Easy egg muffins

Looking for something to have as a savoury snack or a breakfast that you can have on the go? These simple egg muffins are just the thing.

Ingredients:

6 eggs
cheese
meats
onions or other veg of choice
salt and pepper
chilli flakes

1. Grease a 12 piece muffin or mince pie tin
2. Add a little onion or whatever veg/meat you are using and cheese
3. Beat eggs and season with salt and pepper and chilli flakes if you wish
4. Pour egg mixture over the top of the veg and cheese
5. Bake at the centre of a preheated oven at 200 °C for 20-25 minutes until muffins are golden, puffy and the eggs have set
6. Let the muffins cool slightly before removing from the tin

These muffins can be eaten immediately or placed in a sealed plastic bag in the fridge or freezer.

Suggested flavour combinations:

• Stilton and lightly steamed broccoli
• Feta, pine nuts and  fresh spinach
• Parmesan and fresh basil
• Cheddar and spring onion

Fish Pie

This is a recipe that I have adapted from one of Jamie Oliver's. We have this for dinner regularly as it's so delicious but also easy to make. I get the fish in Aldi as it comes with the skin removed and the packets are a good size for this recipe.

Ingredients:

1 large cauliflower, puréed (see http://lowcarbhealthily.blogspot.ie/2015/06/cauliflower-saviour-of-low-carb-diet.html)
1 large carrot
100g cheddar cheese
20g parmesan
250g cod, diced
250g smoked coley, diced
200g crème fraîche
handful of fresh spinach
Tbsp lemon juice
Tbsp parsley
Tbsp olive oil

1. Peel and grate carrot directly into the dish you are using to cook the fish pie
2. Grate the parmesan and half the cheddar into the dish
3. Add fish, crème fraîche, spinach, lemon juice, olive oil and parsley
4. Mix well
5. Top with cauliflower purée
6. Sprinkle remaining grated cheddar on top
7. Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 30 - 40 minutes
8. Serve

Ronan's Chocolate Buns

Ronan has developed this recipe by trial and error. This is his perfected version but he still tinkers with it occasionally! You may wish to add more Stevia if these aren't sweet enough for you.

Ingredients:

100g chopped walnuts

150g grounds almonds

50g milled flaxseed

12g Stevia

50g cocoa powder

pinch of salt

4 medium eggs

1. Combine dry ingredients in a mixing bowl
2. Add eggs and stir well. The mixture should be quite stiff
3. Divide evenly between 12 bun cases
4. Bake for 12-14 minutes in a preheated oven at 200°C

Chicken, Chorizo and Prawn Paella

I created this recipe yesterday and Ronan and I tested it for dinner. It's more 'saucy' than proper paella made with rice but its just as tasty.

Ingredients:

1 medium cauliflower, grated (cauli rice)

1 onion, sliced

1 red pepper, sliced

3 cloves of garlic, sliced

2 chicken breasts, diced

150g chorizo, sliced

10 large prawns (raw if possible)

2 tbsp tomato purée

1 chicken stock cube

2 pinches of saffron

fresh chilli or chilli flakes to taste

1 tbsp coconut oil

1 cup of white wine

salt and pepper

1. Fry chicken in the coconut oil at a low heat until cooked
2. Add sliced onion, garlic, pepper and chorizo and sauté for 5 minutes
3. Add grated cauliflower and stir to coat with the chorizo oils
4. Add wine, stock cube, saffron, tomato purée, salt and pepper, chilli and 2 cups of water
5. Add prawns and keep stirring until cooked (they will go pink!), adding more water if required
6. Serve immediately

N.B. If you choose not to eat nightshade foods, exclude the red pepper, chilli and tomato purée

Fat vs Sugar

Why do we all believe that fat is bad for you? It has recently been revealed that there is no proper scientific evidence to support this. So why is this belief so widespread?

This article from the Guardian newspaper from February of this year explains:

http://lowcarbhealthily.blogspot.ie/2015/06/cauliflower-saviour-of-low-carb-diet.html

It is fast becoming the belief that sugar and not fat is the leading cause of obesity. In fact, it is being likened to a drug. The more you have, the more you want. Next time you go to the supermarket, read the ingredients of every item you put into your trolley. Nine times out of ten you will read the word 'sugar'. Even ready made coleslaw and the majority of breads contain it. And if you don't see 'sugar', you'll see 'sucrose' or 'fructose' or some other name for what is still, essentially, sugar.

And one last bit of interesting information. In 2003, it was discovered that the sugar lobby in the US blackmailed the World Health Organisation into changing their new guidelines on healthy eating. The new guidelines stated that sugar should account for no more than 10% of your diet. Understandably, the sugar industry did not want this information getting out. So they told WHO that they would get Congress to cut their funding if they went ahead and published the report. This fact terrifies me because if we cannot trust the WHO to tell us the truth, who can we trust?