Tali's Tomatoes

• 500 grams chicken breast mince (I processed whole free-range breast meat)
• small handful of basil leaves (Asian basil if you can get it), torn
• large handful of coriander leaves, torn
• large handful of mint leaves, torn
• 1/2 large red onion, chopped
• 12 cos or iceberg lettuce leaves
• 1 cucumber, thinly sliced
• 2 small fresh or dried red chillies, finely chopped (seeds removed optional)
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 5 tbsp lime juice (approximately 1.5 limes)
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice
• 1 tbsp coconut oil for cooking
• 2 tbsp uncooked brown rice

Optional ingredients:

• 1 tsp grated galangal or ginger
• 1/2 tbsp lime leaves, finely sliced (I used a jar)
• roasted peanuts, chopped to serve
• bean sprouts to serve 
• green beans to serve 
• shredded carrot to serve

My mum, being English, made Cottage Pie (with beef mince) and Shepherd's Pie (with lamb mince) fairly regularly when I was growing up.

Not understanding the origin of these pies I looked it up and discovered that the pies were originally made with left over roast. In more recent times most people make the pies out of minced meat.

Traditionally the pies are made using white potatoes, however I am a huge fan of sweet potatoes so I thought I would give them a go. The result was delicious.

Sweet potatoes contain vitamin A, vitamin C, manganese, B vitamins, potassium, iron and almost 15 percent of your daily dietary fibre intake.They are also a great source of healthy antioxidants and have a low glycemic index, which means that the body can slowly absorb the glucose and sustain a moderate rise in sugar levels. In comparison, white potatoes have a high glycemic rating.

These pies can be made with sweet or white potatoes, or a mixture of both. You can add any vegetables that take your fancy and feel free to change the lentils to any other type of legume or bean (some suggestions are at the end). The recipe makes one big pie or four individual pies.

So, here is my veggie version on the humble Shepherd's Pie:

What you need to make four individual pies or one large pie:

• 2 carrots, chopped into 1cm cubes
• 1 large stick of celery, chopped
• 150 g mushrooms, sliced
• 1 onion (red or white), finely chopped 
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped or minced
• 950 g sweet potato, chopped into chunks for boiling (unpeeled if organic)
• 400 g tin of organic chopped tomatoes (or 3 fresh very ripe tomatoes)
• 125 mls (1/2 cup) red wine
• 2 tsp dried thyme or 2 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp dried cumin
• 150 g tomato paste
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 2 stock cubes or 1 tbsp of other seasoning (such as herbamare)
• 1 tbsp soy or Worcestershire sauce
• 3 tbsp milk of choice (regular, almond, soy etc)
• 1 cup dried puy (also called green or French) lentils (soaked for as long as possible or overnight) or 2.5 cups cooked lentils (approximately 1.5 tins)
• 85 g cheddar or other cheese, grated (optional)
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• 1 tbsp butter or coconut oil for mashing the potato
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil for cooking
• salt and pepper to taste

Make it naughty - add some extra cheese and/or cream to the mash.


Source for the sweet potato information: Livestrong

Turned off by pizza because of the carbohydrates? Flour? Calories? Kneading the dough? Well you don't have to do worry about any of that with these fab little pizza crusts made using raw grated cauliflower.

It took me one practice run to get the consistency and ratios right for the pizza base, but I’m now happy to confirm that these pizzas are as good as the real thing - you can even pick them up in your hand and eat them like a regular pizza.

Have you ever wondered how the white flour on your pizza base is produced? Non-organic white flour is made by treating the seeds and then the plant with pesticides and hormones. Following this the wheat grains are milled usually with high speed mills that remove the bran and germ, and the resulting flour is mostly made up of the starchy endosperm layer.  In other words white flour is devoid of most of the original nutrients by the time it is made into a pizza dough.

Cauliflower on the other hand contains vitamins, minerals and phytonurients (plant nutrients that may help neutralise damaging toxins). Cauliflower also contains glucosinolates which activate the body's detoxification process, which some research suggests helps to prevent some types of cancers. Cauliflower is also a great source of potassium and vitamin C (one cup of raw cauliflower contains almost as much vitamin C as an orange).

Therefore these pizzas should be eaten with a guilt free conscience! The cauliflower in the base combined with the vegetables on the top are a great way to get your daily intake of veggies.

What you need to make 4 mini cauliflower pizza bases (serves 2 with no sides, double to serve 4):

• 1/2 head of cauliflower
• 1 whole egg
• 1 egg white 
• 2 tbsp of dried herbs (or to taste) - I used thyme and oregano
• 1/4 cup grated cheese - mozzarella or soft goats cheese
• 3/4 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (probably optional)
• 1 tsp coconut or grapeseed oil

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and very lightly spread/spray with oil.

Process or grate the cauliflower until it resembles breadcrumbs. Whisk the eggs briefly and then add the eggs, herbs, cheese and nutritional yeast flakes to the cauliflower and mix until well combined.

Using your hands, divide the mixture into four equal portions. Roll one portion in your hands to form a ball, gently squeeze any excess liquid out of the ball and then spread evenly onto the baking tray to make a pizza base. Repeat with the other portions.

Cook in the oven for 10 minutes and then flip and continue to cook for around another 10 minutes or until crispy on top and the edges are dark brown. Leave the pizza bases to cool at room temperature while you prepare the sauce and other ingredients.

Once you have prepared your toppings and the pizzas have cooled to room temperature, top the pizzas and bake for a further 10 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Enjoy.




Possible pizza toppings:

• tomato pizza sauce made by cooking organic tinned tomato with oil over a medium heat, stirring occasionally until thick
• pesto
• cheese i.e. mozzarella, goats cheese or fetta cheese (of any variety), vegan cheese
• nutritional yeast flakes
• thinly sliced capsicum
• halved cherry tomatoes
• olives (green or black)
• capers
• finely diced and sauteed eggplant
• mushrooms
• anchovies
• finely sliced red onion
• herbs
• spinach and rocket (fresh, added after the pizzas have been cooked)

Sources:1, 2

I love a spicy curry, particularly a Thai curry. However I have witnessed how hard it is for my vegetarian friends to go to a Thai restaurant and have a curry without either shrimp paste or fish sauce.

Enjoy a taste sensation? Then this curry is for you! It was actually my brother Ben who made it for me initially and I absolutely love it.

If you are trying to lose weight I would recommend using light coconut milk or alternatively don't use any coconut milk and add 1/2 cup of macadamia nuts to your laksa paste to add some creaminess. Alternatively you could add any other kind of milk (almond, soy, regular) and 1/2 teaspoon of coconut essence. Coconut milk/cream is made from blending coconut flesh and water. Coconut milk and light coconut milk simply have more water added to the mix and therefore are less creamy and have less fat content.

Try making your own laksa paste if you can  (*recipe at the end). That way you will know exactly what's in it and it won't have any preservatives. The paste involves a lot of ingredients but you can easily pick up all of the ingredients at Coles/Woolies (major grocer) or an Asian grocery store.

Make it Paleo: replace the noodles with zucchinnigetti (see my previous blog post about zucchini spaghetti here) and replace the tofu with vegetables such as capsicum and carrot.

• 600 g pumpkin (weighed with skin on), skin cut off and cut into 2cm cubes
• 250 g tofu cut into 1cm cubes
• 24 cherry tomatoes
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• 4 tbsp laksa paste
• 2 tbsp fish sauce (or soy sauce if vegetarian)
• 2 tbsp tamarind paste or puree
• 1 litre (4 cups) vegetable stock
• 400 mls unsweetened good quality coconut milk
• Dried soba, ramen or rice noodles to serve 4
• 1 lime, sliced into quarters
• 1 handful of fresh mint and coriander leaves
• 1/2 tbsp coconut or grapeseed oil

Preheat the oven to 180 C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Toss the cherry tomatoes and pumpkin in the oil and a small amount of salt and pepper, place in a single layer on the baking tray and roast for approximately 15-20 minutes or until soft.

Add the laksa paste, vegetable stock, coconut milk, tamarind paste and tofu to a saucepan and simmer for 8 minutes. Add the fish sauce (or soy sauce) and simmer for a further 2 minutes.

While the broth is simmering cook the noodles according to the packet directions. Drain the noodles and divide between four deep bowls, add the tomato and pumpkin, top with the tofu and laksa broth and garnish with bean sprouts and herbs. Serve with lime quarters and other optional toppings.


Make it Naughty: use coconut cream instead of coconut milk if you like your laksa really really creamy.


*Laksa paste recipe - makes approximately 6 tbsp

• 2 small red onions, diced
• 8 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tsp galangal or ginger, roughly chopped
• 6-8 red chillies, chopped
• 4 dried chillies
• 2 tsp roasted coriander seeds
• 2 tsp shrimp paste (optional)
• 2 tsp lime zest (= 2 limes)
• 2 stalks of lemongrass, green part only, roughly chopped (I used a jar of lemongrass)
• 3 tbsp coriander roots, stems and leaves
• 2 tsp shredded lime leaves (I used a jar of lime leaves)
• 2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 cup macadamia nuts (optional if not using coconut milk/cream)

Grind all of the ingredients in a mortar and pestle or blitz in a food processor.

What you need to serve 4 people:

• 6 eggs
• 3/4 cup Greek yoghurt
• 1/2 cup quinoa
• 1 cup vegetable stock
• 4 mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast flakes (optional)
• 1 1/2 cups spinach or kale cut into thin strips
• 1 punnet cherry tomatoes, each tomato chopped in half
• salt and pepper to taste
• butter or oil for cooking (I used coconut oil)

How to make it:

Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F) and grease a quiche dish with butter or oil. Rinse the quinoa, add to a saucepan and then cover with the stock. Bring the stock to the boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook until all of the stock has been absorbed and the quinoa is cooked.

While the quinoa is cooking, add some oil to a frying pan and saute the onions and garlic until soft and fragrant. Add the spinach and  mushrooms and stir until the spinach has just wilted. Set aside to cool.

Whisk the eggs with the Greek yoghurt until frothy. Add the spinach mixture, parmesan cheese, cooked quinoa, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper and mix until well combined. Pour the mixture into the greased quiche dish.

Carefully place the cherry tomatoes seed side up all over the top of the quiche and place it in the oven. Cook for approximately 45 minutes until golden.

Make it Naughty: add some tasty cheese and bacon pieces.

If you would like to see a video on how to cook quinoa, there is a quirky video available here - http://vimeo.com/21870705.



Sources: 1, 2, 3

This week I had a bit of a Mexican craving. We have some really great fast food type Mexican places popping up in Australia at the moment, with some of them even having brown rice burritos! However, they still always come covered in cheese and sour cream so I generally try and avoid them for that reason.

While on the hunt for some take-away type food during the week I came across sweet potato and black bean burrito recipes.

I prefer to use black beans because I like the flavour but you could use kidney or pinto beans instead. The beans paired with the sweet red onion, sweet potato, spicy chilli and creamy avocado make you not even realise you are missing the sour cream or the cheese - I promise! I felt like I was eating something really naughty when in fact it was super healthy.

Try wrapping them in a large lettuce or cabbage leaf for a healthier alternative to the wrap bread.

• 1 1/2 limes, juiced
• 1/2 lemon, juiced (could use lime juice instead)
• 3 tomatoes, finely chopped
• 1 red onion, thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 500 g sweet potato, skin on and chopped into 1 cm cubes
• 3 cups cooked black, pinto or kidney beans (1.5 cups dried*)
• 1 cup thinly sliced red capsicum
• 1 cup chopped silverbeet, kale or spinach
• 2/3 bunch fresh coriander, finely chopped
• 2 avocados, flesh removed and roughly mashed
• 8 tortillas
• 1/2 to 1 tsp chilli powder (or cayenne powder)
• 2 tsp dried cumin
• 1 tsp dried coriander
• 1/2 tbsp coconut oil for cooking
• salt and pepper to taste

• lettuce
• cooked brown rice
• cooked quinoa
• jalapeños

Add the sweet potato to a saucepan, cover with filtered water, bring to the boil then cover and simmer until just tender, around 20 minutes. Drain the sweet potato and set aside.

Prepare your salsa by adding 2 chopped tomatoes, coriander, a pinch of cumin, salt and lemon juice to a bowl and stir to combine. Set aside to allow flavours to develop.

Heat coconut oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté until soft. Add the capsicum, sweet potato, 1 chopped tomato and spices and stir regularly for around 3 minutes to avoid the mixture sticking to the pan, mashing some of the sweet potato softly so that you have some mashed and some whole pieces of potato. Add the black beans, spinach/kale or silver beet and lime juice and stir until combined and heated through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Heat tortillas according to packet directions (I didn't bother and they were still great) and then top with some sweet potato mixture, avocado and salsa and roll to combine. See here for a photo demonstration of how to roll a burrito.

As you may know from my previous Carrot Cake post, I am not much of a baker. Keeping this in mind, when I was invited to a friends place for a catchup I quickly scoured the internet looking for something that I didn't have to bake for dessert that would be tasty, healthy and a little bit different.

To my delight I happened across avocado key lime pies made using avocados! I was absolutely thrilled to discover that avocados can be used to make a creamy rich raw dessert.

This recipe has a yoghurt topping which provides some tanginess, however it can be omitted if you are lactose intolerant or sticking to a paleo diet. Cocoyo (coconut yoghurt) and perhaps soy yoghurt (don't quote me on that one -  yet to be tested) would be great substitutions. Or you can make less of a base and only use the avocado filling, at which point it will be an avocado lime pie.

Avocados, which are actually a fruit (my boyfriend didn't believe me), contain a range of vital  nutrients and healthy fats while being low in sugar and sodium. High in vitamin C, fibre, folate, vitamin K, vitamin E, antioxidants and potassium, it really is a super food.

You can keep the recipe as a cake, or alternatively you can layer it into a round glass placing some base, followed by avocado and yoghurt. Repeat so that you have three layers. Place in the freezer to chill and set slightly for about 20 minutes and serve.




What you need to make one cake (or 4 parfaits)

Total shopping list (see below for breakdown):

• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 cup other nuts of choice
• 1 tbsp coconut flour
• up to 1 cup rice syrup, honey or agave nectar (use honey or agave if you like sweet desserts, rice syrup has half the sugar)
• up to 3/4 tsp stevia
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup coconut cream
• up to 6 limes (juice and zest)
• 2 ripe avocados
• 1 cup Greek yoghurt
• 2 tbsp chia seeds

Breakdown of ingredients:

Base:

• 1 cup sunflower seeds (soaked for at least 2 hours then drained)
• 1 cup of nuts, I used a combination of pecans and almonds (soaked for at least 2 hours then drained)
• 1 tbsp coconut flour
• 1/3 cup rice syrup, honey or agave,
• dry or liquid stevia to taste (up to 1/2 teaspoon)
• pinch of salt

Avocado filling:

• 2 ripe avocados, flesh removed
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 coconut cream
• 1/3 cup lime juice
• lime zest of 2-3 small limes
• 1/3 cup rice syrup or 1/4 cup honey or agave
• liquid stevia to taste (up to 1/2 teaspoon)

Yoghurt topping:

• 1 cup Greek yoghurt (or Cocoyo or soy yoghurt)
• 1/3 rice syrup or 1/4 cup honey or agave
• 1/4 cup coconut cream
• 2 tbsp chia seeds
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• lime zest of 2-3 small limes
• liquid stevia to taste (up to 1/2 teaspoon)

My partner doesn't cook me dinner very regularly, but when I showed him a recipe for zucchini spaghetti and meatballs I couldn't hold him back.

You can make zucchini spaghetti (or zucchinighetti) using a spirooli or a mandolin on the thinest setting or a vegetable peeler. Basically you are turning your regular vegetables like zucchini, beetroot, potatoes etc into noodles. I like to use them in salads or as a replacement for regular spaghetti.

Vegetable noodles would be a great trick to get your kids to eat more vegies! It is also makes your meals wheat free and paleo friendly.

Feel free to replace the meatballs with some lentil balls or falafel if you don't want to eat any meat. Alternatively you could just add a mixture of beans like cannellini and butter beans to the sauce to make it more like a bolognaise.

This recipe has some red chilli in it, but feel free to leave it out if you can't tolerate it. This pasta sauce can also be used on pizza bases etc so make a double batch if you can.



What you need to serve four lucky people:

• 400g beef mince
• 1 egg
• 1 onion, grated (I used my processor)
• 1/2 bundle of parsley, chopped
• 2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
• ½ tsp hot chilli powder
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, finely chopped, or 1/2 bulb fresh fennel
• 1 tsp salt
• pepper

Zucchinighetti

• 4 zucchinis
• Herbs to serve such as parsley or basil

Optional extra: freshly grated or shaved parmesan cheese

How to make it:

To make the sauce, in a pot add some olive oil, onions, garlic and chilli and simmer over low-medium heat until the onions are soft - around 5 minutes. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients and simmer for as long as possible while making the rest of the meal, stirring occasionally.

To make the meatballs combine all ingredients and mix well. Let the mixture set in the fridge for half an hour.

Using your spirooli or other device, make the zucchinighetti. Don't grate the middle of the zucchini where the seeds are because it is too soft to make noodles. Arrange one zucchini turned into noodles onto each plate.

Heat some oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Shape one tablespoon of meatball mixture into a ball by rolling it in your hands and placing it onto the pan, repeat with the rest of the meatballs. Cook them on each side for around 5 minutes or until they have browned and are cooked through.

As promised, here is my coconut and almond pancake recipe, which has absolutely zero bananas in it unlike my 3 Ingredient Paleo Pancakes. They are still wheat free, dairy free, gluten free and refined sugar free (it can be completely sugar free and Paleo by omitting the maple syrup).

The addition of blueberries as a replacement for bananas adds the desired sweetness. These pancakes are also much thicker than the 3 Ingredient Paleo Pancakes. Feel free to make them thinner using more coconut cream, however be extra careful when flipping them as they will be more likely to fall apart.



What you need to make 8 pancakes:

• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1-2 tbsp maple syrup (optional)
• 1/2 punnet fresh or frozen blueberries (if using frozen defrost and discard liquid)
• 5 organic eggs
• 1/3 cup coconut cream (or other milk such as almond milk or oat milk)
• coconut oil for frying

Optional additions: stevia, vanilla essence, cacao nibs or powder, flavoured protein powder

Topping suggestions:

• butter
• maple syrup
• strawberries and stevia - see 3 Ingredient Paleo Pancakes for recipe and photo
• fresh banana
• chopped nuts such as walnuts
• almond butter
• coconut cream
• ice cream

How to make them:

Mix the eggs, maple syrup and coconut cream together in one bowl. Mix the flour, almond meal and baking powder in a separate bowl. Mix the dry and wet ingredients together and then fold in the blueberries.

Heat a non-stick frying pan or skillet over low heat and add some coconut oil to coat the pan. Add 1/4 cup of the pancake mixture to the pan. I find the easiest way to do this is to measure 1/4 cup and then roll it into a ball in my hand and then flatten in the pan with my hand. After a few minutes carefully flip the pancake over and cook the other side.

If you are making a big batch I suggest having a couple of pans going at the same time. Cook about 3 - 4 pancakes per pan and keep warm while under some aluminium foil while cooking the others.

Substitutions: almond meal can be substituted with any other nut flour. Blueberries can be substituted with other fruit. Coconut cream can be substituted with any other kind of milk.

Make it naughty: cover with almond butter and the strawberry topping, it tastes just like peanut butter and jelly