Bone Broth Chilli

Ingredients

500g organic grass feed mince beef

2 medium onions, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

2 celery stocks, chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1–2 tsp chilli powder or 1-2 fresh red chillies

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

150ml red wine or extra bone broth

300ml homemade bone broth (see Bone Broth recipe)

400g organic canned tomatoes

3 tbsp organic tomato purée, preferably from a glass

1 bay leaf

A handful of fresh oregano, alternatively you can use 1 tsp of dried

1 cinnamon stick

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

Other optional vegetables: parsnips, aubergine or celeriac

Method

1.    Place a large saucepan over medium heat and add the beef (in broken up bits) and onions. Cook together for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the carrots, celery, garlic, 1–2 teaspoons of chilli powder (or fresh chilli), depending on how hot you like your chilli, and the cumin and coriander. Fry together for 1–2 minutes more.

2.    Slowly add the wine and then the stock, stirring constantly. Add the tomatoes into the pan and stir in the tomato purée, cinnamon stick and bay leaf. Season with a pinch of salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper.

3.    Bring to a simmer on the hob. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer gently for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally until the mince is tender and the sauce is thick. Add the fresh oregano in the last 5 minutes of cooking and mix.  Let the chilli rest for 10 minutes with the hob off and the lid on before serving.  Adjust the seasoning to taste and serve.

4.    Serve on steamed greens, cauliflower rice, rice or just on its own.  Top with smashed avocado, fresh coriander and pickled red onion if you fancy.

Enjoy your weekend!

Amanda

Roast Chicken Thighs & Seasonal Veggies

Ingredients

1-2 chicken thighs per person, preferably free-range & organic

Avocado oil

Maldon salt

Favourite seasonal veggies:

Jerusalem artichokes

Brussel sprouts

Parsnips

Carrots

1 bulb of garlic, cut in half through the middle

Cauliflower mash:

1 large head of cauliflower, chopped

1 tbsp ghee (or butter)

1 clove of garlic, raw

Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1.     Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

2.     Wash and dry your veggies and take your chicken thighs out of the fridge to come to room temperature.

3.     Cut up your veggies, oil your baking tray, and spread everything out onto the tray.  Drizzle with a bit more oil to the top.  Oil your two garlic halves and place them face down on the baking tray.

4.     Roast your veggies for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 170 degrees. 

5.     Pat your chicken thighs dry with a paper towel or clean dishcloth and salt the skin generously.

6.     When the oven is at 170, take out your baking sheet and place the chicken thighs on top of your veggies.

7.     Roast everything for another 35 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through.

8.     If making cauliflower mash, steam your cauliflower for 15-20 minutes or until soft.   

9.     After 35 minutes, remove the chicken and the garlic from the oven and set aside for 5 minutes to rest.  In the meantime, either continue to roast your veggies or you can turn the oven off and let them sit in the oven to keep warm.

10.  Blend your steamed cauliflower with some ghee (or butter), a clove of raw garlic, and salt and pepper to taste.

11.  Once your garlic has cooled, you can squeeze it like a lemon on to your roasted veggies.  Give the vegetables a toss in the chicken juices and garlic and finish with salt before serving.

Enjoy!

Amanda

Slow-roasted Pork Belly with Pickled Cabbage Salad

Ingredients

 1kg free-range boneless pork belly, scored (ask your butcher to do it for you)

Sea salt

Olive oil

Pickled cabbage salad

½ head of purple cabbage

6 radishes

1 green apple

3 spring onions, sliced

2 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp chilli flakes

1 cup filtered water

2 cups apple cider vinegar (unpasteurized)

2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp raw honey

Method

1.     Toast the chilli flakes, mustard seeds, and fennel in a large pan on low heat for 30 seconds.  Pour in the water and salt.  Stir until salt dissolves then take the pan off the heat.  Add in your honey and vinegar and stir until well combined.  The liquid shouldn’t be hot. 

2.     Place the ingredients for the salad in a large bowl, mix well, and top with your pickling liquid.  Place a large plate on top and weigh down to submerge the salad in the liquid.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. 

3.     Place the pork, skin side up, on a rack in a roasting tin.  Lightly drizzle with olive oil and rub oil into the skin.  Generously season with sea salt and rub in well.  Set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes to dry out the skin.  In the meantime, preheat your oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

4.     After 30 minutes, pat the skin dry with a clean dishcloth or paper towel.

5.     Roast the pork, skin side up, for 2 hours.

6.     After the fat has rendered down, crisp up the skin under an overhead grill (broiler) for approximately 5-10 minutes.  Leave the oven door ajar and keep a close eye on it as you don’t want to skin to burn.

7.     Transfer pork to a large chopping board and allow to rest somewhere warm for 10-15 minutes.

8.     Cut the pork into portions and serve with the pickled salad and Dijon.

Enjoy your weekend,

Amanda

Beetroot and Goat Cheese Salad

Ingredients

Dressing

4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

5 anchovy fillets, minced

1 clove garlic, minced or crushed

Fresh ground pepper to taste

Salad

1-2 heads of romaine lettuce

1 handful of rocket

3 large beetroots, baked

Goat cheese

Optional toppings: walnuts, pumpkin seeds, bacon or anything else you fancy (our seed crackers make a good crouton substitute!)

Method

1.     Heat your oven to 200°C

2.     Wash and dry your beetroots before drizzling with some avocado oil and wrapping them individually in parchment paper.  Roast your beetroots for around 60 minutes until you can easily slide a knife through.  Baking time depends on the size of your beetroots.  Smaller beetroots may take less time.

3.     In the meantime, make your salad dressing.  Add anchovies to a pestle and mortar and smash into a paste.  Add your garlic and combine the two well. 

4.     Then add the olive oil, lemon and apple cider vinegar to the mortar.  Mix everything until it comes together and finish with some fresh ground pepper. 

5.     After roasting toss the beetroots into an ice bath to cool.  Let them sit for about 5 minutes and then you should easily be able to remove the skin with your hands.  Do this in the bowl of water as it can get messy. 

6.     Wash and dry your greens and dress them with your dressing in a large salad bowl.

7.     Chop up your baked beetroot and add them to your salad.

8.     Finish by adding the goat cheese and any additional toppings of your choice!

Eat well!

Amanda

Duck Breast

Such an easy weeknight dinner.  Quick to pan fry and finish in the oven.  Goes well with roast veggies, cauliflower purée, a big salad or anything you want really!

Ingredients

2 duck breast, 200g each

Pinch of flaky salt

Method

1.     Preheat your oven to 200°C.

2.     Pat your duck breast dry with a kitchen towel and generously salt the skin.

3.     In a cold dry pan (no oil needed), place both duck breast skin side down.  Turn the hob to med-high heat and allow the fat to render down.  This will take about 3-5 minutes.  Wait until the skin looks nice and crispy.

4.     Flip the duck breast and immediately turn the hob off. Place the duck, in your frying pan, into the hot oven.

5.     Cook in the oven for 6-8 minutes.  I usually do 4 minutes for a small breast (125g) or 7 minutes for a larger breast (200g).

6.     After removing from the oven, allow the duck to rest for 5-10 minutes.

7.     Save all the juice left over in the pan as it’s packed with flavour!  I usually toss it in with steamed greens ­– I highly recommend it!

Enjoy!

Amanda

Broccoli Sprouts

Broccoli Sprouts

Supplies Needed

2 tbsp organic broccoli seeds

A glass mason jar

Wire sprouting lids for mason jar. Alternatively, you can use a clean muslin cloth and hair band

Sprouting jar holder or glass bowl that can hold the jar upside down

Method

1. Place two tablespoons of broccoli seeds in a wide-mouth mason jar and cover with a few inches of filtered water.

2. Put on a sprouting lid and place the jar in a slightly warm, dark place for 8-12 hours so they can begin to sprout. I cover the jars with a towel if I leave them on the counter or place the jars inside a cabinet. 

3. The next morning (or at least 8 hours later), drain off the water and rinse with fresh water.

4. Rest the mason jar upside down at an angle on a sprouting jar holder or inside a bowl so that any remaining water can drain. Continue to keep the jar in a slightly warm but mostly dark place during this time.

5. Rinse the sprouts 2 times a day and place back on the jar holder or bowl after each rinse. I rinse at meal times so I remember. After a few days, all of the seeds should start to break open and grow.

6. Keep up with the rinsing and keep the seeds in a darkish place until they have sprouts about an inch long. At this point, they can tolerate some indirect sunlight or low light exposure.

7. Eat the seeds once you see some dark green leaves (usually 3-4 days after the seed starts to sprout). This whole process usually takes just under a week.

To Store the Sprouts:

Wait at least 12 hours from the last rinse so all remaining moisture can drain off. Replace the sprouting lid with a regular mason jar lid or transfer to an airtight glass container. Place in the refrigerator and store for up to a few weeks (though I recommend using them as quickly as possible).

Have a great weekend!

Amanda

Homemade Seed Crackers - great with our baba ganoush!

Ingredients 

2 cups of mixed seeds – must have at least ¼ cup of chia or flax seed!

1 cup boiling water

1 tsp salt

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried basil

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp onion powder

Method

1.     Add the seeds, spices and salt into a bowl a mix.

2.     Pour boiling hot water in to the bowl, mix and allow to sit for 10-20 minutes.  While the seeds soak, preheat your oven to 175°C.

3.     Line your baking tray with parchment paper and evenly spread your seeds onto the baking tray.  If you don’t have a large baking sheet, you made need to do two batches or separate your seeds onto two baking sheets.  You want to make sure the seeds are spread out nice and thin so they cook all the way through!

4.     Pop your baking sheet into the oven and let the seeds bake for 35-45 minutes.  Mine took 40!

5.     Let the seeds cool and then break them apart into smaller cracker-like pieces.  Store these at room temperature in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Amanda

Fish, Chips & Chilli Mushy Peas

Chilli Mushy Peas

Ingredients 

1 banana shallot

1 red chilli

2 gloves of garlic, minced

300g frozen peas

A handful of fresh mint leaves

Ghee or butter

Salt 

Pepper 

Method

1. In a pan warm the ghee on medium heat.  Add the finely chopped shallots and cook until translucent.

2. Throw in the garlic and chilli and sauté for another couple minutes.

3. Simply blanch the peas in salted water and throw in the fresh mint leaves.  Cook for about 2 minutes, drain and then add to the shallot mix.

4. Mix everything together.  Season with salt and pepper.

5. Take your peas off the stove and crush with a fork or potato masher.  Serve with fresh mint.

Crispy Oven Baked Chips 

Ingredients 

2-3 large potatoes, cut into long chips (skin on for the fiber!)

Avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 220 C.

2. Add the potatoes to a pot and fill with just enough water to cover them.  Cover with a lid and let the pot come to a boil.  Boil the potatoes as long as you can without them falling apart.  They should keep their shape (about 8 minutes).

3. Drain carefully ensuring the chips don’t break.  Skip the colander and just use the lid to slowing let the water out.

4. Drizzle some avocado oil on the bottom of your baking sheet and place the potatoes on top.  Make sure they have enough space between them and that they aren’t overcrowded.  This will help to get them crispy!

5. Top with some more avocado oil and throw them in the oven to cook.  

6. Cook for about 25-30 minutes on one side and then flip and continue cooking until golden brown and crispy.

7. Finish with sea salt. 

Fish

Ingredients

1-2 fillets of sea bass per person

Avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil

Lemon, cut into cheeks 

Salt and pepper 

Method

1. Season the sea bass with salt and pepper.

2. Heat the pan until hot and then add some avocado oil.  Lay the fish fillets in the pan, skin side down.  Press each fillet down with your fingers to keep them from curling.

3. Reduce heat to medium, then leave the fish to cook for 3-4 minutes, until about two-thirds of the flesh is cooked.  The skin should be crisp and brown.

4. Flip the fillets over and allow to cook for a minute before removing from the heat.  

5. Serve with lemon cheeks.

Enjoy!

Amanda

Paleo Butter Chicken

Serves 4

Chicken marinade:

800g boneless and skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces

½ cup coconut yogurt (Coyo is my favourite)

4-5 cloves of garlic minced (depending on size of the cloves)

A thumb size nob of ginger, peeled & minced (~ 1 tbsp)

2 tsp garam masala

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp sea salt

Curry

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp ghee (scroll down to see our ghee recipe)

1 large onion, sliced

3 garlic cloves, minced

A thumb size nob of ginger, peeled & minced (~ 1 tbsp)

1 ½ tsp ground cumin

1 ½ tsp garam masala

1 tsp ground coriander

400g crushed tomatoes

1 tsp sea salt (or to taste)

200g coconut cream

1 tsp of coconut sugar (can omit or sub apple sauce or honey)

½ tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves) – if you can’t find this the recipe is still amazing without it!

Method

1.             In a bowl, combine chicken with all of the ingredients for the chicken marinade and let marinate for 30 minutes to an hour (or overnight, if possible). 

2.            Heat oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When hot, add chicken pieces in batches – try not to over crowd the pan.  Cook until browned for no more than 3 minutes on each side. Set browned chicken aside in a large bowl for later.

3.            Heat ghee in the same pot.  Cook the onions until they start to sweat while scraping up any browned bits stuck on the bottom on the pot.

4.           Add garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant, then add ground coriander, cumin and garam masala.  Let cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant, whilst stirring occasionally.

5.           Add the crushed tomatoes and salt.  Let simmer for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  The sauce will thicken and become a deep brown red colour.

6.           Remove from heat, scoop mixture into a blender and blend under smooth.  Work in batches depending on the size of your blender.

7.             Pour the puréed sauce back into the pot.  Stir in the coconut cream, coconut sugar (if using) and crushed kasoori methi.  Add the chicken and its’ juices back into the pot and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with cauliflower rice, steamed leafy greens (I love it with cavolo nero) or rice. This is a great recipe to do in a large batch and freeze in a glass Tupperware for a quick tasty weeknight dinner! 

Enjoy

Amanda