feeling too hot to eat? you’re not alone!

Hello everyone!

How are you feeling today? Hope you’re surviving the temperature!

it’s been very hot past few days- and who can forget the super-hot-43-degree-Celsius-Tuesday!

Image from Sydney Morning Herald website http://www.smh.com.au/environment/weather/exceptional-heatwave-challenges-records-20130108-2cdn9.html

There were several bushfire and my heart goes out for those who were/are affected.

I do hope that everyone is safe and sound- and cool.

Are you feeling too hot to eat anything? I am.

Forget eating. I can’t even down my coffee this morning. Tsk! shame on me.

I do think I need ideas.

to eat, to drink and..basically to survive the weather.

I grew up in Indonesia and it’s always hot, but again- i took my air-conditioned room at home for granted. lesson learnt!

so this morning, after a lovely catch up with my wonderful mentor, Wendy, I put my thinking cap on and decided to publish this post.

a few quick tips from me to survive the weather:

1. go for salad and/or sandwich for meal options. a nice lean ham, cheese and tomato sandwich could do. or smoked salmon, cream cheese and rocket sandwich? both are my stock standard sandwiches. even you have to admit that nothing could go wrong with those sandwiches! never fail me!

2. my most recent salad fiesta are Shredded Rainbow Salad from Shutterbean and Honey Mustard, Broccoli and Apple Salad from Joy the Baker. I have tried both recipes and they are fantastic! Perfect for this weather, I should say. So fresh, light and tasty! I should have taken picture but please excuse me for not doing so- I was too hungry and it was too hot to think ;p but they are yummo!

3.  drink plenty of water. and if you’re bored with just plain water, squeeze lemon or lime to your water- or add mint leaves. my fave is a glass of sparking water, lots of ice, a giant mint leaf and a few thin lemon slices!! perfect thirst-quencher!

4. avoid drinking alcohol as it tends to dehydrate you more.

5. if you’re thinking to buy lunch or dinner, why don’t you try Vietnamese or Japanese cuisine? I like Vietnamese pork/chicken/vegetarian roll. It’s fresh and light- full with vegetables too! Or why don’t you try a Vietnamese chicken salad- which I tried recently in a Vietnamese restaurant. Again- sorry for not taking picture. If you decide to go for Japanese- you may have fresh sushi and sashimi on top of seaweed and tofu salad?

6. after dinner sweet tooth? don’t you worry- why don’t you give this one a go- you’ll love it! i have..and i love it! Ash from Off Duty Dietitian made a healthy ice cream substitute, which you can enjoy anytime. try her Cherry ripe soft serve and tell me if you don’t like it! it takes 5 minutes only!

7. crave for a cup of coffee? why don’t we make an iced coffee instead? brew the coffee with little hot water, add a drop of vanilla essence and top up with a nice cold water (for long black) or milk! if you feel like  it, you can add a scoop of light vanilla ice cream to make it even richer.

8. my last point- please please please put a bucket of water in your balcony or terrace for wildlife or birds. we are not the only one who feel the heat- they do too. it’s the simplest thing we can all do to help them in this weather.

until next time!

Image from Herald Sun website http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/summer-chill-to-make-way-for-hot-days-in-the-new-year/story-e6frf7kx-1225976701317