Sweet Potato Brownie

Recipe adapted from I Quit Sugar

Makes 16 slices

Ingredients

oil for greasing
3 tablespoons coconut flour
2 tablespoons raw cacao powder
¼ teaspoon gluten free baking powder
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of sea salt
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
50g dark chocolate, melted & cooled
1 cup sweet potato puree, cooled
3 eggs, whisked
¼ cup coconut oil
⅓ cup rice malt syrup
½ tsp vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Grease a 20x20cm baking tin and line with baking paper
3. In a bowl, combine dry ingredients. In a separate bowl add the wet ingredients, including sweet potato puree and whisk
4. Stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix well. Pour into lined tin and spread evenly
5. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean
6. Cool for 10 minutes before cutting into squares

Notes & Tips

To make sweet potato puree: cut sweet potato into evenly sized chunks. Place into a steamer for 20 minutes or until they become really soft. Add to food processor and puree until smooth.

Dairy free option- use brown rice protein powder

Beef stir-fry with garlic shoots

Ingredients

500g beef stir fry strips
1 bunch garlic shoots, cut into 4cm pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely sliced

Beef Marinade

2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 teaspoons corn flour
pinch of white pepper

Method

1. Marinate beef for at least 30 minutes
2. In the pan, add 1 tablespoon oil on a medium high heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, then add the beef and cook until halfway.
3. Add the garlic shoots and stir fry until beef is cooked. 
4. Season with salt and pepper. Serve

Gordan Ramsay's Broccoli Soup

This is by the far the most easiest soup I've ever made! Yummy and super healthy- it's also a great way to get some greens into your diet

Ingredients

2 medium broccoli
1.5L water
1 tablespoon salt
olive oil

Method

1. Bring water to a boil in a large sauce pan. Add salt. Add broccoli and boil rapidly for 4 minutes. Your broccoli is ready when you can piece it with little or no effort.
2. Remove broccoli using a slotted spoon and put into a blender. Pour the broccoli water to fill the blender half way. Add a pinch (or more) of salt. Use several pulses on your blender to break the broccoli up and then puree for several seconds.
3. Pour soup into a bowl. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and serve at once!

Green Beans Stir Fried with Oyster Mushroom & Garlic

Recipe by Luke Nguyen

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
200g green beans, cut into 5cm lengths
100g oyster mushrooms, torn in half
2 teaspoons light soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Coriander sprigs, to garnish

Method

Place a large frying pan or wok over high heat. 
Add the vegetable oil and fry the garlic until fragrant. 
Add the green beans and stir fry for 2 minutes, the add the oyster mushrooms, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil and pepper. 
Toss for a further minute, then transfer to a plate. 
Garnish with coriander and serve immediately

Pippies wok-tossed with chilli & Asian basil

Recipe adapted from Luke Nguyen

Ingredients

1 ½ cups water
2 lemongrass stalks, bruised, finely sliced
1kg pippies/vongole
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons oil
1 tablespoon finely diced garlic
1 tablespoon finely diced red Asian shallots
1 tablespoon corn flour mixed with 1 tablespoon water
2 long red chillies, finely sliced
1 handful Asian basil leaves
green shallots, to garnish

Method

In a large saucepan, bring water to the boil. Add lemongrass and pippies. Cover and cook until pippies open slightly (roughly 4 minutes).

In a bowl, add sugar, fish sauce & oyster sauce. Mix until sugar dissolves and set aside.

Strain the pippies, reserving its broth.

Heat a wok to high, add oil, garlic and red shallots, followed by the pippies, then wok toss for 1 minute.

Add the sauce and 6 tablespoons of the pippie broth, toss for a further minute, then add the dissolved corn flour.

Add chilli, pepper and Asian broth and toss to combine.

Gluten Free Banana Bread

I had some leftover ripe bananas sitting in my fruit bowl today. Not wanting them to go to waste nor put them in the freezer since I often forget about the things I put in there, I decided to make banana bread. Since I'm trying to cut out wheat and refined sugars from my diet at the moment, I made a gluten-free version. This banana bread is much lighter in texture and healthier to eat. It's also very simple to make and very tasty. Making this at the start of the week means I now have something healthy to snack on for morning or afternoon tea. Especially since I still enjoy eating desserts :)

Recipe adapted from Teresa Cutter's The 80/20 Diet recipe book

Ingredients

1 ¼ cups mashed ripe banana (about 2 large bananas)
3 eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons rice malt syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup coconut oil
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups almond meal
2 teaspoons chia seeds
chopped walnuts, to decorate (optional)
1 extra banana, sliced, to decorate (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease base and sides of a 7cm deep, 11cm x 21cm (base) loaf pan. Line with baking paper, allowing a 2cm overhang at both long ends. 
2. Combine the mashed banana, eggs, rice malt syrup, vanilla extract, coconut oil, cinnamon, baking soda and lemon juice in a large mixing bowl.
3. Add the almond meal and chia seeds. Mix well until combined. 
4. Pour batter into loaf pan. Decorate the top of banana bread with sliced banana or a handful of chopped walnuts. 
5. Bake for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
6. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Lift onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into 10 even slices.

Notes & Tips

• Cover the top of the cake with foil if over-browning
• Keeps in the fridge covered for up to one week

Hummus Dip

Ingredients

1x 400g can chick peas, drained, rinsed 

½ teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tablespoons tahini paste (sesame paste)

Up to ½ cup olive oil

Method

Blend all ingredients together in a mini food processor until smooth. Add oil last, a little at a time. Depending on the taste and consistency you like, add as much as necessary up to the 1/2 cup.

Serve with paprika sprinkled on top and extra olive oil drizzled over the top.

Pearl Barley & Smoked Paprika Minestrone Soup

Warm, hearty and healthy soup

Recipe adapted from taste.com.au, April 2014

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 brown onion, diced into 1cm cubes
1 carrot, diced into 1cm cubes
1 zucchini, diced into 1cm cubes
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2x400g cans diced tomatoes
1.5L-2L vegetable stock
⅓ cup pearl barley
400g can barlotti beans, rinsed, drained
½ bunch kale, shredded
flat leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped, to serve

Method

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Add onion, carrot, zucchini and garlic. Cook stirring for 5 minutes or until onion softens.
2. Add paprika and stir to combine. Add tomatoes, stock and barley. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally for 30 minutes or until barley is tender. Add beans and kale. Stir until kale wilts. Taste and season with salt and pepper.
3. Divide soup among serving bowls. Sprinkle with parsley to serve. 

Chocolate Protein Balls

I first came across chocolate protein balls when I was watching the reality tv show Recipe to Riches. In this show, everyday home cooks have the opportunity to take their home recipe and turn it into a product to be sold at Woolworths supermarkets. Each week, there are different food categories and contestants battle it out to be the final winner in that category. Viewers can then buy the winning contestant's product, straight from the supermarket shelf the day after the episode goes to air! The more products that are sold, the greater chance the contestant has of seeing their product on the supermarket shelf permanently and win the competition/tv series. I absolutely love watching this show. It's very inspiring, interactive and entertaining. Someday, I wish I can create something worthwhile to enter!

In season 2, I think on the third week, they had a health food category and the product that won was called "Choc Bombs". Basically these were chocolate protein balls made from cashews, dates, chia seeds, cacao, protein powder and coconut oil. I bought this product and absolutely loved it. They were a great snack to eat on my way home from work when I would feel peckish and since they were individually packaged, I was able to conveniently keep them in my handbag. Since purchasing this product, I've wanted to try making my own protein balls. I found a few recipes online and I tried the one from Women's Health magazine today since it had the ingredients most similar to the Choc Bombs. The taste was pretty spot on! Next time I make this recipe, I'll try adding the chia seeds and coconut oil.

Makes 16 balls

Ingredients

1 cup raw cashews

2 tablespoons rice malt syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

8 medjool dates, pitted

2 tablespoons cacao powder

½ cup desiccated coconut, for coating

Method

Place cashews into a mini food processor and blend until smooth

Place remaining ingredients (except the desiccated coconut) and mix until well combined

Roll a tablespoon of the mixture into a ball

Roll ball into dessiccated coconut until evenly coated

Place ball on a plate lined with baking paper

Place in the fridge to set

Notes & Tips


You can cheat and buy cashew butter rather than making your own-  I wasn't able to find any in my health food store though.

I found rice malt syrup in the health food section of Coles supermarket. If you can't find this product, substitute with honey instead and adjust the sweetness to your taste. 

Chocolate Berry Power Smoothie

They say breakfast is the most important meal in the day as it fuels your body, so what better way to start than with a power smoothie!

This recipe is by Melissa Ramos from her Remodel Sexy Cookbook. It's very quick and easy to make, plus it tastes really nice.

In Melissa's recipe she also adds 1oz E3 live and a generous handful of spinach. I didn't have both these ingredients so did without it.

Ingredients

1 cup unsweetened almond milk

½ cup frozen mixed berries

1 scoop vanilla protein powder

1 tablespoon cacao powder

1 tablespoon coconut oil

Method

Combine all ingredients in a high powered blender, pour and enjoy