Kiwi fruits: “a treasure of nutritional bounty”

My go-to nutritional guide book is Dr. Michael Sharon’s “Nutrients A-Z”*. This user-friendly manual is excellent as every entry is concise and enlightening, and you don’t need a PhD in organic chemistry.

So when I looked up kiwi fruit (or Chinese gooseberry), I was struck by two phrases: “a treasure of nutritional bounty” and “one of the acidic fruits that combines well with protein.” Ideal, I thought, as I love them. And I love combining them with yoghurts, especially when I have no time to cook.

Today’s lunch was two kiwis, six large strawberries and one mandarin orange, sliced up and mixed with a small tub of protein yoghurt. Quick, tasty, filling – and very healthy, as kiwis provide more vitamin C than oranges and more fibre than apples.

One kiwi fruit supplies up to 70mg of vitamin C, or just 5mg less than the average US recommended daily amount for women (it’s 90mg for men). This vitamin cleanses the body and helps boost resistance to disease. An average kiwi also supplies around 250mg of potassium, making it suitable for people with high blood pressure.

Kiwis’ fibre and mucilage content, and its special enzyme called actinidin, can also help with digestion and constipation. Mucilage is a jelly-like substance found in plants and is a rich source of dietary fibre (and is not to be confused with “fuselage”, which contains carbon fibre ;)).

This fruit provides around 9.2 grammes of fibre – more than a third of my daily need

Dietary fibre acts as a laxative, makes you feel full, combats too much cholesterol and sugar in the blood, and can help reduce obesity. Fibre is essential (and, judging by the above list, desirable) and we need to eat 25-30 grammes of it every day. So, as the average kiwi contains around 2.1, my lunch provided around 9.2 grammes, or more than a third of my daily need.

Kiwis should yield slightly to pressure (not be rock hard), are best peeled just before eating, and are nutritionally best when eaten raw. So my lunch idea was a nutritionally sound one. A fat-free yoghurt would also have worked.

So, if all that appeals, then get peeling a kiwi!

*Nutrients A-Z (A User’s Guide to Foods, Herbs, Vitamins, Minerals & Supplements)
Dr. Michael Sharon, Carlton Books, 2009. ISBN 978 1 84732 263 0

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Tasty food medicine: garlic chicken is delicious and packed with anti-ageing properties

My earliest memory of “garlic” is a bedchamber scene between Sid James and Joan Sims in the 1971 film Carry on Henry. Henry VIII’s wedding night ardour dies as his French wife Marie reeks of garlic, which she considers an aphrodisiac and refuses to stop eating it. Cue: divorce.

And who can forget comedian Peter Kay describing a conversation with his father about garlic bread. “Garlic…? And bread…?” “It’s the future! I’ve tasted it!”

Perhaps socially it is best shared or eaten with parsley, but garlic is both food and folk medicine. For thousands of years, it was believed to have medicinal properties – and science has now confirmed it.

Garlic is a low-calorie, nutrient-dense plant in the onion family that can help prevent and reduce the severity of colds and ‘flu. It appears to improve blood pressure and bone health, reduce cholesterol and lead toxicity, protect against the effects of ageing, and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. It may even improve physical performance and help you live longer. Those ancient doctors knew their stuff.

Best of all, garlic is delicious and easy to add to your diet, as this recipe proves!

Preparation time: 5-15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: Four

Ingredients:
1 medium chicken (about 1.5kg): jointed into eight pieces; skin on breast and wings, skin off legs and thighs
4 tbsp of olive oil
2 garlic bulbs: separated, skins on
6 bay leaves
200 ml of white wine or Fino sherry
100ml of water
Salt and pepper

Method:
1. Prepare the chicken as above and season with a little salt and pepper
2. Place a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or frying pan (that has a lid) over a medium heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the garlic cloves and fry gently until slightly golden. Remove the garlic from the oil with a spoon and set aside
3. Add the chicken to the pan in batches and fry on either side until golden brown all over. Return all the chicken and garlic to the pan along with the bay leaves, and pour in the wine, shaking the pan as you do to help emulsify the wine with the oil
4. Simmer for 2 minutes to evaporate some of the alcohol while turning the chicken in the sauce. Stir in the water, cover with the lid and simmer for 15 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Add more water, if required
5. Season, then serve

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Big beautiful brassica: low-calorie, nutrient-dense cauliflowers are healthy, tasty, cheap and easy to prepare

Cauliflower is one of those vegetables whose reputations for taste and nutrition has been decimated by years of Britons boiling the life and flavour out of it. I can distinctly remember Sunday dinners with older relatives, bracing myself to eat something that resembled a pale green brain containing more salt than the Dead Sea.

Thankfully, those hypertensive days are over and the cauliflower can be reinstated for what it is – another nutritious and versatile brassica which would benefit us to consume more regularly. Its ingredients may help strengthen bones, boost the cardiovascular system and prevent cancer.

Cauliflower is rich in vitamins C, K, B6 and B9 (folate), and a source of calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, sulphur and many other important nutrients. It also contains fibre, which enhances weight loss and digestion, and choline that is essential for learning and memory.

Even better, it can also be extremely tasty! The recipe below uses pine nuts but flaked almonds are a fine alternative. If you do use almonds, add them to the dish at the end, just before serving, so they don’t become soggy.

Preparation time: 5-10 minutes
Cooking time: 35 minutes
Serves: Four

Ingredients:
1 medium cauliflower broken into small florets
3 tbsp of olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, thinly sliced
50 strands of saffron infused in 4 tbsp of boiling water
3 tbsp of lightly toasted pine nuts (or flaked almonds)
75g of raisins soaked in warm water
Salt and pepper

Method:
1. Place the pine nuts (or flaked almonds) on a sheet of baking foil under a medium grill for a few minutes, turning from time to time, until toasted. Care should be taken as nuts can burn easily
2. Break up the cauliflower, thinly slice the onion, infuse the saffron and soak the raisins
3. Blanch the cauliflower for a minute in boiling lightly salted water, drain into a colander and set aside
4. Heat the olive oil in saucepan until hot but not smoking, then add the onion and a pinch of salt. Stir well, reduce the heat to low and cook very slowly for about 15-20 minutes until golden in colour and sweet smelling. Stir the mixture every 5 mins to prevent sticking. Remove from the heat, drain the onions but retain the oil
5. Set the same saucepan back on the heat together with the saved oil. When the oil is hot, add the cauliflower. Fry until the cauliflower begins to colour, then add the onion, saffron-infused water, pine nuts (if used) and the drained raisins. Give everything a good toss and cook for 5 more minutes until the saffron water has more or less evaporated
6. Add the flaked almonds (if used)
7. Season well and serve

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Versatile vegetarian breakfast: Shakshuka combines tomatoes, onions, garlic, spices and poached eggs – but can be adapted to suit any palate

When I asked my friends and family for healthy recipe ideas, someone replied “Shakshuka.” After establishing this was the name of a dish and not a badly disguised sneeze, I looked up the ingredients and was immediately impressed. Healthy, tasty, easy, versatile – and a food combiner’s dream protein meal. I’d hit the recipe jackpot.

Shakshuka is a Middle Eastern and North African vegetarian recipe, combining tomatoes, onions, garlic, spices and poached eggs.

Traditionally, it’s eaten for breakfast but could suffice for any meal. And the use of herbs and extra ingredients – in this instance spinach – can be adapted to suit any palate.

The cooking process can be divided into two parts, starting with the sauce (tomatoes, onions, garlic, red pepper and spices), then adding the spinach, eggs and feta, and cooking with a lid on to poach the eggs before serving with chopped coriander.

If frozen spinach is used, cook it through completely in the tomato sauce before adding the eggs and feta. The sauce can therefore be made in advance and reheated on the stove, adding the final ingredients once hot. If the sauce becomes too thick, a little water may be used to thin it.

Preparation and cooking time: 40 minutes
Serves: 4-6 people. Use one egg per person

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 medium sized onions, chopped (red onions can also be used)
2 large red (or yellow) peppers, cut into long slices and halved
2 x 400g tins of tomatoes
Chopped spinach (frozen spinach can also be used)
1 small hot chilli (if you like it spicy!)
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp sweet paprika
2 tsp cumin (optional)
1/2 tsp caraway seeds (optional)
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
200g feta cheese, crumbled
4–6 eggs
Coriander leaves, chopped (optional)
8 tbsp thick natural yoghurt (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper

Method:
1. Chop all the ingredients as recommended above
2. Heat the olive oil in a large, lidded frying pan. Add the onions and peppers. Cook on a medium heat until just softened
3. Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes
4. Sprinkle in the paprika and (if used) the chilli, cumin, caraway seeds and cayenne pepper. Add the tomatoes with a splash of water. Simmer for 10 minutes uncovered until the contents have reduced a little. The texture shouldn’t be too runny but mustn’t get too dry. Add another splash of water if necessary
5. When the sauce is reduced, add the spinach and cook until it wilts (or cooks through, if frozen)
6. Make some wells in the sauce for the eggs. Break an egg into a cup and drop carefully into a well, and repeat with the remaining eggs, then sprinkle over the crumbled feta. Cook for a few more minutes until the egg whites are just set and the yolks are still runny. Sprinkle over the chopped coriander (if used)
7. Serve, ensuring one egg per person (with the option of some yogurt on the side)

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The low fat version of creamy basil chicken: no cream – but still creamy. And with those fabulous tomatoes

One of the great bonuses of food combining is you never need to count calories or ration portions.

The idea is simple: if you eat essentially natural food in the right combinations, your digestion works efficiently so your body tells you how much to eat, and your weight naturally balances. I have found this works for me.

However, I appreciate that people might be sceptical about this, so here is a two-for-one recipe: a delicious Italian creamy basil chicken and roasted tomato dish that is good for food combiners – plus a low-fat version that is good for calorie counters. Enjoy!

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
About 20 cherry tomatoes, still attached to the vine
Olive oil
Ground black pepper
2 skinless chicken breasts
175ml double or regular cream (or 200ml crème fraiche)
150g butter (or 100g olive oil based spread) cut into cubes
Lemon juice
2 tablespoons of finely sliced basil (2-3 for the low-fat version)
100g green beans
100g mange tout

Method:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6
2. Wash and pat dry the green beans, mange tout and tomatoes. Finely slice the basil
3. Place the tomatoes on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and season with pepper. Roast for no longer than 10 minutes. The skin should be slightly blistered and the flesh soft inside. Remove from the oven, turn off the heat and return to the cooling oven after a few minutes to keep warm until serving
4. Place a frying pan on a high heat until it is smoking hot. Meanwhile, coat the chicken breasts with a tablespoon of olive oil and season with pepper. Place the chicken in the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes or until the underside is deep golden colour
5. Turn the chicken over and reduce the heat. Continue cooking for 5-10 minutes or until it is cooked through
6. Meanwhile, boil the green beans on a medium heat for 5-10 minutes. Ensure they retain a bite and are not too soft. When they are almost cooked, add the mange tout to the pan and flash boil for a couple of minutes
7. While the chicken and beans are cooking, warm two plates in the cooling oven and make the sauce. Pour the cream/crème fraiche into a small saucepan on a medium heat and bring just to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer until it has reduced to around four tablespoons and is very thick. Crème fraiche will remain thinner in consistency. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a minute
8. Using a whisk or hand blender, gradually add in the butter/spread. Season with pepper and a little lemon juice. Stir in the basil, adding slightly more for crème fraiche as it tends to maintain its own taste
9. Place the chicken breasts on the warmed plates. Spoon the sauce over the top, and add a portion of tomatoes, green beans and mange tout

The post Creamy Basil Chicken appeared first on Reverse Time Machine.

Paprika chicken: French flair and fine protein fare

French cuisine is a gift for food combiners as it isn’t overloaded with heavy protein-starch mixes, emphasises taste rather than portions without skimping on the latter, and uses fine ingredients. Physically and psychologically, it conveys a sense of elegant dining rather than fuelling up to till the field.

A friend prepared this Raymond Blanc-inspired paprika chicken recipe for me. It was exquisite.

It is also salt-free, and the sauce contains neither cream nor butter.

Magnifique!

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 boneless and skinless breasts of chicken
2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard
Freshly ground pepper
Paprika
50g unsalted butter
1 red pepper
White wine vinegar
100ml white wine
½ onion
½ courgette
1 medium tomato
1½ garlic cloves
1 bouquet garni
250ml light chicken stock or water
200g green beans
100g chestnut mushrooms
Olive oil

Method:
1. Peel and chop the onion and courgette. Peel and thinly slice the garlic. Deseed and chop the tomato. Wash and trim the green beans. Wash and slice the mushrooms
2. Cut the top and bottom 2cm off the red pepper. Remove and discard the seeds and stalk but keep all other pieces. Slice the body of the pepper into fine julienne sticks. Chop up 40g of pepper pieces for the sauce
3. Sweat the pepper sticks in 5g of butter. Add 1 teaspoon of white wine vinegar and a pinch of paprika. Cover with a lid and sweat for three minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside
4. While the pepper is sweating, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to a frying pan on a medium heat. Add the sliced mushrooms and one clove of garlic (save ½ a clove for the sauce). Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently until the mushrooms are browned but ensure the garlic does not burn. Set aside
5. Pre-heat the oven to 450F/230C/Gas Mark 8
6. In a small saucepan, boil two tablespoons of white wine vinegar and reduce it completely. Then add the white wine, reduce it by half, and add the 250ml of light chicken stock or water, and set aside
7. Over a low heat, sweat the onion and pepper pieces in 20g of butter for five minutes
8. Add the courgette, tomato, ½ a clove of garlic and bouquet garni and cook for a further three minutes
9. Add the reduced vinegar, white wine and chicken stock or water, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add a large pinch of paprika and allow to cool
10. While the sauce is simmering, boil the green beans for 5-10 minutes. They should retain a bite and not be soft. Drain and add to the mushrooms and garlic, and set aside
11. Return to the cooled sauce, remove the bouquet garni and liquidise the mixture until it is a very fine puree. Taste, season with pepper and set aside
12. Coat the chicken breasts with a film of mustard. Season with pepper and dust all over with paprika
13. In a large pan, heat 20g of butter over a medium heat until it turns golden brown
14. Fry the chicken breasts, without browning, for three minutes on each side. Transfer the chicken (and butter) to an ovenproof dish and cook in the preheated oven for five minutes
15. While the chicken is in the oven, reheat the green beans and mushrooms together on a low heat. Cover with a lid and stir occasionally. Also, separately reheat the pepper sticks and the sauce
16. Remove the chicken from the oven and serve, spooning the sauce around the chicken and garnishing with the sticks. Add the green bean and mushroom accompaniment

The post Paprika Chicken appeared first on Reverse Time Machine.

Mini cooked breakfast: scrambled eggs and grilled mushrooms and tomatoes provide a tasty, healthy, quick and easy protein meal

As I have said before, I love all types of tomatoes, which is a very good thing. However, I do find cooked tomatoes rather acidic. So, to get the best out of them and prevent them burning a hole through my stomach, I eat them with proteins – in this case, eggs.

Some people might also find cooked tomatoes tastier and easier to digest if they are skinned first. Submerging them in just-boiled water for 30 seconds should help them slip quickly and easily out of their red shiny jackets.

Eggs also offer several options for a protein breakfast, either as omelettes, boiled, poached, or here, scrambled.

Preparation time: 2 minutes before cooking, 5 minutes during cooking
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 large free-range eggs
2 large tomatoes
Single cream
Flat mushrooms
Filtered water

Method:
1. Wash and remove the mushroom stems, glaze with a little olive oil and a dash of lemon juice, and grill on a medium heat for around 10 minutes
2. Halve the tomatoes and add under the grill
3. Scramble the eggs with a tablespoon of cream and a teaspoon of water, and add a little black pepper
4. Serve the mini cooked breakfast all together

The post Mini Cooked Breakfast appeared first on Reverse Time Machine.

Baked almond trout: an easy nutrient-dense meal that’s also delicious!

Just as it was for Steam Baked Trout, this recipe can also be used for loch salmon, which might be a boost to your barnet!

But don’t kick out trout – as it’s not just your hair that could benefit. This simple recipe is a nutritional powerhouse. Rainbow trout is an oily fish loaded with protein, healthy fats, vitamins D, B12, B3 and B6, plus selenium and potassium, as well as other essential vitamins and minerals.

In effect, trout may improve brain function, boost “good” cholesterol and regulate blood pressure. It can also help maintain healthy red blood cell production and immunity, strengthen bones, and reduce internal stress and inflammation.

Almonds are also impressively nutrient dense. They too are high in healthy fats as well as rich in carbohydrates, protein and fibre. Almonds also provide an excellent source of vitamins E and B2, as well as manganese, magnesium, phosphorus and copper, among other vitamins and minerals.

Almonds can apparently lower cholesterol and ward off cancer. They can also help relieve phlegm, coughs and heartburn. Recommended amounts vary among nutritionists, but a few almonds a day for those who aren’t allergic seems a fine idea – which is just what this recipe provides!

Preparation time: 10 minutes before cooking, five minutes during
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 trout fillets
Juice of half a lemon
1 tablespoonful of flaked almonds

(Optional extras: carrots, swede, parsnips, celery, peas, a handful of fresh thyme or rosemary, or mixed green salad)

Method:
1. Scrub and chop up all the required vegetables into pieces no bigger than three square centimetres, and any herbs such as thyme and rosemary, or wash and chop up any salad
2. Steam the vegetables and herbs for 20 minutes
3. Brush the outside of the trout with the lemon juice
4. Scatter the flaked almonds onto a plate and roll the trout in it until both sides are covered
5. Bake on a sheet of greaseproof paper at 230C/450F/Gas Mark 8 for six minutes each side, until cooked through
6. Serve the baked almond trout with steamed vegetables or a mixed green salad

The post Baked Almond Trout appeared first on Reverse Time Machine.

This quick, easy and nutritious recipe may also be used for trout’s relative, loch salmon, which could be good news for your hair!

Preparation time: 15 minutes before cooking
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 x loch trout fillets
Butter or extra virgin olive oil
Fresh parsley
Black pepper

(Optional extras: steamed carrots, swede, parsnips, celery and peas or mixed green salad)

Method:
1. Scrub and chop up all the required vegetables into pieces no bigger than three square centimetres, and any herbs such as fresh parsley
2. Pre-heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4
3. Cover the fish with a fine layer of butter or olive oil, and herbs
4. Wrap loosely in a parcel of baking foil, securely pinching the ends together like a Cornish pasty. Ensure the fish can slide within the foil but it is completely sealed. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 20 minutes
5. Steam any additional vegetables and herbs for 20 minutes
6. Serve the baked trout with steamed root vegetables or salad

The post Steam Baked Trout appeared first on Reverse Time Machine.

Delicious chicken provencal: an easy, hearty casserole with a summer taste for all seasons

There are plenty of regional variations of this classic chicken and mushroom dish, but I particularly like this version.

Chicken is an excellent source of protein, selenium, and vitamins B6 and B3, and it’s a meat that’s relatively low in saturated fat (especially when the skin is removed).

White wine is optional in this traditional French casserole recipe.

Preparation time: 10 minutes before cooking
Cooking time: 1¼ hours
Serves: 2

Ingredients:
2 free-range chicken quarters or chicken breasts
8 medium-sized mushrooms (type is your choice)
4 shallots
4 medium tomatoes
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
2 cloves of garlic
100ml white wine
Extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons of fresh basil OR
4 sprigs of fresh thyme
Handful of pitted black olives

(Optional extra: steamed vegetables)

Method:
1. Slice up the mushrooms and peppers. Peel and chop up the tomatoes, finely chop up the shallots and olives, and crush the garlic
2. Heat up two tablespoons of olive oil in a pan on a medium heat and sauté the shallots and garlic for two minutes
3. Stir in the tomatoes, peppers and mushrooms
4. Bring to a simmer then add in the wine, if desired, and place in a casserole dish with the chicken and basil or thyme
5. Bake at 190C/375F/Gas Mark 5 for 1¼ hours
6. Stir in the olives and…voila! Chicken Provencal (or your genuine Provençal)
7. Serve alone or with steamed fresh vegetables

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