honey and yogurt cheesecake

I decided to try the honey and yogurt cheesecake from the Mediterranean magic cookbook. I was abit worried how it would turn out as I'm not used to making baked cheesecakes but it turned out great and was yum.

My take on pizza

I've been craving pizza so decided to make my own slimming world friendly ones and this is what i came up with:

 I used one kings mill thin (heb) tomato puree added some garlic to the puree then spread on thins. Added mushrooms and 20g of pepperoni (3.5 syns) and reduced fat mozzarella (70g hea). Cook until crispy or however you like your pizza

syn free meringues

I made these to go with fruit and yogurt so it was a bit like eton mess. They still had the same texture etc of regular meringues.

Syn free meringues:

3 x egg whites
100g of sweetener

beat the egg whites till they are firm, add sweetener a table spoon then beat carry on doing this until all the sugar is mixed in to the egg whites and the mixture is glossy and thick

Use a table spoon and spoon mixture on to a baking tray (should get 15 meringues) and place in the oven at about 150c until cooked.

Speedy Quiche

This is great to have in the fridge to snack on or for lunch times. There are loads of different versions but I've put the version i use below.

Speedy Quiche

Ingredients

Peppers, diced
Onions, chopped
Ham
Mushrooms, chopped
Tomatoes, sliced
3 eggs
150g fat free natural cottage cheese

Prepare whatever Speed and Free veggies take your fancy… we’ve used peppers, onions, courgettes, baby sweetcorn, asparagus, mushrooms and tomatoes. You can dry-fry them until soft or leave them raw for extra crunch.
Mix together the 3 eggs, 150g fat-free natural cottage cheese and some chopped parsley.
Lay the chopped vegetables out in an oven-proof flan dish then pour the cottage cheese mix over.
Bake in a flan dish for 30 minutes 190°C/170°C Fan/Gas 5 until set and golden brown. Serve it hot with piles of vegetables or pack a slice or two into your lunchbox.
Tip: Serve the quiche in wedges with Free Slimming World chips. Or if you're enjoying an Extra Easy SP day, piles of lettuce, tomatoes, spring onion and cucumber - ideal for lunchboxes!

Dark Chocolate, orange and Cardamon mousse

Now i love this dessert. It tastes like terry's chocolate orange. It does take a little longer to make than other desserts I've tried but it's work it.

Ingredients

60g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
1 orange
3 medium eggs, separated*
6 tbsp artificial sweetener
½ tsp crushed cardamom seeds
4 tbsp fat-free natural fromage frais, to serve
Method

Melt the chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water (or in the microwave on a low heat for 30 seconds). Allow to cool slightly. Finely grate the zest of half the orange and peel thin strips of zest from the other half. Set aside.
Put the egg whites in a clean glass bowl. Beat with an electric hand whisk on a medium speed until they stand up in stiff peaks, but are not too dry.
Whisk together the egg yolks, 4 tbsp sweetener, the grated orange zest and cardamom seeds. Mix with the chocolate.
Using a large metal spoon, lightly fold in the egg whites until well combined. Spoon the mixture into 4 individual cups, ramekins or glasses and chill for 3-4 hours, or until set.
Cut any white pith off the strips of orange peel and put in a small pan with the remaining sweetener and 400ml water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer gently for 12-15 minutes. Drain and allow to cool.
Decorate each mousse with the crystallised orange zest and serve with a spoonful of fromage frais.
Tip: *Pregnant women, the elderly and babies should not eat raw or partially cooked eggs.

Fluffy Chocolate moouse

If you're a chocolate lover like me this a low syn chocolate dessert which hits the spot. Really easy to make just mix everything together and put in the fridge. Chocolate you don't have to feel guilty for.

Fluffy Chocolate Mouse - 0.5 syn per portion- 4 portions

Ingredients

100g pot of quark skimmed milk soft cheese
500g pot fat free natural fromage frais
1 tbsp artificial sweetener
1 sachet Cadbury Highlights
Ground cinnamon and cinnamon sticks to decorate
Method

Place the quark in a bowl with 400g fromage frais, the sweetener and Cadbury Highlights. Mix well, divide between four glasses and chill until needed.
Top each mousse with a spoonful of fromage frais and a dusting of ground cinnamon. Serve decorated with cinnamon sticks if you like.
Tip: This recipe is not suitable for home freezing

Spicy Vegetable Pakoras

These have been one of the simplest things I've made since joining slimming world. The mixture makes a good amount and they freeze brilliant. Even my boyfriend enjoyed these. Don't worry If they don't look pretty they'll still taste good.

Spicy vegetable pakoras

2 large white potatoes, cooked and mashed to a firm consistency with no butter or milk
1 red onion, diced
½ large bag of frozen chopped vegetable mix (sweetcorn, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower)
2 tbsp curry powder (use mild, medium or hot to suit your own taste)
3-4 tbsp fat free yogurt
1 egg, beaten
Low calorie cooking spray
Method

Pre heat the oven to 200°C/180°C Fan/Gas 6. Place the mashed potato, diced onion and defrosted vegetables into a bowl and combine thoroughly.
Stir the curry powder into the yogurt and add this to the vegetable mix and stir thoroughly.
Beat the egg and add it to the mixture, stirring constantly. The mix should still be quite firm, but if it's too runny add more vegetables.
Line a baking tray/wire rack with baking paper to prevent the pakoras from sticking, and spoon the mixture onto the tray in tablespoon sized ''dollops''.
Spray with low calorie cooking spray and bake for approximately 30-40 minutes - or until firm on the outside and golden brown
Allow to cool slightly so that the pakoras firm up.
Tip: Tip: I prefer to eat these once they have cooled, with a raita made from fat free yogurt, mint sauce and chopped coriander. They make a great Friday-night TV treat!

Add chunks of pre-cooked chicken tikka and make them a delicious Syn-free mea

Chicken and peparomi risotto

Ok so This one wasn't from a recipe book I kind of just throw the stuff together but it worked and tasted great

Chicken and Peperami Risotto- 2 Syns

1 chicken breast
2 mini peperami
pepper
risotto rice
200ml of chicken stock
spring onions

Fry the chicken, pepper, spring onions.

Once the chicken is cooked at the rice and some of the liquid, One the liquid has been soaked up by the rice add more of the liquid, carry on like this until all liquid has been added.

Add the peperami and leave to simmer for 5-10 min.

If you leave the peperami out then it's free

Summer Berry Cheesecake

Ok This this one was really easy to make and looked fantastic once I had made it. The problem arised when I had to get it to my boyfriends house. As you can imagine it collapsed so didn't look very pretty.

However it did taste great.

Summer berry cheesecake - 4.5 syns
Ingredients

12 ginger nut biscuits
25g low fat spread
4 tbsp cold water
2 x 11g sachets powdered gelatine
2 egg whites
500g quark
400g fat-free natural yogurt
Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
2 tbsp artificial sweetener
100g strawberries,
200g blueberries
Mint sprigs, to serve
½ level tsp icing sugar, to dust (optional)
Method

Line a 16cm spring form cake tin with baking parchment. Place the biscuits in a clean, strong polythene bag and finely crush, using a rolling pin. Alternatively, crush in a food processor. Melt the spread, add the biscuit crumbs and mix well. Spoon the mixture evenly over the prepared tin, then chill.
Put the water in a heatproof bowl, sprinkle the gelatine over, and leave to soften for a few minutes. Stand the bowl in a larger bowl containing boiling water and stir until the gelatine has dissolved. Leave to cool.
Whisk the egg whites until just stiff. Put the quark, yogurt, lemon zest and sweetener in another bowl and stir until smooth. Stir the dissolved gelatine into the quark mix, then fold in the whisked egg whites and strawberries. Pour this filling over the cheesecake base, cover and chill for about 3 hours until set.
When ready to serve, carefully release the cheesecake from the tin and arrange the blueberries on top. Serve cut into thin wedges, with a mint sprig on the side. Finish with a light dusting of icing sugar if you like.
Tip: Agar agar can be used instead of gelatine if preferred.

Slimming World recipes - An Introduction

I'm one of those people who buy cooking books and keep recipes from magazines with intentions to make whatever the recipe is but never do.

Since joining Slimming World I've bought three of their cookbooks as well as using their own line tools for ideas. I'm determined that I'm going to use the cookbooks and have decided to post the outcomes on to a blog.

Hopefully they will all be amazing but what ever happens I will be posting the outcome.