Coconut Chickpea Curry

This is by no means an authentic curry but it is very simple and very delicious!

Ingredients

1 onion
2 carrots
2 cloves of garlic
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
2 400g tins of chickpeas
1 tin coconut milk
1 sachet creamed coconut
2 tbsp tomato purée
4 tsp garam masala
4 tsp medium curry powder
Salt & pepper


Method

1. Preheat oven to 150°C
2. Peel and chop onion and carrots and put into casserole dish
3. Mince garlic and chop peppers; add to dish
4. Drain chickpeas and add to dish
5. Add coconut milk, creamed coconut, tomato purée, spices and salt and pepper
6. Mix everything to together well.
7. Place casserole dish in the oven and cook for 2 hours, stirring occasionally

Flaxseed Crackers

One of the things I miss most when following a low carb diet is the crunch. These crackers are an absolutely perfect way to feed this craving. And they are delicious.

Ingredients

140g milled flaxseed/linseed

50g finely grated parmesan

2 eggs

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl
3. Leave to rest for 5 minutes (this is essential)
4. Oil a clean counter or board and cover a rolling pin in clingfilm
5. Form mixture into a ball and place on oiled board/counter
6. Roll out gently as thinly as possible
7. Use a biscuit cutter to cut out as many crackers as possible
8. Gently lift (I use a knife) and place crackers on a greased baking sheet
9. Sprinkle with rock salt
10. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes
11. Turn crackers over and bake for another 3-5 minutes
12. Remove from oven and allow to cool

Slow Cooker Coconut Chicken Curry

This has become a regular dish in our house. It's so simple; I prepare it the night before and then switch it on in the morning before I leave for work. The house smells divine when I get home! I serve this with either cauli rice or wholegrain basmati rice.

Ingredients

1 large carrot, sliced
1 large onion, diced
1 large red pepper, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced or finely chopped
10 white mushrooms, quartered
Generous handful of raisins
2 chicken breasts, cut into strips
2 chicken thighs (meat only), cut into strips
1 400g coconut milk
2 tbsps tomato purée
1.5 tbsp garam masala
1.5 tbsp curry powder
2 tsps turmeric
salt and pepper


Method

1. Put carrot, onion, garlic and pepper into your slow cooker dish
2. Layer chicken on top
3. Add mushrooms and raisins
4. In a separate bowl, mix together the coconut milk, tomato purée, garam masala, curry powder turmeric and salt and pepper
5. Pour over the ingredients in the slow cooker dish

Chorizo, Cauliflower, Chickpea and Tomato Cassoulet

I concocted this last night and it made for a very easy and tasty dinner.

Ingredients

1 x large head of cauliflower, grated
1 x 400g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
225g chorizo ring, sliced
400g passata or tinned tomatoes
1 x large onion, chopped
1 x tbsp coconut oil

Method

1. In a large skillet/wok, fry onion in coconut oil until soft
2. Add chorizo and cook for a couple of minutes until oils are released
3. Add grated cauliflower and stir well for one minute
4. Add chickpeas and passata and heat thoroughly
5. Serve

Porridge Bread

There has been a lot of research lately regarding fibromyalgia and a gluten-free diet. I am willing to try anything at this stage. So as reluctant as I was to jump on the gluten-free bandwagon, I'm giving it a go!

There are a lot of gluten-free products available in the supermarket but one thing I have found is that all the bread contains sugar and a variety of other unnecessary ingredients. My friend Tony told me about porridge bread ages ago but I have only just started making it. Here's my recipe:


Ingredients

1 x 500ml tub of natural yogurt (I use Aldi's Greek style yogurt)
1 x egg
2 tsp bread soda
2 x yogurt tubs full of gluten-free porridge oats
1/2 x tsp salt
Large handful of mixed seeds/nuts
1 x tbsp milk


Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Grease and line a loaf tin in parchment paper
3. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl
4. Pour mixture into loaf tin, level the top and cut a line down the centre
5. Bake in the oven for 55 minutes
6. Leave to cool fully before slicing

Cauli Kedgeree

Ingredients

2 x tbsp coconut oil
1 x large cauliflower, grated
200g smoked mackerel
3 x garlic cloves, crushed or finely chopped
1 x onion, chopped
1 x thumb sized ginger, grated or finely chopped
1 x tbsp curry powder
2 x tsp chilli flakes
1 x tsp mustard seeds
4 x tomatoes, chopped
4 x hard boiled eggs, quartered
2 x tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper

Method

1. Using a stick blender or food processor, pulse ginger, onion and garlic until paste
2. Heat coconut oil in a large frying pan. Add ginger, garlic and onion. Fry for 2 minutes
3. Add grated cauliflower and cook for 10 minutes
4. Add curry powder, chilli flakes, mustard seeds and tomatoes. Cook until tomatoes have softened and broken up
5. Flake the fish with your fingers, add to the pan and stir
6. Season with salt and pepper and add lemon juice
7. Add eggs and serve

Pancetta, Tomato and Kale Courgetti

Ingredients

2 large courgettes
1 tbsp olive oil
2 handfuls of cherry tomatoes
1 large bunch of kale
100g pancetta cubes
2 garlic cloves
Chilli flakes
Salt and pepper

Method

1. Spiralize the courgettes and set aside
2. Crush the garlic
3. Chop the kale, removing the woody stems
4. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan
5. Add pancetta and fry until crispy
6. Remove pancetta from the pan and add the cherry tomatoes
7. Fry until softened
8. Add the garlic, chilli flakes and chopped kale to the pan
9. Cook until the kale is wilted
10. Add the courgetti and pancetta to the pan
11. Cook until courgetti has softened slightly
12. Season with salt and pepper and serve

Broccoli and Stilton Quiche

I made this yesterday for Ronan's Aunty Breda. My brother and his wife were convinced that the crust would taste of marzipan but there is absolutely no almond taste at all!

Ingredients

Crust:
4 tbsp coconut oil, melted
180g ground almonds
75g gluten-free oat flour (if you can't find oat flour, grind gluten-free porridge oats in a food processor)
1/2 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2-3 tbsp cold water

Filling:
7 eggs
150g blue cheese (I used Aldi's Tipperary Blue), cubed
Small head of broccoli

60g grated cheddar cheese, grated
200ml milk
Salt and pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Lightly grease 27cm quiche dish with some coconut oil
3. Combine dry crust ingredients in a large bowl
4. Add melted coconut oil and mix well
5. Slowly add water until you are able to form a ball out of the mixture with your hands
6. Place the dough ball into your quiche dish and gently press out towards the sides (and up the sides) until evenly covered
7. Bake the crust for 15 minutes
8. Chop the broccoli into small florets and parboil the 5 minutes
9. Remove the crust from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes
10. Beat the eggs with the milk, salt and pepper
11. Distribute the broccoli, blue cheese and half the cheddar evenly around the crust
12. Pour the egg mixture over the top and sprinkle with the rest of the cheddar
13. Bake for 30 minutes or until top has turned golden and eggs have set
14. Serve with a green salad

Aubergine Lasagne

Ingredients

400g lean minced beef
500g passata
2 aubergines
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped/minced
12 mushrooms, chopped
2 tbsp dried or fresh basil
2 tbsp dried or fresh tarragon
2 tbsp dried or fresh oregano
3 tbsp tomato purée
200g cream cheese
100g parmesan, grated


Method

1. Fry onion until soft
2. Add garlic and fry for another minute
3. Add mince and fry until brown
4. Add passata, mushrooms, herbs and tomato purée
5. Simmer for 20 minutes
6. Thinly slice aubergine length ways and griddle each slice on both sides for approximately 2 minutes until tender
7. Melt cream cheese in a small pan
8. Place 1/3 of the mince sauce into a square oven dish
9. Cover with sliced aubergine
10. Sprinkle 1/3 parmesan over the aubergine
11. Repeat until all sauce and aubergine has been used
12. Cover last layer of aubergine with the melted cream cheese and sprinkle top with last of the parmesan
13. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes at 200°C

Cottage Pie with Caulicannon Topping

As it's very close to Halloween now, and I had a dental implant inserted today, which means I need mushy food, I have made cottage pie but with a caulicannon topping.

You'll find my caulicannon recipe here:
http://fibrofood.blogspot.ie/2015/09/colcannon.html

and my cottage pie recipe here:
http://fibrofood.blogspot.ie/2015/06/cottage-pie.html

Spiralized Courgette with Pancetta and Cream Cheese Sauce

Spiralzing is the new big craze in low carb eating. My spiralizer

arrived last week and I absolutely love it! You can get the same one here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spiralite-Vegetable-Spiralizer-by-Spiralz/dp/B003NXR086 although I got one slightly cheaper on eBay. 

We all buy kitchen gadgets, use them a few times and then leave them to rot in their boxes but I really think this one will continue to get used as myself and Ronan love spaghetti dishes but had cut them from our menu completely until now! Also, very importantly, this machine is easy to clean which means I won't dread the wash-up!

Ingredients:

3 courgettes

1 onion, finely sliced

1 clove garlic, finely sliced

1 tsp coconut or rapeseed oil

200g cream cheese

150g pancetta cubes

black pepper

Method:

1. Spiralize all 3 courgettes and set aside
2. Sauté onion and garlic in the coconut/rapeseed oil until soft
3. Add pancetta and fry until cooked thoroughly
4. Add cream cheese and plenty of ground black pepper. Stir until melted
5. Add courgettes and stir continuously until heated through
6. Serve