Recipe: Chilli con Carne with Creamy crushed new potatoes

This is one of my favourite chilli recipes, as well as one of my favourite potato dishes too! Sounds really weird to mash up new potatoes with yoghurt, but trust me, it is absolutely delicious. Must be much healthier than the normal buttery mashed potato I make too! Bit of a lazy chilli recipe i suppose, what with using pre-made sauces/ tins for things, but you end up with such a nice flavour at the end of it, without having to use a whole cupboard full of expensive spices. I crumbled up burgers for this recipe, simply because they were good quality burgers from the Co-op that were reduced in price substantially, so thought i'd give it a go- works a treat in a chilli it turns out!!

Chilli con carne with creamy crushed new potatoes (serves 4)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small red onion, diced
4 beef burgers (weighing around 450g in total), crumbled
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 green chilli, finely chopped
Large handful fresh coriander, chopped
1 tbsp tomato puree
½ tsp smoked paprika
½ red pepper
½ yellow pepper
300g tomato and chilli pasta sauce
1 tin kidney beans in chilli sauce
500ml chicken stock
2 cubes chocolate
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt, sugar and pepper to taste

750g sliced new potatoes

300g Greek yoghurt
15g chopped chives (plus a little extra for garnish)
Plenty of salt and pepper to taste

1. Fry the onion, beef, garlic, chilli, coriander and tomato puree for 10 minutes, or until the beef has been browned. Add the peppers and smoked paprika and fry for a further 2 minutes.

2. Add all the other ingredients, and cook on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes. Meanwhile, boil the sliced new potatoes for about 25 minutes, or until soft but not falling apart.
3. Drain the new potatoes, mash together with the Greek yoghurt and chives, and season well. Season the chilli to taste, and serve this with the crushed new potatoes, with some extra chopped chives garnished on top.

I can make you MORE beautiful!

Yes, it is true and it happens every day in my 30/10 Weight Loss For Life facility in downtown Bellevue, Washington.  50% of my clients are men and 50% are women and the 30/10 program is transformational for many of my enthusiastic clients. There are two basic reasons as to why a person will choose to engage themselves into a program to slim down.  One is due to health concerns and the other reason is that they desire to look better.

 I tell my female clients that I can make them more beautiful and so true it is.  A woman whose "ideal" weight is 120 pounds and who is 10% overweight, generally does not feel good physically or emotionally with those 12 extra pounds of fat in her body.  She will feel fat, moody and tired, she will be frustrated with those 12 pounds of stubborn fat either on her hip and thighs or in her belly that she just cannot get rid of, no matter how much she exercises or tries to diet it away.   10%  is a lot of extra weight for that woman, it  is a big deal for a woman and they typically find that these extra pounds can mess up their hormones. It can also make her feel fat and self conscious with how she looks and in how she feels about herself.

The average woman in my clinic is 85 pounds overweight, that is average.  I just feel I do not see enough of those  frustrated and confused women  who are 10% overweight and who have no idea about how to address those stubborn 12 to 20 pounds of  fat.

Many people have no idea what they should weigh, most of the time their guess as to what they should weigh is weigh weigh (way way) off.  When a new client sits down with me in consultation  I explain them that I cannot really guess with any degree of accuracy exactly what they should weigh. Basing a persons weight on their age and height is not accurate.  Generally I ask if they can remember a time in the past when they felt they were at their ideal weight, when they felt fit, healthy, active and they liked how they looked. They often go back to a time before kids or their senior year in high school to reflect upon a memory of when they felt right with their weight.  Sometimes I hear, "when I turned 40, Dr. Doyle,  everything changed for me, or menopause simply put the weight on for me and I have been trapped in this body ever since..."

A persons "ideal" weight is based on science and fact, I will define ideal weight as to when your body composition numbers come into normal range, namely the body fat percentage and the visceral fat rating. We want your body fat percent and your visceral fat rating  to fall into the mid normal range for your age category, thereby allowing us to leave all the guess-work for your ideal weight to science and fact. Your ideal weight is simply the weight you should weigh when your body fat and visceral fat numbers enter into  normal range.

Women do become more beautiful, this is a fact.  When they drop the extra weight we see the dramatic changes in their hips and abdomen, legs and arms and for many, also their face.  People all carry their weight in different regions of the body depending on their specific body type.  Some carry the weight in the belly and hips (saddle bags) and they are the ovarian body types.  The thyroid body type carries the weight all over, both torso and arms and legs and face.  The adrenal body type carries primarily in the torso (face, chest and abdomen) without fat  deposited in the arms or legs.  The liver body type deposits fat in the abdomen, called visceral or belly fat and we see this most frequently in men who appear to be 6 to 9 months pregnant.

Our 30/10 program is fat targeting and muscle sparring, which means that weight loss comes from the fat and not from the muscle.  With our diet the skeletal  muscle mass percent  is enhanced and so the client looks really good as they lose the weight.  Our infrared sauna helps detox and women especially look refreshed in the face after 5 to 6 sessions.  Women as young as 40 years old show dramatic before and after changes in appearance with their before pictures looking like the mother and their after pictures looking like the daughter.  I tell my clients  they will age regress as they slim down and become healthy again.

Women become more beautiful and they tell me they feel like their hormones have balanced for the first time.  As they reach their ideal weight they will find their body has now become a fat burner vs. a fat storer and their metabolism shifts from sluggish and inefficient to fast and efficient.  Everything changes at the ideal weight, metabolism transforms itself and a woman at any age becomes more beautiful, more confident and more energetic.  It is a big miracle that happens in a short period of time, the process is fun and exciting, it is fun to lose 3 pounds per week and to not  feel hungry or deprived throughout the process.

Men transform as well but they just don't look "more beautiful" like women do, sorry guys but those are  just the facts. When men drop the fat and slim down they look younger, healthier and much more fit, but most of em still look just as ugly as when they started the slim down process. Improved libido is a big deal for both men and women when they find their ideal weight. When the hormones and the body metabolism is messed up, libido takes flight but quickly returns when the excess body fat and visceral fat has been let go of.

Until next time, Dr. Mark Doyle.

Recipe: Spiced Lamb Burgers, with Chargrilled Aubergine and Coriander Yoghurt

Yes indeed folks- another yoghurt recipe! This time in the form of a creamy herb yoghurt, to dollop on top of sizzling spiced lamb burgers! I love those chargrilled antipasti things you get in jars/packets- aubergines, courgettes, peppers- whatever! I figured because of the moussaka link, that chargrilled aubergines would go well with the lamb. What is also nice in this is a tsp of red onion chutney spread on the base if you fancy it.

Spiced Lamb Burgers, with Chargrilled Aubergine and Coriander Yoghurt (serves 4)

Burgers:
500g lamb mince
1 egg
30g breadcrumbs
2 tsp dried mint
1 tbsp garam masala
1 green chilli, deseeded and diced finely
2 banana shallots, diced finely
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Generous amounts of salt and pepper

Yoghurt:

180g Greek yoghurt
4 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander
Salt and pepper to taste

4 toasted sesame buns

4 slices of chargrilled aubergine (from deli/or antipasti jar)
Salad and fries to garnish

1. Preheat the oven to 200C. Mix together all the burger ingredients, shape into 4 large burgers, and put into the fridge for about 10 minutes to firm up. Put a griddle pan onto high heat, and fry the lamb burgers for 2 minutes on each side.
2. Transfer these burgers to an oven tray, and put in the oven for 8 minutes, to fully cook through (if cooking these on a barbeque, just transfer them to the lower heat part of the barbeque, and turn them occasionally until cooked in the middle).
3. Meanwhile, mix together the yoghurt, herbs and seasoning. Lay a slice of chargrilled aubergine on the base of the buns, top with the hot lamb burgers, and with a dollop of the herb yoghurt. Serve, with salad and fries if desired!

Recipe: Greek Roast Beef with Spicy Courgettes and Potatoes, and a Dijon Mustard Yoghurt

Feels like it's been ages since i've posted up a recipe isn't it? Since my last recipe post, I have gone to Penzance, gone to Glastonbury, moved house, won a competition and got a new job! In fact, this recipe is the first one i've posted from my new home- I love my new flat with my new furniture in it and my lovely boyfriend! Yay. As you guys know, i won a month's supply of Total Greek Yoghurt, and so i'm finding out creative ways of using this surplus of yummy dairy products! This is a really interesting dish- it's like a sunday roast beef dinner- Greek style! I really like this Greco-Anglo Fusion dish, and the flavours work so beautifully together. Za'atar is a middle eastern herb/spice blend (and my lovely friend Emily brought me a jar of it back from Israel!) , but if you can't find it anywhere, use a mix of oregano and cumin instead.

Greek Roast Beef with Spicy Courgettes and Potatoes, and a Dijon Mustard Yoghurt (serves 2)

Beef
1 Scotch beef joint for two (from Co-Op)
500ml lager
1 tsp za’atar
Pinch salt and pepper

Courgettes + Potatoes
50g wild garlic butter (or use 50g normal butter + 2 garlic cloves)
1 red chilli, finely chopped
2 courgettes, halved and sliced
4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tsp za’atar
1 rounded tbsp tomato puree
500ml beef stock
Salt, pepper and sugar to taste

Mustard Yoghurt

200g Greek Yoghurt
25g Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 200C (Fan Oven 180C). Rub the beef joint with the za’atar and a little seasoning. Put into a roasting dish with the beer, and put into the oven for 40 minutes (for medium well). Take out half-way through cooking time and baste with juices.

2. Meanwhile, fry the chilli, courgettes, potato, sesame seeds and za’atar in the garlic butter on a high heat for 6 minutes, stirring often. Add tomato paste and cook for a further two minutes.

3. Add the beef stock, and cook for a further 20 minutes on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are fully cooked and the sauce is thickened.

4. Remove the beef from the oven, and allow to rest for 10 minutes before carving (if there are any extra juices left in the pan, pour it into the courgette mixture). Mix together the yoghurt with the Dijon mustard, and season to taste.

5. Carve the beef, and serve with the courgettes and potatoes, and a pot of the mustard yoghurt on the side.

Competition: Total Greek Yoghurt's Recipe Competition

Hey guys! It's been a while since I announced another competition win isn't it? Well, this week, i won runner up in Total Greek Yoghurt's "Greek Inspired" Recipe competition, winning a months supply of Various types of Total Yoghurt! The winning recipe was my Briam, which you can find on the blog under "greek recipes".

They've sent me LOADS of stuff as well, the fruity yoghurts i'll most likely just be having for brekkie and with my packed lunch, but all the plain natural stuff, i'm sure i'll be coming up with inventive uses for it, many of which will be recipes i'll post up on this blog. Cheers Total!!

Travel- Glastonbury Foodie Review- Day 5/6

In the morning I went around for a bit of a wander, mainly because I fancied a walk but also I figured I would take piccies of some more food stalls for this review and all that. Went round the corner from the astrolabe, just slightly ahead of the showers/ kids field, is “Pilton Pasta”. This stall has been going for yonks, I’ve always seen it every time I’ve been to glasto, it seems to change its location every so often, but it’s menu seems to stay the same- normally about 5 or 6 different flavours of pasta, including tomato and chorizo, pesto and broccoli, carbonara or tomato and veg. Usually pretty cheap and filling, so a good dependable one to go for I reckon.

I didn’t fancy pasta at that point, I really fancied something meaty actually, so went down to a stall near the meeting point (and this van is always in the same location), the “Bath Organic Farm” stall. Here they sold organic beef, lamb and venison burgers- for a very decent price. I went for their festival special, which was a double burger, with bacon, cheese and salad, for £4.50!!! This was, without the shadow of a doubt, the best value meal I’ve ever had at Glastonbury (I went for double venison burgers). It was huge! Almost impossible to eat (I say almost, I just about managed it with my big gob, lol)! The flavours were delicious and intense, you could taste that it was good quality, organic meat, and it was incredibly filling too. After having this, I thought I wished I had tried this place sooner, instead of wasting extortionate amounts of money at some stalls that served a small portion of not-so-good quality food.

I then met up with my parents at the Greenpeace/ Farmer’s market area again- dad was having something he’d been having for his lunches during most of the festival- a big ol’ ploughman’s from the cheesemonger stall in the Farmer’s market. If I remember right it was fairly expensive (£8 or something pricey!) but you did get a large amount of good quality ingredients for this- 3 different local cheeses (a cheddar, a chilli cheese, and a sheeps/mild goats cheese), 3  big hunks of bread, a pot of chutney, a pot of butter, fruit (apples/grapes) and a pot of pickled onions/ gherkins. A hearty vegetarian feast I would say!

On the walk back, on our way to go and see The Proclaimers, dad pointed out this Indian stall, just before you get into the West Holt’s field. Normally me and dad go there a few times during the festival, because it’s really good- but apparently the stall owners have changed (it’s run by young English people now, not Indians) and it’s really rubbish now!  Apparently their chickpea curry (part of their thali special) was rock hard (like they hadn’t soaked the chickpeas enough or something) and their samosas were not nearly as good as they used to be. Such a shame!

Then we went to the Acoustic stage to see The Proclaimers, who were absolutely fantastic!  In the acoustic tent, there hangs the biggest mirror ball in the UK, pretty cool ey?

Steve Winwood was on after The Proclaimers, and I wanted to see him too, so once The Proclaimers had finished and they were getting the stage set-up for the Winwood, I nipped out briefly to get a bite to eat. I decided to check out the “Paellaria” (near the meeting point) which cooked vegetarian paella, and a chicken and chorizo paella in mahoosive pans. I decided to go for the “Bit of both” option (which was only £6 and a very generous portion actually), which was garnished with stewed tomatoes and freshly chopped parsley- and my god this was delicious! Both paellas were really tasty, and had gorgeous different textures within the two separate dishes. The rice really filled me up/set me up for the rest of the evening, so definitely good value for money.  

After Steve Winwood (who was actually a bit crap- his set was really rubbish because it was like 55 minutes of him jamming randomly with his band mates, and then like only 2 of the songs we knew, which is silly because Traffic/ Winwood had so many memorable songs he could have done) me mum and dad went off to see the Stones! Don’t know whether any of you guys saw it on the telly, but it was pretty cool to see them. To be honest, with the crowd being so big, we were fairly far away, so it wasn’t the most amazing experience, but in the end I’m glad I’ve seen them (especially considering they probably won’t be performing- or alive for that matter!- for much longer). In fact my mum said they were much better than when she saw them in their “heyday”, because when she saw them then they were all so drunk/drugged up they could barely stand/pick up their instruments. I suppose nowadays they’re all on different types of drugs- blood pressure pills, arthritis medicine, lol!

After this I went back to my camp and chilled out. Now, I’m guessing you may be expecting another day’s review out of me. Well, after Saturday, and seeing the Stones and all that, I decided I would leave a day earlier (on the Sunday). The main reasons I guess were a) I was missing my boyfriend (aw, what a soppy creature I am!) and b) I was moving house on the Monday, and I was getting increasingly nervous about how much work this would involve. Plus to be honest c) I’d had enough of camping by then, I really don’t like it at all, haha!

However, on Sunday afternoon, once I’d packed up my tent and things, I did have another bite to eat, at a food stall in the West Holts field called “Ghandi’s Flip Flops”- which served vegetarian currys/dahls, thalis, and lassis. I had their mixed vegetable curry, and aubergine and red pepper korma, with rice and a chapatti, and it was very flavourful- if I see them there next year, I will definitely give them another go.

Well, I hope all of you enjoyed my review of Glastonbury Festival, and I hope that in years to come this guidance will help people choose the right food to eat, and that the stalls won’t all move around completely rendering this review not quite as useful! As you can see, there is a plethora of food available at the festival, and even a trained gourmet can find their fill! I hope, if there are fellow Glasto-goers reading this, that you enjoyed this year as much as my mum and I did, and hopefully I will see you there next year!

The end of an era and the start of a new chapter

Well, there had to come a point when I pulled my finger out, pulled up my socks and opened my laptop to finally write a blogpost.

I know I've been utter pants over the last few months.

It's not as though I've had no news to share. I've probably had too much and I never even blogged about the impromptu moment I asked the legendary Michael Parkinson about his rubbish.

But now that the school holidays are upon us, this is the first occasion I've had to properly slow down since September last year and stay at home instead of gallivanting around the country.

And this holiday feels like a period of transition in more ways than one.

On a personal level, our youngest has just left primary school and is getting ready to start middle school in September.  Yes, that little man who was only 3 when I started this blog has just turned 9 and is growing up.  To watch him confidently leave one school and be ready to embark on the next stage of his life feels like a real milestone.

Elsewhere, I've spent the last 8 months coming to terms with my mother's unexpected death in December.  Nothing can prepare you for losing a parent and I'm very aware that the constant flow of activities and deadlines this year have kept me very distracted, so much so that when we completed the sale of her house last week, it kicked me so hard that it felt like she'd died all over again.  My mother taught me lots about what's important in life and much of that teaching was in her death.  One day, I hope to share her wisdom - not yet but soon - the wisdom of an average woman who would never have expected to have been considered remarkable but in many ways truly was.  I really wish she was still here to see what's around the corner.  I know she'd be one of the first to laugh at my misadventures and then, without me knowing, quietly share her pride.

For things are changing on The Rubbish Diet front and at a rate of knots too.  Remember that Nesta competition I entered last year in partnership with Cwm Harry and Rachelle Strauss from My Zero Waste?  We're still right in the middle of the challenge and following the success of running the Rubbish Diet in Suffolk and Shropshire (which even saw 22 households in one street taking part in Shrewsbury), the novel bin slimming action is spreading to Ludlow and very soon Powys, the latter of which will be launched during this year's National Zero Waste Week, 2-8 September.   If you haven't checked out Zero Waste Week yet, go and have a peek at its new website and do get involved, especially if you need to get tough with your food waste.

But there's lots happening between now and then.  Don't miss 'yours truly' helping a family slim their bin as part of the Throwaway Britain Tonight documentary, which is being broadcast this Thursday 1st August (9pm, ITV1).  Without giving away the final reveal, I can't wait for you to see how Sandra and her family tackled their waste. 

And to give you even further inspiration to reduce waste, I've been pulling together the first UK tour of the Clean Bin Project documentary, which will see my old Canadian blogging friend Jen and her partner Grant travelling around the UK, to attend screenings of their movie in Brighton, Suffolk, York, Shrewsbury (tbc) and Wiltshire.  The official dates and venues for late August will be published soon, but if you'd like to know more please email me.

But coming back to the most major thing that's happening in my life right now, although I'm taking time out to enjoy the events of the summer holidays and pause for reflection, it's also a time for significant change, especially as the success of The Rubbish Diet trials featured in the Nesta competition has led to much interest from a range of local authorities.

The Rubbish Diet has already travelled a long way from being just a random housewife with a blog.  In the last year, it has developed into a website and a team to support the Nesta Waste Reduction competition.  And now, still in conjunction with the 'Do Think' Tank Cwm Harry (the people who are also behind the People's Design Lab), we are preparing for the next stage, which will see The Rubbish Diet becoming a social enterprise, developed to help households and communities reduce their waste by 50% within as little time as eight weeks.  More info on the next stage will be available soon, as will the final results of the Nesta competition later in the year.  Meanwhile if The Rubbish Diet challenge launches in your neck of the woods, do join in and say hello.

With so much happening it really does feel like the end of an era and the beginning of an exciting and potentially nerve-wracking new chapter.

Thank you for sticking with the rubbish adventures of this Almost Mrs Average over the last five years.  I know there are lots more adventures to be had yet, but from now on it will be in a very different context.

I just hope I will still have time to blog about them.