An overeating-free Pesach

HILIT MILNER

Everywhere you look, you see foods like kneidlach, sweet braised beef, and chocolate coated matzah, and you start to think of how you always seem to pack on the weight during Pesach. Don’t panic! It’s simple and possible to enjoy Pesach while still eating healthily.

Let’s start from the beginning, the seders. There are ways to stop the food-anxiety, overeating, and inevitable regret:

• Drink water. This will not only keep you hydrated, but sometimes we tend to overeat because we are thirsty, not hungry.
• Watch your portion sizes. Although your aunt’s kneidel is delicious, it’s equally good when halved.
• Balance. A good tip is to consider the matzah and kneidel as your starches for the evening and fill the rest of your meal with fibre-filled green vegetables and salads, and a delicious protein once the buffet is served.
• Mindfulness. It is important to focus on intuitive and mindful eating, eating according to your “tummy hunger”. Pace yourself, and chew your food well, allowing yourself to fill up on nourishing chicken soup and protein-rich egg. Dish up quality over quantity. Stop when you are 80% full, even if it means leaving food on your plate.

The truth is, it’s not necessary to have a six-course meal. Unfortunately, though, we always go beyond bitter herbs and before we know it, we have turned ourselves into matzah balls.

It’s not just the seders that challenge people. Often, when we have restrictions, we feel as if the wheels come off and there is nothing to eat.

Eating healthily during Pesach is no different from eating healthily every other day of the year, besides a few minor changes, and there is plenty of food that you can eat.

Many of us rely on pre-packaged foods during Pesach. Replace these packaged foods with ingredients such as raw vegetables, fresh fruit, lean proteins, fresh herbs, and homemade dressings. Healthy starch alternatives to matzah include low GI sweet or baby potatoes, butternut, pumpkin, quinoa, cauliflower rice, or zucchini noodles.

Restrictions on whole-grain products, pulses, and legumes (for Ashkenazis) and overeating matzah, can be constipating. To combat this, drink lots of water throughout the day, increase physical activity and your fibre intake by eating vegetables, seeds, nuts, and homemade fruit compote.

Meal planning is a fantastic way to ensure you have a stress-free, healthy Pesach, as it stops you from reaching for the go-to, lying around matzah:

Breakfast. Replace your matzah braai (egg matzah) or high-in-sugar Crispy-O’s with a homemade grain free muesli, rich in fibre and healthy fats. Alternatively, have an egg with vegetables, a muesli and yoghurt filled papaya boat or make yourself sweet potato toast, by putting thin slices of sweet potato in the toaster, with a variety of toppings. Quinoa is known as the “mother of all grains”, as it is high in minerals, vitamins, fibre, and protein. A great idea is to make an overnight soaked quinoa porridge or cook up a quick apple and cinnamon quinoa oats.

Snacks. Are you snacking on geschmirte matzah and Bissli snacks? A better option is to make your own snack plate with homemade oven-baked kale, sweet potato or eggplant chips, vegetable crudités, and an avocado dip. You can also bake your own apple and cinnamon almond-flour muffins, or keep it simple by having fruit, nuts, a yoghurt, or even a boiled egg.

Lunch and dinner. Lunches and dinners shouldn’t change. Matzah pizza is fun to make, and your matzah lasagne is always a hit, but don’t make these daily routines. Start off your meals with a green vegetable soup. Have some lighter meals like fresh salads with a protein or frittata with greens. Nourish yourselves with basil and mint pesto chicken with zucchini noodles; seared salmon with Asian cauliflower fried rice; mince and ratatouille eggplant boats; butternut-mash cottage pie; or Moroccan mushroom and quinoa stuffed pepper. Remember to fill your plate with fresh greens, fresh herbs and homemade dressings, and always choose good quality proteins.

Dessert. If you have a sweet tooth, dip apples in a raw cocoa drizzle; make your own no-bake, raw cocoa macaroons; or have a portion of berries or the last summer fruits.

This Pesach ask, “Why is this Pesach different to all other Pesachs?” To which you can now answer, “This Pesach I did not overeat; I made healthier food choices, and most of all, I freed myself from matzah meals by realising that there are so many wholesome meal and snack options at my fingertips.”

• For more recipes for the delicious meals mentioned above and more, go to www.sunrisebyhm.com or follow @sunrisebyhm on Facebook or Instagram.

  Grain-free kosher-for-Pesach muesli

  Ingredients

  (Makes enough for eight days for two people)

• 1½ cups kosher for Pesach nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, hazel nuts)
• ½ cup flaked almonds
• 1 cup coconut flakes
• ½ cup unsweetened desiccated coconut
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• ½ teaspoon salt

Method

• Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees centigrade.
• Roughly chop the nut mixture, and add it to a large mixing bowl.
• Into the bowl, add the flaked almonds, desiccated coconut, coconut flakes, ground ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon.
• Place a small saucepan on a medium-heated stovetop, and add the coconut oil, honey and salt. Mix until melted and pour the liquid over the spiced nut and coconut mixture.
• Mix the wet and dry ingredients together until the nuts are evenly coated with the honey and oil.
• Line a baking tray with baking/parchment paper. Pour the muesli mixture onto the tray spreading it evenly with the back of a spoon.
• Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until golden brown.

Serve with kosher-for-Pesach yoghurt, fruit, or even on top of quinoa porridge.

Chicken and Zucchini Noodles with Basil and Mint Pesto

Ingredients

(serves 3-4)

Chicken and zucchini noodles

• 1 packet chicken breasts (400g)
• 1 packet fresh zucchini noodles (250g x grams)
• ½ carton Rosa tomatoes (100g)
• 1 small packet tender stem broccoli (125g)
• 1 small packet asparagus spears (170g)
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• Salt and pepper

Basil and Mint Dressing

• 1 handful fresh basil
• 1 handful fresh mint
• ½ clove garlic, grated
• ¼ teaspoon mustard
• ½ teaspoon honey
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons water
• Salt and pepper

Method

Chicken and zucchini noodles

• Cut the chicken into even-sized cubes. Cut the tomatoes into halves, as well as the asparagus and the broccoli.
• Place one medium-sized non-stick pan and one small non-stick pan onto medium-heated stovetops.
• Put the coconut oil into the medium-sized pan. Once it is hot add the pieces of chicken as well as 1½ tablespoons of the basil mint dressing and cook for 10 minutes.
• Add the cut tomatoes, asparagus and another tablespoon of the mint and basil and cook for another five minutes.
• In the smaller pan, put the zucchini noodles, a dash of salt and a tablespoon of mint and basil dressing. Using tongs, turn them every 30 seconds for four minutes until they soften slightly.
• Add the broccoli into the pan with the chicken and vegetables and cook for another two minutes.
• Remove the zucchini noodles from the pan, portion them out into bowl and place the chicken, asparagus, broccoli and tomatoes onto the noodles. Drizzle the remaining dressing over the dish.

Basil and Mint Dressing

• Chop the mint and basil and add it to a tall jar.
• Into the jar grate the garlic and add the mustard, honey, lemon juice, white wine vinegar, olive oil, water, salt and pepper.
• Using a stick blender, blend the ingredients together to form a herby pesto-like dressing.