Perfect Pumpkin Soup Recipe

 from: https://www.jamieoliver.com/magazine/a-perfect-pumpkin-soup-recipe-for-autumn/

Pea and Basil Soup

My Dad's neighbour gave us a big bunch of fresh basil, so we wanted to find a tasty dish to cook. A rainy weekend and different family members eating at different times meant soup was the answer. This recipe does not disappoint and is one of my new favourites, it's actually quite fancy! I add some shredded chicken for protein.

 INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, diced
• 2tsp minced garlic 
• Salt and pepper
• 4 1/2 cups frozen peas
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tin of Carnation evaporated milk
• Handful of sliced mozzarella cheese (I use bocconcini)
• Dessertspoon of char-grilled capsicum (jarred is fine) per bowl, to serve
• Optional: Handful of shredded chicken, to serve

METHOD

- Place a medium soup pot over medium heat.
- Add the olive oil, butter, onions, garlic, salt and pepper.
- Cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add the peas and basil, and heat until the peas are thawed.

- Using a stick blender, blend mixture
- Add chicken stock and continue to puree with stick blender,
- Stir in tin of carnation milk
- Return the pan to medium heat and cook until hot, but not boiling.
- Taste the mixture to ensure it is seasoned well, you may have to add more salt or pepper.

- To serve, place the soup in bowls.
- Place thin slices of fresh mozzarella cheese on top of each soup and sprinkle with the diced roasted red capsicum. Serve immediately. 


Adapted from: http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/pea-and-basil-soup.html

Creamy Thai Zucchini and Corn Soup

I've had this recipe sitting in my Pinterest account for months, and I finally had a chance to give it a try. I've been sick for over a week now with a terrible cough and I think this is a wonderful healthful elixir! It could replace my other favourite soup for those times when I'm feeling a bit off. You have to make your own stock for this soup but don't panic, it's quick and easy, certainly worth the effort. I also add shredded chicken for protein.

INGREDIENTS

Stock

 2 stalks lemongrass, chopped into 3cm lengths

10 'coins' of galangal (or ginger), just slice it up so each piece is coin shaped

10 large kaffir lime leaves, lightly crushed

6 cups water

4 bushy sprigs thai basil, save a small amount for garnish

Soup 
1 bunch spring onions, white and light green parts only, sliced

2 cups of frozen corn, thawed

1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil

2 small chillies, finely chopped

1 teaspoon salt, more to taste

3 zucchini, chopped

1 x small can of lite coconut milk

half a bunch of coriander leaves, plus a few leaves for garnish 

juice of 1-2 limes (I find 1 is fine)

METHOD

Stock
- In a large saucepan, combine the lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, thai basil and water. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a bare simmer; simmer for 15 minutes.
- Strain the stock into another saucepan, discarding the aromatics and reserving the stock.

Soup
- Melt the coconut oil over medium heat in a large saucepan
- Add spring onions and chilli, cook for 5 min
- Add zucchini, and 2/3 of the corn, 1tsp salt and enough stock to cover the vegetables. Cook, partially covered for 15 min

- Let the soup cool to warm room temperature, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to release the steam. (this will preserve the bright color and flavor when you add the coriander and lime)
- Add the coriander leaves, and puree until very smooth
- Blend in the coconut milk, and the juice of one lime.
- Taste, adding more lime or salt until the flavors taste bright. 

- Re-heat the soup gently. Ladle into bowls, and top with the remaining corn kernels, a drizzle of coconut milk, and a few cilantro and basil leaves. Serve with additional lime wedges, if you desire. 

Adapted from: http://www.bojongourmet.com/2013/08/creamy-thai-zucchini-and-corn-soup.html

Paleo Chicken Schnitzel Tray Bake

Could it be that we have a new family favourite on our hands? When there was just one dish to wash up tonight and the kitchen was clean in less than 5min - my husband Mark couldn't believe his luck!

INGREDIENTS

Schnitzel + crumb
500g of sliced and/or pounded chicken breast
2 eggs, beaten
Dish of Tapioca Flour (or any flour you desire)
1.5 cups (approx) of Almond Meal
Salt + Pepper
Handful of grated parmesan (I use Grana Padano)
Handful of snipped chives
Handful of chopped parsley
(I have a herb garden so it's so easy to access, but feel free to use dried herbs or substitute as required)
Coconut Oil Spray (Or Olive Oil Spray)

Roast Vegies
1 x sweet potato
2 x potatoes (I chose 'Desiree')
Handful of cherry tomatoes
2-3 cloves of garlic, skin on (optional)
(You can substitute any vegetables you wish)
Olive Oil
Butter (optional)

METHOD
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
- Chop vegies into 'chip' sized batons
- Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil and a few small knobs of butter in the bottom of roasting pan, spread around with a spatula
- Place vegies in pan with garlic, roast for 20min

- As vegies are roasting prepare crumb for chicken
- Prepare 3 dishes: One with flour, one with beaten eggs, one with 'crumb mix' (all other ingredients, mixed.)
- Coat chicken pieces in flour, then egg, then crumb mix

- After vegies have roasted for 30min, pull pan out of oven and turn them, add tomatoes
- Balance crumbed chicken pieces on top of vegies and spray with oil
- Place pan back in over, cook for a further 15min
- Pull pan out, flip chicken over, spray with more oil, cook for another 15min (or until chicken is cooked).

Serve with greens of your choice!

Adapted from:  http://www.taste.com.au/recip…/20444/oven+baked+fish+n+chips and Pete Evans' schnitzel recipe. http://www.today.com/…/paleo-chef-shares-his-affordable-din…

Wholefood Simply Banana Bread

I did it! I made a more healthful version of banana bread which will become a family staple, this is the stuff I will be bringing my kids up on!

INGREDIENTS

3 medium to large ripe bananas

8 dates, seeds removed

3 tablespoons of tahini or nut/seed butter of your choice (I used peanut butter as that is all I had at the time)

juice of 1/2 a lemon

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup coconut flour, sifted

1 teaspoon bicarb soda

4 eggs

pinch of salt

METHOD

• Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celcius 
• Grease and line your loaf tin
• Blend the bananas and dates together until smooth
• Add the remaining ingredients and mix until well combined
• Pour mixture into the prepared tin
• Bake for 45 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out cleanly

TIPS

• I let my bananas turn truly black (even leave them out on the balcony table for a few extra days!) then store them in the freezer
• I was worried that without alot of flour there would not be enough mix but it fills the loaf tin perfectly! 
• I decorated the top of my banana bread with some 'scrap nuts' and coconut I had in my baking cupboard, it did not burn at all during cooking, just went nice and toasty.

Adapted from: https://wholefoodsimply.com/banana-bread/

Oven-Roasted Cauliflower Rice

With a little one keeping me busy I need to keep things as simple as possible. There are so many recipes out there for cauliflower rice! I find this one quick and tasty, it could be used as a good base for other flavours; but just on it's own it is the perfect substitute for rice.

INGREDIENTS
Serves 2

• Olive oil spray (or you can use Coconut Oil spray - found it today, makes it so much easier!)
• 1 x head of caulifower
• Salt
  
  

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees celcius
2. Line a baking tray with foil. Spray a thin layer of olive oil on the foiled surface.
3. Whizz handfuls of cauliflower in a food processor (I only have a small one but do it in a few gos, it's no problem)
4. Spread cauliflower on tray, sprinkle with salt and spray with more olive oil
5. Bake for 10min, then stir and rearrange on tray. Bake for another 10 minutes,or until mix is slightly 'toasted.')
6. Serve as a side with curry or similar.

TIPS
- The cauliflower mix shrinks alot when baked. It may seem like a lot of mix when you are whizzing it in the food processor, but the mix will easily shrink to a third of its size once roasted.
- Watch you don't burn it too much, I baked my first lot for 30min and even though it looked lovely on the tray by the time I mixed it up it was probably a little too toasty.

Adapted from: http://theclothesmakethegirl.com/2014/03/25/roasted-cauliflower-rice/

Spanish Beef and Pearl Barley Paella

 This has been one of my 2014 Winter favourites! And so many good crunchy greens, you could substitute what you have on hand to personalise this dish. Fabulous leftovers for lunch too.
 
INGREDIENTS

600 g beef blade (steak or roast), trimmed of fat, 2cm diced
1 tbsp smoked paprika 4 silverbeet stems, finely diced
1 red capsicum, finely diced
1 green capsicum, finely diced
½ cup pearl barley
1 head garlic, sliced in half horizontally
6 sprigs thyme
1 pinch saffron, soaked in 1 tbsp hot water
500 ml salt reduced beef stock
1 bunch silverbeet leaves, shredded

METHOD

- Drizzle oil over beef in a bowl and toss to coat.
- Place a 30cm paella pan, frying pan or cast iron casserole dish over high heat and brown beef.
- Add paprika and stir to coat the beef.
- Add diced silverbeet stems, capsicum, pearl barley, garlic, thyme, saffron and stock and bring to the boil
- Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until beef and pearl barley are tender. If liquid reduces too much add a little water to keep the beef moist.
- Add shredded silverbeet leaves in the last 2 minutes of cooking, or steam separately and serve paella on top of silverbeet.

From: http://www.beefandlamb.com.au/Recipes/All_recipes/Detail/Spanish-beef-and-pearl-barley-paella

Low Sugar Cupcakes for Kids!

So my little bean is turning one! I want to her to celebrate with her baby-friends, of course. But as my day job is Primary School Teaching I have seen first hand what too much sugar does to kids...(and I learned this the hard way from giving my 9 month old one 'milk-chocolate' Easter Egg at Easter... just one!)
So I thought I'd seek out a recipe that minimises the sugar... hopefully it will be good for years to come!  

INGREDIENTS  
Makes approx 30 mini cupcakes

3 really ripe large bananas (the blacker, the better!)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 lightly beaten egg
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 cup wholemeal self raising flour 
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
1/3 cup melted butter 
Splash of milk (to help create a consistent cake batter) 

Date Glaze

6 large medjool dates, pitted
6 tablespoons boiling water
4 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

METHOD

• Mash up bananas
• Add the cinnamon & beaten egg
• Sift in the dry ingredients
• Add the melted butter
• Mix together until all combined - if you feel you need a slightly 'runnier' cake batter, I suggest adding a few splashes of milk at this step.
• Place into muffin tin or patty cakes and then place in an oven at 180 degrees (or about 170 for fan forced) for about 15-20 minutes. 

For Glaze: 

• Add the dates and boiling water to a small bowl Let soak for about 15 minutes. 
• Then pour mixture into a container that you can whiz mixture with a hand held blender / mini food processor. 
• Add the remaining ingredients. Blend on high until ultra-smooth and creamy. This only took me 20-40sec.
• Spread the glaze onto the warm cupcakes using a pastry brush, sprinkle with coconut. Add a decoration if you like - I buy mine (yes they have sugar, but they are tiny and if your diet is strict you can remove it easily before eating) from Patrick's Sugar Box on eBay.  

I really like this recipe as it is quick and requires no beating - so no need for a Kitchenaid or 20min standing there with a handheld beater :)
Overall I find that the cakes rise well and turn a pleasing brown colour - the date glaze helps to get things looking really golden, and give it a slight toffee-buttery taste. The cupcakes have a muffin-y texture and would probably benefit from cooking with unsalted butter (or even coconut oil!).
If you become hooked on making them sweeter I'd suggest to add some date paste or rice malt syrup to the cake batter - I'm yet to do this but I am going to keep trying this recipe with a few tweaks and will update as I go along.

I adapted the cake recipe from one I found on the Sweet Poison Forum
The original Date Glaze recipe can be found here.

No Sugar, High Protein Lemon and Blueberry Cake Slice

After I had my little one my Mother-In-Law made me this Blueberry and Yoghurt Loaf by Donna Hay, and I was obsessed with it!
Here is my adaptation of the recipe to make it more healthful for me - I have to say this smells gorgeous while it is baking. It also forms a lovely glossy crust once cooked and the greek yoghurt give the texture a softness, I'd say it is my most successful sugar-free baked treat to date!

INGREDIENTS
1.5 Cups of Protein Pancake Mix
2 punnets blueberries
1/2 cup sultanas
handful of craisins (Optional, I just had some in the pantry so thought I would try)
1/2 cup chopped dates
3/4 cup flaked almonds
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup hazlenut meal (or just whiz hazlenuts using a handheld food processor)
4 eggs
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 cup greek yoghurt
3/4 cup milk (or substitute of your choice)
1 tablespoon of lemon rind
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla

METHOD
- Preheat oven to 160 degrees
- Line a lamington tin with greaseproof paper
- Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl
- In a seperate bowl, whisk together eggs, coconut oil, yoghurt, milk, vanilla and lemon juice
- Combine all ingredients together in one bowl
- Pour mixture into lined lamington tin
- Bake at 160 degrees for 20min, then turn oven up to 180 degrees, bake for a further 35min
- Allow to cool in tin resting on a wire rack, once cool cut into squares and enjoy!

These also benefit from 20sec of warming up in the microwave if eaten after baking day.
Fine for freezing, too - again, just warm up in microwave and munch away!

Beef Stroganoff

 INGREDIENTS

• olive oil cooking spray
• 500g beef fillet, trimmed, cut into thin strips (I just buy beef cut for stir fry from the butchers)
• 1 brown onion, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 250g button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 3 teaspoons coconut flour
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 cup Greek-style yoghurt
• 1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 600g steamed vegetables, to serve

METHOD

- Spray a frying pan with oil on high heat
- Add one third of the beef. Cook, stirring, for 30 to 60 seconds or until browned all over. Remove to a plate. Repeat with oil and remaining beef in 2 batches.
- Combine coconut flour, stock and worcestershire sauce in a small jug, place to one side
- Reduce heat to medium, spray pan with oil
- Add onion and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until soft. Add garlic and mushrooms
- Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until mushrooms are tender
- Stir in paprika and cook for 1 minute
- Stir stock mixture into mushroom mixture. Cook, stirring, until sauce comes to the boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer for 2 minutes
- Add yoghurt and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes
- Return beef and juices to pan, stir until warmed through.
- Stir in parsley and season with pepper
- Spoon stroganoff onto plates. Serve with steamed vegetables.

Adapted from: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/7338/beef+stroganoff