ZUCCHINI PASTA with GRILLED CHICKEN

My beautiful friend surprised me last year with a fruit & vegetable twister-processing device, after we had attended a raw cooking class and saw one of these babies in action. You can make anything into spaghetti with these nifty circular devices. The best news is that whilst they may cost up to $80 to buy in a store, they are only around $8 on ebay or on selective websites. I have used mine on several occasions, the majority being to create extremely healthy zucchini pasta. These twisting devices are quite simple to use, however if I give you one tip it is to be patient when starting out for the first time. Make sure you buy smaller zucchinis as the bigger ones will not fit into the device and halving the zucchinis will not result in nice-looking pasta. Do not try to jam the vegetable up in the cylinder or the twisting just will not happen (guilty). This zucchini pasta tricks both my and my husband's minds into thinking that we are eating actual pasta! and that's saying something as we loveeeee the real deal. If you are vegetarian, substitute the chicken for some steamed broccoli, some toasted nuts or if you are pescetarian prawns go great with this! 

INGREDIENTS

• 4 small to medium zucchini, ends removed and cut into half
• sea salt
• 250-300g free range chicken breast or thighs, cut into small, even pieces
• 1 heaped teaspoon miso paste
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• the juice of 1 medium lime
• 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
• 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/2 a medium ripe avocado, diced
• Optional- a handful of fresh coriander, shallots and/or chives, finely chopped
• Equipment- a twister fruit & vegetable processing device (I used the device above) or a vegetable spiraliser or two-bladed Julianne peeler. 

PREPARATION & COOKING

1. Combine the chicken pieces, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 2 teaspoons water and miso paste in a medium bowl. Stir well to combine, adding more water if the paste does not mix well with the chicken. Place in the refrigerator to marinade whilst you prepare the pasta. 

2. Twist the zucchini through the twister device, one half at a time and let the noodles fall into a large bowl. When all the zucchini has been made into noodles lay them out on an absorbent paper towel or tea towel. Sprinkle with a generous pinch of sea salt and leave for a few minutes whilst you grill/fry the chicken. This will give the salt time to absorb some of the water from the zucchini so you are not serving watery noodles. 

3. Remove the chicken from the fridge. Heat a grill plate or medium frying pan over medium heat and add the chicken. Cook, stirring frequently, for 4-5 minutes or until all the chicken is cooked. Remove from heat.  

Optional step: Once the chicken has been removed from the pan, dry fry the zucchini pasta gently for a few minutes, just to warm them up and improve the texture. This is optional, but I find I prefer the noodles very lightly fried. 

4. Combine the lime juice, fish sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, sesame seeds and a tablespoon of water in a small jug or bowl. Stir to combine and taste, adding more water if it is too tart for you. Place the noodles, chicken or extra vegetables, tomato, avocado and herbs (if using) in a medium bowl and drizzle the dressing over the top. Divide into two bowls.  

Serves / 2

Total Preparation time (inc. making the noodles) 20 -25 minutes 

Total Cooking time / 10 minutes 

x Emily 

BEEF & SWEET POTATO LASAGNE

I adapted this recipe from an Aldi magazine, which served their Beef & Eggplant Lasagne with roasted kale. Not being a big fan of eggplant (I just can not get past the texture!) I used sweet potato, which holds its shape beautifully when grilled and acts as a wonderful lasagne sheet replacement. I added lots of vegetables into the lasagne which omitted the need to make a vegetable side. I love fresh herbs, hence the addition of basil, oregano and parsley in the ingredients list. If you do not have herbs on hand or do not want to buy them, use cheaper dried options. However keep in mind that you can place herbs in a plastic zip lock bag in the fridge and/or freezer and they will keep for much longer. Also fresh herbs taste insanely better than dried herbs. You could even make this lasagne vegetarian by increasing the quantities of the vegetables and omitting the beef. This is the heartiest lasagne I have ever had and I love that I wasn't left with a 'too full' feeling that I often get after eating traditional lasagne with all the wheat and cheese. This recipe does take just shy of 2 hours to make from the prep to the eating stage, however it feeds 6-8 and is worth the time, particularly as 45 minutes of that time involves only the work of your oven! 

Ingredients

• 1 kg lean beef mince
• 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 a large red onion
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped/crushed
• 1 large carrot, diced into even pieces
• 1 large zucchini, diced into even pieces
• 2 sticks of celery, diced into even pieces
• 1 capsicum, diced into even pieces
• 150g sliced mushrooms, diced into even pieces
• 700g passata
• Optional - 1 tablespoon Worcester sauce 
• 2 heaped tablespoons fresh basil
• 2 heaped tablespoons fresh oregano 
• 2 heaped tablespoons fresh parsley 
• 3 tomatoes (around 450g), diced into even pieces
• 800g sweet potato, peeled & finely sliced into even rounds
• 40 feta, crumbled 

Cooking 

1. Heat a large, deep saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of the oil and swirl to coat. Add the beef and cook, stirring with a strong spoon to break up the lumps, until the beef is browned. Next, add the onion, garlic, carrot, zucchini, celery, capsicum and mushrooms and stir to combine. Cover the saucepan and cook the vegetables for 5 minutes. 

2. Remove the lid and pour in the passata. Fill the pasta bottle 1/3 of the way with water and pour into the pan, along with the Worcester sauce, fresh herbs and diced tomato. Cover the pan and bring to the boil, then simmer on low with the lid just ajar for 30 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. 

3. Preheat a fan forced oven to 180 degrees celsius. 

4. After you have brought the vegetables & beef to the boil, heat a grill plate/pan over medium-high heat and brush with 1 teaspoon oil. Add the sweet potato rounds and cook until grill marks appear on each side, then remove from the heat and continue until all sweet potato has been grilled. 

5. In a deep oven proof dish layer the lasagne; start by pouring 1/2 of the sauce on the bottom, then cover with 1/2 of the sweet potato rounds then repeat this layer. Sprinkle the crumbled feta on top. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes or until the feta is golden brown and the sweet potato on the top layer is tender but not mushy. 

Serve with ground black pepper and more herbs, if desired. 

Serves / 6-8
Total Preparation time / 20-25 minutes 
Total Cooking time / 1 hr 30 minutes 

x Emily 

NATURAL MOOD BOOSTERS

Life can get overwhelming at times and it can become difficult to stop and smell the flowers, or take time out to watch the clouds, as a dear friend says. Below are a few ways to lighten your daily load, because we all need a little natural mood booster at times. 

Touch

Massage and acupuncture have been proven to be effective in lessening stress and depression, as the act of touch is a strong natural antidepressant. Massage releases feel good hormones, such as endorphins, which give you a natural high. Find a massage or acupuncturist that you trust with your body and treat yourself to some 'me' time. 

Magnesium

There are numerous benefits that the mineral magnesium will provide your body with, but did you know that it can chill you out? Studies have revealed that if your brain is deficient in magnesium, your serotonin levels may decrease. Serotonin is a hormone in the body and is often referred to as the natural 'feel good' drug. The production of this very important hormone requires magnesium in the body. There are many ways to increase your magnesium levels, such as by consuming more green leafy vegetables, legumes, seeds, nuts, fish or by taking a magnesium pill. 

Exercise it out 

Did you know that exercise can have a longer lasting antidepressant effect on the brain than antidepressant medication? A 16 week study that involved patients participating in exercise or taking antidepressants revealed that whilst the medication worked faster, the patients that exercised every day and did not take medication felt happier for longer. Exercise is one of the best activities you can do to increase brain serotonin function. Exercise scientist Damien Kelly describes exercise as 'a controlled stress on the body, which the body then has a positive adaption to.' And do not feel that you have to start running 10 k's to get these mental health benefits. A brisk walk can be a very promising treatment for depression. Start exercising slowly and as your fitness improves, increase the pace and the steps. 

Vitamin D

58% of Australians are vitamin D deficient, which is a vitamin that can be naturally sourced from the glorious sun. Vitamin D is essential for optimum brain function and is best sourced from the sun, as your skin forms this vitamin when exposed to UVB light. The Cancer Council of Australia believes that we should all be able to get an adequate boost of vitamin D without being at risk of contracting skin cancer. The Council advises that we try to get more exposure to the sun in winter (approximately three hours a week) as the UV index is lower and just a few minutes every couple of days outside of peak UV time in summer, spring and autumn (outside of the hours of 10am - 3pm). A recent study showed that women suffering from moderate depression improved considerably after receiving treatment for low vitamin-D stores. 

Put pen to paper 

The Black Dog Institute has found that writing can be very beneficial for reducing depression. The professor of the Institute believes that 'the act of writing helps people to collect their thoughts...writing has a start and a finish so there is a sense of achievement and simply documenting your thoughts provides stress relief'. If you are someone whose mind goes crazy when you put your head to a pillow, keep a notepad by your bedside table and write down those negative thoughts / to-do lists before sleep. 

x Emily 

Information adapted from 'Good Health' Feb 2014 issue. 

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