Red hot steak

I sometimes feel as though a lot of the food that I put together isn't worth me uploading and are a bit embarrassingly simple. But if the title hasn't been taken yet, I'd like to dub myself the lazy home cook.

If there is an easy way out, I'm there, right at the front!

As most of you have realised I am still catering for the slow carb diet. But as I've mentioned before, a side of rice, pasta, or bread can be added to any of my dishes to cater to those lucky enough to be eating them :-D

Steak has been big in our diet since starting the slow carb regime. I don't think I've eaten this much steak in my life...not complaining, as there is so many things you can do with steak.

This recipe calls for 5 ingredients:

Steak (any cut and size)
2-4 tbs Tomato paste
A few dashes of Tabasco
2-3 tbsp Soy sauce
A good dash of garlic powder

Method:

1) Heat a big fry pan with oil, butter or ghee ( all are optional)
2) Rub each side of the steak with garlic powder and tomato paste
3) place into the fry pan and add soy sauce
4) Keep turning the steak until there is even caramelisation on either side of the steak.
5) Take off from the heat and allow to stand for 5-10 mins.

If you wanted to add the veggies just add them to the pan with all the steak juices and sauce add some Tabasco sauce and you've got yourself one hot steak with veg!

Chicken and egg

Here is another very simple yet very tasty chicken dish. You could easily add bread, rice or pasta to it to make it even more scrumptious.

But for those health nuts wrapping the chicken up in lettuce leaves is the next best thing!

What you'll need:

500g chicken breast
1 tbs All purpose spice
1egg
Olive oil

Method:

1) Dice chicken into approx. 2 cm size pieces (results to faster cooking time)
2) Heat a pan with some oil.
3) Once colour changes add all purpose spice.
4) Once chicken is cooked and the spice has coated all the chicken add the egg.
5) Stir quickly so the egg is incorporated with the chicken and takes in the spice.
6) Once egg is cooked turn off heat and serve hot.

Lettuce leaves are optional.

Enjoy!

Crusted steak and veg

Heyho everyone,

Once again I have had no time to research what I wanted to cook this evening but managed to pull a few things together to make this O.M.G ultra healthy crusted steak with steamed veg.

There are many variations of a crusted lamb or steak but this here is great for people of a low carb diet.

Here is what you'll need

2 pieces 200g steak of your choosing
1 egg
1/2 cup almond meal
1tsp salt
1/2 tbs freshly ground pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
1.5 tsp all purpose spice
Olive oil
Frozen veg (any type)
1 tbsp butter

1) place salt, pepper, almond meal, garlic powder and all purpose spice into a flat plate and mix until combined
2) crack egg and saturate each steak in the egg, taking care and allow excess egg to drip off.
3) coat all sides of steak with almond meal mixture.
4) add oil to a fry pan and fry on high on each side for 1-2 mins. (If you want it well done and cooked quickly reduce heat and cover for 5 mins).
5) remove from pan and allowed to rest for 10 mins.

Veggies

Bring a pot of water to the boil once veggies have gone bright in colour remove from water and rinse off in cold water. Add salt, pepper, more garlic powder to taste and butter.

Tah-dah! It's done. Quick simple and very healthy.

Broccoli and cauliflower bake

I've never actually made this before and I don't actually know why.

I made this side dish for my aunty's Christmas party she is having today. I strangely always try new recipes and ideas for people which is very risky especially since there is a very good chance of it being terrible. But funnily enough I have never had anything terrible happen while experimenting on people!

Here is what you'll need:
1 knob butter
2 heads broccoli
2 heads cauliflower
1/2 a tub of either cream cheese or mascarpone cheese softened
1-2 cups cheese blend (Cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan and Romano)
3-4 finely chopped garlic
1 cup breadcrumbs

Method:

1) chop broccoli and cauliflower into florets
2) place cauliflower into a pot and boil for 5 mins. Add broccoli to and oil for a further 2 mins or until broccoli have turned a bright green.
3) rinse off the veggies under cold water
4) place veggies into a oven safe dish and add creamed cheese and mix until all the veg is covered in cheese.
5) sprinkle with 4 cheese blend.

Breadcrumb mix.

1) heat butter in a saucepan until bubbles appear.
2) add garlic and sauté until fragrant
3) mix in breadcrumbs until all is combined and the breadcrumbs have taken in the butter.
4) sprinkle mixture on top of the veggies.
5) place under the grill/broiler until cheese is melted and the breadcrumbs have turned a deep gold.

Enjoy!

Spiced roast chicken

Hello all and welcome to my recipe-athon! I hope to overwhelm you all with tantalising creations from savoury to sweet!

Today's recipe is my own. I actually put it together on the spot as there was no time for me to sit and think and look for inspiration. So I quickly put a few things together with what I had in my pantry.

Let us begin!

Ingredients:

2kg chicken
3 bay leaves
6 bruised garlic cloves
6 sliced or roughly chopped garlic (extra)
1/3 cup sweet paprika
1/3 chicken spice (any kind)
2 heads broccoli
50 g melted butter
1 cup olive oil
1 cup balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper

Method:

1) Pre heat oven to 190 C ((fan force) add 20 C if using gas oven)
2) Cut broccoli into to florets and place into baking pan
3) Wash and dry chicken. Cut off tail and any extra fat around the cavity.
4) Rub some salt into the cavity
5) Stuff the chicken with bay leaves and 6 bruised garlics
6) Rub salt and pepper onto both sides of chicken
7) Rub the sweet paprika onto both sides of the chicken, making sure to coat between the legs and wings
8) Rub chicken spice onto the chicken on top of the sweet paprika.
9) Place chicken on top of the broccoli and sprinkle sliced or chopped garlic on top of the chicken (breasts are always facing up)
10) Brush melted butter all over the chicken
11) Cook chicken on high for the first 30 mins then turn in down to about 150-140 for an hour after that.
12) throughout the roasting time when we see the chicken become dry baste the chicken with olive oil and balsamic vinegar mixture. It may seem like a lot, however you may find that you won't need it all.

In my rush and starvation I forgot to take a picture of the end product, but here is what it looked like before in went into the oven!

I hope you give it a go and please let me know how you went!

The end is near,

Hello all,

I realise that I haven't put up a post about my diet for a few days now, it's because I have kind of stopped. I have been eating well and still manage to lose weight. I will continue to eat all the protein and veg and stay away from all sort of starch and carbs.

Tomorrow will mark week 4 of the 4 hour body diet/slow carb. I hope by the end of the week that I would have lost a total of 5 kg pushing for 6 kg.

I will continue with it but not be so strict as, that is if I crave for fruit I'm going to eat it. I will monitor myself and if I feel that I'm not progressing as fast as I would like, then I will cut them out.

For the comings weeks I will be posting up recipes of everything that I make. It'll be a recipe-athon, along side my fashion and beauty etc. posts.

I hope you enjoy what I have install! In the mean time sit back drool over all these lovely treats I've been receiving!

Bland and boring

Day 17, 18:

Yet again I have fallen behind with my blog post on my diet....
I do have some good news though! I have lost 4 kg in these past 3 weeks! Yippee! +4 Hour Body is finally coming along according to plan (kind of) I am hoping that I will be able to reach my goal of at least 8 kg by the end of the month. So I'll be pushing myself just that little bit harder.

Unfortunately, I have not been taking pictures of what I have been eating, because to tell you the truth I have been off food since yesterday. I'm not sure if other who have done this diet have felt this way, but just the thought of having to cook more chicken or meat...I can't even think about it...

I've been drinking a protein shake as meal replacements, which is totally against the diet, but I find that it kills whatever hunger I have and it helps with my stomach to feel light unlike when I eat a whole heap of beans and meat.

Today I have been busy preparing for tomorrow's cheat day, stay tuned for some great treats tomorrow!

Sorry for the bland post today, tomorrow will be awesome! 

Hopeless case...

Day 16:

I'm absolutely devastated. I went to go weigh myself this morning and BAM! I was hit with a brick...no weight loss. Nothing. Zero. Zilch. I then proceeded to measure myself. It was only here that there was a loss, 4 cm around my waist. All other measurements were the same. Which leaves me with having lost 8 cm around my waist in these 3 weeks of dieting.

I guess it is something I should be happy about, but I want those scales to show me amazing. I've been told by many that due to female hormones and different times of the month weight varies and usually not very accurate at all.

Seeing as my hormones are all over the place I'd like to point my finger to those damned hormones. 

Sulk, sulk, sulk, here's today's menu:

Breakfast:

As usual it was egg with mushrooms. Today I added some tahini and I wish I didn't. BLAKHHH!

Lunch:

This dish is one of my very first dishes I ever cooked (I was 16). I've decided to cook it again after all these years and let me tell you it was so YUMMY!

This dish contains, chicken breast, eggplant (aubergine), tomato, cottage cheese (instead of yogurt) and a good bit of fresh mint leaves. I also used a bunch of spices, paprika, curry and cumin.

This even more delish with a side of rice :-(

Dinner:

Today my hubby and I had some lentil bites with homemade tahini dip. These are so filling and taste great!

Hope you enjoyed today's menu!

Don't forget to like my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Boredom has entered the building...

Day 13, 14 and 15:

Once again I my deepest apologies for not keeping up with my daily diet posts. I'm afraid I've hit a diet plateau where I'm just over it. Although I have been sticking to it quite strictly, I've honestly just haven't been feeling very motivated. The food is starting to annoy me. Although I'm not eating as many beans as I should, just the thought of it makes me feel ill.

My once favourites have now become my enemies. I'm starting to dislike eggs very much, but sadly what is breakfast without eggs.

Anyway enough with the melancholy. Here are some pics of what I've been eating for the past few days.

Obviously breakfast hasn't changed so I will be posing pictures of the few new things I've been eating.

A traditional middle eastern dish called 'Fasooliya' i.e. lamb and beans in a tomato soup. I've also made some cauliflower rice which I think is absolutely amazing.

These babies are life savers! On a nasty slow carb diet this one something like this is a breath of fresh air. They are 100% slow carb acceptable and taste great!

These taste especially good as a light meal with a tahini dip (homemade) or even on a bed of salad leaves with a simple olive oil and lemon dressing.

There we have it for today, stay tuned for tomorrow!

Don't forget to like my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Little things

I'm sure every mother would agree that they always want the best for their child. I for one wouldn't mind spending just a little more on my little monkey knowing that he will be wearing quality items that provide comfort and of course great style!

Since pregnancy I've always known that i was going to use J&J products on my baby. Today I used the regular J&J shampoo. However I do love the smell of J&J's milk bath much more. I also never forget to moisturise his little body as the summer sun can make anyone's skin dry up.

Bvlgari make this amazing scent for little ones. It's very fresh and summery. Perfect for this time of year.

Even though the son isn't shining very brightly here in Sydney, the son on days like this are at it's worst. So I never forget to apply sun cream on my little boys skin to protect it from the harsh Aussie sun.

Although I have a great range of hats for him to wear, the days he does wear one are very rare so i take advantage of it. He's at the stage wear he hates anything on his head. This can get very frustrating when playing outdoors. Any advice on this subject would be very grateful!

I can't get over converse shoes for kids. I absolutely love them. So stylish with great support for their little feet. These Chuck Taylor's are to die for! 

Hope you all enjoy what my little one is wearing today!

Don't forget to like and share my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Women's Bvlgari Baby Eau de Toilette
neimanmarcus.com

Ralph Lauren Childrenswear Striped Mesh Polo
bergdorfgoodman.com

Converse Kids Chuck Taylor® All Star® Dual Collar Ox (Toddler/Youth)
zappos.com

Gap Twill Cargo Shorts
gap.com

Ralph Lauren Corduroy Sport Hat
ralphlauren.com

Aveeno Baby Daily Moisture Lotion - 18 Oz.
target.com

Banana Boat Kids Natural Reflect Spf50 - 4 Oz
target.com

Overload

Day 12:

I've come to the realisation how much I love food. I think I went way too far today (even though there are no limits). I managed to eat a whole heap today and I didn't think I had it in me. But I was adamant to eat badly...all day! 

So I introduce to you my very bad cheat day.

Breakfast:

YEP! Maccas, I haven't had a maccas breakfast in a very very long time, so today I decided to sneak out of the house early and surprise my husband with all these heart clogging goodies!

Lunch:

For this weeks cheat lunch we decided pizza was the best way to go. We wanted to stay far away from any type of protein, so our pizzas were a vegetarian and a margarita. These are our usual go- to pizza's from eagle boys as we can't eat any of the other options. But non the less these two are the best veg and cheese pizzas we've ever had!

Dinner:

There wasn't any dinner today. We just snacked on leftover pizza from lunch and had a whole heap of fruit.

Extras:

These were so tasty and of course alcohol free! We also had some macarons that I made this morning.

That wraps up our second official cheat day!

Enjoy!

Super High!

Day 11:

People it's that time of the week again where I prepare myself for the CHEAT DAY! WHOOHOO!

I can't wait I almost want to wait until 12 midnight to sneak in a little something naughty in! But alas I will hold myself until tomorrow morning (very early in the morning ;-p). I feel almost on a high from just thinking about all the things I'll be stuffing my face with...oh its too much!

Today was a very blah kind of day. I did manage to get in my exercise this morning before breakfast which was nice.

I purchased a 10 kg kettle bell and have used it twice this week already. I hope this will speed up the weight-loss as I have a sneaking feeling it wouldn't be that great this week.

In saying that, here is today's menu:

Breakfast:

Sorry once again I forgot to take a picture of it, but it was a tuna salad with rocket, baby spinach, mushrooms, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.

The tuna was quite spicy which helped my tummy rid itself of waste...if you know what I mean...

Lunch:

Here I have some more lamb Kafta/kofta balls however this time I added in some mixed beans. I also wanted to change the taste so I added a tablespoon of mild Australian mustard while the beans were cooking with the meat, this gave it a yummy sort of sauce which equaled as dressing for the salad that is hidden under all that protein.

I also decided to fry some pine nuts to add flavour and texture to the salad. This made the dish that little bit more delish!

Dinner:

No dinner today guys. I wanted to keep it light to prepare my stomach for the feasting that will be going on in the tasty tantrum household tomorrow!

There you have it! I hope this one lonely dish will spark an inspirational bulb! Don't forget to like and share my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Enjoy!

Face of the day

Today is a beautiful summer's day here in Oz and what better way to incorporate the sun and blue skies than to have a summery face to go with it.

There's just something about wearing barely there makeup during the summer season. It's light, simple and easy and  fool proof ;-p

Today I've gone for a powder foundation that is exactly my skin colour (as it should be). It gives good coverage without being too full on which defeats the purpose of summer/whimsical looks. I beautiful peach tone blush goes exceedingly well with Mediterranean skin tones (more yellowish undertones).

A coat or two of a mascara black or brown. And finish off a summer pinky-coral lip.

This to me defines summer.

Enjoy!

Christian dior
sephora.com

Mac cosmetic
$28 - debenhams.com

On the road again...

Day 10:

Today was a good day, I didn't feel that hungry until quite late into the day.  When I did eat I felt very full very quickly which I won't complain about.

One thing that I really don't like about this diet is, the fact that I haven't done so much cooking in a very long time. It is very time consuming and frustrating. Even though the author recommends eating the same few meals over and over again, I don't think that will sit well with my stomach.

But as promised yesterday today is a whopper of a menu, something very special and very tasty:

Breakfast:

Fried egg with sauteed onions, garlic, tomato, eggplant and some paprika.

Lunch:

Finally some beans! Here we have some no-fat kafta/kofta balls with half a can of mixed beans in some salsa. I know the mix of middle eastern and Mexican doesn't sound appetizing but believe me, this was uber YUMMY!

Dinner:

BAM! Here it is! Zucchini 'pasta' with lemon and garlic infused lamb. O.M.G this is amazing! The added lemon zest really brings this dish to another level. I think I've made my mind up for recipe of the week!

So there you have it my dears! Hope this was helpful to someone on a slow/low carb diet or just someone interested in something different.

Don't forget to check out my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Running errands

Today is running errands day! Even though after having a baby I am carrying a bit of extra weight (maybe more than a bit) but I don't let it discourage me from wearing glam clothes. Today I've opted for something very relaxed as the weather outside is stunning!

I can get away with wearing wedges because I won't be doing a lot of walking which can sometimes me a pain.

A light flowy top and matching coloured scarf allows for a lovely summery casual out fit.

Hope you all enjoy!

P.S please don't forget to like and share my facebook page for daily updates on diet, food ideas and useful tips on family, fashion and beauty: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

Calypso St Barth cotton shirt
calypsostbarth.com

Theyskens' theory wide leg jeans
$390 - farfetch.com

Blowfish brown sandals
jildorshoes.com

River island
$16 - riverisland.com

Wallis ring
wallisfashion.com

River Island bracelet
$16 - riverisland.com

Christian Dior lipstick
nordstrom.com

Balenciaga fragrance
balenciaga.com

Back on the horse...

Day's 7,8 and 9...

Hello all, my sincere apologies for missing the last two days, I had let myself down and completely ruined the diet...I was eating chocolate and eating a bit of fruit (fruit is a big no, no in this diet). But last night I began to eat better again and the whole of today went very well without falling off the horse.

Here are some pics of yesterday's menu:


Breakfast:

Fried egg with mushrooms and a good dollop of cottage cheese. Accompanied with sliced tomato. 

Lunch:

WOW! This was an amazing roast chicken and may just get into recipe of the week ;)
I love the combination of lemon and rosemary on a roast chook!

And here is today's menu:

Breakfast:

Breakfast was exactly the same as as day 6, no changes to it. I find that boiled eggs with some salt, pepper and olive oil sit nicely in my tummy and keep me full for a very long time.

Lunch:

A beautiful light lunch that is totally filling. Leftover chicken from yesterday's roast, mushrooms, mustard seeds, rocket, baby spinach, salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Too good to turn down!

Dinner:

A big boys dinner it is today! A nice fat piece of chuck steak cover in mustard seeds with a side of cheats creamy mushrooms and asparagus. This bad boy was absolutely delish and very filling.

I hope that todays menu makes up for the missed days. Stay tuned for tomorrows whopper menu ;)

Lots of love!

P.S Don't forget to like and share my official facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TastyTantrums

FAIL!

Heyho!

Day 6:

Today has been a very difficult day for me. Although after weighing myself to be happily surprised by the number that was peering up at me I did...FAIL!

I call it fail because I failed to rid the house of the left over treats. Which led me to dwell on them all day, which then led me to devouring half a banoffee pie and two Kitkat sticks.

Shock, horror, gasp...I know, but i'm only human! I would also like to mention that I felt an odd since of tiredness throughout the day, even though I had a major sleep in. All of sudden I found myself face down on my pillow absolutely wiped out from doing nothing. I hope to get back on to my horse tomorrow and continue on with the slow carb diet.

Without further ado here is today's menu:

 Breakfast;

A very simple mean which consisted of a few boiled eggs and sliced tomato. Although this wasn't very filling it help with the rule of eating within the hour of waking.

Lunch:

If it looks unpleasant, it's because it is. Minced meat with spinach...no comment.

Dinner:

I'm so glad my aunty came over and brought me dinner today. I had been craving some charcoal chicken for some time. Here is Sydney's best charcoal chicken from Habib's.

There it is, my sad confession. I hope i'll be able to report good new tomorrow.

Weekly review

Hi there!

Today I've chosen to combine my weekly review and my daily face/makeup routine.

As I age I'm finding that I need to use more products to get the job done from cleaning my make up to choosing a good foundation. I have tried Estee lauder products before and have found that they broke me out terribly, but that was before I had my son. Now through trial and error I've found a good combination of Estee Lauder products that I don't absolutely love but it does the trick. I am however still on the hunt for the perfect cleansing line that will clear up my face and won't break me out.

On the other hand I LOVE Estee Lauder makeup. I have a sample palettle that came with a purchase my aunty made not long ago that has the most beautiful mix of eye shadows and blush.

Apologies for the lighting it doesn't give it justice. The colours are so rich and intense, once i run out I'll definately will be purchasing them again. There colours are starting from the top left:

10-Ivory Slipper (Satin), 47-Nude Fresco (Satin)
44- Safari Green (broken) (Shimmer), 35- Hot Cinnamon (Shimmer)
11- Nude Rose (Estee Lauder Signature blush)
60- Sugar Biscuit (Satin), 04- Wild Sable (Matte)
38- Chocolate Bliss (Matte), 45- Lavish Mink

These shadows are 'Pure color' eye-shadows.
Since these colours are so neutral you can create day and night looks with them by keeping it soft and light during the day using the top two colours on the right, then transform the look to a sexy smoky eye by adding the bottom two on the right on your outer 'V'.

As for foundation, in the summer months I don't usually like to use liquid foundations as it can melt off my face even though I use a setting spray.

I use MAC studio fix poweder foundation in NC30. It gives good coverage and i am able to re-apply it throughout the day if I feel I need it.

Mascara is the Estee Lauder Sumptuous Bold Volume Lifting mascara. I think its quite good. My lashes are separated and look a lot longer.

I am not a great user of lipstick even in the winter time, I tend to drift towards lip stains throughout the year. My summer favourite is Lancome Juicy Tubes which provide plenty shine and a hint of colour to the lips.

There are only a few of these items i'd repurchase such as the Estee Lauder Perfectly clean cleanser, Mascara and the eye-shadows. Other than than I will try other face products to find the perfect match for me.

Hope this post of helpful! Have a great day!

Uh oh! We're in trouble!

Day 5 ahhhh:

Why hello there!

Today was officially cheat day! Sadly the day didn't last long enough. But surprisingly I didn't go as overboard as I thought I would.

My day started off with a deadly Banoffee pie that I made last night. Which meant that I was too full to eat a 'real' breakfast.

Lunch came along and I knew I needed to get more carbs in me. 

Le wrap was something my husband was craving for so off we went to our local Le wrap. I ordered a chicken and avocado wrap and oh my...oh my...Eating a tortilla has never been so good! The oozy cheese and ceasar sauce was absolutely divine.

The day went on and I devoured a big packet of Twisties, Bueno, half a packet of kitkat, some Lindt chocolate, fries and my favourite McDonald's coffee frappe. There wasn't much leftover from our stash of goodies.

My day has now ended with another Banoffee pie and a cup of herbal tea to ummm....ehm ehm...assist in getting rid of said cheating treats. The tea that I drink is called Nutri-slim tea

I have used this tea before when I first started losing weight and it helped a great deal. The effects of it is not instantaneous. However the next morning you'll reap the benefits hehehe.

So here ends my day with a cup of helpful herbs and good ol' Lord of the rings!

Good night everyone!