Cooking of a kind!

5^th July 2017

Don't fear failure, fear being in the exact same place next year as you are today...

Well I woke up to a lovely post in my Facebook newsfeed, I'd been tagged in a post celebrating 3 of my members success, all from the same family all doing incredible well. Liam the youngest decided he was going to take control of his own health, after being bought a tshirt at Christmas that didn't fit him, instead of having it returned he said 'no I'm going to get in it' and last night he did, 25lb lighter and the brightest smile. His aunty and nan have both done amazingly well too, Lynn is only 1.5lb from her goal now, just fabulous to see them all doing so well.

I started my working week with a cooking demo, it was entertaining to say the least I think, they are all very lovely in my first meeting of the week, they get to see me do the run through and they're always positive, I forgot the sesame seeds, I took a frying pan when it was better in the wok on the night. It still tasted good and proves that when you just ain't in the mood to cook or aren't prepared you can still knock up a delicious dish! The new chicken cookbook is going down a storm, there's so many easy recipes in there. We're all about the Aldi this week too, my members were impressed with their microwave grains (quinoa and bulgar wheat) for 79p, it's great to try something new if you haven't already, and their chicken has cooked well and tastes delicious.

After my cooking demo's I cooked a beef dinner which was delicious, part of the come dine for a tenner from M&S, the beef joint was almost £8, then I got a side, dessert and wine – shop around for the bargains for sure. Beef toastie for brekkie I reckon, mmm maybe I'll do a No Count day today and have egg, chips and beans for lunch – yeah sorted.

I've got doctors this morning for a review, then a few errands to run, ooo I need to be organised today, especially as I've got to cook twice tonight and four times tomorrow and that's before I feed me and mom! I better get on then hadn't I, rather than sitting here staring out the window at the sunshine and thinking of stuff to type!

I'll leave you with a couple of super easy chicken recipes from my www.happyowls.co.uk website, this will save you money by making instead of ordering a takeaway on Friday night;

Sweet and Sour Chicken 7 Smart Points

Prep time:10 min Cook time:17 min Serves:4 Difficulty: Easy

A delicious and healthy version of this takeaway favourite.

5spray(s) Calorie controlled cooking spray

1 medium Onion(s), peeled and sliced

160g Brown Rice, dry, long grain (15sp)

500g Chicken breast, skinless, raw (4 x 125g breasts) (5sp)

2 medium Carrots, raw, peeled and thinly sliced in sticks

225g Pineapple, can, chunks in natural juice

2 tablespoons Tomato Purèe (1 sp)

3 tablespoons Vinegar, All Types, malt

1 tablespoons Muscovado Sugar (4sp)

2 tablespoons Soy Sauce, dark (1sp)

Instructions

Spray a frying pan with the low-fat cooking spray, add the onion and cook, stirring for 5 minutes over a medium heat, until softened.

Meanwhile cook the rice according to pack instructions, drain and rinse in hot water.

Cut the chicken into bite size chunks and add to the pan.

Cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until golden on all sides.

Add the carrots, pineapple and juice, tomato puree, vinegar, sugar and soy sauce, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes until the chicken is tender. Serve immediately with the rice.

Malaysian chicken (3sp)

Serve with rice and steamed broccoli

Take 10 mins to prepare, 12 minutes to cook

1 small onion, sliced

1/2 red chilli, de-seeded and chopped finely

Low fat cooking spray

1 chicken breast, diced (2sp)

1 teaspoon light brown soft sugar (1sp)

2 teaspoons soy sauce

4 tablespoons chicken stock or water

1 teaspoon rice vinegar or lime juice

Spray a lidded, non stick saucepan with cooking spray and fry the onions and chilli for 2 minutes.

Add the chicken and stir fry for 1 minute over a high heat, then sprinkle in the sugar and cook for 1 minutes more until caramelised.

In a jug, mix the soy sauce, stock and rice vinegar or lime juice together. Pour over the chicken, cover the pan and simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Remove the lid, increase the heat, and bubble for 2 minutes until slightly reduced. Tossing the chicken in the sauce to glaze.

Have a wonderful Wednesday BeYOUtiful – we got this!