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5x Vegan Smoothie Bowls for a Healthy Vegan Pregnancy

Written by Tess in Recipes

If you ask me my most favourite breakfast I would say smoothie bowls! They are fun to make and delicious to eat. I personally prefer eating smoothie bowls for breakfast instead of smoothies, because you can sit together and enjoy eating your breakfast without being ready in 5 minutes.

Why should you eat smoothie bowls while you’re pregnant and vegan? It is the most ideal way to get tons of nutrients by eating the fruit in a smoothie bowl. You can add all toppings possible which makes it fun to make. You’ll eat a smoothie bowl with a spoon and therefore you’ll chew on all ingredients, chewing your food stimulates the production of digestive enzymes in the mouth and is good for digestion. Smoothie bowls are also an ideal family meal and you can enjoy decorating it together with your children and eat it together.

You can drink a smoothie for breakfast in 5 minutes if you’d like, and my preference is to enjoy breakfast a little longer than that. Smoothies are a great option if you are in a hurry and want a quick nourishing breakfast, lunch or snack. A smoothie bowl takes a bit longer to consume and is therefore an ideal family meal.

The smoothie bowls below can be eaten as breakfast, lunch or snack. Yes you can eat smoothie bowls as a snack in between meals!

What Are Smoothie Bowls?

Smoothie bowls are actually smoothies but then different, let me explain. Smoothie bowls have a thick texture and are often made of frozen fruit. If you use frozen fruit and add fewer water you’ll get a nice thick texture ideal for a bowl. Add your desired (frozen) fruits, add a tiny bit of water and blend until smooth. Put the thick texture in a bowl and add your favourite toppings. Making a smoothie bowl is easy!

What’s the difference between a smoothie bowl, an açaí bowl and a smoothie?

A smoothie is often made of fruit or a mix of fruit, leafy greens, vegetables or herbs. The texture is not too thin and not too thick, ideal to drink with a straw.

A smoothie bowl is also a smoothie but has a thick texture. It is often made of frozen fruit and there is no or little water added. Some smoothie bowls are like sorbet bowls. Smoothie bowl are decorated with a variety of toppings including berries, dried fruits, other fruits, granola, seeds or vegan yoghurt.

Açaí bowls are a smoothie bowls made of açaí berries. These purple berries are called a superfood because of its nutrient density. Frozen açaí berries are put in a blender with other mostly frozen fruit and together is makes a açaí bowl. Açaí bowls are often even thicker more sorbet like than smoothie bowls.

Açaí Bowl

If you are looking to buy açaí powder to make your own açaí bowls, I usually purchase them here.

Are Smoothie Bowls Healthy?

Smoothie bowls are the new cereal. And that’s a good thing. I think whole foods are always a better option that processed foods like cereal. Cereal can be a nice option to have some variety for your taste buds, but it’s not a whole food.

Smoothie bowls are often made of fruit and fruit is loaded with good vitamins and minerals you need for your body and growing baby. Fruit is a super package with all the good things you need, vitamins, minerals, fiber, antioxidants and more!

If you eat a smoothie bowl for breakfast you get a nice fruit bomb ready to give you the energy you need to start your day. Yes fruit gives you energy. Fruit is the fuel for your body.

Fruit and Fruit Sugars, Dangerous?

The smoothie bowls below are made of fruit and some women wonder if all that fruit is not too much of a good thing. Some pregnant vegans have had to deal with gestational diabetes in previous pregnancies and are concerned about their blood sugar levels. And that makes total sense. We all want to know what’s the deal about sugar, our body and our baby.

I won’t go much further into gestational diabetes as I’m not a doctor. If you have any concerns relating GD please consult your preferred healthcare provider, or go sit with a dietitian and find the guidance you need.

So what about sugar in fruit? Fruit is made of glucose, and glucose is your body’s fuel. And because fruit contains a lot of fiber, your blood sugar level doesn’t rise too high. All cells in your body need vitamin C to do their job, fruit is loaded with vitamin C.

Your body is actually made to eat fruit and to eat lots of fruit. Your body is made to look out for ripe fruit, to like the bright colours of different kinds of fruit and to like the taste and smell of ripe fruit. Think of a mango that is perfectly soft and ripe and it smells delicious, you’ll want to eat this mango right? It’s the perfect nutrient package deal of nature and it’s ready to be eaten by you.

If you are in doubt you can check the glycemic index of a particular fruit and find out yourself. And if you check the glycemic index you should also check the glycemic load for that particular food. But that’s content for a whole other article.

Can You Store a Smoothie Bowl?

You can store a smoothie bowl in an airtight container (I prefer a glass one with a lit) for up to three days in the fridge. Don’t put the toppings on the smoothie bowl that you want to store, these will become mushy. Add the toppings just before you’ll eat the smoothie bowl.

Raspberry Cashew Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients

  • 4 pcs Banana
  • 2 cups Raspberries (250 gr)
  • 1/4 cup Cashews (60 gr)
  • Walnuts (topping)
  • Chia seeds (topping)

Instructions

  • Put all ingredients in blender and blitz until smooth.
  • Add desired amounts of toppings and enjoy!

Mango Banana Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients

  • 4 pcs Banana
  • 2 cups Mango (fresh or frozen) (300 gr)
  • 1/2 Lemon
  • 2 pcs Peach
  • Blackberries (topping)
  • Walnuts (topping)
  • Coconut flakes (topping)

Instructions

  • Put all ingredients except toppings in blender and blitz until smooth.
  • Add desired amounts of toppings and enjoy!

Blackberry Passion Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients

  • 3 pcs Banana
  • 2 cups Blackberries (300 gr)
  • 4 pcs Passion Fruit
  • Blueberries (topping)
  • Coconut flakes (topping)
  • Cacao nips (topping)

Instructions

  • Put all (peeled) ingredients in blender except 1 passion fruit (used as topping) and blitz until smooth.
  • Add desired amounts of toppings and enjoy!

Forest Peach Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients

  • 4 pcs Banana
  • 1 1/2 cup Forest fruit (180 gr)
  • 6 pcs Peach
  • Blueberries(topping)
  • Brasil Nuts (topping)

Instructions

  • Put all ingredients in blender except 1 peach (used as topping) and blitz until smooth.
  • Add desired amounts of toppings and enjoy!

Sweet Green Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients

  • 6 pcs Banana
  • 1 cup Frozen mango (140 gr)
  • 1-2 cups Spinach (100-200 gr)
  • Lemon
  • Dates (topping)
  • Cashew nuts (topping)
  • Chia seeds (topping)
  • Grated coconut (topping)

Instructions

  • Put all ingredients except toppings in blender and blitz until smooth (also peeled lemon).
  • Add desired amounts of toppings and enjoy!

How Much Protein Do I Need as a Pregnant Vegan? (And Where do I Get My Protein From?)

Written by Tess in Vegan Pregnancy

Did someone ask if you eat enough proteins for your growing baby? Or are you wondering how much protein you really need as a pregnant vegan? It is not much I can tell, it is also easy to get all your protein from a whole foods plant-based diet. In this article I dive in on how much protein you have to eat, and where to get it from!

Pregnant women need an extra calorie intake of 340 kcal in the second trimester and 450 kcal in the third trimester. When you eat more calories, you will automatically eat more protein as a result of consuming more calories when eating a whole foods plant-based diet. Try to aim for an average of 70 gram of protein per day. It’s not hard to meet that requirement when you eat a variety of plant-based foods such as lentils, beans, quinoa, vegetables, tofu, tempeh and whole grains.

In this article we will discuss how much protein you need as a pregnant vegan, where do you get this protein from, and what are amino acids and complete proteins.

Do you want a high protein recipe idea? I’ve written a whole recipe article about my Cool Vegan Quinoa Salad that you can read here!

How Much Protein do I Need as a Pregnant Vegan?

When you are pregnant your protein needs go up. Making extra blood, bones, cells, hair, nails, skin, organs and more (!) demands extra nutritional needs. Many women are in doubt if their protein needs are met, especially during pregnancy. Luckily a protein deficiency is not something that happens easily.

If we take the United States as an example country, men and women eat protein more than enough according to this study. Women need an average of 46 grams total and eat an average of 70 grams total (men need 56 grams on average and eat 102 grams on average).

Pregnant women need slightly more protein. Approximately 0.8 grams per total kg body weight. For pounds divide body weight by 2.2. See calculated examples below.

  • Kilogram (kg) example 0.8 * 65 kg = 52 gram of protein per day
  • Pounds (lbs) example 0.8 * (143 lbs / 2.2) = 52 gram of protein per day

We have seen in the study mentioned above that women eat an average of 70 grams of protein per day, pregnant or non-pregnant. 70 grams of protein is what you should aim for as a pregnant woman, and it’s what women eat on average (in the United States). That doesn’t mean you can eat whatever you want, you should always aim for a whole food plant-based diet if possible.

If you are at whatever point in doubt about your protein needs, consult with a dietitian to get the guidance you need.

Alternatively you can keep a food diary for a few days in an app that calculates different nutrients at the same time. This way you can see after a couple of days how much protein you’re getting on average per day.

Pregnant women need an extra calorie intake of 340 kcal in the second trimester and 450 kcal in the third trimester. When you eat more calories, you will eat more protein as a result of consuming more calories.

Try to aim for an average of 70 gram of protein per day. It’s not hard to meet that requirement when you eat a variety of plant-based foods such as lentils, beans, quinoa, vegetables, tofu, tempeh and whole grains.

Best Vegan Protein Sources during Pregnancy

The best vegan protein sources when you are pregnant differ from legumes, leafy greens, nuts, seeds, even some fruits and grains and pseudo grains. So let’s go into it and find out what are the best protein sources for pregnancy. Depending on your preference you might want to eat more whole foods and less processed or the other way around.

What vegan foods contain protein?

  1. Leafy Greens
  2. Lentils
  3. Quinoa
  4. Hemp Seeds
  5. Beans
  6. Tofu, Tempeh, Edamame
  7. Whole Wheat Grains
  8. Spelt
  9. Whole Grain Rice
  10. Nuts or Nut-butter
  11. Chia Seeds
  12. Seitan
  13. Vegetables
  14. Avocado
  15. Fruit

See the infographic I’ve made below to get an idea of how much protein you get from what food when you eat one portion or a cup of a particular food.

Source

Even in my vegan raw cheesecake recipe you get proteins as it is made of cashews and pecan nuts. You can find this delicious vegan cheesecake recipe here!

What Are Complete Protein Profiles?

There is this hyper focus going on various websites, articles, news papers and the like about complete proteins. We all have that one person in our community that talks about ‘healthy’ food. At some point he or she will focus on complete proteins, its importance and how to get it all out of 1 ingredient, for example meat or fish.

But what are complete proteins anyway? Let’s find out.

It all has to do with amino acids. Amino acids are also called the building blocks of protein and play a critical role in your body. They are categorised as essential, conditionally essential, or nonessential.

Our bodies need 20 different amino acids to function properly. 9 of these 20 amino acids are so-called essential amino acids that our bodies cannot make on its own. Our bodies can make 11 amino acids by itself. So the other 9 amino acids should be consumed by eating the right foods.

When a particular food has all the “9 essential” amino acids people say that the food is a “complete protein.” This is why people are so focused on the one ingredient that contains – all – the 9 essential amino acids.

When we eat a variety of foods though, we also get – all – 9 essential amino acids. Although we might not get all 9 amino acids in a 1-ingredient food package, we eat different amino acids during the day.

We eat different foods together, we eat different foods at different times during a day so at the end of the day we ate a variety of foods which together contain all 9 essential amino acids. Getting al 9 essential amino acids through diet is completely doable by eating a well-planned Whole Foods Plant-Based diet.

Getting al 9 essential amino acids through diet is completely doable by eating a well-planned Whole Foods Plant-Based diet.

5 Natural Vegan Ways to Deal With Morning Sickness

Written by Tess in Vegan Pregnancy

When I was pregnant I was very eager to learn more about no-drug anti-nausea remedies as I needed it sooner than later. Because I like to get to the bottom of things I researched the whole web for the best natural vegan remedies for nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. This article goes into the best tested natural vegan remedies to deal with morning sickness and vomiting during pregnancy. Been there done that.

There are multiple natural vegan ways to deal with nausea and vomiting during your vegan pregnancy. I tested different natural remedies and found that using ginger in whatever form works best. Secondly I used sea-bands to deal with nausea. Sea-bands are bracelets that push on acupressure points on your wrists. Thirdly I went outside everyday to release stress and to breathe in fresh air and the probiotic properties of ferns. Fourthly I skipped saturated fat out of my diet And at last when my nausea was still there from time to time, I made sure I ate as much bananas as possible.

Do you want more breakfast ideas when you’re dealing with morning sickness? I’ve written a whole article about my best tested breakfasts during morning sickness that you can read here.

Read the article below to learn more about my best natural vegan remedies for dealing with morning sickness.

1. Pregnant, Nauseous and Vomiting? Banana: Your New Best Friend

Back in the days when I was working in the navy, I used to sail on different ships. And if there is one thing I learned, it was that I was seasick every first day on board which would only last for a day. Although I knew I was lucky because I only had to deal with it for one day, the first day, it is definitely not a nice thing to experience. When nausea kicks in there is no way back.

So I have had a whole experience on how to deal with being nauseous and still be able to work. And with me there were many people who had to deal with it on board. And the one thing that was – always – offered on board were bananas. Bananas were known to help with nausea during seasickness. So everyone who had to deal with seasickness ate bananas.

For some people of course nausea didn’t go away with eating bananas and they still had to vomit. And that’s another reason why you should eat bananas when your nauseous and vomiting: when you are vomiting bananas it is actually less bad to experience. The terrible taste and experience of vomiting lessens when you ate bananas before! What goes in comes out right? And it is much better that what goes out is sweet, has a nice texture and doesn’t taste or smell too bad.

Bananas are sweet and loaded with good healthy vitamins, minerals and fiber. When you’re nauseous you probably won’t eat a whole lot, so eating bananas as much as your stomach can hold is always a good thing.

Bananas stimulate the production of mucus from the stomach lining. This mucus acts as a barrier between the stomach lining and the acidic gastric substances that caused an upset stomach or heartburn.

2. Take Your Ginger and Take It Like This

We’ve all heard about this one right? Drink ginger tea, eat ginger, take ginger capsules or chew on ginger sweets.

But it’s not just another “let’s try and see if it works”. Research has actually found that ginger is effective for pregnancy induced nausea and vomiting. There is no research done yet on what the maximum dosage should be, but it is a safe remedy to use during pregnancy.

Research suggest that the ideal dosage would be 1 gram of ginger for pregnancy induced nausea and vomiting (about half a teaspoon). This could be taken in de form of:

How should you take ginger?

  • 1 tsp (5gr) of freshly grated ginger rhizome.
  • 2 tsp (10 ml) of ginger syrup.
  • 2 ml ginger liquid extract.
  • 1 cup (237 ml) of ginger ale (made with real ginger).
  • 2 pieces of crystallised ginger, each 1 inch square, 1/4 inch thick.
  • 4 cups (237 ml each) of prepackaged ginger tea.
  • 4 cups (237 ml each) of fresh ginger tea (prepared by infusing 1/2 tsp of freshly grated ginger in hot water for 5-10 min).

3. Sea-Band Anti-Nausea Bracelet

Back in the days when I was in the navy, there were a lot of people getting seasick all the time. No matter how rough the sea was, some people were always seasick for a period of time. For me it was always only the first day on board. But still that one day was too much nausea for me to be able to still work. One day I met a co-worker who was wearing so-called sea-bands and he sweared by it.

Sea-bands are bracelets you wear on your wrist with a hard ball in the middle that should be worn at the inside of your wrist. On the inside of your wrist there is a so-called acupressure point.

This pressure point P-6 is also called Neiguan. If you do acupressure on this point it can help with nausea and prevent vomiting. If you wear a sea-band, the ball in the middle of the bracelet pushes at the P-6 acupressure point.

But I was very hesitant to use my anti-nausea sea-bands during pregnancy. So I researched the use of sea-bands during pregnancy and it became very clear that there is nothing to worry about the use of anti-nausea bracelets during pregnancy.

And so did my sea-bands become my best friend during the first trimester. I vomited zero times, and my nauseous periods lessened when I was wearing my special bracelets during my first trimester.

How do you find this acupressure point P-6? Look at the picture below to find out!

Tip: if you want to avoid people asking what kind of ‘bands’ you are wearing on your wrists, wear long sleeves. Some women want to wait weeks or months with telling the good news of their pregnancy, and wearing your sea-bands out in the open could lead to people asking questions you don’t want to answer just yet.

4. Skip Saturated Fat and Meat

Saturated fats and meat might be a big contributor for pregnancy induced nausea and vomiting. Population groups that rely on grains and fruit as their staples report little or no nausea and vomiting during pregnancy, according to research.

Avoidance of fatty foods and meat is what causes little or no nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. The lowest rate of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy is reported in India where 35% women suffer from pregnancy induced nausea or vomiting, compared to 89% in the United States. What a difference!

So what you can do is skip all saturated fats out of your diet. Skip meat out of your diet if you’re not already vegan. Meat contains a lot of saturated fats, and an aversion of meat might be protective for the embryo, according to this research.

But the best strategy is to avoid saturated fats before you get pregnant. Research has found that a pre-pregnancy diet low in saturated fat is associated with little or no nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. A pre-pegnancy diet with a high daily fat intake was associated with an increased risk of severe hyperemesis gravidarum (excessive vomiting during pregnancy).

Saturated fats can be found in cakes, cookies, ice-cream, fries, donuts, croissants and the like. If you don’t feel confident to get out fats in whatever form out of your diet, please consult a dietitian to discuss how to do this properly.

Do you want a recipe that contains no saturated fats? Read my recipe article about Cool Vegan Quinoa Salad.

5. Go Outside and Get Sky-Time

This is always a good idea, the more you are outside the better air you breathe in. And everything in your body works on oxygen. But it is especially a good idea when you’re pregnant.

Fresh air contains more oxygen than air inside an average home. All cells in your body need oxygen to do their jobs. And when creating a baby, your body is busy day and night to make cells, form organs, and make bones, skin and blood. Why not sustain this important task with extra good oxygen?

Going outside during pregnancy is always a good idea, but especially when you’re dealing with nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. You might want to lay on the couch, or be in bed all day, maybe you’re even vomiting and cannot hold food for long.

Especially when we feel off and nauseous, sky-time (time outside) is the first to be dropped. We don’t want to go outside, I didn’t want to go outside. And if we are outside, we don’t want to walk that extra bloc to a park or a near forest. But remember the more sky-time you have the better it is for your body and growing baby.

Going outside and being in nature is associated with lessened stress-levels. Maybe you’re very nauseous and your body tells you to slow down. In that case slow down! But don’t throw sky-time overboard, take someone with you, go walk your dog, or listen to an audio book to get your focus off of being nauseous. Your body and baby will thank you for it!

5x Vegan Breakfast Ideas for Morning Sickness While Pregnant and Vegan

Written by Tess in Recipes

Do you have to deal with morning sickness and want some easy to digest breakfast ideas? Or need some quick inspiration on what to eat for breakfast? This is your go-to inspiration with lots of healthy easy-to-digest breakfast recipes. These vegan recipes are ideal when you have to deal with morning sickness.

A vegan diet may help or prevent you from having morning sickness. This is due to the low toxicity in plant-based foods. The most common food aversions for pregnant women is meat and eggs. Meat and eggs are the most likely foods to carry harmful bacteria and parasites. So it is no coincidence that you don’t want to foods like eggs and meat.

The last thing on your mind when you have morning sickness is food. However you feel, it is always a good idea to start the day with a good breakfast. Many women report having less morning sickness when they have something in their stomach. For me, it had to be only fresh fruit, and shouldn’t have too much of a taste. So I picked my favourite recipes when I had to deal with morning sickness for you to have some inspiration.

In this post you’ll find the following breakfast recipes for a healthy vegan pregnancy:

  1. Watermelon with Passion Fruit
  2. Blackberry Smoothie Bowl
  3. Overnight Oats with Raspberries and Yoghurt
  4. Banana Oat Smoothie with Peanut Butter
  5. Fresh Fruit Platter

Do you want more information about natural vegan remedies to deal with morning sickness? I’ve written a whole article just about that, read it here!

Vegan Pregnancy and Morning Sickness

Morning sickness is not necessarily felt in the morning. Some women feel it the whole day, like me when I was pregnant. Actually we should call it pregnancy sickness instead of morning sickness.

I felt completely off-guard when I had to deal with morning sickness. You know morning sickness happens often for a short period of time for pregnant women. But I experienced nausea the whole day, for several weeks!

It’s no fun when you have to deal with nausea at all, especially when you have a toddler running in the house as many mothers do. It wasn’t so easy for me to just eat my breakfast, while I knew it was important.

What is morning sickness? Morning sickness is nausea and vomiting that occurs during pregnancy. This usually happens in the first trimester, and it is an estimated 80% of women that report some kind of nausea during pregnancy. Women experience nausea mostly 9 weeks from conception. But it can definitely be felt earlier, as soon as week 5 for example.

It usually subsides in the second trimester, but can also be experienced throughout pregnancy, well into the third trimester. However, most women report that morning sickness stopped at all by at 16 weeks pregnant. There is light at the end of the tunnel mama!

A vegan diet may help or prevent you from having morning sickness. Nausea and vomiting during pregnancy is reconsidered by recent studies to act as an embryo-protective mechanism.

According to Dr. Michael Greger’s comparison of various studies pregnant women have strong meat aversions because meat is the principal source of pathogens for humans. By having strong aversions and by being nauseous your body makes sure it doesn’t consume any meat.

Dr. Greger also states that plant-based populations report no morning sickness and that women who suffer from morning sickness have better pregnancy outcomes (less miscarriages and stillbirth).

Another thing you can do when having morning sickness is to go outside every day. Research has shown a decrease in stress levels when you are surrounded by nature.

Do you have a park, forest or beach nearby? Go there and go everyday for at least an hour. I know what you think, it’s not easy to go do something when you’re very nauseous and vomiting. But go outside and breathe deep. Your body will thank you for it.

Pregnant, Nauseous and Vomiting? Banana: Your New Best Friend

Bananas are sweet and loaded with good healthy vitamins, minerals and fiber. When you’re nauseous you probably won’t eat a whole lot, so eating bananas as much as your stomach can hold is always a good thing. Bananas contain lots of potassium, vitamin B6, vitamin C, phytonutrients and antioxidants.

Beside being very nutritious bananas stimulate the production of mucus from the stomach lining. This mucus acts as a barrier between the stomach lining and acidic gastric substances that cause stomach upset and heartburn. Another reason to try bananas when your stomach is upset.

When you have to deal with vomiting during your pregnancy, it is a good idea to eat bananas. What comes in comes out right? The taste and experience of vomiting is terrible, bananas make it less bad. The texture is soft, the taste is sweet and they don’t smell bad when they do come out.

Want to learn more about natural vegan remedies for dealing with morning sickness? Read the article here.

Let’s move to our favourite vegan breakfast recipes for morning sickness.

Watermelon With Passion Fruit

Watermelon and passion fruit are a very nice combination. I actually didn’t think about this combination when I saw a good friend of mine eat it this way. I tried it during my morning sickness and I could hold it! Watermelon is loaded with vitamin C and contains decent amounts of potassium, copper, vitamin B5 and vitamin A.

Ingredients:

  • Watermelon
  • Passion Fruit

What to do:

  • Cut watermelon in half
  • Cut passion fruit open en spoon it out on top of the watermelon, enjoy!

Blackberry Smoothie Bowl

The best ingredient in this smoothie bowl are blackberries. Blackberries are known to be one of the most impressive fruits due to its health benefits. They contain a good amount of vitamins: vitamin C, E, K, calcium and manganese. That’s why this smoothie contains this amazing berry.

Ingredients (for 2 servings):

  • 1 cup blackberries (145 gr)
  • 4 bananas
  • 4 pears
  • 50 ml water
  • 2 pcs passion fruit (topping)
  • 2 tbsp coconut flakes (topping)
  • handful blueberries and/or raspberries (topping)

What to do:

  • Blitz all ingredients (except toppings) smooth
  • Add more water if texture is too thick
  • Divide in 2 bowls and add toppings, enjoy!

Overnight Oats with Raspberries and Yoghurt

This recipe is when you don’t want too much of a taste. Overnight rolled oats don’t taste too bad, they don’t have much taste at all. I sweetened the oats with a banana and added coconut yoghurt.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup plant milk (225 ml) (I used soy milk)
  • 1/3 cup plant yoghurt (85 gr) (I used coconut yoghurt)
  • 1 cup oats (80 gr)
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/2 cup raspberries (125 gr)
  • 1 tbsp hemp seeds (8 gr)
  • 2 tbsp granola (optional)

What to do:

  • Mix plant milk with oats and leave in an airtight jar in the fridge overnight
  • Wake up in the morning
  • Puree the banana and mix with yoghurt and hemp seeds
  • Mix the yoghurt-banana mix with overnight oats and put half of the mixture in two glass jars
  • Puree half the amount of raspberries
  • Add pureed raspberries in the middle of the glass jars and top with the second half of oats-yoghurt-mixture
  • Decorate with raspberries and granola

Banana Oat Smoothie With Peanut Butter

Bananas are your new friend right? This recipe is my favourite one to make when I need an easy quick nourishing smoothie. Often I leave the oats out, to have a nice smooth smoothie. But when you’re pregnant with morning sickness you want to add as much nutrients as possible and oats will leave you full for a couple of hours and they contain protein.

Ingredients:

  • 4 frozen bananas
  • 2 bananas (room temperature)
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats (45 gr)
  • 2 tbsp peanut butter
  • 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract

What to do:

  • Add all ingredients in a blender and blitz until smooth

What comes in comes out right? The taste and experience of vomiting is terrible, bananas make it less bad. The texture is soft, the taste is sweet and they don’t smell bad when they do come out.

Fresh Fruit Platter

This is my all-time favourite vegan breakfast or vegan brunch. The best thing is to share our plates with our loved ones. If you cut all fruit to manageable sizes for your kiddo you can all eat together from one plate. Is there something more fulfilling than sharing our food together? You can vary with fruits depending on the season and hemisphere you live. I chose all the colourful happiness above.

Ingredients:

  • Pineapple
  • Watermelon
  • Strawberries
  • Blueberries
  • Blackberries
  • Grapes both colours
  • Cantaloupe
  • Kiwi fruit
  • Dragon fruit
  • Orange
  • Mango

What to do:

  • Leave these fruits whole: strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, grapes
  • Cut the remaining fruits
  • Put on a nice big plate and enjoy!

Cool Vegan Quinoa Salad for Pregnancy

Written by Tess in Recipes

Do you want to eat quinoa but don’t know how to incorporate it into your diet? Do you need a quick and easy quinoa recipe? This is your go-to quinoa recipe. It’s easy, quick and its taste is delicious! Quinoa is gluten-free and if you leave the almonds and replace them with baked chickpeas this salad is nut free. Follow me in this blog on how to make your favourite quinoa salad.

Facts about quinoa:

  • Quinoa is a seed
  • Quinoa should be washed before use
  • Quinoa is a complete protein
  • Quinoa is glutenfree
  • Quinoa is very nutritious
  • Quinoa is high in antioxidants
  • Quinoa contains lots of fiber
  • The Inca’s call it “the mother grain”

Can’t wait to make this quinoa salad recipe? I’ve made an easy and quick recipe guide so you can make it even quicker. For more information about the recipe scroll down.

A Quick Guide to Make Cool Vegan Quinoa Salad

Why Should I Eat Quinoa?

Quinoa is a pseudo grain which means that it’s not a conventional grain such as for example wheat, and it is actually a seed. The other big pseudo grains are amaranth and buckwheat. There are as many as 3000 sorts of quinoa, the most well known are the white, black and red variant.

Quinoa has been cultivated for over 7000 years by native peoples from the Andes Mountains in South America. Only in recent years it has become popular in the West. The Inca’s call it the “mother grain” and is it seen as a sacred food.

Quinoa is very nutritious, it contains all amino acids and therefore it is a complete protein source. It is so nutritious that even astronauts from NASA get quinoa for dinner during long-term space missions. A study has found that quinoa has a 86% capacity of antioxidants, higher than any other grain that was analysed.

It also contains lots of protein. One serving of one cup (185 gr) cooked quinoa contains 8 grams of protein! It is an easy source to boost up your protein needs per day.

Another interesting fact is that quinoa contains all 9 of the essential amino acids. A protein is formed out of 20 amino acids of which 11 can be made by your body. The other 9 amino acids are called essential amino acids and should be taken out of your diet. Quinoa contains all these 9 essential amino acids.

Per cup cooked quinoa contains:

  • Carbohydrates 40 gr
  • Protein 8 gr
  • Fat 4 gr
  • Fiber 6 gr

In quinoa you’ll also find the following vitamins and minerals per cup (185 gr) cooked quinoa:

  • Manganese 58% of RDI
  • Magnesium 30% of RDI
  • Folate 19% of RDI
  • Iron 15% of RDI
  • Zinc 13% of RDI
  • Thiamin 13% of RDI
  • Riboflavin 12% of RDI
  • Vitmain B6 11% of RDI

Fiber: Your Helper When Pregnant and Constipated

Your body needs fiber to help your bowel movements up and running during the day among other things. When you’re pregnant you can get constipated because of your growing belly and its pressure on your bowel. Constipation is the most likely to occur during your third trimester but can happen in the first and second trimester as well.

Somewhere between 16% to 39% of pregnant women will deal with constipation. The BEST thing you can do for constipation is eating lots and lots of fiber. A whole foods plant-based diet is very rich in fiber and so is this quinoa salad recipe.

A Quick Look at all Ingredients

Spinach

Rich in Iron, Vitamin K, C and Potassium.

Quinoa

Lots of protein, all 9 essential amino acids. Rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals as listed above.

Celery

Rich in Sodium and Potassium.

Almonds

Rich in Vitamin E and Magnesium.

Cherry Tomatoes

Rich in Vitamin C, Potassium and Vitamin A.

Mint

Are anti-inflammatory and help with indigestion. Rich in Vitamin C, D, E and A.

Red Onion

Rich in antioxidants and Manganese, Vitamin B6, and C.

Cool Vegan Quinoa Salad

These ingredients are a feast for your body and growing belly. So let's dive in and make this delicious quinoa salad! It is a gluten-free salad with lots of protein, vitamins and minerals.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Main Course, Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine Mediterranean
Servings 2

Ingredients
  

  • ¾ cup Quinoa (150 gr)
  • 2 cups Baby spinach (60 gr)
  • 2 stalks Celery
  • 18 pcs Cherry Tomatoes
  • ¼ cup Almonds (30 gr)
  • 10 pcs Mint Leaves
  • ½ Red Onion (or 1 small onion)
  • 1 cube Vegetable Stock
  • 15 pcs Olives optional
  • 6 pcs Dried Tomatoes optional

Instructions
 

  • Prepare quinoa according to label (I cooked with cube of vegetable stock) (cook quinoa approximately between 12-15 minutes).
  • Cut all ingredients (also spinach) while quinoa cooks.
  • Put quinoa aside as it cools down and when it's cooled off add all ingredients in a bowl and mix.
    Alternatively leave quinoa warm and mix all ingredients in a bowl.
  • Decorate salad with some spare mint leaves and enjoy!
Keyword Gluten free, Quinoa, Salad, Vegan

Grocery List

  • Quinoa 3/4 cup (150 gr)
  • Baby Spinach 2 cups (60 gr)
  • Celery 2 stalks
  • Cherry tomatoes 18 pcs (1 1/2 cup)
  • Almonds 1/4 cup (30 gr)
  • Mint leaves 10 pcs
  • Red onion 1/2
  • Vegetable stock 1 cube
  • Optional: olives and/or dried tomatoes

Recipe Raw Vegan Cashew Cheesecake for Pregnancy

Written by Tess in Recipes

Let’s make your own vegan cheesecake! It isn’t actually that hard. In the beginning I was hesitant at first because the cake needs to be in the freezer for 2 hours, but the preparation time isn’t that long. So if you’ve got all the ingredients and 20 spare minutes, go make that plant-based cheesecake. It is a no-bake cake, so you do not need an oven. Your guests will love this cake! The taste is not too sweet and the texture is smooth. It is also the ideal cake to make for your vegan baby shower or your vegan mothers blessing.

Can You Eat Vegan Cheesecake When Your’e Pregnant?

You can eat vegan cheesecake when you’re pregnant or if you want to become pregnant. Vegan cheesecake does not contain any dairy products at all and is therefore safe to eat when pregnant. Of course you should always be mindful for any mold if the vegan cheesecake is not freshly made, like any product. It is the ideal cake to make when you’re pregnant. ‘Traditional’ cheesecake is made with cream cheese and you should check if the cheese has been pasteurised. Vegan cheesecake is not made with any kind of dairy cheese and is safe to consume during pregnancy.

Is Vegan Cheesecake Healthy?

This cheesecake recipe does not contain any processed sugars. It is a handmade cake made of natural ingredients like pecan nuts, cashews, a little bit of coconut oil, dates and blueberries, the only ingredient processed is coconut milk. This recipe is a raw recipe which makes it even better as all nutrients remain contained. Every cake should be eaten in moderation of course, but this cheesecake is a guilt-free cake to consume pregnant or not pregnant. The recipe contains dates which are very smart to eat during your pregnancy due to its fibre content and its nutrients like potassium, folate and iron. At the end of your pregnancy it is even recommended to eat 6-4 dates a day as research has found it beneficial during labour. It softens the woman’s cervix and it lessens the need for oxytocin. Say no more!

Can You Store a Vegan Cheesecake in a Freezer?

You can store vegan cheesecake in the freezer for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Be mindful that the quality of the cake lessens the longer it stays in the freezer. If stored in the freezer make sure you add the blueberries (or raspberries) just before serving so the fruit keeps its texture (and it looks freshly made). You can put the whole cake in the freezer or pre-cut the pieces and then store it. Ideally take the cake out of the freezer 30 minutes before serving. Follow the recipe below to enjoy this delicious vegan cheesecake.

Raw Vegan Cashew Cheesecake for Pregnancy

Delicious easy to make raw vegan cheesecake. This vegan cheesecake is so yummy! Follow the steps and enjoy the feast of eating cakes without feeling guilty. There is no added sugar which is a big bonus!
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Freezer time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 20 minutes
Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 8

Equipment

  • Round cake pan 8-10 inch (20-24 cm)
  • Food processor or blender (you don't need a high-speed blender)

Ingredients
  

  • 2 cups blueberries or raspberries (250 gram)
  • 2 cups cashews (300 gram)
  • 1 ½ cup canned coconut milk (without the water) (350 gram)
  • 1 cup pecans (150 gram)
  • 4 medjool dates (or 1 cup / 150 g)
  • 4 tbsp coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 lemon (grated lemon zest)
  • 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract (16 ml)
  • dash (Himalaya) salt

Instructions
 

  • Soak all cashews.
  • Thaw chosen fruit (skip if you use fresh fruit).
  • Melt coconut oil.
  • Put dates, pecans, vanilla extract, salt and 2 tbsp coconut oil in food processor and blitz until smooth consistence appears.
  • Put pecan-mixture in a round cake pan (8-10 inch / 20-24 cm) and press firmly.
  • Grate the zest of the lemon.
  • Rinse food processor and blitz cashews, coconut milk, lemon zest, maple syrup and 2 tbsp coconut oil until smooth.
  • Add juice of thawed fruit and blitz together with cashew mixture to make mixture colourful. Alternatively you can blend a handful of blueberries with the cashew mixture to make it colourful.
  • Spread the cashew-mixture over the pecan-mixture.
  • Put cake pan in the freezer for 2 hours.
  • Remove cake pan from the freezer and divide chosen fruit over the cake.
  • Decorate or enjoy directly.

Notes

  • Store in refrigerator for 5 days in an airtight container.
  • Store in freezer for up to 3 months, add fruit just before you serve the cheesecake so the fruit doesn’t loose its texture.
Keyword Cheesecake, Glutenfree, Raw, sugarfree, Vegan

Grocery List

  • 2 cups blueberries or raspberries (250 gram)
  • 2 cups cashews (300 gram)
  • 1 ½ cup canned coconut milk (without the water) (350 gram)
  • 1 cup pecans (150 gram)
  • 4 medjool dates (or 1 cup / 150 g)
  • 4 tbsp coconut oil 
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 lemon (grated lemon zest)
  • 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract (16 ml)
  • dash (Himalaya) salt