Fat reduced and deliciouse Sheperds pie

 

 

I have wanted to make a fat free version of a Shepherds pie for a long time, an finally I got the inspiration from Master Chefs on TV. The original Sheperds pie is made with lamb/mutton, but as you all know, Lamb is high in fat. I desided to try to make it with pork loin, which is low in fat. This is a recepie from Jamie Oliver that I have made some modifications so it will suit a fat free diet.

 

To get hold of minced meat that is low enough in fat, I have to ground the meat myself. I cut off all the visible fat, then I cut the meat in dices and grind it in my meat grinder. That was one of the best  investments I have done after beeing diagnosed, I grind pork, beef, chicken and fish.

 

This recepie serves 6

Ingredients

• • 1 red onion
• • 2 carrots
• • 2 sticks of celery
• • 2 cloves of garlic
• • a small bunch of fresh rosemary
• • about 1 tbsp walnut oil or the oil of your choice
• • 500g good-quality minced pork 
• • 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
• • 250ml chicken or vegetable stock, preferably organic
• • sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• • 1.5kg  potatoes
• • 3-5 dl Skimmed milk
• • a dash of wallnut oil or the oil of you choice

 

To prepare and cook your mince

• Peel and roughly chop the onion and carrots
• Trim and roughly chop the celery
• Peel and finely chop the garlic cloves

 

 

 

 

• Pick the rosemary leaves, discard the stalks
•  Heat a large pan on a medium heat
•  Add a about 1 tabs of your choice of oil and onion, carrot, celery, garlic and most of the rosemary leaves

 

 

 

Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened
• Turn the heat up, add the pork mince, and brown for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally
• Use a sieve or slotted spoon to drain away any excess liquid from the pan, then tip in the tinned tomatoes

 

 

 

 

Pour in the stock, season with a good pinch of salt and pepper and stir well, then bring to the boil
• Reduce to a low heat, pop the lid on slightly ajar, and simmer for 1 hour

To make your mash topping

 

• Peel the potatoes, cut them into halves and quarters depending on their size, and put them into a pan of salted, boiling water
• Boil for about 10 minutes until tender
• Stick a knife into them to check they’re soft all the way through

 

 

 

 

• Drain in a colander and return them to the pan
• Add the milk, oil and a pinch of salt and pepper
• Mash until smooth and creamy

To assemble and cook your shepherd’s pie

 

Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5
• Transfer the pork mixture to a large ovenproof baking dish
• Spoon the mash evenly over the top and poke the remaining rosemary leaves into the top

 

 

 

 

• Then cook in the hot oven for 25 minutes, or until golden and bubbling
• Serve with broccoli, peas or the vegetable you have at hand.

 

 

 

 

Enjoy!

Pumpkin soup

The Fall is right around the corner and they have started selling pumpkins in the grocery store. The other day I found a pumpkin that was cut into four pieces which  made a perfect piece for me to bring home and make this deliciouse soup. Just look at the colour!!!

1,3 lb/ 600 g pumpkin
0,50 lb/ 250 g peeled potatoes
3-4 gloves of garlic
1 onion, chopped
2 tbsp oil
2 tsp curry
1 tbsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 big tomato, chopped in dices
2 1/2 cup/ 1/2 l vegetable broth

lime juice
salt and pepper
chives

• Peel and chop the pumpkin and potatoes in small dices. Chop garlic and onion.
• Heat 2 tbsp of oil (your choice) in a larger saucepan, gently cook onion and garlic with the curry for a couple of minuttes. Then add potatoes, pumpkin, ginger and tomato and gently cook them another five minuttes.
• Poure the vegetable stock into the pan and lett it simmer for  about  30 minuttes.
• Pureè stock and vegetables with a hand blender.
• Taste the soup with lemon juice, salt and pepper and decorate with chives for a nice green touch.

Serve it with home made bread.

Enjoy!

Homemade tomato soup with chicken

It is a long time since I made this soup so this was not planed other than I bought the tomato juice in the store with this soup in mind. This soup is low on fat, easy and tasty. The base of this soup is chicken broth, tomato juice, chicken, kidney beans, onion and garlic. Today I added beets, chili and basil leaves. Other ingredients I use can be corn, red pepper, zucchini and other vegetables I have in my kithcen.

1 red or yellow onion
2 garlic cloves
4 cups/1 liter chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups/5 dl tomato juice
1 can  kidney beans
1 chicken breast filet in thin slices

1 beet cut in cubes
1/2 chili with seeds
some basil leaves

Have the broth and tomato juice in a large casserole and let it heat up while cutting the other ingredienses. Add the onion and garlic and other veggies and let it boil for 5 minutes. For the last 5 minutes add chicken and kidney beans. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve this with white bread or pasta like macaroni

Enjoy!

Fat redused basil pesto

 

 I LOVE pesto, I used too use it to every thing, with salmon, pork, chicken, pasta, on soup bread, pita, ON burgers, IN burgers and on my sandwiches. After I started on the diet, store bought pesto was banned from my kitchen. For the last three years I have tride to make the perfect pesto with as little parmesan, pine nuts and oil ( I use MCT oil, which my body can break down without turning it in to poisen) as possible, but I have never been able to make it as I want it. Now I have come up with a pesto that is okey, you get used to make sacrifices on taste when you have to follow a strict diet as I have to, only 6-10 g fat a day. Off course the pesto from the store or the one Jamie Oliver makes taste fantastic, but they use like ten times the amount of parmesan, pine nuts and olive oil as I do.
So today I will share my "perfect" basil pesto:

0,10 oz pine nuts (3 g)

0,17 oz parmesan cheese (5 g)

1/2 clove of garlic

2 cups basil leaves (4dl)

1 tbsp MCT oil (use the oil your diet allows)

1/2 tbsp lemon juice (just to get the pesto more moist)

 

Lightly toast the pine nuts to get the nice creamy taste rather than a nutty taste when you toast them until they are brown.

 

 Then use a morter to ground the garlic, parmesan and pine nuts.

When this nice mix of great flavoures are ready, put it in a larger mixing bowl together with the basil and the oil.  Use a electric blender to to mince it all toghether or use a food processor and puls it all together.
Look at this nice and fresh green colour and the smell of parmesan and basil is just amazing. My mouth is watering as I writte this.

As I wrote  above I use pesto on almost every thing, last night I had pasta and chicken with pesto.
I had some left over and brought it to work the day afer, my co-workers was like hmmmm that smells nice, is it pesto?

 

Enjoy!

Red wine fondue with my favorite vegetables and fruit

A couple of times a year the five women I work with get together and have an evening with good food and wine and exellent company. A couple of months ago we were sereved red wine fondue with chicken and smoked ham with a great variety of vegetables, salads, cheese and foccacia. This dinner was a relevation for me, I can actually make an adult dish with a little style that is so low in fat that it is ridiculous. The chicken that got this nice dark red/brownish colour after it was cooked in red wine was so tender that you can cut it in two by a faint blow.
This dish can be served with a lot of different vegetables, fruits, bread, both fat free or with fat as everyone can pick and choose what they fancy the most.
So for Christmas one of my whishes was to get a fondue pot, and guess what I got for Christmas from my Mum! Yes, a fondue pot in black iron casting, I was so thrilled. Last weekend I invited a good friend of my over for dinner, red wine fondue.

Here is a list of many things you can serve along with the Chicken, ham, or beef :

Zuccini
tomatoes
cucumber
mushrooms
orange and red onion salad ( oranges slices in thin slices with thin slices of red onions)
pineapple
sugar peas
water chestnuts
asparagus
mini corn
paprika of all colours
whole garlic in a jar (water not oil)
olives
feta cheese

I also served home made foccacia with mct oil. ( I will post the recipe later on)

You will a need a bottle of red wine, not the expensice kind. My colleauge  let the wine boil for a while to be sure the alcohol evaporated, since one of us was pregnant. I know that children might not appreciate the taste of red wine, then you can use vegetable or chicken broth instead.

It is so nice to sit around this fondue pot eating, drinking and having a good time. I think I also will use this  dish when I am alone, since it is perfect for a low fat diet and it is really healthy also.

Enjoy!

Pasta with seafood and garlic

On my way home from work today I had to stop by the grocery store to get a few items and I ended up bringing a nett with mussels back home. I love mussels, my first experience with mussels was in Brussels when I was 18. My Aunt took me to a restaurant in a dark, but cozy basement at Grand Place. After that day I have loved mussels and french fries (the thick kind), in France it  is called Mole de frite. Of course I can not have the thick french fries any more so I have to come up with other deliciouse recipes wiht mussels in it.

You might notice the discrepances from the photos and the recipe with some of the ingredients, I used what  I had in my fridge. I have given you the recipe from a magazine since I like those ingredients better than the once I used.

Here is the recipe I tried out today with lovely fresh mussels:

1 nett of mussels or clams
5 cups/ 500 g pasta
0,6 lb /300 g shrimps/scampi
1 zucchini
1 yellow onion
3 garlic cloves
2 tbs oil (I used my rate of walnut oil of the day which is 1 tsp a day)
1/2 cup/ 1 dl chopped parsley
1/3 cup/ 1/2 dl white wine
salt and pepper

• Stir 4 cups/1 liter of water with 1/2 cup/1 dl salt and put the mussels in the water for about 10 minutes, the mussels will then let go of  the sand thats left.
• Clean the mussels and throw out the mussels that wont close when you poke them.
• Boil the pasta as instructed on the box.
• Peel the shrimp/scampi.
• Slice the zucchini in thin slices, peel and chop the onion and garlic.
• Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the shrimp and let them get a little colour. Then add the zucchini, onion and garlic, let it sizzle for a couple of minutes.
• Add the pasta, parsley, and wine and let it simmer. Add salt and pepper to your taste.
• Add the mussels and steam for 3-5 minutes until they are open. Throw away the ones that is still closed

• Mix the pasta and mussels and serve with a slice of lime, a little shredded parmesan (optional) and bread.

Enjoy!

A easy and tasty dinner idea!

BEEF SERVED ON RICE WITH AN APPLE AND RED UNION COMPOT

Today I had beef served on rice and apple and red union compot. The recepie for the compot can be found in this article here. Cook the meat for 4 minuttes on each side, cook the rice as on instructionS and  make the compot while the meat and rice are cooking. Use mesurements/amount that will feed your family.

Tapas Tapas

Once in a while some of the girls at work meet up after work for a beer or two. Last week we desided to try out a new Tapas Restaurant, "Tapas Tapas". We were seven  women who met up after work and we all tried a combo of five dishes:

• Albondigas, meatballs of lam with a spicy tomato saus
• STT wrap, tortilla with sundried tomatoes and basil (kind of creamy)
• Gambas con salsa herbario, scampi with a salsa with herbs
• Chorizo, a spicy Spanish sausage
• Patatas

served with foccacia and aioli.

I loved all the dishes, most of them was spicy just as I like them. I was a little disapointed of the scampi since it was kind of tasteless, but the tomato saus served with the meatballs was just amazing.
I must admitt that this kind of oily (olive) food is a big no no for me, but once in a while I really need to give my self a treat. I do comit and keep to a really low fat diet in my everyday life.

Tapas,Tapas also have large collection of wine as well, but I was the designated driver that night so I just had apple cider, non alcoholic. I will sertainly go back and try out some of the other dishes and a glas or two of wine. I am going  back to have a glas of cava, thats for  sure. 

Above is two of my favorites, albondigas (meatballs) and patatas (cooked with a lot of sea salt).

This is the most creativ way I have ever been served a "coconut bun" before ( I have no idea what a Coconut bun is called in English). My good colleauge Jonna bought the Panacotta with vanilla ( a lot of vanilla) a much more tapas like desert

I would definitly recomend this restaurant that is located in Lørenskoghus in Lørenskog. You can always call ahead for take away. I aslo find the prices very reasonable compared too other Tapas restaurants in Oslo.

Enjoy!

Hare filet with macaroni stew and apple and red onion compot

My good friend Karianne, have a look at her interesting blogg (written in Norwegian) pleaded with me to blogg about my first attempt on cooking hare. Hare is not easy to get hold of in my neck of the woods, but lucky for me I have a friend who works with food distribution and he got  me a couple kilos of  good quality hare.
So yesterday I got the hare out of the freezer and made a good attempt on making the most out of this tender piece of meet.
I desided to make it as plain as posible, I belive that less is more when I am cooking good produce. I only seasoned the meat with salt and pepper before cooking it.

I served the hare with a macaroni stew and a compot of apple and red onion.

This makes one serving

Hare
one hare filet
salt and pepper

Cut the meat clean and season with salt and pepper before heating a frying pan. Brown the hare and put the lid on the pan for  a couple of minutes before packing it carefully in aluminum foil and let it rest for for 5 minuts before carve it in nice slices

Macaroni stew
1/2 cup/1 dl macaroni
boil as instructed on pakage

Bechamel sauce
1 tsp oil, I use walnutoil since it is in my diet
1 tbsp flour
1 cup/ 2 dl skimmed milk
1/2 shalott onion

Mix the oil, flour and most of the milk and heat it on low heat and let it simmer lightly for five minutes. Add more milk if the sauce gets to thick. Add the onion for the last two minutes of the simmering. Season with salt and pepper to your liking.
Mix the macaroni and bechamel sauce.

Compot
1 apple
1 red union

Peel the apple and union and slice them in thin slices before boiling it on low heat for five minutes or until tender, but not mushy.

Enjoy!

Fat free cornbread

 I have said it before and I will say it again, after spending so many vacations in the States I have never had cornbread, so finally this weekend I tried to make a fat free variation and it turned out great. It sounds so good to have fresh and warm cornbread with a nice turkey or fried chicken (no more fried stuff for me though).

Next time I will try it out with a couple of tbsp of fat free sour cream/yoghurt to make it more juicy.

Here is how the corn bread was made

1 cup/ 2 1/2 dl cornmeal
1 cup/ 2 1/2 dl  all- purpose flower (wheat flour)
3 tbsp sugar
4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
4 egg whites
1 cup/ 2 1/2 dl skimmed milk
4 tbsp mct-oil

You can also add 2 tbsp of fat free sour cream/yoghurt a more juicy cornbread.

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl and add all the liquids and stir lightly until it is mixed together.  Grease a baking pan and pour pour the batter in. Bake the corn bread at 390 degrees F/200 degrees C in the midle of the oven for about 20-25 minuts or until it is nice and golden.

Enjoy!

A perfect description of my cornbread.

Turkey breast with oven baked vegetables and mashed potatoes

 I have been experimenting with roasting meat in the oven using a meat thermometer. This weekend I tried to roast turkey breast with oven baked vegetables and mashed potatoes.  I used the vegetables I had in my fridge which this time was carrots, red onion, white mushroom and apples (I know it is a fruit, but I like the sweet taste the apples gives with the turkey).  I also baked a couple of gloves of garlic that  i mashed into the potato mash, tastes great!

turkey breast                    
1,6  lb/ 750 g Turkey breast
salt, pepper, tabasco saus and paprika powder

vegetables makes two servings
2 large carrots split in half
2 white mushrooms split in halfs
1 apple split in two
1 red onion sliced in boats
3 garlic cloves with the peel on

Cut all the vegetables and put them in a oven proof baker/dish. Then prepare the turkey.
Cut away all the fat and others stuff you dont want to eat on the turkey and season it with salt, pepper, paprika powder and have som tabasco saus in you hands and rub the turkey with it. Heat up the frying pan and just fry the turkey breast so it gets a nice brown color then put the turkey on top of the vegetables and place the meat thermometer in the thickest part of the turkey. Then place the baker/dish in the oven on   360 F/180 C for about 45 minut or until the meat thermometer shows 155 F/68 C. Take the baker/dish out of the oven and let it rest for 15 minutes before you carve the meat.

potatomash makes two servings
4 potatos
skimmed milk
salt and pepper
3 baked garliv cloves, can be omitted.

While the turkey is in the oven, cut the potato into cubes and boil until tender and easy to mash, it takes about 15-20 minutes. After mashing the potatoes, stir in milk and add salt and peper and the baked and mashed garlic.

Enjoy!

Meat thermometer

oven proof baker/dish

Delicious pumpkin soup

I have always loved how the Americans have decorated for Thanksgivings with bright orange pumpkins in all shapes and sizes, dried corn cobs in delicious warm reds and flowers in in different shades of yellow, orange and red. Even though I  have spend a lot of time in the States since I was 10 years old I have never tastet any food made with pumpkin until a couple of years ago. That was a  pumpkin pie, I liked it a lot and got more curious on the vegetable. So this fall I have tried out a lot of different recipes with pumpkin in them. I tried to make the filling of a fat free pumpkin pie which did not work out quite as I wanted, I made pumpkin mash, pumpkin cake, I tried baking it and I made a lot of pumpkin soup. I would like to share my pumpkin soup recipe with you today.

5 cups/600 g pumpin meat
1 1/2 cups/250g peeled potatoes
2-3 garlic cloves
1 choped onion or leak
2 tbsp oil
2 tsp curry
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
1 large tomate, chopped
2 cups/1/2 l vegetabel broth
a squeeze of lemon juice
salt and pepper

Cut the pumpkin and the potatos in smal cubes. Chop the garlic and onion. Then saute the garlic and onion with oil and the curry for a couple of minuttes. Add the potatoes, pumpkin, ginger and tomato and saute some more.
Add the broth and let it simmer for 30 minuttes. When its done simmering and the pumpkin and potatoes are tender then mash it to a velvet like soup.
Season it with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Serve it with fresh bread.

A spicy chili con carne

 

Here is a recipe for a spicy and a fully flavored chili con carne. To make it more children friendly you can just  add the amount of chili your taste buds acquires.
The recipe calls for both beer and chocolate, since chocolate is a big no no for me I make it without and it tastes as good as with.

2 onions
2 garlic cloves
14 ounces/400g minced beef 
1 tbsp oil of your choice
1 cup/2 dl kidney beans
1 cup/2 dl cannellini (white beans)
1 large chili
1 green paprika
1 tsp cumin
1 tbsp honey
1 box of tomatoes
1 ounce/20 g chocolate with high amount of cocoa
1 cup/2 dl good beer
1 can of sweet corn

Soure cream sauce
2 tbsp fat free soure cream
2tbsp buttermilk
parsley
mix it together

Chop the onion and garlic before lightly coock it with oil until it is shiny. Add the minced meat and fry it brown. Then add beans, chili, peppers, cuming, honey and tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and let it simmer for 15 minuttes before adding the chocolate (can be omitted) and beer until it is heated. In the end add the sweet corn and make the final seasoning.

Serve it with rice, a green salad and the soure cream sauce.

Enjoy!

Luscious hamburgers with chips

I have always loved a good and juicy cheese burger, since there is no such a thing  as fat free cheese in Norway those days are gone that I can savour a juicy cheese burger.  There is still possible to make a tasty and juicy low fat burger. I cut away all the fat and grind the beef myself so I can better control the fat contents in the burger, I also make awesome beatballs and a great lasagne.

1 serving
1/2 pound of grounded beef (makes two hamburgers)
salt, pepper and chili powder.
2 pita- or hamburger bread
2  sliced and fryed (cooked) white mushroom
cucumber
tomatoes
rings of red union
fresh basil
2 large sliced and baked potatoes

Mix the grounded beef with the seasoning and make two burgers. Fry the white mushrooms until done then fry the burgers in a warm pan 3 minutes on each side.
To make the chips, slice the potatoe in thin slices. Rince and dry the slices before putting them in a large baking  pan. Season with salt and pepper. Bake the chips in the owne on 440 F. for 10-15 minutes. Serve the burger with the toppings of your choice, chips and ketchup.

1 porsjon.
300 gram kvernet kjøttdeig
salt, pepper og chili pulver
2 skivede sjampinjonger
agurk
tomater
ringer av rød løk
2 pitabrød eller hjembakte rundstykker
2 skivede poteter

Bland kjøttdeigen og krydderet og lag to hamburgere. Stek sjampingnongene og deretter stek hamburgerne på sterk varme, 3 minutter på hver side.
Skjære potetene i tynne skiver, skyll og tørk dem godt før de legges i en lang panne. Ha på krydder og stek de på 230 grader i 10-15 minutter.
Server hamburgerene med ønsket tilbehør, potet skiver og ketchup.

Enjoy!