For those of you that know me know how much I love food. The one thing that gets me out of bed in the morning is thinking about what I am going to have for breakfast – I kid you not as it is probably my favourite meal of the day. I then get excited what I am going to have for lunch, afternoon snack, dinner and so on. Food plays an important part in my everyday life, and although I am naturally skinny people that don’t know me always tend to think that I’m on a diet or am one of those people that will pick at their food – Think again!

I don’t believe in diets but simply believe in eating a well balanced healthy diet. I will not deprive myself of anything – I simply try and cut down processed sugars (even though I admit it is diffulct), will try and avoid fatty fried foods, eat lots of veggies and fruit and I do not drink much alcohol – simply because I don’t enjoy the taste – the occasional glass of red I like but that’s about it. It is important for me to try and eat healthily as I suffer from Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The lower GI intake the better as it could lead to diabetes in the future. Not to mention all the side affects that PCOS brings which can have an affect on your self confidence.

Anyway I thought I would share with you 5 things that I cannot live without in my kitchen – I’m no expert but I am always reading health books on nutrition because I find it fascinating and truly believe we are what we eat. So here are a few staples that I always use and stock up in my cupboard… I cut it down to five but I could have gone on and on…

1. Olive Oil – I come from an Italian family so no surprise here. Good quality extra virgin olive oil plays a major role in my diet – I use it everywhere when cooking savoury dishes and in my salads. It has this gorgeous strong flavour that compliments all your dishes. Olive Oil plays a major role in mediterranean diets so it is interesting to see that recent studies have shown that people from that region have longer life expectancies and lower risks of heart disease, high blood pressure and stroke, compared with North Americans and Northern Europeans.

2. Himalayan Pink Salt – I love this and use it all the time when cooking (in moderation) Compared to normal salt this has loads of great benefits. It provides a whopping 84 trace minerals, regulates the water content throughout your body and also helps with the PH balance of your cells. You can read more info here.

3. Apple Cider Vinegar – I’ve now pretty much replaced this with my beloved balsamic vinegar. Reason being is that I have a very sensitive digestive system and have found that apple cider vinegar really helps. It has an alkalising effect on the body and helps with digestive problems. It’s just great for salads which I tend to eat a lot of 🙂

4. Almond Milk –  I don’t really drink that much normal milk anymore and have replaced it with Almond milk and I actually prefer the taste so much more. Its nutty flavour is great in porridge and also coffee. Again Almonds are very alkaline which is great for the body and on a plus side they are high in Vitamin E which is also great for the skin 🙂

5. Grains & Pasta – If there is one thing I will stock up and that is lots of grains and pasta. My husband is wheat intolerant so we tend to buy kamut, spelt or buckwheat pasta. I swear that Kamut pasta taste exactly like the real thing! However if you are also gluten intolerant then buckwheat pasta is best for you. The grains that I tend to always go for are Quinoa, brown rice and oats.

I would love to know some of your essentials in the kitchen – it’s great to share things and learn from one another.