By Luke Hines, The Healthy Cook
With Mother’s Day on Sunday, now is the perfect time to show our love and gratitude and thank those maternal souls in our lives, who continue to keep us grounded and loved. Whilst isolation means celebrating Mother’s Day may look a little different this year, it just means we need to get a little creative.
1 // Give mama some quality time
Whether you’re able to visit your mum in person on Sunday, or you’ll be catching up with a cuppa via Zoom, spending quality time with her is so important. So set aside some uninterrupted time to make sure Mum knows she’s the centre of attention.
2 // Indulge in a home cooked meal
Whilst traditionally Mother’s Day might mean treating the family to a brunch out, this year it gives us the chance to get creative in the kitchen and plan a nourishing menu that the whole family will love. A home-cooked menu also means we can use nutritious ingredients and give ourselves a healthy boost with leafy greens, turmeric, ginger and fresh fruits like citrus and papaya. Yum!
3 // Start baking
Life in iso has seen more people hit the kitchen, particularly to bake… with banana bread and sourdough starters proving to be crowd favs. And I understand why, cooking helps me relax and I find the joy in new ingredients and recipes – I love to spend hours recipe testing and sharing my creations with friends and family. So spoil Mum by making some of her old favs, and if you want to jump on the banana bread bandwagon, try my gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free banana and raspberry coconut bread.
Banana and raspberry coconut bread
INGREDIENTS
300g finely desiccated coconut
6 free range eggs
2 large very ripe bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
1/4 cup Manuka honey
1 teaspoon fresh vanilla bean
2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, plus a few extra to garnish the top
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees and line a 450gram loaf or bread tin with baking paper.
Either by hand or using a hand held mixer, beat the eggs, Manuka honey and vanilla bean for a few minutes until well combined. Now add in the mashed banana and stir to combine. Fold the desiccated coconut into the wet mixture, then gently fold through the raspberries. Pour the batter into the lined loaf tin and top the batter with extra raspberries and an extra sliced banana if you wish.
Bake at 180C for 35 to 45 mins or until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from the oven, allow it to cool and enjoy as is or with your fav toppings.
I’ll be sharing more of my tips for celebrating Mum this Mother’s Day, as well as some wellness and self-care inspo, over on Instagram on May 6 at 4pm AEST, for Comvita’s Wellness From Home session.
