Low Sugar

MY FAVOURITE LOW SUGAR COCKTAIL

Published on April 27, 2018March 3, 2025 by simplycarinaxo8 Comments

Good evening beautiful souls,

Now that the weather finally seems to be improving I’ve been feeling the cocktail vibes more and more and am ditching the red wines. However as summer and bikini season are approaching I thought I’d share with you my favourite low sugar cocktail so that you can still enjoy a drink without worrying about your waistline too much.

I’m not sure what to call it yet, maybe Bitter Breeze or something…

Well here it goes. You will need:

A lime
Gin
Diet bitterlemon
Fresh mint
Ice cubes

First pop your ice cubes into your glass – next add to your strength liking gin and bitterlemon (for this glass I used 2 shots of Bombay Dry Gin with ca. 300ml of bitterlemon) – squeeze in half a lime – decorate with another slice of lime and fresh mint.

Et voila – one Bitter Breeze at the ready – now sit back, relax and enjoy!

VEGAN WRAP PIZZA

Published on June 22, 2017June 24, 2017 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Good morning guys,

Yesterday I decided I would try making a pizza with wraps. I have seen so many people doing this and thought it was about time I tried it. I was plesantly surprised! It was yummy!

I started by putting a very thin layer of tomato pasta sauce on a wrap and then putting a second wrap on top. I thought a slightly thicker base would be nicer and the little tomato sauce stuck the two wraps together. Then I topped the second wrap with more tomato sauce, shallots, cherry tomatoes, vegan feta, salt, pepper, dried basil, parsley and oregano and cooked in the oven for about 10 mins till cheese had melted and the wrap looked crispy. Finally I topped it with fresh basil and a drizzle of balsamic. It really was rather tasty and I shall definitely be making this again! Its so quick and easy!! And filling!!

Have you ever tried wrap pizzas?? What are your favourite toppings, I’d love to know!

Love Carina xo

AM I LACTOSE INTOLERANT?

Published on May 18, 2017May 18, 2017 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Hey peeps,

As you can tell from the title this blog post is about dairy, and by dairy I mean milk products, not eggs.

For years I have now been having stomach problems, some bloating but mostly sudden extreme stomach cramps which end in explosive diarrhoea (sorry for the visuals aha but just being honest). These stomach problems have built up such an anxiety in me that I now have a fear of travelling or being in situations where there’s no toilets about in case I get these stomach cramps which I can’t control. This is making my life very restrictive, like when I go to the theatre or cinema I need to have a aisle seat, and even the smallest 20min walks in unknown places can make my anxiety rise dramatically!

Anyway, I have been to the doctors twice and they started looking into things with a blood and stool test, but nothing was really found and then I went away volunteering in November and when I came back in December I moved house, so I’ve not been to continue the testing yet, but I really want an allergy/intolerance test! Yes I know I could lead a food diary and I have tried that in the past, but it’s soo difficult to keep up with and I’ve always given up.

For a couple of months now I have been reducing my dairy intake by substituting milk for almond milk and not eating much cheese or obviously chocolate (ass it contains too much sugar) anymore and I do think it has made a difference. For example, on Easter Sunday, I indulged in chocolate and in the afternoon/evening I got a really bad stomach. Another time I had broccoli cheese and half an hour later I was on the toilet for like 20 minutes aha. So although I have never been tested for lactose intolerance, I am pretty sure I am. My stomach is definitely better when I avoid dairy, so I am taking the plunge and going completely milk free, well mostly aha.

I am now sticking to almond or soya milk, both unsweetened of course to avoid unnecessary sugars, I use dairy free butter/a sunflower spread and I actually rather like the vegan cheese I’ve been using. However I will still occasionally have a croissant or a pizza, luckily shop bought ones are usually not covered in cheese so its not an overdose like it would be on a takeaway pizza or something. I will see how my stomach continues. I definitely think there’s other things out there that don’t agree with my gut either. I will keep you updated!

Love Carina xo

WHAT I EAT IN A DAY

Published on April 5, 2017March 3, 2025 by simplycarinaxo1 Comment

Hello my beautiful friends,

Here’s a what I eat in a day from last week as I am currently in the Peak District!

So after a couple too many drinks the night before aha I had a breakfast to help cure my mini hangover. Dippy eggs, bacon and an Innocent smoothie.

I had a late start at work, my shift only starting at 12pm so I could enjoy my breakfast in peace and lunch at work was only at about 3pm. I got this yummy avocado chicken salad!

After work I hit the gym and so dinner was a bit later, but I was ready for it. I made a little portion of a chicken green veg stir fry with some corn on the cob, which I absolutely love to eat with just a little butter and salt – yummy!

Love Carina xo

2 STONE DOWN

Published on April 4, 2017April 3, 2017 by simplycarinaxo2 Comments

Good morning friends,

So I completely forgot to mention yesterday, but after a bit of a standstill the past two weeks (having been ill the first and then just not quite back into the swing of things the second) I have managed to loose 2kg / 4.4lbs this week!!! This finally brings me down to 89kg!! It has been quite a while since I have been under 90kg! I am soo happy to still be making progress.

So since I started my weightloss journey I have lost 2 stone! When I look in the mirror I sadly struggle to see any difference, but other people have commented they can tell, and when I put on my jeans I can tell I’ve lost as I need to wear a belt with them now to keep them up. So I guess the changes are starting to show slowly but surely! I can’t wait to see how my journey progresses!

Love Carina xo

WHAT I EAT IN A DAY

Published on March 23, 2017March 1, 2024 by simplycarinaxoLeave a comment

Hello my beautiful friends,

It’s time for another What I Eat In A Day post!

Last week I stewed up some plums which were just a bit past ripe to enjoy, and then totally forgot about them. Yesterday morning I spotted them in the fridge and decided to make some French toast as it’s amazing topped with stewed plums! I had a soft roll which needed eating so I cut it into three parts and then dunked it into my cinnamon and egg mix (cinnamon is a must for me when making French toast) and then fried it in the pan (no butter or oil). The plum compote I just warmed up in the microwave and enjoyed with the French toast. I also made myself a berry smoothie to drink throughout the morning. I can’t do mornings without a smoothie aha, it’s so much a part of my routine now!

For Lunch I had some vegetable soup with low sugar toast (Warburtons tiger bread at 0.5g of sugar per slice is by far the lowest sugar bread I have found). For some reason however, I started feeling full and a bit queasy halfway through my soup so didn’t manage to finish it.

Dinner was a bit of a naughty meal as it was the leaving do from one of my work friends. We all went to an Italians and enjoyed some yummy food. We all had olives and bread for starters, then for mains I ordered a breaded chicken with asparagus in a tomato sauce with vegetables and garlic bread (the only thing that was disappointing was that there was so many potatoes in the vegetables I was hoping for more greens) but the chicken was super tasty and such a large portion that I only managed half and got the rest wrapped up to take home. With the meal I enjoyed a glass of white wine and the we got a shot of limoncello on the house after dessert. Although I was really full I indulged in a hazelnutty thing with meringue and chocolate filling for dessert.

So that wraps up my what I eat in a day!

Love Carina xo