🍛 Dinner: Coconut Butter Bean Curry with Spinach & Lettuce + Coconut Rice

 

🌱 Today’s Food Diary: Natural Energy Boosts from Jamaican-Inspired Meals 🍛🥕

Some days parenting teenagers is a lesson in patience… like this morning, when my 15-year-old completely skipped breakfast! 🙃 Sometimes teens just aren’t hungry in the morning, and that’s okay — so today it was just my daughter and me fueling up for a busy day.

Here’s what we ate today — milk- and egg-free, allergy-friendly, and packed with energy, vitamins, and minerals.

🍳 Breakfast: Mackerel with Green Banana & Sweet Potato + Coconut Milk 🥥🐟

What I did:

1. Boiled green bananas and sweet potatoes.
2. Added them to Grace mackerel in tomato sauce.
3. Stirred in 1/3 cup coconut milk.
4. Drank the water from the boiled green banana and sweet potato — rich in iron and natural minerals.

Why it’s good for you:

• Mackerel: Rich in protein & omega-3s for brain function and heart health.
• Green banana & sweet potato: Complex carbs for slow-release energy.
• Coconut milk: Healthy fats for satiety and sustained energy.
• Iron boost: From the water → Supports red blood cells, oxygen transport, and energy.

This breakfast gave me a huge energy boost for my walk today — I even ended up sprinting! 💪🏾 Perfect as a natural pre-workout meal if you want to avoid commercial pre-workouts.

Cooking/Prep Time: ~20 minutes

🍌 Lunch: Fresh Fruit Boost

• What we had: Watermelon + banana 🍉🍌
• Why it works: Light, hydrating, packed with natural sugars, potassium, and vitamin C — perfect to tide us over until the main meal.

🍛 Dinner: Coconut Butter Bean Curry with Spinach & Lettuce + Coconut Rice

Ingredients (Serves 2 adults + 1 child):

• 1 tin butter beans 🫘
• 1 cup spinach 🥬
• Handful of lettuce 🥗
• 1–2 carrots 🥕
• 1 onion 🧅
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tsp thyme 🌿
• 1/3 cup coconut milk 🥥
• 3 cups basmati rice 🍚
• 1/3 cup coconut milk for rice
• 1/2 tsp mild curry powder

Method:

You can watch directions on my TikTok Page or Pinterest or my Facebook click on the social name and it will pop up! 

1. Fry onion, carrots, garlic, and thyme in oil for 5–6 mins.
2. Add butter beans + curry powder, simmer 15–20 mins.
3. Wash spinach and lettuce, add 2–3 mins before serving.
4. Wash rice, add coconut milk + water, steam ~15 mins until fluffy.
5. Serve curry over coconut rice.

Cooking/Prep Time:

• Rice: ~15 mins
• Butter bean curry: ~20 mins
• Sweet potato juice: ~20 mins
  Total cooking time: ~55–60 mins

Visit Amazon store from for seasoning rice and milk here plus more 

🥗 Nutritional Info (Approximate per serving)

Nutrient	Benefit	Approx. Amount
Calories	Energy	~350-400 kcal
Protein	Muscle growth & repair	~15g
Carbohydrates	Energy + fiber	~55g -60g
Fiber	Digestive health	~10g
Fat	Healthy fats	~10g
Vitamin A	Eyes & immunity	~5000 IU
Vitamin C	Immunity & collagen	~25-30 mg
Iron	Red blood cells & energy	~4 mg
Potassium	Muscle & heart function

Calorie calculator here! 

Why it’s great: This day of meals is full of sustained energy, vitamins, and minerals — perfect for keeping both kids and adults fuelled. The breakfast was a pre-workout booster, lunch was light but filling, and dinner gave balanced protein, carbs, and greens.

📚 Scientific Backing & Cultural Significance

🌿 Nutritional Benefits of Green Banana Water

In Jamaican cuisine, it’s traditional to boil green bananas with the skin on and drink the water. This water is rich in:

• Iron – supports red blood cell formation and energy
• Potassium – helps muscle function and heart health
• Other minerals and natural electrolytes – provide hydration and a natural energy boost

🏃‍♂️ Fueling Jamaican Athletes

Jamaican athletes, renowned for their speed and endurance, often include green bananas, sweet potatoes, mackerel, and coconut milk in their diets. These foods provide complex carbs, protein, and healthy fats — essential for stamina, recovery, and overall performance.

Scientific studies also support the nutritional benefits:

• Health Benefits of Green Banana Consumption: A Systematic Review – Nutrients Journal
• JADCO Nutrition Guide – Emphasis on Local Foods for Performance

Including the banana water is a traditional, natural way to boost energy, hydrate, and support mineral intake — all without commercial supplements.