Recipe - Apple Pie Baked Oats

Ah, baked oats. My Non-cake, cakey friend. Really, baked oats are the closest I've come to an edible Slimming World "cake". Let's call a spade a spade because SW cakes are basically just sweet omelettes, aka eggy abominations. I'm not a fan. These baked oats are still oats and egg but seem less horrendous in terms of taste, maybe the texture of the oats adds something, I don't know. If you're a Slimming World purist, you should syn the apple as it's cooked, but Slimming World make it so blimming difficult to work out the syns for cooked fruit. The syn values on the website (as far as I can tell) are for the fruit once it's been cooked, so 100g or cooked eating apple is 2 1/2 syns. But for this recipe I used I small eating apple raw, then baked it with my oat mixture. So how the eff am I meant to work out the syns for that? It was definitely less than 100g, probably about 70g raw by the time I'd peeled and cored it, but then how much would that weigh once cooked? More, less, the same? Whoooo knows, who cares? If you're a Slimming World saddo purist, allow a couple of syns. If you, like me, couldn't give a rat's backside, enjoy your cooked apple!

To make one portion of Apple Pie Baked Oats you will need:

• 35g oats (HEB)
• 1 small apple, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
• cinnamon
• 1 toffee mullerlight, or 125g fat free yogurt of your choice
• 1 egg
• sweetener to taste

Put your apple chunks into the bottom of a small oven proof dish and sprinkle with some cinnamon (just a sprinkle will do, or it's like eating christmassy sawdust). In a bowl mix the oats, egg, sweetener (about a tablespoon), a pinch more cinnamon and 90g of the yogurt. Pour on top of your apples and bake at 200/gas 6 for around 20-30 minutes, until golden on top. Serve with the rest of your yog and pretend you're eating cake.

I weighed in this morning, and over the last two weeks (with a very wobbly week thanks to illness and birthdays, and my new strategy of eating more for lunch) I lost 4lbs. Pretty pleased with that, hoping for 2 next week for my next award and shiny sticker to go on my book. I'd prefer an all you can eat chinese buffet as a reward but hey ho. It's the little things.

Hx

Recipe - Tandoori Chicken Kebabs with red onion pickle and yogurt mint sauce

I'm going to say this straight up and get it out of the way - this recipe contains a little cheat. I say that, it might not, but I'm not sure of the reasoning behind why pitta bread is not allowed as a Healthy B choice. If it's just because pittas are generally too big to be counted as a HEB, then as long as you syn the extra (as I did), it's fine. If it's because wholemeal pittas don't contain enough fibre, then you probably shouldn't do it, at least not too regularly. So, Slimming World Purists look away now, and please don't call the tweak police on me...

So, I have to say this dinner was bloody lovely. I'm not really one for a fakeaway as such, but I really enjoyed this, and even Mr MGAMT only said one negative thing about it, which makes a change. It uses your Healthy B choice, although technically it doesn't. Let me explain. I used a large wholemeal pitta to stuff my meat into, which isn't counted as a HEB. BUT my Slimming World bible says you can have 60g of any bread as your Healthy Extra B, which equates to 6 syns. So, as my Tesco Large Wholemeal Pitta comes in at 9 syns, I took off 6 and had a Tandoori kebab for 3 syns and a Healthy B. I hope that makes sense. If you want to make it simpler, use a B-Free wrap, Kingsmill sandwich thin or normal bread instead of the pitta, or save your HEB and just have chicken and salad, and maybe some Slimming World chips or summat. It's still just as good.

To make Tandoori Chicken Kebabs for two people you will need:

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken thigh filets
• 4 tbsp fat free greek yogurt
• 1 tbsp tandoori masala powder
• 1 large clove garlic
• zest and juice of one lemon, plus wedges to serve
• 2 wholemeal pittas (check syns and take off 6 to use as your Healthy B)
• iceberg lettuce
• cucumber
• 1/2 red onion
• salt

For the yogurt mint sauce

• 2 tbsp fat free greek yogurt
• 1/2 tbsp syn free mint sauce (I used Colemans Garden Mint Sauce, check syns on others)
• salt

In a bowl mix the yogurt, tandoori masala, garlic, lemon zest and 1 tbsp of lemon juice. Remove all visible fat from the chicken and add to the bowl with the spice mix, and marinade for as long as you can. I left it for the afternoon, but half an hour is good if that's all you've got. Preheat your grill as igh as it will go, and lay the chicken out as flat as it will go. grill on high for 5-7 minutes each side - don't be scared to let the edges catch a little and go all charred and yummy. Meanwhile, slice your onion as thinly as you can (use a mandolin if you have one - carefully!) and put in a bowl with the rest of the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. This will create a sort of pickle and it absolutely delicious! Shred the lettuce and thinly slice the cucumber. Mix the ingredients for the yogurt mint sauce in a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Pop your pittas in the toaster for a minute or two, before slicing open and stuffing with salad, and the chunked up chicken once it's cooked. Serve with the yogurt sauce and lemon wedges. You could even wrap it all in a plastic bag for a few minutes before serving, if you like that sweaty kebab shop authenticity!

Seriously, so so good. I don't actually like the chicken kebabs from my local late night kebab empire, give me a dirty donner any day, but this I could eat over and over again. It will definitely be a regular in my meal plans. In fact, if I don't post anything for a while it's just because I'm eating this over and over again.

Slimming World Purists, you can syn the whole thing if you don't want to "cheat" with your HEB. But surely a little cheat is better than reaching for takeaway menu...

Hx

Recipe- Slimming World Classic Overnight Oats

In my world, a Healthy A choice is meant for cheese. If you think differently, you're wrong. On the odd occasion where I've had milk for my HEA I've regretted it instantly and been grumpy for the whole of my cheeseless day. But that means I'm limited for breakfast choices as cereal with water does not float my boat. Usually that's ok with me, as I'm not a huge cereal fan but sometimes a bowl of porridge is just what I want after the school run, and that's where overnight oats come in. It uses your Healthy B in the form of porridge oats, yogurt and fruit and it's so easy to make.

To make Slimming World Classic Overnight Oats for one person you will need:

• 35g porridge oats (HEB)
• syn-free yogurt of your choice (I used an Aldi greek style vanilla and coconut)
• fruit - berries (fresh or frozen), banana, apple, pear, peach - whatever you have/like just make sure some of it is speed
• depending on your yogurt you may also want sweetener and a splash of water

Mix the oats and yogurt (add sweetener if it's too sharp, and a splash of water if you think it's too thick). In a suitable receptacle (doesn't have to be fancy, a clean jam jar does the job just as well) layer your fruit and yogurty oats until you've used them all up - I did a layer of blueberries, yogurt/oats, layer of raspberries, yogurt/oats, layer of strawberries, yogurt/oats topped with a layer of banana. Pop a lid on and leave in the fridge overnight (or for an hour or so, at least. I sometimes make it up before I take the kids to school so it's ready when I get back) and enjoy a convenient breakfast in the morning.

You might want to experiment a little with this - some people like to mix their layers before refrigerating so the juices from the fruit soften the oats a bit more, but I like a bit of texture in it. Also, different fruit with give you different levels of moistness (mmm, moist), especially frozen fruits, so see what works for you. If you're leaving it overnight and using frozen fruits, there's no need to defrost them first as they will do their thing in the jar. If breakfast is something you struggle with, give it a go!

Hx 

Recipe- White Chocolate and Strawberry Baked Oats

Yep, you read that right. Chocolate. You can eat chocolate on the Slimming World plan, that's what your syns are for! Some people use their syns on booze, some prefer crisps or takeaways, but I keep sane with a chocolatey treat most days. Now, that's not to say you can have a family sized bar of Galaxy and a tub of Roses every day, but there are a few low-syn chocolates that can be enjoyed guilt free. This includes some low calorie hot chocolate powders, and they come in lots of different flavours including white choc which just happens to be my weakness. It's surprisingly satisfying, too. Don't go mixing it into quark or microwaving it with an egg to try and make a cake, because all you're heading for there is powdery disappointment. But with a bit of planning you can make something actually edible, chocolatey and good for you. What more do you want? A half naked man to feed it to you? I'll see what I can do.

To make White Chocolate and Strawberry Baked Oats for one you will need:

• 35g of any old porridge oats (HEB)
• 1 egg
• 100g strawberries (1 1/2 syns since they will be cooked)
• 1 sachet Options white hot chocolate powder (2 syns)
• 90g vanilla mullerlight (about half a pot) or any syn-free vanilla yogurt you like
• Tablespoon sweetener of your choice.

Whip the tops off the strawberries and chop up into smallish pieces - I cut each berry into 8. Combine all the ingredients and give them a good stir. Pop it all into a small oven proof dish and bake at 200/gas 6 for about half an hour, until the middle is set and it's golden on top. Serve with more strawberries and the rest of your yogurt, and pretend you're noshing on a Milkybar.

This isn't something I'd have everyday - at 3 1/2 syns it's quite indulgent for a breakfast, especially when you can have a full on Slimming World style fry up for free. If you're that bothered you can swap the strawberries for raspberries and save yourself a whole half a syn. 

Well, I'm off to find that half naked man to see if he fancies taking the bin out for me...

Hx

Recipe- Baked oats and a bit about Slimming World

Mornin'

Firstly, I must just point out that I am not and never have been, nor do I have any desire currently to be a Slimming World consultant. Please check recipes/syns values/ healthy extras/that I'm not poisoning you yourself if you don't trust me (I wouldn't). Or join a lovely Slimming World group for lots of happy-clappy support and encouragement. Super.

That said, I have followed the plan for many years and have seen it go through lots of changes in that time, so I like to think I know it pretty well. The plan is split into three basic components - free food, healthy extras, and -dun, dun, dun- syns. Free food is split further into free and speed food. Free food is your meat, fish, eggs, fat free dairy, potatoes, pasta, rice, beans and pulses and some other grains (quinoa if you live in Shoreditch). Speed food is most fruits and vegetables, and your meals should consist of at least 1/3 speed (and not the kind you stick up your nose). Healthy extras you have an A (milk, cheese and calcium rich goodies) and a B (bread, cereal and fibre rich stuff) and -dun, dun, dun- syns cover pretty much everything else. Free food you can eat as much of as you like. Really go to town. Pile your plate high with it and shove your face in, Vicar of Dibley with the chocolate fountain style. Then each day you also get one of each healthy extra and 5-15 syns (unless you're a real porker, or male, in which case you get more syns at the discretion of your consultant). There are caveats, anomalies and exceptions to these which I'll point out if we come to them, but that's the general proviso.

It really is a great plan in all seriousness. Unlike calorie controlled diets, or points based systems *cough*weightwatchers*cough* there is always something you can eat on those days when you just can't fill yourself up. Keep your fruit bowl piled high and the mullerlights piled higher and you'll never go hungry. Not as satisfying as eating a whole tube of pringles in one sitting, but it's the better option. Yawn.

Anyway, onto the recipe. Baked oats seem to be everywhere at the moment, every slimming blog, website and facebook page you look at seems to be extolling their virtues so I thought it would be a good place to start. One of the anomalies of the plan is that fruit isn't free if it's cooked or pureed so if you want to polish your diet halo this recipe contains one syn for the cooked raspberries, plus either your healthy b choice or 6 syns for the oats. If you choose not to syn the cooked fruit, on your head be it. I wont tell, but don't come crying to me when your knickers don't fit.

To make Baked Oats you will need:

• 35g porridge oats (any old ones will do!) (HEB)
• 1 egg
• 90g plain fat free yogurt, or roughly half a mullerlight (whatever flavour your heart desires, as long as it's a syn free one)
• 100g raspberries, fresh or frozen
• 2 tablespoons sweetener of your choice
• dash of vanilla or almond essence, if you're feeling fancy
• frylight

Chuck all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix it up good. Spray a small ovenproof dish with frylight and dollop the mix in. Bake at 200ish (gas 5/6) for half an hour or so, then serve with more speedy fruit and a blob of yogurt, or the rest of your muller. Eat and revel in the yum. The picture actually only shows half a serving (recipe serves one), so you could save the other half to eat cold like some kind of sad cake substitute with your afternoon milk free, sugar free, joy free coffee.

This is definitely a weekend breakfast, or for when you've got more time and patience than it takes to shove some shreddies in a bowl, but if you can wait half an hour for your breakfast in the morning, it is a yummy alternative to normal porridge. You can change up the flavours by adding different fruit (just check the syns), different yogurts, spices etc. You could even experiment with chocolate (Options hot chocolates are 2 syns a serving). The possibilities are endless!

My eldest brat son just told me if I got on a diving board I'd probably break it because I'm too fat (don't you just love the school holidays) so I'm off to cry into the washing up.

Toodles!

Hx