sticky 5 spice ribs

This is also nice on chicken but is extremely easy and tasty.

1kg pork ribs
3tbsp hoi sin sauce (blue dragon is 2 syns per tbsp)
2 tsp 5 spice powder
1/2 tsp baking powder

Boil the ribs for 20 minutes
meanwhile mix the remaining ingredients together.
Drain the pork ribs and rinse them under cold water and put in the slow cooker. pour over the sauce and coat the ribs then cook for 2-4 hours on high
or alternatively put the ribs in a sandwich bag with the marinate for 20 minutes then cook in the oven at 190degrees celcius for 20-30 minutes.
very very morish!

sichaun prawns

This dish is good as part of a chinese meal or to serve as a starter.

200g raw, peeled tiger prawns
1/2 tsp sichaun pepper
generous pinch salt
1tsp 5 spice powder

for the sauce: 4 tbsp soy sauce, 1tsp sugar (1syn), 1 spring onion, finely chopped. (all mixed together)

toss the prawns in the 5 spice powder,sichaun pepper and salt.
Get a pan on a high heat.
add the prawns and stir fry.
when they are nearly cooked through add the sauce and toss until it thickens.
Serve hot or warm.
they are nice in lettuce leaf cups.

Peking duck

What? you can have this on slimming world too?!
well of course you can my friend! Just in the right way!
So i usually serve this with my 'fried rice' and garlic greens or sometimes it's just as good in a lettuce wrapper!
i don't usually have these with pancakes so i don't know the syns of those but i know blue dragon hoi sin sauce is currently at 1 syn per tbsp (i usually water it down with a little soy sauce or water and toss it with my duck.

This recipe is purely for the duck. i don't know how many syns it would be for cooking it with the skin on but we boil off the majority of the fat first!!

Where to get a duck? usually in the freezer section. I know aldi have had duck in their frozen section for the past 6 months so you must be able to find them in normal supermarkets too :)

So first off, if using a frozen duck i cannot stress the important of defrosting properly before use! DO NOT just sit it in hot water because there is more chance of you getting food poisoning! Get your duck out of the freezer 24 hours before you need it.. put it on a tray and leave it to do its thing.

Now. Get a big pot of boiling water. stab your duck all over with a fork and boil for 45 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 200oC. After the duck is boiled remove it from the oily water and place directly onto a wire rack. (make sure you have a tray with foil underneath the rack!) cook in the oven for 45 minutes. turn off the oven 10 minutes before removing and have your windows open as there will be smoke!

Remove to a chopping board, remove the skin (yes i know its easy to eat crispy duck and chicken skin but think how well you are doing) grab 2 forks and start shredding!
Done!
How easy?!
I hope you give this recipe a try, it will save you a lot of money from the chinese and a lot of syns!

seafood paella (well.. sort of!)

I love seafood but im quite picky about how it is cooked. i recently found some amazing deals on asda for clams and some crab meat, but you might be able to find some clams and crab at your local fishmonger or in all honestly you could use tinned!

This serves one very hungry person or 2 people with a side salad :)

You will need: 2 crab claws (or a tin of crab), 2 good sized handfuls of cleaned clams (or a tin of clams or a handful or two of prawns, squid or mussels!)
salt and pepper (very important in ANY dish)
1 large shallot, 1 celery stick & 1 carrot (all finely diced)
1 large clove of garlic (grated)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 large tomato (roughly chopped)
1 tbsp tomato puree
zest of lemon (and a bit of the juice to serve)
a kettle of hot water (you can make up fish stock if you have it)
and most importantly some form of short grain/ paella or pudding style rice. a generous handful per person!

i used a non stick pan so i could get a nice crust like you do on a paella style dish.

fry the vegetables until they soften, add the garlic & lemon zest and stir until fragrant.
add the tomato puree and paprika with about a tablespoon of water and mix with the vegetables until you get a paste.
stir through the rice and add about 100ml of water along with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.

turn the heat to low and keep cooking, stirring and adding water for about 15 minutes. at this time add a generous squeeze of lemon juice, another 100-200ml of water depending on how dry your paella is looking and top with the seafood. cover with a lid and set your timer for 15 minutes.
Done :)

i hope you give this recipe ago you can really use anything you want. traditionally saffron is used but something in saffron effects my mouth! just add a pinch of saffron 20 100ml of water (the first 100ml you add) and let it steep for 5 minutes before using!

if you have picky children you could always do a chicken paella and top yours off with some grilled prawns or any other preferred seafood :)

canape cases

Hey guys, so getting closer to christmas i have been experimenting with ideas for parties, i came up with my filo canape cases, you can fill them with anything from spicy indian chicken to mexican prawn salsa, and they are easy!!

25g filo pastry is 3.5 syns. (the filo i buy, one whole sheet is 25g)

I cut my filo into 4 rectangles, then those in half so you get 8.
I double these up and count them as 1 each although i know they are a little less.
i just layer them with a little egg, push them into a mini cupcake tray and spray with fry light and bake at 200oC for 5 minutes, keep an eye on them as they brown easily.
When browned, take them from the oven and leave them to cool before filling with whatever you are using!
Alternatively you could use reduced fat pastry at 4 syns per 25 g.

Over the next few days, i am going to gather up some classic party syns for you guys, just so you are aware when you go to parties how many syns are in things :)

i hope you can make use of this rcipe i will upload a few fillings today or tomorrow!

Tray bake posh fish and chips

OOOH yes.. the fish and chips. well i say chips, mine are usually random cuts of potato that go crispy and delicious. I so need to have this for dinner again soon!

Serves 4 people
4 pieces of fish (your choice what you use!
25g of semolina ( 4 syns)
1 tbsp reduced fat pesto (1.5 syns)
salt and pepper
zest of one large lemon
As many potatoes as you wish, cut into whatever shape you want.
4 onions, cut into wedges (optional)
(i usually serve mine with mushy peas and salad but its your choice entirely)

Put the potatoes on a lined oven tray with the onions spray with fry light and a little salt, put in the oven at 180oC for 30 minutes.
After the 30 minutes. pat your fish dry, in a cup mix your pesto with salt, pepper and the lemon zest. brush each fish with the pesto and press it into the semolina (or sprinkle it over preference again)
Place on top of the potatoes and cook uncovered for 10 minutes, check the fish, depending on the thickness you may need more time, or sometimes less time.
I know you dont exactly get a lovely crisp batter but you still get a little crisp and a punch of flavour from the topping!
(alternatively you could leave out thepesto and without patting the fish dry you could pat on the semolina salt and pepper)

i hope you enjoy!

Chicken casserole

The best chicken casserole/stew is done by using roasted bone in meat, unfortunately if you roast skinless chicken it becomes dry. So we have an alternative! Packed full of speed veggies this meal would be suitable for SP day, you could always have with singing swede mash, if you aren't having an SP day you could always chuck in a couple of tins of potatoes or something! you can also use any P beans you want i just prefer haricot :)

4-6 people
4 rashers extra lean smoked bacon (visible fat removed and cut into small pieces)
6-8 skinless (bone in if you can get it) chicken thighs
4 large carrots (into slices/chunks)
4 large celery sticks (sliced)
2 large leeks (washed, trimmed and sliced)
2 large red onions (peeled and medium diced)
1 large courgette (medium dice)
1 small swede (peeled and diced)
2 tins of haricot beans
salt and pepper to taste (at the end)
chicken bovil 2 tsp in 500ml of hot water
if you have it, 1tsp each of fresh rosemary and thyme, or 1 tsp mixed dried herbs.

Fry off the bacon until it is crispy. (add it to your slow cooker)
Sear the chicken thighs in the same pan (and then into your slow cooker with the swede and carrot)
Fry off the celery, onion, courgette and leeks in batches giving them a little colour.
Add all the ingredients to the slow cooker, cover and cook for at least 4 hours on high or 6-8 on low.
If you do not have the time to add the extra flavour by frying off first, you can always just add everything to the slow cooker.
Enjoy :)

Indian salad/curry topping

yum yum yum
So, that indian salad with tomatoes, onions and aromatic coriander? its very very easy to make at home.
Its delicious to top off salads, or ontop of curries for another dimension, i went through a phase when i first started slimmingworld where the only salad i would eat was this indian salad wrapped in lettuce leaves!!

Another good thing you can adjust it to how you like it!! If you don't like lots of coriander reduce it or remove it completely! you only have limes and not lemons? use them!

1 large red onion, as finely diced as you can get it!
2 large tomatoes finely diced (with all its juiced)
1/4 cucumber finely diced
As much coriander as you want (for this amount i usually go for a handful finely chopped)
juice of half a lemon

Chuck it all in a bowl, toss it together and you are done!!

If you want to remove some of the onion taste soak the onion in a bowl of water with a splash of lemon juice in for 30 minutes, drain them add to your salad!

I hope you guys love this recipe as much as i do. :) (delicious with poppadom, the size you get in the shops are 2.5 each the indian takeaway are 4 each, and for 25 g of mini poppadoms are 6 syns as of 2/12/2015)

Pad see ew (stir fried noodles thai)

So without a doubt one of my favourite thai dishes (because its so easy and tasty) is pad see ew (which is literally translated as fried noodle soy sauce!)
(makes delicious leftovers to bang into the microwave at work!)

If you cannot find these thick rice noodles (you can buy them online at asian grocery stores) just substitute for  tagliatele noodles but cook AL DENTE if the packet says cook for 7-9 minutes, cook for 6 minutes.. how long you cook your noodles for is CRUCIAL for this dish to be delicious!
(no specific serving size, serves one large or 2 small really and is easy to double)
200g thick rice noodles OR 200g of tagliatelle pasta. (cooked to packet instructions just remember to leave off about 3-4 minutes)
3 boneless skinless chicken thigh cut into thin strips (or you can use quorn substitute! maybe 2-3 handfuls?)
1 large white onion sliced into semi circles about 1-2 cm thick
Now here is where i cheat, traditionally the thai use a vegetable called kai-lan, luckily it is very similar to spring greens! use 4-5 leaves of spring greens (take the hard part out of the middle and slice the middle thinly and the leaves into chunks). alternatively you can add fresh green beans and bok choi if you can get it.
2tbsp soy sauce
1tsp oyster sauce (mix all 3 together)
2tbsp water
2 minced or crushed garlic cloves
about 1/2 tsp of fresh cracked black pepper.
Get a pan nice and hot using coconut fry light (adds a beautiful fragrance, if not any frylight of choice)
add the chicken and let it sit for 30 seconds then flip it over and add the hard parts of the greens, let it cook for 30 seconds.
Add the onion and garlic, give the pan a toss and let it sit on the heat for a minute (the key to this dish is a little charring)
Toss and add the leaves of the greens, put the noodles ontop and let it sit for another 30 seconds.
Make sure you mix the ingredients through the noodles really well then add the sauce and coat the noodles.
Let it sit in the pan for 2 minutes until you hear crackling, stir it again or flip it over and let the other side char for 2-3 minutes.
remove from the heat, serve and sprinkle with black pepper and some of my delicious garlic greens which will be my next recipe!!

i hope you give the recipe a try, if making for a whole family only put the black pepper on the adults dishes so it is then still suitable for children. (my sister likes hers with sweet chilli sauce as the sweetness helps to counteract the saltiness of the soy)

:)

Trifle

So, my slimming world consultant loves trifle and i managed to do a whole trifle at about 6 syns..
So with christmas coming up im going to share this recipe with you :D
it seems like a lengthly process but is so worth it for something that tastes like a real trifle rather than something that tastes like yoghurt with jelly dont you think?

you will need: 1packet of jelly crystals, fruit of your choice,
for the sponge 4 large eggs, 6 tsp of self raising flour (on the site it says 0.5 syns per tsp so thats 3 syns), about 1 tbsp sweetener and lemon zest or vanilla to flavour the sponge.
for the custard: 4 large eggs, 200ml unsweetened almond milk (0.5syns per 100ml) sweetener to taste and some good vanilla extract or if you have it a tsp of vanilla bean paste or a vanilla pod, sweetener to taste.

So let's start with the sponge, if you have a stand mixer or hand mixer brilliant, if not.. you have a lot of whisking sorry! preheat the oven to 180oC
Whisk the 4 large eggs until tripled in volume, thick, voluminous, and when you draw an 8 on top stays there for a few seconds! next  with a spatula or metal spoon (never use a wooden spoon to fold as the surface of the spoon breaks up all the air bubbles you managed to get in there!) fold in the sweetener and flavouring, next sieve or sprinkle over the flour and gently fold it into the mix. Next pour it into your baking trap and pop it into the oven for 25 minutes, the cake should lightly spring bake and a skewer should come out clean! Leave to cool.
meanwhile prepare your fruit and jelly.
The cake should be cool enough to remove from the pan, tear it into decent chunks (or shop if you prefer) layer it into your dish. top with the fruit (now really we want to wait a little for our jelly mix to cool so..)
Meanwhile in a bowl over simmering water whisk your 4 eggs until they are thick and creamy (you could use a hand mixer for this as you will be mixing for 5-10 minutes)
Remove from the heat. (warm your unsweetened almond milk in the microwave for 40 seconds)
whisk in the almond milk a little at a time, add back to the heat if it goes too runny!
add your flavouring and sweetener, put cling film actually on your custard to stop a film from forming on it.
now, add your jelly to the fruit/sponge and put it into the fridge to set. 3-6 hours
Once set whisk your custard up then pour over the top (sprinkle with a little cinnamon if you like, cover with cling film and leave in the fridge till you need it! it will last at least 3 days)
when you serve the trifle use the weight watchers cream (make sure its the thick cream not creme fraiche) it is 1 syn per tablespoon, so depending how many syns you want will depend on how much cream you use!

Enjoy this recipe if you have any feedback i would be greatful!

Crutons

Hey guys, so sometimes we do need just that little bit of cracker.. but sometimes ryvita do not cut it :O there i said it!

So, with christmas coming up where canapés loom, i have used an idea from my favourite youtubers sorted food!

So we start off with a pack of warbutons thins bagels!
6syns for a whole bagel.
from there you want to cut her in half so you get 2  'C' shapes. then you will cut out loads of discs 1-2 cm thick.
Just divide the amount of syns by the amount of bagel slices you end up with for example you can usually get at least 3 slices for only half a syn!!

Lay them on a baking tray, spray with sunflower frylight bake for 4 minutes at 200oC but keep an eye on them, flip them over and cook for a further 2-3 minutes let them cool they should be really crisp. Even better make your own ceasar salad crutons by spraying them with garlic fry light, salt and pepper before baking!

Top this off with your favourite SW pate or topping and the job is a goodun. Keep in an airtight container or ziplock bag somewhere relatively warm and dry for a couple of weeks!

Beef kofte bites

You can use these babies in the SW kofte curry which is delicious, or in a morrocan tagine or are just as amazing as a snack, in your lunch or as a party canape!
Want to know the best part? (lean in closely...) NO SYNS (insert happy dance of deliciousness)

500g Extra lean beef mince (it is amazing with lamb mince but i have NEVER found the syn free extra lean lamb mince :( )
1 small red onion (finely diced, or even easier grate it in your food processor with the garlic)
1 large garlic clove.. or 3 small (it sounds like a lot but it isnt)
3tbsp water
1tbsp ground coriander and ground cumin
1tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground oregano
(if you want to kick it up add about half a tsp of ground chilli powder)
generous pinch of salt and black pepper
dipping sauce: 1 small tub 0% fat total greek yoghurt, 1/4 grated cucumber, small handful shredded mint, pinch of salt and pepper (combine together i sometimes add a squeeze of lemon juice but that is optional)

So again my water trick, the extra lean mince needs a little extra moisture and it really absorbs the water, trust me!

So,mix the mince with the water until it has absorbed, then combine all the herbs and spices mixing thoroughly. cover and leave for the flavours to mix for at least half an hour (you could do this bit a day before!)
i wear gloves, measure out either a heaped tsp OR a level tablespoon of mix, roll into balls and but on the baking tray.
bake at 200oC for 5 minutes, turn and give them another 3-4 minutes.

Once cooked and cooled you can freeze these and they can last for 2months in the freezer (trust me i have food and safety hygiene at supervisor level) pull these babies out whenever you need them, chuck them in a curry, soup, tagine or let them defrost and blast them in the microwave in a  single layer for 4 minutes!

Asian 'Dim sum' appetisers

Low in syn, these tasty little balls of yummyness disappear pretty quickly, the best part? once they are cooked they can be frozen then bought out for stir fries, soups or even again for canapes!

You will need: 500g extra lean pork mince,
 6 raw prawns (can be frozen and defrosted, if you want you can go to the fish counter and just use 3 of those huge tiger prawns!)
3 spring onions,
1 large stick of celery,
2 large grated garlic cloves (or tsp of garlic paste or one of those frozen blocks),
 1 tsp grated ginger,
3 tbsp water,
2tbsp soy sauce, pinch salt, generous pinch of black pepper,
2 tsp sesame oil (i use asda or tesco own brad which is 2syns per tsp, really this dish has negligible syns as you could not eat this many in one go)
(sometimes i add some finely diced water chestnuts for some extra texture but lets stick to the basic mix today!)

So you can make this in a food processor, if you are going to do it that way, add the spring onions, gelery, ginger, garlic, soy, sesame and water with the prawns to the processor and pulse until the prawns are finely chopped. add this into the pork mince and mix really really well until it almost goes a little pappy. (cover and set in the fridge.)

if you are doing this WITHOUT the processor (my preffered method) grate the celery into the pork mince and stir in with the water and soy sauce. sprinkle over the soy, salt, pepper, ginger, garlic and sesame oil stir throuroughly. finally chop the prawns intp small pieces i usually butterfly then chop finely from there. Add into the pork and stir through. (you may think adding water to mince is very odd BUT it helps with the texture and the meat really absorbs it all, it also helps to absorb the flavours)

After resting your 'meat dough' i usually use my smallest ice cream scoop (similar to a large melon baller or about a tsp of mix) roll into a ball and place on a baking tray (my preferred way or you can boil or fry them)

I bake mine at 190oC for 6 minutes, turn them over and cook for another 4-5 minutes. i usually serve mine on a platter with some cocktail sticks  with some chilli sauce OR you can use 1tbsp of soy sauce to 1tbsp white wine vinegar (or if you have it chinese black vinegar yum yum)