Summer is officially here! The sun is out and everyone is thinking about BBQ-ing/ grilling/ cooking out/ having a braai! The best thing about whacking things on the grill is that you don't have to spend hours slaving over a stove and you can ask the other half to do it for you!! Thinking of a side dish is probably the trickiest thing for me, I usually want something healthy to counteract the unknown meat in hot dogs! In the States, it's all about adding crisps/chips and corn, and baked beans! However, baked beans here are NOT like Heinz Baked Beans of my youth! I knew I had to make my own, and where else could I look but Jamie Oliver! I got the recipe for Baked Beans from his Comfort Food cookbook but I found a similar one online.
Yay or Nay: Yay
I warn you, this is not a quick throw-everything-in-a-pan kind of dish. It is low and slow, at least at the beginning, and actually at the end too! But it is worth it - I think one bird-'s eye chili was enough as you could definitely taste the heat. Also make sure to balance out the acidity of the tomatoes as I didn't and I definitely felt the tomato pang!
As summer is approaching it also brings the anxiety of bikini season and the stripping off of layers of clothing. I must admit the harsh winters here take their toll and eating is the only way to survive and keep warm. Therefore an adjustment is due especially with eating habits. I eat pretty healthy during the week, often cooking from scratch, eat a pretty veggie/vegan lunch so the weekends and sneaky snacking is the only place to cut back.
When that chocolate craving kicks in, rather than reaching for a choccy bar I found an alternative. I have been meaning to get my hands on Ella Woodward's (of Deliciously Ella fame) book (and yes, I'm late to the game) and when it was available at the library I immediately checked it out. Flicking through, the Energy Balls and many others caught my eye as they seemed good for transporting to work and having that extra kick before dinner.
Yay or Nay: Yay
Personally I preferred these way more to the cashew ones I made a few weeks back. Mainly because the consistency was right and rolling was a much easier job when there isn't that extra moisture!
Nostalgic is one word for fish fingers for me! Back in the day we feasted on Captain Bird's Eye fish fingers with their lurid orange breadcrumb and very white fishy 'meat'. One day I had a massive craving for them but sadly this brand is available in the UK and not in Upstate NY! It was all about the crunch and prior to making these fish fingers, I either had drippy, sloppy fish that never held onto the breadcrumb or the breadcrumb would promptly fall off once it hit the heat.
Fearne Cotton is a TV host who I grew up watching, starting on children's TV and then graduating into prime time radio and then big shows like Children in Need and Frock Me. I follow her on Instagram and healthy meals regularly feature on her feed. Naturally, she had a book coming out and one of the sneak-peek recipes was for FISH FINGERS! It was meant to be I guess! Fearne's Salmon Fish Fingers were something I would definitely try to make!
Yay or Nay: Yay!
I have to say I was very impressed with this recipe as it was really easy and gave great results! The breadcrumb was satisfyingly crunchy and the coating of the fish held from start to finish! I made a couple of changes; I used cod instead of salmon and whole wheat panko breadcrumbs instead of the gluten-free option given in the recipe.
I'm always on the lookout for easy weekday meals, now the mains jump out, however, side dishes are always a pain to find. There are staples that I run back to but when you want something that is quick, tasty and healthy it is quite the gamut.
This recipe for Andie Mitchell's Healthy Peanut Sauce reminds me of Gado Gado, which is always good! I figured I'd pair it with some spicy baked tofu and drench the sauce on some noodles. I found some mung bean noodles which I thought would make a good alternative to regular wheat or buckwheat versions.
Yay or Nay: Yay
The sauce was a no-brainer, I mean peanut butter, who doesn't love?! I do have to say that the sauce was a lot thicker than I was expecting but the recipe does say to add water to get the consistency right. The mung bean noodles were a surprising hit - chewy and carb-free so win-win! I would rinse the noodles as instructed but I thought the heat from the noodles would help loosen and coat the sauce a bit better.
This is going to be a quick post as the holiday weekend was pretty full and I'm writing this just before bed. As you know I've been on a sugar cut-back, I would like to say that I am going cold turkey but it's not always realistic!
I picked up some rhubarb at the public market and immediately I thought of stewed rhubarb mixed in with yogurt or crumble. Crumble won out so I immediately grabbed Deliciously Ella's cookbook as I remember seeing a crumble recipe in there. In the past I make my crumble with mainly flour, oats and butter so I was intrigued about Blackberry, Apple and Maple Crumble as it had less dairy/fat but a little more sugar than I was hoping for. It was worth a try however I knew I wouldn't make the same filling as rhubarb is one of my faves!
Yay or Nay: Yay
Deceptively, I managed to fool the Husband into thinking it was a similar recipe to my original. He had no idea there was no flour or butter in it, though I bet if I mentioned it he would say he could taste it! It was so yummy it barely lasted a couple of days! Result!
I stewed my rhubarb and added some honey as it can be really tart and although I was apprehensive about adding honey to the topping, I think it helped bind the ingredients together. I wonder what it would be like using just coconut oil instead as a binding ingredient. Also, I never usually add cinnamon to my topping as I'm not the greatest fan of it but it worked well with the rhubarb so I guess I'm a convert.
My public market haul included pineapple and fresh corn on the cob so I knew I had to combine it with the pork chops and dirty rice I was making for dinner. I typed in quick corn and pineapple salsa, then waited for what the web could magic up. The first three links included Rachael Ray's recipe for Grilled Pineapple and Corn Salsa which was pretty much what I googled for - a result I guess!
Yay or Nay: Yay
I mean, I didn't even look at the recipe...I pretty much looked at the ingredients and then just made it up as I went along. I knew I wanted raw corn but I grilled up the poblano (which I had leftover from Sofritas last week), chopped everything up and mixed it together. Voila, easy peasy and a nice fresh side for dinner!
