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Monday 9 May 2016

Can't beat a good burger!



9th May 2016
Plunge boldly into the thick of life, and seize it where you wil, it is always interesting.  Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
What a glorious day it was yesterday, I spent a few hours at the computer getting ready for my new meeting on Friday (Essington Community Centre  5.30pm), then another hour or so putting up banners and making up packs, at least I got to do that sitting in the sunshine.  That's the first time this year I've sat in the garden and chilled, looking forward to doing it more I hope, I even had a read of a book, can't remember the last time I picked up a book!  The rest of the day was relaxed, I cooked the jacket potato burger from the Eat book we get as part of our Weight Watcher programme material, not only is it No Count (or 8sp) it's also damn delicious!  Really good and definitely one to cook again. 

I'd had a chicken and salad toastie for breakfast and the two meals filled me up enough that I didn't want any tea, we had another early night and I feel good today, ready to take Alfie to the vets and mom to the dentist, and whatever in-between, might cook something scrumptious again.   I have a huge breast of chicken that needs using, I do want to try the pork and apricot burgers from the Eat book too, the look so good!

Pork and apricot burgers with sweet potato chips
Serves 2 ~ 14 Smart Points per serving

1 sweet potato (300g), cut into wedges
calorie controlled cooking spray
sea salt
125g extra lean pork mince
35g ready-to-eat dried apricots, chopped finely (3sp)
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme
15g toasted pine nuts, chopped roughly (3sp)
salt and freshly ground black pepper

TO SERVE
2 medium soft brown rolls
(50g each), toasted lightly 1 tbsp 0% fat natural greek yogurt
fresh salad leaves and slices of tomato

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6/200°C/fan oven 180°C. Lay the sweet potato wedges on a large baking tray lined with non-stick baking parchment. Mist with the cooking spray, sprinkle with sea salt and roast for 30 mins, turning once, until soft and golden. 

Meanwhile, put the mince in a large bowl and combine with the apricots, thyme and pine nuts. Season well, then shape into 2 patties. Mist a non-stick frying or griddle pan with cooking spray and heat until hot.  Cook the burgers for 8–10 mins, turning once, until cooked through and golden.  Place a burger in each of the soft rolls along with a dollop of yogurt, some salad leaves and tomato slices.

Serve with the sweet potato chips on the side.

If you're following No Count change the brown rolls for brown Warburton thins and use 3sp per serving from your weeklies to cover the apricots and pine nuts.

I'm definitely doing these this week, fancied them for ages, just need to get the ingredients.

But first to use this chicken, I've got leftover cooked chicken, which I think I'll have a BLT with chicken for breakfast, just got that idea from the new No Count cook book.  There's a couple of ideas in there for the fresh chicken, chicken and quinoa curry, I'm veering towards the chicken & pineapple stir fry on page 46, yeah that's the one.  So today is sorted, I can have me some time in the garden reading.  I'm a bit of a lazy gardener this year, my hanging baskets from autumn which were just a few pansies are still going without much care, I shoved some little daffodil bulbs in there too and they look pretty.  So I'm toying with not having the hard work baskets this year as they take so much watering, but that could change in the next few days, I'm fickle and out of sorts with the weather, so need a little more sunshine before I totally decide.  First garden job is to paint my big bench, mmm what colour this time....

Right I'm off, stuff to do, vets at 9!  Here's to a Magic Monday, still focusing on the good stuff, I love that at the moment there's a bird out the back that sounds like an alarm clock, makes me smile.  The blossom on the trees is always a magical sight at this time of year and although they're the bane of the gardeners life, I do love to see dandelions, the beautiful yellow flowers which turn into those pretty seed heads that you used to blow to tell the time or make a wish (that's why they spread so well as a weed :) ), in the Victorian times they were a delicacy eaten by the gentry!   They may be annoying in a pretty flower bed but the bees love them and you can make wine with the flowers!  

I'm waffling again, have a great day, make your own magic xx

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