Banana Loaf cake (Serves 10 (makes a single, regular-sized, loaf-tin cake), preparation time: 10-15 minutes, cooking time: 55 minutes)

This is the naughtiest thing on my blog so far, although compared with normal cake, it's positively angelic. And it tastes good.  

250g wholemeal flour

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

75ml olive oil

25ml agave nectar

2-3tbsp milk or natural yoghurt

juice of 1 lemon or an orange (lemon is less noticeable, orange makes the finished cake zestier)

2 eggs, beaten

1 courgette or large carrot, grated

2 medium bananas, mashed

60g toasted almonds, smashed

a good handful of sultanas

Preheat the oven to 180C  / Gas 4 add also put the whole almonds in a dry frying pan on a very low heat to slowly toast. Don't let them burn like I did this evening : o

Mix together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon in a bowl.

Then add the wet ingredients (oil, agave nectar, eggs, lemon juice and  jsut 2tbsp milk).

Then add the bananas, courgette, sultanas and almonds. 

Add a splash more milk if required - the texture should be  thick and sticky.

Bake on 180C / Gas Mark 4 for 1 hour. Well, it takes exactly 55 minutes in my fan oven so keep an eye on it!

Permissible Snacks 2

Continuing my previous post on healthy snacks - here are another 6 that feature highly on my list:

85% dark chocolate, I can't live without it. 2 or 3 squares are the perfect way to round off a meal.

marinated artichokes. some can taste earthy but shop around because others are delicious.

Prawns. Grilled or dry fried, they make a filling snack. 

Roasted beans. these are from Food Doctor and taste brilliant.  I know it doesn't sound like they would, but they do. You can make your own by spreading drained, tinned beans in a single layer on a baking tray and baking in the oven at 200 (gas 6) for 45 minutes.  Drizzle over olive oil, salt and cayenne pepper for a good flavour.

'Ham roll'! my son loves these. It is a roll of fresh sliced ham. The organic hams really are worth the extra cash. 

Blueberries and raspberries are full of anti-oxidants and have enough fibre to off-set the natural sugar. Defrosted frozen organic raspberries often taste better than fresh.

Permissible Snacks 1

We all know that snackng is best avoided, yet it's hard to get from one meal to the next without a nibble on something. 

Of course, if you eat too many healthy snacks you will put on weight - it's not a total miracle this diet! Here is a list of a few of my favourite snackables (in moderation):

baby plum tomatoes, sweet, juicy and delicious

oat cakes. the plain ones are great dipped in humous. Nairns Cheese are my favourites - they taste like mini cheddars.

roasted, salted pistachios.  salt is not good, but this is about how i dare to live, and they rock!

Speedy weight loss results!

Although my diet is not supposed to be about weight loss, I recently put on a few pounds simply by not eating what I claim I eat.  I often fall into cycles where I talk about my diet more than I actually follow it.
When I mentioned this at work, Owen Knight said 'yes I know'. ha ha.
So I experimented with being good.
I spent Saturday cooking lots of proper dishes, following the rules of non-processed ingredients with plenty of veg and pulses. Then from Sunday to Wednesday this week I ate either Porridge or Bircher Muesli for breakfast, a hearty permitted lunch and a hearty permitted dinner (the exact list is below). I didn't drink alcohol and I only had 2 squares of dark chocolate per day. One day I ate all of the banana loaf crusts from 2 slices of my son's cake because he doesn't like the crusts. And I only snacked on fruit (apples and nectarines to be precise). Plus the occasional cheese oat cake. But really, for me, I was being good.
After 4 days, I'd lost 4 pounds in weight.  I wasn't expecting such speedy results.

• Sunday lunch: roast chicken with roast celery, roast fennel, broccoli, cabbage, gravy and 1 yorkshire pudding.
• Sunday dinner:  White bean casserole.
• Monday lunch: Stir fry veg.
• Monday dinner: Turkey and Kidney Bean stew.
• Tuesday lunch: Homemade chicken soup (made from the carcass of Sunday's roast and spare veg)
• Tuesday dinner: Hake cooked in foil with tomatoes, green olives, mushrooms, leek, cabbage.
• Wednesday lunch: Lentil and Aubergine Moussaka - with celeriac in lieu of potatoes on the top.
• Wednesday dinner: Vegetable tagine made with quinoa (not cous cous)

Yay! I haven't posted all of these recipes yet, but I've made them and have photos so they will follow soon. Maybe not the Veg tagine just yet - it needs a bit more work.

Turkey and Kidney Bean Stew (serves: 6, preparation time: 15 minutes, cooking time: 30 minutes)

One-pot stews are a favourite of mine as they are so easy to make and eat which suits my busy life as a working mum. I used minced turkey thigh in this recipe which is not only very good value for money but also extremely tasty. The kidney beans are full of energy and this gives me a real boost for the rest of the day.

500g minced turkey

1x 400g tin red kidney beans (drained)

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes (I use Waitrose Organic with chopped herbs)

2 stalks celery, sliced finely

2 large carrots, chopped roughly or grated

2 red peppers, diced

250g chestnut or white mushrooms, diced

1 red onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 small red chilli, diced

splash of lea and perrins sauce

100ml white wine

1 tbsp tomato puree

1/2 tsp turmeric

handful of chopped coriander

In a large saucepan, brown the turkey mince. Add the onion, celery and garlic and fry for a further 5 minutes. 

Add all the other ingredients (bar the coriander), bring to the boil and simmer genly for 20 minutes. 

Add the coriander and stir through just before serving.

Dark Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake (serves 2, preparation time: 10 minutes, cooking time: 10 minutes)

Guilt-free indulgence!  I recently discovered, in a highly lazy moment, that the mousse works when spread on top of a regular Nairns oatcake. The real base is very quick and tastes better, though.

MOUSSE

1 avocado, very ripe

2 tbsp raw cacao powder

2 tbsp agave nectar

1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

BASE

10g wholemeal flour

15g porridge oats

pinch bicarbonate of soda

10ml olive oil or rapeseed oil

5ml agave nectar

5ml milk

1 eggcup full of toasted, flaked almonds

10 sultanas

Mix together all the ingredients for the base, squash into a thin 'biscuit' onto a non-stick baking tray. Bake in the oven at 180 for 10 minutes. When cooked, allow to cool.

Meanwhile, put all the ingredients for the mousse together and either mash thorougly with a fork, or put in a food processor to form a smooth paste.

When the base is cool, put the mousse on top. allow to chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

Enjoy!

Fennel & Tomato Salsa (serves 2, preparation time: 5 minutes, cooking time: none)

This is so tasty. It can accompany almost anything. And in my house, it often does :)

1 fennel bulb

1/2 red onion

8 cherry plum tomatoes

A handful of fresh, chopped coriander

Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

2 tbspn olive oil

Finely slice the fennel, onion and tomatoes. 

Mix together in a bowl.

Add the chopped coriander.

In a separate cup, mix together the olive oil and lemon juice.

Add the lemon and oil mixture to the sliced ingredients and stir together.

alllow to infuse for a short while.