650 gms medium lean ground beef
1/4 large onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 beef cube
1 tsp cayenne or chilli powder
2 tsp paprika powder
2 tsp cumin powder
1 1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 heaped tablespoon fried tomato paste or tomato puree
1 tablespoon Canola oil
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Heat Canola oil in a non-stick pan then fry the ground beef. Continuously turn them over using two spoons so that they don’t form lumps of meat. Keep frying until all the liquid is gone then add the minced onion and garlic. Fry on medium heat until fragrant then add the beef cube, paprika powder, cayenne or chilli powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Mix well and taste for salt.

Add the fried tomato paste or tomato puree and heat through.

Serve with romaine boats and fresh salsa.

One pack long beans cut into 3” long pieces
1/4 large onion, minced
6-7 garlic, minced
Thumb-sized ginger, minced
3 tbsp chilli paste
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp thick soya sauce
1 tbsp Canola oil

DIRECTIONS

Boil some water and black the cut long beans. It should take no more than 5 minutes. Drain.

Heat the oil in a wok then fry the onions and garlic on medium heat. Add the ginger and lower the heat to let it sweat. When onions are transparent, add the chilli paste and fry a while. Add the water, mix well then add the soya sauce and salt to taste.

Add the blanched beans, mix well then remove from heat. Serve with rice or as a side dish with any meal.

When I posted my accomplishment on Facebook, Kim Mitchell commented that she had a recipe for sugar-free low carb cheesecake and voila, today was the perfect day to try it. And it was amazing…just like the Tiramisu! Except for the bain marie, it wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be.

Makes 8 servings

Nutritional Information:
Each serving has 2 grams effective carbohydrate plus 1 gram fibre, 6 grams protein, and 221 calories.

INGREDIENTS

500gms Philadelphia cream cheese (room temperature)
1/4 cup whipping cream or sour cream
3 eggs (preferably room temperature)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup Sweet & Low artificial sweetener or liquid equivalent

For the Crust:

1 cup almond flour
2 tbsp melted butter
1 tbsp Sweet & Low artificial sweetener or liquid equivalent

PREPARATION

Pre-heat oven to 190 C.

Combine all the ingredients for the crust, and press into the bottom of the small 6” spring form pan using a small glass.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until fragrant and beginning to brown. Remove and lower the oven heat to 175 C.

Put the cream cheese in the food processor and process until fluffy. Add other ingredients, scraping the bowl each time. When all ingredients are combined, scrape one more time, beat one more minute, and pour the mixture into the pan over the crust.

Wrap the bottom and sides of the spring form pan in foil, put it in a baking pan and pour boiling water around the sides. Bake at 175 C for 60 minutes, checking often. When the cake is firm to touch but slightly soft in the centre, remove from the oven.

Cool the cheesecake still inside the pan. When completely cool, remove the sides and chill the cake in the fridge for 2 – 3 hours. Turn onto a cake plate and serve!

INGREDIENTS

4 ounces almond flour, 1 cup
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 eggs, separated
2/3 cup granular Splenda or equivalent liquid
1 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Grease a 11×17" baking sheet and line with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner. Grease the parchment, if using, as well as the sides of the pan.

Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl. In a large metal bowl, beat the egg whites to firm peaks. In a separate large bowl, using the same beaters, beat the yolks and Splenda on high speed until thick and lemon colored, 4 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Gently fold in the dry ingredients.

Fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the batter. Fold 1/2 of the remaining whites into the batter until barely combined, then fold in the remaining egg whites until well combined.

Be careful not to over mix and deflate the meringue. Spread evenly in the prepared pan.

Bake at 350º 20-25 minutes or until golden brown, firm and the top springs back when pressed lightly. Cool and cut into 32 pieces.

Makes 32 servings
Can be frozen

With granular Splenda:
Per Serving: 37 Calories; 3g Fat; 2g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 1g Net Carbs
Per Batch: 1184 Calories; 87g Fat; 62g Protein; 44g Carbohydrate; 13g Dietary Fiber; 31g Net Carbs

With liquid Splenda:
Per Serving: 35 Calories; 3g Fat; 2g Protein; 1g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; .5g Net Carbs
Per Batch: 1120 Calories; 87g Fat; 62g Protein; 28g Carbohydrate; 13g Dietary Fiber; 15g Net Carbs

Anyhow, the chicken cooked this way not only smells good, it tastes really good. Now I need to figure out how to keep the chicken from getting dry. There must be a way…

By the way, the best Caesar Salad of all time is at the Terrace Grill in the Marriott Hotel in Kuwait. They make it right in front of you and it is simply sumptuous!

INGREDIENTS
Serves 4 

400 gms Romaine lettuce, cleaned and cut
4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
Fresh Parmesan cheese, sliced

Cajun Chicken Marinade:
1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon oregano
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Drizzle olive oil
Salt to taste

Combine everything in a bowl and taste for salt. Make some cuts across the chicken breasts so the marinade penetrates. Mix chicken breasts with the marinade and place in an airtight bag overnight for extra spicy flavour. Otherwise at least an hour will be fine.

Grill 15 minutes each side then remove to cool. Slice and put aside.

Caesar Dressing:

4 tbsp light mayonnaise
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp anchovy paste (comes in a tube) or 4 – 5 anchovies without the oil
Salt to taste

To prepare the dressing, mix everything using a fork. Taste for salt. Add 2 – 3 tbsp water and mix well.

To serve the salad:

Mix the salad with dressing and put in individual plates. Arrange Parmesan and chicken slices. And serve!

Since we started the South Beach Diet, we’ve discovered that we could eat really interesting stuff AND lose weight. Well, I still can’t eat pasta but I’m getting there.

We discovered Kalyn’s Kitchen when we Googled for South Beach meal plans and recipes…she has an exhaustive collection of recipes. The most interesting of which was her egg muffins which she has revisited over and over again.

I knew I had to try it because I hated fried eggs or omelettes for breakfast and there were only a few things I could do with hard-boiled eggs for breakfast. Her egg muffins seemed easy to make and could be kept in the fridge for up to a week, or even frozen. They can be re-heated in the microwave or eaten cold. Its something you make in batches, stick them in the fridge, eat for breakfast, eat as a snack and best still, hubby could take it to work for snack or lunch!

So last weekend we bought a ton of eggs and a muffin pan. Tonight I have made it and it turned out great.

INGREDIENTS

9 large eggs
1/2 medium-sized red pepper
1/2 medium-sized yellow pepper
20 gms onion
20 gms spring onions
Shredded mozarella or cheddar cheese
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 180C.

Mince the red and yellow peppers and onion in a food processor or chop them finely. Slice the spring onions finely. Beat the eggs well in a spouted container. Add salt to taste.

Distribute the cheese in each muffin segment just enough to cover the base. Next add 1 – 1.5 teaspoon of the minced vegetables and sprinkle the spring onions.

Pour the beaten egg in – try to distribute evenly up to around 2/3 of each segment. Bake in preheated oven for 20 – 25 minutes or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 2

2 eggplants (240 gms)

If you like zucchini, you can substitute 1 eggplant for 120 gms zucchini

1 1/2 medium-sized green peppers or a mixture of different coloured peppers (200 gms)

1 large tomato (180 gms)

1/4 large onion (85 gms)

2-3 cloves garlic

2 tsp tomato puree or tomato paste

Olive oil (minimum of 1 tbsp, use up to 3 tbsp if you like)

1 tsp herbes de Provence (If not available, substitute with 3/4 tsp McCormick’s “Mixed Herbs” + 1 large dried bay leaf crushed)

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Cut the eggplant into cubes, throw them in a bowl with some salt to get rid of the bitter taste.

Heat a heavy wok or frying pan – add the olive oil. Peel and cube the onion, put it into the pot and let it cook slowly on medium heat. Mince the garlic and add it to the onions.

Wash the bell peppers, rib and de-seed. Cut into cubes and stir it in.

Wash the salt off the eggplant, rinse well and drain all the water. Throw them in the pot. If using zucchini, wash and cut into big chunks and throw them in.

Wash the tomato, cut it up into big chunks, and throw them in. Add the tomato paste, herbes de Provence or its substitute as above, and salt and pepper to taste.

Mix well and cover.

Let it cook slowly for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Its done when you see that the oil has separated.

Serve hot. Goes well with couscous and Moroccan baked fish and keeps well in the fridge for up to a week. Also nice eaten on its own or with bread.

Cauliflower

A knob of butter

1 tbsp double cream

Garlic powder

DIRECTIONS

Cut cauliflower into small florets.

Place about 1cm water in a microwave oven-proof dish, add salt and the cut cauliflower. Cover and cook on high in microwave oven for 5 – 6 minutes or until cauliflower are well-cooked.

Mix the cauliflower with all the other ingredients and puree using tool of your choice.

Serve hot as a low-carb alternative to mash or use to make dishes such as shepherd’s pie.