Delicious Recipe

“Every so often I will put one of my favourite, healthy recipes on this page.  The benefits of each recipe will be explained.”

CHRISTMAS 2012 🙂
Here’s a fresh and colourful recipe for a quick, festive looking, meal over the Christmas period …..  or, make this anytime you’re pressed for time!
Great red and green colour!

Chicken with Asparagus & Almonds
(serves 4)

Prep time:  15 mins
Total cooking time:  8 minutes

500g chicken thigh fillets
1 tbsp (approx.) oil
300g fresh asparagus, cut into 5cm lengths
1 large red capsicum, cut into strips
1 tbsp grated ginger
8 spring onions, cut into 3cm lengths
2 tsp sweet chilli sauce
3 tsp soy sauce
½ cup toasted almonds

1. Trim chicken of excess fat and sinew.  Cut into thin strips.  Heat oil in frying pan or wok; add asparagus and capsicum and stir-fry over high heat for 2 minutes.  Remove from pan and set aside.  Add ginger to pan; stir-fry for 1 minute.  Add chicken and stir-fry, in batches, 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.  Return asparagus and capsicum to pan.
2. Add spring onion and sauces; stir-fry 2 minutes or until chicken and vegetables are tender.  Add almonds and stir.

(Note:  If asparagus spears are thick, cut in half lengthways so they will cook more quickly.)

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Simplicity Wins the Day (Tortilla)
Isn’t it wonderful how three basic, very inexpensive ingredients (eggs, onions, potatoes) can be transformed into something so absolutely sublime.  And this is simply the way the Spanish make their omelettes.  A Spanish Omelette, or Tortilla, is not better than a French one, and it certainly talks longer to make …. It’s totally worth it.   It’s a joy to know that simplicity can still win the day.

A well-made Tortilla served with a salad (and perhaps a bottle of wine) can give two or more people a luxury meal at any time and at a very low cost.

TORTILLA (Spanish Omelette)
(serves 2-3)
(note:  the size of the frying pan is important:  a base measurement of 20cm diameter is about right for 2 to 3 people)

5 large eggs
1 medium onion
3 medium potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
Rock salt & freshly milled black pepper

Firstly, peel and cut the onion in half, then thinly slice each half and separate the layers into half-moon shapes.
Then slice the potatoes (your choice whether to peel your potatoes, I never do!) into thin rounds.  Work quickly here as you don’t want the potatoes to brown.  When they are sliced, rub them in a clean tea towel to get them as dry as possible.
Next, heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in the frying pan and, when it’s smoking hot, add the potatoes and onions.  Toss them around in the oil to get a good coating, then turn the heat right down to its lowest setting, add a generous sprinkling of salt & pepper, put a lid on the frying pan and let the onions and potatoes cook gently for 20 minutes, or until tender.
Turn them over halfway through and shake the pan from time to time, as they are not supposed to brown very much, just gently stew in the oil.

Meanwhile, break the eggs into a large bowl and, using a fork, whisk them lightly – it’s important not to overbeat them.  Finally, add some seasoning.   When the potatoes and onions are cooked, quickly transfer them to the eggs in the bowl.

Put the frying pan back on the heat, add the rest of the oil and turn the heat back up to medium.  Then mix the potatoes and eggs thoroughly before pouring the whole lot into the frying pan and turning the heat down to its lowest setting immediately.  Now forget all about French omelettes and be patient, because it’s going to take 20-25 minutes to cook slowly uncovered.  Every now and then draw the edge in gently with a palette knife, as this will give it a lovely rounded edge.  When there is virtually no liquid egg left on the surface of the omelette (option here: see below), place a flat lid or plate over the pan, invert it, turning the pan over, and put it back on the heat and use the palette knife to gently ease the omelette back in.  Give it about 2 minutes more, then turn the heat off and leave it for a further 5 minutes to settle.
Serve hot or cold, cut in wedges …… yummy / brilliant!    🙂

(Option if you, like me, prefer not to turn the omelette [to be honest I tend to break them when turning!]:  once the omelette is cooked on the underside, I sprinkle some cheese over the top then pop it under the grill under sizzling and brown on top.  Perfect.)

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Benefits of Fibre
The Brown Rice Salad recipe below is packed full of fibre.  Why is fibre so important for our bodies?
Fibre is required to keep our digestive system healthy.  It speeds up the process of excretion of toxins and wastes from the human body preventing them to remain settled in the intestine or bowel for long.  Hence, many diseases and ailments can be avoided. There are two kinds of Fibre:  soluble and insoluble.  The soluble fibre helps the human body to absorb nutrients and good elements from food.  Insoluble fibres help the body to move the waste and harmful materials from the digestive tract.
Eating plenty of foods containing fibre, such brown rice (insoluble fibre), veges etc. can help with reducing weight, relieving constipation, bowel disease can be reduced and ensuring proper absorbtion of the vitamins and minerals in the foods we eat.  A list of foods containing soluble & insoluble fibre is below this FAB & DELICIOUS recipe.

BROWN RICE SALAD

• 1½ cups brown rice (cooked)
  (I often put the dressing over the cooked rice and leave for a couple of hours before adding the other ingredients.)
• Salt to taste
• 3 spring onions finely chopped
• 1 Red capsicum cored seeded & chopped
• 1 Green capsicum cored seeded & chopped
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 75 grams cashews, raw or roasted and roughly chopped
• 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
• 3 Tablespoon of soy sauce dressing (or to taste)

Variations:  2 sticks chopped celery, other nuts/seeds rather than cashew (eg almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, walnuts, pinenuts), instead of parsley consider mint or coriander.

Soy Sauce Dressing

• 1/2 cup cooking oil (I use a little less)
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 level teaspoons sugar
• 1 clove garlic crushed or finely chopped
• 1 cm root ginger finely chopped
• Salt & Pepper to taste

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Sources of soluble fibre: oatmeal, oat cereal, lentils, apples, oranges, pears, oat bran, strawberries, nuts, flaxseeds, beans, dried peas, blueberries, psyllium, cucumbers, celery, and carrots.

Sources of insoluble fibre: whole wheat, whole grains, wheat bran, corn bran, seeds, nuts, barley, couscous, brown rice, bulgur, zucchini, celery, broccoli, cabbage, onions, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers, green beans, dark leafy vegetables, raisins, grapes, fruit, and root vegetable skins.