Back in September I had the pleasure of trying out the low-carb Soulmate Food plan for my blog. A fun, vibrant brand offering innovative tailored chef-prepared healthy menus delivered to your door, their mantra that being healthy on the inside is just as important as being healthy on the outside fits my mentality and approach to my lifestyle.
I was impressed with their selection of nutritious and delicious gourmet meals and snacks over the three days, keeping me satisfied while being enjoyable to eat; Soumate Food dispels the myth that healthy food is dull and unimaginative. What made it more exciting is trying things I wouldn’t usually have, including celeriac and a ‘yoatie’. Together with a fast and efficient service, it really was a great experience.
With the launch of their new paleo plan, based on the principles of ‘eating foods that have not been processed…It’s about feeding your body with the foods that would have been available to people of the Paleolithic era’, I couldn’t wait to try this 3-day meal package. Nuts and seeds, fruits and vegetables and lean meats, the focus is on high protein, high fibre and low carbohydrate while allowing good fats to be consumed – right up my street then!
Listed on the Soulmate Food website are some of the benefits of the Paleo diet:
– Stabilises blood sugars
– Anti-inflammatory properties
– Clearer skin
– Natural weightloss
– Improved sleep patterns
All this sounds well and good, but it can be hard to find and source the correct food, especially when it comes to making it interesting and easy to incorporate into your diet…which is where the brand’s plan comes in, taking away the hassle and providing their new, freshly prepared and tailored plan to suit your goals. So, here’s how my Paleo experience went!
DAY ONE – MONDAY
Breakfast: Supergreen Coconut Yogurt with Grain-free Granola
I got to my desk after my usual morning workout and I was already excited to tuck into this vibrant green yogurt pot, a nice little surprise to brighten up a cold, drizzly morning. A creamy, mild mixture with hidden chunks of pineapple and a few raspberries (I would have perhaps liked a bit more fruit – berries!), the grain-free granola added a welcoming crunch and sweetness, making it a tasty meal to set me up for the day.
AM Snack: Rosemary & Garlic Beef Bites
Tender, juicy chunks of beef were a welcoming, protein-packed snack when it came round to 11am. As someone who tries to reduce the amount of carbs, this was a great option if you don’t mind savoury-based snacks. Tasty meat with a few spinach leaves to add some colour and variation, this was really enjoyable!
Lunch: Emerald Salad with Chicken
I was surprised by how much food there was for my lunch portion, which can only be a good thing! Packed generously with tender pieces of chicken, strips of bacon, chunks of feta with kale, broccoli, spinach and a sprinkling of seeds, this low-carb lunch was right up my street – I didn’t want it to end! This really filled me up, so much so that I saved my PM snack for when I got home, as a nice little starter before tea.
PM Snack: Babaganoush with Flaxseed Crackers – I was intrigued to try the flaxseed cracker but I’m sorry to say, it wasn’t my cup of tea. I’m not a cracker or rye bread fan anyway, so this was a bit dense and fibrous for me – BUT the babaganoush was delicious, creamy and garlicky. I chopped some raw celery sticks up and dipped those in the dip instead, an ideal substitute!
Dinner: Tamari Black Salmon with Carrot & Courgette Noodles
If I was to sum up this dish in one word, it would be: WOW. Delicious, soft salmon cooked in minutes, coated with black sesame seeds, served alongside strips of courgette and carrots plus a combination of red peppers, spring onions, shitaake mushrooms and my favourite, edamame beans. Together with a tasty tamari sauce, this colourful, protein and healthy fat packed dinner definitely hit the spot – I would buy that little pot of sauce in the shops if I could!
DAY 2 – TUESDAY
Breakfast: Superfood Scramble with Asparagus
I’m a huge fan of eggs, whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner, so this was a welcome start to the day. With asparagus, spinach, chillies and spring onion, this scramble could have had more egg in for my liking but was tasty and certainly a great high protein option for a post workout meal at my desk.
AM Snack: Cajun Chicken Bites with Guacamole
Succulent chunks of lightly spiced chicken made for a filling, protein-packed snack, coupled with a little tub of guacamole for dipping. Perfection! Can’t beat a tasty, high protein mini meal when it comes to elevenses, plus the breakfast didn’t fill me up too much but this certainly did!
Lunch: Deli Salad with Chicken
Rocket leaves, cubes of beetroot, cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and delicious thick slices of chicken (another portion of meat – certainly not short of protein!), this lunch was perfectly finished with an accompanying pot of fresh pesto. I absolutely love a combination like this, so for me I couldn’t have asked for a better mixture – satisfying, filling and full of flavour, I couldn’t fault this.
PM Snack: Chocolate Orange & Avocado Mousse – From the first mouthful of this rich, creamy, chocolatey mousse, I fell in love. Indulgent and sweet without being too sickly, this was a pot of perfection and felt far too naughty for me to enjoy guilt-free; but hey, being made from avocado means this is packed full of fibre, healthy fats and all the other wonderful health benefits of this superfood. Definitely a winner and fantastic afternoon pick-me-up treat.
Dinner: Thai Red Curry with Beef
I enjoy a bit of a kick in a meal, so I was looking forward to dinner. Baby corn, strips of carrot, red chillies, peppers and chunky slices of beef, coated in a wonderfully flavoured coconut curry sauce – this is what I was hoping for and it didn’t disappoint. Some mouthfuls packed more of a punch than others! I don’t usually have rice so this was ideal, although I was still a bit hungry after so had some natural yogurt with pureed apples and a few buts, which helped to cool my mouth down after the chillies!
DAY 3 – WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Courgette & Sweet Pepper Frittata
Hooray, more eggs for breakfast! Omelettes are one of my favourite things to make, so this frittata version looked to be an appetising choice, especially after my usual morning workout. Two substantial slice of courgettes, onion and sweet peppers set in eggs, nicely seasoned served alongside watercress leaves, this made for a tasty meal to set me up for the day, although I would have perhaps liked more chunks of vegetables in the frittata; that’s just personal preference though. You can’t beat a high protein, savoury breakfast to start the day right!
AM Snack: Oregano Beef Bites
Similar to Monday’s AM snack, these tender chunks of tasty beef were an enjoyable, filling and protein-packed snack. Usually I go for fruit in between meals but this kept the hunger pangs at bay until lunchtime plus I started to get into the habit for having something savoury at this time in the morning.
Lunch: Broccoli & Spinach Soup with Sweet Chilli / Chicken Salad Pot
WOW, two lunches?! I definitely didn’t complain about having two of my favourite things! Starting with the soup, a wonderful vibrant green colour (you could just tell it was brimming with nutrients and goodness), it was deliciously thick and packed full of flavour, just how soup should be. The salad of spring onions, grated courgette and carrot plus generous chunks of chicken with a super tasty sweet chilli sauce completed this meal and kept me full right up until dinner!
PM Snack: Ginger Spiced Nuts – I absolutely love pretty much any nuts, so this mini mixture of ginger-coated pecans and almonds satisfied my nut cravings. I usually enjoy plain nuts with nothing added, but this sweet coating was a nice change. Because I full all afternoon from a double lunch, I actually had these after tea as a sweet snack – perfection!
Dinner: Sausage, Mash & Root Vegetables
What a way to end the 3-day paleo plan on a dreary, cold winter night – sausage, mash and veg! A chunky sausage with a decent helping of sweet potato mash with parsnip and carrot battons in a rich gravy, this did the job in terms of satisfying comfort cravings. I would have perhaps liked more vegetables in the portion, although I guess I had a lot at lunchtime but it would have bulked out the meal more without adding calories. Meaty, filling and full of flavour, this really was a top end to a very enjoyable three days of fresh, imaginative and colourful food.
Thank you, Soulmate Food! This was even better than expected and I felt like the food had actually improved since last time, the brand is only moving forwards!