The TasteBox Blog

As our food prices continue to rise and our proverbial belts continually need tightening, the humble dried bean can be a lifesaver.

Slowly fermented artisanal sourdough is part of the growing slow-food culture and much better for us than commercially mass-produced bread. Hilton is exceptionally lucky to have Wild Bread Co. in the heart of the village.

There are so many websites and articles that wax lyrical about what seems like hundreds of different types of chilli with exotic names but let’s just bring that down a notch or two and talk about those that are commonly found in a supermarket. And let’s just call them red chillies and green chillies.

The price of food these days is all over the place. Throw in our struggling economy, and suddenly we need to start making smarter choices. This is true for us as a small business, and you as a consumer. This is why we are so thrilled to introduce our new pricing tiers: Budget, Standard and Premium. This gives us more flexibility to maintain the standards we hold dear, such as quality ingredients, nutritional value and portion size, while giving you the freedom to choose which meals either match your budget or meet your fancy.

If, like us, you are not actually vegetarian, but like to add vegetarian meals into your repertoire, you have probably come across tofu, but are not sure what to do with it, or how to cook it. Look no further. We have come to grips with this awesome high protein, low carb food and it’s time to share our tips with you.

Need a quick pasta sauce? Need to take mince from bleh to fabulous? Making a pizza? Got leftover chicken? Marinara is your man!

Spinach is high on the list of superfoods but low on the “oh yeah I want to cook that” list. Yes you can buy it washed, chopped and ready for the pot but that is expensive and it doesn’t last long in the fridge. And it grows like a weed in a small space, constantly renewing itself as you pick.

Summer is here, the sun is shining (some days!) and colds and flu are far from our mind. But don’t neglect your immune system - winter and its accompanying viruses will be here soon enough.

It all starts around December 27th. After a long month of office parties, Christmas meals and one too many lunch time drinks around the pool, you are feeling bloated, heavy and ready to start afresh. Come January, you are chanting “New Year, New Me” to yourself, you have set goals and made plans. But let’s be honest now, are you still sticking to those by the end of February? Probably not. A lot of the time, these goals are a bit too far-fetched and unsustainable in the long term. When the shiny new-ness of the plan wears off and reality starts to kick in, we are often back into our old unhealthy habits and feeling a sense of failure.

Those bunches of beetroot lying at the supermarket look rather intimidating. Rough, ungroomed and hard to deal with in fact! But once you pluck up the courage to master the beetroot you will find that it is a wonderful addition to a healthy diet.

The term “gut health” is the big buzz word in the health arena lately. But what does gut health actually mean? What is a gut microbiome when it’s at home? And why should we be keeping our gut microbiome healthy?

Hydration isn’t only a subject for athletes.  Learn why we all need to pay attention to the amount we drink, the things we drink and the type of foods we eat to give the body enough water to maintain good health. Every single cell, tissue and organ in the body needs water. Among other things it is essential for maintaining body temperature, removing waste and lubricating joints.

Recently, I was invited to a local company’s wellness day in my capacity as dietician and as the owner of TasteBox.  They wanted me to chat to the employees about health and wellness, something I absolutely love doing. The catch though was that the slot was only 15 minutes long. My challenge was to try and distill years of advice and experience down into something that I could say in 15 minutes. I thought I would share it here.

You may have heard the phrase “sitting is the new smoking” but are confused as to what it actually means? For a long time, cigarette smoking was one of the biggest health challenges we faced. These days, people are a lot more aware of the dangers of smoking and have stopped. But what are we doing more and more of? You guessed it…sitting. We sit in our cars to get to work. We sit at our desks. We sit in our cars to get home. And then we sit in front of the TV.

We know that too many takeaways are bad for us and that meals using fresh ingredients, cooked in our own kitchens, should be the way to go. But we also know that when you are tired and rushed it is just so tempting to rather pick up something ready-made….

We know that convenience foods, whether in the form of fast foods, takeaways or mass produced ready-prepared meals are bad for us, right? We all accept this as a general statement but perhaps you are unaware of the actual reasons why. These foods are designed and prepared in such a way to keep us coming back for more, despite our internal organs begging us to stop!

You may have heard the term “omega 3 fatty acid” but are unclear as to what it actually is. Omega 3 is an essential fat – the word essential in this context means that we rely on it coming from our diet as the body cannot survive without it. Our modern-day diet tends to be very low in omega 3. An omega 3 deficiency is linked to a myriad of health problems including high cholesterol levels, inflammation and joint pain.

Our lives are frantic, technology rules us, our nerves are frazzled and eating has become something we do on the go. And to make matters worse, we are passing this on to our children as the normal thing to do.

You may know by now that TasteBox is big on veggies, but definitely not boring veggies. Balsamic Roasted Vegetables is yet another way to make your veggies delicious. It’s a very easy side dish for a braai, pan-fried steak, a piece of nice fish, or chicken.

No matter the reason for which someone chooses to consult with me (be it weight loss, sports nutrition, or a medical condition), I always make sure to have a conversation about mindful eating and the power it has in helping us to keep our health and nutrition in check.