The Mug cake

For the last two nights I have been staying round 'the boys' house, and learning a lot about their little random treats...... one of them being 'The mug cake'. A great little food-invention that takes all of about 5 minutes to make, has limited washing up, and is healthy, hearty and satisfying! I wouldn't say it was the average 'boy snack', but their new found love for Paleo food has inspired them to knock up some absolute crackers.

Why is it so good for you?

Ground Almonds- For those of you who a little more familiar with the Paleo Diet, you will know the wonders of ground almonds. The texture, taste and health benefits are all positive. In just one quarter cup of ground almonds, you will be getting 6g of protein, 3g fibre, 20% of your daily magnesium needs, and around 35% of your daily vitamin E intake. Magnesium is essential for muscle function, bone health and energy needs; vitamin E improves the health of your red blood cells and infamously helps improve the quality of your skin, nails and hair. Although relatively high in fat, it is all 'healthy fat' and will keep you fuller for longer, giving you sustained energy for the rest of the day.

Bananas- High in potassium, bananas are great for lower blood pressure, ensures calcium absorption, which consequently helps to keep your bones in tip-top shape! Bananas are great for settling the stomach and maintaining the stomach's health. They trigger the production of mucus in the stomach, lining it and creating a protective barrier against stomach acids. Bananas contain an enzyme that helps to break down any 'bad bacteria' in the tummy. It is said that if you eat 4-6 bananas a week, your chances of developing cancer in the kidney decreases by an astonishing 50%!! Gobble up guys.....

Eggs- A high source of protein, eggs too will keep you fuller for longer, contain all of the 9 essential amino acids (essentially the building blocks in your body), and equip you with vitamin D (essential for the absorption of calcium and the health fo your bones, hair, skin and nails), as well as many of the B vitamins, again keeping your energy levels high and your metabolism pumping!

Ingredients:

Ripe banana

1 large egg

1 tbs linseeds

1 tbs Cacao nibs/ or chocolate chips

1/4 cup ground almonds

squeezy honey

The photos I have taken were just off of my phone so not the best quality but hopefully they are ok!!

Directions

In a mug, mash your banana up with your folk with as few lumps as possible. It goes without saying that the riper the banana the easier it will be to mash!

Crack your egg in and tip in your cacao nibs and linseeds. (sesame seeds will work just as well and by all means go for both if you have them lying around in your cupboard!) Whisk well.

Tip in your almond flour and whisk again. If you have a sweet tooth, you can put in some honey at this stage, but equally the sugar from the banana gives it a subtle sweetness!

This is roughly what your mixture should look like....

Put your mug cake in the microwave, and set it for about 2 minutes. Take it out and let it stand for around 1 minute, and then give it a final 1 minute blast. Let it stand again, the mixture will still be cooking as soon as you take it out! We microwaved it for a total of about 3 minutes but I recommend that you just keep checking it.  We used a 800W microwave so the cooking times may be a bit different also...... Ultimately you want it to look a little something like this.....

It rises a little!!

Tip it out onto a plate.....

........and squeeze over some honey. ENJOY!

Chicken and Avocado Rye Slice

Simple and uncomplicated, this recipe is fab as a started or to double the quantities for a light lunch. 

In my eyes, chicken and avocado are a match made in heaven! When I was younger, I hated 'avo' until my friends mum cooked us up a platter of chicken and avocado and I sat there looking at the green gooey slices with distaste. I forced myself the first mouthful of the dish and have loved the stuff since!

The Rye bread I used in this recipe is Biona Organic, Rye Omega 3- this bread is a little bit different to the bog standard bread you may be used to and see on the super market shelves; but I do know that most super markets in the UK will stock it either in the bread section or in the whole foods or speciality section. If not you can undoubtedly find it in a Holland and Barratt or any health food shop near by!  Give it a shot, it really is delicious, but an absolute MUST to toast it before. It changes both the flavour and the texture of the bread into something a hell of a lot better than just eating it straight out the packet!

It should be mentioned that Biona Organic also do other versions of the Rye bread; these are shown below. My other favourite is the quinoa and amaranth version (unfortunately this one isn't shown in the picture below)!

Ingredients: (serves 2 as a starter or one as a light lunch)

3 chicken tenderloins

1tbsp oilve oil

1/2 ripe avocado

1 slice of biona Rye bread

sun dried tomatoes, sliced in half

balsamic glaze

salt and pepper to season

Rocket to garnish

Directions:

In a pan, add olive oil and begin to pan fry your chicken tenders. Once almost cooked through, grab a sharp knife and fork and butterfly (slice down the length of your tender) your chicken. Put it back in the pan to finish off cooking. Once finished, set aside. Equally, if you have some left over chicken in the fridge, this is a great recipe to use this up!

Meanwhile, chop your bread in half and whack it in the toaster. In my experience rye bread takes longer to toast. This may be because it is more dense than usual bread?....But we could leave that assumption to the scientists...

With your Avocado, get your fork and slightly mash it in its case. Alternatively you can do this in a bowl if you feel you need a bit more strength to mash (mine was super ripe so it was quite easy to do just in my hand!)

Place a slice of your toasted rye bread (should be very crispy and slightly browned) onto a plate; spread on your mashed avocado, and layer your pan-fried chicken on top. Sprinkle with some salt and peper if you feel it needs some. Assemble your Rocket and Sun-dried tomatoes on the top, and slowly drizzle with some balsamic glaze.

Serve and enjoy!