Media personality & founder of Nutritional Edge, Zoe Bingley-Pullin, has long been passionate about the food in our lives. A nutritionist and internationally trained chef, Zoe helps people embrace the benefits of food through education and understanding.
Zoe is the author of 2 books - Eat Taste Nourish, a practical book focusing on functional nutrition and how to create delicious and healthy food in simple ways, and Falling In Love With Food, a cookbook and love story. Off the back of the Falling In Love With Food book, Zoe launched a subscription food program of the same name.
We spend 5 minutes with Zoe on how she got her break into the media, which ingredients are always in her kitchen and achieving a healthier 2020.
SDT. You’re not only a chef, but a nutritionist as well. How does having that qualification give you the edge in the food industry?
ZOE: I think it’s really important to know nutritional composition of food such as macronutrients and micronutrients, but ultimately, making food tasty is what entices people to eat well. Therefore, it’s an advantage to be able to turn my knowledge and understanding of nutrition and food into a delicious meal.
SDT. You’ve appeared on cooking shows and released 2 books on creating delicious food. How did you get your break in the media? What made you want to get into it?
ZOE: At the time my husband was involved in the media and he introduced me to a person at Channel 9. I was open to doing any opportunity thrown my way, to get experience and my options slowly grew before evolving into new and exciting opportunities. Its important to remember that working in the media is very up and down, so pay attention to keeping yourself relevant, be clear on your ethos and avoid trying to be the next wonder or fad!
SDT. You’re hugely passionate about living a healthy life but also loving food. What are some of your all time favourite meals to cook that are both hearty and healthy?
ZOE: So many favourites! Where do I start!? For me, it can be as simple as a beautiful small cut of lean red meat, cooked well and paired with a jacket potato and salad with lots of fresh herbs for
flavour. I also am a big fan of fish chermoula, the flavours work beautifully together and chermoula, being made from an array of fresh herbs and spices is a healthy yet flavoursome way to flavour food.
I also love to make vegan mushrooms stuffed with garlic, cashew butter and parsley, baked in the oven and served with a simple salad.
SDT. Obviously being someone who cooks a lot, what ingredients are always in your kitchen?
ZOE: Good quality Australian extra virgin olive oil, Sea salt and pepper Avocado I also love mushrooms and legumes because when I have these on hand, I know I can whip up a very quick yet healthy meal such as
tossing some chickpeas with tomato, grated carrot, fresh herbs, cumin and a good drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
SDT. We’re nearing the end of the year and so many of us will be setting the goal of eating healthier in 2020. What would some of your tips for achieving this be?
ZOE: I think it's fair to say, we all want to be a healthy weight and many of us are seeking immediate results. However, it's important to realise, it can take 6 months for the pleasure centre in our brain to be reprogrammed to enjoy different foods and have different taste preferences. It's always most beneficial to make small incremental changes with the goal that these small changes add up to create permanent change. I personally eat healthy the majority of the time because this is the food I like.
I then add in a bit of wine or French cheese when felt like but I do not view these foods as ‘bad’ or ‘treats.’ The ultimate goal is not feeling like you are always on a diet, you choose foods because you enjoy them and they make you feel good, simply put, its just the way you eat, without too much thought!
It can also be very beneficial to have a community or support person around you for motivation and accountability. For example, when learning any new skill, you generally get some guidance and advice from others rather than tackling it yourself. From a diet and health perspective, this could mean using online programs to help provide a framework and structure and to build your core knowledge base. Not all programs are created equally so make sure to select one, which is flexible, caters to your lifestyle, provides you a good baseline of nutritional knowledge and offers support.
A big advantage of the Dietlicious 4 Week Body Reset Program is that you receive a range of meals and snacks delivered to you to be used in conjunction with your healthy eating plan as added support which makes your new routine fail proof because you have support meals on hand. If you are a busy person, it’s so important to be realistic about what you can achieve and what resources you need to achieve your goals.
