Tex-Mex Stuffed Sweet Potato

I don't love cooking meat in the summer unless I BBQ. Living in Amsterdam makes it tough to BBQ, so we have been going 'meat-free' for much of this month.

I loved this fun, tasty and fresh Tex-Mex inspired stuffed sweet potato recipe that is meat-free, sugar-free and gluten-free.

What You'll Need (serves four):

• 4 medium-sized sweet potatoes. I know these can come large in North America, so if they are monstrous, just use two (1/2 per person)
• 1 baking tray lined in tinfoil
• 1/2 red pepper
• 1 white onion
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• Green onion
• 1 cup black beans
• 1/2 avocado
• 2 tomatoes
• Cilantro
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt
• 1/2 package of your favourite, gluten-free taco seasoning
• Shredded cheese (I used a spicy hard cheese that I grated very thinly using a Parmesan grater - this way it looks like you have more cheese when you actually eat less!)

What You'll Do:

• Pre-heat your oven to 210C (375F)
• Poke your sweet potatoes so steam can be released when cooking
• Bake for 45 minutes or until really tender (You can also microwave your potatoes for around 10 minutes, ensuring you puncture them before cooking to release steam. I prefer baking as they come out with a much nicer texture)
• While the potatoes are baking, prep your veggies!
• Dice your red pepper and 1/2 your onion and saute using your olive oil until lightly browned
• Mix your taco seasoning into your fat-free Greek yogurt and set aside in the fridge
• Dice your avocado and set aside 
• Dice your green onion and set aside
• Shred your cheese and set aside (keep cool so your cheese doesn't stick together)
• Dice your tomato, other half of your onion, cilantro and add together with some salt and pepper to make a salsa fresca (dry salsa)
• Rinse your black beans and set aside
• Once your potatoes are nice and soft, cut them in half (watch your hands as they are hot!) and load on the toppings!

 
This is a fairly quick, super tasty alternative to tacos or baked potatoes. I hope you like them as much as we do!

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 2 (so colourful!)
Taste: 2
Ease: 1.5 (if you microwave your taters, this would also be a 2)

Dukan Cruise-Phase Omelette

A quick, easy, tasty and healthy Dukan-friendly, gluten-free breakfast (or anytime!) omelette recipe. If you are on the Dukan diet - you can have this meal on your pure protein + vegetable Cruise phase days, Consolidation or Stabilization days.

What You'll Need (serves 2-3):

• Large, non-stick frying pan
• Large mixing bowl
• 1 small yellow onion
• 1/2 large red pepper 
• 1/4 head broccoli
• 3 reduced fat ham, pre-cooked ham (or chicken) slices
• 4 medium-sized eggs

What You'll Do:

• Dice your small onion (here is a link to how I do it)
• Water sautee your onion (Cover your diced onions in water, not all the way, but just enough so they have enough to gently boil in. Let them boil until almost transparent and soft. This technique is a very helpful trick on the Dukan diet. We are used to sauteing onions in butter or oils, but with water you get none of the fat and all of the taste! To be honest, heck yeah I miss the taste of butter sauteed onions...but my butt doesn't)
• Finely chop your red pepper, broccoli and ham slices
• In a large bowl toss in your chopped vegetables and ham
• Crack your eggs into the same bowl
• Mix thoroughly until frothy
• Turn your stove top onto its lowest setting and place your non-stick pan on top
• Gently pour your egg mixture into the pan
• Let cook until the edges of the egg start to look cooked
• Using your large spatula, gently lift half of your omelette, placing it downwards and onto the top half of the other side. Your omelette now looks like a half circle
• Cook until the centre is no longer runny
• Remove from your pan and enjoy!

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 2
Taste: 2
Ease: 1.5 (this 'flipping' of the omelette can be tricky if you try to flip too soon. If your omelette breaks, don't worry - it will still taste the same!)

Gluten-Free Curried Quinoa Salad

Sunday nights I like to prepare meals for the week ahead.
Quinoa has become a new favourite of mine as it is hearty, versatile, easy to freeze, is a complete protein source, is gluten-free and has a high nutritive value.
It also tastes good.

Tonight I made a quinoa salad using fresh vegetables and fruit from yesterday's market.

I wanted to make a zesty salad that would keep well - so something light on dressing and with vegetables and fruit that wouldn't go mushy by tomorrow (yes tomato - I'm talking to you;)

I am very happy with how this recipe turned out - use it as a template, adding in veggies and fruit you like/have in the fridge that won't go soggy. You can't go wrong!

 
What You'll Need - The Salad:

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 red pepper
• 1/4 head of broccoli
• 1 crunchy apple
• 1/4 cup of raisins (dried cranberries would also be nice)
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts (almonds would also work well)
• 1 large carrot

What You'll Need - The Dressing:

• 1 Tbps liquid honey
• 1 Tbps curry powder (I used the Silk Road Spice Merchants Madras Curry Powder. This one is heaven)
• 1.5 Tbps olive or grapeseed oil
• 2 Tbps fresh lemon juice
• Twist of fresh pepper
• 1 Tbps dried dill flakes (not necessary, but I love dill...and just dried some and wanted to use it)

What You'll Do:

• Cook your quinoa (1 cup quinoa, 2 cups water. Boil water and slowly add quinoa, turn the heat down to a simmer, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes or until all the liquid has been soaked into the grains)
• Dice your vegetables - make them as small as you can, so each bite has more than one piece of fruit or vegetable on it
• Crush your nuts 
• I just typed 'crush your nuts'...(insert immature giggle)
• Once your quinoa is cooked, let cool completely. Hot quinoa = soggy & soft veggies 
• In a small jar, add in the oil, lemon juice, honey, curry powder, dried dill and pepper
• Put the jar lid on, give it a good shake until combined
• Stir in your dressing into the quinoa grains until absorbed 
• Add the quinoa into the bowl of diced veggies and fruit
• Stir until completely mixed through
• Enjoy!

If you overdid it on the quinoa and cooked too much, good news is this grain freezes beautifully.
A trick I like is to use ziplock freezer bags instead of tupperware to store the excess.
This way you can squeeze all the air out of the bag, leaving little room for freezer burn to sneak in. You can also make the grains lay flat, so they defrost way faster than a deep container full.

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 2
Taste: 2
Ease: 1.5

Gluten-Free, Low-Sodium, Vegan Pumpkin Risotto

Having just been in Italy for two incredible weeks, we ate a lot of amazing food.
One of my favourite dishes was a strawberry and gorgonzola risotto. It was indescribably delicious.

This dish has inspired me to cook more with rice. I never do. If I make a stir fry, or a curry, I usually don't cook rice at all. I found it dull and stodgy.

But - risotto! Creamy and so flavourful. I don't know why I never made it before!

I wanted to try a risotto with a twist - it usually contains quite a bit of butter and oils and parmesan cheese, so I wanted to try to make it as delicious while cutting the fat and salt content.
From this desire came the below recipe I must say I am pretty proud of!

A gluten-free, low-sodium vegan pumpkin risotto!

                                          * this photo does not do the dish justice

What You'll Need (serves 4):

• About two hours of time
• A deep, covered frying pan
• 1 cup freshly pureed pumpkin (if they are not in season, un-sweetened canned pumpkin will also work great)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 1 Tbsp of your favourite olive oil
• 1 cup of rice. Now - typically you should use arborio rice. Its shape and texture allows it to soak up liquid quickly while releasing starch so it becomes stickier than normal rice. I didn't have this rice in stock so I used a long grain brown rice and it turned out just fine.
• 1/2 cup of white wine (preferably something that goes nice with a risotto;)
• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 Tbsp freshly diced basil
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp freshly minced ginger
• 1 Tsp of 5-Spice Powder (mine contains; aniseed, fennel, peppercorn, cinnamon and ginger)
• 1 Tbsp low-sodium margarine (if you do not require this to be vegan, replace with un-salted butter)
• Twists of freshly ground pepper to taste

What You'll Do: 

Step One - A lesson in pumpkin selection
Select a pumpkin that is good for baking with. As this is Halloween and jac-o-lantern season, you will see giant pumpkins all around - do not get one of those. Their flesh will be watery and stringy. Look for a smaller, smooth pumpkin often called 'sugar pumpkin' or 'pie pumpkin'. These pumpkins are great for baking, making soups, stews, and for our needs today. Because they are smaller, they usually yield about two cups of puree, maybe a bit more once baked.

Step Two - Baking your pumpkin

• Pre-heat your oven to 350 (175)
• Set up your blender
• With a large, sturdy knife, cut your pumpkin into halves or quarters, depending on how you are able to make the slices. Be careful here as pumpkins are smooth and slippery (like Martha) and no one wants a real life gory hand this Halloween
• Line a baking tray with tinfoil
• Place your cut pumpkin slices, flesh up on the tray
• Cover with tinfoil
• Bake for 45 minute to 1 hour. Check in at 30 minutes to see how they are doing. If you chose to cut the pumpkin into quarters, flip your slices around, so their other side is now facing up and cover again with foil
• They are done when you can easily slide a fork in and they look all soft and nearly mushy
• Let cool
• Using a spoon with some edge, scrape the flesh out of the peels and plop into your blender
• Add in the 1/4 cup of water and pulse until you have a nice, smooth puree
• Set aside to cool - do not refrigerate

Step Three - Cooking the rice. This takes time. Budget 1.5 hours.

• Dice your onion - this is how I like to dice mine - and toss into your deep frying pan
• Add in your favourite olive oil
• Sautee the onions until slightly brown and very soft - about 5-7 minutes if you are on a steady low heat
• Add in your rice
• Stir and cook for about five minutes
• Add in the 1/2 cup of white wine
• Stir and cook until all the liquid has cooked in
• Add in 1/2 cup of your 2 cups of low-sodium vegetable broth at a time. Each time stirring and cooking down until all the liquid has nearly gone
• Once all of your broth has been added, add in your 1 cup of pumpkin puree
• Stir constantly and add in all of your spices, margarine/butter and basil
• Turn the heat down to the lowest setting, cover and let gently steam for 10 minutes
• Check the rice - if it is still a little too hard, add a splash of water, cover and let steam again for periods of five minutes
• Depending on the grain of rice used, this may need to be done a few times. You want the rice to be soft, but not mushy
• Once the dish has reached your desired consistency, turn the heat off and let stand, covered for another five minutes
• Serve and accept the compliments graciously, as Martha would

This is not a quick dish.
To make it faster you can most definitely use canned pumpkin puree (we don't have that in the Netherlands, so I am forced to be old school about it). But the beauty of this dish is that it is not made in 15 minutes. It takes time, effort, love and patience.

I think this dish would be great for Thanksgiving or Christmas holidays as a nice alternative to mashed potatoes. It is so flavourful and would go great with turkey or chicken dishes.

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 1.5
Taste: 2
Ease: 0 (though not necessarily difficult, this dish does take time, so I would not say it is easy)

Pumpkin Recipes

I love fall.
The crispness in the air, the gorgeous yellow and orange colours on the trees, the fashion.

How I have missed my tall boots and opaque tights.

I also love fall food. So homey and comforting and festive.
Who doesn't love a good gourd?

Martha loves gourds.

At the local market I found the cutest little pumpkins on for just one Euro and was inspired to try some new recipe inspirations out.

Coming back from Italy recently and really enjoying their risotto, I wanted to try a gluten-free, low-sodium, vegan pumpkin risotto - something healthy that my sister's who are celiac could try for a nice Christmas dish alternative.

I also wanted to make a baked good...something other than pumpkin pie.
I love banana bread and wanted to try a new spin on that, so I created a super moist Pumpkin Bread recipe I think you will all love because it is tasty and easy. Just like Martha.

Photos and recipes coming soon. So, until then - go out and get some gourds - I would love to hear what you cook up with them!

Lemony Dill Salmon

I never liked fish. But, in the Netherlands, fish from the grocery store ain't half bad.

Last night I had three friends stay over and we decided to chef up using some great fresh ingredients.

Salmon is super easy and, Martha would agree, a healthy, tasty, fancy dinner choice.

I didn't get time to take any photos but will upload some next time I make this dish I call Lemony Dill Salmon. The more I type 'lemony' the stranger the spelling looks...

What You'll Need:

• A nice piece of salmon - I like to buy organic because it makes me feel better. I imagine the little salmon are free spirited, hemp-wearing dudes, offering up their life to me while saying 'namaste'
• Fresh dill
• One whole lemon
• A twist of fresh black pepper
• Tinfoil
• Baking pan
• A sunny disposition

What You'll Do:

• Pre-heat your oven to 180C (or 325F)
• Line a baking pan in tin foil (less clean up later!)
• Depending on how large your salmon is, cut a piece of tinfoil large enough to wrap the salmon up tightly
• Slice your lemon thinly
• Place as many thin lemon pieces on the tinfoil as your salmon is large - you want lemon to touch as much of the salmon as possible
• Cut fresh dill sprigs and lay on top of your lemon slices
• Place your hippy salmon down on the lemon slices
• Twist ground pepper onto the top of the salmon
• Place more sprigs of dill on the top of the salmon
• Place more lemon slices on the top of the dill sprigs
• Wrap your salmon up into a tinfoil pocket - ensuring the sides and top of the tinfoil and sealed up tight so no juices escape
• For a medium-well to well finish, bake for 30 minutes for a regular-sized piece of salmon, if extra thick and you want the salmon well done (that is how Martha and I like it), cook for another five minutes
• Remove from your oven and using a fork, puncture a few small holes in the tinfoil, to let some of the steam escape
• Let sit to cool for five minutes
• Serve up and wait for the compliments

Tasty. Easy. Healthy. Fancy.
My favourite things.

This dish is awesome with so many side dishes - grilled asparagus, spicy green beans, healthy roast Dukan vegetables, or a salad. It is great the next day as well - just let it cool completely before you store it in the fridge.

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 2
Taste: 2
Ease: 2

A Dukan Orange Cake...Attempt

It is pouring in Amsterdam today so what better time to bake?
I pulled out my shiny new French Dukan cookbook to see what caught my eye (and had few instructions that I had to then translate).

I love citrus, it cheers me up, and a dreary day like today could use a little pick-me-up.

The gluten and sugar-free Dukan recipe called 'Far a l'Orange' appeared delicious...and easy.
Two things I value.
I am not sure what 'Far a l'Orange' means...when I translate it, it says 'Far Has Orange'.
Thanks for nothing, Google Translate.

I would like to think it means 'Exotic Orange Cake Tasting of Faraway Lands'.

Look how fluffy, neat and unburned it looks! I am sure I can recreate this tasty 'lil guy (she says optimistically before attempting...).

What You'll Need:

• one mixing bowl
• cute little baking containers as shown in the recipe (of which I have none, so I used muffin tins...don't tell Martha)
• one large orange so you can zest the heck out of it
• 8 Tbps of fat-free quark (or low-fat Greek yogurt)
• 2 eggs
• 3 Tbps of your powdered sweetener of choice
• 6 Tbps of cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp orange flavouring
• 4 Tbsp of low-fat milk powder

What (the recipe says) You'll Do:

• pre-heat your oven to 160C
• mix all the ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl (I like to mix my wet and dry ingredients separately, as Martha would do that, but when and how you introduce your wet and dry is totally up to you)
• pour your batter into your cute little cake pan, or muffin tins (for me it made 8 muffins)
• according to the recipe, bake for 30 minutes...if you like things burned!! Its a good thing I kept an eye on these little babies as they cooked super fast. I left them in for 15 minutes and the tops were already turning an unsavoury shade of charcoal

• on a positive note, they smelled like a little piece of heaven whilst cooking
• on a negative note, they semi-exploded, glooping out angry looking batter projectiles which, thank goodness, did not drip into my oven. Burny, drippy ovens are the worst!
• that's it

Admittedly, they are not that handsome of a cake. Martha would shake her well-coiffed head and send me packing.
They look like they are sticking their batter tongues out at you, mocking your failed culinary attempts.

They taste delish though.
Really and surprisingly so. They also have a nice, light texture, which surprised me with so much heavy quark.

I am not easily defeated. A Munro hates to loose. I will try this recipe again!


The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 0
Taste: 2
Ease: 2

Dukan Cauliflower Mashed 'Potatoes'

Potatoes are not a part of the Dukan diet until you reach the stablization phase and can start incorporating 'celebration meals' and once-per-week starches.

I am from the Canadian Prairies and therefore a meat and potatoes kinda gal. I am really trying to break that habit though by incorporating other vegetables that offer me a lot more in terms of health benefits.

I started reading up on the wonders of cauliflower (or, 'bloemkool' in Dutch:) and thought I would try to create the perfect cauliflower mashed 'potato'.

Did you know cauliflowers are:

• an excellent source of vitamin C - a great anti-oxidant (I know, and they're not even orange;)
• very high in vitamin K - which helps aid in decreasing inflammation
• high in fiber
• a good source of protein
• a super tasty alternative to potato...so here is the recipe!

What You'll Need (serves four):

• a blender
• one medium-sized cauliflower
• one 1/2 cube of low-sodium chicken stock
• 1.5 cups of water (to be boiled)
• generous twist of freshly ground pepper
• large dollop of fat-free plain Greek yogurt (my favourite kind is the Total 0% brand - super thick and creamy)

                                I know what you are thinking...I should be a hand model.

What You'll Do:
I have a steaming oven (and so does Martha, I'm sure), so I use that to steam my vegetables, but, if you don't, never fear - you can steam your cauliflower the conventional way on your stove top by covering it in seasoned water and letting it simmer, covered, until soft.

• prep your cauliflower by removing all the green leaves and stem
• chop your cauliflower into smaller chunks 
• place the pieces in your pan, cut side down
• boil 1.5 cups of water
• place your 1/2 cube of low-sodium chicken stock in the boiled water
• stir until dissolved

• Pour the chicken stock mixture over your cauliflower
• Let simmer for 5-10 minutes, or until very tender

• Using a slotted spoon, take the softened cauliflower from your steaming pan and place inside your blender
• Plop in your dollop of fat-free Greek yogurt

• Twist in your pepper
• Add a whisper of the remaining, seasoned water (I usually use about 1/4 cup but this depends on the freshness of your cauliflower. If it is older and drier, you may find you need a little more water. Easy does it though as you don't want your mixture to be too watery)
• Mix through using a spatula
• Blend until semi-smooth (I like leaving a few little lumps as it makes the cauliflower mixture much more believable in it's potato disguise)
• Remove from blender and serve with another twist of ground pepper on top
• That's it!

I just love this recipe as you can eat this as it is, as a side of mash, or you can use it as a topper. For example, I love to make Dukan-friendly 'Sheppard's Pie' where you add this on the top. Or, when I make zucchini boats, I add this onto the top.

Other additions you can try with this recipe:

• If you fancy garlic, add in a clove of this either in the seasoned water mixture while steaming for a milder taste, or into the blender for a stronger taste
• Not on the Dukan diet? Add in some shredded cheese while blending
• Don't have low-fat yogurt on hand? Use low-fat quark or even low-fat cream cheese.

Play around with it. I would love to know what other recipes you use this on!

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 1.5 (Its hard to make them magazine-spread worthy looking)
Taste: 2
Ease: 2

Dukan Spicy Chicken Stir 'Fry' Recipe

On the Stabilization phase of the Dukan diet, you can eat the approved meats and vegetables everyday. After the alternating Cruise phase, it is the good life!

One of my most favourite dishes is a spicy stir fry. The best part is you can make something this tasty and it still be healthy, sugar-free, gluten-free and Dukan friendly!

What You'll Need (for two people):

• Two chicken breasts
• One sweet red pepper (or, zoete rood paprika...I am learning Dutch!)
• Whatever Dukan vegetables you think are delicious when spiced-up and hot (I like anything like leeks, bean sprouts, carrots, broccoli, eggplant, zucchini, cabbage, onion...anything I have in the fridge that doesn't go soggy when cooked)
• For this recipe I usually super cheat and get a bag of pre-cut veggies (Martha would not approve but it saves me loads of time chopping when I have had a busy day and don't have much time to cook)
• Ingredients for my Dukan spicy marinade
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cucumber (or komkommer;) to use as a garnish

What You'll Do:
Its all about timing with a stir fry, you don't want your veggies overcooked as you are still waiting for your chicken to cook. This is how I do it:

• Make your Dukan spicy marinade
• Prep your veggies, cut them all to a nice, chewable sizes
• Dice your onion. I was taught a trick from my friend Keith years ago on how to dice an onion easily. I have tried to show you in this picture, but, basically cut the onion in strips in one direction, then rotate around and slice in strips, so you have a hatched pattern. Then, when you slice your onion, all of your pieces will be perfect little squares. I love this trick!

• Get your wok (or large, non-stick frying pan) out and sprinkle your diced onions into it
• Cover your onions in water, not all the way, but just enough so they have enough to gently boil in. This is called water sauteing.  This technique is a very helpful trick on the Dukan diet. We are used to sauteing onions in butter or oils, but with water you get none of the fat and all of the taste! To be honest, heck yeah I miss the taste of butter sauteed onions...but my butt doesn't!

• Now, prep your chicken
• Wash the breasts (that made me feel dirty typing that) in cool water
• Pat dry with paper towel. I have zero idea why you do this but it was something my Mom told me to do and I have done it ever since. So, you have now been told. Choose your choice
• Cut off any remaining skin or weird, wiggly bits
• Chop into similar-sized pieces
• Heat up your non-stick medium sized frying pan
• Once hot, toss in your chicken pieces
• I like to season them with a little freshly ground pepper (so Martha of me)
• Brown them on each side
• Pour the Dukan spicy marinade over top 
• Toss the chicken to ensure each piece is covered in sauce
• In your wok, put in any vegetable that takes longer to cook - for example, this is a great time to put in your broccoli or cauliflower
• Keep stirring your saucy chicken for another few minutes
• Add in the rest of the vegetables into your wok
• Pour in 1/4 (or less) water into the wok and stir
• Once your chicken is done (you can tell as the sauce will be nice and sticky like shown below), pour it over top of your vegetables

• Stir
• I find you don't need any extra sauce for your vegetables if you stir in your chicken - it is the perfect sauce, veggie, meat ratio

• To serve, I use a slotted spoon to drain off any excess liquid, then once in the serving bowl, I sprinkle my chopped cucumber on top. You don't want to cook these as hot cucumbers are super gross. Trust me.

That's it. A stir-without-the-fry.
No oil, gluten-free, sugar-free, and Dukan friendly.
Plus it's easy, tasty, healthy and filling. You don't need rice or anything.


The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 2
Taste: 2
Ease: 2 (maybe a little less easy if you choose to chop all your veggies...you keener;)

Low Fat Dukan Baba Ganoush Recipe

I love dips.
Salsa, guacamole, spicy black bean, tzatziki, 7-layer...so many dips!

On the Dukan diet there are not many dips you can make that are diet friendly so last night I found an eggplant in my fridge drawer I had to use up and thought about making a diet-friendly, low-fat, gluten-free baba ganoush!

Researching baba ganoush recipes, there is quite a bit of oil and tahini in most recipes - both ingredients not permitted on the Dukan diet. So, I improvised and what I came out with even impressed my husband (and if Martha could taste it, I am pretty sure she would approve).

Best things? It is super easy to make, eggplant is in season right now, eggplants are antioxidants.

What You'll Need:

• One eggplant
• Shake of your favourite chili pepper spice (optional)
• A couple twists of freshly ground pepper
• Small twist of freshly ground sea salt
• Squeeze of 1/2 a lemon
• 1tsp grapeseed oil
• 2 small or one large clove(s) of fresh garlic
• 1/3 cup fat free Greek yogurt
• 1/8 cup of water

What You'll Do:

• Wash your eggplant
• Heat your oven to 180C (375F)
• Cut your eggplant into halves
• Place cut eggplants, skin down, on a baking tray for 20 minutes or until soft
• In a blender, add in the chili, pepper, salt, lemon juice, oil, garlic, yogurt
• Remove your eggplant from the oven, let cool for 20 minutes
• Cut up the eggplant into smaller chunks
• Place the eggplant chunks into the blender
• Pour your water over top
• Start to pulse, then puree your mixture, scraping down the sides of the blender as you go
• If the mixture is too thick, add another 1 tsp of water at a time until desired consistency is reached
• Mix until thoroughly combined
• Pour into a cute serving dish
• Enjoy with your favourite dip-able veggie, or spread on your portion of bread slices (when on the stabilization or consolidation phase). What also may be nice is to use this as a topper or a spread. I love lean-ground beef stuffed peppers, having a dollop of this on the top would be lovely!

The STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 1.5 
Taste: 2 
Ease: 1.5

Grapeseed oil and lemon juice are not allowed, but "tolerated" (when in small quantities) on the Dukan diet. And, because you won't (or maybe you will;) eat all this dip in one day, you are good to go!

My Favourite Dukan Friendly Marinade

You eat a lot of meat on the Dukan diet. For someone who is neither here nor there about meat and can easily go without it, eating it all the time has been a bit of a challenge.
To spice things up, literally, here is a wonderful meat marinade you can use on chicken, lean beef, turkey breast, or on your vegetables in a stir fry.

What You'll Need:

• 3 Tbsp low-sodium, gluten-free soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 Tbsp powdered sweetener, I use Ideal. You can also use a brown-sugar sweetener, if you can find it...the Netherlands does not seem to have it
• 1/2 clove of crushed garlic (this is optional)
• 1 tsp chili paste, I use the Conimex Sambal Oelek kind because there aren't many crazy, non-natural ingredients used, and its readily available at the neighbourhood Albert Heijn

What You'll Do:
Because this is a marinade, you can mix all the ingredients together and let your meat of choice sit in it, covered in plastic wrap, to soak, refrigerated in the flavour for a few hours, or, what I like to do if I am making poultry is this:

• Dice raw poulrty into equal-sized pieces (if you put your meat in the freezer for 45 minutes beforehand, it makes it a lot easier to cut!)
• Brown the meat on both sides in a non-stick frying pan
• Pour in the fully mixed marinade into the non-stick frying pan with the browned meat
• Let simmer until the meat is fully cooked and the marinade has almost all been soaked up 
• Voila! 

This makes perfect stir-fry meat to add into your Dukan-approved vegetables.

You can also use this marinade as the sauce for your vegetables - by pouring over top and allowing the vegetables to soak up the flavour. If I use it as a vegetable sauce, I will add a little water, maybe 1/3 cup so the vegetables have something to cook down inside.

You can also eliminate the garlic if it plays tricks on you, and just stick with the chili paste.

STEWART SCORE:
Appearance: 1 (Its brown and chunky...hardly magazine spread worthy)
Taste: 2
Ease: 2

Almond Flour, Sugar-Free, Chocolate Sprinkle Cookies

Inspired by the incredible chef, Elana Amsterdam, of the amazing Elena's Pantry blog, I wanted to try a wheat-flourless take on the classic chocolate chip cookie that would also be sugar-free. So I made up the below...and it worked out!

This almond-flour, xylitol-based chocolate 'chip' cookie recipe is a protein packed way to go wheat-free, sugar-free, and guilt-free.

What You'll Need:

• 1 1/2 cups of almond flour
• 1/4 cup xylitol sweetner (I use Ideal)
• 1/4 unsalted, room temperature butter (I would love to learn of some low fat alternatives from you!)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup of Dutch chocolate-flavoured hagelslag (or 'sprinkles'...because they are more fun, and less calories than traditional chocolate chips).

* If you are feeling like the wild and crazy type, swap the sprinkles for your favourite chopped nut, dried cranberries, chopped dried cherry pieces, or sugar-free chips. In Holland you can get strawberry-flavoured sprinkles...a delight!

What You’ll Do:

Preheat your oven to 375F or 190C (my oven runs hot, like me, so I put it to 180C).

Cream the un-salted butter and powdered xylitol together until fluffy and smooth looking. 

Mix in the egg – I like to crack the egg open into a separate container first, to check its not a ‘bag egg’, this way you don’t potentially ruin your butter and sugar mixture with a foul fowl.

Pour in your vanilla.

Next, in a separate bowl, combine the almond flour, salt, and baking soda. Mix until totally incorporated. 

Slowly pour the powdery mixture into your egg, butter, vanilla and sugar and mix/beat until combined. 

Pour in your chocolate sprinkles and mix until combined thoroughly. Ensure the batter is quite thick. If it is thin, shake in more almond-flour until you reach a dense consistency.

Line your baking tray with parchment paper. 

Scoop then roll the batter into small portions, spacing them evenly onto the covered baking try. Try to make them equal - about the size of a round 2 Euro coin. These cookies don’t spread too much, so, depending on the size of your tray, you might be able to fit all the cookie balls onto one tray.

Yields – 12 cookies (if you don’t sample any dough in the process;)

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until goldeny brown. Remove from oven and let cool, or don’t and shove them straight into your grinning, open mouth.

Super delicious. And filling. 

STEWART SCORE:

Appearance: 1 (Not the sexiest cookie on the block. To make them more glamorous (and less guilt-free), try dipping half in melted dark chocolate...ooh la!)

Taste: 2

Ease:  2

Welcome to my blog

I love to cook, bake, travel and pretty things. I also love me my Martha Stewart.
This is a space where I will post new recipes (most will be Dukan diet, gluten-free and low-glycemic), ideas for recipes, inspiration for crafts, and pretty things I find on my travels - successes and failures.

I will rank them all with my Stewart Score, while channeling the domestic vibes from the one, the only, Martha Stewart.