Doner Kebab

Hello

안녕하세요

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

We're getting into the months of constant eating and drinking, which is obviously acceptable because it's Christmas, but we obviously know that because of that when January comes around, it's the time of healthy eating, so I thought I'd share a Pinch of Nom recipe with you which mean you can have your indulgent Doner Kebab, while still eating healthy.

Let's get cooking!

Ingredients:

Low-calorie cooking spray

500g 5%-fat minced beef

1/2 tsp onion granules

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp garlic granules

1/4 tsp smoked sweet paprika

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried mixed herbs

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp salt

pinch of freshly ground pepper

To Serve:

Brown pitta bread

Green salad

Low-fat natural yoghurt mixed with mint sauce

This can be cooked 3 different ways, but the method I will be sharing with you is the Oven Method.

Start off by pre-heating your oven to 180C/Fan 160C/Gas Mark 4.

Next spray a 900g non-stick loaf tin with a little low-calorie cooking spray.

Place the minced beef, onion granules, ground cumin, garlic granules, smoked sweet paprika, ground coriander, dried oregano, mixed herbs, cayenne pepper and the salt and pepper into a blender, food processor or bowl and blitz the mixture until fairly smooth. I put all my ingredients into a bowl and used an hand-held blender.

Remove the mixture and place it into the loaf tin, pressing it down into the corners firmly.

Cover the tin with foil and cook in the oven for 1 hour 20 minutes, then remove the foil and continue to cook for a further 10 minutes.

Once removed from the oven, leave to rest for 10-15 minutes, then remove from the tin, and slice thinly.

Once sliced, you're ready to serve, I had mine with pitta bread, salad and some yoghurt.

I really enjoyed this, it was full of flavour and was a nice fakeaway treat, the beef and the dip together were really nice. Along with the salad, I thought this dish was really refreshing and will happily make it again in the new year, to get back into healthy eating again.

It was really easy and simple to make, so definitely a dish that's easy for anyone who is a novice in the kitchen.

If you're interested in any of Pinch of Nom's recipe's then you can buy the recipe books in all major supermarkets as well as online retailers Waterstones and Amazon.

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

Bolognaise Risotto

Hello

안녕하세요

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

It's feels like it's been months since I shared a Pinch of Nom recipe with you all, it's in fact only been around a month, but I thought I'd would share with you this Bolognaise Risotto recipe as it's a dish I've never thought about putting together.

This recipe can be found in the Quick & Easy recipe book and found in the Batch Cooking chapter. If you would like to make it to batch cook, then all you need to do is, cool the risotto within 1 hour of cooking, then divide into individual servings and freeze.

Let's get cooking!

Ingredients:

Low-calorie cooking spray

1 onion, peeled and chopped into a small dice

1 carrot, peeled and chopped into a small dice

1 courgette, chopped into a small dice

3 garlic cloves

250g lean 5% fat beef mince

150g Arborio risotto rice

1 x 400g carton passata

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 tbsp dried oregano

1 tbsp dried basil

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of granulated sweetener (optional)

1 litre beef stock (2 beef stock cubes dissolved in 1 litre boiling water)

4 chestnut mushrooms

Pinch of grated parmesan, to serve (optional)

A few basil leaves, to serve (optional)

Start off by spraying a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray and place over a medium heat.

Then add the onion, carrot, courgette and garlic and cook for 2 minutes to soften slightly.

Add the minced beef and cook for 5 minutes or until browned.

Once browned, add the Arborio risotto rice and combine fully with the veg and beef.

Add the passata, tomato puree and the herbs, give it all a good stir to mix it all together really well, then season to taste - you may need a pinch of sweetener if it tastes sharp.

Gradually add the beef stock to the pan - around 250ml at a time. Make sure to stir frequently and continue to add the stock as it reduces, until to have 250ml left.

When the rice is almost cooked and you have around 250ml of stock left, add the mushrooms and stir to make sure they are covered, and also add the remaining stock.

Cook the risotto dish for a further 5-6 minutes, until the rice is cooked but still has a little bite to it.

Now you're ready to serve, the recipe says you can top with grated parmesan if you wish to, but I used just normal grated cheese.

Both myself and Skye are big fans of Spaghetti Bolognaise and I'm sure in many households it's a family favourite, so I saw this dish going down a treat, and I was right. I loved the flavours and I still felt like I was having a Spag Bol, even Skye seemed to take to it well, and she can be really picky with anything new.

I think this dish is perfect for Batch Cooking and saving for a later date, especially when you work long hours, it's a nice and filling meal to have on your breaks.

If you're interested in any of Pinch of Nom's recipe's then you can buy the recipe books in all major supermarkets as well as online retailers Waterstones and Amazon.

See you soon!

안녕

(Annyeong)

さようなら

(Sayonara)

再见

(ZaiJian)

Bye

Honey & Herb Lamb

Hello

안녕하세요 

(Annyeonghaseyo)

こんにちは 

(Konnichiwa)

你好

(Ni Hao)

I think my resolution for next year will be to do more cooking (and baking) posts as to say it's part of my main posts on my blog, I've not really done much this year, I think my main goal is to do at lease 2 cooking posts a month (as well as 2 baking posts a month). Today's cooking post is something I've never cooked before and it's not something I tend to eat either at home or when out, so I thought I'd give lamb a try.
Shall we get cooking?

Ingredients:
1.4 kg shoulder of lamb, trimmed
1/2 bunch thyme, leaves only
Handful dried camomile (4 camomile teabags)
4 sprigs rosemary, leaves only
12 sage leaves, roughly chopped
Salt and ground black pepper
1 lemon, juiced
1 tbsp clear honey
2 tbsp olive oil
125 ml water

Start off by preheating your oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.

Next with a sharp knife, score the skin and fat of the lamb shoulder, but not into the meat, making a crosshatch pattern. Thankfully mine was already scored ready for me to cook.

Next mix the camomile, thyme, rosemary, sage and oregano in a bowl, then season with salt and black pepper.

Next Press a handful of the herb mixture into the lamb skin, rubbing it all over.

Next sprinkle some of the herb mixture in a casserole dish then place the lamb on top of it and drizzle the lemon juice over the lamb before sprinkling any remaining herb mixture.

Next drizzle the honey and olive oil over the top.

Next pour the water into the casserole dish then put the lid on.

Place in the oven and cook for 2 1/2 hours. Check the dish after an hour, if the water has evaporated, add some more to maintain the dish moisture. My lamb joint was only 400 g so I only cooked it for around 50 minutes.

After 2 1/2 hours of cooking, remove from the oven and let it rest for 4-5 minutes.

Lastly to serve, pull large pieces of of lamb away from the bone, place on your plate and drizzle the meat with any meat juices remaining from the casserole dish. 

Serve with any vegetables of your choice, I served mine with mashed potatoes, carrots, broccoli, peas, sprouts and Yorkshire puddings.

I was really nervous that I wouldn't like this recipe as I can't remember the last time that I had lamb but was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed it. I'll definitely be cooking this again and possibly for more people, I loved the flavours on the lamb. I got this recipe from my diary so I can't add a link for you this time but all the ingredients and directions are as in my diary, I just had to modify my own recipe to fit with the size of the lamb joint that I had.
I really recommend giving this recipe a try if you enjoy lamb during the week or as part of your Sunday lunch.

See you soon!

안녕
(Annyeong)
さようなら
(Sayonara)
再见
(ZaiJian)
Bye