Chilli with fruit?

                                Chilli Watermelon Juice:

CHilli? Really?  You'll be pleasantly surprised, trust me!

I recently had this amazingly refreshing drink whilst travelling in Laos.

It was a very hot day, we'd been walking for hours and at the suggestion of restaurant staff at Tamarind, in Luang Prabang, i tentatively gave it a try.

WOW! i loved it, and immediately on my return set about recreating it.

Give it a try. I'm sure you'll love it too.

ChilliWatermelon Juice:

Serves: 2

 Add as little and as much chilli as youlike, but make sure you do add it.

It adds a whole new dimension to thisrefreshing juice.

250g chilled watermelon flesh

10 mint leaves (including stems) plus 2sprigs to serve

pinch plus ground chilli

6 ice cubes

Blend watermelon, mint and chilli, serveover ice cubes and top with mint.

Per Serve:

Energy:   156kJ (  38Cals)    Protein:   0.6g            Fat:   0.4g (sat  0.1g)     

Carbs:   8g (Sugar  8g)                   Fibre:   1g

Lose weight in Indochine

Enjoying a glass of chilled Spanish wine whilst watching the sun set from Koh Tonsay- Rabbit Island, off coast of Cambodia

Hope you had a great Xmas and New Year.

I did. I spent them in beautiful Cambodia and Laos, once both part of the French colonies known as Indochine.
They were both amazing places; the country side, the people and of course the food. (and the shopping)

We stayed on the island above in a little thatched hut on the beach for just $10 a night including breakfast! Most amazing fresh seafood for dinner, freshly caught Chilli Crab cooked on the BBQ with a bottle of good French or Spanish merlot  ($12), served chilled, believe it or not, it was fabulous!

Angkor Watt

Many, many tourists but an incredible World Heritage site, well worth seeing to try and comprehend how these magnificent temples were built so many years ago.

Not only the monks, but everyone we came across was was so tranquil, happy and welcoming.

A cooking class in Battambang in the north of Cambodia and another full day, at the amazing Tamarind restaurant's rural venue in Luang Prabang, Laos, were inspiring to say the least.

Chilli Watermelon Granita!

One of my favourite lunches, Bahn 

One beneficial legacy of French colonisation in Indochine, (OK, and the magnificent architecture) were the light as air baguettes, made with pate, mayo, cucumber, coriander, chilli and pickled daikon and carrot. Not being a pate eater, i had mine with omelette.

Needless to say i have come home inspired by all this fabulous, high vegetable/herb content healthy food.

Dont think i saw one overweight local on my three week trip. Saw plenty of overweight tourists though!

Have to admit i lost weight with lots of walking and eating all the fresh healthy local food, including lots of street food, not pizzas and pastas that can be found for fussy tourists.

One of the most amazing things we did was to visit the bear rescue centre where they have saved these beautiful Moon Bears from a life of pain and torture. 

THese beautiful animals were kept in cages, unable to move at all whilst they have their bile milked daily from an open lesion in their gall bladder.

Some have scarred faces from bashing their heads against the bars,  rotten infected teeth from trying to chew their way out and some of them actually chew off their paws, they are so distressed.
A number have to be put to sleep when rescued as they are in such appalling condition.

So it was a very emotional experience to see these adorable creatures now in a relaxed and secure environment.

I have immersed myself in cooking these foods, and yes, you'll be able to soon, as i post some recipes.

Meanwhile, enjoy the photos of my trip and i'll get some recipes up soon.

Street Food: Chilli Fried Grasshoppers! (no i couldn't quite eat them)

More Street Food: Char grilled Whole Salted Fish Stuffed with Lemongrass &  Garlic 

Fabulous fresh produce at Battambang market, Cambodia.
This inspired me!

Laos Fast Food: Just add the bag of herbs to a bag with hot soup and noodles. Dinner in a Dash!


Struggled with this, at the market, water buffalo tongue, tripe and bags of blood and bile. Could barely take the photo.

Amazing chandelier, i want to make one!

Favourite place in Siam Reap to rest up at the end of the day with a cold beer, watch the world go by and wait for the night market to begin.

Hand basins at Tamarind Cooking School. I want one for my bathroom at home!

Tamarind Cooking School, Luang Prabang.

An amazing experience the day spent at this cooking school. Read my review on Trip Advisor. "A must do!"

Cambodia and Laos are both very  special places.
Cambodia is a slower less developed place than Vietnam, and Laos even more so.
Can't wait to go back!
Go, before they become too developed and lose their innocence.

"Powder Free" Oatbran Protein Smoothie

A great tasting powder free natural protein hit, perfect for refueling after a gym workout. 

Must admit, it's one of my favourite breakfasts!

"Powder Free" Oatbran Protein Smoothie: serves 1

¼ cup skim milk
¼ cup low fat Greek-style yoghurt
¼ cup low fat cottage cheese
3 tbs oat bran
2 tsp chia seeds
½ banana
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ice cubes
Blend all ingredients until thick and creamy and serve immediately.

Healthy Chips.....is that possible?

The hottest healthy snack food at the moment is Kale Chips.

There's no need to smother them in oil as many of the recipes doing the rounds are. 

Just a gentle spray of oil keeps them low fat and even healthier.

Another great way to get some greens into those non vegetable eaters! 

Kale Chips:

bunch kale- washed and dried

oil spray

sea salt

2 tsp sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 200°C

Tear leaves into chip sized pieces, discarding the stem. (Rather than throw it out, chop and use Vegetable Fusion, stir fries, salad or juice.

Place on a baking paper lined tray, spray with oil, sprinkle salt & sesame seeds and bake for 10-15 minutes until crisp and just beginning to colour.

Custard Tart on a diet? Seriously?

Absolutely! Desserts and cakes should still be a part of a healthy eating plan.
Denial only leads to binging.
The key is to eat occasionally, in portion control and a healthy version.

My melt in your mouth custard tart has been ‘slimpicked’ by reducing the amount of sugar, using skim milk, whole eggs instead of yolks and a low fat pastry.

It’s a quick and easy recipe to make. Give it a try.

Custard Tart:  

Serves 8 

1 sheet of short crust reduced fat pastry, defrosted
2 cups skim milk
2 tbs raw caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cornflour, blended with 2 tsp skim milk
3 eggs, beaten
¼ tsp nutmeg
Preheat oven to 180°C or 160°C fan forced
Spray pie dish or quiche tin with oil spray and roll out pastry. Line dish with pastry, gently stretching with fingertips if necessary, remove excess overhang and chill for 30 minutes. (This prevents the pastry from shrinking during cooking.) Prick pastry base with a fork, cover with a piece foil or baking paper, add some baking weights, uncooked rice or beans to act as a weight, and bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from oven, discard foil or paper, brush with beaten egg and bake for another 5 minutes.This sets the pastry and prevents it from becoming soggy. Set aside.
Reduce oven temperature to 150°C or 130°C fan forced.
Combine milk, sugar and vanilla in a small saucepan and heat until sugar has dissolved. DO NOT BOIL! Stir through blended corn flour.
Gradually add warmed milk mixture to eggs, pour into pastry case and bake for 30-35 minutes.
Use Gary Mehigan’s “wobble” test to see if cooked. Give the tart a tap and if it wobbles once, it’s cooked. If not, cook for another 5 minutes and test again.
Sprinkle with nutmeg and serve warm or cold.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION: per serve:

Energy: 523kj 125cal   Protein: 4.8g  Fat:4.4g (Sat1.8g)  Carbs:16.5g(sugar 7g)  Fibre: 0.1g
  
Source: Weigh It Up

Welcome to my blog.

As you can see i'm in the process of building my new blog, so please be patient and very shortly i'll have some of my favourite tasty, healthy and easy to follow recipes to keep you on your weight  loss path, posted soon.

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Simple Avocado, Cucumber & Mint Salad