Unslimming World

Crispy Shredded Beef

2012-04-19T12:52:00.002+01:00

Warning: This is not a diet friendly recipe!

For those who want the recipe only, see below, for those who want step by step picture recipe I'm afraid you will have to wait a bit longer...

This recipe makes a very generous 2 peoples portion.

Ingredients:
4 Eggs
1 tsp Salt
3 tbsp Cornflour
600-700g Beef cut into thin strips (I used steaks and cut them up)
Vegetable Oil for frying
2 Carrots - cut into matchstick size pieces or grated
1 bunch Spring Onions - Roughly chopped
3 cloves Fresh Garlic - chopped
3 tbsp Sugar
2 tbsp White Rice Vinegar
4 tbsp Sweet Chilli Sauce
1 tbsp Light Soy Sauce

Method:
Mix the cornflour with 1 egg until there are no lumps left. Once the mixture is very smooth, add the other eggs and the salt. Mix well. Pour the egg mixture over the meat, making sure it comes in contact with all the pieces.

Heat a wok or a very deep frying pan full of oil (enough for the meat to be deep fried to be well done). When hot, add the pieces of meat one by one. Don't stir for approx 10 seconds, then stir to ensure the pieces don't stick together. Cook for approx 6-7 mins until brown and crispy. Remove from pan and drain. (Depending how big your pan is and how much meat you are doing, you may have to do the meat in batches).

Once you have finished frying all the meat, drain the oil from the pan, leaving a small amount to be able to stir fry veggies.

Add the carrots, spring onions and garlic to the pan and stir fry for a few minutes until the carrots are slightly soft, but should still have a crunch to them. Add the sugar, vinegar, chilli sauce and soy sauce and mix well.

Add the meat to the veggie/ sauce mixture. Mix well and fry over until all the sauce is absorbed.

I served this with a noodle stir fry, it was a lot cheaper and better then Metsuyan!!!

Crumb Cake

2011-10-11T17:59:00.006+01:00

Ingredients:
3 cups Flour
100g Marg (1 stick)
1/2 cup Oil
1 1/2 cups Sugar
2 1/2 tsps Vanilla
2 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
3 Eggs
1 small Whip (not whipped up)

Mix flour, marg, oil, sugar and vanilla to make a crumb mixture. (You can do this by hand, but much easier to do in the machine).

Once mixed well, take off 1 1/4 cups of the crumbs and set aside. To the main mixture add the baking powder, eggs and whip and mix well to create a batter.

Pour into a 9 x 13 (or various smaller containers).

Spread mixture evenly over the container.

Sprinkle mixture with the set aside crumbs.

Bake on 180 for 30-45 minutes. Test with a toothpick to see if its done.

Et voila!

Chocolate Chip Oat Biscuits

2011-10-11T17:42:00.005+01:00

Ingredients:
1 cup Oil
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup White Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
2 1/2 cups Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Oats
1/2 cup Chocolate Chips

Mix all ingredients besides oats and chocolate chips. Once dough is mixed well, add oats and chocolate chips and mix them in well.

Roll into balls and place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Allow biscuits room to spread.

Bake for 10-12 minutes in a preheated oven on 175.

If you want soft, chewy biscuits, they should still be quite soft when they come out of the oven as they will harden a bit as they cool.

These biscuits freeze well.

Et Voila!

Baked Schnitzel

2011-10-03T21:39:00.007+01:00

Ingredients:
1 Chicken or Turkey Breast
1/8 cup Ketchup
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
1/3 cup Cornflake Crumbs
1/4 cup Matza Meal
Garlic Powder

(Amounts based on 1 piece of chicken, so multiply recipe as you need it)

Cut up chicken into thin flat pieces.

Mix ketchup, mayo and garlic powder.

Mix cornflake crumbs with matza meal.

Coat chicken pieces in ketchup/mayo mix, wipe off excess and then coat in crumbs mixture.

Place on a tray lined with greaseproof paper. Bake uncovered on high for 20 minutes.

Et Voila!

Individual Ice Cream

2011-10-03T19:21:00.004+01:00

Ice cream is one of the most common used desserts. Make it more interesting by shaping moulds!

Leave ice cream to thaw for a few minutes so that it is workable. Spoon into any shaped silicone mould - this way it is easy to pop them out once frozen.

Re freeze ice cream in the mould. You can leave it in the mould until you are ready to serve or pop them out earlier and store in a container.

Simple and easy but so much nicer than the regular scoop (that comes out as half a scoop..)

Garnish as you wish!

Et Voila!

Spicy Baby Potatoes

2011-10-02T19:39:00.018+01:00

Ingredients:
Baby Potatoes
Oil
Spices

Wash the potatoes. You can leave them whole or cut them in halves or quarters. Toss with oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika (you can add or take more spices if you wish). Mix well.

Cook uncovered on 175 for 45+ minutes (depending how big potatoes are)

Carrot and Onion Rice

2011-10-02T19:39:00.016+01:00

Ingredients:
2 small to medium Onions or 1 large
4 small Carrots or 2 large
1 cup Basmati Rice
2 tbsp Oil
2 cups Water or stock

Dice onions and carrots and fry over in the oil for a couple of minutes.

Add rice and fry for another couple of minutes.

Add salt and mix well. Add water, bring to a boil, stir then cover and lower heat and cook for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, turn off flame but do not lift lid or stir. Leave lid on for 5 minutes before fluffing with a fork.

Et Voila!

Spinach and Broccoli Salad

2011-10-02T19:39:00.009+01:00

Ingredients:
Spinach
Broccoli
Avacado
Red Onion
Roasted Pine Nuts
Shredded Red Cabbage - optional

Dressing:
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Curry - optional
1 tsp Mustard
2 tbsp Honey
1/4 cup Grape Juice
1/4 cup White Vinegar
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Olive or Regular Oil
Sprinkle of Garlic Powder

Mix dressing ingredients in advance and toss on salad just before serving.

Peanut Butter Salad

2011-10-02T19:38:00.003+01:00

Ingredients:
Red Cabbage
White Cabbage
Red Pepper
Carrots
Spring Onions

Dressing:
1/2 cup Oil
2 cloves Fresh Garlic
1 tbsp Soya Sauce
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Vinegar
1 tsp Salt
3/4 tbsp Peanut Butter (I put way more than that because we like peanut butter)

Shred both cabbages. Cut pepper into half strips. Cut carrots into matchstick size pieces. Slice Spring Onions.

Prepare dressing in advance and toss over salad just before serving.

Red Cabbage Crouton Salad

2011-10-02T19:37:00.016+01:00

Ingredients:
Red Cabbage

Dressing:
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
1 tbsp Honey
1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
Sprinkle of Salt and Pepper

Onion and Garlic Croutons
Nuts - optional

Shred cabbage. In a separate bowl/ container mix dressing ingredients. Taste and adjust if necessary. Toss on salad just before serving and pour croutons on top.

Lettuce Salad

2011-10-02T19:37:00.013+01:00

Ingredients:
Iceberg Lettuce
Ramen Noodle Soup Packet
Oil
Salt
Pepper

Wash and check lettuce. Cut up into small pieces. Season with salt. pepper and oil. Inside the ramen pack the seasoning comes separate - use half of the seasoning pack on salad. Crush noodles in the packet and toss over salad.

That simple!

Popcorn Chicken

2011-10-02T19:37:00.010+01:00

Ingredients:
2lb Chicken Cutlets

Batter:
2 tsp Oil
1 tsp Paprika
1 tsp Salt
2 Eggs
½ cup Water
1 cup Flour
½ tsp Baking Powder

Sauce - optional
1 ½ cups Duck Sauce
¾ tbsp Soy Sauce
3 tbsp Honey
2 tsp Corn Starch
½ cup Water

1/2 cup Sesame Seeds - optional

Cut up chicken into bite size pieces.

Mix all batter ingredients besides flour. Slowly add flour making sure no lumps. Mix well.

Dip each piece of chicken in batter. Wipe off excess batter and fry for a couple of minutes either side.

To check if done, slice open one piece. If still pink, return to pan for another couple of minutes. If white, it is ready. Continue until you have used up all chicken.

Mix dressing ingredients and pour over chicken. If you are using sesame seeds, sprinkle over sauce. (I did not do the sauce, yet they still came out delicious). Bake uncovered on 200 for 15 minutes.

Et Voila!

Mushroom and Barley Soup

2011-09-27T14:41:00.010+01:00

Ingredients:
Barley - Pinhead or Regular
Mushrooms
Onions
Fresh Garlic
Salt and Pepper
Oil

Soak the barley by putting it in a container or bowl and covering it with boiling hot water. Cover well and leave to soak for at least an hour. (The longer you leave it for the better, as this reduces the stodginess in the soup making it nice and light). If you cannot soak the barley before you can still make the soup but it will be more stodgy and will need top ups of water during cooking.

Dice and fry onions until they are translucent and slightly golden.

Add chopped mushrooms and chopped garlic.

Fry until the mushrooms go soft.

Add the drained barley and fry over for a couple of minutes.

Add salt, pepper and enough to water until almost the top of the pot.

(If you use boiling water, it will come to the boil a lot quicker). Cover and bring to a boil. Lower flame and cook for 1 hour if barley is pre soaked or 2-3 hours if barley is not pre soaked.

Et Voila!

Tzimmes

2011-09-26T23:39:00.006+01:00

Ingredients:
Carrots - either fresh or frozen
Oil
Salt
Sugar
Honey
Cinnamon

I used frozen sliced carrots. If you are using fresh, peel them and slice them.

Fry the carrots with a generous amount of oil so all carrots are covered, but not too much.

Fry for as long as the carrots need until they are quite soft and shrunk quite a bit.

Season with a sprinkle of salt and cinnamon, a couple of tablespoons of sugar and honey. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Fry over for a few more minutes.

Once cooked, tzimmes can be frozen.

Serve hot.

Et Voila!

Apple Crumble

2011-09-26T16:16:00.013+01:00

Ingredients:
1lb Self Raising Flour
8oz Sugar
8oz Margarine

Apples
Sugar
Cinnamon

Mix flour, sugar and margarine together to make crumbs. You can do this by hand or even easier in the machine.

These crumbs freeze very well so I like to do a batch and keep some in the freezer so I could always throw together a dessert lastminute.com! Even after making a batch I still had leftover crumble so I've frozen it!

The official recipe uses cooking apples, but I like to use golden delicious because they aren't as bitter.

Peel and core apples. Leave them in cold water whilst you are preparing the other apples so they dont go brown.

I used 20 apples and this was enough for a medium crumble and 24 small ones.

Once you have peeled and cored all the apples, you can either chop them or grate them. (By hand or machine).

Sprinkle a generous amount of sugar on apples and a small sprinkle of cinnamon (more if you like more). Mix well. At this stage the apples will be a bit brown because of the cinnamon but you need to work quickly so that the apples dont go brown themselves. Make sure you have done your toilet break etc before you start grating the apples.

Put a little bit of the crumble mixture at the bottom of each container.

Next, put some of the apple mixture.

Top with a generous amount of crumble mixture. Sprinkle cinnamon on top.

A large one:

Bake uncovered for 30-45 minutes. (smaller ones shorter time, larger ones longer time).

These freeze very well, just defrost and heat up when ready to serve.

Serve Hot!

Et Voila!

Challah for Rosh Hashanah

2011-09-26T16:02:00.024+01:00

Ingredients
Any Challah Dough

On Rosh Hashanah we use round challah, this challah is much nicer then the traditional plain round ones.

Take 4 equal pieces of dough. I used 9oz pieces for the large challah and 5oz pieces for the medium challah.

Roll each piece of dough. Once you have rolled all 4, re roll the first one and continue with all pieces (this is because the dough stretches back after you have rolled it initially).

Lay 2 rolls lengthways and then weave the other 2 pieces across.

This whole method is weaving, but rather then go under - over - under - over etc, first go over for a whole circle, and then under a whole circle and then over again etc.

Once you have used most of the roll and its hard to go another round because the pieces aren't long enough, tuck all the end pieces underneath the challah.

Place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and cover with a tea towel.

Leave to rise for 30-40 minutes.

To make one challah that is split into a few small ones so easy to break off for motzei:

Take equal amounts of challah. I used 1oz pieces.

Roll each piece and make into its own challah.

Turn over.

In a round dish, place one challah in the middle and all the others around the middle one so they are all next to each other and as they rise they will stick to one another. Cover with a tea towel.

If you don't want to knot each challah, you can use plain round balls of challah and place in dish in the same way.

Leave to rise for 30-40 minutes.

Brush with egg, sprinkle with sesame/ poppy seeds. If you want you can sprinkle brown sugar on top - it gets caramelised and tastes delish!

Bake uncovered on 200 for 30-40 minutes.

Et Voila!

Matbucha/ Chackchuka

2011-09-26T16:02:00.007+01:00

Ingredients:
Peppers any Colour
Fresh Garlic
Tin of Chopped Tomatoes
Oil
Salt

Cut up peppers into half strips. Cut up garlic into slices or small pieces.

Fry over the pepper and garlic. If you skimp on the oil, the peppers wont taste as nice...

Once the peppers are mostly soft, sprinkle with salt and add the chopped tomatoes.

Fry covered on a low flame for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

This dip freezes very well so I usually make a big batch of it and freeze it in portions.

Et voila!

Roasted Garlic Potatoes

2011-09-26T15:56:00.004+01:00

Ingredients:
Baby Potatoes
Salt
Oil
Fresh Garlic

Cut up potatoes in slices, quarters or halves. Crush lots of fresh garlic (I used 1 whole garlic to 1 bag potatoes). Toss with oil and a sprinkle of salt - doesn't need much because of the quantity of garlic.

Bake uncovered on 200 for 40 minutes tossing occasionally during cooking time.

If you want a very strong taste of garlic, put 3/4 of the crushed garlic on before baking and the last 1/4 about 10 minutes before the end of cooking time.

Note: If you line pan with greaseproof paper, the potatoes won't stick so much so easier to toss.

Et Voila!

Chocolate Biscuits

2011-09-25T16:49:00.007+01:00

Ingredients:
8oz Margarine
4oz Sugar
1 tbsp Vanilla Sugar/ Essence
2oz Cocoa
8oz Flour

Cream the margarine, sugar and vanilla (either with the back of a spoon or machine. I find it easiest to do with a hand held machine).

Add cocoa and mix well.

Add flour and mix well.

You can freeze the dough at this stage and then defrost it when you want fresh biscuits without the hassle of making the dough. For this reason I made a double recipe and froze half of the dough.

Roll into balls and place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper.

Press each one down with a fork dipped in cold water.

Bake in a preheated oven on 175 for 10-12 minutes.

Biscuits should still be soft when you take them out the oven and they will harden as they cool.

Once cooked, the biscuits freeze well.

Et Voila!

Challah Napkin Rings

2011-09-25T16:48:00.001+01:00

Ingredients:
Any Challah Dough

Wrap silver foil over paper towel holders. If you don't have any, you can do it on a rolling pin too - I used both. To wrap the silver foil, make sure to do it lengthwise:

Take 3 equal pieces of dough and make a normal plaited challah. (I weighed each piece so they were all 1oz pieces).

Wrap the plait around the foil covered holder making sure the ends overlap slightly and pinch both ends together well. Turn over so the ends are at the bottom.

Support the holders by placing them on a tray lined with greaseproof paper.

Cover with a tea towel and leave to rise for 20-30 minutes.

Brush with egg, sprinkle with sesame/ poppy seeds.

Bake for 20-30 minutes.

Leave to cool before removing from holders. If they wont come off the rolling pins easily, snip the silver foil at one end and pull them off with the silver foil. You will then be able to remove them from the foil.

To keep them fresh store them in a plastic bag.

Each 3oz challah is a decent size for everyone to have their own.

Note: If you put the challah towards the end of the napkin, the top of the napkin can be used to fold back and cover the challah for Kiddush!

Et Voila!

Sesame Chicken

2011-09-14T17:29:00.010+01:00

Ingredients:
1lb Chicken Cutlets
Egg
Flour
3/4 cup Water
3/4 cup Ketchup
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
Seasoning

Cut up chicken into bite size pieces.

Pour a raw scrambled egg over the chicken and mix it in so all pieces get some.

Season flour - I use salt, pepper, paprika and garlic powder - mix in well. Coat all pieces of chicken.

Fry for 1 minute either side and drain on some paper towel. Place in an oven proof dish.

In a bowl/ container, mix together the water, ketchup and sugar. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake uncovered on 180 for 15 minutes.

Et Voila!

Challah

2011-09-11T12:40:00.017+01:00

HALF a recipe ingredients:
First Part:
5 1/2 oz Strong White Bread/Challah Flour
3 oz Sugar
1 1/2 oz Fresh Yeast
6 oz Boiled Tepid Water (very important for the water not to be too hot as it will kill the yeast. You should be able to dip your finger into the water and it should be comfortable.)

Second Part:
2 Eggs
3 tsp Salt
2 fl oz Oil
6 oz Boiled Tepid Water (for this part, its ok if the water has cooled down)
1 1/2 lbs Strong White Bread/Challah Flour

FULL recipe ingredients:
First part:
11 oz Strong White Bread/Challah Flour
6 oz Sugar
2 oz Fresh Yeast
12 fl oz Boiled Tepid Water (very important for the water not to be too hot as it will kill the yeast. You should be able to dip your finger into the water and it should be comfortable.)

Second Part:
3 Eggs
6 tsp Salt
4 fl oz Oil
12 oz Boiled Tepid Water (for this part, its ok if the water has cooled down)
3 lb Strong White Bread/Challah Flour

If you are doing the half a recipe you can not make a Brachah or take Challah unless you are making it at the same time as another dough making up the required amount (2 lbs 11 oz - 3 lbz 11 oz can take challah without a Brachah. 3 lb 11 oz or more can take Challah with a Brachah).

I like to make the half recipe because I don't have so much freezer space for a full batch. I also like to make a full batch when I can so that I am able to make a Brachah

Mix together the first part of the ingredients. Cover with a tea towel. Leave for 10-15 minutes.

The mixture should either have grown a bit or have bubbles in it.

Second Part: Add the eggs, oil and salt and mix well. Add the rest of the water and mix again. Add the flour and mix it in well. Knead dough for 5-10 minutes. Mine is best kneaded when done by Yankel. Good kneading equals easier rolling out.
(sorry forgot to take pic of dough!)

Once the dough is kneaded, coat the outside of the dough with a bit of oil - I then put it into a new bin bag to rise. You can also leave it in the bowl that you mix it in and cover it well with cling film.

Leave the dough to rise for 2 hours in a warm place (airing cupboard, boiling cupboard etc.) If you dont have a warm cupboard it will still rise, just may need a little longer.

Roll out dough. When rolling out, you may need to have some flour on the surface so that the dough is manageable but try not to add too much flour as you dont want the dough to become too heavy.

To make individual challos:

Turn over.

To plait:
Take 3 equal pieces of dough and roll out each one and then plait them all together.

Place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper and cover with a tea towel. Leave to rise a further 20-30 minutes. It is important to cover them whilst they are rising for the second time so that the dough does not dry out.

Brush with egg and sprinkle sesame/ poppy seeds (optional). Bake on 200 for 20 - 30 minutes.

Note: You can prepare the dough a day in advance and put it in the fridge over night. If you are doing so, remove from fridge and allow to warm up at least 2-3 hours before wanting to roll out challos.

Et Voila!

Sausage Rolls

2011-09-11T12:39:00.018+01:00

Ingredients:
1 roll ready rolled Puff Pastry
4 bags Tivall cocktail sausages or any meaty cocktail sausages
1 Egg
Sesame Seeds- optional

A roll of pastry is enough for about four packets of sausages (Tivall). This makes about 90-100 sausages. (I know you are thinking that's a lot, but you need quite a few to fill a bowl or a platter and they always disappear!)
Once these are prepared, they freeze very well. I like to prepare a whole packet and then freeze them in bags. This way you can take out portions at a time.

Open the puff pastry and unroll the beginning part only (If you unroll too much, it goes dry). Cut strips downwards about 2 fingers wide. Then cut strips the other way so you are splitting the pastry into four sections. Don't worry if you have not cut the pastry exactly straight - it is very stretchy if needs be.

Roll a piece of pastry around each sausage (no need to defrost sausages). Place seem side down.

After you have done a few, slice 3 small diagonal slices on top of each roll. If you are baking immediately place on a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. If you are preparing in advance, place them in a plastic bag in a single layer.

Repeat process until you have used up all the pastry.

When you are ready to bake them, brush each one with raw egg.

If you have prepared in advance, take out of freezer an hour before wanting to bake. If you want, you can sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake on 200 for 20-30 minutes. When you remove them from the oven, it is normal for the sausages to look very blown up and they will shrink as they cool.

Serve room temperature or hot.

Et Voila!

Pasta Salad

2011-09-11T12:39:00.008+01:00

Ingredients:
Pasta - any shape
Pickles
Sweetcorn
Mayonnaise
Salt and Pepper

Boil pasta according to packet instructions. Allow to completely cool. (If not, the pasta will just absorb the mayonnaise...)

Add the corn and diced pickles. Dress with mayonnaise, salt and pepper.

Serve room temperature.

Et Voila!

Potato Salad

2011-09-11T12:39:00.007+01:00

Ingredients:
Potatoes
Mayonnaise
Pickles
Spring Onions
Salt and Pepper

Boil potatoes either whole or partially cut up in salted water. To see if they are done, poke with a knife. If it goes through very easily, potatoes are done. If not, they need cooking a bit longer. Once potatoes are cooked, drain and set aside until they are completely cool. (If you do not wait until they are completely cool, the potatoes will just absorb the mayonnaise...)

Once cool, dice the potatoes, add cut up pickles and spring onions and dress with mayonnaise, salt and pepper.

Serve room temperature.

Et Voila!