Jennifer Calnan Nutrition

03/07/2026

Roasted chickpea & Mediterranean veg with cooked quinoa mixed through.
Nice one to have in the fridge to put your hand on for Summer lunches or pickings.
Simply cut up some courgette, red & yellow pepper, red onion and mix through a teaspoon of spice of choice, cumin or paprika or whatever you have to hand. Add a drizzle olive oil and roast in a hot oven. You could add hazelnuts. I forgot, so I chopped some and added after.
Cook the quinoa in a saucepan. A little goes a long way. About 1/3 cup quinoa and 2/3 cold water. Add half teaspoon boullion for flavour as quinoa is quite bland.
Bring to boil, turn down heat, cover and simmer gently for few minutes. Stir a few times. Liquid will be absorbed.
Mix through cooked veg and store any leftovers in fridge to enjoy later.

28/06/2026

Celebrating Mairead's Retirement from working at Caring Hands was done in style at Baby Hannahs. We all wish you a long, happy and healthy retirement.

22/06/2026

Tired of hearing about protein all of the time? Well, there has been a gradual shift of attention towards fibre. You may have noticed the subtle change of labelling move towards ‘High Protein & Fibre’ meals.
Fibre is found in wholegrains, beans, lentils, nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruits. Fibre is the part of the plant that doesn’t get digested and absorbed, instead it just passes through keeping the gut healthy and bulking up stools.
Many adults fall short of the recommended 30g of fibre a day. Some ideas to increase your fibre intake:
• Swopping over to wholegrain breads, wholemeal pasta and brown rice.
• Oats for breakfast as overnight oats, porridge, granola or making snacks such as energy bites or flapjacks with nuts and seeds.
• Making salads for lunch now Summer is here, add some chickpeas or lentils.
• Variety of vegetables at dinner.
• Snack on a whole fruit with a few nuts.

15/06/2026

Perfect for weekend munchies or a picnic now the weather has finally picked up.

🫓Wholemeal wraps or gluten free
🥚4 eggs
🥓2 bacon
🌱2 spring onion
🐑25g feta cheese
🧀25g parmesan
🫙1/4 cup cream
🌿pinch nutmeg

Grease a muffin tin well.
Cut out rounds from the wraps to fill the muffin holes.
Fry off the bacon and set aside.
Finely slices the spring onion.
Cut the feta into small cubes.
Grate the parmesan.
Whisk the eggs, cream and nutmeg together.
Divide fillings between muffins and bake at 180C for 20-25 mins.

Wholemeal wraps are more pliable than gluten free. If using gluten free, you could make a few small cuts around the edge of the wrap to help fold it into the muffin tin.

Recipe inspiration from Home Cooking Adventure.

09/06/2026

The EU is proposing to harmonise the strength of supplements across EU countries. This will inevitably restrict the strength of some familiar supplements that are currently available to us to buy in Health Shops and Pharmacies in Ireland.
Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Vitamin D and Magnesium are just some on the list. If you use these familiar nutrients to support your own optimal health and wellbeing, they may no longer be available to you in the same strength.
There is a campaign at saveoursupplements.ie to have as many people as possible sign a petition my.uplift.ie/petitions/save-our-supplements-3 to bring awareness that people are against this happening. Please take the time to sign this petition on line or at your local health shop:
The Olive Branch Health Food Emporium & Twig Refill Shop Organico Bantry
For Goodness Sake Health Food Store

07/06/2026

Fresh fish has the best flavour. You can rely on to deliver the finest wild caught fish. This white bean cassoulet goes very well with hake and was ready almost as quickly as you would turn the fish in a pan.

1 tablespoon olive oil 🫒
25g butter 🧈
1 shallot 🧅
2 cloves garlic 🧄
1 tablespoon tomato puree 🍅
1 tin canellini beans 🫘
1 tin chopped tomatoes 🍅

Heat the olive oil and butter in a casserole dish that has a lid.
Add the finely sliced shallot and saute. Add the chopped garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomato puree, the chopped tomatoes. I also put in a few halved yellow small tomatoes. Simmer on low for a few mins while you drain and rinse your white beans. I used canellini. Add them to pot. Stir in and continue to simmer on low for a few more minutes.
Simple. Delicious. Good food. Ready in minutes.

12/04/2026

Banana oat pancakes made a bit fancy this morning in the waffle maker.

🥚 1 egg
🌿 60g oats - use gluten free if necessary
🍌 a small banana
🥛 80-100ml milk of choice
🥄 1 teaspn baking powder
🥄 half teaspn vanilla - optional

Blend together and off you go. I forgot the baking powder and they were still good.
Served with Greek coconut yogurt and plums.

01/04/2026

Always wondered how Hot Cross buns were made and finally got around to trying them this year with my little helpers in tow.
Lightly spiced little yeast buns made from Doves strong white flour and dried yeast. Zest of an orange and a clove were added to warming milk and butter before adding to flour.
Little ones tried their hand at kneading but patience is required. Then for the first rise when the dough almost doubles in size to their amazement. And then shaping the buns and marking the X shape before the second rise. And finally mixing some flour, a little sugar and water to form a paste for making the traditional cross on top of each one. I forgot to brush with egg wash so they didn't brown very well but we did brush with a little marmalade when they came out of oven to give them a glaze.
Tasted more like scones than what what you would get in shop these days and are being eaten to my surprise.

01/03/2026

Looking forward to meeting all the ladies in Union Hall next Wed, 4th March at 7.30pm.

Upcoming Talk with Jennifer Calnan
Wednesday, 4th March 7:30PM
Union Hall Community & Development Centre