Chicken egg fried "rice"..

This is a really quick and easy variation of the cauliflower 'rice' that I posted as part of my Tikka Masala recipe. It's a great way to use to up leftover meat and vegetables instead of a boring stir fry dish.

• 2 cooked chicken breasts
• 50g chorizo
• 1 red pepper
• 3/4 brocolli florets
• 1 small carrot
• handful of mushrooms
• 1/4 head of cauliflower, grated
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 red onion
• 1 green chilli, seeds removed
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 50g frozen peas
• 2 large eggs
• coconut oil
• tumeric
• smoky paprika
• fresh coriander

Start by prepping all your meat and vegetables so everything is ready to just add in to the wok. Chop all your vegetables into similar sizes pieces, dice your cooked meat, and grate your cauliflower with the garlic and ginger. (Pulse it in the food processor to save time... if you don't have one, buy one... you'll wonder how you ever lived without it!) 

Firstly cook your veg until slightly softened in 1/2 tsp of coconut oil. It's a good idea to cook the vegetables in stages to retain their individual colours and flavours. Cook each vegetable over a moderate heat for 3/4 minutes until just about cooked, and remove from the wok while you cook the next vegetable. 

Leave cooked vegetables aside with your meat until needed. 

Next, add grated cauliflower, garlic, peas and 1 cup of water to the wok and cook for 6/7 minutes until soft but still with some texture... you don't want cauliflower mush!

Make a well in the centre of your 'rice', and crack the two eggs into the centre. Leave alone to set slightly. Once the eggs start to become opaque and scrambled, break them up and stir through the 'rice' 

Add in your cooked meat and vegetables, and season to taste with lots of your favourite spices. 

Continue to toss up until warmed through. 

This recipe serves 2, and is a cheap meal with lots of protein... an added bonus is that is actually tastes better than traditional egg fried rice! 

Lamb tikka masala (Grain and dairy free)

For some reason my body hasn't realised it's roasting hot outside today, and that I should really be having fish and salad or something... Instead, I've training later, and have had tikka masala stuck in my head for the past few days so decided to retreat to the kitchen and give dinner a little extra time this evening...

If you're Indian and reading this, your head will probably explode in frustration since it's not exactly a traditional tikka masala! Apologies in advance... 

Don't use a pre-packed spice mix or paste.. this takes less than a minute to throw into a wok, and tastes far superior..

Spice mixture

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp ginger, grated
• 1 red onion, diced
• 1 red chilli, de-seeded
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• 2 tsp tumeric
• 2 tsp smoky paprika
• 3tbsp organic tomato paste
• pinch of sea salt

Add all the above ingredients to wok with a little melted coconut oil, and cook over a moderate heat for 2 minutes to release the flavours. 

Meat

• 1lb shoulder of lamb

Add cubed lamb pieces to the wok, and cook quickly to seal the meat. Once the meat is cooked, remove from the wok and set aside. Keep the juices from the meat in the wok to cook your vegetables.

Vegetables

You can add any vegetables you like to this curry, and it'll still taste great. I used a little of everything I had in the fridge... (Broccoli, bell peppers, butternut squash, spinach, mushrooms) Add to the wok and cook over a high heat until they are cooked, but still have some bite. 

Sauce

• 1 can organic chopped tomatoes
• 2 tbsp coconut cream
• 1 tsp tumeric
• 1 tsp chilli flakes

You'll need the wok for your 'rice', so add the meat, vegetables and sauce ingredients into a saucepan and leave to simmer over a moderate heat. 

Cauliflower fried 'rice'

Honestly it's gorgeous! Try it once before you knock it...It is really similar in texture to couscous, and so flavoursome, I haven't come across anyone who hasn't come back for more!

• 1/2 head of cauliflower, grated in the food processor (or by hand if you've lots of time, and have no use for your knuckles) 
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup of water
• 1 tsp lime zest
• 1 tsp fresh coriander
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp fresh mint
• 1/2 tsp cumin

Simple instructions as always... throw all the above into your wok. Cook over a moderate heat until cauliflower and peas are cooked. This will take around 7-10 minutes... keep tossing up the 'rice' so it doesn't stick or burn. 

Serve your lamb with a generous amount of 'rice', and enjoy! I swear this is so nice that it feels like a 'treat' meal :) 

Chicken fajitas

Once I became comfortable with the principles of Paleo/Primal, I became more confident about experimenting with new recipes and finding inventive ways to recreate conventional recipes. I always loved fajitas, and so began the hunt for a grain free recipe for wraps that would be equally tasty as the wheat variety. Recently I've found that I'm getting very good at these little challenges... 

I wanted to make this recipe one that wasn't relegated to my treat category because of high fat content from nut flours. I decided to try out cauliflower wraps. This recipe seems to be all over the internet, so I'm not sure who deserves credit for it...but seriously, thank you!! 

Cauliflower garlic tortilla wraps

• 1/2 head of cauliflower
• 1 egg
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1/2 tsp tumeric
• 1/2 tsp mixed herbs

Pulse cauliflower in food processor until you have fine rice-like shredded pieces. 

Steam grated cauliflower for 10 minutes, until soft. 

Place cauliflower in a fine sieve to cool and drain any excess water (stir it up a few times to help speed this up)

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until well combined. If the mixture isn't stiff (resembling mashed potatoes), you may need to add a little almond/coconut flour to thicken it up. 

Spread a layer of the mixture in a circle on parchment paper approx 1/8" thick. You need it thick enough so it's sturdy enough to roll when baked. Keep the thickness of a wheat tortilla wrap in mind. 

You should get four 6" wraps from this mixture. 

Bake in a preheated oven (160d) for about 10 minutes, or until firm to touch. 

Using a fish slice/palate knife, flip the wraps and bake for a further 3 minutes just to firm up the other side. 

Once baked, set aside to cool. 

Chicken fajita filling

• 2 chicken fillets, diced
• 1 small red onion, chopped
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 red chilli, deseeded
• 1 medium carrot
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1/2 yellow bell pepper
• handful of sliced mushrooms

I'm assuming we're all pretty smart, and know how to cook the above ingredients so I'm going to keep this really brief. 

Add chicken, onion, garlic and chilli to wok with a little coconut oil over a high heat. 

Add remaining ingredients, and any other veg you have in the fridge. 

Don't overcook, you don't want dry stringy chicken or mushy vegetables. 

Spicy tomato sauce

• 1 can organic chopped tomotos
• dried chilli flakes
• smoky paprika
• black pepper
• fresh basil leaves

I'm a pretty lazy cook, but it generally works out... Tomato sauce should be quick and easy! 

Add all the sauce ingredients to the fajita filling in the wok, and cook over a moderate heat for 5 minutes. Everything will be cooked now, so it's fine to taste the sauce to make sure it's flavoursome enough for you. 

To assemble

Fill wraps with a generous amount of spicy chicken filling and roll up. 

Place in baking dish, and top with any left over tomato sauce. 

Bake at 160d for 15 minutes, until warmed through and wraps are slightly crispy. 

I serve these with spinach, steamed asparagus and some flaked almonds.

Hope you enjoy, they are equally as nice (if not nicer) than their gluten contaminated wheat version!  :)