Tuesday 19 April 2011

New Healthy Food Guide magazine


Last month, I was asked if I'd like to receive the launch issue of a new monthly magazine from the publishers of Delicious magazine called the Healthy Food Guide. When it arrived, I had a quick flick through but, to be honest, it didn't leap out at me as anything particularly ground-breaking or different to all the other foodie/health magazines out there. I stumbled across it again the other day and started properly reading it and I was actually really impressed.

The publishers promise a magazine that "aims to provide a combination of expert nutrition advice, practical food tips and delicious recipes put together specifically for people who want to eat healthily, but still enjoy great food. The content is based on topical, up-to-date, scientific research from the world of food and nutrition, which is then translated into easy-to-understand features. The magazine has an extensive panel of properly qualified health, diet and cookery experts and so is guaranteed to be free from fads or false promises. Additionally, every article is checked by an experienced nutritionist before being printed, so readers can be confident the advice is 100 percent accurate."

Now, call me a cynic but most of the "delicious recipes" and "great food" that is featured by most healthy eating magazines tends to be anything but. There's a limit to how interesting you can make a green salad or a plate of pasta with vegetables sound ! Well, this magazine talks to real people who may be trying to lose a few kilos but who want real food, not "diet food" or faddy "lose weight in time for the summer"-type eating plans. I am currently trying to lose weight while maintaining a healthy-but-tasty menu that appeals to the whole family, so one article that made me sit up and take notice (not to mention salivate) was the one entitled "Chocolate Treats Your Waistline Will Love". Can you believe they have low-calorie recipes including Chocolate, Raspberry and Toblerone Brownies and Double Chocolate Mini Muffins ! And here was me thinking a Slimfast chocolate bar was the height of indulgence !

Whenever I read a "healthy eating" magazine, I always skip over half of the pages because I can't be dealing with quick-fix diets, faddy eating plans and women who can plan their whole day around preparing their healthy food and eating 3 mini-meals and 5 healthy snacks to avoid splurging - hello, welcome to the real world ?! How could you fit that into a normal busy working mum's day ?!

The new magazine actually talks to real people just like me. The first issue has a lot of useful content for mums about creating healthy packed lunches and snacks for the kids, as well as a meal-planner offering real family meals. One recipe leapt out at me that I will definitely try later in the week because it uses white fish, cooked rice, peas and a jar of pasta sauce - yes, shortcuts are allowed, this is not a "food snob" magazine ! The writers know what real people need, also offering an "amazing 1 hour dinner party" feature reminiscent of Jamie Oliver's 30 minute meals.

Once I'd started reading, I couldn't put it down. If you've only got a moment, you can dip into the fascinating facts that shake up a lot of things that have become "common knowledge" by revealing new scientific discoveries and research findings. I've earmarked several recipes that I will definitely be trying because they look tasty, are low-fat and healthy but, just as importantly, use common store-cupboard staples and are quick and easy to prepare. I also love the way they take the kind of meals you often make and just tweak them so they're healthier without you making any great changes - Moroccan pizza, Posh veggie sausage & mash, Beef enchiladas and carrot cake all get a healthy makeover but still look delicious.

I think this is probably the first healthy eating magazine that I have read cover to cover and felt that every single article was relevant to me. I'd love to see more features on cooking shortcuts and pointing out the healthiest brands for shop-bought products like sauces, snacks and baked goods. It seems slightly expensive at £2.80 but I think that's the handbag size making me feel I'm not getting such value for money as with the larger-sized magazines ! If you take out all the pages I usually skim over as totally irrelevant to my lifestyle, it's definitely better value.

star rating : 4.5/5

RRP : £2.80 for 115 pages

for more information : http://www.healthyfood.co.uk/

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5 comments:

  1. Today we've been discussing the difference between the "use by" date and the "best before" date and wondering if people really know the difference? So, do you know the difference and are there any foods you would eat after the "use by" date?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yoghurts, cheese, bread, cakes, tinned foods, etc as long as it passes the sniff-test! I wouldn't risk it with fresh meat/fish. I know you can go past the best before date (it might just lose in taste/appearance but won't do you any harm) but not the use by date.

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