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Bacon Wrapped Roast with Sage & Apple Stuffing
I created quite a few recipes for Christmas last year and I enjoyed every minute of it. When I first started my Instagram page and blog two years ago, I never went out of my way to create recipes to share. I made them because I was either craving the food at the time or wanting to try something different to mix up my diet and if it was good, then I’d post the recipe here. I had a lot of fun last year and I couldn’t wait to get started on writing more recipes this year. Continue reading “Bacon Wrapped Roast with Sage & Apple Stuffing”
A Full Day of Eating
Here I am staying true to my word with the Full Day of Eating post I promised you all last week. Although, if this had been yesterday then I’d still be writing the post today because I ate a lot of food and I enjoyed every morsel; which is the whole point I guess. I’ve noticed since I’ve been eating more carbs that I haven’t been craving sugary foods as much as I usually would and I hadn’t actually eaten any white or milk chocolate for three weeks before Pancake Day, even then I didn’t feel like it; I just ate it for the sake of eating it. These days I tend to crave natural sugars such as: stewed berries, bananas, natural syrups, sultanas, white rice and anything with oat flour. I think people think that I don’t eat very healthy because of the stuff I post to Instagram, but the majority of what I do post is made from healthier whole ingredients and when I’m not posting to Instagram, I’m chowing down on foods like I’ve posted below; which the folks of Instagram don’t really appreciate as much, as the chocolate and peanut butter. Even I go through my Instagram feed sometimes and question the food, but then I realise that I have finally found balance and a better relationship with food, so who cares!
I did my monthly food shop on the weekend and It always shocks me when I get around to it because even though I keep certain foods stocked up throughout the weeks, you can bet when it’s time to do my monthly shop I need more than I thought I did. Although this food shop was different to all of my previous food shopping lists because this time I didn’t buy any of my usual staples: eggs, butter, cheese and milk. It was a first for me, as I’ve never gone a day without dairy or eggs before, so not buying them is a first. While I haven’t cut them out completely from my diet, I haven’t been eating them as much either, so I felt it wasn’t necessary to buy them. I’d like to think that saved me a pretty penny, but I doubt it. I did however, buy some items that I swore I would never buy: soy yoghurt and tofu. I think I have started to fear these foods more than anything else because soy does have a lot of stigma surrounding the effects it has on the thyroid gland, which is why I have always tried to stay away from it. However, I decided that I already have a messed up thyroid anyway and as the soy content in the products isn’t very high, I would eat these in moderation. Plus, they were on offer so that swung it for me too.
Breakfast – 11pm
I never really ate muesli until recently. I’ve always been a savoury breakfast kind of girl and eggs, cheese and Quorn sausages have always played a huge part in that. So when I wake up fancying something sweet, it’s always a surprise to me. This muesli concoction, while delicious is more of a summer-time breakfast, which it most certainly isn’t. But, as the muesli had plenty of different elements to it, it wasn’t boring and I enjoyed it. I topped the muesli with stewed berries, sultanas, pumpkin seeds, coconut syrup and Alpro, vanilla dairy free yoghurt. 
I did also make a vegan mocha protein shake from the gardenia plantbased protein too and I also added Sukrin brown sugar alternative to it with half a cup of Almond Breeze, reduced sugar almond milk as well; but the protein powder ruined it for me. So I didn’t end up adding it to my breakfast because it was VILE!
As for the Alpro vanilla yoghurt, it was so good. Although, I don’t know what I was expecting, maybe tofu blended into a yoghurt. But it tasted like the real deal: nicely sweetened, creamy and I noticed it had loads of tiny flecks of vanilla through it too. I also bought the plain Alpro to use as ‘mayonnaise’ in sandwiches.
Lunch – 1pm
Did you see those huge protein oat pancakes that I posted to my Instagram yesterday? They were delcious and topped with about 10 different toppings. I’m sure of it. I loved them and I came so close to making them again today for lunch. But as I ate sweet for breakfast I needed something savoury for lunch. I decided to try and make a protein spinach wrap out of oat flour; which I wasn’t sure was going to work and it didn’t – they sucked! Although, my dog ate them and seemed to enjoy them. Instead I made a quick minestrone soup with whatever root vegetables I could find in my fridge and tossed in some Rizopia pasta shapes for a touch of nostalgia. It reminded me of the kid soup that I used to eat when I was younger, but with chunky veg, a little kick and a lot of nutrition. Obviously there was a slice of buttered crusty white bread on the side too, which I spread with vegan spread – don’t say the M word please *eye roll* 😉 I will be posting the recipe for the minestrone soup next week and you can check out the Rizopia Fantasia pasta shapes here.
Afternoon Snack – 3pm
I’ve been craving nutri-grain bars for months, but from experience I know that high sugar foods never taste as good as I remember and they always leave me dissatisfied. So I made my own cereal bars this morning. They are vegan and the batter/dough was so bloody good. I guess I rolled them out too much before I baked them though, because the filling was sparse in the finished product. I still enjoyed far too many: they weren’t overly sweet and had a nice grainy texture to them. I also fed one to my sister and she enjoyed them; even went as far, as to say that they tasted like the real thing. I’m not so sure about that, but I did enjoy them. I filled my ‘nutri-grain bars with the date jam that I made a few weeks ago and coated the bars in extra oats too – they were good: packed with nutrition and naturally sweetened. My dog definitely didn’t get to eat these.
Dinner – 6pm
The weather this morning was lovely, but extremely cold. Although, I do I enjoy the cold, Spring, icy mornings. But come the afternoon it changed: the heavens opened and down came the rain. I would sell my right arm to go somewhere warm right now and FYI that is my most dominant arm, so you can see how desperate I am 😉 Comfort food was definitely on tonight’s agenda and a hot steak and gravy pie by Quorn was exactly what I needed. I served it with some roasted baby parsnips, carrots and hassleback potatoes with a homemade gravy that could have a killed a man. I’m just so glad I didn’t add it all to my food because I would have probably been in A&E from dehydration and liver failure – so salty! I ended up making a small amount of Bisto vegetable gravy and thoroughly enjoying this whole meal, plus those baby parsnips were to die for. Quorn have always done very nice vegetarian pies and they are packed with flavour, in my humble opinion. I just hope they get a move on with their vegan range and start adding more products to it.
Evening Snack – 9pm
I picked up these bags of chips the same time I made my Holland and Barrett order the other week. The propercorn has all gone now, but I did get a few bags of these weird chips that seem to be all the rage at the moment; over social media. I did plan to save them for nine, but around a certain time of the month I become uncontrollably ravenous, so I opened them not long after I ate my dinner and boy are they good. They remind me of the Square crisps, but with a lot more flavour and a huge kick from the chilli; plus a nice crunch. I couldn’t taste the lemon as the chilli was very overpowering. The best thing is that there is approximately 130cals in a 28g serving – just over half of the bag – and they are much lower in fat than potato crisps: healthier and tastier too. I would definitely recommend these. I can’t wait to try the Quinoa chips and also the Hummus chips I bought too.
And that’s it. Another full day of eating which was mostly vegan. I did have three or four cups of coffee too and I had a rare can of diet pepsi, which I never have, but I fancied and it tasted awesome.
For more recipes, reviews and ideas follow me on Instagram and tag me in any of my recipes you decide to try.
Where Do You Get Your Protein From?
What do you do at 12.30am on a Sunday morning, when you can’t sleep? Me. I think of blogposts that I can write and then write said blogposts, even though I have numerous other blogposts that I have a.) Not finished or b.) Finished, but haven’t posted. All done while watching repeat episodes of Gogglebox. Although, my best recipe ideas are often created late at night on a hungry stomach, so hopefully this post will be just as successful on little sleep. Continue reading “Where Do You Get Your Protein From?”
Vegetarian Herb Pate
Do you have a vegetarian or vegan visiting you over the Christmas period? Are you are at a loss as to what to serve them? I know it can be stressful to cook at Christmas time – there’s just so much to get done – then throw a vegetarian or vegan into the mix and you have yourself a very stressful little Christmas; as you not only have to be extra vigilant with the ingredients, but you also have to be aware of cross contamination too. Well, look no further my little beauties because I have you all covered with this delicious vegetarian herb pate, which can also be adapted to suit vegans too. It’s so good in fact, it will have your guests singing the famous words in chorus – “Please Sir, can I have some more?”.
As always I used Quorn in this pate recipe, as I have a lot of respect for the brand and everything they have tried to accomplish over the years for not only vegetarians, but also people who are trying to lead a healthier life and cut back on fat and meat. I’ve eaten Quorn since I was 11 years old and like a fine wine, it has only got better with time. It’s funny because most people assume humans can only get their essential amino acids from meat, but Quorn products actually contain all of the amino acids that an adult requires; it’s also high in protein and fibre too with some of their products being low carb, gluten free and now vegan as well. I know what you’re all thinking ‘She must be affiliated with Quorn in some way or another!’ and that’s simply not true. I just love their products, as they are all versatile and I think this vegetarian herb pate is a perfect example of just how versatile it actually is, not only that, but I love the flavour too.
Jar Sterilising
If you plan to make this ahead of time then you will need to sterilise the jars which you intend storing the pate in, but don’t worry, it’s not hard. Take your jars, wash them in hot soapy water, then place them in the oven for 40 minutes to an hour at 200c. Remove them and leave them cool at room temperature. Do not run the jars under cold water, as they will crack.
Ingredients
- 120g Quorn Mince
- 100g Quorn Chicken Pieces (they do a vegan version too)
- 2 Medium Shallots
- 100g Chestnut Mushrooms
- 1/2 Scoop (15g) of Pea Protein
- 60g Low-fat Soft Cheese (Whipped Coconut Cream for vegan)
- 20g Grass-fed Butter (Margarine or Coconut oil for vegan)
- 1 Garlic Clove
- 2 tsp Mixed Herbs
- 1 tsp Chilli Powder
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric
- Salt to taste
NB: I urge you to flavour the pate based on your own taste. It took me quite a while to flavour the pate, so please use the above measurements as a guide and base the end result off, of your own taste buds for best results.
Directions
- Chop your mushrooms and fry them in a heated frying pan on a medium heat until they start to soften. Peel and chop the shallot and toss it in with the mushrooms. When the shallot starts to soften, add in the Quorn mince and Quorn chicken pieces, as well as the garlic, herbs, spices and ACV and leave to cook until everything has softened and warmed through – leave to cool. If the ingredients start to stick to the frying pan then drizzle a little oil or butter.
- When the mixture is cool, add the cooked ingredients to a food processor and blend until the mixture is almost a puree. At this point you can add in the soft cheese and pea protein.
NB: If you are making the vegan version of this herb pate, after you have blended the ingredients once; whip some coconut cream with an electric whisk and gently fold the cream into the ingredients. As I haven’t tried this version before I’m not sure if there will be a hint of coconut in the pate, but it may be able to be masqueraded by adding some more herbs: taste as you progress. A better alternative would be a vegan soft cheese ( if you can find it) or blend tofu instead. The purpose of the soft cheese is to give the pate a mousse-like texture that is reminiscent of the meat pate, but also because it makes the pate easier to spread. You could omit the whipped coconut cream altogether, but I can’t guarantee the end results will be as successful as the vegetarian version.
- When your pate is complete it should have a bouncy, airy texture to it. If the mushrooms have made the pate too liquid, then add a touch more pea protein and blend again; spoon the mixture into your sterilised jars and cover with equal amounts of melted butter.
For more recipes, reviews and ideas follow me on Instagram – @TheHungryWelshGirl and please tag me in any of the recipes you try as I would love to see what you create and also hear what you think.
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‘Corned Beef’ Hash with Fried Egg & Toast
Were you a person who enjoyed a hearty corned beef hash, before you crossed over to the vegetarian side? Yeah. Me either, but I was watching Diners. Dives & Drive-Ins on the food network the other night and someone had made this very dish, as a carnivore meal. I couldn’t remember the ingredients as it was 3am, so I threw this together this morning using leftover potato mash, cauliflower and peas; which my family had left from a dinner last night. Even though this was made with Quorn mince, I didn’t think I was going to enjoy it as much as I did. Thankfully Quorn mince is a lot more visually appealing than corned beef and a lot tastier, as well as being vegetarian – I couldn’t live without it. I don’t like to toot my own horn often, but my vegetarian ‘corned beef’ hash was full of flavour and didn’t require any additional sauce either, as the yolk acted like a natural sauce and when each element was spread on some warm, buttered wholemeal, crusty bread, this was definitely one meal I didn’t want to end in a hurry and the best part of all was that I didn’t feel bloated after it either.
This ‘corned beef’ hash is extremely simple to make too and providing you are using leftover vegetables, it’s fairly quick to make – I made this in 20 minutes. You can also replace the potato mash with cauliflower mash if you prefer and use whatever vegetables you have really. This doesn’t even have to be served as a big hash: you could make burger sized cakes with them too. I don’t have children myself and the future looks bleak for me, but I think this is definitely a good way to get those little tykes to eat their veggies, while getting a decent amount of protein too and you could even add a little more grated cheese over the top of the hash; if they are anything like me, they will devour the whole thing, or just pick the cheese off 😉
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 200g Mashed Potato
- 100g Cauliflower Mash (cooked)
- 100g Garden Peas (cooked)
- 1 Large Spring Onion
- 100g Quorn Mince (defrosted)
- 25g Low-fat Cheese
- 1 Free Range Egg White
- 1 Clove Garlic
- Handful Fresh Rosemary
- 1/2 tsp Chilli
- 5-10g Butter
- Salt to taste
- 1 Free Range Egg
- 2 Slices Wholemeal Bloomer Bread (optional)
Directions
- Heat a non-stick pan or skillet with the butter, on a medium heat.
- Add all of the ingredients minus the last two, into a mixing bowl and combine the ingredients evenly. You will need to grate the cheese and garlic, and chop the rosemary too before adding to the bowl.
- When your pan is hot enough, spoon half of the mixture into an 8′ frying pan, pat it and form it into a circle and cook on both sides until golden brown.
- Place your bread into a toaster or under a grill, then with the leftover butter, butter the toast.
- Pop the hash onto a plate and keep it warm with foil or in an oven with the heat down low.
- Crack the egg into the pan, place a lid over the top and cook until all the albumen has turned white.
- Plate up and enjoy.
For more recipes, reviews and ideas follow me on Instagram: @Happy.Hungry.Healthy or for Twitter: HungryWelshGirl for my ramblings.
Full Day Of Eating – My Healthy Not Yours
A while ago I wrote a post similar to this and never got around to actually completing it, it’s just so tedious photographing everything you eat in a day. Sometimes, I want to just throw it on a plate, without presentation and any thought of what it looks like. However, today I got inspired by someone off Instagram and I made the effort. But, mainly because of his post, I had a lot to say. It stirred some anger in me that I just needed to get out!
Continue reading “Full Day Of Eating – My Healthy Not Yours”
Chilli Quorn Carne
Would you believe that I have never had Chilli Con Carne before? I think it was always the beans that put me off eating it, there’s something about beans that just freaks me out. But over the years I’ve started trying different varieties and I’m always surprised at how much I enjoy them.
I won’t lie, I was nervous about trying this Chilli Quorn Carne and at first I did skirt around the kidney beans as if I would die if I ate one, but when I did, not only did I survive, I kinda enjoyed them. Chilli Quorn Carne is also perfect comfort food and I certainly felt comforted when I dug into this with a nice portion of sticky rice.
