Blissful Banana Pikelets

I love these pikelets, which are a healthy version of the ones I use to make pre-12WBT. They are great as an afternoon snack, and I often add frozen berries to the mix as well as, or instead of, the banana. These are loved by my whole family, especially Miss 2 and even my 6-month-old bub (as you can see in the photo below!) A sprinkle of cinnamon is also an excellent addition.

Ingredients (makes 16, at 47 calories per pikelet)
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup wholemeal SR flour
1 egg
1 cup low-fat milk
1 banana

Method
Mash banana into a bowl or jug, then add all other ingredients and mix well.

Heat a frying pan over low heat. If needed, spray lightly with olive oil spray. Spoon tablespoonfuls of mixture into the pan. When they start to bubble, flip and cook for another 1-2 minutes. Serve warm.

Calorie boost: Serve with a dollop of low-fat, natural yoghurt and sprinkle with a few frozen berries (adds about 35 calories)

Penne with Feta and Lemon

This one is from the Michelle Bridges "Crunchtime" book - it's a bit higher in the calories, and she suggests it as a lunch meal on a day you do a lot of exercise.  It comes in at 440 calories, so it is a bit higher - but it is a really easy and tasty dish!

Ingredients (serves 2)
2 cups penne pasta
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
60g low-fat feta, crumbled
1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Method
Cook pasta in boiling water for 15-20 minutes.  Meanwhile combine lemon zest, juice and olive oil in a jar and shake.  Place cooked penne in serving bowl, crumble fetta over the top and toss with pine nuts, parsley and the lemon dressing.  Serve immediately.

Healthy beef burgers

Another one from Michelle Bridges' "Crunch time cookbook", this is a really tasty and family-friendly dinner.  Michelle suggests only using half of the bread bun to cut the calories - and it's certainly filling enough without the other half!  Fresh, fast and fun, these will be a winner at your place too!

Ingredients (serves 4)
400g lean beef mince
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 tablespoons low-cal barbecue sauce (optional)
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil spray
wholemeal bread buns (either 1/2 or 1 per person)
8 iceberg lettuce leaves, shredded
160g canned sliced beetroot
1 tomato, sliced
coarsely chopped parsley, to garnish

Method
Combine the beef mince, shallot and barbecue sauce (if using) in a bowl.  Season to taste with pepper.  With wet hands, shape the mixture into 4 patties.

Lightly spray a non-stick frying pan with olive oil and heat on medium.  Cook the patties for 5 minutes each side until browned and cooked through.

Toast the bun halves, then line each bun with lettuce.  Top with beetroot, a patty and tomato.  Garnish with parsley and season with pepper.

Baby beet, chickpea, basil and feta salad

Got this one from Michelle Bridges' "Crunch time Cookbook" and it was fabulous!  It was surprisingly filling and I loved the textures and flavours.  Something a bit different for your weeknight meal!

Ingredients (serves 2)
440g can whole baby beets, drained
400g can chickpeas, drained, rinsed
4 handfuls baby spinach
1/4 red onion, thinly slices
2 tablespoons freshly torn basil
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar
freshly ground black pepper
40g low-cal feta

Method
Combine baby beets, chickpeas, baby spinach, red onion and basil in a salad bowl.  Drizzle over combined oil and vinegar.  Season with freshly ground black pepper and toss to coat.  Crumble over feta and serve.

Beef & Vegetable Meatloaf

I'm a bit (okay, a lot) of a meatloaf fan and have tried a few over the years.  And I have to say, this one, from the Michelle Bridges "Crunch time Cookbook", is by far the healthiest and yummiest that I've made!  It was really easy too...and a nice healthy change to serve it with some salad greens rather than my usual weakness, mashed potato!

Ingredients (serves 6)
800g lean beef mince
1 onion, finely chopped
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
1 zucchini, coarsely grated
1/2 cup rolled oats
5 tablespoons low-cal tomato sauce
2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chilli flakes (optional)
freshly ground black pepper
120g mixed salad leaves, to serve

Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.  Lightly grease an 11cm x 25cm loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine the beef, onion, carrot, zucchini, oats, tomato sauce, herbs, garlic, salt, chilli and pepper.

Knead the mixture with your hands until combined, then pack lightly into the prepared pan.  Place on a baking tray and cook for 1 hour or until the loaf shrinks away slightly from the sides of the pan.  Pour off any excess juices, then leave to stand for 10 minutes.

Slice using a serrated knife and serve with the salad leaves.

I need your help!

Hey blog-land!  I think it's time for a catch-up.  Firstly, I just want to thank each and every one of you readers for visiting my little blog over the last 8 months or so.  Thanks for all the feedback and the support - I love hearing from you and am so glad that my hobby can help other people!

Next up, there'll be a bit of an exciting change to the blog over the next couple of months.  I've embarked on the Michelle Bridges 12-week body transformation and am super excited about the healthy change!  So I'll be posting a lot of very nutritious and low-calorie meals on the blog, which are still family-friendly.  And this is where you come in!

I've always wanted the blog to be about recipe-sharing, so I'd really love to get your input.  Share with me YOUR favourite, healthiest recipes!  We're talking meals that come in around 300 calories (if you don't know the calorie count, that's ok!) and are full of all the good stuff.  Snacks and extras are good too!  I would love you to feature on the blog - if you can send in a pic with your recipe, that would be wonderful - but don't worry if you don't have one.  I really want this to be interactive and all about sharing with and helping each other.

So please - I would LOVE to hear from you!  Drop me an email at vanessa.gibson85@gmail.com with your healthy recipe/s and make sure you come back and see what everyone else has been sharing too.  Can't wait to hear from you!

Vanessa xo

Birthday Cakes

It's been a bit quiet on the blog this week, thanks to a massive few days for the family.  We've celebrated the dedication of the baby boy, a birthday for the husband and another birthday for little Miss, who is now the big 2!

So I thought I'd share with you my cake creations for the birthdays.  It was hard to decide what to make for Hope, as she loves so many different things - but in the end, I went with the swimming pool, which was a cross between the trampoline and pool, in the new Women's Weekly Kids' Birthday Cake Book.  I was very happy with the end result, and most importantly, the birthday girl loved it too.

I decided to experiment for the first time with fondant icing (I've used something similar before, but never the "real" thing), and wanted to do something that hubby would love - so I went with a Star Wars theme.  He was over the moon!

Already thinking of ideas for my little Mr's first birthday cake in 6 months!

Lemon Coconut Cake

A recipe from my mum, this moist lemon and coconut cake is so easy and always turns out perfectly!

Ingredients
125g butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3/4 cup milk
1 2/3 cup self-raising flour
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

Method
Grease 20cm round tin.  Heat oven to 180 degrees celsius.  Put ingredients in a bowl in order given.  Beat well.  Pour into tin and bake about 40 mins.

Pear and Blueberry Crumble

I made this a couple of weeks ago as a last-minute dessert when the in-laws were coming over at short notice.  Mmmm, I can still taste the sweetness of the fruit filling and that delicious crumble that melts in your mouth.  I love a good crumble - and this one was excellent.  www.taste.com.au - you've done it again!

Ingredients
55g (1/4 cup) caster sugar
60ml (1/4 cup) water
2 x 5cm-strips lemon rind
1 x 7cm cinnamon stick
6 (about 1.3kg) firm packham pears, peeled, cored, cut into 2cm pieces
1 x 350g pkt frozen blueberries
115g (3/4 cup) plain flour
80g butter, melted
125g (3/4 cup) macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
35g (1/2 cup) shredded coconut
55g (1/4 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C. Combine caster sugar, water, lemon rind and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves. Add the pear and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until tender. Add blueberries and cook for 2 minutes or until heated through. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, place the flour in a medium bowl. Add the butter and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined. Add the macadamias, coconut and brown sugar, and stir to combine.

Remove the lemon rind and cinnamon from the pear mixture and discard. Spoon the pear mixture among four 250ml (1-cup) capacity ovenproof ramekins or baking dishes. Top with macadamia mixture. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until topping is golden. Serve with, vanilla ice-cream or double cream.

Cheese & Chive Scones

These scones are from the massive Stephanie Alexander cook book (you know, that big, stripey, colourful one) - and they are delish!  I used parmesan cheese along with the cheddar and really loved the extra flavour it brought to the scones.  The chives were my own last-minute addition and I thought they worked very well. Don't worry if they don't turn out show-winning "pretty" - mine are always on the "rustic" side - and they taste great!

Ingredients
500g self-raising flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
100g grated matured cheddar cheese
100g butter
300ml buttermilk or water (or a combination of both)
2 tablespoons chopped chives (optional)

Method
Preheat oven to 220 degrees celsius and grease a baking tray.  Mix flour, baking powder and butter in a food processor just until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.  Stir in cheese and chives.

Turn into a bowl and quickly stir in the milk, then turn dough onto a floured board and gently pat out to 3cm thick.

Cut into rounds or squares and put close together on prepared tray.  Brush tops with a little extra milk, or dust with flour.  Bake for 12-15 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

Cream Cheese Cucumbers

This is a recipe I came up with when I decided (at the last minute) that I needed something savoury to serve for some friends who were popping over for morning tea.  I was so happy with the result - they look gorgeous, taste great and are a perfect, healthy little addition to the table.

Ingredients
1 cucumber (whichever variety you have in the fridge is fine!)
125g cream cheese
Squeeze of lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon paprika
fresh chives, to serve

Method
Combine cream cheese, lemon juice and paprika in a small bowl.  Transfer to a piping bag with a large star tip.

Cut cucumber into thick rounds.  Pipe a rosette of cream cheese mixture onto each piece of cucumber.

Top each with two pieces of chopped chives.

Friands

Friands are one of my favourite little treats – I love the lightness and texture that comes from the almond meal and egg white and that there are so many possible flavour combinations.  I went through a bit of a friand phase a while back, and played around a bit with the recipe – and this is the best combination of ingredients I’ve found.  Come up with your own varieties – they’ll be sure to impress!

Ingredients

180g butter, melted and cooled

100g almond meal

50g plain flour

1 ½ cups icing sugar

6 egg whites

¾ cup frozen blueberries

Method

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

Sift almond meal, flour and icing sugar into a bowl.  Stir to combine, then make a well in the centre.

Lightly beat egg whites (with an electric mixer or whisk) then beat lightly into the dry ingredients.  Add butter and stir to combine.

Spoon out into a 12-hole friand pan and sprinkle blueberries on top.

Bake on the third shelf from the top for 20-25 minutes.  Stand in pan for 5 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

Variations:

White chocolate and raspberry: Reduce butter quantity to 100g, and combine with 100g melted white chocolate.  Use raspberries instead of blueberries.

Lemon and coconut:  Add 2 teaspoons of lemon zest and ½ cup coconut to the dry ingredients.  Add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to the wet ingredients.

Dark chocolate and hazelnut: use hazelnut meal instead of almond meal; reduce butter quantity to 100g and combine with 100g of melted dark chocolate.

Apple and cinnamon: top each friand with peeled, sliced apple and sprinkle with cinnamon & sugar.

Gluten-free & dairy-free orange & poppy seed: replace butter with Nuttelex and flour for gluten-free flour.  Add 1 tablespoon of orange rind and 1 tablespoon poppyseeds to the dry ingredients, and a squeeze of orange juice to the wet mixture.  Top with a teaspoon of icing (1 cup icing sugar and a squeeze of orange juice), a small orange segment and a sprinkle of poppyseeds.

Coconut Chicken Salad

A delicious, crisp and fresh salad, perfect for summer nights!  Just use shredded coconut from a packet if you don't have fresh coconut on hand.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons finely chopped lemon grass (white part only)
1 teaspoon shaved palm or soft brown sugar
3 tablespoons lime juice
250ml coconut milk
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
70g mint
1/4 fresh coconut, flesh shaved and toasted
100g snow pea sprouts
2 Lebanese cucumbers, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
lime wedges, to serve

Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

To make the dressing, combine lemon grass, palm sugar, 2 tablespoons of lime juice and the coconut milk in a small saucepan over low heat.  Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure that the sugar has dissolved.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Put the sesame oil and the remaining lime juice in a small bowl.  Add the chicken breasts and toss in the oil and juice before putting in a baking dish.

Drizzle the chicken with the remaining marinade, cover with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.  Remove the chicken and allow to cool.

Roughly shred the chicken and add it to the bowl with the dressing.  Add the mint, coconut, sprouts and cucumber.  Toss together with the sesame seeds.  Serve with a wedge of lime.