Tasty Good Food from Noosk's Kitchen

[Noosk]

Ok so this one isn't mine, but it's a great way to eat almonds!
Almond Pesto

Ingredients
1 big bunch Basil
1/2 a big bunch Flat leaf parsley
about a double handful of flaked almonds (i dunno, about 1 cup in American measurements)
about 100 ml olive oil
2 oz Parmesan cheese, finely grated
1 small clove garlic (or half a big clove)
salt and pepper
In a food processor, whizz up the herbs and almonds. Then add the olive oil slowly while you whizz until the mixture reaches your desired consistency (you know, pesto-like) stop whizzing and transfer to a bowl. Add the Parmesan and crushed garlic clove and mix with a fork. Add salt and pepper to taste, and more olive oil if you think it is too stiff.

Mexican 'Tacos' (serves 2)
250g lean ground beef or quorn mince
250g kidney beans (precooked)
400g chopped tomatoes
1 onion diced small
1 green pepper diced small
1 tbsp chilli powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp red pepper flakes
salt & pepper to taste (go easy on the salt!)
4 large leaves of iceberg lettuce, washed
salsa to top
lf cottage cheese to top

in a large saute pan, dry fry your ground beef, once it's browned put it into a sieve or collander and pour a kettle of boiling water over it to remove the fat. Rinse out the pan to remove any oil and dry fry onion and pepper until softened. Add in tomatoes and all spices and the meat. allow to boil for 10 - 15 minutes to remove as much of the water as possible so you're left with a dry mixture. spoon the mixture into the lettuce leaves, add your salsa and cottage cheese as desired and roll them up, hey presto, mexican taco!
If you want to add more carbs you could add in sweet corn too. yum.


INDIAN BUTTER CHICKEN - SERVES 2
for the marinade:
4 chicken breasts cubed
pinch of salt
1 tspn garam masala
1 tspm ginger
1 tspn chilli powder
1 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil
200 g natural yoghurt

For the sauce
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp ginger
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp chopped chilli (green preferably, red is fine too)
500g passata (sieved tomatoes)
250mls water
2 tbsp honey
200g lf natural yoghurt

Directions:
Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and toss in the chicken. Refrigerate for 3 - 4 hours, overnight even better. I’ve marinated for only 1 hour previously and it was still good.
Heat large saute pan
1 tsp olive oil heated
add in garam masala, ginger and garlic until softened and it comes together and really starts to small strong.
Add in chopped chillis
Put chicken along with all the marinade sauce in the pan and brown for 5 minutes
Add in passata, water and honey and simmer for at least another 20 - 25 minutes.
Just before serving add in yoghurt until warm through.
Serve over basmati or long grain rice.


Balsamic Garlic chicken (over pasta or salad) serves 2
2 chicken breasts - cubed
2 sprigs of fresh thyme (or a tablespoon of dried)
3 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar or sweetener if you prefer
2 tbsp olive oil - I used less as I thought that was a bit oily
10 cloves of garlic (bash them a bit so they’re split open)
1 punnet of cherry tomatoes (cut in half) or 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
salt & pepper
60 g wholewheat pasta (optional) or prepared green salad with mix leaves, onions, peppers, cucumber, celery, broccoli
20 g grated or shaved parmesan cheese (optional) OR 50g LF Cottage Cheese

In saute pan with a lid, cook chicken until browned all over. Add in thyme, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, olive oil, garlic and tomatoes and season with salt & pepper.
Continue to simmer for 25 minutes.
Meanwhile cook your pasta in a pot of water with salt and a drop of olive oil (stops it sticking together) or prepare your salad
Serve meat and sauce on top of pasta or salad and top with parmesan cheese/lf cottage cheese (I suggest mixing it into the sauce on your plate)
If there is leftover sauce, enjoy it later with crudites as a snack.

TURKEY BURGERS
makes 6 - 8 depending on how big you make them - you can also use beef mince or pork mince - i use turkey because it’s low in fat
1 tspn chilli oil
450 g turkey
salt & pepper
garlic chopped
handful of parmesan cheese (or gruyere or any strong aromatic cheese) or you could use LF Cottage Cheese
rosemary - heaped teaspoonful if dried, or two branches of fresh

how to cook:
mix up (with your hands) turkey, salt & pepper, garlic, parmesan cheese, rosemary
shape into balls
flatten them slightly and cover and leave in fridge for 30 mins (if you have the time, you don’t necessarily need to do this)
heat up pan with chilli oil
fry on medium heat until juices run clear and they are cooked through
eat

[Fygle]

Yummy, I'll be trying the indian butter chicken tomorrow!

[Noosk]

i have lots more where these came from! will update as i get the time! the butter chicken is supposed to actually have 2 tbsp of butter in the sauce as well but you can get away without it!

[Noosk]

Thought I'd throw this one up here as I'm having it for dinner tonight
steamed sea bass (oh yeah FAVOURITE fish).

then some lovely roast vegetables...

butternut squash
mushrooms
onions
parsnips
cherry tomatoes
green / red/yellow peppers
or whatever other veg you have (I ran out of greens! ate 'em all lol!)

then blend together
4 tbsp olive oil
3 - 4 garlic cloves
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tbsp sage
pepper (salt if you want)
1 tbsp mustard seeds
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

until you have a paste, toss the veg in the paste and bake in the oven at 200C for about 45 mins.

[fitoverforty]

The almond pesto sounds awesome! I bet it would be good tossed in a nice big green salad w/lots of veggies!
Thanks for sharing these great ideas!
So often, I get bored or tired of the same old thing, so it is great to read someone else's ideas and recipes.
Keep 'em coming!!

[Lif]

Mmm almond pesto. All of those sound wonderful!!!

[Noosk]

Broccolli & Almond salad

100g broccolli cut into very small pieces - raw
30g almonds
100g low fat cottage cheese or lf cream cheese
50g carrot, shredded

mix it up together and enjoy in a wrap or on it's own. You can substitute almonds for peanuts but be aware of the fat content!
Enjoy!!

[Noosk]

Chicken Hot Satay Stir Fry

Serves 2
200g chicken breast fillets, diced
200g of diced veg, eg. peppers, sprouts, broccolli, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, whatever you like
1 small (80g) onion, chopped finely
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 or 1 full red chili pepper diced (depending on how hot you like it)
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons light crunchy or creamy peanut butter
½ cup (125ml) water
2 tablespoons light coconut milk or 2 tbsp of low fat yoghurt

dry fry or broil chicken breast in a large deep wok pan or saute pan
when browned, add in vegetables, onion, garlic and chili pepper for approximately 3 mins
add in soy sauce, brown sugar, lemon juice, peanut butter and water and simmer for 5 mins
just before serving add coconut milk or yoghurt and mix through.
You can serve this with wild or brown rice, I however just put in more veg and skip the rice if I'm having it for dinner as I don't eat complex carbs after lunch.
Enjoy!
Noosk

[Noosk]

Stuffed Mushrooms a la Noosk

2 large flat mushrooms, stems removed
1 onion
1 red pepper
1 oz of almonds (optional)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp basil
season with salt & pepper (just pepper is best!)
80g low fat cottage cheese

lay the mushrooms on a non stick baking tray
in a food processor, add onion, pepper, almonds, garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil and seasoning and whizz it all up together
using a spoon fill the mushrooms with the mixture
top with low fat cream cheese
put into hot oven (220C) for 10 - 12 minutes.
DEVOUR!

[Noosk]

Cauliflower Mashed 'Potato'

I try to steer clear of potatoes etc. after lunch hour. So if I really want some nice comfort food for dinner, I'll have this. Delicious with fish with lemon and cracked pepper and served with steamed vegetables like broccoli, carrots, spinach. It could also be used on top of a shepard's pie type dish or with steak (lean of course!)

1 head cauliflower cut into 1 inch pieces
1 garlic clove, mashed
200g low fat cream cheese
1 chicken stock cube
pepper

steam or boil cauliflower until cooked. Pat dry with kitchen roll to remove excess moisture.
place into food processor with mashed garlic, cream cheese, then crumble chicken stock cube over and add pepper to taste.
whizz up until you have a lovely smooth consistency.
serve it up!
if you're topping a pie with this cook your underneath part first and then just add the cauliflower mash for the final 10 minutes of the oven time as it's already cooked.