Recipes

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An indulgent flavour sensation for date night or mate night!


Ingredients

  • 2 duck breasts
  • 8 chopped pitted cherries
  • 200ml of chicken stock
  • 100ml of red wine
  • 1 tbsp cherry conserve
  • 1 tbsp of red wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp of sugar
  • 500g of peeled Maris Piper potatoes, sliced finely
  • 200ml of double cream
  • 200ml of semi skimmed milk
  • 50g of mature cheddar cheese
  • 2-3 garlic cloves, grated
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Vegetables to serve (I served with pak choi stir fried with garlic)

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 200°C (fan oven).
  2. Add your double cream, semi skimmed milk, garlic, salt and pepper to a pan, and gently simmer for around 5 minutes.
  3. Add your thinly sliced potatoes into the mixture and simmer for 5 minutes, until the edges begin to look like they’re cooking.
  4. Remove the potatoes with a slotted spoon and lay out in a baking dish, then cover with the sauce until they’re just covered.
  5. Top with your cheese and add a little more cracked black pepper to the top ready for cooking. Cook for 15 minutes.
  6. Most duck breasts will come with their own instructions. Mine required 7 minutes searing on the fat side with no oil, followed by 30 seconds on the meat, and 12-15 minutes in the oven. Prior to this I scored, salt and peppered the fat side. Ensure to drain the duck fat systematically so they don’t overcook.
  7. By this time, give or take, your timer will have gone off and you will be ready to put your duck in the oven with the final 15 minute timer on (I do mine for around 12-13 minutes then allow 5 minutes for them to rest at the end), and you can now begin to make the sauce and prepare the greens.
  8. Prepare your chicken stock and add the wine to a jug.
  9. In a pan, add your sugar and red wine vinegar, and gently simmer until it caramelises.
  10. Once ready, add your stock/wine concoction, and cook until it reduces by around 2/3.
  11. Stir in the cherry conserve, then add in your fresh cherries for the final 5 minutes to soften, and prepare your vegetable of choice.
  12. If you prefer your sauce a little thicker, you can add a cornflour slurry.
  13. Take your duck out to rest, then slice. Serve alongside the potatoes and pak boi, then pour your delicious cherry wine sauce on the duck!

Quick Tortilla Pizza

Inspired by my shiny new Joe Wicks book, I decided to make my own simple version of his quick tortilla pizza recipe, to help with my forever cravings for naughty food – and at just over 400 calories it’s not as calorie dense as a Domino’s!

Serves 1 – 5-8 minutes prep maximum – 10-12 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

  • 1 tortilla
  • 2 tbsp tomato puree
  • 1 handful of spinach
  • 2 slices of prosciutto
  • 15g of pitted black olives, cut in half
  • 40g of EatLean protein cheese
  • 1 large egg
  • Salt, pepper, oregano and basil to season

Method

  1. Preheat your oven to 190°C, and boil a kettle. Place your handful of spinach in a bowl, and use the boiling water to wilt your spinach. Once wilted, drain and run cold water over it. Use your hands to squeeze and remove as much liquid as possible.
  2. Place your tortilla on a non stick baking tray, and apply your 2 tablespoons of tomato puree, using a spoon to smooth evenly around the tortilla.
  3. Apply your spinach around the pizza, followed by torn up prosciutto and olives.
  4. Make a small well in the middle of your pizza, and crack an egg in the centre.
  5. Sprinkle your cheese over the pizza.
  6. Season to taste with salt, pepper, oregano and basil.
  7. Pop in the centre of an oven for 10-12 minutes, or until your egg’s white is cooked through.

N.B. I slightly overdid my pizza in the image, as I had 2 in at once, so for a dippy egg/no burning be cautious of this, but it was still delicious regardless! Any questions let me know!

Fish Pie

I am super excited to post my first recipe, which given the freezing cold weather we’ve had, is a fish pie!

Serves 2 – 20 minutes prep maximum – 30 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

  • 2 packets of fish pie mix
  • 2 small handfuls of spinach
  • 300ml of skimmed milk
  • 20g of light Philadelphia
  • 1tsp of English mustard
  • 20g of plain flour
  • Parsley
  • Salt and pepper
  • 500g of maris piper potatoes
  • Extra skimmed milk and butter to taste for mash potatoes
  • 40g of EatLean Protein Cheese
  • Greens of your choice
  • (Optional) wedge of lemon to serve

I bought the Aldi fish pie mix, which contained smoked pollock, salmon and haddock, plus king prawns. So now for the “how to!”

Method

  1. Firstly, peel, cut small and boil your potatoes for around 15 minutes. While these are boiling you can get on with the following steps, but once boiled; mash with salt, pepper, butter and milk.
  2. Mix together your skimmed milk, Philadelphia, flour, mustard, salt, pepper and parsley. Lightly simmer until the sauce begins to thicken.
  3. Put your fish pie mixes in your two individual pie dishes, ensuring an even distribution of each fish, and add a handful of spinach to each dish.
  4. Add your thickened sauce evenly to each dish, and your spinach will wilt slightly.
  5. Add your mashed potato to the top, followed by your grated cheese, and stick in the oven at 200°C (I have a fan assisted oven) for 30 minutes.
  6. Serve with buttered greens of your choice, plus a wedge of lemon!