I have been looking at my own diet and I feel like I may be eating too much meat, (maybe it´s just the aftermath of Christmas).

It´s a nice chance to look through my old vegetarian recipes and find some alternate protein sources. I have picked a recipe with eggs, but after all I´m not a vegetarian, and I am doing this for a healthy change.

Here they are, hope you enjoy them, as always I would love to hear your ideas or changes…

ASIAN MUSHROOM SAUTÉ

Mushroom Saute

Prep and Cook Time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh shiitake mushrooms sliced thick

2 TBS chicken or vegetable broth

1 TBS minced fresh ginger

2 medium cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup coarsely chopped scallion

2 TBS soy sauce

salt and white pepper to taste

Directions:

Prepare all ingredients by washing, slicing and

chopping.

Simmer ginger, garlic, mushrooms, and scallion in

broth for about 3 minutes on medium high heat.

Season with soy sauce, salt and pepper.

(and now the one with eggs)

Poached Egg

POACHED EGGS OVER SPINACH & MUSHROOMS

Prep and Cook Time: 22 min.

Ingredients:

4 large free-range chicken eggs

1 tsp light vinegar, (rice, white wine, or apple cider)

1 TBS chicken or vegetable broth

1⁄2 medium onion, chopped

2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms

1 medium tomato, seeds and excess pulp removed,

chopped

3 medium cloves garlic, chopped

10oz package frozen spinach, thawed and excess

water removed

salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring water to a high simmer in a 10-inch skillet with 1 tsp of vinegar.

In a separate skillet heat 1 TBS broth.

Healthy Sauté onion and mushrooms in broth for 5 minutes over medium heat stirring frequently.

Add tomato, garlic, spinach, salt and pepper and sauté for another 2-3 minutes.

When water comes to a high simmer poach eggs for about 5 minutes, or until whites are firm. Remove from water with a slotted spoon and place over spinach mixture.

So guys, have fun, try new things and enjoy your food.

I hope to have some new articles finished by next week so watch out for those…

I know it´s a little late, but my whole household has been ill since new year´s eve. All good now though, and getting back to normal.

So just a quick post, I´m writing some weight loss and fitness articles for posting soon, so lots of work in the pipeline…

Those of you on my system will know how important fruit and vegetables are on ALL  levels of the Zen-SLIM system. For some reason, (I guess ease of transportation and clean eating?) bananas seem to be the number 1 favorite. Now I have the issue that they go brown quite quickly, and I could not find something to do with them…

UNTIL NOW! I have finally found a recipe for banana bread, and… this one has NO EGGS and NO ADDED SUGAR (just the fructose from the bananas).

I´m going to post it as I found it, I´m going to have to replace the sunflower oil, maybe for canola? any ideas anyone?

banana bread

Healthy Banana Bread – No SUGAR or EGGS

• Ingredients:
• 450g (1 lb) Ripe bananas,mashed
• 50g (2 oz) Chopped nuts
• 100ml (4 fl oz) Sunflower oil
• 100g (4 oz) Raisins
• 75g (3 oz) Rolled oat flakes
• 150g (5 oz) Wholewheat flour
• Pinch of salt

Directions:

-Preheat the oven to gas mark 5, 190c (375f).

1. -Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl. the consistency should be moist.
2. -Spoon into greased 450g (1lb.) loaf tin and bake in the oven for 50 to 60 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
3. -Stand until cool (around 10 mins).

I will share mine when I´ve made some (photo´s only, unless you pop round), and let you know how the replacement of oil goes…

Zen-SLIM clients, this will become part of your CARBOHYDRATE and FATS MEAL…

I´ve been planning our Christmas dinner and going thru some old recipes that I thought I would share with you.

So here they are, I´m not sure we are going to be using any of these yet, but I will be using them for inspiration…

Merry Christmas

Here they are…

Roast Turkey with Herbal Rub

Ingredients:
1 13-Pound WHOLE TURKEY fresh or thawed 1 Medium onion quartered
1 lemon quartered
1/4 Cup vegetable oil
1 Teaspoon dried thyme
1 Teaspoon dried tarragon
1 Tablespoon dried rosemary
1 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 325.
Remove giblets and neck from turkey and reserve for broth.

Rinse turkey with cold running water and pat dry with paper towels. Place onion and lemon quarters in neck and body cavities.

In a small bowl, mix oil with herbs, salt and pepper. With your finger tips, gently loosen skin from the breast without pulling off the skin.

Place 1 tablespoon of herb mixture under skin; replace skin. Rub cavities and outside of turkey with remaining herb mixture.

Secure the neck skin to the back with skewers. Fold wings under back of turkey. Place legs in tucked position. May be prepared to this point, covered and refrigerated for several hours.

Place turkey, breast side up, on a rack in a large shallow (no more than 2-1/2 inches) deep roasting pan. Insert an oven-safe thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, being careful it does not touch the bone.

Cover bird with a loose tent of foil. Roast turkey in a preheated 325 degree F. oven for about 2-1/2 hours.

Remove foil and baste bird with pan juices. Continue to roast for about another hour until meat thermometer registers 180 degrees F. in the thigh.

Remove turkey from oven and allow to rest for 15-20 minutes before carving. Transfer to a large platter and serve with gravy.

Herb-Roasted Turkey with Citrus Glaze

Ingredients:
1 15-Pound WHOLE TURKEY fresh or frozen (thawed) 3 Large lemons
2 Large limes
1-1/2 Teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 Teaspoon black pepper coarsely ground
1/4 Cup dry white wine (see note)
1/4 Cup packed brown sugar
Pan Gravy
1 Bunch, each fresh sage, marjoram, and thyme, divided

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 325.
Remove giblets and neck from turkey; reserve for gravy. Rinse turkey with cold running water and drain well. Blot dry with paper towels.
Peel skin from lemons and limes to make rose garnishes. Reserve in refrigerator. Squeeze enough juice from the lemons and limes to equal 2 tablespoons each. Cut the remaining lemons and limes in half and place in the turkey cavity. Sprinkle salt in the cavity.
In a small bowl, mix the wine, brown sugar, and citrus juices; reserve for glaze.
Gently loosen skin from the turkey breast without totally detaching the skin and carefully place 1 tablespoon each fresh sage and marjoram under the skin. Replace the skin.
Fold neck skin and fasten to the back with 1 or 2 skewers.
Fold the wings under the back of the turkey. Return legs to tucked position.
Place turkey, breast side up, on a rack in a large shallow (about 2-1/2 inches deep) roasting pan.
Rub turkey with salt, pepper, and 2 to 3 tablespoons of salad oil. Insert oven-safe meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh, being careful that the pointed end of the thermometer does not touch the bone. Roast the turkey in a preheated 325 degree F. oven about 3-3/4 hours.
During the last hour of roasting time, baste with the pan drippings.
During the last 30 minutes, baste with the citrus glaze.
Loosely cover with lightweight foil to prevent excessive browning.
Continue to roast until the thermometer registers 180 degrees F. in the thigh, or 170 degrees F. in the breast. Remove turkey from the oven and allow it to rest for 15-20 minutes before carving.
Place on a warm large platter and garnish the platter with the remaining fresh herbs and lemon and lime roses.

Prepare lemon and lime roses as follows: with a small sharp knife or vegetable peeler, cut a continuous thin 1-inch strip of peel. Avoid cutting into the white pith. Roll tightly, skin inside out, and secure with toothpicks. Reserve in a bowl filled with ice water until time for service.

Turkey Breast Braised with Garlic and Rice

Ingredients:
1 Cup long-grain rice
1 Can (14-1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1/2 Cup white wine
2 Teaspoons dried parsley
1/2 Teaspoon each dried rosemary, thyme and sage 1 Bay leaf
1 BONE-IN TURKEY BREAST (5-6 pounds) Paprika
3 Cloves garlic

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350.
In 5-quart Dutch oven combine rice, broth, wine, parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage and bay leaf. Place turkey over rice mixture and sprinkle turkey generously with paprika.
Cut off root ends of garlic cloves. Place whole garlic bulbs, cut-end-up, in rice around turkey breast.
Cover top of Dutch oven with foil and lid.
Bake at 350 degrees F. 2-1/2 to 3 hours or until meat thermometer inserted in thickest part of breast registers 170-175 degrees F.
Allow to stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
To serve, carve turkey into slices and place on platter.
Spoon rice mixture into serving bowl.
Squeeze garlic from skins onto turkey and rice.

I´ll post some low fat party recipes in the next few days.

Still some time left to enter the competition, and for those of you subscribed thru the website, watch out for a special gift in your inbox…

and welcome to the “Big Competition” of the year. So this year we are going to be running “Project 13“!

S.M.A.R.T.

This year, on New Years Eve, we will give away 13 months of personalized diets! YES, 13 MONTHS!

So what do you have to do be in with a chance of winning diet months? Simple, we love new years resolutions, and we are BIG fans of goal setting, so we devised a goal setting competition. Decide what your weight loss goals for 2013 are, write them down and make them S.M.A.R.T., then send us your story.

(We will not use or share any of your information, we never do.)

Let us know who you are, and what you do. What your weight is now, and what you hope to achieve. Show us your goals in S.M.A.R.T. form and Zen-SLIM will help you achieve your target weight in 2013!

FREE OF CHARGE!

Entries in by December 27th, Winners will be informed by personal email on December 31st. The diets will be ready within the first 2 or 3 days of the year, so just enough time to  clean up the wrapping paper and shake the hangovers off.

O.K. everyone, looking forward to hearing your stories and helping some people in the new year.

Get S.M.A.R.T. goal setting and achieve results.

Hi everyone and welcome to winter…

I have been talking to some of my life coaching clients this week, and the same point comes up time and time again. That point is TIME!

This is also one of the main excuses I hear for not eating good, healthy, home cooked food in the evenings.

So here is my secret, a CROCKPOT, all I need to do is prepare the ingredients when I can, and refrigerate. Then I can throw everything in the crockpot in the morning, go out, enjoy my day and dinner is ready when I get home… perfect.

Enjoy the recipes, let me know if you need any help with time or diet management, I will be happy to help…

CROCKPOT CABBAGE CHILI SOUP

3 cups coarsely chopped cabbage
1 cup chopped onions
3 cups Healthy Choice tomato juice (or any reduced-sodium)
1 (10-1/2 oz) can Healthy Request Tomato Soup
10 oz kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 tsp chili seasoning mix

In a slow cooker, combine cabbage, onion, tomato juice and tomato soup.

Add kidney beans and chili seasoning mix.

Mix well to combine.

Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.

Mix well before serving.
Great recipe for diabetics.

CROCKPOT CHICKEN IN A POT

3 lb. whole chicken
2 carrots, sliced
2 onions, sliced
2 celery stalks with leaves

1 tsp basil

2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 c chicken broth or wine
Put carrots, onions, and celery in bottom of CROCK-POT.

Add whole chicken. Top with salt, pepper, liquid, sprinkle basil.

Cover and cook until done-low 8 to 10 hours. (High 3 to 4 hours, using 1 cup water). Remove chicken and vegetables with spatula.

CROCKPOT CHICKEN STEW MEXICAN STYLE

2 lb. skinless boneless chicken breasts cut into 1 1/2″ pieces

4 med russet potatoes, peeled and cut very small

1 (15 oz) can mild salsa
1 (4 oz) can diced green chilies.

1 (1 1/4 oz) pkg. taco seasoning mix
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
Mix all ingredients together in crockpot, cook 7-9 hours on low.

Serve with warm flour tortillas.
You can also serve corn with this, it´s good mixed in too.

I have been spending more and more of my free time outside with Spank, and so less time in the kitchen.

Here is a Chicken Curry in a hurry recipe, it certainly warms me up after long walks with the hound.

Chicken Curry

Prep and Cook Time: 25 min.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons brown sugar

2 teaspoons curry powder

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon pepper

4 boneless chicken breast halves, cut in bite-size

pieces

14.5 ounces chicken broth or about 1-3/4 cups

1 1/2 cups orange juice

10 ounce package frozen Peas

Directions:

Combine first 4 ingredients; sprinkle 1 tbsp

seasoning mixture over chicken, tossing to coat.

Reserve remaining seasoning mixture.

Bring chicken broth, orange juice, rice and reserved seasoning mixture to a boil in a large non stick skillet. Add chicken; reduce heat, cover and simmer 15 minutes.

Stir in peas; cover and simmer 10 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.

Enjoy everyone, and please feel free to share some of your recipes with me, I am always looking for new things to try in the kitchen,

take care…

All the best buddy, have a great day…

Spank is the one on the far right.

This is the photo I picked him from, he is about 4 weeks old in this photo… 

so here are four of my best soup recipes, should be enough to keep you going for a little while…

Don´t forget that soup goes great in Thermos flasks so there is no excuse for being cold on dog walks…

Autumn Soup Recipes

Autumn Soups

TOMATO AND OKRA SOUP.

Take one quart of okra thinly sliced, and two quarts of sliced tomatoes. Simmer gently from one to two hours. Rub through a colander, heat again to boiling, season with salt and cream if desired, and serve. Canned okra and tomatoes need only to be rubbed through a colander, scalded and seasoned, to make a most excellent soup. If preferred, one or two potatoes may be sliced and cooked, rubbed through a colander, and added.

TOMATO AND VERMICELLI SOUP.

Cook a cupful of broken vermicelli in a pint of boiling water for ten minutes. Turn into a colander to drain. Have boiling two quarts of strained, stewed tomatoes, to which add the vermicelli. If preferred, the tomato may be thickened slightly with a little cornstarch rubbed smooth in cold water before adding the vermicelli. Salt to taste, and just before serving turn in a cup of hot, thin cream. Let all boil up for a moment, then serve at once.

TAPIOCA AND TOMATO SOUP.

2 oz. of tapioca, 1 lb. of tomatoes, 1 carrot, 1 turnip, 1 teaspoonful of herbs, 1 blade of mace, 1 oz. of butter, pepper and salt to taste, and 3 pints of water. Peel, wash, and cut up finely the vegetables and stew them in the butter for 10 minutes. Add the water, the tomatoes skinned and cut in slices, the herbs and seasoning to taste; when the soup is boiling, sprinkle in the tapioca, let all cook until quite tender, pass the soup through a sieve, return it to the saucepan, and boil it up before serving.

TAPIOCA CREAM SOUP.

One quart of white stock; one pint of cream or milk; one onion; two stalks celery; one-third of a cupful of tapioca; two cupfuls of cold water; one tablespoonful of butter; a small piece of mace; salt, pepper. Wash the tapioca and soak over night in cold water. Cook it and the stock together very gently for one hour. Cut the onion and celery into small pieces, and put on to cook for twenty minutes with the milk and mace. Strain on the tapioca and stock. Season with salt and pepper, add butter and serve.

Enjoy everyone, have a great weekend, see you all for Q&A´s on Monday…

so we have been working very hard on restructuring the business so that we can continue to provide help with weight loss even through these difficult financial times.

After many hours of meetings and discussions we have a basic level price of less than one British pound per day, even bigger savings can be made if you sign up for 3 months.

I have dropped the price of the ebook too  to only £9.99, so that there is now no reason to wait, get on one of our programs today!

Zen-SLIM

I will be online on Skype for a little while longer today, and a couple of hours tomorrow while I post some special Autumn soup recipes.

See you all tomorrow…

I have been talking quite a lot recently about protein sources for vegetarians, and meals that fit in with the Zen-SLIM system…

Here are 2 cool vegetarian recipes. Meat eaters, don´t be shy, just because there is no meat does not mean that you can´t try them! I am a meat eater, but I have absolutely no reason to eat it everyday… Broad horizons!

African Peanut Soup

Total carbs: 57 g

1 T. vegetable oil
1 whole garlic clove, chopped
1/3 cup tomato paste
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1/8 tsp. cayenne
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
In a saucepan heat oil over moderate heat until hot but not
smoking and cook garlic, stirring, until golden, about 1
minute.

Add tomato paste, peanut butter, cayenne, and 1/4
cup broth and stir until smooth.

Stir in remaining 3 3/4 cups broth and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, 10
minutes.

Simmer soup, uncovered, 10 minutes, or until oil
floats to the surface, and skim oil.

You could serve this as  it is, OR make some of these lo carb Latkes (instead of bread), keeping the carb count down…

Cauliflower Pancakes (Latkes)

1 small head cauliflower, cooked, drained and mashed
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 small onion, grated
pepper to taste
2-4 T soy flour

In a bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.

In a heavy skillet, heat a few tablespoons of oil.
Drop spoonfuls of the cauliflower mixture into the hot oil.
Cook pancakes on each side until
crisp and browned.

Serve  hot with sour cream garnish, soup, or maybe some beans and pulses of your choice?

Enjoy, and please let me know how you get on with the recipes and weight loss, we love to hear how you are all doing…