For the Foodies

Who says you can't be going "mmmmm" the whole way through eating foods that are really good for you! I have been loving making super tasty meals for my friends as of late. Using only ingredients that benefit your insides.

Most of the creations are based on recipes from Chef Kate (Chef to the stars including Miranda Kerr) who I was lucky enough to meet at the Kora Organics breakfast last year. Chef Kate's recipes have been adapted to the dietary needs of superstars who require to keep their bodies in peak form for their image. She is releasing a book soon with Miranda Kerr's Mum and I cannot wait til it hits the shelves.

Let me show you what I've been busting out in the kitchen in the last couple of weeks.

MACADAMIA, HERB & QUINOA (Pronounced keen-wah) CRUSTED LAMB LOINS WITH ROAST VEGGIES

Ok, the pics make this dish look like a mess, but the flavours all worked really well together and was oh so delightful. My friend Jason kindly supplied the wine which worked great with the meal as well - Memento - an exclusive Sangioese and Syrah blend (woo go Jase!)

The food yard at Freo Markets had all the ingredients needed for this recipe in the one convenient location! Clara's sells a range of organic alternative ingredients, which included Macadamia nut butter & agave syrup that was required for this recipe. Alternative ingredients can be quite exxy but once you have them they are there for you to use when you want to whip up an impressive and healthful meal.

A lamb dish was at my friend Jason's request but you can use chicken or any meat you like really. I try and stay away from red meat normally as it doesn't digest very well - but like with anything, going outside the rules every once in a while is OK.

Ingredients:

6 lamb loin chops (or 2-4 halved chicken breasts)

Batter

1 cup Macadamia nut butter
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 Tbs coconut oil
Celtic sea salt to taste
Ground pepper

Crust

1 cup ground Macadamia nuts
1 cup cooked quinoa (cook 1 cup raw - there will end up being more than 1 cup once cooked but use leftovers for quinoa salad)
Sea salt to taste
Ground pepper to taste
Fresh basil leaves, chopped

Veggies

You can use any veggies you like for roasting. I used: Courgettes (mini eggplants), tomato, capsicum, portobello mushroom and broccolini

I bought some Goats cheese Haloumi to sprinkle on top as well.

Instructions

Pre heat your oven to 200 degrees (fan forced). In a deep baking dish place your chopped veggies and sprinkle with a little sea salt. Make your batter simply by stirring all the batter ingredients together and in a separate bowl prepare your crust by mixing all the crust ingredients together. Start by dipping each portion of meat into the batter then into the crust and well coated. Make sure you really press the crust in there! Once all portions have been thoroughly coated you want to pan fry them in coconut oil first 3 minutes each side. Once you've done that, transfer into the baking dish on top of the veggies. Put some haloumi on top if you wish. Cook in the oven for 25 minutes. There will be some leftover Quinoa so you can make a quinoa salad with any leftover batter and some more basil leaves. Serve!

COCONUT, LIME BLANC SAUCE CHICKEN WITH SWEET POTATO CHIA MASH & ARUGULA SALAD

Blanc Sauce:
1 TBS Coconut oil - 1/2 cup shallots - 1/2 cup white wine (there is an ORGANIC and beautiful wine here: http://organic-1.com/) / 1/2 cup un-sweetened coconut milk - 1 TBS Braggs Liquid Aminos (similar to Soy Sauce but minimal processing) - 2 egg yolks -1/4 tsb tumeric - 1 tsp lime zest / 1 tsp celtic sea salt / ground pepper / fresh lime juice

Heat the coconut oil in a medium pan on medium heat and cook the shallots for 1 minute (dont brown). Add wine, coconut milk, Braggs then reduce hear to medium and stir often until the liquid has reduced by half. Whisk in egg yolks. Add tumeric lime zest, salt, pepper and whisk constantly until sauce thickens. Remove from heat & add lime juice.
Chicken:
I like to keep this pretty simple - get 2 chicken breasts, cut in half and then pan fry in 1 TBS of Coconut Oil. Cook until there's no pink in the middle. Pour Blanc sauce over chicken

Arugula salad:
Arugula (rocket leaves) - lime juice of 1 fresh lime - 1 TBS Braggs Liquid Aminos - 1 TBS coconut oil - 1/2 cup chopped shallots.

All you have to do is mix it altogether in a bowl!

Sweet potato chia mash:1/2 cup chia gel (to prepare and have handy - soak 1 cup chia in 3 cups water in an airtight container - chia will go gel like with all the nutrients busting out) - 2 small sweet potatoes (chopped) - 1/2 cup coconut milk - 1 TBS Braggs Liquid Aminos - 1/2 cup shallots

Boil the sweet potato for about 10 minutes until soft. Mash it up with the help of the coconut milk and Braggs liquid aminos until at the consistency you prefer. Stir in shallots and chia.

To serve: Lay out your arugula salad, place chicken on top, pour over sauce and serve the mash on the side. This one was a hit and my friend re made it for their sister. Both impressed.
Coconut oil - The benefits are far and wide. Don't be fooled by the saturated fat labelling, the sat fat in coconut oil is a medium chain fatty acid and your body treats it differently to your standard sat fat. Just don't go overboard with your daily intake. Coconut oil helps your skin glow, aids digestion, raises metabolism & has antifungal properties.

SUPER FOOD BROWNIES

I'd hope after you try these bad boys you'll never want to have to touch another chocolate bar ever again!

Ingredients:
Goji berries (Mega antioxident)

Raw Cacao powder (Antioxident, mood elevator, key nutrients)

10 medjool dates (Natural fibre)

1 TSP Spirulina (B Vitamins, Iron, Protein, long list of minerals & nutrients)

1 TSP Maca Powder (Hormone balancing)

1/2 cup raisins (natural energy)

1/2 cup almonds (Vitamin E, healthy fats)

Coconut oil (boost metabolism & aid digestion, glowing skin)

Dessicated coconut / crushed almonds  / extra goji berries (to decorate - optional)

Literally just blend all the ingredients together, roll out onto a rolling board and either make them into balls or cut with a cookie cutter, then coat with your decoration of choice. They might come out a little sticky and if so thats where your granulated toppings come in handy (ground almonds/any kind of nuts).

FINAL FOOD FOR THOUGHT

EAT MINDFULLY - If you're focussing on other things while your eating, you might find yourself getting food amnesia. Meaning - you were not present while you were eating and therefore you did not register 100% the taste and process of eating and therefore you may be more likely to reach for more food mindlessly shortly after. Unfortunately calories do add up & so we have to be quite mindful of what's going in and listen to what our bodies actually want and need at that time. That requires being present. When you eat, don't do it while you're working, while your on Facebook, or anything that requires you to be focussed on something other than the taste, texture, smells and process of whats going in. I can guarantee you'll enjoy your food a heck of a lot more too! You will notice the fullness it creates and acknowledge that you are now fulfilled. By choosing the right foods too you will discover a great sense of gratitude while your eating, by knowing how great the food your putting in is going to be to your body. If you're wanting to kill a hunger pang, try drinking water first, as our bodies sometimes think we are hungry when actually we're just dehydrated.

SHARING IS CARING - While cooking these dishes, just knowing how nourishing they are for the body and being able to share it with my friends has given me the greatest buzz. I guess coming from an Italian background where the family events were revolved around food and coming together as a family might have something to do with that. Too often we can opt to do the usual outings with our pals, and walk away feeling like we have "seen" our buddies but maybe not necessarily had a chance to really connect with them. Dining in this way brings out great conversation & a sense of giving and sharing. Cook offs can be a lot of fun, especially when they are new creations only using foods that nourish the mind, body & soul. I encourage you to cook healthy meals with your buddies!

BON APPETIT!

xx