Creamy Pesto

3 05 2013

Fresh herbs are the bomb, they add a flavor punch to any salad, meat or veggie dish with very little effort. They can jazz up the most pedestrian of dishes & make them into something amazeballs and the top news is, they are pretty easy to grow yourself so you always have some on hand. You don’t need much space, just a few small pots and, a hot tip for new players, get the kind of pot that has the self-watering bit at the bottom….. Trav bought me these ones after I kept killing the last lot of herbs because I forgot to water them. Poor herbs.

Basil has been hailed for its excellent anti-inflammatory benefits as well as its antioxidant properties that can protect the body from premature aging, common skin issues, and even some types of cancer. Did you know that dill is a very good source of calcium!? It is also a great antibacterial and contains oils that can help neutralize some types of carcinogens.

1 full packed cup chopped herbs (I used a mix of dill, basil & parsley)
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 heaped tsp fresh grated ginger
1 avocado
Juice 1 lemon
1 tbs tahini
2 tbs olive oil
Pinch salt & pepper

Blend in your food processor the herbs, ginger & garlic until it is as finely chopped as you can get it. Add the remaining ingredients & blend well until smooth. You can add extra olive oil or even some water or green tea of you want a runnier consistency. I used this to dress my super salad concoction of kale, fennel, grated beetroot, grated carrot, chopped apple, baby tomatoes, capsicum, dried seaweed flakes, celery, cucumber & homemade turmeric sauerkraut. I will certainly NOT get scurvy after that meal!

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And here’s my kick a$$ super salad

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Thai Beef Meatballs

30 04 2013

And so my meat adventures continue. Shall we call them “Me-ventures”? “Meatures”? I’d like them to have a name so get your thinking caps on please. You might win a prize…. but probably not, I have no prizes. If people gave me prizes I’d probably keep them for myself. Especially if they were food prizes, I’d totally eat all of them & share none. I would tell you about them though if they were delicious, like my meatballs. So, no prize but my eternal gratitude. That should be enough. Please & thank you. **Disclaimer- If someone reading this was wanting to donate me some prizes please disregard this first paragraph & just express post those babies ASAP.

A few things I have decided over my past few months as a meat-eater….1. I love bacon- why the hell have I not had this in my life for the past 15 years? Were you people conspiring agains me!? It was probably the government, or the FBI, or the actual pigs themselves. Anyway, back to bacon. I love it more each time I eat it. If I could marry bacon I probably would. Sorry Trav, but it’s the truth. 2. I really enjoy slow cooked lamb- not so big on cutlets or even just grilled. I like it to be all-fally-apart. 3. Pork is the same- slow cooked or I’m not really interested. 4. Beef I am still working out. I am very ‘meh’ about it, it is still too ‘meaty’ for me but I think I will get there. Beef mince is today’s experiment and I think I like it. Especially with the dipping sauce, I could just drink that gear on its own. Don’t judge me till you make it judgey mcjudger, it is freaking delicious.

1kg beef mince (try & get grassfed or organic)
1 long red chilli, finely diced (seeds removed if you don’t like it too hot)
1 tbs fresh grated ginger
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bunch coriander, finely chopped including stems
3 eggs
2 tbs coconut aminos (you could use soy sauce or tamari)
1/2 cup almond meal
Coconut oil for cooking

Dipping sauce

1 tbs nut or seed butter (I used roasted almond butter)
Juice 1 lime
1 tsp fresh chopped chilli
3 tbs coconut aminos
Pinch stevia or tbs honey/maple syrup

For the sauce- I added everything to a jar & shook the cr@p out of it until all the lumps were gone. Done.

For the balls- add all the ingredients to a big bowl and mix well to combine everything. I used my hands because that is just how I roll. I washed them, obviously, no-one wants my dog’s hair in their meatballs. Roll them into little (or big) balls and set aside. Heat your coconut oil in a frypan and cook the balls. It’s not rocket science. You don’t really need me from here. You cook the balls, you dip them in the sauce, you shove them in your mouth. You can thank me later. Enjoy.

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Peppermint Choc Cups

28 04 2013

Did you know you can be addicted to sugar? A lot of people are, I used to be one of them. Sugar is like heroin, when you are addicted you NEED it, you just must have it. Well, if you haven’t worked it out yet, sugar makes you fat, not to mention causing inflammation in your body, causes brain fog, slumps in energy, causes insulin resistance, just to name a few of the problems. Learn more about what sugar does to your body & how to kick the habit HERE or HERE.

These are another version of my Peanut Butter Cups minus the nut butter. They are sugar free & the perfect little morsel to knock that sugar craving on the head. Loaded with healthy fats & low carb. Tell me how much you love me later ;)

3 heaped cups shredded coconut
2 tbs coconut oil
1tbs raw cacao
Few drops peppermint oil
Stevia (or maple syrup to taste)
1/4 tsp vanilla powder or extract

Add the coconut & coconut oil to your food processor & blend until it becomes a runny, smooth liquid. Divide mixture into 3 separate bowls. In bowl 1, add the vanilla powder, mix well then spoon into the bottom of your silicone cupcake moulds- you want about 1.5cm in the bottom of each. Now pop these in the freezer while you do the rest. In bowl 2, add the cacao & a dash of stevia to the coconut butter & mix well to combine the set aside. In bowl 3 add a dash of stevia & a few drops of peppermint oil & mix well. Taste & adjust as required.

Remove the moulds with the plain coconut butter mixture from the freezer, spoon over the chocolate mix and pop back in the freezer for about 15 mins. Once these are set you can repeat with the final peppermint mix so you now have 3 layer chocolate cups. Pop them back in the fridge or freezer to set.

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Sweet Potato Muffins with Coconut Crumble

20 04 2013

When I went to the markets this morning I bought the worlds biggest sweet potato, it weighed almost 2kg. Well I don’t know whether it is ACTUALLY the worlds biggest, I didn’t check the Guinness Book Of Records, but it probably is. Luckily I had The Fitographer with me to be my packhorse and carry the loads of food I kept purchasing. Marry a strong man ladies, that is my advice, they are very useful.

Inspired by the always talented and lovely Sarah from Ingredients of a Fit Chick, I used her sweet potato muffin recipe and added a few bits of my own. If you haven’t visited Sarah’s BLOG you really must, she loves coconut almost as much as I do so in my eyes that makes her an awesome chick. We’d probably be besties if we lived in the same country. She also has heaps of great recipes and does loads of cool things. You’ll like her.

Wet Stuff
1 cup sweet potato, steamed & puréed/mashed
2 tbs coconut oil/ghee, melted
3 eggs (use flax-eggs for vegan alternative)

Dry Stuff
2 1/2 scoops (90g) of whey protein powder (vanilla or flavorless) (use vegan protein if required)
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2-3/4 tsp stevia powder (depending on how sweet you like it or 1/2 cup honey/maple syrup)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ginger
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla powder (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)

Topping
1/2 cup shredded coconut
3/4 cup almond meal (or coconut flour if you want to keep this nut-free)
Dash stevia (or 2 tbs maple syrup/honey)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup egg whites

Preheat the oven to 160C. You will need 3 bowls. Mix all the dry ingredients well in one making sure you get rid of any lumps. Mix all the wet ingredients in another bowl until smooth. Mix all the topping ingredients together in a small bowl until well combined. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until completely combined, try not to overmix this. Spoon this mixture into muffin/cupcake containers so they are about 3/4 full. Spoon the topping onto the top of each muffin and press down gently. Bake for about 10-15mins. They will continue to set a bit as the cool. Don’t overcook them or they will taste like cardboard. Remove from oven & allow to cool slightly, I chucked a blob of ghee on mine while it was still warm. So delicious. Coconut butter or nut butter drizzle would be amaze too. This made 12 cupcake sized muffins. You can freeze these or store them in an airtight container in the fridge…. That’s if they last that long, they taste best fresh out of the oven.

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Caramel Walnut Cookies

12 04 2013

Mmmmmm the sweet smell of cookies. There is something very comforting about cookies and these ones are a perfect match for a cup of tea/coffee/smoothie/water. Really any excuse to eat them will suffice. They are sweetened only with a few fresh dates so won’t have you off your face on a sugar high. Ever notice how walnuts look like little brains? Well that is because they are smart little nuts. They are LOADED with vitamin E which is an excellent antioxidant, rich in omega 3 fatty acids which provide an excellent anti inflammatory action for our bodies and contains lots of important B-complex vitamins. What clever little nuts.

On a totally different note, I had my food allergies tested last week after being inspired by my wonderful friend Belinda @ Intensity PT (you can read her article HERE) to get to the root of my dodgy gut. Results should be in this week, if I am allergic to coconut the outcome could be dire….. At least I could still eat these cookies.

3 cups walnuts (you could try using another type of nut, I haven’t so I am not sure how it would go)
6-8 fresh dates (if you like things really sweet, go with 8)
1 tbs lucuma powder (OPTIONAL- you can leave this out)
1/2 tsp vanilla powder (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
Pinch salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Extra walnuts to decorate cookies

Preheat your oven to 160C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Add the walnuts & all other dry ingredients to your food processor & blend until the walnuts are a rough flour. Add all other ingredients & blend until a smooth batter forms. It will still be quite sticky. Wet your hands with water and roll the batter into balls and place on the baking tray, flatten them out slightly to cookie shapes. This should make about 12 cookies. Place in try oven for about 15 minutes. You can leave them in a bit longer if you want a crunchier cookie. Once you remove them from the oven, allow to cool for about 10 mins before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. These freeze well if you want to store them in the freezer, I keep mine in the fridge.

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