Juggling between jobs, the house, the kids and preparing a healthy and wholesome meal in between can be quite a challenge especially in this fast-paced world where time seems to fly by so fast. It’s no wonder why parents resort to drive-throughs and ordering meals online, which can be unhealthy especially if those meals are not nutritionally beneficial.

According to award-winning author Mohana Gill, preparing healthy and wholesome meals does not have to be complicated. Parents can start with one wholesome meal a week with the family and work from there. Not only will it be nutritionally beneficial to the family, but it’ll also bring the family closer together.

Having started at the mature age of 70 with her first book Fruitastic! which captures her interest in natural foods. Since then, Mohana has went on to write a total of 20 books with the latest one being Leela which recorded the journey of love, faith and perseverance of a young widow pre-war Burma, which was her mother.

Throughout the years, she has also collected numerous awards including Best in the World award at the Gourmand World awards (Fruitastic), Best Vegetarian Cookbook by Gourmand World (Vegemania), Best Asian Book in the World (Myanmar Cuisine, Culture and Customs), Best Food and Family Book in the World (Happylicious) and numerous other awards at the Nautilus Awards and Book Excellence Awards.

In 2016, Mohana’s focus on children has inspired her to combine teaching with storytelling, where she teaches children on food and nutrition and offers recipes for children’s meals that can be enjoyed with the whole family. That’s where a series of eight books called Hayley’s Happylicious Series, featuring fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, pulses, chocolate and tea was born.

During an exclusive luncheon with the media in her beautiful home, it was clear that Mohana ‘s passion in advocating for the right food and nutrition for children was very much alive. As a grandmother, she loves teaching her grandchildren about all the different types of fruits and vegetables including the ones in her own garden, which we had the pleasure of seeing.

DID YOU KNOW?

Moringa leaves have 7 times more vitamin C than oranges and 15 times more potassium than bananas. It also has calcium, protein, iron, and amino acids, which help your body heal and build muscle.It’s also packed with antioxidants, substances that can protect cells from damage and may boost your immune system.

Some of the dishes that were served to us during the visit included:

• Moringa leaf soup
• Mushroom kebabs
• Andra coconut rice
• Guava curry
• Jicama and mango salad

Mohana certainly opened our eyes to the different ways that fruits and vegetables can be incorporated into our meals – Guava Curry? Who knew it would taste so good! Infact, every dish that was served to us that day was surprisingly delicious and vegetarian-friendly too. Plus, her dishes certainly inspired us to be more creative with recipes that we have – for example, instead of using guava in the curry, you can use watermelon, jackfruit or even mushrooms.

Just like how we were excited to be served a beautifully platted dish, Mohana stresses that kids would surely be more interested when their meals are colourful and appealing to the eyes. Cooking and preparing meals together was another tip she shared to get the kids interested in eating more healthily. “Children who are involved in preparing meals are much more open to try and eat the dish they helped prepare,” says Mohana.

At 85 years old, Mohana is still on a roll and we heard that a new book about the goodness of Moringa might be on its way to the public soon.

Mohana’s books are available at leading physical and online bookstores including MPH, Popular and Book Depository.

Mohana’s book list:

• Fruitastic! (2006)
• Vegemania! (2006)
• Hayley’s Fruitastic Garden (2010)
• Hayley’s Vegemania Garden (2010)
• Myanmar Cuisine, Culture & Customs (2013)
• Happylicious (2015)
• Hayley’s Vibrant Vegetables (2016)
• Hayley’s Sensational Seeds (2016)
• Hayley Madness for Chocolates (2016)
• Hayley Goes Nutty (2016)
• Hayley’s Terrific Teas (2016)
• Hayley’s Passion for Pulses (2016)
• Hayley’s Grainy Goodness (2016)
• Hayley’s Fantastic Fruits (2016)
• Hayley’s Fruitastic Malaysia (2019)
• How the Durian Came to Be and Other Stories: Myths and Legends of Southeast Asian Fruits (2019)
• Hayley’s Awesome Malaysian Animals (2019)
• Flowerlicious (2019)
• Hayley’s Flowerlicious Malaysia (2021)
• Leela (2022)