FAQ

If you don’t eat a lot of plant-based food yet, it will require a little more of you in the initial stages. You have to pay close attention to what you can eat and what not, you will have to get a little more ingredients in the house, you work with more different spices and there is more variety, which is of course more fun, delicious and healthy! But still, it’s something you can look at in a different way. Isn’t it worth those few extra minutes? How long does it take to heat up a non-fresh pizza? To go get unhealthy fast food? Maybe with that time you can still do something good for your body and cook fresh. It really is a lifestyle, take it one step at a time and see what effect it has on your health. I’m sure you’ll feel better and won’t want it any other way afterwards. 

Oatmeal or chia pudding can be kept in the refrigerator for up to two days. It is not unhealthy to eat the recipe several days later, but the fresher, the tastier.

Smoothies and juices can be kept in a sealed bottle or mug in the fridge for up to two days, or in the freezer for up to two weeks. Fresh, of course, remains the most delicious.

Fresh soups can be kept in a closed container or pan in the refrigerator for up to four days. You can also easily freeze soup. Eat it within a month. 

Most snacks (such as carrot cake muffins, banana bread and apple cake) will keep for up to two weeks in the refrigerator and four to six weeks in the freezer. Dry snacks (such as muffins and bread) are best stored outside the refrigerator in a plastic container with a lid.

Spreads and sauces can be kept in the refrigerator for five to seven days in a sealed container (airtight). If you drizzle a small layer of olive oil on top of pesto, it will stay tasty even longer.

It’s not always easy, especially if you are on the road a lot. The best thing to do then is to think ahead and plan well, because to-go stores don’t always sell the most healthy products. Make sure you prepare your food at home. Check out this page for tasty meal prep & to go recipes. If you fly around a lot, always bring a snack with you like a slice of bananabread or blissball, an easy vegatable wrap and plenty of water. This way you don’t necessarily have to eat what they serve on the plane. Fortunately, our society is starting to pay more and more attention to healthy eating. You can buy more and more fresh (and organic) products in a to-go store,  but unfortunately the world of prepackaged food still dominates. It’s all about making the right choices and that’s where I hope to help you with my platform.

When a new season begins, I really enjoy cooking and baking with the fruits and vegetables of that season. I find the fruit and vegetable calendar very useful. This way you can see exactly what is grown in the Netherlands and when! These vegetables and fruits are at their best time of the year. It is also much better for the environment to eat seasonally and to cook with the ingredients that the Dutch soil offers at that time. Especially for you, I have created a fruit and vegetable calendar. You can easily download it, print it out and hang it up in your kitchen. So you always have it at hand.

The most frequently asked question is why I include calories and other nutrients in the recipes. 

Within scientific research, calorie surplus is seen as an important factor for obesity and cardiovascular diseases. That is why I think it is important to pay attention to this. But I have a slightly different view of calories.

Counting calories is not my preference, because I know from my past that once you do that, you focus more on counting than on looking at the nutritional value. Why I include it with the recipes, is mainly to get a conscious view and knowledge of nutrients. Of course it provides a guideline, but I would like to inspire you to eat healthily and consciously. For me, it is mainly about behavioral change, where you become unconsciously competent. I think it is better that you listen to your body. A schedule doesn’t tell you if you can eat something or not. It’s about knowing what you’re eating.

Look at the whole picture. For example, why can’t I stop eating? Have I got enough nutritional values? Do I have any shortages? Am I moving enough, am I getting enough oxygen and how do I feel mentally? If you compare an avocado to an unhealthy sugar-rich bar, it could be that they both contain the same amount of calories. But they are very different in nutritional value. There is a difference between ingredients with or without (good) nutritional values, vitamins and minerals (because although a date indeed contains a lot of natural sugars, you also get good substances such as magnesium, calcium, vitamin C and fiber through a date) or so-called empty calories such as granulated sugar. (Because sugar remains sugar and your blood level is indeed influenced by both, but there is a difference).  

For me, it’s all about a healthy and natural body composition. And that is different for everyone! That’s why I don’t believe that if we start counting we will feel better in the end.

With my recipes I have a nutrient table. This serves to create more knowledge and awareness of what and how much you eat. It is not a guideline of how much you should eat. It is meant to support give your information and for your goals!