Greek Salad
1 head Romaine lettuce ¼ Spanish onion, thinly sliced
1 green capsicum, thinly sliced ½ cup radishes thinly sliced
1 large tomato cut into wedges 120 grams Feta cheese
¼ cup olive oil 1/8 cup lemon juice or wine
¼ tsp dry mustard vinegar
¼ tsp oregano salt and pepper to taste
½ can flat anchovies well-drained 8 Calamata olives
Wash lettuce and spin dry.
Place lettuce, peppers, radishes, olives and onion in a bowl. Crumble feta and add to salad.
Mix in blender garlic, lemon juice, mustard oregano, oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour over salad. Toss well.
Arrange anchovies like the spokes of a wheel over the top of the salad.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 protein, 2 tsp fat
Grilled Chicken, Rocket, Pear and Parmesan Salad
300g skinless chicken breast fillet 120g rocket
1 punnet cherry tomatoes halved 2 medium pears thinly sliced
50g shaved parmesan cheese ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
Grill chicken until golden brown and cooked through. Remove, cut into slices and keep warm.
Arrange rocket in four serving bowls. Top with sliced chicken, cherry tomatoes and pear slices.
Top with Parmesan cheese and drizzle with balsamic vinegar.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 protein, ½ carbohydrate
HEARTY VEGETABLE SOUP
2 teaspoons oil 2 onions, chopped
2 carrots, chopped 1 turnip, chopped
2 sticks celery, sliced 2 medium potatoes, chopped
2 zucchini, chopped 5 cups beef stock
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes ½ cup small tube pasta
1. Heat oil in a large pan; add onions and carrots, cook for about 5 minutes. Add turnip and celery, cook for a further 3 minutes.
2. Add potatoes and zucchini, cook for a further 1 minute.
3. Add stock, tomatoes and pasta. Bring to boil; simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper.
Serves 4 1 cup = 1 carbohydrate
Couscous and Mushroom Casserole
1 cup couscous 2 cups water or vegetable broth
6 shallots chopped 1 red capsicum chopped
1 green capsicum chopped 2 cloves crushed garlic
2 tsp olive/canola oil 1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup canned chickpeas 1 medium carrot, grated
Salt and papper to taste ½ tsp dried basil
2 Tblsp minced fresh dill (or 1 tsp dried)
In a large saucepan sauté shallots, capsicum and garlic in oil until softened. Add mushrooms and sauté 3-4 minutes longer. Add water or broth and bring to boil. Stir in couscous along with remaining ingredients. Bring back to boil and simmer until all liquid is absorbed (5-10 minutes).
Serves 4 1 serve = 2 carbohydrates
NOODLES PRIMAVERA
2 tsps vegetable oil 200g button mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 x 425g can crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste
250g packet vermicelli egg noodles
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed, cut into 2cm lengths
1 cup frozen peas 3 cups small broccoli florets
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
Heat oil in a large pan; add mushrooms and garlic, cook, stirring, until mushrooms are soft. Add undrained tomatoes; bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, add noodles to a large pan of boiling water; boil, uncovered, until just tender. Add asparagus, peas and broccoli to noodles in pan; boil for 1 minute. Drain noodles and vegetables well. Return to pan.
Add tomato mixture and basil to noodles; toss gently to combine.
Serve primavera topped with shaved Parmesan cheese.
Serves 4. 1 serve = 1 protein, 2 carbohydrates
PUMPKIN SOUP
1 teaspoon oil 1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed 1kg Queensland blue pumpkin, peeled, coarsely chopped 1 litre chicken stock
2 cups water 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste 1/4 cup light sour cream
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1. Heat oil in a large non-stick pan. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until onion is soft. Add pumpkin, stock, water and nutmeg. Bring to boil; simmer, uncovered, for about 20 minutes or until pumpkin is soft.
2. Blend soup, in batches, until smooth. Return soup to pan. Bring to boil; season with salt and pepper.
3. Serve soup topped with sour cream; garnish with fresh chives.
Serves 4 1 cup = 1 carbohydrate
Ricotta and Rocket Cannelloni
2 spring onions, finely chopped 125g ricotta cheese
50g rocket or spinach leaves, blanched and roughly chopped
Fresh ground black pepper, to taste 2 tsp continental chopped parsley
1 fresh sheet lasagne 1 cup tomato pasta sauce
10g extra rocket for serving 20g shaved parmesan cheese for serving
Combine spring onions, ricotta and rocket or spinach leaves. Season to taste.
Cut lasagne into four. Cook sheets in a large pot of boiling water for 3 minutes or until tender, then refresh in cold water. Divide ricotta mixture evenly along the longest length of the sheet. Roll up to form a tube. Place I a 30cm x 18cm baking dish.
Pour tomato pasta sauce over cannelloni and bake at 180 degrees for 20 minutes or until heated through. Serve cannelloni topped with rocket and shaved Parmesan.
Serves 2 1 serve = 1 protein, 1 carbohydrate
Veggie Surprise
1 brown onion diced 2 Tblsp olive oil
2 large potatoes, peeled and diced 2 carrots, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed 1 cup diced pumpkin
1 cup diced sweet potato 1 zucchini, sliced
1 head of broccoli cut into florets ½ med head of cauliflower roughly cut
2 cups chicken/veg stock 1 bay leaf
2 Tblsp tomato paste 1 tsp oregano
½ cup low fat tasty cheese 2 Tblsp parsley
In a large saucepan cook onion in olive oil for 3-4 minutes until soft. Add remaining ingredients except cheese and parsley. Simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes, or cook covered in moderate oven (180 degrees) for 45 minutes.
Remove bay leaf, spoon into vegetable serving bowls and top with tasty cheese and chopped parsley.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 protein, 1 carbohydrate
Moroccan chickpea soup
Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil 1 onion, finely chopped
1 large carrot, peeled, diced 2 sticks celery, trimmed, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed 2 teaspoons Moroccan seasoning
2 x 400g cans chickpeas, rinsed, drained 400g can chopped tomatoes
2 cups salt-reduced vegetable stock (or chicken stock) and 1 cup water
black pepper, to season low-fat yoghurt, to serve (optional)
coriander leaves, to garnish
Instructions
Heat oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over a medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery. Cook, stirring, for 5-6 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Add garlic and seasoning. Cook for 1 minute.
Add chickpeas, tomatoes and stock. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat to low, partially cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
Place half the soup in a blender. Blend until smooth. Return to pan with remaining soup. Place over a medium heat, season with pepper and warm through. Ladle into bowls, top with a dollop of yoghurt (if using) and garnish with coriander.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 carbohydrate
Pumpkin, Basil and Chilli Stir Fry
1 tsp peanut oil 1 brown onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly 4 fresh Thai chillies, sliced thinly
1 kg pumpkin, chopped coarsely 1 tsp grated palm sugar
250g sugar snap peas ¼ cup vegetable stock
2 Tblsp soy sauce ¾ cup loosely packed basil leaves
4 green onions, sliced thinly ¼ cup unsalted roasted peanuts, halved
Heat oil in a wok and stir-fy brown onion until browned and crisp. Drain on absorbent paper.
Stir fry garlic and chill in wok until fragrant. Add pumpkin and stir fry until browned all over and just tender.
Add peas, sugar, stock and sauce. Stir fry until sauce thickens.
Remove from heat. Toss basil, green onion and nuts through the stir fry until well combined. Serve topped with fried onion.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 protein, 1 carbohydrate
RICOTTA FRUIT SALAD
500g chopped fresh pineapple 2 kiwi fruit, peeled, chopped
2 mangoes, peeled, chopped 2 peaches, chopped
2 plums, chopped 1 passionfruit
1 x 250g punnet strawberries, quartered
RICOTTA TOPPING
200g ricotta cheese ¼ cup icing sugar
½ cup low-fat mango-flavoured yoghurt 1 passionfruit
1. Combine pineapple, kiwi fruit, mangoes, peaches, plums and strawberries in a large bowl. Add passionfruit pulp; stir gently. Cover; refrigerate until serving.
2. RICOTTA TOPPING. Combine ricotta cheese, icing sugar, yoghurt and passionfruit pulp in a bowl; mix well.
3. Serve fruit salad with Ricotta Topping.
SERVES 4.
Roast Pumpkin and Goat’s Cheese Salad
750g peeled pumpkin, diced Vegetable oil spray
1 Tblsp olive oil 2 large onions, halved and thinly sliced
1 Tblsp brown sugar 2 Tblsp balsamic vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper 1 head butter lettuce
120g fresh goats’ cheese crumbled
Preheat oven to 200 degrees centigrade. Place pumpkin in a roasting dish and spray with vegetable oil spray. Roast for 30 minutes, until soft and golden.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a non-stick pan. Cook onion over medium heat for 3-5 minutes. Add brown sugar, balsamic vinegar and pepper. Cook until brown and syrupy.
Place lettuce leaves on plate. Top with the pumpkin, caramelised onions and goat’s cheese.
Serve 4 1 serve = 1 protein, 1 carbohydrate.
TOFU AND VEGETABLE STIR FRY
350 grams cauliflower, chopped 350 grams broccoli, chopped
250 grams asparagus, sliced 350 grams green beans, sliced
3 medium carrots, sliced 1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves garlic crushed 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 teaspoon cracked black pepper 375 grams firm tofu, cubed
2 medium onions, sliced 250 grams button mushrooms, sliced
½ cup dry white wine 1 vegetable stock cube
3 teaspoons corn flour 1 cup water
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Add cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, beans and carrots t large pan of boiling water; boil, uncovered, 2 minutes, drain. Rinse under cold water; drain.
Heat oil in wok or large non-stick pan; stir fry garlic, thyme, pepper, tofu until tofu is browned lightly, remove from pan.
Add onions and mushrooms to same pan; stir-fry until onions are soft. Stir in vegetable mixture, wine, crumbled sock cube and blended cornflour and wate; stir over heat until mixture boils and thickens. Stir in tofu; serve sprinkled with cheese.
Serves 4 1 serve = 1 protein
Vegetable Fried Rice
You will need to cook about 1/3 cup long grain rice for this recipe.
1 clove garlic crushed 1 tsp finely grated fresh ginger
2 Tblsp water 1 medium carrot finely chopped
2 small zucchini chopped finely ½ red capsicum finely chopped
1 cup cooked long grain rice 2 Tblsp soy sauce
3 shallots finely chopped 2 Tblsp finely chopped fresh coriander leaves
Combine garlic, ginger and the water in wok or large non-stick frying pan; cook over heat until ginger is soft. Add carrot, capsicum and zucchini; cook for 5 minutes. Stir in remaining ingredients; stir over heat until heated through.
Serves 2 1 serve = 1 ½ carbohydrate