Chilled Oatmeal Recipe

I hang out once in a while at the Corner Bakery Cafe. They have a pretty good chilled oatmeal that I like but feel is a little calorie laden and could do with the RD touch.
So, I browsed a few online recipes then came up with my own.
I made it last weekend and there was a LOT! So, depending on how many you want to feed and how many days you can face eating it, portion accordingly.

Recipe (Serves about 8 1 cup portions)

3 cups rolled oats (not quick cook)
2 cups almond, soy, fat free evaporated or non fat milk
1/2 cup water
2 6 oz cartons fat free or light vanilla yogurt
1 tsp vanilla and/or almond extract
sprinkling of cinnamon or nutmeg or both!!
Splenda or honey or agave syrup to sweeten as necessary
1/2 cup assorted dried fruit (I did apricots, golden raisins and dried cherries, all chopped up small)
Grated or chopped green apple and sliced toasted almonds to serve


This is easy peasy. Stir together oats, milk, water, essences, yogurt, spices and dried fruits. Cover and chill in the fridge for about 2 hours to let flavours develop. You may need to add more liquid depending on your preference. Taste and sweeten as desired then portion into bowls with apple and almonds. As you can see from the pictures, I also added berries. You can also add wheat bran and/or ground flax if you like.......

A great brunch treat and stress free!

Citrus Almond Olive Oil Cake

It's been a while since I've clacked away on the old keyboard, at least on my blog. However, I've been keeping very busy on the healthy eating front and have made so many great recipes that I haven't had the time to ph0tograph and blog about them!!

Anyway, I did manage to take a picture of my cake....after most of it was devoured. It really is very good, in spite of the somewhat strange ingredient list and it uses heart healthy olive oil and alm0nds and a good blast of lemon juice for much needed Vitamin C in these cold and flu ridden times!

Take a look at the recipe and then go and make it!!

Citrus Almond Olive Oil Cake

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour plus 2 tbsps flour for dusting
3/4 cup ground almonds or hazelnuts or walnuts
4 eggs
1 cup sugar (i used raw sugar as that's what I had, not brown though)
zest of 2 lemons (preferably Meyer...more orange/lemon flavour)
juice 1 1/2 lemons
2 tbsps orange blossom water (look for this at middle eastern markets)
3/4 cup nice green extra virgin olive oil
2/3 cup milk
1 tbsp baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Put some olive oil on a paper towel and use it to grease an angel food cake pan or bundt pan. Then dust the inside with the flour to coat the surfaces of the pan. Tip out excess.

2. In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat sugar and eggs until pale yellow and a bit foamy.....about 1 minute.

3. Add all other ingredients, except the baking powder, and stir until mixed with a wooden spoon. When well combined add the baking powder and stir again until mixed.

4. Pour into prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes or until brown on top and a skewer inserted in middle of cake comes out clean.

5. Cool on a wire rack in the pan until it shrinks away from the sides then tip upside down to remove.

Can be served as is or with ice cream (orange blossom water or honey ice cream would be good....no time to make!!)...we ate it with a cup of tea and it was delicious!
Rose water or coconut flavouring could be substituted for the orange blossom water or even coconut milk instead of the milk and lemongrass instead of the lemon zest.......
The possibilities are endless!!

Enjoy!!

The art of garbage!

Now, you may be asking yourself what garbage has to do with a food blog but it will all become crystal clear in a minute........
I just learned the term "garbage burrrito" and saw one in the flesh...now, it's not the healthiest choice and packs a wallop of calories but I have been trying to clear out my veggie drawer in the fridge and the thought came to mind of how I could do my own "garbage" creations but in a healthy way...of course, taste still has to be paramount.
So, tonight I had a garbage salad....it consisted of:

spinach
spring onions (Scallions)
cornichons (pickled gherkins)
pepperoncinis (sliced)
tomatoes (diced)
cold corn and peas left from dinner
cold cooked broccoli
left over roasted red peppers
avocado
sliced almonds

I added some balsamic vinegar and lemon olive oil and some left over pulled brisket meat and voila...a healthy (and colourful) meal was born.

Try it! And send pics!!

Sorry about lack of pics....my phone was dead and i haven't seen my camera in a while........it looked great though.......

You could also do a garbage omelette (the veggies being the garbage part)...easy on the cheese please, Louise!

Enjoy!
S

The forgotten art of blogging...not healthy eating!

Wow! I haven't posted since May of this year! I am a naughty girl...actually there's been a lot going on and, although I haven't been blogging, I have been cooking up a healthy eating storm!!
My latest creation came from a trip to my local Ranch market (great option for cheap fruits and veggies) where they had eggplants on special. Now, my original thought was to slice the eggplants into thin strips and barbecue them to use instead of pasta in a lasagna. However, this was not to be the case as I was given a large marrow (zucchini type thing) and I used that for the lasagna instead. So, I was left with a glut of eggplants and decided to make a quick, easy and healthy baba ganoush.

Again, not much in the way of recipe...feel free to adjust as necessary:

Ingredients:-
Eggplant(s)
Tahini paste (sesame seed paste)...I didnt have any so used almond butter instead...pb would work too!!
Olive oil...drizzle
Garlic (minced) or chilli/garlic paste for a bit more heat...to taste
Salt, pepper, lemon juice

Place whole eggplants on grill and barbie until skin is charred.
Place in big bowl and cover with plastic wrap until cool enough to handle.
Peel and remove ends and any large seedy areas.
Place in food processor with all other ingredients and whizz until no lumps remain.
You can thin with extra olive oil or some water if it's too thick.

Serve with carrots, celery, baby toms, pita bread, crackers or use as a spread instead of mayo on a sandwich. I made turkey kebabs with grilled veggies and used this as a condiment alongside.

It has a great smokey flavour and is low in calories but high in fiber!
Enjoy!

No time to cook......

.
I have seriously had nooooo time to blog or cook or try recipes as you can tell by the fact that I haven't blogged since February 12th! Naughty girl! Anyway, since this blog is entitled "What the Dietitian Eats" I thought I'd post what I've been eating in lieu of creating culinary masterpieces, so here it goes.......

1 peanut butter sandwich on Milton's (5 gm fiber) whole wheat bread.
Raw snow peas....
1 string cheese....
2 apples....
Water....
Tea (antioxidants.......no sugar added......hot)

So, there's a Dietitian's healthy lunch!

Recipe to follow next time...promise!!

Rosy fish piccata

Here's an easy, quick and healthy potential Valentine's dish for all you lotharios out there!

I came home from work and had some fish defrosted but was lacking inspiration in what to do with it. Now, I love chicken piccata and I've posted an easy recipe for that before but tonight I decided to make a fish version, minus the butter and heavy cream but with all the flavour and more nutritional punch. Also, Valentine's day is really not the day to overindulge in rich, heavy foods!

Here's my usual non-recipe, recipe!

Rosy fish piccata

Firm white fish fillets (I used tilapia...easy, cheap and quick to cook)

Cornstarch

Veggie or chicken stock

Rose (dry-ish) wine or grape juice or pomegranate juice

Capers

Lemon juice

Lemon slices

Pat the fish dry, season with salt and pepper then pat with cornstarch (will help thicken the sauce later)

Spray a non stick frying pan with PAM spray and heat over medium heat

Add the fish and cook until golden on each side, remove from the pan

Add stock and wine or juice to the pan and bubble until reduced by half

Put the fish back in the pan and cook until the fish is cooked (opaque) then add the capers to your taste, lemon juice and lemon slices for garnish....

Serve with broccoli and a nice glass of pink wine....

The Power of Chocolate!

Since the most commercial of holidays is about to be upon us I thought I would look at the most aphrodisical (and nutritional) aspect of Valentine's day...chocolate. Actually, that's not entirely true..I'm sure raw oysters are far more nutritional and aphrodisical (all that zinc) but they are nowhere near as fun or full of antioxidants.....

Chocolate, along with fruits and veggies, tea and red wine contain powerful antioxidants called flavonoids. These compounds are thought to prevent against cell oxidation and dark chocolate contains the most of these polyphenolic compounds.

So, moderate dark chocolate consumption may help prevent atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), help lower LDL (the bad cholesterol) and lift your mood since it tastes so good!

So, here's a simple choccie sauce recipe...serve with fresh fruit and enjoy the double benefits of antioxidants!

Chocolate sauce

Break up a bar of the darkest chocolate you can find....85% cocoa

Melt in the microwave on low or over a pot of simmering water.

When melted, stir in a couple of tablespoons of heavy cream (shock, horror!) until combined.

Keep warm and use as a dip for strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, bananas, apple slices etc.