Mini Dukan Lemon Cheesecakes and a Sneak Preview of The Foodie Corner

Tags

baking, cheesecake, dessert, diet, dukan, Dukan diet friendly, egg, Greek yogurt, lemon, low fat, oat bran

Like it? The Foodie Corner is soon to become a reality. From wire frames and sample pages to a real live blog. Just a few weeks (or even days) away now! I know most of you won’t be able to follow me there as it’s going to be in Greek (unless you’ve been taking lessons?) but I really wanted to share this image here so you guys have a small sneak preview of what is to come. I have no intention of dropping On Top Of Spaghetti, and after the first few months of ups and downs I aim to be back blogging here as often as possible. In the meantime, what do you think? Cool isn’t it? I have been working with a fabulous team of designers and developers, whom I will introduce in a later post (when you have more than just the one image to see!). They have done such a great job. So I’m adding this little gem of a picture to my side bar!

At first I thought I would just post this without a recipe. But you know me. Can’t write anything on here without sharing something delicious. And today I have an extra special treat; a Dukan dessert. I’m not on this diet anymore, but once in a while I will have a Pure Protein day (or two) because it makes me feel better. Just to remind you, the diet is based on protein and vegetables, cutting out fat and carbs. I know the human body needs fat and carbs, but this human also needs to fit into certain jeans. So a little Dukan Attack here and there won’t kill me. Also, I enjoy thinking up recipes that will help those who are on the diet. Like this one!

These mini Dukan lemon cheesecakes are based on two recipes. The first is for Dukan cookies, which I thought could be my base if made in mini form (digestives and graham crackers are sadly not allowed!). The second is a lightened up version of lemon and blueberry cheesecake using lemon flavoured yogurt, on the blog “Whatever Gets You Through The Day”. Iris took part in a challenge and used a lemony yogurt to create this lovely looking dessert. It’s pretty light as it is but not quite suitable for the Dukan Diet, so I got to thinking of ways to adapt it. There is a dairy company here in Greece called Mevgal, which produces this amazing 1% lemon yogurt. It’s like no other I’ve ever tried. (And I’m not getting paid or compensated in any way for saying that! I just love it.) For a while now I’ve been thinking of making some sort of cheesecake with it, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. So, with a bit of mixing and matching, I came up with these babies! I still can’t believe how close they are to real cheesecake! Ok, the base is not like a biscuit base, it’s much softer and -let’s be honest- not as tasty, but it does provide a nice contrast to the lemony filling. When I offered one to The Mister he didn’t believe they were Dukan approved, he was worried that at 23:50 I had finally given in and spoiled the Pure Protein day. Now that was a good sign. I had quite a bit of leftover filling because my mini muffin pan is very mini. So I just poured it into ramekins and baked it alongside the little guys, without a base. This too was very nice, I’ve just finished one now. Just sweet enough and very cheesecakey! This morning I had one with a teaspoon of raspberry jam on. Mmm! But that’s only for non-Dukaners. Right, I’ve gone on about this too much. Here is the recipe!

Mini Dukan Lemon Cheesecakes

Ingredients

For the base
1 egg
3 Tbs oat bran
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbs Splenda or equivalent sweetener
2 Tbs plain yogurt (mine was 1.5% fat)

For the cheesecake filling
1 x 200g pot lemon flavoured Greek yogurt (mine was 1% fat)
100g low fat cream cheese (mine was 5% fat – a tiny cheat as it should be below 2%)
1 Tbs oat bran
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbs Splenda or equivalent
2 egg whites (mine were pretty large)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C (160C fan)
2. For the base: Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Pour mixture into a non-stick 12-hole mini muffin tin (a regular muffin tin would work too, you’d probably get 6 or 8). You only want a little bit of mixture in the bottom of each mould, remember this is the base. Pour any leftover mixture into individual muffin moulds, you can make more cheesecakes or leave them plain – they would be lovely with scrambled egg!
3. Bake for 10-15 minutes till lightly browned (see note at end).
4. In the meantime mix all the filling ingredients together (you can use the same bowl for less washing up! yay!).
5. Take the muffin tin out of the oven and pour filling over each little oat bran base. Fill to the top, these will rise a little then fall back down. Pour any leftover mixture into some ramekins or over the stray muffins from above. Pop them back in the oven for about 20-25 minutes till set and lightly browned (see note).
6. Take out of the oven. You will be excited at how nice and fluffy and risen these will look while baking; be prepared to see them sink back down! But that’s ok because they taste good.

Note: I think with these times mine turned out a little overbaked as they were sliiiightly dry. This might just be due to the ingredients, especially the oat bran, but I think it was the time in the oven. Iris made a whole cheesecake and baked hers for 25 minutes so I think my tiny muffins really didn’t need that long! I liked the fact that they were browning (goodness knows why) and left them, but next time I will check at 15′ by touching the surface. If it’s set I’ll take them out. Don’t forget the base has already been cooking quite a while.
Also noteworthy is the fact that these are much better the day after! Sounding all the more like proper cheesecake!

Apple Frozen Yogurt – A Sweet Moment on a Bitter Day

Tags

apple, diet, dukan, froyo, frozen yogurt, Greek yogurt, low fat, no sugar, peach

A few days ago I went to a funeral. Someone I used to work with for over 10 years died in a senseless, stupid motorbike accident. He was a sweet guy who always wore a cheerful grin, even under extreme stress. I used to work in tourism, and M and I started out as newbies around about the same time. I still remember us trying to get a busload of tourists from the port to the airport, me shaking at the prospect of having to use the mic and make an announcement, him getting us lost while trying to join the motorway. Two not-even-twenty year olds playing at coach driver and transfer staff! Since then he had taken over his family’s business, learned to manage a fleet of coaches and found the correct route to the airport. Tourism is a tough, relentless industry, with long days, short (or non-existent) holidays and 7 day working weeks all through the summer. Watching all my former colleagues and associates at the funeral, one thought struck me more than any other. Is it really worth it? Yes, of course we have to make a living, but should we let work take over our whole life? All those years, while his friends were at the beach, M spent his summer weekends at the port, making sure cruise passengers got to their hotels, or arranging for 50 coaches to be available for an Acropolis tour, or answering my frantic 4 am phone calls and having me yell hysterically because the driver hadn’t shown up to pick up my group (not an infrequent occurrence). Yeah, I sure have some stories… he did too, until last week. We’ve all got stories “we can laugh about now”. Well, next time don’t wait “till you can laugh”. Laugh today. Do things that make you happy today. Eat whatever you feel like today. Go ride a horse today, or swim, or sing, or shop. Do something you love doing. Tomorrow you will have forgotten this and you’ll be back in your routine. So will I. But once in a while we have to take a step back and remember to live – today. Cliché? Maybe. But it really can all get snatched away so quickly.

Ideally, on that bitter day I would have liked to celebrate life with a decadent brownie, or a heavily frosted cupcake. But for a number of reasons baking was not an option. Instead I finished making the frozen yogurt I started the day before, because it was an experiment I was enjoying. Then I proceeded to eat the whole batch. All of it.

Rest in peace M.

Apple Frozen Yogurt
Serves 1 (just do it)

What you need:
2 apples, peeled, cored, chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup water
300g Greek yogurt (2%)
4 Tbs sugar or sweetener (I use Canderel)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp cinnamon

What you do:

1. Put the chopped apple and ¼ cup water into a microwave safe bowl. Sprinkle with one tablespoon of sugar or sweetener and mix well. Microwave for a few minutes, with breaks in between to check softness. When the apple is mashably soft (it took mine about 3 min), remove it from microwave and let cool for a few minutes.
2. With a hand held blender, blend the apples till smooth.
3. Add the vanilla and cinnamon to the apples.
4. Add the yogurt and mix well. Taste and adjust as needed (e.g. more cinnamon or sugar). Place in the fridge to cool completely.
5. When cooled, freeze as per ice-cream maker instructions.

Note: I first made this with peaches (based on a recipe from the Bartolini kitchens). This too is absolutely gorgeous. Just substitute the apples with 2 ripe peaches and keep everything else the same.

Other lovely looking recipes for frozen yogurt:
Fat-Free Low-Sugar Strawberry Frozen Yogurt by Kalyn’s Kitchen
Sugar-free, low-fat lemon frozen Greek yogurt by The Perfect Pantry
Pistachio Nut Ice Cream from the Bartolini kitchens
A Frozen Yogurt Recipe to Rival Pinkberry’s Recipe by 101 Cookbooks
Lemon Curd Frozen Yogurt by Kitchen Confidante

Turkey Burgers – Dukan. Again.

Tags

burgers, diet, dukan, grill, healthy, low fat, turkey

As you probably guessed from my inspired title, I’m getting a bit fed up with this whole diet thing. I can definitely see why most people give up during the Consolidation phase. It’s boring. Really boring. And looong. The worst part is that it’s still a diet but without the excitement of actually losing weight. Instead, the scales are disheartening as your body is retaining water and fighting hard to stock up its depleted reserves of fat, following the attack it underwent during the previous phases. But I’m sticking to it! It’s such a great workout for my willpower. Yesterday I made a Nutella Cheesecake for a friend’s BBQ without taste testing once!

Luckily, there are still some recipes that can cause some excitement during this period of kitchen boredom. In my last post I shared a recipe from The Perfect Pantry and mentioned that many of Lydia’s recipes are easily adaptable to the Dukan Diet. Well, this one doesn’t even need to be adapted. Everything in it is allowed in all phases. Turkey Burgers! Another healthy, tasty, non-fattening meal which you can literally throw together in minutes and stick on the grill. A great alternative to beef burgers if you’re cutting down on red meat or just want something lighter.

The first day I ate these with salad only, no sauces or anything. They are so juicy they don’t really need anything extra. For my leftovers however I made a quick yogurt sauce with curry, which unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of. Sorry! Lydia makes a yummy looking yogurt and feta sauce for these. Go over and check it out, if you’re not on the Dukan!

Greek Turkey Burgers by The Perfect Pantry
Serves 4

What you need:
450g minced turkey meat (breast has less fat)
3 Tbs Greek yogurt (0% for Dukan)
1 Tbs chopped parsley
¾ tsp lemon zest
¾ tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

What you do:

1. Throw all the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix with your hands, just until evenly incorporated. Don’t over mix.
2. Make four burgers. Let them rest while you heat the grill.
3. Spray grill with low fat cooking spray and heat to medium high.
4. Place burgers on the grill and leave for about 7 minutes. Turn them over and continue grilling for another 5 minutes. Cooking time might depend on the thickness of the burgers so keep an eye on them.
5. Lydia suggests using a food thermometer which should read about 165F when they are done. This is a great idea, and saves you from having to cut into one of the burgers to see the colour!
6. Enjoy with salad or on a bun.

Simple Yogurt Sauce with Curry
Serves 1 or 2

What you need:
½ tsp curry powder
1 ½ – 2 tsp water
½ pot of Greek yogurt (0% for Dukan)

What you do:

1. Mix curry powder with water to form a smooth paste.
2. Mix paste into the yogurt.
3. Dollop over turkey or chicken burgers (or any turkey or chicken).

Salmon Burgers with Fake Mayonnaise – Not Just for Dukan!

Tags

burgers, diet, dukan, mayonnaise, oat bran, salmon

I’ve now reached the next phase of the Dukan Diet. Yesteday The Mister and I went out for a casual souvlaki dinner, and I literally kissed the mini whole weat pitta bread that came with my kebabs. I am happy. I can eat cheese. I can eat pasta (ok, once a week, but I can!!) and I can eat bread.
In all honesty though the past month hasn’t been that hard. Although I am a bit worried about the amounts of meat I’ve been eating, and how it might be affecting my kidneys (there’s a bit of controversy surrounding this diet), I can’t say it has been particularly difficult. I’ve not felt hungry, and I never felt any faintness or lack of energy. In fact, I’ve been feeling better than I have in ages. It must be that I’ve cut out all the junk food!
During this whole time I’ve been keeping an eye on a few of the food blogs I normally follow. Not all of them mind you, the ones with the cookies and cupcakes I’ve chosen to ignore for the sake of my sanity. One blog in particular saved me from the boredom of plain turkey and cottage cheese dinners, and gave me a number of ideas for some more exciting options. The Perfect Pantry has a whole load of recipes that can easily be adapted for the Dukan Diet. One of these is a gorgeous Salmon Burger recipe. Yum. These are really good, whether you’re on a diet or not. They are delicious, healthy, and not at all fattening! Can’t really go wrong can you? These can easily be prepared to suit the Pure Protein + Vegetables days on the Cruise or Consolidation phases, just by substituting panko with oat bran.
The Fake Mayo was an experiment I undertook a few days before seeing the burger recipe. I threw together some ingredients in order to make a sauce to accompany some slow cooked turkey breast, or some smoked salmon – I don’t remember which. It’s a yogurt sauce, but for some reason it tastes like a kind of mayonnaise to me. Maybe it’s the vinegar from the capers, or the mustard? I’m not sure. But I do know that it’s yummy. Then I saw the Green Yogurt Sauce in this recipe and had to laugh at how similar they are! I thought, no one’s going to believe I didn’t copy this! But I didn’t, promise.

Salmon Burgers (adapted from The Perfect Pantry)
Serves 2 hungry people if eaten with salad or veggies, 4 if eaten in a bun with fries (*sigh*)

What you need:
400g skinned salmon fillet, cut into pieces
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Greek yogurt (0% for Dukan)
2 tsp chopped chives
2 Tbsp chopped red bell pepper
1-1/2 tsp capers, drained
2 Tbs oat bran
1/4 tsp freshly ground white pepper
a tiny bit of low calorie spray oil for the frying pan

What you do:
1. Put all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse a few times. Mix it up a bit with a spoon so some of the bigger salmon pieces move to the bottom of the processor and get chopped up. Pulse again till the mixture is sort of like a lumpy paste.
2. Shape the mixture into 4 burgers and put on a plate. Cover with cling film and put the plate in the freezer for about 10 minutes. This will help the burgers stay together in the pan.
3. Spray a frying pan with the oil and heat on medium. Place the burgers on the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side, depending on the thickness of the burgers.

Note: Lydia’s instructions involve processing some of the ingredients into a paste first, then adding the rest. I used a stick blender that you put on a sort of jug thing with a metal blade, and it made the paste stick to the bottom and didn’t really chop the ingredients on the top. If you have a decent blender however, you might want to follow that method instead, just click here.

Frying ’em up!

Fake Mayonnaise
Serves 2

What you need:
3 Tbs plain yogurt (0% for Dukan)
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp chopped parsley
2 tsp capers
Salt & freshly ground white pepper
Pinch of sweet paprika

What you do:
1. Throw everything into a clean jam jar and shake it all up! Tastes better after a couple of hours in the fridge.

Note: You could also try adding some fresh coriander. Just chop and add to taste! Chopped gherkins also work nicely. And, this can be used as a salad dressing as well. Versatile, no?

Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken & Summer Vegetables – Starting the Dukan

Tags

balsamic, chicken, crockpot, diet, dukan, slow cooker, vegetables

Last week I finally made a decision – to lose some weight. For a while now I’ve been complaining about how over the past 5 years of so my weight has crept up and how yucky it’s making me feel. I’m not overweight, but at the moment I’m suffering from a seriously challenging wardrobe. I’ve also felt the difference in my horse-riding, with low energy levels and too tight jodhpurs. So the moment came when I felt strong enough to step away from the chocolate cookie and do something other than whine. In the past I’d heard about the Dukan Diet, but thought it was a bit too drastic for my few extra pounds. However, it’s summer (shorts, bikinis etc… you know) and generally I’m much better at following exact instructions than just “watching what I eat”, so I read his book. It makes so much sense! I found myself really interested in the theory and actually quite excited to start.

Well, I’m now 6 days into it. The initial excitement has somewhat evaporated, but my resolve has not. For those of you who know a bit about it, I’m now on the Cruise phase, so I’m eating pure protein one day, and protein plus vegetables the next. This is how it goes on now, with alternating days, until I reach my desired weight. I’ve no idea how long it’s going to take but I’m hoping it won’t be too long.

To be honest when I started last Monday, I was a bit worried that my blog was going to suffer. But looking into it a bit more has eased my mind, as there seem to be many interesting recipes that have been designed especially for this diet, as well as others that by chance suit it perfectly. Like this one! Chicken is one of the main foods of this diet, as it is a lean meat and has plenty of protein. Ok, ideally you should eat it grilled, so any fat drains away, but I think I can get away with cooking it in the slow cooker since you don’t need any oil to do so. In this recipe by Stephanie O’Dea (the CrockPot Queen in my opinion), the chicken and veg are cooked in balsamic vinegar and a bit of Worcestershire sauce. So simple and yet so flavourful. Vinegar is allowed, as are certain condiments in small quantities. So this seemed an ideal choice. I made a few adjustments to suit our taste and the result was really good, especially the vegetables which were absolutely gorgeous. The chicken was good too, and the vinegar even gave it a slight brown colour which was quite appealing. It was very tender and tasty. The remaining sauce was a bit bland, but that’s because vegetables release a lot of water so the stock was largely diluted. I didn’t have any of it because the meat and veggies were juicy enough and I was worried it might have a higher fat content since the chicken had cooked in it. For The Mister however I saved some of the liquid, brought it to a boil in the microwave, and stuck a teaspoon of gravy granules in. That did the trick and voila… a lovely sauce to go over his chicken and rice. I really enjoyed this dinner, even though I was eyeing The Mister’s rice with envy the whole time!

Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken with Summer Vegetables
Serves 3

What you need:
3 chicken legs, bone in (skin on or off, it’s up to you. I think the skin keeps the outer layer from drying out, but a lot of people don’t like the idea of the skin cooking in the slow cooker)
2 red peppers (I use a Greek type that’s a bit longer than bell pepper, but bell would be great)
1 green bell pepper
1 orange bell pepper
1 large courgette (zucchini)
1 onion
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

What you do:

1. Rinse the chicken pieces, pat dry with kitchen paper, and put in the slow cooker.
2. Chop the veggies into large pieces and put them in a bowl.
3. Mix the balsamic vinegar with the Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper and pour over the veggies.
4. Toss vegetables in the vinegar mix till they are well coated.
5. Place the veggies on top of the chicken in the slow cooker and pour the vinegar mix over it all.
6. Turn slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours.
7. Serve with rice, quinoa or mashed potatoes, or eat as is if you’re on the Dukan Diet.

Note: Feel free to experiment with the vegetables. You could also try aubergines (eggplant) or summer squash. Carrots would be nice but I’m not sure if they’d soften in time. If you try them maybe put them under the chicken and let me know how it turns out!