Long Read

Everything we’re eating this Easter…

exante diet cinnamon shake has been turned into easter hot cross buns

With Easter weekend approaching, we’ve only got one thing on our mind-food! But what if you wanted to keep making healthier choices this Easter? Fear not – we’ve put together some recipes and tips so you can enjoy this weekend without the overindulgence – meet exante’s Guide to Easter

Starting with the classic Easter Lunch

The Easter Sunday Roast dinner is no doubt the main event, there’s no better way to celebrate Easter than with a tasty British roast, right? And luckily, the staple Sunday dinner can be enjoyed guilt-free! Packed with protein, fibre and full of flavour, our ‘Healthy Sunday Dinner’ recipe means you can enjoy the Easter festivities whilst still remaining on track!

Healthy Roast Dinner with chicken, broccoli and sweet potato

Ingredients

This makes 1 serving and only requires 4 ingredients!

  • 100g turkey breast
  • 170g sweet potato
  • 80g broccoli
  • 20g light, spreadable butter

Method

  • Pre-heat the oven to 180˚c/365˚F.
  • Bake the turkey breast for around 20 minutes, or until cooked through.
  • For the vegetables: Peel and chop the sweet potatoes.
  • Add sweet potatoes to a pan of boiling water and cook for 20 minutes, while the turkey is baking in the oven.
  • In a separate pan, add the broccoli to a pan of boiling water and cook for 10-15 minutes.
  • Add the portion of butter to the vegetables to serve and plate alongside the turkey breast.

Nutrition

  • 36.1g carbs
  • 14.7g fat
  • 40g protein
  • 452 calories

Enjoy yourself! Our egg-celent top tips…

We understand this time of year can get difficult when it comes to temptation and resisting, let’s face it, countless chocolate eggs! However you approach this weekend, remember to enjoy yourself. Life is there to be enjoyed! Allow yourself the odd treat if you want to.

The important thing to remember is not to punish yourself or allow in guilty and negative thoughts. It’s ok to allow yourself measured ‘off-plan’ treats…exante will be ready to help you get back on track whenever you’re ready. To enjoy Easter totally guilt-free, here are our egg-cellent top tips…

  • Planning is key – planning your meals ahead of time will make it easier to keep your food intake under control. Opt for meals and snacks that are rich in protein and vegetables to ensure you’re still consuming the nutrients you need. Why not try our healthy Sunday dinner for only 452 calories?
  • Be Portion-wise – Guess what? You can still enjoy chocolate ‘on-plan’ by ensuring you count the calories! Portion your desired chocolate by weight and calculate the calories based on the packet information. If you know how many calories you are consuming, this will be a lot easier to track. Choose smaller, individually wrapped treats to make the calorie counting even easier.
  • Stay active – If you know you are going to be enjoying a few Easter treats, it might be a good idea to increase your activity slightly. Perhaps a family walk on Easter Sunday, or plan some Easter games in the garden for example. Activity doesn’t have to be strenuous, but light movement and being on your feet will certainly help.
  • Choose one day – If you know there will be lots of temptation during the bank holiday weekend, limit yourself to just one day. Steer clear of the temptation on the days surrounding Easter Sunday, but allow yourself to enjoy the big day.

Our favourite Easter Pack Hacks…One for the Chocoholics

exante Chocolate Dessert topped with Mini chocolate Eggs

Want to enjoy the chocolate treats but sticking to a calorie deficit? Ty our favourite low calorie Chocolate Easter Mousse- the perfect Easter treat!

What you’ll need
  • Chocolate Delight dessert
  • 150 ml water
  • 2 egg whites
  • Your favourite Easter chocolate- we used Mini Eggs!
Method
  1. Whisk your Chocolate Delight with 150ml water
  2. In a separate bowl, whisk your egg whites until soft peaks form
  3. Add your chocolate mixture to the egg whites and combine
  4. Leave to set in the fridge
  5. Once set, top with your Easter treat and enjoy!

For the Hot Cross Bun Lover…

Kate’s Tear & Share Hot Cross Buns

cinnamon exante shake made into hot cross buns

Recipe makes 6 large buns that and are 183 calories each.

You will need:

WET INGREDIENTS:

  • 150ml almond milk, lukewarm (26 calories)
  • 60g 0% Greek yogurt (40 calories)
  • 1 egg ( 54 calories)

DRY INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 7g pack instant yeast
  • 200g  plain flour (700 calories) 
  • 1x pack exante Cinnamon Swirl Shake pack (200 calories)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • Sprinkle of flour to knead
  • 60g sultanas  201 calories

CROSSES:

  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 2 tbsp water

HERE’S HOW TO MAKE IT:

  • Preheat oven to 200*C
  • Warm the milk, then sprinkle over yeast. Sit for 30 seconds, Bubbles will appear when yeast has activated.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt and egg together, then mix in yeast & milk. Sift all the dry ingredients into the bowl and stir.
  • Fold in the sultanas until your dough forms. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for a couple of minutes until smooth (If the mixture is too sticky, add flour). I weighed 6x “dough” balls at just over a 100g each.
  • Place the buns into a lightly greased bowl. Cover and set aside in a warm place to prove for a while
  • Next, arrange the buns on a greased baking tin close together. Set aside for 30-45 minutes.
  • For the crosses, mix the flour & water until you get a thick paste. Add to a piping back and pipe over buns in a cross shape.
  • Bake the oven for 15 minutes.
  • Once baked, tear off a bun, and enjoy warm!

Kate’s Simpler Hot Cross Buns:

healthy hot cross buns

What you’ll need
  • 1x Shake of your choice (Kate used vanilla)
  • 50 ml water
  • 1/4 tsp xanthan gum (for texture)
  • 1 x tsp baking powder
  • 1x tsp cinnamon
  • Raisins (optional) I added 5g so 14 calories & 3.3g carbs
  • 10g Oat Mix (39 calories 6g carbs) whizzed up into ‘flour’
Method
  1. Combine the shake mix, baking powder, xanthan gum and ‘flour’ with 50 ml water
    We like to add some oats to make it more crumb like texture
    Mould the mixture into a bun shape and add your cross with the flour mix
  2. Place on a greaseproof baking sheet and cook at 175 for 15-20 mins
  3. Serve and enjoy!

Olivia’s Easter Baked Oats

Mini egg exante chocolate baked oats

  • Blitz up 15g of rolled oats in a food processor
  • In a oven-safe dish, add your exante diet chocolate shake sachet
  • Add half a teaspoon of baking powder along with 100g milk of your choice
  • Top with mini eggs
  • Bake at 180*C until slightly cracking on the top
  • Dive in and enjoy!

Ditch the guilt this Easter!

For more tips on ditching the post-treat guilt, check out the blog post below…

It’s OK if you ‘fall off the wagon’

Long Read

It’s OK if you ‘fall off the wagon’

2021-01-25 16:02:23By Katie Jerome

And there we have it! Our guide to enjoying the Bank Holiday weekend to the max! We’d love to hear what you’ve got planned – are you creating some egg-sante Easter Pack Hacks? Or perhaps you’re planning an Easter egg hunt in the garden? Get in touch via our Facebook or Instagram page to let us know!



Katie Jerome

Katie Jerome

Writer and expert

Katie graduated from the University of Manchester in 2018 with a BSc in Marketing. Since leaving university, Katie enjoys discovering new recipes and making healthy food at home. As a follower of the exante 5:2 plan, Katie, who works in the Social & Content team knows first-hand the importance of a balanced lifestyle to reach an end goal.