Beef Stroganoff (thermal cooker)

Beef Stroganoff (thermal cooker)

by | Oct 14, 2020 | All Recipes, Mains, Recipes, Slow Cooker

This is a set and forget kinda meal, and it’s a delicious one at that! One of my favourites actually. This can be made in a traditional slow cooker, but I don’t have one of those anymore – I gave it to my son when we moved into the caravan. What I do have is a thermal cooker. It cost me $99 from Aldi and is the best thing when traveling. It’s just like a slow cooker but doesn’t use power to cook. You just heat it up on the stove then pop it into the thermal/insulated container and let it do it’s thing for a few hours. Easy as! Here’s how I made my beef stroganoff.

Ingredients:

  • ½ brown onion, sliced
  • 20g butter
  • 500g beef strips, thinly sliced
  • 2-4 rashers streaky bacon
  • 125g mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 tomato, peeled and chopped.
  • 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 1 tsp of pepper
  • 1 tsp sweet paprika
  • 2 Tbsp of tomato paste
  • 2 Tbsp vegetable stock concentrate (this is homemade)
  • 1 1/4 cups of water
  • ½ Tbsp of worstershire sauce
  • 2 Tbsp sour cream (optional)
  • 180g rice in 400ml water (optional) Only needed if eating with rice. We usually eat cauliflower mash with it, but the rice is delish cooked this way!

Method:

  1. Place small inner pot on hot plate over high heat with 400ml water and salt (to cook rice). SKIP IF NOT EATING WITH RICE
  2. Meanwhile, to large pot add butter, bacon and beef. Cook stirring gently.
  3. When it starts to brown, add garlic, tomato paste and paprika. Continue to cook while stirring.
  4. Add vegetable stock, pepper, mushrooms, worstershire sauce and onion.
  5. Stir until it dries out a little on the bottom and starts to caremelise.
  6. Add red wine and chopped up, peeled tomato. Stir until well combined
  7. Add enough water to almost cover, continuing to stir while you bring it to the boil.
  8. By now the water for the rice should be boiling.
  9. Add rice to the boiling water and cook for 2 minutes. (absorbtion method) SKIP IF NOT EATING WITH RICE
  10. You will see it starting to absorb the water.
  11. Give the stroganoff one last stir before placing the little pot with the rice inside the big pot and popping the lid on.
  12. Allow to cook for a further 8 minutes.
  13. Remove from heat and place into the thermal cooker and close the lid.
  14. Leave for at least 2 1/2 hours (I’ve left mine up to 5 hours before)
  15. If eating with cauli mash (or anything else) prep this before it’s time to eat (of course … lol)
  16. When you are ready to eat, open the thermal cooker, remove the rice and set aside. This is where you add the sour cream (or yoghurt) to the stroganoff if you like.
  17. Serve up and enjoy!

Tips:

  • Add more of what you like (garlic, spices etc)
  • Leave out what you dont like (fresh tomato, wine, worstershire sauce etc)
  • Use normal stock if you don’t have the homemade stock concrentrate. This is quite salty, so if not using, add salt to suit your taste.
Paleo Banana Cake

Paleo Banana Cake

by | Jul 22, 2020 | Air Fryer, All Recipes, Dessert, Recipes, Snacks, Thermomix

This cake is deliciously moist! It is definitely a banana cake, not a banana bread

Cake:

  • 3 large or 4 small ripe bananas
  • 100g natvia or sugar/sugar substitute
  • 150g grass fed butter, at room temperature
  • 2 large, free range organic eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 240g gluten free flour
  • 1 tsp bicarb soda
  • 30g milk of choice (coconut/almond)

 

 

Method:

  1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius. Skip this step if baking in air fryer.
  2. Grease and line a 20cm cake tin with baking paper (or use a silicone tin) and set aside.
  3. Mix the peeled bananas 5seconds/speed5. Set aside.
  4. Place the softened butter and sugar into the TM bowl and mix 30 seconds/speed5 (scraping down the bowl partway through).
  5. Reduce to Speed 2 and add the eggs one at a time mixing for as long as it takes to add the eggs.
  6. Increase to Speed 5 for 10 seconds.
  7. Add the mashed bananas and the vanilla extract and mix 5seconds/speed5.
  8. Add the flour, bi-carb soda and milk and mix on 10 seconds/speed4.
  9. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix for 10 seconds or until completely combined.
  10. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven or air fryer for 1 hour or until golden on top and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
  11. If the cake is browing too quickly, place foil over the top and continue to cook. Make sure to press the foil into the sides of the cake tin if using an air fryer (the foil will get sucked up otherwise!)
  12. Leave in tin for about 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.
  13. Allow to cool completely if using frosting. If serving with custard, go for it and eat it warm!

Notes:

 This recipe works perfectly fine with self raising flour, cows milk and sugar if you aren’t into the Paleo way of eating 🙂

Loaded Broccoli & Cauliflower Soup

Loaded Broccoli & Cauliflower Soup

by | Jul 9, 2020 | All Recipes, Mains, Recipes, Soups, Thermomix

There are 2 ways to prepare this recipe, well, there are probably far more! But these are the two I will share here. The first way gives you a chunky soup, and the second gives you a semi-chunky soup. In the second method, all ingredients are pureed except the chicken, bacon and a few veggies. Both taste great; it just comes down to personal preference and if you can be bothered blending! You could most likely make this entirely in the thermomix, but I like to make a big batch, so that doesn’t suit me.

Feel free to play with the ingredients as I often do. The first time I made this, I included a turnip. Charli and I loved it, but  Chris & Cooper thought it tasted ‘weird’. Cooper had never tasted turnip before, so that may have been part of the problem! He refused to finish his bowl and Chris loaded it up with cheese and sour cream and was a good sport about it.

As with all recipes, you must tweak it to suit your tolerances, tastes and macros. Have fun playing around and let me know what you come up with. I’m sure if Chris had his way, some extra hot-sauce or chilli would be added in there somewhere 😉

Ingredients

  • 1 head (500g) of cauliflower (or 1 500g bag frozen)
  • 350g of broccoli fresh or frozen
  • 50g butter
  • 5 Cloves of garlic, chopped/smashed
  • 1- 2 brown onions, diced
  • 3 cups of bone broth or stock
  • 350g of diced chicken thighs (omit for vegetarian)
  • 250g streaky bacon (use more if you love bacon and omit for vegetarian)
  • 400g coconut milk
  • 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
  • 1 Tbsp. Turmeric
  • Pink salt to taste
  • 2 Tbsp. nutritional/savoury yeast flakes (optional)
  • Ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 Tbsp. coconut flour

Method 1

  1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium high heat.
  2. Add onion and garlic and sauté until transluscent.
  3. Add nutmeg, turmeric and flour and stir until well combined.
  4. Add other other ingredients and reduce heat to low and cook for about 45 minutes.
  5. Top with fresh chives and a dollop of sour cream (omit for dairy-free).

Method 2

  1. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium high heat.
  2. Add onion and garlic and sauté until transluscent.
  3. Add nutmeg, turmeric and flour and stir until well combined.
  4. Add stock, coconut milk, brococli and cauliflower and stir to combine.
  5. Transfer the majority of the veggies and part of the liquid to a food processer and blend until as smooth as you would like it.
  6. Return to the pot and add chicken, bacon and savoury yeast.
  7. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for about 45 minutes.
  8. Top with fresh chives, some grated cheese and a dollop of sour cream (omit for dairy-free).

Tips:

  • I usually make this with frozen cauliflower (1 500g bag), frozen broccoli (however much I feel like adding), frozen chicken thighs and frozen bone broth
  • Partially defrost the frozen chicken thighs to make dicing easier
  • Add some sweet potato if your macros allow
  • Omit meat for a delicious vegetarian soup
  • Use regular cream instead of coconut cream if you prefer

 

   

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Apple Sauce (thermomix)

Apple Sauce (thermomix)

by | Jul 9, 2020 | All Recipes, Extras, Recipes, Thermomix, Vegetarian

This recipe contains about 5g of carbs per 50g serve when made with xylitol only (no honey or rice malt syrup).

It is definitely more Paleo than LCHF, so please take this into account.

 

Serves 12

  • 600g apples UNPEELED (depending on size) preferably organic (or at least soaked/rinsed well)
  • 80 g  water
  • 2 Tbsp. Xylitol (or stevia) optional (omit if adding honey or rice malt syrup)
  • ½ tsp. citric acid or lemon juice

Method:

  • Core and quarter the apples, leaving the peel on. (feel free to remove peel if apples aren’t organic)
  • Put apples and water into TM bowl and chop for 30 seconds on speed 4.
  • Open lid, scrape down the sides of the bowl with spatula (add citric acid and sweetener if using)
  • Cook at 90C for 9 minutes on speed 4.
  • For a smoother consistency, blend for about 30 seconds gradually increasing to speed 8.

Optional Flavour Additions:

  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract, 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. maple extract, 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. mixed spice, 1-2 Tbsp. Raw honey
  • 1 tsp. mixed spice, 1-2 Tbsp. Rice malt syrup

Tips:

  • If the applesauce is too thick, add more water to thin it out.
  • Add more or less sweetener to suit your preference.
  • If too sweet, add more lemon juice or citric acid.
  • Serve hot or cold.
  • Freezes well and will last at least a year when frozen. When freezing, make sure you use jars specifically labeled for freezing and only fill ¾ full to allow for expansion.
  • I usually make a triple batch and it will last 12 months as we eat it so infrequently.

Serve with:

  •  Pork chops and savoury dishes
  •  Cottage cheese as a snack or light lunch
  • Vanilla ice cream (low carb) or yogurt
    • custard recipe here: http://www.mimfit.net/almost-dairy-free-custard/
  • Use in recipes to add a sweeter apple flavour (can be used in place of oil)

 

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Air Fryer Roast Veggies

Air Fryer Roast Veggies

by | Jul 8, 2020 | Air Fryer, All Recipes, Extras, Recipes, Vegetarian

Ingredients:

Whatever veggies you have lying around but I used these:

  • tomato
  • zucchini
  • capsicum
  • red onion
  • mushrooms
  • seasoning of choice (garlic powder, onion powder, herbs/spices etc)
  • pinch of xylitol
  • olive oil and basil
  • parmesan cheese

Method:

  1. Chop into bite size pieces.
  2. Add all ingredients to air fryer baking dish.
  3. Cook for 15 mins at 180C.
  4. Add parmesan and cook for another 2 mins
Pork Belly and Baked Potatoes

Pork Belly and Baked Potatoes

by | Jul 8, 2020 | Air Fryer, All Recipes, Mains

Easy, delicious and awesome crackle with minimal mess. The perfect pork belly? Yup. Absolutely!

This was cooked in my Phillips XXL using the rack accessory.

 

Ingredients:

  • Pork belly (one large or multiple smaller pieces) Make sure it’s fairly flat as when the crackle cooks, it puffs up and can touch the top of the air fryer
  • Pink salt
  • Baby potatoes or larger potatoes halved
  • Coconut or olive oil spray

Method:

  1. Remove from fridge 60-90 minutes before cooking.
  2. Pat the pork belly dry using paper towel and then score the skin with a sharp knife.
  3. Sprinkle with salt and allow to sit for 10-20 minutes.
  4. Pat to dry once again (if you have time you can repeat the proccess until almost no moisture remains)
  5. If it is extremely salty you can rinse some of the salt off with hot water
  6. Give it a quick spray with oil
  7. Place the potatoes in the basket, give a quick spray with oil and set the rack on top.
  8. Place the pork belly on the rack.
  9. Cook at 200C for 25 mins, then 180C for the remaining time. This will vary according to the size of your pork.
  10. Let rest for a few minutes before serving.

 

  • General rule – cook for 30 mins per 500g of meat.
  • Veggies should take 20-30 minutes at 190-200 but I don’t worry about this – I put them all in at the same time and somehow it has always worked!
  • Check the pork before removing to make sure is isn’t under cooked in the middle.
  • I like to buy big slabs of pork belly and cut them up into portions

If you don’t have the rack you can rest the pork on top of the potatoes or throw the potatoes in around the pork. Try a few different methods and see what works best!