VEGETABLE & TURKEY BAKED CASSEROLE

This recipe is loosely adapted from the Breakfast Casserole recipe in the 'I Quit Sugar' cookbook by Sarah Wilson. Whilst I could happily consume this casserole for breakfast, it only saw lunch and dinner at my house. I love this recipe because it is so easy; I just stuck it in the oven for 45 minutes and went for a run whilst it was baking. There are a fair few ingredients in this casserole, however I encourage you to substitute the ingredients that you do not have available to you in your kitchen for ones you have on hand. For example, if you do not have turkey fillets, use chicken breast instead. If you do not have fresh chives or spring onions, use what you do have on hand, such as fresh parsley or even dried herbs will work. Regular potato will work in place of sweet potato and zucchini can be substituted for carrot. If you are not lactose-free like myself, add some real cheese on top! 

Ingredients

• 500g sweet potato, peeled & grated
• 250g zucchini, cut into small cubes
• 1 broccoli head, cut into small florets & stalk roughly chopped
• 500g turkey fillet, cut into small even pieces 
• 3 spring onions, finely chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh chives, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons mustard powder
• a generous pinch of salt & pepper
• coconut oil spray 
• 10 eggs, preferably free-range 
• Optional- small handful of grated lactose-free or other cheese

Cooking 

1. Preheat a fan-force oven to 190 degrees celsius and lightly grease a ceramic or glass baking dish with coconut oil spray.

2. Spray a medium frying pan with coconut oil and heat over medium heat. Add the turkey to the pan and just cook until white / par cooked.  

3. Combine all the ingredients except for the oil, eggs and cheese in a large bowl and mix well. 

4. Whisk the eggs and 1/3 cup of water in a separate bowl or jug. 

5. Place the combined ingredients into the prepared dish, taking care to spread out the vegetables evenly. Carefully pour the egg mixture on top of the vegetables until covered. Sprinkle the cheese on top if using. 

6. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Let the casserole stand for 5 minutes so that it sets before you start serving. 

Serves / 4 

Total Preparation time / 

Total Cooking time / 60 minutes (including cooling time)

x Emily 

POWER PACKED SWEET POTATO SALAD

This isn't so much of a salad as a kind of boiled, washed and toasted mixup of sweet potato, baby spinach, avocado, sunflower seeds, pepitas, coconut and nuts. However, if I made that the title of this meal I'm sure you wouldn't still be reading! This is my new favourite lunch to make; it fills me up, gets my daily vegetable intake soaring and gives me ample amounts of energy to tackle the rest of my day. I love it so much I've made it several times in the past two weeks, even though its been as humid as hell in my non a/c kitchen. What I especially love about this meal is that you can substitute any ingredients that you have on hand. One day I toasted chopped walnuts instead of pine nuts, another day I used fresh chives and basil in the place of parsley. And not being an avid measurer in the kitchen, I love the fact that I can place 'a handful' of most of the ingredients into this salad and have the dish still taste delicious! 

Ingredients

Salad

• 200g sweet potato, weighed after being peeled & cut into small, even pieces
• a handful of pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• a handful of sunflower seeds
• a handful of almonds/walnuts, roughly chopped
• a handful of roughly shredded coconut 
• a handful of pine nuts 
• large handful of baby spinach
• 3 tablespoons of fresh parsley/chives/basil, finely chopped

Avocado paste/dressing

• 1/2 a large or 1 small avocado
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped/crushed
• salt & pepper
• water

Cooking 

1. Place the sweet potato in a small to medium saucepan with enough water to cover the potato. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat for 6 -7 minutes or until the potato is tender but not mushy. Remove from heat and drain in cold water. 

2. Whilst the potato is cooking, place the pepitas, sunflower seeds, nuts and coconut in a small to medium frypan over low heat. Stir often, toasting the ingredients until fragrant and/or until the coconut pieces begin to brown. Turn off the heat and leave to sit for a little longer on the stove, as the ingredients will continue to toast. 

3. Make the avocado dressing by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl. Mash the avocado until smooth and add a splash of water at a time to get the dressing to your desired consistency. (I like my dressing to be like a paste; you may prefer yours runnier). 

4. Combine the cooked sweet potato, toasted nuts, baby spinach and herbs in a medium serving bowl. Add the avocado paste/dressing and extra salt & pepper if desired. Serve warm. 

Serves / 1 

Total Preparation time / 10 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 15 minutes 

x Emily 

QUINOA SUSHI 3 WAYS

I've always wanted to try my hand at making quinoa sushi and yesterday was the day. I have made rice sushi numerous times and whilst I love the end result, it has always seemed like an immense undertaking. The prep and rolling of this quinoa sushi felt very different however; easy, fuss-free and fun! 

I have included 3 different ways to make the sushi; theres a vegetarian option, a tuna filling and a beef roll (this was specially for my fiancee, who will eat anything if it has red meat in it). My personal favourite? The vegetarian. These fillings are just a guide and I encourage you to roll whatever ingredients you think will work in your sushi. 

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa, rinsed well in cold water twice
• 2 1/2 cups water 
• 3 tablespoons brown rice vinegar, plus extra, to brush onto the seaweed sheets 
• 1 large carrot, grated 
• 2 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 cucumber, sliced into long, thin pieces
• 1/2 avocado, thinly sliced
• White or black (or a mixture of both) sesame seeds 
• 8 seaweed sheets 
• gluten-free soy sauce or tamari 

Tuna Sushi

• 2 x 95g tuna in brine, drained
• 1/2 teaspoon ground chilli
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• grated carrot
• spring onion
• avocado or cucumber slices 
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Vegetarian Sushi

• grated carrot
• spring onion
• avocado slices
• cucumber slices
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Beef Sushi

• 250g beef mince
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• grated carrot or cucumber slices 
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds 

Cooking 

1. Place the quinoa and the water in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat. Once boiled, reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 12 -15 minutes or until the quinoa is tender and all the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat and place on a large plate to cool. 

2. Meanwhile, cook the beef by swirling the sesame oil in a small to medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the mince and cook, stirring frequently to break up the lumps, until the beef is browned and cooked. Remove from heat and place on a plate to cool. 

3. Make the tuna sushi by combining the tuna, chilli and sesame oil in a small bowl and stirring well to combine. 

4. If you have any extra time whilst the quinoa is cooked and then cooling down, use it to grate the carrot, slice the cucumber and avocado and finely chop the spring onion. 

5. Once the quinoa has cooled, stir the brown rice vinegar into the cooked quinoa. 

6. To make the sushi - lay out 1 seaweed sheet on a flat surface. Spoon quinoa evenly onto the bottom 1/3 of the sheet closest to you, leaving a few centimetres of seaweed bare at the very bottom. Make sure to flatten the quinoa with the back of the spoon. Then add the toppings from above directly on top of the quinoa. You should be able to make 3 of two types of sushi rolls and 2 of the other type of roll. Once the toppings have been added, brush the top 1/3 of the sheet with rice wine vinegar and the bottom few centimetres of seaweed that you left bare. Then tightly roll the sushi, starting with the bottom end, all the way to the top end. Place in the fridge when finished rolling. 

7. When you are ready to eat the sushi, remove from the fridge and trim the ends of the sushi with a sharp knife brushed with rice wine vinegar. Then cut the sushi rolls in half and half again to make 4 sushi rounds per roll. 

Serves / 4 / 2 sushi rolls each or 8 sushi rounds

Total Preparation & Cooking time / around 45-60 minutes 

x Emily