Low Fat Chocolate and Raspberry Muffins

I have a cold. I need nourishment! I've had an up and down day, I've felt pretty crappy, and have stayed in my PJs - its 4:30pm. I need chocolate, antioxidants, something baked. I have some great chocolate, and cocoa nibs, and I'm going to use them!

I went on a trip down to Margaret River recently and paid Gabriels Chocolates a visit. They were the very first single origin bean to bar chocolate maker in WA, and a visit to their factory in Yallingup is worth it!

When you walk in the first thing you notice is the smell - it's awesome! You can try their chocolates, read the tasting notes on the back of the packet, see the cocoa beans and nibble on the crushed cocoa nibs. 

The woman working there has told us cocoa nibs has 300 times the amount of antioxidants than blueberries! That is crazy good for you! I grabbed a bag straight away! A quick google confirms the cocoa nibs status as a superfood - its all over the place. They taste very slightly chocolately, nutty with a hint of bitterness. 

I also grabbed a 3 pack of their dark chocolates, all 72% - their highest was 85%! I can imagine that being amazing in a sauce over game meats or a steak in winter!

Steve and I had cracked open the blue one to eat a few bits, and so today while my body was having a battle with the flu, I decided that there was nothing else for it than something baked with chocolate. Something easy, something that required only what I had in the cupboard. Muffins.

I looked for a bunch of recipes, and eventually David from Food Blarg sent me a really basic Stephanie Alexander recipe which I pimped out with inspiration from Kirbie's Cravings and her post on the best chocolate muffins! They turned out really well, considering I forgot to put the oil in. That's what made them fat free! They're pretty grown up muffins, they're not that sweet because of the dark chocolate, paired with the cocoa nibs - and I only added about 1/4 cup of sugar. So they're actually pretty good for you! If you used spelt flour or something similar it would be even better!

I decided to use the Rio Caribe, from Venezuela - 72% chocolate, with flavours of coffee, almonds, red fruits and pure cocoa.

The hot chocolate mix I used was a spanish one I got from Kakulas Sisters in Fremantle. Its in a beautiful tin and tastes amazing! Its got  a bit of sugar and vanilla in it too.

Ingredients

Makes 6 large, or 12 mini muffins

1 cup of SR flour
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 egg

1/2 tsp salt

40g of high quality chocolate (I used 72%), chopped

2 heaped tsp of good quality hot chocolate mix 

5 or 6 frozen raspberries

oats for garnish

cocoa nibs for garnish


NOTE: I would also add vanilla (I didn't have any), and for a yummy twist, omit the raspberry and add some instant coffee and cinnamon - finish it off with a coffee glaze for a spiced mocha muffin!

Method

1) Preheat oven to about 180C, grease your muffin tin. 

2) Mix all dry ingredients into your mixer.

3) In a seperate bowl mix all the wet ingredients together, then add to the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

4) Add the chopped chocolate, and crumble in the frozen raspberries.

5) Pour the (very runny!) mix into the muffin tins, pretty close to the top, and sprinkle the top with a tsp of cocoa nibs and oats.

6) Bake the muffins for about 30-40mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.

7) Leave them to cool in the tin until they're manageable and then allow to cool on a tray.

Eat with guilt free pleasure!

Griddled lamb with chunky tomato salsa - Jamie Oliver

I rode 12km on my bike today. To those who bike all the time, I know thats not actually very much, especially on flat bike paths around a lake. But still, in 2011 I have massively overindulged and not exercised nearly enough so now is the time that I've decided to get in shape (even though round IS a shape...).


So, 12km later I get home, knackered with sore legs. Have a choice between dishes and cooking dinner - the choice is obvious. Cook! I had thumbed through Jamie Olivers Ministry of Food earlier in the day and found a super easy recipe for lamb with salsa, it looked great, we had everything the recipe required and it was fast. Its also low carb, low fat (depending on the cut of lamb you use - we used lean steaks) and you'll definitely get a chunk of your 5 a day! An everyday meal that will take you less than 30 minutes from chopping board to plate!

Griddled Lamb Chops with Chunky Salsa


Ingredients
1/2 - 1 whole chilli (to taste)
2 large ripe tomatoes
1 red pepper
a bunch of fresh basil (DONT skip this, it gives SO much flavour)
4-6 lamb chops (depending on size, we had 6 small steaks)
olive oil
sea salt and pepper
extra virgin olive oil
splash of red wine vinegar (I used white, ran out of red!)


Method
1) Heat your griddle pan on high and let it get screaming hot. Meanwhile halve your chilli (deseed it if you like), chop tomatoes in half, deseed and chop the peppers, tear/chop the basil, and season your meat.


2) If you have fat on the edges of your cuts of lamb then put that side on the pan first to crisp it up (you'll have to hold it there) for about a minute, then lay the chops down, and press them down for a minute till brown and crispy. Cook the chops for 4-5 minutes in total, turning them every minute or so and pressing them each time. 


3) Take the chops out and rest them on a plate. Turn the heat down a bit, and add the veges to the pan, and stir them for a minute, making sure you get all the brown caramelised goodness from the pan. Cook the veges until they soften and release some of their juices, and add in a splash of red wine vinegar (I used white wine vinegar because thats all I had in the house) and cook the salsa down until it's to a consistency that you like, and add the basil.


4) Pour the juices from the rested meat into the pan with the salsa, and stir to combine. Pour the salsa onto a plate and top with the lamb.

I crumbled some fetta onto my lamb and it was amazing - this is definitely going to be a regular meal at our place from now on. Its SO fast, really healthy, low fat, low carb, the lot! Proper everyday food! We had it with some leftover salad from last night and a couple of boiled potatoes, to soak up the rest of the sauce.


To make this even faster, I used garlic oil, and chilli oil. Super fast. Its not much to look at really, but the flavour is fantastic!


MAKE THIS! It's so tasty, fast, simple, healthy!