can freeze and eat another time.
• Stock up on canned fruit and vegetables. They count towards your 5 A DAY and won’t go off, so you can buy them in bulk. Buy those canned without added salt or sugar. Supermarket own-brand varieties are usually the cheapest.
• Look for good deals on frozen and dried fruit and veg, such as frozen peas and dried pulses and beans. They are often cheaper than fresh varieties.
• Swap ready meals for homemade alternatives. Vegetables in dishes such as stews, bakes, casseroles and curries count towards your 5 A DAY, and cooking these dishes yourself is cheaper than buying them ready-made. 
• Cook in bulk and freeze portions to eat another time.