Pan grilled kangaroo steaks with roasted vegetables

How delicious does this kangaroo fillet with roasted vegetables look! And it certainly tasted amazing.

Salmon, corn, baby rocket open faced sandwich

After having 4 days straight of salads, I thought I would have something a bit different but of course still healthy!
I just loved the bread I bought on the weekend and just added some tinned salmon, corn and the last remaining portion of my baby rocket leaves for a very refreshing but fulfilling lunch. When I bought my baby rocket, it came with this cute edible poppy which made for a beautiful finishing touch!

Roasted stuffed capsicum with quinoa and vegetables

Last week, a colleague at work, Ms Mads, sent me a link to another great health food blog http://www.teresacutter.com/ which was really good - I would highly recommend you all check it out.
On it, I saw a recipe for roasted stuffed capsicums which inspired me to do something similar this weekend - that recipe had a spinach & ricotta stuffing but as I didn't have any of those ingredients at home, I decided to do a slight variation. 
Mine are stuffed with quinoa, tomatoes, mushrooms, onion, garlic, kale (yes, I used it for the first time!), parsley, thyme, and proscuitto (leave this out if you wanna go vegetarian). Fill them with any vegies you have in your fridge like zucchini or eggplant. 

Bread made with love

I really love cooking all sorts of things and there aren't many things that stump me but bread is definitely one thing which I have yet to conquer. I think it is because my chinese heritage never exposed to me to bread making so I never grew up watching my mum/dad or grandparents rolling out dough.  The whole idea of mixing flour with water and kneeding is quite intimidating for me so I currently have bread on the 'things to do one day..." list.  Fortunately, I have wonderful neighbours, Mr & Mrs Hungries (a bit cheeky as they are hungarian!) who have mastered making bread at home. Mr Hungries has spent about 18 months perfecting home made bread and I am so spoilt to be able to have this regularly of date! This bread is a luscious wholemeal organic sourdough loaf which he made with his bare hands and lots of passion. The note he wrote us when he delivered it to us was "The bread was baked this morning, and it was somewhat warm when I 'delivered' it. I am quite excited with this one; it is a sexy bread. It has a dark thin but crunchy crust and a moist and velvety texture on the inside".  I am incredibly touched by the passion that people put in making their food. More of us should be like that so that we love every minute of making healthy delicious food instead of eating horrible processed food which will just end up making us all sick.  I hope that you all get to put your heart and soul in your food preparation - when you do, you will discover a new life joy! And, yes, the bread tasted extremely sexy....!

Market visit again

We made another visit to the markets yesterday morning so I could pick up this week's supplies. I really wanted to try a few new things and ended up buying a few new things....kale (I had read so much about this wonderful vegetable that I just had to try it), coloured carrots (I think I will roast these), and some assorted salad leaves. Check out my beautiful purchases...

 

New York cut steak with watercress & fennel salad, roasted piri piri potatoes

This was our delicious dinner we had tonight. This is a New York cut steak which Mr Carrots barbequed to medium rare. That's all pretty easy so let me share with you the yummy sides I made...

Sweet Mango & Yoghurt

To welcome in Spring, I treated myself to a new season mango as part of my breakfast. After having weeks of strawberries, it was a nice change. 
In my research of mangoes, I found out that mangoes are super rich in iron, antioxidants, and Vitamin A. That means it has good cancer & heart disease fighting properties.

Salad of leg ham and baby cos + more!

So after making my turkey breast salad the previous day and finding that it wasn't as filling as my usual tuna/salmon salad, I decided I needed to add some more protein to help keep me more satisfied so I added a soft boiled egg which worked a treat!
So the next day, I made this wonderful Salad of leg ham, soft boiled egg, baby cos, tomato, radish, chick peas, corn, and my seed mix.  Dressed with honey mustard dressing.

Salad of turkey breast, baby cos, tomatoes, baby rocket, radish and more

Here is one of the delicious and nutritious salads I had for lunch this week.
What was in my salad: Turkey breast, baby cos leaves, roma tomatoes, cucumber, baby rocket, radish, chickpeas, corn, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, almonds and chia seeds.
It was dressed with my own homemade honey mustard dressing: EVOO, white wine vinegar, honey, wholegrain mustard and seasoning.
It was quite satisfying although I did start getting a bit hungry by late afternoon so I decided to add a little more protein the next day when I made a similar salad with ham off the bone.

A visit to the markets

Last weekend, we took a visit to the organic markets. I love heading to the markets to get fresh produce and allowing what's available to inspire me!

I picked up some wonderful roma tomatoes, baby cos lettuce, baby radishes and some lovely rye and caraway seed organic bread.

Check out my other posts to see what I made with my ingredients!

Roasted pork with apple glaze on quinoa, cauliflower & peas

Whilst I can't wait for summer to arrive, I am mindful that there aren't many opportunities to cook those hearty winter comfort dishes. So I made this lovely winter pork dish tonight for dinner for Mr Carrots and me.

Avocado and Cherry tomatoes on toast

This was my weekend breakfast - I was really excited as it was a rare opportunity that I got to sit out on my balcony to bask in the winter sun.
I toasted my rye bread and topped it with avocado, chopped cherry tomatoes, rocket and chia and linseeds. A side of crunchy fuji apples was the perfect accompaniment. Delicious brekkie and warm winter sun - does it get better?

Ruby grapefruit, navel orange & fennel salad

This is probably the most refreshing salad I have ever made. It works best as a side salad and particularly something quite rich or sweet. I made it to go with these sticky ribs and the acid from the citrus fruits just helped cut through the sweet and spicyness. Plus it is so low in calories that you don't feel too bad about having a few more helpings.

Mint, pea, sugar snap & feta salad

This salad is just wonderful - it reminds me of spring and with the wonderful weather of late in Sydney, it really inspired me to make it. It also went wonderfully with the sticky ribs!
It takes no time to make and is super easy.
I blanched the sugar snaps and peas in boiling water for 3 minutes before draining and plunging in ice cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain well again. I remove the mint leaves from the sprigs of a bunch of mint. I finely slice a quarter of a spanish onion and crumble some danish feta. Combine everything in a bowl and dress with EV OO, lemon juice, and add a generous cracking of black pepper. Does it get any easier????!!!
 

Sticky and Spicy pork ribs

I made some kick a## sweet and spicy ribs tonight in celebration of the Masterchef finale! They were finger lickin' good!!!
I won't share too much about how to make this because it is a little bit of a calorie splurge.  But if you do want to attempt...you 'll need to marinate it for a day or so with a lot of bbq sauce, garlic, herbs, chilli flakes, lime juice, vinegar and brown sugar before cooking it on the bbq for 2.5 hours!  It's well worth it though. The reason why I have posted this is because in my next two posts, you'll see the 2 healthy salads which I made to balance out the flavours and save it from becoming a calorific overload. I think it's nice to have a few healthy side dish options to accompany the odd splurge.
Check out my Mint, pea, sugar snap & feta salad and Ruby grapefruit, navel orange & fennel salad.

Office brekkie - Avocado and seeds on rye toast

Just because you don't have time to have breakfast at home before work doesn't mean you have to have a boring one at work! 
This was my breakfast from the other day - jazz up your avocado on toast by using an interesting rye bread and add that seed mix - pumpkin, sunflower, linseed, almonds. Add a side of fruit like strawberries and what a wonderful way to start the day!

Asian style chicken broth with vegies & noodles

Here is one of my favourite dishes. 
I soak some rice vermicelli in boiled water in a large bowl for about 4-5 mins until soft. I drain and set aside in a serving bowl. You can try using any noodles you like.
In a saucepan, I heat up about 2 cups of chicken stock (see how I make a basic chicken stock used for my pumpkin soup ) until boiling, then throw in some seasonal vegies - I used broccoli, brussel sprouts (yep, please rediscover this wonderful vegetable), and in the last minute, some fresh shittake mushrooms. Don't overcook the vegs as you will just ruin them and they should maintain their bright green colour. These vegs only need 3-4 mins max. Once cooked, I lift out the vegs using a slotted ladle and place on the serving bowl with noodles. I turn the heat down to low and crack an egg and poach for 4 minutes before lifting onto the bowl. I bring the broth back to the boil before turning off the heat and pour over my bowl! Eat up - yummy! Perfect for a winter dinner.

This week's packed lunch - Tuna salad PART 2

In case you are curious as to what my packed tuna salad lunch looks like when you put all the ingredients together. Here it is! There are plenty of colleagues eyeing my lunches every day!

This week's packed lunch - Tuna salad!

After an indulgent weekend, I decided my week's packed lunches would be tuna salad. I bought all my ingredients and packed them into ready to go portions!
My salad ingredients are rocket & spinach, cherry tomatoes, celery, avocado, canned tuna, canned corn kernels, linseed/pumpkin/sunflower seeds, pinenuts. I made a small container of dressing of EV olive oil, balsamic vinegar, dried herbs and chopped garlic. I'm also bring plenty of fruit - mandarins and strawberries.
By investing 30 mins on a Sunday night to pre pack everything, each morning I can just open the fridge and grab all my ingredients - and it will only take a couple of minutes to put together at work!
What food have you planned for this week?

Your Superfood weekend shopping list

I'm looking forward to doing my weekly shop this weekend (though I don't like the mad Sunday 4pm rush!!!). Grocery shopping requires good planning to ensure you have some great ingredients in your kitchen which you can turn to in order to make healthy and nutritious food.  When I shop, I pretty much only stick to the outer perimeter of the supermarket - that's where the least processed food is placed. And I always pick up as many 'super foods' as possible. You may have heard of 'super foods' - they are foods which have properties which can protect us from cancer, heart disease, lower cholesterol, improves digestion and lots of other great things. 
This weekend when you do your shop, make sure you pop a few superfoods in to your trolley and if you don't know what to do with all, you'll find lots of recipe ideas on my blog! 
Read further for a list of seasonal super foods...

Pumpkin, spinach, turkey and olive wholegrain pizza

 

Another great pizza idea!

I used the wholegrain wrap as my base again (see Rocket and turkey pizza) - put some low fat cheese in between 2 sheets and you have a perfect and healthy base!

Kangaroo fillet with rocket, asparagus and potato salad

This is a wonderful dinner for you to try.
This is my second Kangaroo dish on my blog - I'm obviously a big fan of kangaroo! 
Kangaroo tastes a little gamey but if you get the fillets, it is really quite mild. It is so rich in iron and protein yet so lean so I really encourage you to give it a try. Allow about 150gms per person (you may need to feed your man about 200gms). 

This week's lunch - Stir fried chicken breast with fresh shittake, broccoli, celery, baby corn.

Last week, I wrote a post inspiring you to make your own lunches to take to work. I hope you have had a chance to give it a go! If not, here is another idea. This week I made a stir fry of celery, broccoli, snow pea sprouts, baby corn spears, and a real highlight - fresh shittake mushrooms! For protein, I added some chicken breast meat. Can't wait to have it tomorrow for lunch!

Steamed fish and chinese broccoli

Here is a dinner I made the other day. I got some lovely fresh yellowfin bream which I steamed whole. You do not need to do anything special with the fish before steaming - just pat dry with paper towel, season with some salt inside and out and fill the cavity with a few sprigs of spring onion (shallots) and ginger slices. You can either steam in a steamer or like me, use a microwave steamer! In the microwave steamer, I pour a small amount of boiling water under the steamer rack of a microwave container and pop it into the microwave for about 4-5 mins on high (this fish was 400gm). Meanwhile I prepare the sauce in a small saucepan - 3 tbspn light soy, 1 tspn brown sugar, 1 tspn sesame oil, 1/4 cup of water - bring to boil and your sauce is done. When the fish is done, add plenty of chopped coriander, spring onion, chilli (optional!) and dress with the sauce.

Healthy packed lunches

Does anyone else think it can be stressful to go out and find food to eat at lunchtime? Particularly if you've jumped straight out of a meeting or appointment and have only 30 minutes until the next, you dash outside and get lunch paralysis! What to eat? Sandwich, sushi, pasta, chinese, ahhh - too much choice! And I know I always worry about how long some of the food has been sitting there, how fresh the ingredients are and what secret fats and calories might be hiding in the foods. 

Jazz up a boring cereal!

Sometimes we're on autopilot in the morning and we just reach for the cereal and skim milk - combine and eat....but why not jazz it up a bit by adding some lovely flavours and textures plus lots of nutrition.
With strawberries so cheap at the supermarkets right now, don't forget to add some (or other fruit!) to your morning breakfast. Mr Carrots loves his cereal but he's already in the habit of adding a mixture of almonds, linseed (flaxseed), sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and chia seeds!  
 

Omelette with celery and snow peas

I had this delicious omelette this morning. I made it with 3 whole eggs but only kept two of the egg yolks in - I was tempted to use only one yolk but as I was heading to training afterwards, I decided I could justify the extra yolk!!! If you are watching your weight, you may want to only use the egg whites. I simply love eggs as they are so versatile!

Low fat coleslaw dressing (or use on any salad!)

If you read my previous post on my awesome kangaroo burger, you will have seen I served it with a coleslaw. Coleslaw dressing (mine is above) is normally made with a mayonnaise base which can be a bit in fat and high in calories. I know some of you buy fat free dressing but next time you do, take a look at the ingredients - there are lots of thickeners and even loads of sugar so sometimes it's just healthier, easier and better to make your own. It takes no time to whip up. Click below to find out how I made my healthier version of coleslaw (so so easy).

Kangaroo steak burger with spicy tomato salsa

Yes, what a twist on a normal steak burger! 
I picked up the kangaroo fillets from the local supermarket so it should be quite easy for you to find at your's. Kangaroo fillet steak is actually quite reasonably priced compared to say beef or lamb and also low in fat and high in protein & iron. I saw kangaroo burger patties and was almost going to buy those but I took some time to read the ingredients and discovered the patties contained some additional extra ingredients with strange numbers so I grabbed the fillets instead which said "100% kangaroo meat" - much better!

Warm salad of quinoa, iceberg lettuce and cabbage

Today's lunch was a very satisfying salad - light but still nice for a cool winter's day.
I mixed the just cooked (warm) quinoa, some cooked diced carrots, corn and peas (can't go past using frozen mix!), finely shredded cabbage in a large mixing bowl. Add some dressing - the dressing I used was EV olive oil, lemon juice, fresh chilli, salt and pepper. Toss together and cover for a few minutes (this will help soften the cabbage). Transfer to a smaller bowl and top with shredded iceberg lettuce and some ruby grapefruit (I had some leftover so decided to throw it in and it was a great combo!).

Roasted whole baby barramundi with Sweet potato and quinoa salad

I know most of you freak out when you think of whole fish but I think there is just no better way to eat fish (well, other than sashimi which is my real favourite!).  You might ask why I prefer whole fish - why not just buy the fillets? Well I like to ensure my fish is super fresh so when I shop for whole fish, I can look for all the "fresh signs" (eg, clear eyes, shiny scales etc). The freshness of fillets can be a bit suspect and a lot has been frozen and then thawed. And sometimes you do save a bit on the cost as the cost of fish fillets has a labour component built into the price. I ask the fishmonger to clean and scale it and sometimes I even ask him to cut the head off which I can use for soups or fish stock (bargain!). 

Hommus, almond & chia seeds on toasted rye bread

This was my deliciously scrumptious brekkie this morning.
After popping some kibbled rye bread into my toaster, I spread on a thin layer of hommus then topped with slivered almonds and chia seeds. The hommus made it super tasty while the almonds and chia added lovely texture and together with the rye bread, will keep me full until lunchtime!
On the side, I made a wonderful seasonal fruit salad of strawberries, red seedless grapes, apple and ruby grapefruit. 

Barbequed Veal Cutlet with sauteed cabbage and carrots, cauliflower mash

This was my post workout dinner tonight. It was quite quick to whip up.
I had taken the veal cutlets out of the fridge about an hour before cooking - this is really important as this will ensure the meat is tempered and will cook evenly - if you plonk it onto the bbq straight from the fridge, the meat will overcook on the outside and be undercooked in the middle.

Tuna, tomato, cos lettuce salad

This was my lunch today...
Canned tuna, grape tomatoes, baby cos lettuce, avocado, celery, snow peas, fetta cheese, spring onions.

I toasted some kibbled rye bread and cut into croutons to make it a little more filling. And of course threw in my obligatory almonds, sunflower/pumpkin/linseeds.
My dressing today was just a simple EVOO, lemon juice, white wine vinegar and salt/pepper.
And....a cup of chamomile tea.

Strawberries in yoghurt and toast - a quick and easy brekkie

I know lots of people who don't have a proper breakfast. Yet we're constantly told that we should start the day with a good breakfast. I admit that for years I didn't eat breakfast - couldn't stomach it, blah blah blah. But then I started to take charge and look after myself so I started with just small portions and now I wake up hungry and really look forward to the first meal of the day.
Here is a really easy breakfast which I made this morning which is delicious, light and keeps me satisfied until late morning/lunchtime. Also I exercise mid-morning almost everyday so it's important that my breakfast gives me enough fuel to bash out those punches or kicks!

In a small bowl, I put about 160gm of low fat greek yoghurt topped with fresh strawberries, almonds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Lately I've also been adding a teaspoon of chia seeds which are high in protein and omega 3s.
On the side, I toasted some kibbled rye bread with a light spread of avocado seasoned with pepper.
Had this with a cup of herbal tea. 

Tofu and vegetable stack

Here is an amazing dish which is easy to make. And there are a few variations that you can make to change it up a bit.
This version is made with eggplant, firm tofu (yep, love that tofu!), sweet potato, and onion.  Basically, just cut the vegs into discs with about 1.5cm thickness. The sauce I made this time was an asian style - in a small bowl mix together a tablespoon of hoisin sauce, sesame oil and soy, small amount of water, half a teaspoon of sugar and if you want, some slices of birds eye chilli.

Wholegrain pizza with rocket and turkey

Thought I'd share this pizza that I made the other night. 
I used 15cm wholegrain wraps as the base. To add strength to the base, I used two wraps with a very small amount of low fat mozzarella in between.  I topped with tomato passata, thinly sliced turkey breast, potato & tomato, fresh chilli, garlic, onion, dried parsley, oregano, basil and low fat mozzarella. Cook in the oven at 190C on baking paper on a rack in oven for 9 mins until crisp. Then put rocket and chopped parsley on top to serve! Ate it with a side garden salad. It was so delicious - the wholegrain wrap made it really satisfying! By my calcs, came in under 500 calories - but tasted like it was 5,000 - luv it!

Cauliflower & Tomato wholemeal penne

The winter chill brought on a bit of a pasta crave... so I thought it would be a great opportunity to try some wholemeal pasta. There's lots of dietary fibre in wholemeal pasta and it is quite satisfying so you don't have to eat too much to feel full.

Salad of Smoked salmon, avocado, snow pea sprouts...

Just a really simple salad plate...
Smoked salmon, snow pea sprouts, celery, tomato, avocado, spring onion, almonds, pine nuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds + 1 dollup of hommus. If you're a bit hungrier, add a poached or soft boiled egg!
Dressed with lemon juice and olive oil.

Tofu and Quinoa San Choy Bows

Here's a great creative & fun way to serve low fat and nutritious food. I love tofu but know lots of people who turn their noses at tofu but I really do believe that they just don't know how to cook it!
Similarly, there are probably loads of people who have never used quinoa. It is very much the grain 'du jour' and it tastes like a cross between couscous and brown rice. It is extremely high in protein (contains all the 8 essential amino acids), low in fat, is gluten free, high in fibre and is totally yum yum. You can easily get it in supermarkets now so there's no excuse to not pick a packet up on your next shopping run. Plus most of the quinoa I've seen sold is organic.

Pumpkin soup

 

After so many years of procrastination, I finally bought a stick hand mixer! I can't believe it's taken me to so long and now, I am totally in love with it! How did I survive without it before?

Here is a lovely pumpkin soup which was one of the first things I made with my new kitchen gadget.

I made it using a chicken stock base. Chicken stock is so easy and cheap to make - why buy it?

Roasted winter vegetable salad

I was inspired to make this by a salad I'd had at Gwinganna Health retreat. It is really satisfying, uses loads of delicious winter seasonal vegetables and is crazy healthy! A wonderful hearty winter dinner - even Mr Carrots, my husband went for second helpings.
The vegetables I used this particular time were kipfler potatoes, butternut pumpkin, carrots, parsnips, beetroot and onion.

Salad of Grapefruit, Beetroot, Snowpeas and more!

For my first few posts, I will share some of my favourite meals I made over the last month or so which I had been cataloging in anticipation for this blog.
I made this for lunch a few weeks ago...
I used:
Segmented ruby grapefruit 
Snow pea sprouts 
Canned Red salmon 
Shredded cabbage
Sliced beetroot 
Sliced tomato
Sliced potato
Sliced onion
Sliced avocado
Slivered almonds 
Pumpkin seeds
Sunflower seeds
Dressing is grapefruit juice, lime juice, olive oil