Turkey & Chorizo Gluten Free Pasta

I got this great family friendly recipe from a friend of mine and it was incredibly popular with my kids!

 

Ingredients (Serves 4-6)

500g Gluten Free Pasta
1kg Turkey Breast Fillet cut into cubes (Alternatively use Chicken Breast)
200g Whole Chorizo diced
1 Large Onion Chopped
1 Red Pepper diced
2 Gloves Garlic finely chopped or pressed
250ml Low Fat Creme Fraiche
2 teaspoons of Smoked Paprika
1 teaspoon of Dried Chilli Flakes
2 x 400g Tins of Chopped Tomatoes
1 x tablespoon of Tomato Pureee
Salt & Pepper for seasoning
Coconut Oil for cooking
Chopped Parsley for Garnish

Directions

- Heat a little coconut oil in a pan on the hob before adding the Chorizo, fry for around 5 minutes until brown and remove with a slotted spoon.
- Drain the Chorizo oil from the pan and add a little more Coconut Oil, return to the heat and add the turkey chunks. Cook for about 5 - 10 minutes until brown and then remove from the pan
- Add the Onions, Garlic and Pepper to the pan and cook gently for about 5 minutes until soft. Add the spices and seasoning and cook for a further minute before adding the Tomatoes and puree.
- Return the turkey and chorizo to the pan, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes
- Meanwhile cook the pasta to instrcutions
- Add the creme fraiche to the tomato and meat sauce and stiry fry 2 or 3 times to heat gently.
- Combine the pasta and sauce and serve garnished with Parsley.

Harissa Grilled Chicken with Pine Nut & Onion Brown Rice

This beautiful North African influenced Chicken Dish has a distinct unique spice flavour. The rice is an adaptation of Lebanese rice dishes that I grew up eating that would also normally contain minced lamb.

Ingredients (Serves 4-5)
1/2 cup of Harissa Paste. (You can buy this ready made or to make your own follow the recipe at http://www.rivercottage.net/recipes/harissa-paste/)
1/2 cup of natural low fat yoghurt
10 Bonless Skinless Chicken Thighs
3 Cups of Brown Rice
1 Large Brown Onion Sliced
100g of Pine Nuts
1 Lemon
1 teaspoon of Coconut Oil
1 teaspoon of Cumin
1 teaspoon of All Spice

Directions
- Mix the yoghurt and harissa paste to make a marinade
- Combine the chicken thighs and the marinade and leave ideally overnight but for a minimum of 2 hours.
- Shake off the excess marinade and grill the Chicken for 15-20 minutes until cooked through
- While the Chicken is cooking, cook the rice to instructions and gently toast the pine nuts in a dry pan for 3 -4 minutes until they colour. Be very careful to keep an eye on the pan as the nuts can burn very easily
- Remove the nuts from the pan and add the coconut oil. Once melted add the brown onion and soften gently for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the cumin and all spice and cook for a futher minute
- When the Rice is cooked, drain well and mix in the Onions and Pine nuts, serve with the chicken and a side salad.
- A squeeze of lemon juice, left over yoghurt or harissa paste all go well with the chicken.

Red Lentil Soup

This dish is perfect for the current bout of cold weather. It's gentle spicing will warm you up and for a more luxurious taste try adding a can of Coconut Milk. The recipe below is for quite a big portion but it will keep well for a few days.

Ingredients

900g Red Lentils
2 Carrots peeled and chopped
1.5 Litres of Vegetable Stock
2 Celery Sticks chopped
3 Garlic Cloves chopped and crushed
2 Brown Onions chopped
2 teaspoons of Smoked Paprika
2 teaspoons of Cayenne Pepper
6 cm of grated Fresh Ginger
Rock Salt & Pepper to season
3 tablespoons of Hemp Oil

Directions

1.  Heat the hemp oil in a large pot on the stove
2. Add the Onions, Carrots and Celery and fry for 5 minutes until softened
3. Add the Ginger and Garlic and cook for a further minute or so
4. Season with a little salt and pepper and add the Paprika and Cayenne.
5. Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil
6. Meanwhile rinse the Lentils well in cold water
7. Add the Lentils to the pan and reduce the heat to a simmer, cook for around 30 minutes
8. Use a hand liquidiser to reduce the soup to a thick pulp. You may need to remove some liquid at this stage to get the right consistency if a little watery
9. Season with further Salt and Pepper
10. Serve with a drizzle of Hemp Oil and Chopped Coriander

Spiced Roast Cauliflower with Lemon & Pistachio Dressing

I really wish I had taken a better picture of this dish but I only realised how delicious and blog worthy it was when I was already halfway through eating it!

Ingredients

1 Large Cauliflower
10 tablespoons of Hemp Oil
1 tablespoon of Cumin Seeds
1 tablespoon of Fennel Seeds
1 tabelspoon of Coriander Seeds
1 Unwaxed Lemon
Large handful of shelled unsalted Pistachios
Salt and Pepper for Seasoning

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
2. Cut Cauliflower into small florets and place in a baking tray
3. Heat a dry frying pan on the stove and gently toast the cumin, fennel and coriander seeds until just beginning to colour and fragrant. Be very careful not to burn these by keeping the seeds moving in the pan.
4. Place the toasted seeds along with some salt and pepper in a pestle and mortar and grind to a powder
5. Mix the spices with half of the Hemp oil and pour over the cauliflower
6. Place the cauliflower into the oven and bake for 30 minutes
7. Reheat your dry frying pan and gently toast the pistachios to a light colouring, again be careful not to burn them
8. Remove the pistachios from the heat, chop and set aside
9. Zest the lemon and mix with the lemon juice, remaining oil and more seasoning.
10. When the cauliflower is cooked, dress with the lemon mix and pistachios
11. Serve.

New Fit4Life Cook Book

Just a heads up guys that we are about to imminently launch a new Fit4Life cookbook packed with a collection of wonderful clean eating recipes like the Sea Bass below. Watch this space for details of how you can buy either the electronic or hard copy version of the book.

Clean Moussaka

We all have our favourite dishes that we crave and I strongly believe that with a little bit of thought anything we eat can be made healthier without compromising too much on flavour. I've applied this approach to one of my favourite Greek holiday dishes. My minor ammendments to this traditional recipe save a failry significant amount of the 'bad calories' you might otherwise consume.

Don't beat yourself up too much about the butter and parmesan either in this recipe. Clearly the dish would be healthier without them but overall the net improvement on the original recipe is significant. On the plus side whilst butter has more saturated fat than margerine it is a more natural 'cleaner' product and Parmesan offers perhaps the lowest saturated fat cheese option with the benefit of being high in protein, calcium, phosphorus, vitamins B2 & B12, zinc and magnesium.

Ingredients

3 Aubergines
Hemp Oil
2 Onions
2 Cloves of Garlic
1kg Lean Mince Lamb
1 tablespoon of Tomato Puree
1 200g tin Chopped Tomatoes
1 teaspoon of Cinamon
1 teaspoon of All Spice
1 handful of Fresh Thyme Leaves
2 teaspoons of Oregano
2 Bay Leaves
Rock Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
1 Pint Semi-Skimmed Milk or Milk Substitute
3 oz Organic Butter
3 oz Brown Rice Flour
50g Fresh Grated Parmesan
2 Organic Egg Yolks

Directions

1. Slice the aubergines into approx 0.5 cm thick slices
2. Brush with a little Hemp Oil on both sides and grill on both sides until brown – set aside
3. Chop onions and cloves of garlic
4. Fry onions and garlic in coconut oil for 3-5 minutes until soft but not brown
5. Add mince lamb and brown
6. Add tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, cinnamon, all spice, thyme leaves, oregano, bay leaves, salt, pepper. Stir and bring to the boil before lowering heat to a simmer for 30 minutes
7. Meanwhile, melt butter in a pan.
8. Once melted add brown rice flour and stir to a paste
9. Slowly Milk stirring constantly, maintain heat until sauce thickens
10. Add rock salt and pepper and 50g fresh grated parmesan  to the milk, butter and flour sauce.
11. Leave sauce to cool for 20 minutes then beat in 2 organic egg yolks
12. In a deep dish, pour the cooked meat sauce and aubergine in layers, finish with the cheese sauce
13. Bake for 30 minutes at 180 in a pre-heated oven

Banana & Peanut Butter Porridge

This protein packed muscle building start to the day will leave you feeling fuller for longer and reduce the likelihood of snacking on inappropriate things later in the day.

Ingredients (serves 1)

50g Organic Rolled Oats
1 Ripe Banana
1 Desertspoon of all natural unsweetened Peanut Butter
300ml of Cold Water
Optional - 1 Scoop of low-carb Chocolate Protein Powder or a good squirt of Agave Nectar.

Directions

- Place the water and oats in a pan on the stove and bring to the boil
- Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes
- Break in the peeled banana and peanut butter and stir until melted in
- Add the optional sweeteners (the Agave can be added as a topping as shown in the picture if desired)
- Add a little extra water if needed to get the desired consistency and heat for a minute further
- Serve