lovefood

Chicken and Spinach Curry

If you are looking for an alternative to an Indian treat, look no further. This curry is packed with flavour as well as protein and many other nutrients making it a total guilt free eat.

3 Garlic Cloves Chopped Roughly

1 Onion, Chopped

1 inch piece of Ginger, peeled and chopped

2 tsp Ground Coriander

1 Red Chilli, deseeded and chopped

1/2 tbsp Mild Curry Powder

1/2 tbsp Medium Curry Powder

1 kg Boneless, skinless Chicken Thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces

Small Bag of Baby Leaf Spinach

Organic Virgin Coconut Oil

Water

1 tbsp Lemon Juice

3 tbsp 0% Fat Greek Yoghurt

Maldon Sea Salt and Black Pepper

Start by making a paste by whizzing up the onion, garlic, ginger, chilli and spinach. Set aside.

Add a tsp of the coconut oil to a pot and heat until fairly hot, add the chicken and brown all over. Pour off any excess fat.

Now add the rest of the spices (Coriander and mixed Curry powders) cook on a medium heat for two minutes.

Now tip in the paste, cook gently for around ten minutes. Add the lemon juice, check the seasoning and add some salt and pepper if necessary. Cook for another ten minutes. You may need to add a dash or two of water depending on whether it is too thick.

Now add the Greek yoghurt. Combine well and cook for five minutes.

Serve with wholegrain rice, basmati rice or any variety of bread you fancy!

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My Perfect Steak Tartar

My Perfect Steak Tartar

I first had Steak Tartar in The Ivy, London. So from the outset, the benchmark was set pretty high!

I totally adore this dish and had to get it right, a lot of research went into it.

My weekend treat with a lush glass of Rioja! Lush!!

Serves 1

250g Piece of Fillet Steak, a nice aged one from a butcher is a must

4 Cornichons, finely chopped

2 tsp Capers, finely chopped

1/2 Banana Shallot, finely chopped

1/2 tbsp Ketchup

10 Drops of Tabasco

1/2 tbsp Truffle Oil

1 tbsp Parsley Leaves, finely chopped

1/2 tbsp Dijon

1/4 of a Red Chilli, deseeded, finely chopped

Salt and pepper to season

To Serve

Slices of Crispy Toasted Sourdough

1 Egg Yolk

Finely Chopped Chives

Start by trimming the outsides of the steak. Also remove any obvious white and silvery pieces.

Wash the knife and chopping board.

Pop the steak into the freezer for around 20mins – half an hour to firm up, this makes it easier to cut.

While it is in the freezer, prepare the rest of the ingredients by adding them into a bowl and combining well. Taste and adjust if necessary.

When the steak is ready, take it out and on a chopping board, cut across the grain into slices. Then cut the slices into strips and then cut the strips into little cubes, roughly 2-3mm pieces.

This bit can be done in advance, wrapped tightly in plastic put in the fridge until ready to serve.

Once you are ready to serve, combine the meat and the dressing. Add half the dressing to begin with, add more if necessary. Shape into patties, place in a ring to give a nice shape.

Serve, topped with the egg yolk and the chives, accompanied by the toasted sourdough!

Tip: I toasted my sourdough then put it into the oven at 160c for 8 mins to really crisp it up.

Thai Green Curry

Thai Green Curry

Thailand I by far, my favourite place in the world. A few years ago, i was fortunate enough to do a cooking course in Chiang Mai.

I order the Thai ingredients online and have them delivered as I feel there is no substitute for authenticity! More often than not, I do not grind my own paste. However, if using a pre prepared curry paste, ensure it is from Thailand!

Serves 4-6

Thai Jasmine Rice

3-4 Chicken Breasts, size dependant cut in very thin slices along the grain of the chicken. Buy really top quality chicken that is not injected full of water as it will ruin the curry.

2 Tins of Thai Coconut Milk e.g. Chaokoh

1 tbsp Thai Green Curry paste such as Mae Ploy

6 Thai Baby Aubergines, cut into quarters

A handful of Thai Pea Aubergines (before adding to the curry parboil these for around three mins)

6 Fresh Lime Leaves, ripped up and stem removed

1 tbsp Thai Oyster Sauce

1 tbsp Thai Fish Sauce

1 tsp Thai Palm Sugar (can be like a brick, warm for a few seconds in the microwave)

Fresh Red Chillies, sliced finely on the diagonal

Thai Sweet Basil (Basil is not a substitute, sweet basil has an aniseed type taste) a couple of Handfuls, leaves removed and slightly shredded.

Begin by opening the tins of coconut milk very carefully. Separate the very think creamy part of the coconut milk from the very watery part.

In a saucepan, heat the watery part until you can see the oils of the coconut milk coming to the surface.

Add the Thai paste and combine well. Cook on a medium heat for five minutes and check that it has your desired degree of flavour and heat. Add more if you want!

Add the sliced chicken and stir well to ensure it does not stick together. Keep stirring periodically until it is almost cooked.

Add the Thai vegetables and lime leaves at this point.

Also, add the oyster sauce, fish sauce and, the palm sugar.

Now, add the creamy part of the coconut milk.

Cook over a medium heat until the vegetables are nice and soft.

At the end, stir through the Thai basil.

Serve with steamed Thai Jasmine Rice and top with the fresh red chillies.

This is the most amazing thing on earth! Thank you Thailand for teaching me this! ❤️❤️

Healthy Takeaway Alternative 

Healthy Chicken Korma


Just because you have decided to make a healthy start does not mean you have to miss out on your favourite dishes. A bit of creativity and boom, a healthy alternative with no cream is created! The fact that my husband did not even notice it was the healthy option speaks volumes!!
Serves 5
5 Chicken Breasts, chopped into big cubes

2 Onions, roughly chopped

1 Green Pepper roughly chopped

1in Piece Ginger, chopped

3 Garlic Cloves, chopped 

2 tsp Turmeric

1/2 tsp Paprika

1/2 Cinnamon Stick

1 tsp Coriander Powder

1/2 tsp Chilli Powder

1 tsp Cumin Powder

1 tsp Ground Ginger

2 tsp Garam Masala

2 tbsp Ground Almonds

1 Tin Low Fat Coconut Milk

2-3 tbsp 0% Fat Greek Yoghurt (the nice thick Fage one!)

1 tbsp Mango Chutney 

Rapeseed Oil or Coconut Oil 

Fresh Coriander to Serve
Add the onions, green pepper, ginger and garlic to a food processor and whizz until it is a nice fine paste.
In a large casserole (preferably non stick as you can get away with less oil!) heat a splash of oil. Add the paste and cook gently for around 5 mins.
Add the chicken and cook for a few mins.
Add the rest of the spices and cook for 2 mins.
Add the coconut milk and cook for 20 mins with the lid on. Stir periodically.
Stir through the Greek yogurt and the mango chutney add a little more yoghurt if it is too thick.
Serve with brown basmati rice and some fresh coriander. Delish!

Cream of Cauliflower Soup with Bacon Croutons and Truffle Oil

img_0038CREAM OF CAULIFLOWER SOUP WITH BACON CROUTONS AND TRUFFLE OIL
This is a very versatile soup. It can be as healthy or as decadent as you choose. I made it on Saturday and instead of 500ml milk, I added 250ml milk and 250ml double cream! 👌🏻

Cauliflower is a low carb vegetable which combines wonderfully with the bacon and truffle oil.

Amazingly my kids hate cauliflower but loved this soup! So even if you are not a fan of cauliflower, don’t let that put you off!!
Serves 6-8
2 Medium Sized Heads of Cauliflower broken into florets

Light Olive Oil

Tbsp Butter

2 Garlic Cloves, crushed

2 Leeks, trimmed and finely chopped

1 litre Stock (chicken or vegetable)

500ml Milk (preferably full cream but semi skimmed will do!)

Malden Sea Salt and Black Pepper
To serve

Bacon Lardons fried until crispy

Good Quality Truffle Oil to drizzle
In a pot large enough to hold the mountain of cauliflower, add the butter and when it has melted add the leeks and soften for 5 mins.
Add the crushed garlic and cook for another few mins.
Add the stock, milks and cauliflower florets.
Season with salt and pepper.
Cook for around 10 mins or until the cauliflower is nice and soft.
(If you decide on using the double cream, add it now and stir through.)
Using a hand blender, whizz until nice and smooth and creamy.
Serve topped with the bacon croutons and truffle oil! Divine!!!

Healthy Veggie Broth

VEGETABLE BROTH
After five weeks of being in Spain, eating and drinking lots of things I shouldn’t have!! Not to mention the kids eating far too many chips, the healthy eating routine begins.
The simplicity and flexible of this soup means it is accessible to any level of cooking. I tend to make stock from a whole small chicken or the remaining carcass from Sunday lunch. You could use thigh or leg bones, bought stock or even stock cubes. The stock is the basis for this soup so ensure it is full of flavour!

I also cool and chill my stock and then skim all the fat off it.

If you are lucky to be using a whole chicken, strip all the meat off it and add to the soup towards the end of cooking the veggies.
For the veggies, you have various options from buying individual vegetables and chopping or if you are pressed for time as I was today….buy them pre chopped (M&S) and chuck them in!
I’ll give you the basics along with various options for tarting it up!
2.5 l of good Chicken Stock (Veg Stock if you want)

600g Fresh Chopped Soup Veg (celery, leeks, carrots, parsley)

100g Soup Mix (pearl barley, yellow split peas, green split peas, red split lentils)

Maldon Sea Salt and Black Pepper
Bring the stock up to the boil and add the soup mix. Simmer for 1/2 hour.
Tip in the chopped soup veg, give it a stir and season with plenty of salt and pepper. I tend to be generous with the salt for this soup.
Simmer gently for 45 mins.
Check the seasoning and serve.
Total health in a bowl!

#healthyfood #cleaneating #soup #lovefood #comfortfood #arestaurantinmykitchen