Baked Stuffed Plantains

Baked Stuffed Plantains

So I had some leftover plantain and mince from my Plantain Lasagna and decided to make some Baked Stuffed Plantains. 

I decided to make both a vegetarian and a meat based version, just to show you how versatile you can be with this recipe. 

To make this amazing dish you will need: 

Vegetarian Ingredients 

-1 Ripe Plantain 

-½ Small Onion Chopped

-1 Green Pepper 

-1 Yellow Pepper

-1 Red Pepper 

-½ tea spoon of mixed herbs

-1 Tablespoon of Coconut Oil 

-Salt and pepper as needed

Instructions

-Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. 

-Line oven tray with foil and coat with coconut oil.

-Slit a shallow line down the long seam of the plantain and remove plantain peel by pulling off the

skin.

-Place the plantain on the tray and bake for about 15 minutes each side or until the plantain is golden brown. 

-While the plantain is baking, add 1 tablespoon of coconut oil to a saucepan, followed by the onions and peppers. 

-Let it simmer for about 5-7 minutes, add your  mixed herbs and season to taste.

-Remove the plantain from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes. 

-Make a horizontal slit in the plantain and then stuff with the pepper mixture.

Mince Version

Ingredients

-1 ripe plantains

-2 tablespoon coconut oil

-½ pound lean mince

-½ medium onion chopped

-1 teaspoon minced garlic

-1 tin of chopped tomatoes

-Season to taste 

Instructions

-Use the same instructions as above in relation to baking the plantain.

-While the plantain is baking, add 2 tablespoon of oil to a sauce pan, followed by onions, garlic and your chopped tomato. 

-Let it simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently and add about ½ cup of water if needed.

-Add the lean mince to the sauce, seasoning to your taste and continue cooking for about 15 minutes.

-Remove the plantain from the oven and let it cool for a couple of minutes.

-Make a horizontal slit in the plantain and stuff it with the mince mixture. 

And there you have it, Stuffed Baked Plantain.

Happy Eating

G 

Quinoa Jollof

I’ve always been an advocate for African food. When I decided to make 'healthy eating' part of my lifestyle, it was my mission to still eat the foods I enjoyed but just to find healthier alternatives.

Jollof Rice is one of my favourite dishes. Being Ghanaian, its something I grew up eating every week. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Jollof Rice, it is a combination of white rice, tomato, onions, scotch bonnet, seasoning and some form of animal protein (chicken or beef).

I decided to get creative and replaced white rice with Quinoa. 

For this delicious dish, you will need:

Ingredients:

4 tbsp coconut oil

1 large onions, sliced

2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes

1 red pepper, diced

4 tbsp tomato purée

¼ tsp cayenne pepper or chilli powder

1 scotch bonnett

1 tsp curry powder

1 bay leaf

1 tsp thyme

1 stock cube

2 cups of quinoa

salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 cups of water

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

Method

-Heat the oil in your pot and add the onions.

-Blend the peppers, tomatoes,  ginger and 1 cup of water to form a smooth mixture.

-Add the smooth mixture to the pot, along with the seasoning.

-Stir and let it simmer for about 20 minutes.

-Once the sauce turns into a thick mixture, add the quinoa, stirring it well on a low heat. Let it cook for about 20 minutes.

-To tell whether it's cooked, you want the sauce to be fully absorbed by the quinoa.

Happy Eating 

G

Just Geens Fresh Fruit Popsicle

Fresh Fruit Popsicle

So today is officially the first day of summer. 

What better way to enjoy the day than by having a perfect healthy fresh fruit popsicle. 

It's soooooo easy to make. All you need is fruits and your favourite juice. 

I've used 3 ingredients: blueberries, strawberries and coconut water. 

It’s the perfect way to eat fruit in summer and it’s also so refreshing. 

It’s a healthier alternative to store bough popsicles (they are full of sugar, additives and preservatives) and this version is 100% natural. 

If you don’t like coconut water, strawberries or blueberries, don’t worry! You can use the fruits and the juices you like.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups coconut water (500 ml)

½ cup blueberries (70 grams)

8 strawberries

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the blueberries and sliced strawberries in the molds and pour enough coconut water into each mold to just cover fruit. 

Freeze until solid (at least for 4 hours).

For the mold to easily loosen, rinse with lukewarm water.

Happy summer ! 

G 

Portion Control

So my mum always tells me I eat too much. My excuse and response is that I’m active so I need to eat a lot in order to keep me going. However, she might actually be right. I’ve been a serious lover of food from when I was a child and on reflection; I can honestly say that I’m quite greedy.

However, that’s all soon to change, because I’ve bought something that will help me adjust my portions.

Meet the Meal Measure …

This brilliant gadget is a plastic portion control guide that fits right over your plate. You can measure your protein, starch, vegetables and fruit for perfect portions. Each hole of the meal measurer has a 1 cup and 1/2-cup mark so you can adjust portions for your individual dietary needs.

What I really like about the Meal Measure, is the fact that you don't have to use measuring cups or scales to figure out just the right food portions for your meals. All you need is your Meal Measure, which will fit in most standard sized dinner plates. It’s easy to use, easy to clean and a handy alternative to an individual portion plate as you can use it to measure more than one meal at once.

The only thing I would say is that it is a bit over priced. I paid £15 for mine on eBay. Also, the product doesn’t come with any guidelines as to whether you should have half a cup or a full cup, but for me, a full cup is less than what I usually consume anyway, so it’s still been a massive help.
I ordered mine from eBay; however they also sell it on Amazon as well.

Using the Meal Measure has shown me how much I’ve been over eating over the years and although it’s a bit pricey, I think it’s a very good investment.  It definitely gets Just Geen’s stamp of approval.

G

Peanut Butter Punch

So I'm going through a nutty phase and for breakfast I made a delicious Peanut Butter Punch *licks lips*

Although peanut butter is high in fat, it contains good fats  which can help lower cholesterol and it is also a good source of vitamin D. It just has to be eaten in moderation.

To make this sexy drink, all you need is:

-a cup of milk of your choice (I used almond milk)

-1.5 tablespoons of peanut butter

-half a cup of crushed ice

-teaspoon of honey

To make it more filling, you can add a banana, half a cup of granola or oats.

When blending the ingredients together, add the peanut butter last so it doesn't settle at the bottom of the blender.

Try it and let me know what you think.

G

Eat Clean & Get Lean

So from 1st April until 31st May, I’ve decided to experiment with my body and food with the aim of targeting my stomach. I know some of you are rolling your eyes and thinking “oh please there’s nothing wrong with your stomach”. Well… I beg to differ! I have premature packs that want to come through and my stomach is not firm…I’m so sure it’s confused. Please don’t let the images fool you because my stomach still folds when I sit down looool.

But anyway… This is the 5^th week of switching up my diet, and I’m feeling great! A typical day for me food-wise looks like this:

Breakfast 8:00am	Fruit & Veg Smoothie
Snack 11:00am	Fruit Salad
Lunch 1:00pm	Prepared Meal (Salmon, Sweet Potato & Veg)
Snack 3:00pm	Fruits & Nuts
Pre-dinner 5:00pm (usually before gym)	Salmon Sandwich (brown bread)
Dinner  8:00pm	Prepared Meal (Chicken Breast, Quinoa & Veg)

 

Yup! It's pretty simple and I'm starting to see the benefits.

What I think has made such a difference is the little things. For example, I’ve avoided saturated fats, oils, dairy and processed sugars etc. I've not had any sweets, junk food (Ok, I’m lying … :( There was that one trip to TGI lol), additional salt or dressing on my meals. If I've needed more flavour I've opted for lemon juice.

Any fats I've consumed have been natural - from nuts and protein and any sugars have come from my fruits.

Exercise wise I haven't done much because of my knee injury. So I've been taking it easy and I've still seen a difference, so just imagine how much change will occur if I went hard on the cardio.

Remember this is just an example of what I’ve done and what has worked for ME. I know loads of people don’t like eating carbs after 7 and that’s fine… But I’ve been eating carbs after 7 and I haven’t seen any negative results. I guess it’s all about knowing what works for YOUR body.

So why not experiment for 30 days and see what results you come out with.

G

Meal Prep

Im a busy body- I leave my house at 7:30am and don’t usually get back home until 9/10pm everyday. Getting home around them times to now start cooking my meals is even longer than it sounds…so what do I do? I meal prep!

On Sundays, I cook enough Protein, Carbs & Veg to last me for the working week (Mon-Fri), put them into individual containers and keep them in the fridge. There’s no need to put the meals in the freezer because the food will still be fresh by the time Im ready to eat it.

This saves so much time and money as it allows me to avoid eating rubbish, spending money on food or skipping meals when I’m out and about during the week.

I just grab a container and ‘voilà’ …Im good to go.

Try it….meal prep for a week and see how much time and money you save.

G

Oat, Banana & Strawberry Smoothie

So I'm feeling really under the weather, to the point where I'm too weak to chew my food *sigh*

So i'll be having smoothies and soups until I feel better.

For breakfast why not try an Oat, Banana & Strawberry smoothie.

I usually make this when I don't really have time to make breakfast and it doesn't take longer than  3 minutes to make.

You will need:

1 sachet of oats

1 banana

2 tablespoons of plain Greek/ natural yogurt (optional)

1 handful of strawberries

180ml of rice milk

Teaspoon of peanut butter

Then blend all the ingredients together...and yes it is as nice as it sounds.

G

Pancake Day

So today is Pancake Day and JustGeen’s stomach will definitely be getting involved.

Along my journey, I have found that there are many different healthy ways to make pancakes and Protein Pancakes have become my favourite. Not only are they low in carb and low in fat, they are delicious!

The recipe is quite simple:

Ingredients:

• 3 table spoons of wheat flour
• 3 egg whites
• ½ cup of oats
• 2 table spoons of protein powder (optional)
• ½ teaspoon of cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
• pinch of nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons of rice milk
• 1 teaspoon of honey

Instructions

• Whisk all the ingredients into a bowl until it is lump free.
• Your pan should be warmed on a medium heat with just a little bit of olive oil or olive oil cooking spray.
• Pour your mix into the pan and cook on each side for 1-2 minutes.　

Your pancakes dont have to be topping free so why not add some strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, bananas, honey, natural yoghurt or nuts.

Bon appétit!

G