Healthy Meat pies with a butterbean pie topping.

I’m absolutely in love in th the  whole range of Eating for Sustained energy Cook books from Liesbet Delport and Gabi Steenkamp. These woman know how to develop good home-made food recipes, while keeping it interesting, healthy and quick to make. When ever there is a new recipe book on the shelves I don’t even flip through it any more I just buy it!  The recipes are based on the low GI low GL principles, low in fat and best of all low in carbohydrates as well.

The recipes are delicious and the photos are absolute taste bud teasers.

I’ve decided to make individual pies instead and to incorporate more veggies into my meal I’ve added a Portobello mushroom on the bottom of the pie pots which was a lovely surprise as no one expected it.

 Serve 6

5 ml Olive oil

1/2 tsp dry/fresh  thyme leaves

1 medium onion chopped

6 x Portobello mushrooms

 garlic butter to fry the mushrooms with

400 g topside mince

5 ml chilli powder

4 tomatoes chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

40 g tomato puree

5 ml brown sugar

Salt and pepper to taste

Pie topping

1 x 410 g tin butter beans (drained)

100 ml low-fat milk

1 egg

60 ml water

250 ml cake flour

10 ml baking powder

Pinch of salt

Fry the Portobello mushrooms in a pan with the garlic butter. Place a mushroom at the bottom of each pot pie.

Heat the oil and fry the onions until soft. Ad the meat,  thyme chilli powder  and  fry until brown. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree and the brown sugar. Add just enough water to make a rich sauce and simmer for 10 – 15 minutes.  Season to taste.

For the topping; Mash the beans together with milk water and egg, or process in a food processor.Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt onto the beans. Mix well. Spoon the meat mixture into the pots.

Spread the pie topping over the meat with a spoon.

Bake for 20-25 minute in a preheated oven at 180 degrees.

Serve hot with roasted veggies or a large salad

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I’ts a Chicken pie! a healthier Chicken pie.

I LOVE Chicken and mushroom pies, the type you buy at the filling stations. Yes that one’s! you know for a fact that you will have heartburn from eating them and still you end up buying one.

Well unfortunately my hips don’t lie and I had to make a healthy Chicken pie, so we ditch the puff pastry swap it for filo pastry, ditch the cream and use low-fat milk and just to add some flavour and fibre we add some courgettes, served with roasted butternuts on the side…yum.

Serves 6

Chicken Mushroom Pie

500 g  Chicken breast, cut into small cubes

2 slices of ham / 125g bacon cubed (optional)

5 ml olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

1 garlic glove chopped

250 g mushrooms chopped

4 courgettes ( grated)

1.25 ml salt

5 ml freshly ground pepper

15 g flour

350 ml low-fat milk

60 ml flour

2 filo sheets

1 egg

Preheat oven to 220 degrees

Cut chicken into small chunks.

Add oil to your pot and fry onions , garlic, mushrooms and ham / bacon (optional). Add the Chicken and for another 2 minutes.

Add  courgettes with the salt and pepper to the pot and fry until mushrooms are just about soft.

Mix the flour with the milk in a cup. Add the flour mixture to the chicken in the pot. Cook for a minute allowing the sauce to thicken while continuing to stir.

Grease an oven dish and pour the chicken filling in it.

Top the chicken filling with the filo sheets. Place the filo sheets roughly onto the pie it don’t need to be neat.  Brush with a little beaten egg. Reduce your oven heat to 180 degrees  and bake for 15-20 minutes until the filo pastry is browned.

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Venison Pie with a spicy poached Pear salad

While on holiday in the Eastern Cape earlier this year my sister-in-law booked a show for us at The Potters Place in Jeffrey’s bay. The show was fantastic and the food was really good! I’ve ordered the venison pie with steamed dried fruit which were absolute divine to say the least. The sweetness of the fruit complimented the venison beautifully.

As I was  staring out of the kitchen window the other day  images of that venison pie taunted me and on the spot I decided that will be dinner! The motivation was off course the steamed dried fruit which was non existant in my kitchen at the moment  and I was way too lazy to do shopping.

So I’ve decided to try an old favorite that I normally serve with cream or ice cream for dessert, poached pears.

What I did: 

I’ve Peeled and deseeded 2  Pears and poached them with the juice and Zest of two oranges, a cinnamon stick,  a Cardamom pod and a tbs of sugar.  After poaching I’ve layered the pears on a bed of salad and chunks of feta Cheese.

For the venison pie

 600 g Venison meat

2 bay leaves

4 gloves

1tsp coriander seeds

Cover the venison with water in a pot and cook with the spices on low heat for 2 -3 hours until soft.  As soon as the meat falls from the bone it’s ready. Remove meat from the pot and set aside.

Filling 

1 medium onion – diced

garlic glove – chopped

1-2 medium potatoes diced

2-3 carrots diced

50 ml red wine

+- 1 tbsp flour / gravy powder

Fry the onion and garlic, add the potatoes and the carrots and saute for another minute. Add just enough water to cover the potatoes and cook for a few minutes until the veggies are done.  Make a paste with the flour and a little water and add it with the meat and the red wine to the rest of the ingredients, simmer for a minute or two. Remove from the heat.

Puff pastry

1 roll of ready made puff pastry

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.

Roll out pastry to cover the bottom of your pie dish, add meat filling and cover with the remainder of the puff pastry.

Bake pie for +- 20 minutes or until golden.

Jeffreys Bay

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