chicken risotto

Serves 4

Ingredients

500g chicken tenderloins, chopped into bite-size pieces

olive oil

celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper

onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 cups arborio rice

500ml chicken stock

1 cup hot water

tin of diced tomato

1 cup sliced green beans

2 tablespoons basil leaves, sliced

Method

1. Cook chicken in rice cooker with oil and seasoning. Remove and place in a separate bowl
2. Cook onion and garlic in rice cooker. Add additional oil if necessary
3. Add rice and toss to coat with oil
4. Add stock, water and tomato. Stir and cover with lid
5. When most of the liquid is absorbed (but before the rice cooker turns itself off) add beans and stir through
6. When the rice cooker turns itself off stir through chicken and basil leaves

Notes
If you don't have a rice cooker, the same method can be used on a cooktop or in the oven. If you don't have fresh green beans, frozen green beans work just as well, or even peas. Feel free to grate fresh parmesan cheese if you aren't avoiding dairy.

potato + cauliflower hash

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 potatoes, diced

1/2 cauliflower, cut into small florets

40g (small handful) gluten-free spaghetti

onion, chopped

2 teaspoons mixed herbs

4 eggs

Method

1. Roast diced potatoes with olive oil, celtic sea salt and cracked black pepper for 40 minutes, or until crispy and golden
2. Blanch cauliflower until it begins to soften
3. Bring a small pot of water to the boil and cook spaghetti until al dente
4. In a large frying pan, cook onion until golden
5. Add cauliflower, spaghetti, roasted potato and mixed herbs.  Combine
6. Make 4 slight indents and crack an egg into each indent
7. Cover and cook until eggs are cooked to your preference (I like the yolk to still be runny)

Notes

This is a great dish on its own, or accompany with sausages or steak. My favourite sausages are Peppercorn's Extra Lean Chicken Sausages which have a fresh lime flavour, are gluten free and contain no artificial flavours or colours! I buy them from Farmer Jacks in  Claremont or Subiaco. Even the container is guilt-free being 100% biodegradable and compostable!

http://www.peppercornfood.com.au/Products/Sausage_Range/Extra_Lean_Chicken_Sausages.php

pork + pineapple salad

Serves 4

Poppy cooks...

1. Cook
   2 cups brown basmati rice and leave to cool (best to cook rice earlier in day or night before).
   
   
2. In a large frying pan, saute
   shallot, finely sliced, 
   2 cups red or green cabbage, shredded and
   1/4 pineapple, cut into pieces in
   olive oil until onion is slightly browned.
   
   
3. Add cold rice,
   punnet cherry tomatoes, halved and season with
   gluten free soy sauce and
   cracked black pepper to taste. Toss for 3 minutes and set aside.
   
   
4. Season
   pork fillet with
   celtic sea salt + cracked black pepper and cook in frying pan.
   
   
5. Slice pork and serve on bed of fried rice.

oven roasted chickpeas

Serves 1-6

Ingredients

1 tablespoon coconut oil

400g can of organic chickpeas

1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt

OPTIONS:

pepper

1/4 teaspoon cumin powder

1 teaspoon coconut sugar

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200C
2. Place coconut oil in a medium or large sized baking dish. If necessary, place in oven until coconut oil is melted
3. Rinse and drain chickpeas and soak up extra moisture with a kitchen towel
4. Place chickpeas in baking dish with coconut oil
5. Toss through chosen seasoning and spices
6. Back in the oven for 30 minutes or until they start popping and are crunchy

Notes
This is a great guilt-free protein packed snack! It is a good idea to bake them in a deep dish rather than on a baking tray, as when they pop they can make a mess of your oven

vegetarian nasi goreng

Serves 2

Ingredients

1 cup rice

4 eggs

2 red onions

2 red chillies

3 cloves of garlic

1 red capsicum

1 carrot

2 spring onions, sliced diagonally

coriander

Method

1. Cook rice in advance and stand to cool
2. Scramble eggs and set aside
3. Add one onion, half a chilli & garlic to a food processor to make a paste
4. Heat oil in a wok and fry paste for 3 minutes or until fragrant
5. Add thinly sliced onion, red chillies, yellow capsicum & carrot for another 3 minutes
6. Stir through rice, eggs and season with celtic sea salt & pepper
7. Toss through spring onions and coriander

Notes
This dish, as well as any other fried rice dishes, work best with left over rice or rice that has been cooked in advance and allowed to cool.

moroccan lamb soup

Serves 4

An excellent winter warmer that is hearty and filling. Feel free to accompany with gluten-free bread or make your own toasted gluten-free herb bread.

Poppy cooks…

1. Boil
   1/2 cup quinoa in
   1 cup of hot filtered water until all the water is absorbed and then set aside.
   
   
2. In a large pot over medium heat, place
   2 tablespoons coconut oil,
   2 cloves garlic, minced,
   1/2 teaspoon ground coriander,
   1.5 teaspoons ground cumin and
   3/4 teaspoon turmeric. Stir for 1-2 minutes.
   
   
3. Add 2 lamb shanks and toss to coat with spices until lightly browned on all sides.
   
   
4. Add
   2 purple carrots, sliced,
   2 orange carrots, sliced, 
   1/2 red capsicum, diced,
   1 cup pumpkin, diced,
   400g tin diced tomatoes,
   500ml gluten-free vegetable stock,
   celtic sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste and bring to the boil.
   
   
5. Add
   1 cup hot filtered water, reduce to a simmer and cook uncovered for 2.5 hours or until the meat is falling off the bone. Add more water if required.
   
   
6. Remove shanks, shred meat and add back to the pot.
   
   
7. Add quinoa into the pot and stir through.

chocolate + strawberry cake

Serves 2

Ingredients

4 tablespoons gluten free self raising flour

4 tablespoons coconut sugar

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

3 tablespoons rice milk

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 egg

punnet strawberries

coconut ice cream

Method

1. Combine all ingredients (except strawberries and ice cream) and whisk well with a fork
2. Cut strawberries into bite-size pieces and add
3. Pour into a mini cake tin, small oven-proof bowl or 2 ramekins (or you can mix it in the bowl you plan to cook it in)
4. Bake in a fan forced oven at 180 degrees for 30 minutes
5. Serve with your choice of coconut ice cream and strawberries

Notes
You can double, triple or quadruple this recipe to make a larger cake. I like being able to make a single serve cake for my husband and I for a one-off bit of indulgence. You can also cook this cake in the microwave by cooking on high for 1.5 - 3 minutes. Pictured below is an organic coconut ice cream I have come across called Coco Luscious...