Self-Pampering 101: Working them Nuts

More often than not, you'll find that you are unkind to yourself, wishing that life would be kinder to you, that your friends would bestow their kindness upon you and that you deserve to be pampered.

It's probably best if you figure out that there's no one out there who can pamper you better than you. Naturally, in the realm of foods when the word "pamper" comes to mind you jump into cakes, burgers, pizza slices and other waist-expanding treats. That shouldn't be the case. No sir.

You can always take a crack at simple basic ingredients and give them the right twist to add buzzing flavor that'll definitely hit your sweet tooth while actually providing your body with high quality nutrients.

Let's take a crack at a breakfast meal. 

Let's say you're a sucker for peanut butter and jam. Sadly for you fitness freak in the making, jam is basically fruit (which is great) that has been literally drowned in processed sugar (not so great). What to do? How do you get your fix? That sweet, sweet sticky peanut butter. Peanut butter is actually quite amazing if you can get your hands on some high quality natural supplies - since the majority of the off-the-shelf products are super packed with sugars and preservatives. Peanuts are packed full of proteins, healthy fats as well as various antioxidants.

When it comes to peanut butter you've got two routes, one where you buy it from the grocery store (ready made and packaged) 

My recommended options include the Jif natural option (which you can usually find in Seoudi Markets around Cairo) as it's the one with the least ingredients (pretty much just peanuts and sugar and salt) unlike other brands which pack a ton of other processed chemicals and preservatives in there.

Your other option is a recently discovered treasure which I came across by chance, PB2 peanut butter powder which has powdered peanut butter that has 85% less fat [there's even an option with pre-blended-in dark chocolate!]. Where do I get this you ask - since I clearly do not live in a country where they create such awe inspiring wonders for my palette? Why, you can order it by messaging Superfoods Egypt of course! Their Facebook page also showcases plenty of super cool healthy products (including the most wonderful guilt-free probiotic chocolate bars ever!) Another option is ordering naturally made nut butters from Lettuceat, a Zamalek and Nasr City based entity which delivers across Cairo. They have some amazing samples of almond, cashew, peanut and hazelnut butters as well as many salads and sandwiches of the healthy variety. They deliver right to your doorstep, just give 19657 a call!

OR you can make your own! Sounds complicated, really isn't...

Steps for making your own peanut butter [Makes 1 1/2 cup of peanut butter]:

1. Get two cups of pre-roasted (raw) salted peanuts.
2. Spread on a baking pan.
3. Place in an oven (180 degrees Celsius/350 degrees Fahrenheit  for 6 - 8 minutes while shaking the pan every two minutes so they aren't scorched.
4. Let them cool down for a few minutes
5. Add the roasted peanuts to a food processor with a metal blade.
6. Add 1/2 table spoon of peanut oil (if available) or vegetable oil.
7. Work them around the processor for 2-3 minutes till mixture has formed a ball.
8. Scrape the peanuts which get stuck against the walls down using a spoon and keep processing until the desired consistency has been achieved.
9. Add a dash of salt or brown sugar according to taste. Honey can also be blended into the mix during processing.
10. Store in an airtight container (outside the fridge) for a day or two so the taste and flavor settle in and voila! You've made your very own peanut butter!

Alright, now that you've made your very own batch of super healthy peanut butter you sexy chef you, what are you going to do with it? How are you still going to get that sweet taste of fruit on your sticky peanuts without wrecking your waist with jam?

Why, you use frozen fruit of course. The optimal candidate for this is banana, as it takes just under 20 minutes to freeze and can still be easily chopped and mashed (or kept whole) and added directly onto your peanut butter toast. The frozen banana adds a wonderful contrast to the heated multi-grain toast upon which rests the peanut butter - basically a party in your mouth.

You can virtually replicate this using most fruits, berries are also premium candidates, grapes can frozen and sliced to be added atop the toast. You get the idea.

The above example is what I had for breakfast this morning, and you can even spruce it up by adding some flax or Chia seeds or cinnamon sprinkles on top for good measure. You can replace peanuts with almonds or cashews and make different nut butter batters. It's your sandbox to go wild in. Go crazy. Go nuts (pun totally intended)