Creamy almond and ginger chicken and vegetable soup

Hey there munkies!

It was Saturday night, and our monthly women's jam was tomorrow in Kilburn.
Brrrrrrr, I thought. I think I'll make a big batch of that creamy gingery chicken and vegetable soup again.. and bet it will warm my soul RIGHT UP after the jam!

This soup. This soup is so damn tasty. I love the simplicity of it too, and it's so hearty! It might not look very appetising.. but trust me, don't knock it until you've tried it! (..by the way, the sun shined gloriously aaaall day at the jam - haha! It wasn't cold at all, and we had such a great day too, lots of ladies, sunshine, fun and challenges. Yays!)

So, on to the soup:

INGREDIENTS (serves 3-4 people)

1 and 1/4 cups of almond milk
300g of chicken breast
1 and 1/2 tbsp of fresh ginger
1 medium onion
2 medium sweet potatoes
1/2 medium broccoli
1/4 medium cauliflower (or you can just use more broccoli)
100g of spinach
1 cube Kallo Organic Chicken stock cube
Salt, pepper, chili flakes to taste


INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the almond milk in a saucepan on a low heat.
2. Whilst the almond milk is heating, chop the ginger and onion.
3. When the almond milk is a little heated, crumble the Kallo stock cube in to the saucepan.
4. Add the ginger and onion, and salt, pepper and chili flakes to taste.
5. Keep the saucepan on a low heat whilst you chop and prepare your chicken and sweet potato (I chopped mine pretty small, it was no bigger than the size of a cherry..).
6. Add the chopped chicken and sweet potato to the saucepan.
7. Continue to cook on a low heat with a saucepan-cover for about 5-8 minutes whilst you chop up your broccoli and cauliflower.
8. After 5 minutes, add the broccoli and cauliflower.
9. Allow to simmer for a further 10-15 minutes, or until all the ingredients are cooked properly, and give the soup a stir now and again too.
10. When the ingredients are cooked, turn your saucepan off and add the spinach, and cover the pan again.
11. Set the pan aside for 5 more minutes to allow the spinach to steam.
12. Transfer the soups contents into a blender/food processor and blend until desired (I still kept some texture and chunkiness to my soup).
13. Allow to cool a tad, and serve!


Enjoy munkies!

SPECIAL ALERT: Sweet potato brownie tart

Afternoon there munkeys!

This recipe is a real yummy one - I think it might actually be my husband's favourite! It came about whilst making flapjacks - I waaas making flapjacks, but then decided to use it for a crust instead. Haha!

This chocolate tart is super simple, nutritious and really yummy and chocolatey! Mmmmmm.

It took about 30 minutes total to prepare and bake it I reckon.. and I've made it with less AND more dark chocolate than 50g before, and it's JUST as good everytime.

Here's how I did it:

INGREDIENTS

Crust
1 cup of gluten free oats
2/3 cup dessicated coconut
1 heaped tbsp peanut butter
3/4 medium mashed banana
3 soaked medjool dates
Pinch of salt

Filing
1 medium sized egg
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
Sprinkle of cinnamon
1 medium sweet potato mashed
2 tbsp cocoa powder
6 soaked medjool dates
50g 70%+ dark chocolate
1 tsp baking powder


INSTRUCTIONS

1. Chop, peel and steam sweet potato until soft enough to mash.
2. Preheat the oven to gas mark 6.
3. Soak dates in a bowl for about ten minutes or so.
4. Put oats and desiccated coconut in a separate bowl with a pinch of salt.
5. Mash the banana, dates and peanut butter together.
6. Bind the peanut butter and banana mixture and oats together with your hands.
7. Press the 'flapjack' mix into the chosen baking tray or silicone mould.
8. Place two squares of dark chocolate on the crust and place it in the oven for 2-3 minutes to melt the chocolate.
9. Take the back of a spoon and spread the chocolate around, now set the crust base aside.
10. Crack an egg in the food processor and blend until slightly frothy.
11. Add the vanilla essence, the rest of the dates, and the cooked sweet potato and blend until fairly smooth.
12. Add the cinnamon and cocoa powder, along with the dark chocolate - it will more or less melt because the sweet potato is still warm, blend until combined.
13. Add the baking powder and blend until combined.
14. Spoon the chocolate mixture on to the crust base, and place in the oven for 7-9 minutes - it should still be soft when you take it out, but it will set and harden in the fridge.
15. Allow to cool and enjoy.

Enjoy munkeys! :)

Banana protein pancakes with dark chocolate chips and peanut caramel

I'm back. I'm back. I'm back!

Hey there munkies! I've missed you, I really have. I've been cooking, baking and experimenting lots over the last year but not blogging, and I'm sorrrrry. But as you read, I'm back, and I'm here to stay. I'm also a married woman now.. hehe. It's all pretty magical. Shhhh.

It's Saturday, and Saturdays are made for lazy mornings, long walks and protein pancakes in this house (we are no longer using our Saturday's for squatting at home in our power rack, because we now have this wonderful facility in East London to throw iron around in instead: http://parkourgenerations.com/chainstore/facilities/). By the way, since I last blogged my love for lifting iron has increased! - and I've become a weightlifting rookie in the last year, haha!

Anyway, here's how it went down..

INGREDIENTS:

For the pancake batter
2 medium eggs
1 large banana (brown spots on that banana please! 3/4 of the banana will go in the mixture and the other quarter will be distributed in between the layers)
3/4 scoop (20g) vanilla or any flavour whey
2 tbsp almond flour
2 tbsp coconut flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
A sprinkle of cinnamon

For the filling
2 Medjool dates
2 tbsp boiling water
1 tbsp peanut butter
2 tbsp Almond milk

Some ghee or coconut oil for frying

Optional decoration:
1/2 a handful of 70%+ dark chocolate chips, or cacao nibs and sunflower seeds sprinkled on top. I used all three! ;)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Soak the dates in boiling water for at least 10 minutes.
2. When the dates are soaked enough take them out and transfer to a bowl (DON'T THROW AWAY THE WATER JUST YET!)
3. Mash the dates, the almond milk and 2 tablespoons of the water they were soaking in with a fork.
4. Add 1 tablespoon of peanut butter & mix until all is combined, and set the 'peanut caramel' aside.
5. Crack the eggs in to the food processor and blend until slightly frothy.
6. Add the 3/4 of the banana (chopped!) to the food processor and blend.
7. Add the almond flour, coconut flour and whey, and blend until fairly smooth - small lumps are fine.
8. Add the baking powder to the mixture and blend.
9. Put the pan on a VERY low heat, and when it's heated, add just under a level teaspoon of ghee or coconut oil or desired oil.
10. When the oil has melted move it around the pan to distribute the liquid evenly, allow the pan to get a little hotter before adding the pancake mixture.
11. Pour 3-4 tablespoons of pancake mixture into the pan and spread it around.
12. Leave to cook until bubbles form on the surface, then carefully flip the pancake (it shouldn't fall apart).
13. Leave to cook for a further 20-30 seconds then transfer to a plate to cool.
14. Rinse and repeat steps 9-14.

(I layered each pancake with a tablespoon of 'peanut caramel', some sliced banana and a few chocolate chips, then sprinkled chocolate chips, cacao nibs, sunflower seeds and cinnamon on top of the last layer. Yum.)

Enjoy munkies! :)