Cucumber Raita

Fab with tandoori chicken or onion Bahjis and it's so quick to make! 

Best of all it's syn free too :) so enjoy!

Ingredients

1/2 a cucumber
Chopped Coriander
1/2tsp Salt

250ml fat free natural yoghurt

How It's Done

Just blend all your ingredients together! 

Tzatziki Sauce

This recipe is fab and so quick tk make, it makes an excellent dip or a sauce for chicken pita breads. Or whatever else you can think of. It's completely free on slimming world too!

Just blend all your ingredients together and you're done, what could be simpler?!

Tzatziki sauce

1/2 Cucumber
1/2 a large pot of fat free Greek Yoghurt
4 cloves of minced garlic
Dill - chopped
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
Salt and Pepper

Amazing Cauliflower Pizza

N

     One diet trend doing the rounds at the moment is the Paleo Diet. I can't say I've tried it and nor will I. I much prefer the idea of a healthy lifestyle which is why I do Slimming World. However, the reason I mention the Paleo Diet is because it's churning out some weird and wonderful grain free recipes which work wonderfully for anyone doing Slimming World.

Something I've been wanting to try for a while now is this rather lovely version of a pizza. The pictures look amazing and I would never guess that the main component in the dough was Cauliflower.

My first attempt was made with a rather common recipe I've found floating around but I found it too eggy and it really wasn't fooling anyone, although it didn't taste bad!

So I made a few adjustments and instead of a runny egg mixture I made something that really resembles a dough and tastes amazing. Plus as long as you're using your cheese as your healthy extra, it's syn free!

Ingredients

1/2 large cauliflower
1 egg
1 tsp of garlic granules
1 tsp of oregano
2 handfuls of mozzarella cheese

How It's Done

Start by blending your cauliflower into a fluffy 'cous cous' like texture.

Boil the cauliflower for 3 minutes.

Drain the majority of your water from the cauliflower using a sieve. I find it's best to run some cold water through the cauliflower too, this stops your hands getting burned in the next step.

Put your cauliflower into the middle of a tea towel and use this to squeeze all the excess water out. There will be quite a bit!

Put your drained cauliflower into a bowl and add your egg, cheese, garlic and cauliflower and mix well.

When your mix is made up, it will still be slightly sticky but will hold a shape if your press it together with your hands.

Spread your 'dough' out onto a sheet of baking paper and pop into the oven at gas mark 6.

Cook until it goes a lovely golden brown colour. This was around 15 minutes for me.

I added a tomato topping to mine made with a tin of chopped tomatoes, 2 minced garlic cloves, 2 teaspoons of oregano and 1 teaspoon of sweetener. This was super yummy!

A Healthy (you heard me) Steak Diane

 

 

 

  Now every once in a while the Mister dons his chefs whites and whips us up an incredible Steak Diane. It's an indulgence we probably only do twice a year but boy, it's worth the wait.
Now his recipe calls for about a gallon of DOUBLE cream, I once tried to persuade him to make it with reduced fat single cream to try and kick back on some of the calories but he was having none of it. It also has a glass of wine in. Basically it's syn-tastic.

However, I scored some reduced steaks today and I looked all over the internet for a healthy version of steak diane but I just couldn't find anything. So I decided to try and make a slimming world friendly version myself based on my partners recipe. Said partner was extremely dubious but it was a success! So I'm sharing this recipe with you all. There's two syns in the sauce for the mustard but as it's shared between two, I think 1 syn is a bargain for this delicious dinner!

Other half said and I quote 'This is amazing, it tastes just like mine. I think this is the best meal we've had on Slimming World yet'...

Ingredients

250ml (half a tub) of fat free fromage frais
1 beef stock cube
A dash of pepper
Mushrooms
2 minced garlic cloves
1 chopped Onion
Asda Chosen by you Dijon mustard (any other brand is also fine but check your syns)
2 Steaks (any type is fine, we've used the much cheaper braising steaks before and it's still delicious)

How It's Done

Fry your onions and mushrooms in fry light for 5 minutes or so until they start to go soft.

Add your steaks and cook on a medium to low heat.

While you're waiting for your steak make your stock up with 1/2 a mug of boiling water so make a concentrated stock.

Put your fromage frais in a bowl and add 4 teaspoons of mustard, slowly add about 1/2 of the stock you've made up, so it makes the texture of a sauce.

Fry your garlic for a minute with the steak and onions.

Then add your sauce and heat up on a low temp until it just begins to bubble.

And serve :)


Mine is shown with paprika potatoes (sliced potatoes boiled for 5 minutes, wacked in the oven on high with some paprika and fry light on). 

 

Ikea Meatballs The Healthy Way

Yes, you heard me. I've only gone and made a syn FREE, healthy version of Ikea's famous Swedish meatballs.
I've been a fan of Ikea meatballs for as long as I can remember. Those meaty morsels are just too temping, I'm sure the Ikea kitchen extractor fans waft that smell round the store. The last time I went on a solo health kick, Ikea's meatballs were the first hurdle I fell at (no horse meat pun intended, although you'll find neighhh horse meat in this recipe).

These meatballs have had rave reviews:

'Yum yum in my tum!' said Dylan, 2.

They also received two thumbs up from B.

Ok, I'll stop. Basically everyone ate them without crying/whinging or leaving a morsel. Which in my house is the equivalent to a standing ovation at the Oscars.

 Ingredients

Meatballs

250g 5% Fat Beef Mince
250g Turkey Mince
2 Wholemeal Bread Buns
6- 8 Shallotts
2 Egg Yolks
1tsp Allspice
1tsp Nutmeg
1tsp Oregano
1tsp Rosemary
2tsp Garlic Powder
1tsp Onion Salt
1tsp Course Ground Black Pepper

Sauce

100ml Chicken Stock
100ml Beef Stock
250g Fat Free Fromage Fraise
Parsley Leaves
1/2 tbsp Worcester Sauce

How It's Done

Tear up your bread buns and whazz them in a food processor to make bread crumbs.

Grate your shallots. Yes, grating is important if you want your meatballs to have the same texture as Ikea meatballs.

Next, bang all your ingredients for the meatballs together in a bowl and smush it all up with your hands until both meats have combined and the mixture is an even colour.

Now shape into meatballs and add to a frying pan on a low heat with fry light. I used Olive Oil fry light but that's not particularly important.

Frying on a low heat for a longer period of time is the key here. Cooking with fry light can be disastrous if you need something to cook thoroughly without burning the s**t out of it. Plus all the lovely sticky flavour left at the bottom of the pan is great for your sauce but won't be much good if your pan is just one black charred mess.

The meatballs become quite firm when cooked all the way through, keep them moving about the pan and keep giving your meatballs a little squeeze with a spoon. You'll notice they go from quite squishy to firm.

Once cooked pop them in a bowl or on a plate out the way or the bottom shelf of your oven to keep warm. Make sure you take your pan off the heat so it doesn't burn.

Add your chicken stock, beef stock, chopped parsley, Worcester sauce and crème fresh to the pan and whisk until smooth.

Pop your pan back onto the heat, this time you want it quite high. Let the sauce reduce. It won't become really thick like it would with cream but it does get less watery.

Voila. Ikea meatballs and gravy. Enjoy!

Note This recipe makes enough for 3-4 people. If you're not using the bread bun as a healthy extra then this recipe would be 1.5 syns (if divided between 4) or 6 if divided between 2.

Tandoori Chicken With Curry Flatbread And Raita

OMG. Where to start with this. It's a bit of an extension of my Greek Gyros recipe and boy is it good!
It's packed with flavour and so yummy you'll be wondering how on earth something so good can be so healthy.
If you're following slimming world, this is another syn FREE recipe. YIPPEE!

Ingredients

Flatbread

1/2 Cauliflower
1tsp Curry Powder
Chopped Coriander or Ground Coriander
2 eggs

Raita

1/2 large tub of fat free greek yoghurt
1/2 a cucumber
Chopped Coriander
1/2tsp Salt

Tandoori Chicken

2 Chicken Breasts
4 tbsp fat free plain yoghurt
1/2 lemon
Chopped Coriander
3tbsp Tandoori Powder

How It's Done

Preheat your oven to a Medium to high heat.
Grate or blend 1/2 a cauliflower and boil for 5  minutes to cook.
Add your eggs, curry powder and coriander into a bowl and mix.
Drain your cauliflower in a sieve, then pop the cauliflower into the middle of a tea towel and use this to wring out all the excess water. Trust me, there's quite a bit.
Mix your cauliflower with the egg mixture and spread it out in two circles of rectangles on a sheet of baking paper. Pop in the oven for approximately 17 minutes.

While they're cooking start your tandoori chicken. Add your tandoori powder, eggs, the juice of half a lemon and your coriander into a bowl and mix it all up. Dice your chicken breasts and add to the mix, coating thoroughly. Leave this for 20 minutes or longer if you can to marinate.

The raita is just so quick and easy to make, it makes more than enough so you can freeze your extra for next time.
Simply deseed your cucumber, chop it up and bash all your ingredients into a jug and blend. How simple is that?

Pop your tandoori chicken on a sheet of baking paper on a tray and put it in the oven on a high heat for 25 minutes. I love my tandoori chicken slightly charred, I think it adds flavour and tastes more like the tandoori chicken you'd get from your takeaway. Mmmmm.

While you're waiting for that to cook, chop up all your lovely salad to pile your flatbread high! I used red onion, sweet pointed peppers, shredded lettuce and cucumber. These worked really well and the flavours were spot on.

 

When your chicken is done, all that's left is to pile your flatbread sky high with all that yummy, healthy food and enjoy!

 

Light And Bright Turkey Burgers

This recipe is lovely and fresh, begging to be cooked on a summers day as a tasty alternative to beef burgers.
Packed with speed food and flavour, they're sure to satisfy everyone's tastes.

Ingredients

Turkey Mince 500g
Red Onion
Baby Spinach Leaves
Oregano
1 egg
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
Wholemeal Bread buns
Feta Cheese
Lettuce
Pepper

Tzatziki sauce

1/2 Cucumber
1/2 a large pot of fat free Greek Yoghurt
4 cloves of minced garlic
Dill - chopped
1/2 Lemon
Salt and Pepper


How It's Done

There's really not much to this, which makes it great for a quick fix or lunch!

Add your yoghurt, minced garlic, chopped Dill, salt and a pinch of pepper to season and the juice of half a lemon into your blender. Chop the cucumber into cubes, leaving out the watery seeds in the middle. Add this into the blender too and blend into your sauce. Pop in the fridge to keep cool. Any extra can be frozen and used later.

Combine your mince, Red Onion, Spinach, Oregano, Egg and Cayenne Pepper in a bowl.

Shape into patties and fry using fry light until cooked through.

Place your burger in your bun and with feta Cheese, Tzatziki sauce, lettuce and pepper.

Enjoy!

Greek Gyros With Tzatziki Sauce

Or...the yummiest chicken kebab you'll ever eat.
I haven't travelled as much as I have wanted to in my 25 years but one of the places I have visited was Greece and the local gyros blows any chicken kebab you've ever had out of the water.

Here is a delightfully syn free and low fat version of gyros. Made with a garlic and herb cauliflower flat bread. This recipe does have a lot of ingredients and take a little bit more time and patience to make but it is immeasurably worth it! So channel your inner Zorba and get funky with this dish...


Ingredients

3 Chicken Breasts
Schwartz Chargrilled Chicken Seasoning
Red Pepper
Red Onion
Lettuce
Feta Cheese

Tzatziki sauce

1/2 Cucumber
1/2 a large pot of fat free Greek Yoghurt
4 cloves of minced garlic
Dill - chopped
1/2 Lemon
Salt and Pepper

Wraps (makes 2)

1/2 Cauliflower
2 Eggs
1 minced garlic clove
3/4 tsp mixed herbs


How it's Done

Ok, so first we need to make our wraps.
Pop your cauliflower florets into a blender and blend until it makes a rice texture.

Boil your cauliflower for 5 minutes then drain through a sieve. Place your cauliflower into the middle of a tea towel and squeeze all the excess water out of it.

Pop all the ingredients into a bowl and mix.

Place some baking paper onto a tray and spread your mixture into two circular wraps. They should be thin but with no holes in.

Bake for 17 minutes and cool on a wire rack to avoid a soggy bottom.

 

Next you want to cut your chicken into strips and lightly sprinkle in the chargrilled seasoning. Put on a tray, Spray in frylight and pop into the oven to cook.

While that's cooking we can move onto our tzatziki sauce, which is super easy.

Add your yoghurt, minced garlic, chopped Dill, salt and a pinch of pepper to season and the juice of half a lemon into your blender. Chop the cucumber into cubes, leaving out the watery seeds in the middle. Add this into the blender too and blend into your sauce. Pop in the fridge to keep cool. Any extra can be frozen and used later.

Once your chicken is ready all that's left is to pile your 'flatbread' with all that yummy salad and chicken. Top with your tzatziki sauce and crumble a bit of Feta cheese over the top. Voila.

One free Greek Gyros, packed with speed foods! Enjoy :)

Sweet Potato Cakes

These yummy potato cakes can be eaten by themselves as a quick lunch or snack, or made into part of a lovely filling meal. They've got lots of speed food packed in and are 100% syn free, low in fat and healthy. What more do you want? The first time I made this recipe, it was quite crumbly so I adjusted the recipe from 1 egg to 2 to help bind the mix together. This recipe will make 4 patties and you can always add different veggies in to mix it up, pepper would be lovely.

Ingredients

2 sweet potatoes
Sweetcorn
2 or 3 Sprint Onions
2 Eggs
1tsp Cumin
1/4tsp Cayenne Pepper
1tsp Onion Salt
Handful of Fresh Parsley (chopped)
Baby spinach leaves
Fry Light

How It's Done

Pop your sweet potatoes in the microwave for around 10 minutes, turning half way through.
When you squeeze them they should be nice and soft. Cut a slit in the top and pop aside to cool.

Chop your sprint Onions and add all other ingredients to a bowl. Once the potato has cooled, scoop it out the skin with a spoon, this should be really easy to so as the potato just falls away from the skin.

Mix the potato with all the ingredients in a bowl and pop into your fridge for 30 minutes or so to cool and harden.

Heat a pan and spray with your frylight. Shape the mixture into round patties and pop in the pan to fry on both sides until a golden colour.

Now the good bit...EAT! These go lovely with a garlic sauce made of fat free plain yoghurt and a minced garlic clove.

Hawaiian Pizza Cups

 

Ok, so I miss pizza. Sometimes I think about that stringy cheese and tangy tomato sauce and my mouth just starts watering.
Well crave no more, here is a yummy and healthy recipe for Pizza Cups. If you're following Slimming World and are using the cheese as your healthy A choice. Then these are FREE. The words free and pizza is just music to my ears. I don't think I need to say any more about these.

Ingredients

Ham
Grated Mozzarella
Fresh chopped pineapple
Mushrooms
1 Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
2 Garlic Cloves
1 Medium Onion
Oregano
Basil
1tsp Sweetener
100ml Chicken Stock
2tbsp Tomato Puree



How It's Done

Ok, here's the good bit. First you need to make your pizza sauce. If you have leftovers, you can always freeze it and then you have some ready made pizza sauce for the next time you make this...and trust me...there will be a next time.

Finely dice an onion and fry using fry light until soft. Add in your minced garlic cloves and fry for another minute.

Add your chopped tomatoes, stock, sweetener, puree, oregano and basil and simmer until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Take the sauce off the heat and leave to cool. When it's cooled you can blend it to make it smooth.

Next line your muffin tin with ham to make your 'cup', you shouldn't have holes or your sauce will leak through! Nobody wants a leaky pizza cup.

Add a good dollop of your sauce into each cup, top with chopped pineapple and mushrooms.

Add your grated mozzarella to top off your cups and put in the oven on Gas Mark 7 til the cheese melts and bubbles.

NOTE - if you're doing slimming world, weigh your cheese and divide this between however many cups you will be eating. This avoids over eating your daily allowance of cheese and running into your syns.

Enjoy! These are just soooooo good and taste just like a Hawaiian pizza, only less calories!

The Best Burger In Town

Before I joined Slimming World, I would always have moments where I would think 'I really need to do something about my weight'. Then along would come a takeaway, a biscuit...or two...or three...
and my resolve would weaken and I'd think 'I'll start next week'.

The great thing about Slimming World is I'm still enjoying all the things I wanted to eat before but in a healthier way. This burger recipe is, quite simply, amazing. There is no way you would feel like you were missing out when you're feasting on one of these bad boys.

Add your own toppings - lettuce, tomato or gurkins...I love caramelised onions and Reduced Sugar Tomato Ketchup (0.5 syns per tbsp). This recipe will make 7 burgers, so it goes a long way. I used 4 and kept the rest to cut up and add to a tomato and basil sauce with pasta, like meatballs. Voila! Two meals from one recipe.

Ingredients

I don't tend to measure my ingredients but this is a good guide. Have a play around with them yourself, add a bit more or if you don't have something don't worry.

750g 5% fat beef mince
2tbsp paprika
3tbsp Worcester sauce
2tbsp dark soy sauce
1tsp onion salt
1tsp ground coriander
2tsp garlic granules
1tsp course ground pepper

How It's Made

Add all your ingredients into a bowl and use a spoon to work the flavours into the meat.

Let the meat sit for 20 minutes or longer if you have time, to really let those flavours mingle. Now is a good time to get your slimming world chips on the go or maybe a nice bit of corn on the cob!

Get a sheet of grease proof paper or a plate to put your burgers onto, grab a handful of meat and roll into a ball. Press it out onto your paper until it is about the thickness of a £1 coin. Do this with the rest of your meat.

Heat a frying pan on a medium to low heat and add your fry light.

Once the fry light starts to bubble add your first few burgers. The trick here is to resist the urge to flip and squeeze the daylights out of your burger. You're going to loose all those yummy flavours and juices that way. Give them about 4 minutes on each size and transfer to a baking tray and sprinkle with cheese (healthy A).

Once you've finished cooking and sprinkling, pop the burgers in the oven until that lovely cheese melts.

Voila! Stick it in that wholemeal bun (healthy B or 6 syns) and pile your burger high with yummy speed food.


TIP - If you want the authentic McDonalds feel, add some limp lettuce and make your burger half the size of the image shown.

KFC Style Chicken

Ok, so I'm just going to jump straight in here. I love love love KFC chicken. Those succulent pieces of chicken coated in a crispy crumb are my calling.
I thought when I started to eat healthy I'd be saying goodbye to them forever but the great thing about Slimming World is that there is always a way to make healthier versions of your favourite foods.
I came across a recipe to make my own, tweaked it a bit and it's more than finger licking' good. It's a firm favourite in my house and 100% satisfies that crispy chicken craving. Best of all - its syn free! YEY!

This recipe serves 2 and the bread is your healthy B allowance. IF you've already used your healthy B then the bread bun counts as 6 syns.


Ingrediants

2 chicken breasts
1tsp onion salt
2tbsp paprika
Dash of coarse ground pepper
1tsp Oregano
1tsp garlic granules
1/2tsp ground ginger
2 eggs
Fry Light
2 wholemeal 60g bread buns.


How It's Done

1. Tear up your bread and add it to your food processor, along with your herbs and spices. Blend into crumbs.

2. Dice your chicken breast or slice into fillets.

3. Beat your eggs and dip your chicken pieces in the egg.

4. Thoroughly coat your chicken pieces in your crumbs.

5. Put on a baking tray and spray throughly with fry light (this is the key to getting the chicken nice and crispy).

6. Cook and enjoy! I don't have an exact temperature for the chicken, I usually cook mine on gas mark 7.