turkey, turkey, turkey...

Rosemary Scented Turkey Quesadillas with Cranberry Salsa

In our house the left over turkey from Christmas day usually gets made up into a delicious turkey curry or popped between a couple of slices of bread and served up as sandwiches until it has all been devoured. I thoroughly enjoy both of these but thought how nice it might be to serve up something different. I've had a scout around and come up with a few new recipes that I will share with you. I found this recipe in a healthy eating magazine and have already tried and tested it so i know not only do they taste amazing but they are pretty healthy too. They taste light and fresh and are the perfect meal for the day after Christmas when you may have overindulged a little too much.

Ingredients:
8 Stalks celery, minced
1 yellow onion, minced
100g fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped (thawed, if frozen)
2 large pears, peeled and diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
Juice 1 orange
1/2 tsp sea salt
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp dried rosemary
500g shredded turkey, if you are not using leftover turkey you could use ground turkey for this.
8-15 corn tortillas (6-inch diameter)
grated cheese, enough to taste, why not use up the left overs from the cheese platter and create lots of different flavour combinations.

1. To prepare the salsa add 2 stalks of celery, 1/2 onion, cranberries, pear, 1 clove of garlic and orange juice. Season with sea salt and black pepper. Set aside for later.
2. Preheat a large non stick frying pan or skillet and add the remaining celery and onion and cook for 3 minutes. Add in the rosemary and the remaining garlic and cook for another 2 minutes. If you are using the ground turkey add this now and cook for 5 minutes breaking it up as you do. With a fine mesh colander drain the turkey mixture and leave to sit in a large bowl. If you are using leftover turkey you just add this to the bowl of celery, onion, rosemary and garlic now.
3. Wipe out the frying pan or skillet and reheat to a medium heat. Add a tortilla to the frying pan then add a few spoons of mixture to cover the tortilla. Sprinkle cheese to cover. I like a lot of cheese so I get a little carried away at this point. Leave this to cook undisturbed for 3 minutes.
4. With a spatula gently fold the tortilla in half and cook for one minute gently pressing the tortilla closed if need be.
5. divide the quesadillas between the plates and add some salsa to garnish. They are so tasty, you will just love them.

I love making quesadillas as you can add any leftovers you have in the fridge and make delicious snacks in no time. They can be as simple or adventurous as you like and always go down a treat. I love to add some sour cream to top mine off perfectly. Enjoy.

healthy ham quiche...

I think there may be a bit of a pattern forming with any recipes I share, they all seem to be one pot wonders or pretty close to it. It's not that I'm a lazy cook or can't wash up although I'm sure if I didn't have my amazing fiance to wash up after me I might be less inclined to cook, its just that these are the kind of meals I love to eat and love to serve. I'm a massive sharer and even when out for dinner I love to get all different dishes so that everyone can taste a bit of everything else. I also hate waste and love dishes where you can use up any little leftovers that you have lying around. What you might think is destined for the bin can soon be turned into something delicious once you know how. This is another recipe I found in a healthy magazine. I love finding recipes in magazines and then changing them up a little, this usually involves making them less healthy by adding more cheese or cream but hey an extra walk around the park will sort that out.

This one is delicious and can be served up with potato salad, or coleslaw or just a simple green salad if you like.

Ingredients:
2 slices whole-grain bread, roughly chopped
1 large egg plus 5 large egg whites, maybe keep the extra egg yokes to make some homemade mayonnaise for the potato salad. yummy.
1 1/2 cups semi skimmed milk
165g ham, roughly cut into small cubes, you dont need to be too fussy about this. Use up any left overs you may have from a boiled ham in this recipe.
100g low-fat Swiss cheese cut into small cubes, the original recipe called for a little less but hey you only live once, use different cheese for different flavours too, whatever you have lying around.
1 bunch green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
2 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 190°C/ 375°F/ Gas mark 4.
2. In a food processor chop bread into rough crumbs. You can do this easily using the pulse setting.
3. Put the crumbs in an oven proof baking dish and press the crumbs firmly onto bottom of the dish to form a crust.
4. Bake this for 10 minutes, until the edges go a golden colour.
5. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk egg, egg whites and milk until just combined.
6. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk until well blended.
7. Pour egg mixture over top of crust. Bake for 60-65 minutes or until top is puffed up and golden brown and a knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle.
8. Remove from the oven and let to stand for at least 10 minutes.
9. Run your knife around the edge to try to loosen the quiche from the dish. Then cut into pieces and serve up.

Mmmmm Delicious...

facemask frenzy...

I really enjoyed making the hair masks so I decided to see if I could find some homemade facemasks too. It's so nice to chill out in the evening and have some pamper time after work or enjoy a relaxed Saturday with some movies and me time. Here are a few I tried out and really liked. They are all really easy to make and use things that you will most probably have lying around at home already.

The first one I decided to make was a sugar scrub. I love that really clean feeling you get after using a sugar scrub but to buy a nice sugar scrub will usually set you back quite a bit so I was delighted when I found this cheap and cheerful solution.

Lemon-Honey Sugar Scrub

This works well to remove dead skin, the olive oil works wonders for moisturising and the lemon and honey will brighten your complexion too.

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 ½ tablespoons of sugar

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, apply it to your face, and rinse with warm water. It's as easy as that. So refreshing and so easy to do.

The next one I tried is more of a mask. Perfect for the winter as I always find my skin seems to dry out a little more when I'm faced with wind and rain on an almost daily basis. Sometimes just moisturing doesn't seem to be enough.

Egg Yolk, Honey, and Olive Oil Mask

This combination of ingredients is perfect for reviving dry skin.

Ingredients:
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon of warm honey
1 teaspoon of olive oil

Mix the ingredients in a bowl. Massage the mixture onto your skin, then lie back and relax for 15 minutes, maybe pop some chilled cucumber slices on your eyes while your at it. Rinse with warm water and gently pat dry.

I love cucumber, I love to eat it, relax with it on my eyes, I even love cucumber scented products, cucumber is just refreshing all round so I thought it was pretty important I found a cucumber face mask. This one is great for cooling and soothing your skin, If you're feeling a little wind burnt or just need some refreshing then this is the mask for you.

Cucumber and Yogurt Face Mask

Ingredients:
½ cucumber
1 tablespoon of natural yogurt
Pop the cucumber and yogurt in a blender and mix until well combined, massage the mixture onto your face and neck, pop some chilled cucumber slices on your eyes and relax, leave on for 15 minutes and rinse with cool water. Feeling refreshed?

I'm also a huge fan of vitamin c. If I'm feeling ill or run down the first thing I reach for is a glass of fresh orange juice and I usually feel perked up almost straight away. If vitamin c can do that to the way I feel imagine what it can do to our skin.

Vitamin C Mask

Vitamin C has really good anti aging properties aswell and theres no time like the present to get started on an anti aging skin regime.

Ingredients:
½ fresh, peeled, and mashed kiwi fruit
2 tablespoons of raw honey
2 drops of orange essential oil

Mix all the ingredients in a blender, then massage the mixture onto your skin and relax for 15-20 minutes. Then rinse with warm water and pat dry. Have a glass of orange juice once your done for that extra vitamin c hit.

Give them a go, treat your skin and have some chill out time. Play some nice music and kick back, maybe get the girls around for a pamper day. Enjoy.

falafel fun...

Up until about two years ago I didn't have a clue what chickpeas could be used for. I always saw them available in the supermarket but never knew what possibilities they held. I remember going home to Ireland and opening my moms store cupboard and there was at least four tins in there. I asked her what she used them for but she had just bought them hoping someone would tell her what to do with them too. I had an amazing chickpea curry in a bar next to where I lived in London once but what really got me excited was when I discovered how to make my own falafels. Chickpeas are so cheap and easy to get hold of. You can store them for ages so they really are a great buy.

Here is my recipe for making falafels. You can add more spice or less spice depending on how much heat you like. They keep in the fridge for days so what I usually do is make a big batch and that covers me for work lunches for the week.

Ingredients:
chickpeas 2 x 400g tins drained and rinsed
1 onion chopped, I like to use a red onion but either work well.
2 tbsp of fresh flatleaf parsley
2 cloves of garlic chopped
1 tsp of flour
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 tsp of ground coriander
pinch or more of cayenne pepper
pinch of sea salt
olive oil to fry
if you need help binding the ingredients you can also add 1 beaten egg

1. Add the drained and rinsed chickpeas along with the chopped onion and garlic, flatleaf parsley, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper and sea salt to a food processor. Blitz until it becomes a rough paste. Don't blend it until it is completely smooth as it will be difficult to work with.
2. Using floured hands shape the mixture into patties. I usually make them just bigger than bitesize but have also made them larger and had them as falafel burgers so it's up to you what size you make your own as long as they are between 1-2cm think.
3. Once you have shaped all your patties put on a plate and cover and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4. Heat some oil in a frying pan. Add your falafels and cook for 4 to 5 minutes on each side until they turn golden brown amd are cooked through. You may have to cook these in batches if you have quite a few. Be patient because they will be worth it.

To serve I usually toast some pittas, then add hummus which I like to make myself from another tin of chickpeas, a squeeze of lemon juice, a clove of garlic, some black pepper and a pinch of sea salt. I then add some lettuce, cucumber and chopped tomato and of course the tasty falafels. Makes a delicious lunch or snack and a pretty healthy one at that too.

can't get enough chia...

Around the same time I discovered acai berry bars I was also introduced to chia seeds. I'll be honest and say I knew nothing at all about them but they looked healthy so this was enough to attract my interest. I do try to be healthy but unfortunately I still like the odd treat, so something that can make even my naughty treats a little nicer is a winner with me.

Chia seeds can be added to so many recipes there really is no excuse not to be eating these mini super seeds. You can simply sprinkle them onto salads or cereals, add them to juices and smoothies or one of my favourite things to do is to combine them with water or milk to form a gel and add them to baking recipes when water or milk is called for. Makes those delicious chocolate brownies almost healthy without changing the taste in any way. Perfect in breads and muffins too.

Chia seeds are gluten free, high in dietary fibre, contain protein, have more omega 3 than salmon, have more calcium than milk, have more vitamin c than oranges... are you convinced yet? They have more potassium than bananas, more iron than spinach and they are great for hair skin and nails. What's not to love about these teeny tiny seeds.

They are now available in most supermarkets as well as health food stores. Go grab some now!!