Chicken, garlic and parmesan patties

Really simple dish with a few ingredients, so perfect for a week day meal. You can do these as balls or sausage shape, use as a burger pattie. Do extra to use for lunch the next day 

smile emoticon

You can have fun with these and make faces for fussy husband or wives, the kids like them too!

Makes 8 patties to serve 4

Ingredients

500g chicken mince

50g parmesan cheese, grated

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup (100g) of fresh bread crumbs-I made mine from saving my sourdough crusts- this is about 3

Freshly ground pepper to taste

Method

Knead the mince until sticky and then add the rest of the ingredients and combine well.

Form into 8 patties, you could also do balls or sausage shape, adjust the cooking time as needed. Cook with a little oil in a pan on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes each side or until cooked through.

I served this with sweet potato mash, peas, broccolini and asparagus.

Asian stir fried snapper with wombok, mushrooms and greens

Feel free to use any combination of vegetable you like, anything you have in the fridge that you want to use up. Make sure you add in leafy greens near the end of the cooking time.

Serves 4

Ingredients

600g snapper, cut into 2 cm chunks- you need to use a firm fish or it will fall apart. If you do not use a firm fish you can panfry in whole fillets and not stir fry

¼ cup of oyster sauce

2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

2-3 tsp finely chopped turmeric

2-3 tsp finely chopped ginger ( you can blitz the garlic, turmeric and ginger together in a little food processor)

¼ of a wombok (Chinese cabbage), chopped

300g mushrooms, sliced, feel free to use exotic mushrooms like shitake, enoki black fungus etc

3 stalks of celery

1 bunch of asparagus, woody ends trimmed and cut into 3 on an angle

1 bunch broccolini, chopped into 3

2 small zucchinis, sliced thin on an angle

Method

Put the fish, garlic, ginger, turmeric, tamari and oyster sauce in a bowl, set aside.

In a large pan or wok heat some oil and panfry your fish for 2-3 minutes or until its cooked, it will continue to cook through with the residual heat. Wash the bowl out and use that bowl to put your cooked fish into. Cover the bowl. Rinse the pan out to reuse.

In your large pan or wok heat some oil and add your zucchini, broccolini, celery and asparagus, Stir fry for 3-4 minutes on a high heat and then add in the mushrooms, cook another minute and then add the wombok, cook until just wilted.

Serve up vegetables with some soba noodles or some rice. Put your fish on top on your vegetables, you can garnish with some chilli if you like. Any juice that came out the fish you can pour over your meal.

Pork with prune and apple

Serves 4
Ingredients

4 x 125g boneless pork steaks, you could also use chicken

1 cup chicken stock

¼ cup of red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar

1 green apple, peeled, cored and 1 cm dice

1 brown onion, diced

½ cup of prunes, this is about 10, diced

Method

Season your pork steaks with salt and pepper. In a large pan put in some oil and when hot cook your steaks about 4-5 minutes each side, it can be a little pink in the middle. The time will vary depending on thickness. When done set aside and cover to keep warm. In the same pan (don’t wash) add your onion and apple and cook for 1-2 minutes and then add your vinegar and stock, simmer for 5 minutes until it has thickened like a gravy. Then add your prunes to warm through. Add your pork back into the pan to warm and serve up with some mash and steamed vegetables. Pour your sauce over everything and enjoy! ! I used carrots, green bean and broccoli.

Lamb, zucchini and feta rissoles

Serves 6

Ingredients

500g lamb mine

2 zucchinis, grated, squeeze out excess juice

150g greek feta or other crumbly feta, 1 cm dice

Method

Knead the mince until it is sticky, this is what binds the mince together. Then add your zucchini and feta, mix through and season well with salt and pepper. Form into 6 rissoles and fry off in a large pan for 3- 4 minutes each side or until your liking. Sere up with extra veg or salad..

Cheese stuffed meat patties with brown butter tomato sauce

Ingredients

500g mince- I have used beef

2 tbsp fresh herbs, I have used tarragon, thyme and oregano

4 x 2cm square cheese such as mozzarella, feta, gruyere etc….

Salt and pepper

Sauce

400ml tomato passata

50g butter

1 tbsp mixed dried herbs, I ran out of fresh so had to use dried, but you can use fresh just use more

Method

Mix your mince with salt, pepper and your fresh herbs, knead until sticky then form 4 patties and push your cheese in and make sure the mince is surrounding your cheese. Fry off your patties for 5 or so minutes on each side, when done take out and set aside. In the same pan put your butter, melt and cook until it browns and smells yummy and then add your mixed dried herbs, stir and then add your passata, season with salt. Heat the sauce and be sure to scrape the bottom to get all the yummy bits. If you have cream you can add a splash of it. Serve with spaghetti or other pasta, rice or just some steamed veg.

5 minute green goddess soup

Serves 1

If you have some tomatoes that need using look no further, try this 5 minute fresh soup

Ingredients

1/2 lebanese cucumber

1 cup chopped tomatoes

1 handful of baby spinach leaves

1 clove garlic

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

small handful basil/mint leaves (optional but recommended)

Salt and pepper

Blend everything together and season well. Drizzle some more olive oil over and you can crumble feta over if you want.

Meatballs with hoisin gravy, vegetables & a cashew/sesame sprinkle

Serves 4

Ingredients

500 mince, I used pork mince

1 tsp Herbamare or a really good shake of salt and pepper

¼ cup of hoisin sauce

1 tsp chinese 5 spice

1 tsp minced ginger

2 cups of beef/chicken bone broth or beef/chicken stock

4 celery stalks, sliced thin on an angle

2 capsicums, sliced

2 bunches of bok choy (or other Asian veg) washed, ends sliced off and chopped into

3 cm slices

¼ cup of roughly chopped cashew nuts

1 tbsp sesame seeds

Method

In a bowl mix the mince with the herbamare/salt & pepper, mix with your hands until it is a little sticky then roll into 20 balls. This is about 1tbsp each. Put in fridge until you need them.

Hoisen gravy

In a large pan mix the hoisin sauce, ginger, chinese 5 spice and broth. Simmer for 5 minutes until has reduced by about half and has thickened like gravy. Set aside. Alternatively you can just add 1 cup of broth and use a sprinkle of tapioca flour until you achieve the thickness you want. By reducing the 2 cups of broth though you get a more intense flavour.

Method

 

In a pan heat a little coconut oil and brown your meatballs, this takes about 2 minutes, then add your hoisen gravy and simmer for 5-7 minutes. While that is simmering cook your vegetables.

In a wok heat 1 tbsp coconut oil and stir fry your celery and capsicum for 1-2 minutes, add your bok choy and stirfry for a further 1-2 minutes, until it has wilted. Serve up the veg and top with 5 meatballs and spoon over the gravy then sprinkle over your cashew nuts/sesame seeds. You can serve with some coriander if you want.

Chicken Mi Goreng with a fried egg (bean thread noodles)

These are similar to mi goreng noodles that you buy in packs but without all the additives, msg, artificial anything! Super quick, cheap and very tasty!

These noodles are grain/ gluten free/nut/dairy free
This makes 4 big serves



Ingredients

250g pack of bean thread noodles, can be called glass or cellophane noodles-from the supermarket-soaked in boiling water for 2 minutes until softened, cut up a little with a pair of scissors or the noodles will be too long, and then drain.

400g chicken thighs, trimmed and sliced thinly

½ green cabbage, I like to use ¼ red & ¼ of green cabbage- sliced nice and thin

3 carrots, peeled, and using the peeler keep peeling the carrot so you get thin strips of carrot

1 tbsp tamari (or light soy if tolerated)

3 tsp each of onion and garlic powder (not salt)

4 fried eggs to put on top

Coriander/chilli to garnish

Method

In a wok or large pan heat 1 tbsp coconut oil and stirfry your chicken for 2-3 minutes until cooked. Take out and set aside. Put a little more oil in your wok and add your cabbage and stir fry for 2 minutes until wilted a little add your carrot and cook another 1 minute, add back your cooked chicken and your cooked drained noodles, powders and tamari. Toss well to combine; I use 2 spatula type instruments to toss up with. Serve up with your fried egg on top and garnish with coriander and chili.

Tri coloured slaw with prawns, goat’s cheese, and basil and lemon dressing

Serves 4

You could use a dry coleslaw mix (without dressing) from the supermarket to make it quicker.

Ingredients

200g grams each of pumpkin, beetroot and green cabbage, beetroot and pumpkin peeled and grated, cabbage finely sliced. It’s easier to use the 2 attachments on a food processor

400g raw green prawns

100g goats cheese or other feta, you can leave out if you want dairy free

1 bunch of broccolini ends trimmed, you can use a small head of broccoli

Basil dressing

15 g basil leaves about 1 cup loosely packed

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 tbsp tahini

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp extra virgin/avocado oil

Method for dressing

Blend altogether in food processor or similar, season with salt.

Method for prawns

Put the broccolini in a steamer or pot of boiling water. Put a large pan on with  1 tbsp ghee/coconut oil, when hot stir fry your prawns for about a minute, they will turn pink and will be white all the way through. They cook very quickly. Season with salt and pepper. You can either mix the dressing through your slaw, or you can drizzle over the top of your prawns. To serve this put your slaw down, then your cooked prawns, scatter over your cheese, broccolini on the side.