Low fat and Delicious - Eggplant, Tomato and Parsley Salad

That one comes from my new favourite magazine: Women’s weekly. By the way, I am very tempted to subscribe to the magazine and guarantee myself with the next 12 editions. I love magazines.

This recipe comes from the website of the magazine and I found the other day I was looking for a eggplant recipe. I’ve been buying eggplants lately but sometimes I am not sure what to do with it…run out of ideas.

So Eggplant, Tomato and parsley Salad:

You will need (For 4 people)

cooking-oil spray
2 large eggplants (1kg), cut into 1cm slices
2 large tomatoes (440g), chopped finely
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
mint yogurt dressing
½ cup (140g) low-fat natural yogurt
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon mint sauce or you can use pesto alternatively
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint

Method:

Spray heated barbecue grill plate with cooking-oil spray for 2 seconds. Cook eggplant, about 2 minutes each side, until tender.

Meanwhile, make mint yogurt dressing. (Combine ingredients in small bowl.)

Divide eggplant, tomato and parsley among serving plates; drizzle with dressing.

Serve

Tzatziki

have you ever tried Tzatziki?

It is so simple to make and it's a match made in heaven. It gives a fresh Mediterranean taste and reminds me of summer. 


Here is a simple recipe of Tzatziki that would easily serve 10 people and you can prepare in 10 minutes.
Attention, I don't know about other recipes, but this one can't be frozen so if you think you wont eat it, you can try and make it in smaller quantities.


You will need:
3 Lebanese cucumbers, halved, seeded, and grated coarsely.
1 clove garlic, chopped finely
500g Greek-style or natural plain yogurt
2 tbsp shredded fresh mint leaves
1 tbsp lemon juice


Method:
1. Using absorbent paper, gently squeeze out the excess liquid from the grated cucumber.
2. in a large bowl, combine the cucumber, yogurt, garlic, lemon juice and mint. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

Salmon with Avocado Salsa

This recipe is from Julie Goodwin, the first Australian masterchef ever. I didn't know that, but apparently she has a tv show, on the nine network every Saturday at 5:30 pm.


Here is one of her recipes: Salmon with avocado salsa. It is delicious and can be made in around 20 minutes.

You will need (For 4 people):
1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped
2 small French shallots, sliced
3 medium tomatoes, seeded, chopped
1 small red capsicum, chopped
1 medium ripe avocado, chopped
4 salmon fillets (around 800g)
1 tbsp good quality olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice


Method: 


Combine the tomato, coriander, shallots, capsicum, avocado and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Toss gently to avoid mashing the avocado.


Meanwhile, heat a large non-stick frying pan. Brush the salmon with the olive oil. Place the skin side down in the pan and press gently to keep the skin in contact with the hot surface of the pan. Season the top of the salmon with a little bit of salt and pepper. After 3 minutes. turn the salmon and cook the other side for a further 2 minutes or until is done as desired. 
Salmon is best served a little rare in the centre. Remove from the pan and cover loosely with foil for 2 minutes before serving.


Plate it with the Avocado salsa.
You can also add steamed new potatoes.


Bon Appetit. 

A light Calorie Hummus recipe without Tahini

I don't know if I mentioned that before, but I've been researching a lot about Low Fat, Low calories, Low GI Recipes...translation: I need to let some kilos go (OUCH!!!)


I found this cute BLOG with a lot of recipes including the nutritional value and they are all very low numbers, if you know what I mean.


Other fact is that my husband loves Hummus. So here we go:


Hummus recipe that doesn't require Tahini - 77 calories per portion.
You will need (for 12 portions)
420g can chick peas beans
1 garlic clove, cut in half
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice


Method:
 - Drain the chick peas beans and reserve the liquid.
 - Place the reserved bean liquid, garlic and sesame seeds in the food processor. Cover and blend on high speed until mixed.
 - Add the chick peas, salt and lemon juice. Cover and process on high speed until smooth.
 - add some paprika and olive oil if you wish (If you add olive oil, you will have more calories)
 - Serve as a spread with crackers, wedges of pita bread or raw vegetables.

and here is the PLUS: Nutritional value per 1 serve
Calories: 77
Total fat: 3.4 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 203 mg
Total carbs: 9.7 g
Fiber: 2.3 g
Protein: 2.8 g