That's right, you read it correctly. There is no healthy recipe today because I am sat on the sofa enthralled by Daniel Craig's body..erm...performance...in Casino Royale. If you're absolutely devestated by the lack of a recipe today, go rent a copy of Casino Royale and you'll soon forget all about being annoyed with me. And if that doesn't work there is clearly something wrong with you and you can get over it tomorrow when I post two healthy recipes (I can tell my new career as a psychologist is going to go well already. I have so much wisdom to share with the world.)
G'night all! xxx
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Monday, 30 August 2010
Saturday, 28 August 2010
Today's healthy recipe - squash and blue cheese risotto
Okay, I believe the words "blue cheese" and "healthy" go together about as well as the words "Christina Aguilera" and "talent" but this is such a yummy one I couldn't resist sharing it. And this is a great autumn recipe! Not that it's autumn yet, but you'd never know it here in England, where summer normally lasts all of 4 days in a good year.
Ingredients
150g pack blue cheese
1 butternut squash
1 lemon
1 red onion
500g pack of arborio rice
Preheat oven to 200C (gas mark 6)
Peel squash and cut into chunks, place in a baking tray with 1 red onion, peeled and cut into 8 segments and toss 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Roast for 30-40 minutes.
Meanwhile, make 1 litre of vegetable stock using 2 vegetable stock cubes. In a deep frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and add 200g arborio risotto rice. Coat the rice in the oil and cook 2 minutes. Gradually add the stock to the rice, allowing the rice to absorb each ladle of liquid before adding more. It should take around 20 min to absorb the full amount of stock.
Add the roasted squash and red onion to the pan, crumble in the blue cheese and allow it to melt slowly. Mix through the zest and juice of one lemon and season with freshly ground black pepper before serving.
Enjoy! Would love to hear any other good risotto recipes anyone has...
Ingredients
150g pack blue cheese
1 butternut squash
1 lemon
1 red onion
500g pack of arborio rice
Preheat oven to 200C (gas mark 6)
Peel squash and cut into chunks, place in a baking tray with 1 red onion, peeled and cut into 8 segments and toss 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Roast for 30-40 minutes.
Meanwhile, make 1 litre of vegetable stock using 2 vegetable stock cubes. In a deep frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil and add 200g arborio risotto rice. Coat the rice in the oil and cook 2 minutes. Gradually add the stock to the rice, allowing the rice to absorb each ladle of liquid before adding more. It should take around 20 min to absorb the full amount of stock.
Add the roasted squash and red onion to the pan, crumble in the blue cheese and allow it to melt slowly. Mix through the zest and juice of one lemon and season with freshly ground black pepper before serving.
Enjoy! Would love to hear any other good risotto recipes anyone has...
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
Today's healthy recipe - hawaiian pizza
Today's healthy recipe is hawaiin pizza. Easiest recipe ever....
Sit on your ass on comfiest sofa (or chair) possible with remote control in one hand, phone in the other. Call Domino's, which of course you have on speed dial, while saying prayers of gratitude for Two for One Tuesdays. Use hubby's AMEX card, seeing as your cards were all stolen the previous day by a bunch of punk ass ASBO wannabe's. Do not get on the scales. Do not count calories. Do not go upstairs to look at your ass in the full length mirror. Do not bother to order diet coke instead of regular to save a few calories and do not (gasp) attempt to go the gym after said pizza. Trust me. Wayyyyyy too painful. Promise yourself that tomorrow you will embark on Beyonce's liquid honey and cayenne pepper diet for at least two days whilst already imagining how you will fall off THAT wagon by consuming way too many chocolate hobnobs with your sugar filled tea at morning playgroup.
Sit on your ass on comfiest sofa (or chair) possible with remote control in one hand, phone in the other. Call Domino's, which of course you have on speed dial, while saying prayers of gratitude for Two for One Tuesdays. Use hubby's AMEX card, seeing as your cards were all stolen the previous day by a bunch of punk ass ASBO wannabe's. Do not get on the scales. Do not count calories. Do not go upstairs to look at your ass in the full length mirror. Do not bother to order diet coke instead of regular to save a few calories and do not (gasp) attempt to go the gym after said pizza. Trust me. Wayyyyyy too painful. Promise yourself that tomorrow you will embark on Beyonce's liquid honey and cayenne pepper diet for at least two days whilst already imagining how you will fall off THAT wagon by consuming way too many chocolate hobnobs with your sugar filled tea at morning playgroup.
Saturday, 14 August 2010
today's healthy recipe - eggplant pizzas
Ah I know all of you who read my last post are breathing a sigh of relief at today's healthy recipe. Phew, it's not moonshine with a side of heroin, so the little Princess MUST have slept. Well she didn't, but I avoided the temptation of brewing my own 40% alcohol in the backyard overnight and we started sleep training last night...more to follow on that in the coming days.
Now, I don't have a formal recipe for this as it's my own invention but they're wonderful and versatile as you can change the toppings to suit your own tastes. For two adults we use two eggplants (uhm aubergines...) you can use as few or as many as you like depending on how many you're feeding, but these don't keep brilliantly as leftovers, I must say.
2 eggplants, cut lengthways in slices approx 1/2 inch thick
pizza sauce of your choice
grated mozzarella cheese
assorted chopped veggies such as red and green pepper, mushrooms, green or black olives, sweetcorn (that's right Canadians, I said UGH in disgust as well, but Brits put canned corn on their pizzas...or mixed with tuna in their sandwiches...it's actually quite nice, I have to say!)
Brush both sides of eggplant slices with a bit of olive oil and bake approx 20-25 min (around 180-200C) until they soften up a bit. Remove and top with pizza sauce, cheese, and your choice of toppings and return to oven for approx another 25 minutes until toppings are a bit bubbly and look like melted pizza toppings usually do. Serve with salad and wine and yummmmmmm! One delicious, vegetarian, low carb dinner!
Now, I don't have a formal recipe for this as it's my own invention but they're wonderful and versatile as you can change the toppings to suit your own tastes. For two adults we use two eggplants (uhm aubergines...) you can use as few or as many as you like depending on how many you're feeding, but these don't keep brilliantly as leftovers, I must say.
2 eggplants, cut lengthways in slices approx 1/2 inch thick
pizza sauce of your choice
grated mozzarella cheese
assorted chopped veggies such as red and green pepper, mushrooms, green or black olives, sweetcorn (that's right Canadians, I said UGH in disgust as well, but Brits put canned corn on their pizzas...or mixed with tuna in their sandwiches...it's actually quite nice, I have to say!)
Brush both sides of eggplant slices with a bit of olive oil and bake approx 20-25 min (around 180-200C) until they soften up a bit. Remove and top with pizza sauce, cheese, and your choice of toppings and return to oven for approx another 25 minutes until toppings are a bit bubbly and look like melted pizza toppings usually do. Serve with salad and wine and yummmmmmm! One delicious, vegetarian, low carb dinner!
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
Today's healthy recipe - veggie quiche cups
These are FAB! Easy, quick, high protein, delish and freezable, so you can make a whole batch at once. Great for breakfast or snack on the go!
3 large eggs or 3/4 cup egg whites
1 package (10oz) frozen spinach
3/4 cup shredded reduced fat cheese such as mozzarella or cheddar
1/4 cup diced red or green pepper or mix of both
1/4 cup diced onion
Thaw spinach, mix ingredients and pour into greased/sprayed muffin baking tray (no little muffin papers necessary) and preheat oven to 350F/180C and bake approx 20 minutes or until a knife comes out clean)
Think I'm going to make some later today and see if the Little Princess likes them. Does anyone from N. America remember those old television commercials from the late 70s/early 80s with the breakfast cereal and Mikey and the line "he likes it! he likes it!" Well, it's a bit like that feeding the Little Princess...if it passes her clamped shut mouth and turned away head, it must be yummy!
3 large eggs or 3/4 cup egg whites
1 package (10oz) frozen spinach
3/4 cup shredded reduced fat cheese such as mozzarella or cheddar
1/4 cup diced red or green pepper or mix of both
1/4 cup diced onion
Thaw spinach, mix ingredients and pour into greased/sprayed muffin baking tray (no little muffin papers necessary) and preheat oven to 350F/180C and bake approx 20 minutes or until a knife comes out clean)
Think I'm going to make some later today and see if the Little Princess likes them. Does anyone from N. America remember those old television commercials from the late 70s/early 80s with the breakfast cereal and Mikey and the line "he likes it! he likes it!" Well, it's a bit like that feeding the Little Princess...if it passes her clamped shut mouth and turned away head, it must be yummy!
Monday, 9 August 2010
The Joys of Juicing - today's healthy recipe - Cellulite Eliminator Juice
This post is prompted by me noticing that my favourite appliance of all time, my Phillips Juicer, is £28 off at Argos, down from £94.99 to £66.59 (and no, I'm not being paid or rewarded in any way to mention any of this, I really do love it). I got it when I was in the first few weeks of pregnancy last year, as my cravings were cantaloupe juice, cantaloupe juice, and more cantaloupe juice. I know, sounds great, but that soon gave way to chocolate cravings that I'm hoping will pass soon, considering the fact that I gave birth 10 months ago.
When I bought the juicer it came with Jason Vale's (aka the Juice Master) book Over 100 Delicious Juices and Smoothies Keeping it Simple, which is a fabulous book. Now, I thought the juicer looked a bit big and scary when I got it, but it's actually very easy to use and clean. That says a lot coming from me, as I can barely change the batteries in the remote control and have yet to learn how to use the DVD player.
Today I am going to try the juice "cellulite eliminator"....gasp...could there really be such a thing?! Sounds about as believable as finding David Beckham in my bed on a Saturday morning. Well, there was that one weekend in Madrid but I'm not supposed to talk about that. The recipe is simple... 1 apple, 1 pear, 1/2 pink grapefruit, 2 sticks of celery, a few mint leaves and 4 ice cubes. Juice everything except the mint, which you chop and sprinkle on top of the juice once you've poured it into the glass.
I will report back tomorrow. And maybe even post a picture of my thighs...not to scare you all of course, because by then they will be fabulous and cellulite free ;-)
This is the juicer I'm talking about in case anyone's looking to get one:
http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?storeId=10001&catalogId=1500002451&langId=-1&searchTerms=PHILLIPS+JUICER
Happy Monday!
When I bought the juicer it came with Jason Vale's (aka the Juice Master) book Over 100 Delicious Juices and Smoothies Keeping it Simple, which is a fabulous book. Now, I thought the juicer looked a bit big and scary when I got it, but it's actually very easy to use and clean. That says a lot coming from me, as I can barely change the batteries in the remote control and have yet to learn how to use the DVD player.
Today I am going to try the juice "cellulite eliminator"....gasp...could there really be such a thing?! Sounds about as believable as finding David Beckham in my bed on a Saturday morning. Well, there was that one weekend in Madrid but I'm not supposed to talk about that. The recipe is simple... 1 apple, 1 pear, 1/2 pink grapefruit, 2 sticks of celery, a few mint leaves and 4 ice cubes. Juice everything except the mint, which you chop and sprinkle on top of the juice once you've poured it into the glass.
I will report back tomorrow. And maybe even post a picture of my thighs...not to scare you all of course, because by then they will be fabulous and cellulite free ;-)
This is the juicer I'm talking about in case anyone's looking to get one:
http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?storeId=10001&catalogId=1500002451&langId=-1&searchTerms=PHILLIPS+JUICER
Happy Monday!
Sunday, 8 August 2010
chickpeas, chickpeas and more chickpeas....
I was recently given a load of food by an expat friend and fellow vegetarian who was leaving the grey shores of Blighty for somewhere where there was a big yellow thing in the sky (lucky girl!) This load of food included a bag of chickpeas which weighs about 473lbs and has left me with the quandry of what on earth to do with so many chickpeas?! Chickpeas a l'orange? Chickpea trifle? Chick-offee pie? Chickpea lasagne? Hummous is the obvious answer, but apart from the fact that I'd have enough hummous to feed the entire Middle East for three generations, my hummous sucks. Badly.
So....here you go folks! A recipe for yummy chickpea burgers which I can't take credit for as I got it from the site treehugger.com. Will post my recipe for chickpea trifle another day.
2tsp veg oil
3 chopped green onions, including the tops
2 cloves of minced garlic
1tsp each dried oregano and chilli powder
1 cup diced red pepper and/or 1/2 cup chopped pickled hot peppers
1/2 chopped tomato
1 can (19oz) chickpeas dried and rinsed
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
2tbsp chopped parsley or cilantro
Heat oil over medium head and cook onions, garlic, oregano and chilli powder and stir for about 2 min. Add red pepper and tomato and cook approx 3 minutes until pepper is tender and liquid evaporated.
In a food processor, mix the above with chickpeas then transfer to a bowl and stir in breadcrumbs, parsley, salt and pepper to taste until well combined. Press and shape into 4 burgers, cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes each side.
Note: After they're made into patties but before cooking, they can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 1 month. Good news for me, I can make about 1,000 burgers and freeze them.
So....here you go folks! A recipe for yummy chickpea burgers which I can't take credit for as I got it from the site treehugger.com. Will post my recipe for chickpea trifle another day.
2tsp veg oil
3 chopped green onions, including the tops
2 cloves of minced garlic
1tsp each dried oregano and chilli powder
1 cup diced red pepper and/or 1/2 cup chopped pickled hot peppers
1/2 chopped tomato
1 can (19oz) chickpeas dried and rinsed
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
2tbsp chopped parsley or cilantro
Heat oil over medium head and cook onions, garlic, oregano and chilli powder and stir for about 2 min. Add red pepper and tomato and cook approx 3 minutes until pepper is tender and liquid evaporated.
In a food processor, mix the above with chickpeas then transfer to a bowl and stir in breadcrumbs, parsley, salt and pepper to taste until well combined. Press and shape into 4 burgers, cook over medium heat for about 4 minutes each side.
Note: After they're made into patties but before cooking, they can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for 1 month. Good news for me, I can make about 1,000 burgers and freeze them.
Wednesday, 4 August 2010
Chocolate Peanut Butter Milkshake for moms (or kids) on the go!
I love this recipe! Not just because it sounds and tastes decadent (without actually being decadent) but because it is quick, filling and can easily be varied.
1 cup milk (or soya milk or 1/2 cup plain yoghurt)
1-2 peeled, frozen in pieces, ripe bananas (or more depending on your tastes)
2 tbsp peanut butter (can be substituted for almond butter)
1-2 tsp cocoa
Blend all together in a blender, add a bit of water if you need to thin it down a bit, particularly if you're using the yoghurt instead of milk
*Optional - add a slug of vodka if, like me, you have a Baby Who Does Not Sleep
If you want an even healthier version, try blending just the frozen banana, yoghurt and almond butter. Delish!
1 cup milk (or soya milk or 1/2 cup plain yoghurt)
1-2 peeled, frozen in pieces, ripe bananas (or more depending on your tastes)
2 tbsp peanut butter (can be substituted for almond butter)
1-2 tsp cocoa
Blend all together in a blender, add a bit of water if you need to thin it down a bit, particularly if you're using the yoghurt instead of milk
*Optional - add a slug of vodka if, like me, you have a Baby Who Does Not Sleep
If you want an even healthier version, try blending just the frozen banana, yoghurt and almond butter. Delish!
Tuesday, 3 August 2010
Today's healthy recipe - easy peasy and delicious lentil soup!
This is one of our faves, and even my 10 month old, whose preferred diet normally consists of mango and mango, likes it (I make it with baby friendly vegetable stock that is low sodium and gluten free)
1 tbsp olive oil
2 chopped medium onions
2 cups red lentils
2 tbsp tomato puree (or less/more to taste)
1L vegetable stock (I've found 1.2L works better as this soup is disastrous if it gets too dry)
parsley, cream and croutons to garnish (optional - I don't bother with these)
Fry the onions in the olive oil until soft/clear, then add the stock, lentils and puree and simmer for approx 20-25 minutes until the lentils are soft. Pour into blender and blend for a few seconds only. Serve immediately, adding the parsley, cream and croutons.
Yummmm! I'm always looking for good vegetarian soup recipes...anyone have any they'd like to share?
1 tbsp olive oil
2 chopped medium onions
2 cups red lentils
2 tbsp tomato puree (or less/more to taste)
1L vegetable stock (I've found 1.2L works better as this soup is disastrous if it gets too dry)
parsley, cream and croutons to garnish (optional - I don't bother with these)
Fry the onions in the olive oil until soft/clear, then add the stock, lentils and puree and simmer for approx 20-25 minutes until the lentils are soft. Pour into blender and blend for a few seconds only. Serve immediately, adding the parsley, cream and croutons.
Yummmm! I'm always looking for good vegetarian soup recipes...anyone have any they'd like to share?
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