Eat Smart’s Kellie makes this warming winter meal both for her family as well as teaches her athletes to make this meal to recover from training and fuel up for the next day’s training.  It is a great source of lean meat, a great way to get lots of veggies in, a great alternative to high fat pastries and is great re-heated!

Ingredients:

• 500g lean beef mince
• 800g can chopped tomatoes
• 150g tomato paste
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 2 zucchini, diced
• 8 button mushrooms, diced
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoon sweet chilli sauce
• 2 tablespoon tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon mixed dried herbs
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 large potatoes, peeled and boiled
• 150g Light Evaporated Milk
• 2tbs canola margarine
• Canola or olive oil spray
• ½ cup grated low fat cheese
• 8-12 sheets filo pastry + milk to brush top

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. Boil potatoes in saucepan until tender.
3. Spray oil in a non-stick frypan and place on a medium-high heat. Cook onion into frypan until browned.
4. Place mince into frypan and cook until browned.
5. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, carrots, zucchini, and mushrooms into frypan and mixing all the time.
6. Add garlic, sauces and herbs to frypan. Season with pepper to taste. Turn down to low heat and allow to simmer.
7. Meanwhile, mash potatoes, and add milk and margarine. Continue mashing until the mixture is smooth.
8. Spray a lasagne dish with oil to lightly grease. Place meat mixture into the lasagne dish, spread the mashed potato over the top and sprinkle with cheese.
9. Take one single sheet of Filo pastry and scrunch in hands make a large round ball (like you would a piece of paper)
10. Repeat and pop these pastry balls on top of the mash potato to create what will be a crunchy topping.
11. Brush top
12. Bake for approximately 30 minutes until Filo is Golden (be sure to keep an eye on this) Sprinkle with pepper and serve with a tossed salad, if you want to add more vegies to the meal.

Having the family over for Easter celebrations?  Cook a healthy meal which is full of flavour to impress the guests.  What’s for dessert?  Everything in moderation so enjoy a little (dark) chocolate of course!

1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius.  Arrange rosemary across the base of a casserole dish.  Add the garlic cloves.  Lay the shanks on top and sprinkle with oregano.  Season to taste.  Top with sherry or wine and stock.
2. Cover with a lid or aluminium foil and bake for 1 hour.  Turn shanks and return to oven for 1.5 hours or until tender.
3. Remove from oven, skim off fat.  Serve shanks with remaining pan juices.

NOTE: this recipe may also be cooked in a slow cooker.

1.     Place pumpkin and potato in a large saucepan.  Cover with cold water.  Bring to the boil and then reduce heat to medium.  Cook until tender.  Drain and return to saucepan, add sour cream and mash until smooth.
2.    Spray a non-stick pan with oil, add sage leaves.  Stir often, adding crushed garlic as you go.  Cook sage and garlic until crisp.
3.      Serve mash topped with crispy sage & garlic.

Baked Salmon with Pesto potatoes & veggies                                    Serves 4

400g chat potatoes, quartered

4 x 150g salmon fillets

4 thin slices of prosciutto

300g cherry tomatoes, on the vine

400g green beans, topped

2 bunches asparagus

4 tblsp basil pesto

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.  Cook the potatoes in boiling water for 8-10  mins until tender.  Drain.  Toss pesto through hot potatoes.
2. While the potatoes are cooking, wrap a prosciutto slice around the middle of each salmon fillet.  Place on a greased baking tray, add cracked black pepper to taste.  Bake for 5 mins, then add tomatoes to the tray.  Cook for another 4 mins or until salmon is just cooked.
3. Meanwhile blanch the beans and asparagus in boiling water for 2 mins.  Drain immediately.
4. Serve each salmon fillet with pesto potatoes, green beans, asparagus and tomatoes.

-                600g chicken breast, trimmed and cut into 4 portions

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.  Heat a 3L capacity flameproof, ovenproof casserole dish over medium-high heat with spray oil.  Add the chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes until golden and turn.  You may need to do the chicken in batches.  Remove and transfer to a plate.
2. Heat the dish again with spray oil over medium-high heat.  Add the bacon, leek, garlic and mushrooms.  Cook for 5 mins, stirring until golden.  Add the flour and cook for 1 minute until well combined.  Add the stock, wine and thyme and bring to the boil.
3. Return the chicken, cover and bake in oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer in to the thickest section of chicken produces clear juices.
4. Remove chicken and return casserole dish to the stovetop and heat over medium heat, uncovered.  Add the evaporated milk and bring to the boil.  Cook for 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens slightly.
5. Serve the chicken with the sauce poured over with seasonal vegetables such as beans, broccoli, carrots etc.

   
   

   Lamb and sweet potato casserole         Serves 4 (adults)

   Ingredients:

   -        Spray olive oil

   -        1 onion, finely chopped

   -        2 garlic cloves, crushed

   -        800g lean lamb, diced

   -        1 tblsp plain flour

   -        1 tblsp ground cumin

   -        1 tblsp ground coriander

   -        2 tsp garam masala

   -        1 cinnamon stick

   -         625mL chicken or vegetable stock

   -         1 medium orange sweet potato, washed and cut in to 2 cm cubes (skin can be left on if well cleaned)

   -         200g green beans, topped & tailed, cut into 3 cm lengths

   -         1/3 cup loosely packed coriander leaves

   Method:

   1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees celius.  Heat a 2L oven-proof, flame-proof casserole dish over medium-high heat with spray oil.  Add the lamb and cook until brown for 1-2 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl.
   2. Heat the same casserole dish with spray oil over medium heat.  Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring for 2 mins or until onion softens.  Add flour and spices, cook, stirring for 30 seconds or until fragrant.  Add the lamb and stock, bring to the boil.  Stir for 2 mins or until well combined.
   3. Cover casserole dish with a tight fitting lid and cook in oven for 30 mins.  Add sweet potato and cook, covered for another 10 mins.
   4. Add green beans and cook, covered for a further 5 mins or until bean s are tender and sweet potato is cooked through.  Season to taste and stir through fresh coriander.
   5. Serve with rice or couscous for a higher carb meal or with seasonal vegetables for a lower carb meal.

1. Soak mushrooms in warm water for 10min to rehydrate. Drain and slice.
2. Fill a large fry pan with 1.5L water and add mushrooms. Bring to the boil.
3. Spoon about 1/3 of the mushroom broth in to a measuring cup and blend with miso paste until smooth and runny consistency (add more liquid if needed).
4. Gently drop salmon into pan and allow to simmer. Reduce heat, cover and cook for 6 minutes. Place in serving bowl.
5. Add noodles and bok choy to broth to cook for 2 minutes. Then pour miso paste into broth and stir well over low heat.
6. Distribute broth evenly over salmon pieces. Arrange cucumber, carrot and capsicum over salmon to serve.

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Season chicken breasts to taste. Place garlic, marmalade, orange zest and margarine in a bowl and beat with a fork.  Spread mixture evenly over the 6 chicken breasts and place in a roasting pan.  Cover with foil and bake for 10 mins.  Remove foil and bake for a further 10-15 mins or until chicken is cooked through.  Remove from oven and set aside to rest.
3. Meanwhile, mix watercress, orange segments, olives in a bowl.  Crumble over fetta.
4. Pour off cooking juices into a saucepan.  Add juice and cook over low heat until reduced and sticky.
5. Arrange salad on plates, top with a chicken breast and pour over sauce.

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.  Line a baking tray with baking paper and drizzle 1 tblsp oil over garlic.  Roast for 12-15 mins until tender.  Once cool enough to handle squeeze garlic from skins.
2. Heat remaining oil in saucepan over medium to high heat.  Saute leeks, celery and 1 tblsp thyme for 5-7 mins until fragrant.  Add stock, 2 cups water and potatoes.  Cover and bring to the boil.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer, uncovered for 12-15 mins or until potatoes are tender. Add garlic.
3. Using a food processor, process until smooth in batches if necessary.  Return to heat, add remaining thyme and a little cold water if soup appears to too thick.  Season to taste.  Serve!