Bring on Simple Start, Day 3

10^th September 2014

Direct is much more important than speed.  Many are going nowhere fast!

Another day of Simple Start completed, I have to admit I am really appreciating the simplicity of it, the fact that I’m not having to make either/or decisions, this is my list, have anything off it and enjoy!  My stinky head cold is raging too so being able to eat is helping to stop me from eating rubbish and eating good food can only be good for getting me well.  Yesterday looked like this;

Breakfast – 2 crumpets, 2 eggs, mushrooms

Lunch – salmon, Actifry chips (using daily oil allowance) corn on the cob, 1 slice of calorie controlled brown bread.

Dinner – gammon, beans, egg, 3 x cc brown bread

Treat – WW low fat spread & bit of brown sauce.

I even left some of my lunch because I didn’t really need that slice of bread; I just wanted a chip butty.

I was amazed yesterday when I got home, I’d ordered plants on Monday from Crocus online because it said will be dispatched within 3 days and they were there waiting for me, had come overnight!  So instead of doing my paperwork, I got changed and spent a couple of hours planting them all out in the front garden, they don’t look much at the moment but next summer they will hopefully look incredible.  I will plant to bulbs over the weekend at some point and then I can relax a little bit and wait for the earth to do its magic.

I may be full of cold but I haven’t got time to stop, it’ll soon be Friday and I can take a beechams or lemsip to keep me going, and this morning I’m going to put a big beef stew on, not sure whether to put in slow cooker or do as a casserole in oven, but either way, I’ll end up with a big pot of comfort food to see me through today and tomorrow.  Good simple food, mine will consist of beef, carrots, onions, potatoes and beef oxo cubes, mmm nice.  I’ll slice my potatoes thinly and have them on the top probably, so really I guess it’s a hot pot, if I wanted a stew I’d probably use this scouse recipe;

Scouse

Serves 3

420g Lean Diced Casserole Beef

600g of Potatoes, Diced 

5 or 6 Carrots, Sliced

1 large Onion, Sliced 

6 Beef stock cubes

2 tsp Olive Oil

Spray Olive Oil in a large pan and heat.

Add the beef and cook on high to seal it.

Drain any fat and add the onion and cook for a couple of minutes.

Add the carrots and potatoes and add enough hot water to cover.

Add the oxo cubes and stir.

Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 3-4 hours until the liquid reduces and it goes really thick – you know when it’s ready as you can stand a spoon in it! Delicious the next day.

Or maybe a beef curry to blow my cold away!  I haven’t got a beef curry recipe as such (so if you have a good one send it me please) but this keema curry is good.  I’ve also just found this http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/slow_cooker_beef_curry_13533 which would be F&H if you used low fat natural yogurt. 

Keema Curry

6 points, serves 2 takes 40 mins

250g extra lean minced beef

½ finely chopped onion

1 tbsp medium curry powder

200g potatoes (peeled & cut into 2.5cm diced)

100ml beef stock

200g tinned chopped tomatoes

salt & pepper

75g frozen peas

In a large non stick pan, brown mince and onion for 5 mins, stirring to break up meat.

Add curry powder and potatoes and fry for 1 min.

Pour in stock & tomatoes, season, cover and simmer for 25 mins.

Mix in peas and cook for a further 5 mins until tender. 

Or even a beef chilli fry;

200g frying steak cut into strips

1 onion sliced

200g tomato puree

2 heaped teaspoons curry powder

1 heaped teaspoon chilli powder

1 heaped teaspoon garam masala

1 beef oxo

Brown onion in spray oil.  Set aside.

Cook steak in spray oil.  Set aside.

Combine tomato puree, curry, chilli, garam masala & oxo in a pan with half a pint of water.

Bring to a simmer stirring all the time.

 Add beef & onions and cook through.

Note: Alternatively make with 300g chicken breast

See how Simple Start food can be absolutely delicious and easy to construct, you don’t need to be a great cook to create magic in the kitchen.

Right I need to get on because I have a lot of paperwork to catch up on thanks to spending time gardening yesterday; at least I’ve stopped coughing now I’m sitting up!

Have a great day, eat healthy, sleep well, breathe deeply & enjoy life BeYOUtiful. xx