* Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce {Fat Free}

I'm still in a constant war with my weight, but I've finally begun to win more battles than I lose. You can probably tell by the fact that I've been labeling my recipes with Slimming World Syns rather than calories or points... that I have given the Slimming World WOE (Way Of Eating) a go... and so far so good... kind of - I have friends that have lost double the amount of weight that I have in half the time but I honestly don't care because this time it's staying off... again - kind of.

Most slimming world recipes drop cooking fats/oils and full fat products such as coconut milk, mayonnaise etc in favour of low cal sprays and low fat product alternatives, plus they don't tend to use any type of cream or butter and these have been my main concessions. I gave the fat free natural yogurt, fromage frais and quark a shot for a month or so in quite a few recipes - and hated them so have found alternatives. I'm not combining frog spit with calves ear lobes (not that that's what Slimming World is), so rest easy that all you have to do to unslimmingworld my recipes (currently) - is to swap back in the cooking fat/oil and full fat products... if that's what floats your boat. Personally my boat had stopped floating because it was weighed down with so much arse and I'm not getting any younger despite not telling anyone when my birthday is. Apparently, the fact that they don't know - doesn't mean it doesn't happen. Who knew??!!??

This Easy Homemade Enchilada Sauce (Did you see what I did there? I bolded it... in case you forgot why you were here... I know I did.) came about because I was looking for a recipe to use up some rice and came across quite a few recipes for enchilada rice casseroles... I decided to make my own enchilada sauce to go in one because of the whole "boat that doesn't float" thing (plus I don't like jarred sauces) and it was scrumptious.

It was also easier than bunging on a pair of flip flops and flipflopping down the road to Sainsbury in the pouring rain. Those buggers get slippy when they're wet and I'm not ready to swap them for welly boots just yet. Plus Summer. It is still Summer. Until September 21st. The planet might not know it, because apparently it no longer takes any notice of The Calendar (wish my birthday didn't)... but it is.... still... Summer...

Kind of.

* Smoky Sausage and Beans

I started this post with the pre-requisite "This Smoky Sausage and Beans.... yadayada" and got bored before the first punctuation mark. You can read the recipe then... maybe even cook it... to find out just how yummy it is, but it'll have to sell itself because today my legs feel like jelly  -which is far more important (and apparently affecting my ability to concentrate)...

... My legs feel like jelly because I walked a million miles yesterday in the pursuit of a Curly Wurly Thick Shake from The Terrace Cafe/Bar on Plymouth Hoe... and a packet of Cornish Clotted Cream Fudge from the Barbican.

After consuming both (and a panini - go me) within a one hour time slot I confess to feeling a little bit sick and a lot guilty. I hate feeling guilty about being indulgent - so I came home, knackered myself on the exercise bike then dragged my Boldest and her Bairn out for a bimble around the neighbourhood... then this morning I got on the exercise bike again.

In a minute I'm off out with Boldest, her Bairn and my Little Man for a stroll along the Cornish Coast from Lantic Bay to Polruan... where no doubt another panini awaits. I'm not sure I'll be able to stand upright by the end of the day.

If there's a fudge shop in Polruan I'm selling the bike when I get home.

* Hot Smoked Salmon Kedgeree Stir Fry

I LOVE Hot Smoked Salmon. I have a hard time not eating it straight out of the fridge, with only my fingers for garnish. You can't disguise the fact that you've just raided the fridge and helped yourself to a rather large flake of the stuff, because it's quite strong smelling in it's smokiness. So I leave the fridge foraging for when no one is home and the windows are wide open... and for when I've locked the cat in the garage. If I don't lock the cat in the garage he comes charging in through the cat flap at the first whiff - meowing "CHRISTMAS" at top volume.

This Hot Smoked Salmon Kedgeree Stir Fry was born of a want for kedgeree and pure unadulterated laziness. I can't be bothered to cook up a storm most mornings and I want my first meal of the day to take as little time as possible to prepare so that I can stuff my face in a leisurely fashion and enjoy a pint of coffee whilst I wake up... plus - I don't like egg white. Kedgeree usually involves egg of some description. Boiled, poached or fried depending on the person cooking it. I honestly wish I could stand the texture of egg white because I would love to try Eggs Benedict or Huevos Rancheros but after 44 years it just ain't gonna happen. So I tend to stir a whole beaten egg into my kedgeree as a substitute and it works better with the stir fry method than any other...

... and there's that whole need for speed thing...

* Beef Rendang

This Beef Rendang has been lightened up by omitting the cooking oil at the beginning. It's a recipe that I adapted to be slightly more Slimming World Friendly and to suit my own taste buds. I've deseeded the chilli and added in chilli powder because it allows me more control over the amount of heat in the dish - but by all means leave the seeds in if you like the major burn that a fresh chilli can produce...

So... this could become a *thing* again (blogging). Well, for a little a while any way - at least until I spot a new shiny and chase it, whatever it may be.

I honestly thought I'd never blog a food recipe again - though I have kept my friends entertained (bored shitless) with photos of my experiments on my personal facebook page - I chucked all of my accumulated food props out when we moved home a year ago - including my beloved and much worn bread board that I used in the majority of my food photos. I also lost my beautiful desktop and pricey photo/paint program when The Little Man in our lives downloaded so much crap onto my pc that it kind of imploded.

He's not allowed on this one. It's not all singing and dancing like the last one... but if he breathes on it, I may kill him.

So... I'm going to *wing it* on the photo front for a bit and see how it goes - hopefully I won't put anything that resembles a pile of puke with rice, up for your perusal...

Oh... wait...

* Sweet Lamb and Chickpea Casserole

I'm just going to leave this here... and pretend that I have been updating this blog on a regular basis over the past three years, that my food photography skills have vastly improved (hahahahahaaaa), that I totally planned this and didn't actually just take a random photo of my cooking and think "Dammit I'm never going to remember this recipe unless I write it down... where can I put it so that I don't lose it?"

Perhaps if I slope quietly off into the ether that is my life, I'll get away with it... Not that I'm expecting some sort of hidden fan base to suddenly arrive and start crying with joy - though maaan that would feed the ego somewhat (it has shrunk in recent years to size of a small barge - it no longer has it's own seat at the table and even gave up the spare bed at some point when I wasn't looking).

This Sweet Lamb and Chickpea Casserole is the most recent recipe I have converted to as low fat as I can handle in my never ending endeavour to drop a dress size. I've probably lost the same 10lbs a million times over in the past three years. I blame wine.. and the husband, of course.

Should you stumble back across my path after all this time and decide to give this recipe a shot - I hope you enjoy it. Please excuse my less than professional photo - my camera got destroyed by sand in the lens a few years back whilst on holiday in Crete and I never bothered to replace it. I'm still working out how to get the best out of my S7's built in camera...

... and the rest of my life ;-)